T r r 
light dreiTmg to one of the rows, which foon recover- 
ed its verdure, and caufed it to be the ftrongeft row 
of the whole ; but the others which had not this d refif- 
ing, produced weaker ftalks and ears than that which 
was not fteeped. 
I have before obferved, that in general the farmers 
fow more than double the quantity of Corn on their 
lands than is necefiary •, therefore there is a great 
wafte of grain, which in fcarce years amounts to a 
confiderabie fum in large farms, and to a whole coun- 
try, it is an objed worthy the attention of the pub- 
lic : but I fear whatever may be faid to prevent this, 
will have but little weight with the practitioners of 
agriculture, who are fo fond of old cuftoms, as rare- 
ly to be prevailed upon to alter them, though they 
are extremely abfurd. But if thefe people could be 
prevailed on to make the trial with care, they muft 
be foon convinced of their error ; for if they woulc 
but examine a field of Corn fown in the common way, 
they will find but few roots which have more than 
two or three ftalks, unlels by chance, where there 
may be fome few roots which have room to fpread, 
upon which there may be fix, eight, or ten ftalks, 
and frequently many more ; but in a field of Wheat 
which had not a greater allowance than one buftiel 
of Corn to an acre, fo that the roots had room to 
fpread, I have obferved the roots produced from 
fix to twelve, or fourteen ftalks, which were ftrong, 
and had long well nourifhed ears, and the produce 
was much greater than in any of thofe fields in the 
neighbourhood, which were fown with the common 
allowance. And if the land is good, and the roots 
ftand at a proper diftance from each other, there will 
be few roots which will not produce as many ftalks as 
I have here mentioned, and the ears will be better 
nourifhed. 
But if the land is not covered with the blades of 
Corn by the fpring, the farmers think they fnall have 
no crop ; whereas, if they would have patience to 
wait till the roots put out their ftems, they would 
foon be convinced of the contrary •, efpecially if they 
could be prevailed on to draw a weighty roller over 
the Wheat in March, which will caule it to fpread ; 
and by fettling of the loofe ground to the roots, the 
drying winds in the fpring would be prevented from 
penetrating to their fibres, fo that the roots will pro- 
duce the more ftalks ; but before this operation, it 
will be proper to have the Corn cleaned from weeds, 
if thefe are permitted to grow, they will draw away 
much nouriftiment from the Corn ; and if, at this fea- 
fon, the land is made clean from weeds, the Corn 
will foon after fpread and cover the ground, whereby 
the growth of weeds will be greatly leftened. 
There is not any part of hufbandry which requires the 
farmer’s attention more, than that of keeping his 
land clean from weeds •, and yet there are few who 
trouble themfelves about it, or who underftand the 
proper method of doing it ; few of them know thofe 
weeds which are annual, fo as to diftinguifli them 
from thofe which are perennial ; and without this 
knowledge, it will be much rhore difficult for a per- 
fon to clean his land, let his induftry be ever fo great, 
for annual weeds may be foon deftroyed if taken in 
time ; whereas, if they are negleded, their feeds will 
foon ripen and lcatter ; after which it will require 
three times the labour and expence to get rid of them, 
as would have been fufficient at the beginning, and 
then the crop would have had no bad neighbours to 
rob it of its nouriffiment. The common method now 
pradifed is a very abfurd one, for the weeds are left 
to grow till the Wheat is beginning to ear, and the 
weeds are in Rower •, fo the ground being covered by 
the Corn, all the low weeds are hid, and thefe are 
left to ripen and fcatter their feeds ; the tall weeds 
only are taken out, and if the people employed are 
not careful, many of thefe will efcape them, as they 
will be fo intermixed with the ftalks of Wheat as 
not to appear, unlefs diligently lought after. By 
this method the weeds of tall growth are permitted 
to ftand, and rob the Corn of its nourilhment, dur- 
; ■ ; 
ing the principal time of its growth, and the humble 
weeds are never deftroyed ; and by going amongft 
the ftalks when they are tall, great numbers of them 
are broken and trod under the work-people’s feet 5 
yet however obvious this is to every farmer, none 
of them have thought of altering this practice. I 
would therefore recommend a method which is now 
in common pradice amongft the kitchen gardeners., 
which has been found of great benefit to their crops, 
and has* alio been a great faving to them in the ex- 
pence of weeding ; and this is making ufe of hoes for 
cleaning the Wheat early in the fpring, before the 
ground is covered with blades of Corn. With this 
inftrument, all the low as well as the tall weeds will 
be cut up, and if it is performed in dry weather, the 
weeds being then fmall will foon die. Where the 
ground happens to be very full of weeds, it may be 
necefiary to go over it a fecond time, at about a fort- 
night after the fir#, to cut up any weeds which may 
have before efcaped. By laying the ground clean a£ 
this time, the Corn will not be robbed of its nourifh- 
ment •, and there will not be time for the weeds to 
grow fo as to prejudice it much after, for the ground 
will be fo much ffiaded by the Corn, as to keep down 
the weeds, fo that they cannot have time to ripen their 
feeds before harveft. 
If, at the time of this operation, the roots of Com 
are cut up where they are too clofe, it will be found 
of great fervice to the other •, but this, I fear, few of 
the old farmers will ever agree with me in ; tho’ what 
I mention is not from theory but experiments, which 
have been repeated with great care •, and where it Was 
pradifed the produce of twenty rods of ground, was 
much greater both in weight and meafure, than the 
fame quantity of ground in the beft part of the field 
where this was not pradifed, and the ftalks flood up- 
right, when a great part of the Corn in the fame field 
was lodged. 
I have often obferved in thofe fields where foot-paths 
are made through Corn-fields, that by the fide of thofe 
paths where the Corn is thin, and has been trodden 
down in the winter and fpring, that the ftalks have 
flood ered, when moft of the Corn in the fame field 
has been laid flat on the ground; which was owing'to 
the ftalks being fo much ftronger from their having 
more room, the other having been drawn up tall and 
flender by being fo clofe together. There is alfo ano- 
ther great advantage in keeping Corn clean from 
weeds, and giving it room to fpread, which is, that 
the Corn is not fo liable to take the fmut as when it 
is full of weeds, and the roots too much crowded, as 
I have frequently obferved ; fo that cleannefs and free 
air, is as efiential to the well doing and growth of ve- 
getables as animals ; and the changing of the feed 
annually is alfo as neceftary, as the change of air is to 
all forts of animals ; for where this has been care- 
fully pradifed, there has rarely happened any fmutty 
Corn in the field. 
Brining of the feed Wheat is what the farmers gene- 
rally pradife to prevent the fmut, which in moft 
years anfwers very well ; but there is nothing which ' 
contributes more to this, than keeping the plants in 
good health, which is better effeded by the method 
before propofed ; for by ftirring of the ground with 
the hoe between the roots of Corn in the fpring, they 
will be better fupplied with nourifhment; for in ftrong 
lands, where the water may have lain in the winter, 
the furface of the ground will bind fo hard on the 
o 
firft dry weather as to Hint the Corn, and frequently 
caufe it to change colour. When this happens, the 
roots feldom put out many ftalks, and thofe which are 
put out, are weak; but where the furface of the 
ground can be ftirred 10 loofen the parts, the Cora 
will foon recover its colour and ftrength, and cover 
the land with fhoots. 
What has been here direded, muft be underftood to 
relate to Wheat fown in broad-caft, which is the ufual 
method pradifed by farmers in every part of Eng- 
land ; for the horfe-hoeing hufbandry which was prac- 
tifed by Mr. Tull, has been almoft univerfally rejeded 
by 
