Derby Prize-Farm Competition, 1881. 
4G7 
year, and of all the corn crops wheat appears to be the least in 
general favour. Less is grown than formerly, but the wheat we 
saw, being well farmed, promised to be a good and, in a few 
instances, a great yield. Barley appears the most paying cereal. 
When planted early, great crops are grown, and when well 
harvested is a beautiful malting sample, and, lying near the 
celebrated Burton breweries, always commands a ready sale at 
high prices. We only found one instance in which last year's 
barley was sold for less than 40s. a quarter, a figure that appeared 
fabulous to the growers of barley in the eastern counties, where 
prices ranged from 225. to 345. Upon many farms the price of 
barley had averaged from 42s. to 445. per quarter for many years, 
proving the prime quality of the grain produced. Oats are a 
favourite corn crop, but this year they are the worst cereal 
grown. Peas and beans are going out of fashion, but potatoes 
are somewhat extensively grown, and nothing could exceed their 
luxuriant and healthy appearance this summer. Coming as we 
did from different parts of the kingdom, it struck us that Derby- 
shire was favoured with a singularly good season, and that the 
weather was more propitious there than elsewhere. The great 
heat was always followed by copious rains, and the pastures, 
which were burnt up in some localities, always had a green hue 
and afforded a nice sweet bite for the cattle all through the year. 
Insect life was very active this spring, despite the severity of 
the winter. A tiresome tiny maggot attacked the stem of the oats 
soon after it was above ground, and penetrating its inner case, 
cut off the shoot which should have produced the ear. The 
plant for a time looked dead, but subsequently made an effort to 
recover itself, and put forth a number of minute, faint stems, 
many of which produced a diminutive ear. The result of the 
attacks of this insect had a most damaging effect upon the oat- 
crop, and helped to give it that ragged appearance which was so 
common this year, but which was especially noticeable upon the 
first-prize farm. We noticed the ravages of this tiresome insect 
some five or six years ago, but it was not until this season that 
its depredations have been so extensive. About twenty years 
ago attention was first called to that comparatively new pest, the 
mangold-wurzel fly (^Antliomyia hetce). In some localities its 
visits have been more or less frequent ever since, but last year it 
spread over a much larger area, and in both 1880 and 1881 
many acres had to be ploughed up because of its destructive 
habits. The fly has two wings, is ashy grey with darker mark- 
ings and black bristly hairs, and is quite half an inch across 
the spread of its wings. It makes its first appearance from 
March to May, but there are two broods in general, and in this 
dry year more than two. The eggs are white, and a microscope 
