432 
Barley. 
Besides  turnips  and  mangold,  other  winter  fodder  crops  have 
been  tried.  The  white  carrot  is  less  afraid  of  drought  than  the 
turnip,  because  its  deep  root  always  burrows  into  moist  ground, 
but  he  is  rather  troublesome,  from  the  necessity  to  dig  him  up, 
and  to  store  him  ; yet  as  30  tons  may  be  grown  to  the  acre,  the 
white  carrot  should  not  be  abandoned  upon  free  sandy  loams. 
The  kohl-rabi,  which  looks  like  a swede  standing  upon  a peg, 
is  free  from  the  swede’s  great  enemy,  mildew  ; is  said  to  give 
a large  weight  per  acre,  and  is  so  sweet  that  it  is  preferred  by 
sheep  to  the  swede.  I have  tried  it  two  years,  but  cannot  speak 
positively  about  the  yield,  because  the  seed,  which  comes  from 
Germany,  comprised  five  or  six  varieties  of  the  kohl,  besides 
two  or  three  kinds  of  cabbages.  The  red  variety  seems  very 
bad  ; the  pale  green  the  best,  having  a very  large  bulb,  with 
a very  delicate  leaf.  The  potato  is  well  known  to  suit  the  west 
side  of  England  ; and  as  food  for  pigs,  does  not  suffer  greatly 
from  a moderate  attack  of  the  too  famous  disease,  since  they  eat 
it  when  steamed ; and  steaming  is  necessary  even  for  sound 
potatoes,  as  they  consist  largely  of  starch,  the  cells  of  which  re- 
quire to  be  burst  by  heat.  This  is  the  only  kind  of  farm- 
cookery  about  which  we  may  feel  certain  that  it  will  answer  ; at 
least  I feel  doubtful  about  steaming  straw  ; but  potatoes  steamed, 
mashed,  mixed  with  barley  meal,  and  left  to  turn  sour,  will,  I 
know,  fat  a hundred  hogs  well  in  an  open  farm-yard.  I men- 
tion this,  because  desirable  as  good  buildings  are,  that  work  must 
be  a slow  one,  and  we  cannot  wait  until  it  is  done.  In  agricul- 
ture, as  in  other  affairs,  shifts  must  be  made.  If  our  cultivation 
be  not  improved  until  all  our  farmers  have  ten  pounds  per  acre 
of  capital,  and  all  our  landlords  have  put  their  buildings  in 
apple-pie  order,  many  of  us,  I fear,  may  never  begin.  There  is 
another  tuber,  the  Jerusalem  artichoke,  which,  as  food  for  stock, 
maybe  substituted  for  potatoes,  and  does  not  require  to  be  cooked, 
because  instead  of  starch  it  contains  a similar  but  peculiar  sub- 
stance, Inuline.  Its  yield  I have  found  to  be  on  a par  with  the 
potato,  about  1 0 tons,  and  it  is  equally  nutritious.  1 1 is  a field  crop 
in  Alsace  ; and  I have  a piece  which  has  stood  for  five  years.  It  is 
the  least  troublesome  of  ail  crops,  taking  care  of  itself.  The 
roots  are  dug  up  when  wanted  in  winter,  dreading  no  frost ; and 
so  many  remain  behind,  that  you  have  only  to  give  a ploughing  in 
spring,  with  a coat  of  dung,  if  required.  It  deserves  to  be  tried 
on  a small  scale,  in  any  out  of  the  way  field.  Returning,  how- 
ever, to  regular  cropping  in  the  four-course  system,  we  next 
come  to  the 
Second  Year. — Barley. 
The  chief  question  about  barley  is  the  time  of  sowing,  and  many 
