Oil White Mustard. 
359 
the land after being once ploughed up. The black is dangerous 
to introduce, as it has been known to remain in the soil for ages. 
I do not mean to assert that any person has a right to expect 
a crop of mustard on thin, poor, worn-out land without manure; 
he may as well go for a day's shooting without poicder ! 
Druce Farm, Dorchester, Dorset, 
November 21th, 1844. 
Dear Sir, — From your report on the growth of white mustard for feed, 
I was induced to try it. ^ly first experiment was on one acre of very 
light, thin surface-soil, subsoil white chalk ; this land had been previ- 
ously occupied by a tenant who quitted it at Michaelmas, 1843, having 
taken wheat and oats consecutively as his two last crops. I made a 
clean fallow with thrice ploughing, &c., and without manure — sowed 
broadcast 161b. of mustard on the 22nd of July last j and on Sep- 
tember 2nd — six weeks from the dav of sowing {scarcely a drop of 
rain during the ichole period)— folded it ofi' with about 300 ewes. On 
commencing the first fold the ewes appeared dissatisfied, so much so 
that my shepherd said it would he useless to sow any more, as the 
sheep ei-zWew^/y disliked it; however, on the following morning every 
stalk was eaten bare to the ground, and ever after it was consumed as 
quickly and eagerly as any other greeu crop. Being so well satisfied 
with this experiment, I was inducea to try it again in comparison with 
rape, to be fed ofl by sheej), as preparation for wheat. The land sown 
was a very thin soil, scarcely three inches, subsoil hard white chalk; 
the field was harvested in 1843, with oats after ley, winter tares follow- 
ing the oats — tares fed oft' by sheep in June and July, 1844 ; then 
ploughed and dressed with a light coat of farm-yard manure, and sown 
with rape, except about three acres, which I again sowed broadcast with 
mustard on the same day as the rape was sown alongside, both having 
had exactly the same dressing and previous cultivation for years back, 
and no difference in the quality of the soil. The mustard was folded 
with sheep exactly one month from my sowing, and ought to have been 
begun a week earlier, as one-half of the quantity sown was too old before 
the sheep could jMssibly eat it. The produce per acre was considerably 
more than the rape, giving far more nutritious food, without the dan- 
gerous and injurious properties belonging to the latter, and was full 
three weeks earlier in its growth. In the spring I shall sow mustard 
for early feed, both for cattle and sheep — most probably in my late 
wheat stubbles, intended for turnips. 
I beg to remain, 
Your obedient servant, 
EdwaivU Hale. 
Humbledon Manor Farm, Horndean, Hants, 
November 20th, 1844. 
