184 
Destruction  of  the  Wire-worm. 
no  substance  into  which  they  can  eat  their  way.  Perceiving  that 
a satisfactory  result  was  being  attained  in  the  first  field  to  which 
the  cake  was  applied,  Mr.  Charnock  took  up  and  examined  many 
of  the  lumps,  and  found  them  full  of  the  defunct  and  expiring 
enemy.  The  practice  was,  of  course,  followed  throughout  the 
farm  where  the  worm  prevailed,  until  in  a year  or  two  the  land 
was  perfectly  freed,  and  that  without  any  recurrence  of  the  evil. 
Mr.  C.  has  also  on  several  occasions  since  had  recourse  to  the 
same  means  for  preserving  his  carnations  (which  are  very  liable  to 
be  attacked  by  the  wire-worm),  and  he  has  invariably  witnessed 
the  same  satisfactory  result. 
The  plan  is  so  simple,  and  apparently  so  efficacious,  that  I need 
not  dilate  further  upon  it  than  to  remind  those  who  may  be  dis- 
posed to  try  it,  that  whilst  they  may  hope  to  destroy  the  worm 
they  will  certainly  add  a rich  fertilizer  to  their  land  at  a reason- 
able cost. 
It  should  perhaps  be  mentioned,  that  the  land  to  which  Mr.  C. 
applied  the  remedy  is  a dry  soil  on  the  magnesian  limestone,  and 
I believe  Sir  W.  Cooke’s  was  the  same  ; but  I see  no  reason  for 
supposing  that  it  would  not  be  equally  efficacious  in  other  soils. — 
I have  the  honour  to  be,  dear  Sir,  yours  trulv, 
J.  M.  H.  Charnock. 
York,  February  28,  1850. 
XII. — On  the  proper  Quantity  of  Seed  for  Wheat.  By  R. 
Birch  Wolfe. 
In  1848  I communicated  the  result  of  an  experiment  made  by 
me  on  thin  and  thick  sowing  of  wheat,  which  was  published  last 
year  in  the  Journal  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  Society;  and  from 
the  statements  I then  made,  it  appeared  that  7 pecks  of  seed, 
drilled  at  7 inches  apart,  gave  a produce  of  nearly  a quarter  an 
acre  more  than  6 pecks  drilled  at  9 inches,  the  cultivation  and  land 
being  equal. 
As  it  was  impossible  to  arrive  at  any  satisfactory  conclusion 
from  a single  experiment,  I made  a further  trial  last  year,  and, 
having  now  accurately  ascertained  the  results,  I give  them,  that  if 
thought  of  any  use  they  may  appear  in  a future  number  of  the 
Society’s  Journal.  The  land  marked  out  for  the  experiment  con- 
sisted of  3 acres  lying  together  in  a field  of  16  acres,  and  divided 
into  4 plots  of  3 roods  each;  the  cultivation  was  exactly  alike  in 
each  case,  and  the  soil  heavy  clay  in  good  heart ; the  seed  Spalding 
wheat.  1 may  add  that  the  whole  of  my  land  is  formed  into  flat 
stetches  7 feet  2 inches  wide,  which  are  exactly  covered  by  the  drill. 
