306 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ October 4,1883. 
frequently, however, considered desirable to plough under the haulm 
while green, and just about the period of blooming ; for it is found 
that upon the thinnest sandy land it proves a valuable and lasting 
manure, as it adds to the staple of the land on decay. A kind of 
humus which not only enriches the soil for Barley-growing but 
enables even the most burning sands to withstand the effect of our 
hottest summers. 
Buckwheat is neither adapted for ensilage nor hay, as it possesses 
too large a portion of woody fibre. It may, however, be sown as 
late as the middle of July for the purposes of green manuring. As 
an instance of sowing it to remain for seed, we remember seeing a 
valuable crop of seed produced upon a thin gravelly soil in a southern 
county in 1880, and a Wheat crop following produced six quarters and 
oue bushel per acre of the Essex rough chaff variety, and a good 
average bulk of straw. The seed is well adapted for the feeding of 
any kind of poultry, and the crop is frequently grown by game-pre¬ 
servers for the enticing, feeding, and retaining on the estate where 
game is preserved, not only of pheasants, but partridges and grouse, 
affording as it also does excellent cover during the early part of the 
shooting season. 
The Lupin is not so much used in the British Isles as it is on the 
Continent, especially in Germany, where it is grown and fed off by sheep 
in the green state at blooming time. There are two sorts or varieties 
commonly cultivated, one producing a yellow flower and the other a 
blue blossom, the latter being grown almost entirely, saved for seed 
and ploughed in ; the former is grown principally for green fodder, 
but also for ploughing-in as manure for the production of cereals, like 
Bariev and Oats especially, as it is seldom grown on our best soils 
and loamy land adapted for Wheat. Nevertheless, upon thin clay 
s >ils when well cultivated, and the haulm properly buried, to do this 
rolling is the first operation, and followed by the plough fitted with 
skim coulter, and drag chain with weight attached, a very large bulk 
of haulm very succulent, and yet containing much woody fibre, may 
be successfully buried ; and when pressed at the same time the 
preparation for Wheat is first-rate, and will prove a lasting benefit to 
those poor clays containing but little mould or humus. We must not 
lose sight of the fact that the chief value of this crop lies in its 
thriving well on high and very poor sandy districts, usually producing 
Heather in the uncultivated state, and where other forage plants of 
v due can scarcely' be grown, except Buckwheat, which may be called 
its only competitor as a forage crop upon the poorest sands. 
(To be continued.) 
WORK ON THE HOME FARM. 
Horse Labour .—This is the most important part of practical agri¬ 
culture as far as animal power is concerned, but we do not by any 
means undervalue ox labour. Still both these modes of animal power 
in cultivation must yield the palm to steam power when at fitting times 
of the year it can be done with benefit, simply because in our fickle 
climate it is important that so much can be done in so short a time, 
with the best effect, if we use our discernment and discretion aright in 
choosing our season for operations. It may be said that this applies 
with most truth on large occupations commanding steam power for all 
purposes to which it can be applied, and these are legion when properly 
attempted. Let the farms of moderate size can be greatly improved by 
the use of steam power hired as a supplement to the horse power of 
the farm. This preface brings us to the points to be considered at this 
date, and in doing so let the home farmer remember the great difficulties 
of our climate, which alone prevent our following the even tenor of our 
work on the farm, especially at the seed time for Wheat. But do not let 
the peculiar difficulties of the Wheat season for sowing at certain times 
be forgotten, although it seldom happens so extremely unpropitious as to 
give us no real seed time for Wheat on the majority of soils between the 
20th of October and the 20th of February, as was the case last year. 
Several seasons, however, we can recollect as being a near approach to 
it—viz., those of 1841 and 1872. This fact, however, brings to our mind 
that although the seasons may have been adverse, yet the farmers of the 
present day are not so well prepared for them as those of fifty years ago, 
for we well remember at that time it was common to see upon the chalk 
hill farms the young Wheat plant high enough to hide a hare as she sat 
in her f rm the first week in October; in fact, some of the fairs at that 
time, held the first week in August, were especially used for the sale 
and purchase of Wheat, the produce of the previous year, for seeding 
purposes. There were various reasons stated to justify the practice of 
this early sowing of Wheat, one of which was to prevent blight on the 
eve of harvest, and we have in our time seen numerous instances where 
the early-sown had escaped blight, where the Wheat sown in what is now 
commonly called the Wheat season suffered serious injury. The im¬ 
portant point in our time to be considered, is the difficulty upon all 
mixed or fiat-lying soils to obtain a dry time enough for sowing after 
the 20th of October. Here, therefore, is the lesson to be learnt, that in 
our culture and arrangements in preparing the land for seeding for 
Wheat, the work should be forward enough to finish sowing both fallow 
and lea ground by the date above mentioned upon any soil or climate. 
