V 1 c 
This is what I am now beginning to try in the field, 
where I have not as yet had experience of its culture ; 
but what I have here advifed, is founded upon expe- 
riments which I have for fix years made upon fmall 
patches of it fown in gardens, in different fituations. 
In all thefe patches I have found the plants continue 
in great verdure, when molt of the perennial plants in 
the fame fituation have buffered greatly by the froft ; 
and from eight of thefe plants I could have cut as 
much feed, as would have been equivalent to half a 
trufs of green Clover. 
The fifth fort is the common Vetch or Tare, which 
is much cultivated in the fields for fodder ; of this 
there are two varieties, if not diftinfft fpecies. The 
firft, which is the moft common, has a black feed ; 
the other has feeds as white, if not whiter than the 
whiteft Peas ; and. this difference is permanent, for I 
have fown both forts many years, ancl have never 
found either of them vary. Thefe plants are annual, 
and perilh foon after they have perfected their feeds. 
The (talks are angular, ftreaked, and hairy •, they are 
weak and want fupport, fo generally decline where 
they have nothing near to fallen themfelves to. The 
leaves are compofed of feveral pair of blunt lobes, 
and are terminated by tendrils. The flowers come 
out from the wings of the (talk, fitting very clofe to 
the bale of the foot-ftalks of the leaves ; two of thefe 
generally fpring from the fame joint; they are pretty 
large, and of the butterfly lhape ; they are purple : 
thefe appear in June and July, and are fucceeded by 
eredl pods, containing three or four round feeds in 
each, which ripen in Auguft and September. 
The fort with white feeds is rather the more fucculent 
plant of the two, fo is better for fodder ; but many 
people refufe to cultivate them, becaufe they fay the 
feeds being white, are much fooner found out by the 
rooks, than thofe which are nearer the colour of the 
ground, fo are often devoured foon after they are 
fown, efpecially where any of the feeds are not buried; 
but if the feeds are fown in drills, they may be fo 
carefully covered, as that the birds will not eafily find 
them. 
There is another kind of Vetch which is cultivated in 
the fields, with a fmaller black feed ; this is called in 
fome counties Rath ripe Vetch, and in others Pebble, 
or Summer Vetch ; but this being much tenderer than 
the common Vetch is feldom cultivated, for this muff 
always be fown in the fpring, and will ripen its feeds 
the fame fummer, but it will not afford near fo good 
fodder as the other. 
Vetches are generally fown at two feafons, one is in 
autumn, and the other early in the fpring ; but the 
bell: time is in Auguft, for the feeds which are fown 
then will come up foon, and the plants will have time 
to get ftrength before winter, fo will be in lefs danger 
of buffering by froft than thofe which are fown later, 
and will be fit to cut for feed much earlier in the 
fpring, for it is then green feed is moft wanted ; and 
if they are defigned for feed and not to be cut for fod- 
der, thofe early-fown Vetches will come early into 
flower, and the feeds will be ripe early, fo they may 
be cut and Hacked in good weather; which is a great 
advantage, for thofe which ripen late are often Hacked 
or houfed wet, and then the feeds frequently fprout 
in the mow and are fpoiled. 
The ufual method of fowing Vetches is in broad-caft, 
ploughing them lightly in ; in this way the common 
allowance of feeds for one acre of land is two bufhels, 
but there are fome who fow two bulhels and a half; 
this practice may do well enough for thofe Vetches 
which are defigned to be cut for fodder in the fpring, 
but thofe which are fown with an intent to ftand for 
feeds, will do much better if they are fown in drills in 
the fame way as is pra&ifed for Peas, and then lefts 
than half the quantity of feeds will be fuflicient ; for 
the drills fhould not be nearer to each other than three 
feet, that the hoe plough may have room to go be- 
tween them, to deftroy the weeds, and earth up the 
plants ; for by this management they will produce a 
much greater crop, and ripen earlier in the feafon. 
