LAN 
There are fome other plants which have been recom- 
mended for fences, but thole here enumerated are the 
moil ufeful forts for fuch purpofe's •, wherefore I fhall 
pais over the others, as not worthy of the care of the 
hufbandman. And as to the farther directions for 
planting and preferring of hedges, with inftrubtions 
for plafhing or laying them, the reader is defired to 
turn to the articles of Fences and Hedges, where 
there are particular directions for thefe works exhi- 
bited, which I fhall not here repeat. 
The draining of Land is alfo another great improve- 
ment to it for though meadows and paflures, which 
are capable of being overflowed, produce a greater 
quantity of herbage than dry Land, yet where the 
wet lies too long upon the ground, the Grafs will be 
four and extremely coarfe ; and where there is not care 
taken in time to drain this Land, it will produce little 
Grafs, and foon be overun with Rufhes and Flags, fo 
as to be of fmall value. The land which is molt lia- 
able to this, is cold fliff clays where the water cannot 
penetrate, but is contained as in a difh ; fo that the 
wet which it receives in winter, continues till the heat 
of the fun exhales the greateft part of it. 
The belt method for draining of thefe Lands is, to 
cut leveral drains acrofs the Land, in thofe places 
where the water is fubjebt to lodge •, and from thefe 
crofs drains to make a convenient number of other 
drains, to carry off the water to either ponds or ri- 
vers in the lower p'arts of the Land. Thefe drains need 
not be made very large, unlefs the ground be very 
low, and fo fituated as not to be near any river to 
which the water may be conveyed ; in which cafe there 
fhould be large ditches dug at proper diftances, in the 
loweft part of the ground, to contain the water ; and 
the earth which comes out of the ditches fhould be 
equally fpread on the Land, to raife the furface. But 
where the water can be conveniently carried off, the 
bell method is, to make under ground drains at proper 
diflances, which may empty themfelves into large 
ditches, which are defigned to carry off the water. 
Thefe fort of drains are the molt convenient, and as 
they are hid from the fight do not incommode the 
Land, nor is there any ground loft where thefe are 
made. 
The ufual method of making thefe drains, is to dig 
trenches, and fill the bottoms with ftones, bricks, 
Rufhes, or bufhes, which are covered over with the 
earth which was dug out of the trenches ; but this 
is not the beft method, becaufe the water has not a 
free paffage through thefe drains, fo that whenever 
there is a flood, thefe drains are often flopped by the 
foil which the water frequently brings down with it. 
The beft method I have yet obferved to make thefe 
drains, is to dig trenches to a proper depth for carry-* 
ing off the water, which for the principal drains fhould 
be three feet wide at their top, and doped down for 
two feet and a half depth, where there fhould be a 
fmall ledge or bank left on each fide, upon which 
the crofs flakes or bearers fhould be laid, and below 
thefe banks there fhould be an open drain left, at 
leaft one foot deep, and ten or eleven inches wide, 
that there may be room for the water to pafs through. 
Thefe larger drains fhould be at convenient dis- 
tances, and fmaller drains of about feven or eight 
inches wide at top, and the hollow under the bufhes 
eight or nine inches deep, fhould be cut acrofs the 
ground, which fhould difcharge the water into thefe 
larger drains. The number and fituation of them muft 
be in proportion to the wetnefs of the Land ; and the 
depth of the earth above the bufhes, muft alfo be 
proportioned to the intended ufe of the Land ; for if 
it is arable Land to be ploughed, it muft not be ffial- 
lower than fourteen inches, that there may be fuffi- 
cient depth for the plough, without difturbing the 
bufhes ; but for pafture Land, one foot deep will be 
full enough ; for when the bufhes lie too deep in ftrong 
Land, they will have little effebt, the ground above 
will bind fo hard as to detain the wet on the furface. 
