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The method of cultivating Saffron being fomAvhat ! 
curious, I thought it not improper to infert in this 
place an abftrafit of it, as it was prefented to the Royal 
Society by Dr. James Douglafs. 
As Saffron grows at prefent mold plentifully in Cam - 
bridgefhire, and has grown formerly in feveral other 
counties of England, the method of culture does not, 
I believe, vary much in any of them, and therefore I 
judge it fufficient to fet down here the obfervations 
which I employed proper perfons, in different feafons, 
to make, in the years 1723^ 1724, 172*5, and 1728, 
lip and down all that large trad of ground that lies 
between Saffron-Walden and Cambridge, in a circle 
about ten miles diameter. 
In that county Saffron has been cultivated, and there- 
fore it may be reafonably expeded, that the inhabi- 
tants thereof are more thoroughly acquainted with it 
than they are aiiy where elfe. 
I fhall begin with the choice and preparation of the 
ground. The greateft part of the trad already men- 
tioned is an open level country, with few inclofures •, 
and the cuftom there is, as in mod other places, to 
crop two years, afid let the land be fallow the third. 
Saffron is generally planted upon fallow ground, and, 
all other things being alike, they prefer that which 
has borne Barley the year before. 
The Saffron grounds are feldotn above three acres, 
oi* lefs than one ; and in choofing, the principal thing 
they have regard to is, that they be well expofed, the 
foil not poor, nor a very ftiff clay, but a temperate 
dry mould, fuch as commonly lies upon chalk, and 
is of an Hazel colour ; though if every thing elfe 
anfwers, the colour of the mould is pretty much 
hegleded. 
The ground being made choice of, about Lady-Day, 
or the beginning of April, it muff be carefully plough- 
ed, the furrows being drawn much clofer together, 
and deeper, if the foil will allow it, than is done for 
any kind of corn ; and accordingly, the charge is 
greater. 
About five weeks after, during any time in the 
month of May, they lay between twenty and thirty 
loads of dung upon each acre, and having fpread it 
with great care, they plough it in as before. The 
fhorteft rotten dung is the befl ; and the farmers, who 
have the conveniency of making it, fpare no pains to 
make it good, being fure of a proportionable price 
for it. About Midfummer they plough a third time, 
and between every fixteen feet and an half, or pole 
in breadth, they leave a broad furrow or trench, which 
ferves both as a boundary to the feveral parcels, when 
there are feveral proprietors to one inclofure, and to 
throw the weeds in at the proper feafon. 
To this head likewife belongs the fencing of the 
grounds, becaufe moft commonly, though not always, 
that is done before they plant. The fences confift of 
what they call dead hedges, or hurdles, to keep out 
not only cattle of all forts, but efpecially hares, which 
would otherwife feed on the Saffron leaves during the 
winter. 
About the weather we need not only obferve, that 
the hotteft Rummers are certainly the beff, and there- 
with, if there be gentle fhowers from time to time, 
they can hardly mifs of a plentiful crop, if the ex- 
treme cold, fnow, or rain of the foregoing winter 
have not prejudiced the heads. 
The next general part of the culture of Saffron is, 
planting, or fetting the roots the only inftrument 
ufed for which is a narrow fpade, commonly termed a 
fpit fhovel. 
The time of planting is commonly in the month of 
July, a little fooner or later, according as the weather 
anfwer. The method is this : one man with his fpit 
fhovel raifes between three and four inches of earth, 
and throws it before him about fix or more inches •, 
two perfons, generally women, following with heads, 
place them in the fartheft edge of the trench he 
makes, at three inches diftance from each other, or 
thereabouts •, as foon as the digger or fpitter has gone 
once the breadth of the ridge, he begins again at the 
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other fide, and digging as before, covers thb rooS- 
laft fet, and makes the fame room for the fetters to 
place a new row, at the fame diftance from the firff, 
that, they are from one another. Thus they go on, 
till a whole ridge, containing commonly one rod, is 
planted ^ and the only nicety in digging is, to leave 
home part of the hr ft flratum of earth untouched, to 
lie under the roots, and, in fetting, to place the roots 
di redly upon their bottom. 
What fort of roots are to be preferred fhall be fnewn 
under the fourth head, but it muft be obferved in this 
place, that formerly, when roots were very dear, they 
did not plant them fo thick as they do now •, and that 
they have always fome regard to thefize of the roots, 
placing the largeft at a greater diftance than the frfiali 
ones. 
The quantity of roots planted in an acre, is generally 
about 16 quarters, or 128 bufhels, which, accord- 
ing to the diftances left between them, as before aft 
hgned, and fuppofing all to be an inch in diameter 
one with another, ought to amount to 392,040 in 
number. 
From the time that the roots are planted, till about 
the beginning of September, or fometimes later, 
there is no more labour about them ; but as they then 
begin to fpire, and are ready to fhew themfelves 
above ground (which is known by digging a few out 
of the earth,) the ground muft be carefully pared 
with a fharp hoe, and the weeds, &c. raked into the 
furrows, othetwife they would hinder the growth of 
the plants. 
In fome time after appear the Saffron flowers, and 
this leads us to the third branch of our prefent me- 
thod. The flowers are gathered as well before as after 
they are full blown, and the moll proper time for 
this is early in the morning. The owners of the Saf- 
fron get together a fufficient number of hands, who 
place themfelves in different parts of the field, who 
pull off the whole flowers, and throw them handful 
by handful into a balket, and fo continue till all the 
flowers are gathered, which happens commonly about 
ten or eleven o’clock. 
Having then carried home all they have got, they 
immediately fpread them upon a large table, and fall 
to picking out the filamenta ftyli, or chives, and to- 
gether with them a pretty long proportion of the fty- 
lus itfelf, or firing to which they are joined ; the reft; 
of the flower they throw away as ufelefs. The next 
morning they return into the field again, whether it be 
wet or dry weather, and lb on daily, even on Sun- 
days, till the whole crop be gathered. 
The chives being all picked out of the flowers, the 
next labour about them is to dry them on the kiln. 
The kiln is built upon a thick plank (that it may be 
moved from place to place) fupported by four fhort 
legs •, the outfide conflfts of eight pieces of wodd 
about three inches thick, in form of a quadrangular 
frame, about twelve inches fquare at the bottom on 
the infide, and twenty-two inches at top, which is 
likewife equal to the perpendicular height of it. On 
the forefide is left a hole about eight inches fquare, 
and four inches above the plank, through which the 
fire is put in •, over all the reft laths are laid prett-y 
thick, clofe to one another, and nailed to the frame 
already mentioned, and then are plaiflered over on both 
Tides, as are alfo the planks at bottom very thick, fo 
ferve for a hearth. Over the mouth, or wideft part, 
goes a hair cloth, fixed to the Tides of the kiln, and 
likewife to two rollers, or moveable pieces of wood, 
which are turned by wedges or fcrews, in order to 
ftretch the cloth. Inflead of the hair cloth, many 
people now ufe a net- work, or iron wire, with which 
it is obferved that the Saffron dries fooner, and with 
lefs quantity of fuel j but the difficulty in preferving 
the Saffron from burning, makes the hair cloth be 
preferred by the nicefl judges in drying. 
The kiln is placed in a light part of the houfe, and 
they begin by laying five or fix fheets of white paper 
on the hair cloth, upon which they fpread the wet 
Saffron between two and three inches thick $ this they 
cover 