Thefe drills fhould be about the fame depth as thofe 
ufually made for Peas, and the feeds fhould be fcat- 
tered about the fame diftance in the drills. Thefe 
feeds fhould be carefully covered as foon as they are 
fown, for if they are left open the rooks will difco- 
ver them ; and when they once find the rows, if they 
are not carefully watched, they will entirely devour 
them. Indeed, thefe being fown early in autumn, will 
be in lefs danger than thofe which are fown late, or in 
the fpring, becaufe there is more food for rooks and pi- 
geons in the open fields at this feafon, and the plants 
will appear much fooner above ground. The bell time 
to fow them is about the beginning of Auguft, for the 
rains which ufually fall about that feafon, will bring 
them up in a fhort time. Toward the latter end of 
October the plants will have obtained confiderable 
ftrength, therefore they fhould be earthed up with 
the hoeing plough. This work Ihould be performed, 
in dry weather, and in doing it care muft be had to 
lay the earth Up as high to the Items of the plants as 
poffible, fo as not to cover their tops, becaufe this 
will fecure them againft froft. The whole fpace of 
ground between the rows Ihould alfo beftirred, in or- 
der to deftroy the weeds, which, if carefully performed 
in dry weather, will lay the land clean till March ; at 
which time the crop fhould be earthed a fecond time, 
and the ground cleaned again between the rows, which 
will caufe the plants to grow vigorous, and in a little 
time they will fpread fo as to meet, and cover the 
fpaces ; whereas thofe fown in the fpring will not grow 
to half this fize, and will be very late in flowering. 
Some people fow thefe Vetches, and when they are 
fully grown, plough them into the ground to manure 
it. Where this is defigned, there will be no occafion 
to fow them in drills at this diftance, nor to hulband 
them in the manner before directed; but in this cafe 
it will be the bell method to fow them in autumn, 
becaufe they will be fit to plough in much fooner the 
following year, fo that the land may be better pre- 
pared to receive the crops for which it is intended. In 
fome parts of France, and in Italy, thefe Vetches are 
fown for feeding of cattle while green, and are ac- 
counted very profitable ; and in many parts of Eng- 
land they are cultivated to feed cart-horfes, &c. 
though upon fuch land where Lucern will thrive, ir. 
will be much better hufbandry to cultivate that for 
this purpofe. 
Where thefe plants are cultivated for their feeds, they 
fhould be cut foon after the pods change brown ; and 
when they are dry, they muft be immediately (lack- 
ed, for if they are fuffered to lie out in the field to 
receive wet, and there comes one hot day after it, 
the pods will moft of them burft, and call out the 
feeds. When the feeds are threflaed out, the haulm 
is efteemed very good food for cattle, ancl fome have 
recommended the feeds for horfes, and affirm they are 
as proper for thofe animals as Beans ; which, if true, 
will render them more valuable, becaufe thefe will 
grow on the lighted fandy land where Beans will not 
thrive, fo may be a good improvement to fome coun- 
ties in England, where they do not attempt to culti- 
vate Beans. 
VINCA. Lin. Gen. Plant. 261. Pervinca. Tourn. 
Inft. R. H. 119. tab. 45. Periwincle; in French, Po^ 
venche. 
The Characters are, 
The empalement of the flower is permanent, and cut into 
five acute parts at the top. ‘The flower has one falver- 
Jhaped petal , whofe tube is longer than the empalement . ' 
The brim is broad , fpreading open y and J, lightly cut into 
five obtafe fegments ; it has five very fhort inflected ft ami- 
na , terminated by erebf , obtufle , membranaceous fummits , 
and two roundifh germen , which have two roundiflj cor - 
pufcles on their fide , fupporting one common ftyle the length 
of the ftamina, crowned by two ftigmas ; the under, is or - 
bicular and plain , the upper is concave and headed. The 
germen afterward turns to a fruit compofed of two taper 
acute-pointed hufks , opening lengthways with one valve , 
and filled with oblong cylindrical feeds. 
This . 
