158 



HOEING. 



plants and innumerable gaps appearing througliout the, 

 whole line of the fence, interspersed with others remarkable 

 for their strength and luxuriance. 



" This assorting of hedge-plants has another advantage, 

 namely, that of putting it in the power of the person, who 

 plants the hedge, to put down the large, strong, healthy- 

 plants upon the poorest parts of the line of fence, and to set 

 such as are smaller and weaker upon the richer and more 

 fertile parts. He has it also in his power, by a more care- 

 ful preparation of the soil, and bestowing a greater propor- 

 tion of manure on the places where the plants are set, to 

 give them that nourishment and assistance which they 

 require, and which would very soon enable them to form a 

 fence equal to that part occupied by the strongest plants." 



Hedges may be of various kinds, such as the single hedge 

 and ditch ; the hedge and bank ; the level hedge, &c. ; of 

 which, descriptions may be found in Loudon's Encyclopediai 

 of Agriculture J and other books of husbandry. 1 



It is often found necessary to plash or interweave thei 

 branches of hedges. Some advise to cut off the tops, or 

 head them down to about three feet, or three feet and a 

 half from the ground, when the plants are about four years 

 old, &c. &c. See Loudori's Encyc, of Agr. ; Farmer'^s As- 

 sistant ; Willich'^s Dom, Encyc. ; Mem, of N. Y, Board oj 

 Agr. vol. ii. p. 161. 



A writer in the Mass. Agr. Rep. says, " The best plant 

 for hedges, so far as the experience of one of our cultiva- 

 tors, Ezekiel H. Derby, will go, and he has tried it for 

 many years, is the buckthorn. It makes a close, beautiful 

 hedge, and is not subject to any disease, nor the depreda- 

 tions of any devourer, so far as we yet know." See art. 

 Buckthorn, p. 56. 



HOEING. — The ends to be answered by hoeing are 

 chiefly these: — 1. To destroy weeds, which are always 

 re£»dy to spring up in every soil, and which would rob the 

 cultivated plants of most of their food. Scraping the sur- 

 face, if it be done frequently, may answer this purpose ; but 

 to destroy the roots of weeds, deeper hoeing is necessary. — 

 2. To keep the soil from becoming too compact, which 

 prevents the roots from extending themselves freely in 

 search of their food ; at the same time keeping up a fer- 

 mentation, by which the vegetable food is concocted, and 

 brought into contact with the roots. For this purpose, tha 

 deeper land is hoed, the better. But hoeing should cease, 

 or be oalv superficiaK when the roots are so far expended 



