British Crops of 1898. 



435 



crop. Wales had relatively a better return, as compared 

 with the decennial average, than any other part ot Great 

 Britain. 



The present importance of the Potato crop to British 

 farmers, referred to in the last number ot the Journal, renders 

 it satisfactory to note that the estimate for 1898 exceeded 

 the average yield per acre by nearly half a ton. There was, 

 however, a considerable amount of local irregularity. In 

 England, it is true, the excess of the yield was only one-fifth 

 of a ton per acre above the average, and in Wales the yield 

 was slightly under average ; but in Scotland, where a fourth 

 of the potato acreage is found, it was over average by more 

 than a ton per acre. Diversity of results will be even more 

 apparent in the returns from individual counties when they 

 are available for examination ; but it may be noted that in 

 the two English counties — Lincoln and Lancaster — possessing 

 the largest potato acreage the crop was a good one, and in 

 only two of the Scotch counties did it fall below the 

 average. The improvement in the Scotch crop of 1898 as 

 compared with 1897 is specially noticeable. 



Potatoes. 



Estimated Total 

 Produce. 



Estimated Yield 

 per Acre. 



Average 



Yield 

 per Acre. 















1898. 



1897. 



1898. 



1897. 



1888-97. 





Tons. 



Tons. 



Tons. 



Tons. 



Tons. 



England 



2,256,000 



1,896,000 



6-17 



5-38 



5-97 



Wales - 



185,000 



166,000 



5-62 



5-IO 



5-64 



Scotland 



842,000 



546,000 



6.66 



4-55 





Great Britain 



3,283,000 



2,608,000 



6-26 



5-17 







5-85 



The diminished yield of the Turnip and Swede crop in 

 1898 was the principal blot upon the record of the year's 

 productiveness. It is necessary to go back to 1887 to find so 

 low a return for Great Britain as the twelve tons per acre 

 shown by the Produce Returns of this season. In certain 

 parts of the country, indeed, the root crop might almost be 



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