( 7G ) 
VI. — On Horse-Iioeing Flat-drilled Turnips. 
By Pii. PusEY, M.P. 
Having lately ventured to express an opinion, founded on the 
experience of South-country farmers, that the system of growing; 
turnips upon raised ridges, however well adapted to Scotland and 
to the North of England, could not be universally used in the 
South, T am glad to find that view strengthened by the paper of 
Mr. Almack, which enters indeed so fully into the whole subject, 
that I should not now have added one word, but from the desire 
of calling attention to an implement which removes one great 
disadvantage of llat-drilling, I mean the want of a horse-hoe, and 
may, I hope, enable us to remove the chief blot from Soutli- 
country farming, our broad-cast fields of straggling turnips. 
Mr. Almack intimates that, since the dry summer of 182G, the 
ridging of turnips has diminished in Yorkshire, at least upon 
shallow soils. I should rather have anticipated that the climate 
of Yorkshire would have produced a conformity of practice with 
Scotland ; but it must be remembered that, besides the difference 
of heat and cold arising from situation towards the north or the 
south, there is a very great difference in the quantity of rain 
which falls on the eastern or western coast of this island. In 
Cumberland, I believe, the average quantity of water falling in 
rain doubles the general average of England. Lancashire again is 
a rainy county, and hence, though it is in the same latitude with 
Yorkshire, the ridge-system I believe answers there. It is not, 
however, the mere quantity of rain that may assist the growth of 
the turnip on our western coast. Even though the amount of 
water which falls in the year be the same, it rains there, I believe, 
oftener ; and the same quantity of water being thus distributed 
more equally, preserves the ground from being thoroughly parched. 
There is also, I believe, more invisible vapour dissolved in the air 
towards the west coast ; and besides these differences, the sky, 
even on fine days, is more covered with a general canopy of light 
cloud, which alone would preserve the turnip from the mildew 
produced even by one day of glaring sunshine, when its root is at 
all dry. But at all events there is now no doubt that in many 
parts of England the turnips, if drilled at all, should be drilled 
flat ; at present they are sown broadcast in many of the southern 
counties, and of course cannot be horse-hoed : now the expense of 
hand-hoeing turnips is a heavy item ; it cannot be done less than 
twice, which at 5^. for each hoeing, comes to 10s. the acre ; some- 
limes it must be done three times, which may cost 14s. the acre : 
and besides the expense of hand-hoeing turnips there is often a 
difficulty in procuring workmen at the right time, particularly if 
the harvest be early. Last July I remember seeing twenty men 
