Experiments on Transplanting Man/jokl. 
223 
having awarded me the first prize for 40 tons 17 cwts. IG lbs. per 
acre, without the tops. 
In 1860 1 pLanted two acres; the plants, however, were not 
properly raised. It happened also that the season was very wet, 
and the land undrained ; so that no attempt was made to weigh 
the produce separately. Some, however, that were put in bclore 
the great fall of rain, succeeded very well. 
The spring and early summer of 18G1 were as remarkable here 
for dryness as 1860 had been for wetness, scarcely any rain having 
fallen here from the middle of April to the middle of June, 
The consequence of this was a failure of the general crop ot 
manjrold, there not beins: moisture sufficient to make the seeds 
vegetate. With the transplanted, however, the result was far 
otherwise. One row was reserved unsown, as in 1859, and was 
not planted, owing to the continued drought, till the very end of 
May. On this occasion they were set at 15 inches apart, and 
27 inches from row to row. Of 625 plants put in, three were 
ploughed out in making water-furrows ; and on the 31st of 
October, 620 roots were taken up, weighing 318 stones 6 lbs ; or, 
allowing for the three ploughed out on the avei'age of the rest, 
just 50 tons per acre. Owing to the failure of plant from the 
drought, the crop in this neighbourhood was generally deficient. 
The crop of transplanted last year was comparatively inferior ; 
that is, it was not so much better than the sown as in other years. 
It was planted by itself, on 30 rods of an old car (or copse), from 
which ash-trees and alder-stubs had just been removed, and the 
only manure used was a small quantity of artificial. The pro- 
duce was 2471 roots, weighing 6 tons 7^ cwts., or at the rate of 
about 35f tons per acre. This was about 2 tons more than the 
best two acres sown on my own farm, and about equal to the 
crop that took the first prize of the Hadleigh Club. 
Such having been the results of growing mangold by trans- 
planting, it may be asked, do I recommend that the whole crop 
on the farm should be grown in that way ? My answer is ready ; 
I do not recommend what I know I should experience great diffi- 
culty in carrying out. My own plan, to which transplanting is 
a valuable accompaniment, is to dibble the seed with a dibbling- 
wheel, invented for the purpose. Of these I have two, one 3 feet 
9 inches, the other 4 feet 2 inches, in circumference ; the first 
having three dibbles, and the second four. The dibbles, instead 
of being cone-shaped, resemble the small ends of so many wedges 
3 inches broad, bent lengthways on the iron tire. The children 
in dropping are directed to scatter the seeds along the hole, by 
which means the plant which is left is not so likely to be dis- 
turbed in singling, and the singling is more easily performed. 
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