402 
The Winter of 1885-86. 
" 6. My silage turned out good. I fed dairy cows on it, and had increased 
my supply of milk thereby ; I should say about 1 lb. more butter per cow 
per week than I should otherwise have had. Ewes and lambs did well on it 
with other food. 
" 9. Bad season, aggravated by farmers being ' hard up.' 
"10. In future, hay and straw must be stocked in large quantities, to 
enable farmers to take advantage of low markets for buying and high for 
selling." 
Lord Poltimore, Poltimore Park, near Exeter, Devonshire : 
" 1. Mostly pasture, heavy loam ?nd clay, and a little light sandy land. 
" 2. The summer was a good one for hay and cereals, but the drought in 
the autumn was bad for turnips. The winter was long and cold, and the 
spring the same. 
" 3. Excellent crop of mangolds, but an indifferent one of swedes, which 
were much damaged by fly and maggot. 
" 4. Mangolds lasted till June 1886, and we laid up grass for ewes and 
lambs, and fattened off wethers on young grass sown among wheat in spring. 
" 5. No. Our vetches, trifolium, and young grasses are very good. 
" 6. No. Have always been successful with our hay. 
" 7. Very little. No. 
" 9. Our markets were not cleared to the usual extent of barreners and other 
grazing animals, owing to the shortness of grass and the bad prospect of 
swedes and common turnips; and these as well as sheep remained on hand, 
and glutted our market for some months. 
" 10. Not to overstock your farm ; to farm well so as to secure a good crop 
of roots at all times ; and well top-dress trifolium and vetches, of which we 
have always a good croj)." 
Mr. W. H. Tremaine, Grampound Road, Cornwall : 
" 1. Soil light, and climate moist. 
" 2. The summer of 1885 was rather favourable for the growing crops up 
to the first week in harvest ; then we had a continuation of wind and rain for 
many weeks ; consequently a good deal of corn standing in stacks was much 
damaged, and harvest operations were very much hindered. The winter could 
not have been so severe here as in many jjarts of England, and the spring of 
1886 was one of the most favourable we have had for many years. 
" 3. Eoot-crops generally up to the average. 
" 4. Had abundance of hay, straw, turnips, swedes, mangolds, and cabbages, 
and most farmers were able to keep their sheep and cattle well supplied until 
the middle of May. 
"6. No. 
" 7. Hedges supply shelter, these being from 5 to 7 feet high, and placed 
round enclosures of from 5 to 10 acres. 
" 9. Importation of foreign cattle." 
No. 4 Division. 
Mr. S. P. Foster, Killhow, Mealgate, Carlisle, Cumberland : 
" 1. Chiefly limestone subsoil, chalk land rather heavy, not real barley 
land; both generally will grow turnips pretty well if properly worked. 
Climate moist. Old pasture on limestone subsoil very good. 
" 2. No fault with summer and autumn of 1885. Winter very long and 
cold. Spring of 18SG very late. No corn sown before April 20th. But few 
turnips sown yet, May 31. 
