T R I 
by the farmers in every county, it being fo oppofite 
to their accuftomed practice, that they cannot be pre- 
vailed upon to make trial of it ; and indeed, by the 
ablurdity of the author in a few particulars, he has 
difcouraged many from engaging in it, who would 
have pradtifed it 5 but upon finding Mr. Tull pofi- 
tively afferting, that the fame land would nourilh the 
fame fpecies of plants without changing the crops for 
ever, and this without manure, which being contrary 
to all experience, led them to believe his other prin- 
ciples had no better foundation. And he pra&iled this 
method of fowing the fame fpecies upon the fame 
ground, till his crops failed, and were much worfe 
than thofe of his neighbours who continued their old 
method of hufbandry, and hereby his horfe-hoeing huf- 
bandry was ridiculed by them, and laid afide by gen- 
tlemen who were engaging in it. But notwithftanding 
thefe and lome other particulars which have been ad- 
vanced by Mr. Tull, yet it is much to be wifhed that 
this new hufbandry might be univerfally pra&ifed ; 
for fome few perfons who have made fufficient trial of 
it, have found their crops anfwer much better than 
in the common or old method of hufbandry ; and 
the French, who have learned it from Mr. Tull’s 
book, are engaging in the pradlice of it with greater 
ardour than thofe of our own country : and although 
they had not the proper inftruments of agriculture 
for the performance, and met with as ftrong oppofi- 
tion from the perfons employed to execute the bufi- 
nefs as in England, yet the gentlemen feem deter- 
mined to perfift in the practice of it, though as yet 
few of their experiments have had the fuccefs they 
hoped for ; partly from the aukwardnefs of their la- 
bourers, and partly from their averfenefs to pradtife 
this hufbandry, and alfo from their being made in 
land not well conditioned, but yet their produce has 
been equal to that of the old hufbandry ; and they fay, 
that if the produce of the land in the new method of 
hufbandry does not exceed that in the old way, yet 
by laving feven parts from eight of the feed Corn, it 
is a great affair to a whole country, efpecially in times 
of fcarcity. 
As Mr. Tull has given a full diredtions for the prac- 
tice of this hufbandry, I fhall refer the reader to his 
book for inftrudtion, and fhall only mention two or 
three late experiments which have been made in his 
method, whereby the utility of it will more fully 
appear. 
The firft was in a field of Wheat, which was fown 
partly in broad-caft in the common method, and partly 
according to Tull’s method *, the fpots thus fown were 
not regular in lands, but interfperfed indifferently in 
many directions. Thofe parts of the field in Tull’s 
method, were in rows at- two feet diftance, and flood 
thin in the rows. The roots of the Wheat in thefe 
fpots had from ten to thirty ftalks on a root, and 
continued upright till it was reaped ; whereas few of 
the roots in the common method had more than two 
or three ftalks, and thefe were moft of them lodged 
before harveft •, fo that upon trial of the grain when 
threfhed, there was near a third part more in weight 
and mealure, than from the fame extent of ground, 
taken in the beft part of the field fown in the common 
way. 
Another trial was made in fowing of the Corn in 
rows at different diftances, with fome fown in two 
parts of the ground broad-caft. The event was, that 
all which was fown broad-caft in the ufual way was 
lodged, as was alfo moft of that where the rows were 
fix or nine inches afunder ; thofe which flood a foot 
diftance efcaped better, but the rows two feet afun- 
der were the beft, and the produce much greater than 
any of the other * which plainly fhews the ablurdity 
of that pradtice, in fowing a great quantity of feeds 
to have a better produce, which is the opinion of moft 
of the old farmers •, and it was formerly the prevail- 
ing opinion among gardeners, who allowed near eight 
times the quantity of feeds for the fame fpace of 
ground as is now ufually fown, and thefe crops are 
greatly fuperior to any of thofe. 
The produce of an acre of Wheat is various, accord- 
ing to the goodnefs of the foil. In fome of the 
fhallow, chalky, down lands, where there have been 
near four bufhels of Corn fown, I have known the 
produce not more than double of the feed 5 but when 
this is the cafe, the farmer had much better let his 
land lie wafte, fince the produce will not defray the 
expence, fo that more than the rent of the land is 
loft : and although thefe forts of crops are frequently 
feen on fuch land, yet fuch is the paifiion for plough- 
ing among the hufbandmen at prefect, that if they 
were not reftrained by their landlords, they would in- 
troduce the plough into every field, notwithftandinc 
they arefure to lole by it. 
But although the produce of thefe poor downs is fo 
fmall, as before related, yet upon good land, where 
the Corn has ftood thin upon the ground, I have 
known eight or ten quarters reaped from an acre, over 
the whole field, and fometimes much more. And I 
have been informed by perfons of great credit, that on 
good land, which was drilled and managed with the 
horfe-hoe, they have had twelve quarters. from an acre 
of land, which is a great produce ; and this is with 
greater certainty, if the fealbns prove bad, than can 
be expedled by the common hufbandry. 
The fineft field of Wheat I ever yet law, was fown in 
rows at a foot and a half diftance ; the allowance of 
feed to this field was three gallons, and by the com- 
mon practice of the farmers, there is feldom Ids than 
three bufhels, which is eight times the quantity : this 
Wheat was hoed by the hand twice in the fpring, 
which coft five fh filings and fix-pence per acre. When 
the Corn was in ear, it was not lefs than fix feet high •, 
there were from twelve to twenty ftalks on each root, 
which were fo ftrong as to all (land upright; the ears 
were very long, the ground perfectly clean from weeds, 
and the produce was more than eleven quarters to an 
acre of land. Thefe experiments, one fhould imagine, 
would excite an induftry among farmers to the prac- 
tice ; but on the contrary, not one of thofe in the 
neighbourhood would follow it. 
The price of Corn varies continually, and this vari- 
ation is often very great in the fpace of one or two 
years ; fo that from being fo cheap, as that the far- 
mers could not pay their rents, in the compafs of a 
year or two the price has been doubled ; for one or two 
plentiful harvefts have lowered the price of Wheat fo 
much, as to make it difficulty for the needy farmer to 
go on with his bufinefs who wants ready money for his 
crops, as foon as he can prepare them for the market. 
This has eftablifhed a fet of people called dealers in 
Corn, who have taken the advantage of the farmer’s 
neceffity, and engroffed their Corn to keep it for bet- 
ter markets ; and thefe dealers have of late years in- 
creafed fo greatly in their numbers, to the great pre- 
judice of the raifers and confumers of Corn, as may in 
time prove fatal to the country, by monopolizing the 
greateft part of the produce, and then fet their own 
price upon it ; fo that between thefe Corn-faclors as 
they are called, and the diftiliers, the price of bread 
may be too great for the labouring poor ; which is an 
affair which requires more public attention than has 
yet been given to it. 
The French are building public granaries for the con- 
fervation of their Corn, in moft of their provinces ; 
for as in fome years they have great plenty of Corn, 
and at other time as great fcarcity, they are contriv- 
ing to prevent any great want of it. 
When the Wheat is fold much under four {hillings 
the bufhel, the farmer cannot pay his rent and live ; 
nor can the poorer fort of people afford to purchafe 
good bread, when the Wheat is fold at a price much 
higher than fix {hillings the bufhel ; therefore when it 
it is at a medium between thefe, there can be no great 
caufe of complaint on either fide. 
TRIUMFETTA. Plum. Nov. Gen. 40. tab. 8. 
Lin. Gen. Plant. 529. 
The Characters are, 
The flower has no etnpalement ; it has five linear , erehl, 
chtufie petals , which are concave , and turn inward ; it 
has 
