282 
On different Varieties of J'VJieat. 
hy me in the growth of wheat: the first was in 1844, and the 
second last year, 1847. The soil of this district, viz., the 
Lincolnshire Marshes, consists principally of a loamy clay on a 
strong tenacious clay subsoil, and is what is generally termed a 
good wheat and bean soil. The old system of cropping used 
to be wheat, beans, and a naked fallow, manured for wheat 
again; drainage generally very bad; the consequence was, that 
the average yield of the wheat-crops did not exceed from 24 to 
28 bushels per acre. The general drainage of the country has* 
of late years, been so much improved, that thorough draining can 
be effected where before it was quite impracticable, and the 
tithes, which before were a great barrier to the plough, are for 
the most part commuted — consequently large breadths of old 
grass-land are being taken up, which of late years had been very 
unprofitable, and will now produce abundance of corn. This, 
together with a greatly improved cultivation of the old arable 
land, is rapidly increasing the produce of this country, which is 
still capable of a much further increase, if tenants would generally 
employ more capital, and landlords would give up their predilec- 
tions for poor grass land. On this point 1 am happy to say we 
improve, although still very much remains to be done. On most 
of my land I grow wheat, alternately with roots or leguminous 
crops; and I find that, with the land being now laid dry, and im- 
proved cultivation, my crops have greatly increased, as will be seen 
by the following statement. In 1844, I had planted in the same 
field twenty-six varieties of the best wheats I could procure ; 
these were carefully put into the ground by hand, after a crop of 
rape eaten off with sheep ; eight of these varieties were white 
wheats, the remainder red. In all the white sorts there was a 
considerable quantity of smut, two or three of the finer sorts being 
much the worst ; whereas aiyongst the red only three cases 
occurred, and two of those only very slightly affected with smut. 
From those that were free I selected of the best, and subjoin 
the result : — 
Bush. 
Pks. 
lbs. 
1. Marigold 
. 56 
3 per acre 
63 per 
bushel. 
2. Bristol Red . 
. 48 
0 
62i 
> > 
3. Holderness White-CliafF . 
. 49 
2 
62* 
> > 
4. Britannia 
. 40 
1 
62 
> > 
5. Spalding's 
. 40 
62 
> > 
6. London Red . 
. 39 
3 
63i 
7. Creeping 
. 41 
1 
63i 
' > 
8. Cluster 
. 47 
63 
3 > 
9. Clover's 
. 41 
1 
63i 
» 5 
10. Syer's 
. 46 
2 
61 
5 J 
11. Soothy's 
. 50 
1 
56 
J ' 
12. Egyptian Mummy 
. 45 
0 
62 
5 » 