When the drains are dug, there fhould be prepared a 
quantity of good brufh wood, the larger flicks fhould 
be cut out to pieces of about fixteen or eighteen inches 
in length, which fhould be laid acrofs upon the two 
fide banks of the drain, at about four inches diflance j 
then cover thefe flicks with the fmaller brufh wood, 
Furz, Broom, Heath, or any other kind of brufh, 
laying it lengthwife pretty clofe •, on the top of thefe 
may be laid Rufhes, Flags, &c. and then the earth 
laid on to cover the whole. Thefe fort of drains will 
continue good for a great number of years, and are 
never liable to the inconveniencies of the other, for the 
water will find an eafy paffage through them ; and 
where there is plenty of brufh wood, they are made at 
an eafy expence ; but in places where wood is fcarce, 
it would be chargeable to make them : however, in 
this cafe, it would be a great advantage to thefe 
Lands, to plant a fufficient number of cuttings of 
Willow, or the black Poplar, on fome of the moift 
places, which would furnifh brufh wood for thefe pur- 
pofes in four or five years ; and as the expence of 
planting thefe cuttings is trifling, there cannot be a 
greater advantage to an eftate which wants draining, 
than to prablife this method, which is in every perfon’s 
power, fince there is little expence attending it. 
In countries where there is plenty of ftone, that is the 
beft material for making thefe under ground drains j 
for when thefe are properly made, they will never want 
repairing. 
The beft time of the year for making thefe drains 
is about Michaelmas, before the heavy rains of au- 
tumn fall, becaufe at this feafon the Land is ufuaily 
dry, fo that the drains may be dug to a proper depth 5 
for when the ground is wet, it will be very difficult to 
dig to any depth, becaufe the water will drain in 
wherever there is an opening in the ground. 
When thefe drains are made, and the water carried 
off the Land, it will be proper to pare off the Ruffies* 
Flags, &c. which may be laid in heaps in proper 
places to rot, and will afford a good manure for the 
land. The ground muft alfo be ploughed to deftroy 
the roots of noxious weeds, and if it be laid fallow 
for one feafon, and ploughed two or three times, it 
will greatly mend the Land. The Rufhes and Flags 
which were pared off the ground when rotten, fhould 
be fpread over the furface, and the Grafs-feed fown 
thereon, which will greatly forward the Grafs, fo that 
it may foon be brought to a good turf ; which Land 
thus mended, has been lett for four times the rent it 
was fet at before. 
There are fome perfons, who, after they have pared 
off the Flags, Rufhes, &c. from their Land, lay them 
in fmall heaps, and burn them in dry weather, then 
fpread the affies on the Land to improve it, which is 
a good method, where a perfon is in hafle to have 
Grafs again ; but where the ground can be fallowed 
one year, it will loofcn the foil, and more effebtually 
deftroy the roots of all noxious weeds ; and the Rufhes, 
&c. when rotted, will afford a much larger quantity 
of manure for the Land than when it is burnt : be- 
tides, this can only be prablifed in the fummer fea- 
fon, when the weather is very dry ; for if there fhould 
fall much rain, the fires will go out, and it will be 
impracticable to burn it. But where the method of 
burning is _ prablifed, the heaps fhould not be too 
great, and it fhould burn very ilowly ; which will ren- 
der the affies a much better manure, than when the 
fire is too violent, or the heaps too large ; for in this 
cafe, the inner part will be over-burnt before the fire 
reaches the outfide of the heap. 
As the draining of cold wet Lands is a great im- 
provement to them, fo the floating or watering of dry 
looie Land is not a lefs advantage to them. This 
may be eafily effebled where there are rivers, or re- 
fervoirs of w r ater, which are fituated above the level of 
the ground defigned to be floated, by under ground 
drains (made after the manner of thofe before directed 
for draining of Land,) through which the water may 
be conveyed at proper feafons, and let out on the 
ground : in order to this, there muft be good fluices 
made at the heads of the drains, fo that the water 
may never get out, but at fuch times as is required ; 
for 
