122 Report of Experiments on the Growth of Wlieat. 
Bad as was the result obtained in the experimental field in 
1852, it was very much worse in 1853 ; indeed, it was, in the 
latter year, the worst in almost every particular throughout the 
whole 20 years of the experiments. 
Without manure, with farmyard manure, and with the different 
artificial manures, the produce of grain was considerably less, 
and the quality worse, than in any other year. The season was 
very unfavourable for the action of ammonia-salts, especially so 
far as the production of grain was concerned ; though, as in 
1852, there was a considerable growth of straw under the influ- 
ence of the heavier ammoniacal dressings. The weight per 
bushel of dressed corn was extraordinarily low ; being in several 
instances below, and in none much above 50 lbs. 
Eleventh Season, 1853-4. 
The latter end of October, and November (1853), were gene- 
rally favourable ; December, and January and February (1854), 
were upon the whole unusually severe, with a good deal of snow, 
excepting that the middle and latter part of January, and the 
end of February, were comparatively mild and fine ; March and 
the greater part of April were very fine, but at the end of the 
latter month there was unusually severe frost for the period, and 
a good deal of cold north wind ; May was variable, generally 
cold, and backward, with a good deal of rain ; June was gene- 
rally fine, but cold ; the first half of July was also cold with a 
moderate amount of rain, then came a week or two of fine hot 
weather, which was succeeded by thunder-storms and heavy 
rain ; the beginning of August was wet, the middle fine though 
not warm, but the end dry and hot ; September was almost 
throughout fine and favourable for getting in the crops, with 
high day, though low night temperatures. In June, July, August, 
and September, the dew-point was below the average ; and the 
degree of humidity of the air was, in June above, in July about, 
and in August and September below the average. 
Upon the whole, then, the period of seed time had been 
favourable ; the winter was unusually severe ; the early spring 
favourable, but succeeded by cold and unseasonable weather until 
the middle of July, from which time, however, until harvest, the 
period, though changeable, embraced some fine maturing and 
harvest weather. 
With these characteristics, by no means continuously favour- 
able, the harvest of 1854, though late, was, particularly so far 
as wheat was concerned, one of the largest yield per acre for 
many years past. 
