The Berkshire Farm Prize Competition, 1882. 541 
November. Nine pecks of seed is the quantity per acre, in 
rows 8 J inches apart, or 12 rows on each land, none being 
drilled in the furrows. The barley is Webb's Pedigree Selec- 
tion, and the oats White Waterloo ; the latter received 30 bushels 
of soot per acre. 
Three kinds of trifolium are used, the early and late red, and 
late white, with a seeding of from 30 to 40 lbs. 
Spring beans and maple peas are drilled 14 inches apart, 
the former at the rate of 3 bushels, and the latter at 3^ bushels 
per acre. 
For mangolds the ground is prepared by once ploughing 
and subsoiling, with a heavy dressing of farmyard-dung, G cwt. 
of bones, and 3 cwt. of salt. 
Cabbage and turnips are dunged for in the same way, and 
get an extra ploughing in lieu of subsoiling ; and home-made 
compost from earth-closets and hen-houses is drilled with the 
seed. 
The crops this year consist of 52 acres wheat, 8^ barley, 
9 oats, 15 peas, 12 spring beans, 19 vetches and trifolium, 
10^ mangold ; and 12^ swedes, turnips, and cabbage, in about 
equal proportion. 
Nine acres of wheat on the heavier land at the most remote 
part of the farm follows a previous crop of the same grain ; this 
has been done to equalise the acreage and bring it into rotation. 
To meet the case, a crop of mustard had been ploughed in, and 
• iO bushels of soot applied, and it had been twice hand-hoed. 
This crop was somewhat root-fallen, detracting in this instance 
from the level abundance presented by all the other wheat, and 
which Mr. Ratclift regarded with commendable pride and 
satisfaction. 
The spring beans and maple peas were of most luxuriant 
growth, full of blossom and kids, free from fly and remarkably 
clean ; at the time of our second visit on the 20th of April, they 
were undergoing a hand-hoeing at bs. per acre, after which the 
vigour of the crop was quite sufficient to prevent the growth of 
weeds. The barley was a nice upstanding crop with lengthy 
ears, and the oats looked strong and robust with an appearance 
of quality. 
Trifolium and vetches were heavy crops ; the cutting of the 
former for cattle commenced on the 10th May, and continued 
up to July 15th ; on our last visit the land, from which 6 J acres 
'.lad been consumed in this way, was broken up, scarified, and 
cleaned ready for a crop of white turnips. 
The early drum-head cabbage had made rapid growth from 
April 20th to the time of our last visit ; and the swedes and 
white turnips at that time were about all set out singly, showing 