Hand Labour .—In case of the hedges and fences not being finished, 
trimming them should be done while the sap is in the wood. Filling 
dung cart to be laid on the Clover leas where the second growth has no°t 
been ploughed in and spreading it, will now be going on, for the sooner 
it is spread the better, as it can be ploughed under and buried better. 
The Turnips now, being large and full of foliage, are just in the best 
condition for breaking down and ploughing in for Wheat if not required 
for sheep-feeding. Threshing with the steam machinery will now be 
going on, and winnowing the same will employ some men as well as 
women to assist in the work. Finishing and topping the straw ricks as 
fast as the corn is threshed should be carefully done, and also thatching 
the same, as the best bright Oat straw for fodder will be valuable, as also 
the Wheat or Rye straw, and will meet a ready sale in the nearest town, 
for nearly every tradesman now keeps a horse and van for delivery of 
goods, as well for advertising, and we suppose it answers both purposes. 
Live Stock.—- Horses, we find on purchase, are still at rather a high 
price, especially animals of 18| hands in height and stout in proportion, 
and we believe that all farm horses should he equal to deep ploughing in 
ordinary soils with two to a plough, or in summer time two to a double- 
furrowed plough. Sheep are still selling at very high figures, too 
high to promise profit in feeding for the butcher. Some of the best 
fairs in the south of England are just past, but others are nearing. The 
great fair at Weyhill in Hampshire offers some of the best Hants 
downs, as well as the best Dorset and Somerset horned ewes. The latter 
are sold in great numbers at this fair from the 7th of October to the 10th, 
on the last date principally the Hampshire down ewes and hoggets are 
offered. The horned ewes sold here are the very finest animals that can 
be found in the kingdom for the production of early lambs for sale in 
the metropolitan market at Christmas and on into January, February, 
and March, and we believe that it will be found that when sheep are 
very dear that these early-lambing ewes yield more profit than any other 
stock, for early lambs meet with no competition from abroad like sheep 
for mutton. In times like the present, when foot-and-mouth disease 
prevails so much, and is increasing in many counties of the United 
Kingdom, it is worth while to take account of the advantage to the home 
farmer who breeds all the animals he may require, whether of cattle, 
sheep, or swine. He will not only have the satisfaction of having for his 
purposes such animals as may be best adapted for the soil and climate of 
the farm, but will require to make no wholesale purchases of Irish or 
other cattle, which have lately gone far to spread the disease from one 
district to another, and, therefore, the farms on which the stock of cattle 
required are bred thereon, will have the greatest security against con¬ 
tagious diseases of every kind, but more especially if a strict look-out by 
the shepherd and herdsmen is kept, under the orders of the home farmer 
using his own caution and intelligence. 
OUR LETTER BOX. 
Kerry Cattle (72. B .).—The following numbers contain articles upon 
Kerry cattle. No. 958, August 7th, 1879, page 118; No. 1, July 1st, 1880, 
page 18 ; and No. 5, July 29th, 1880, page 105. 
Lucerne and Dodder (IF. L., Streatkam ).—The parasitic weed called 
the Clover Dodder is so named because it usually attacks such plants as 
Clover and Lucerne, the seed of which vegetates in the soil, but produce 
spiral shoots, which soon wind round any neighbouring plants, but especially 
of Leguminous plants, and then becoming disconnected from the earth 
derives its sustenance from the juices of the living plants of Clover, Ac. 
The seed is generally furnished by foreign seed grown on soils to which it 
may be indigenous. It is not easy to remove it from the soil by ordinary 
eradicating appliances, for what would kill the seeds or germs of Dodder 
in the soil would also probably destroy other succeeding vegetation. We 
therefore recommend that th; soil under the Dodder patches should be 
dug off clean from 2 to 3 inches deep and stifle-burned—that is, charred by 
fire and smoke, which will destroy the Dodder seeds and germs. We do 
not do this in ordinary cultivation, for the Clover-cropped land comes up 
and is ploughed for Wheat; but, in this case, if it is desired to retain the 
land under Lucerne, the land may be burned where the Dodder has existed 
the first dry day or two, the ashes spread, and the vacant patches are re-seeded 
to Lucerne. 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
Camden Square, London. 
Lat. 51° 32’ 40" N. ; Long. 0° 8- 0" W.; Altitude, 111 feet. 
date. 
2 A.M. 
IN THE DAY. 
1883. 
c3_, 
Hygrome- 
a . 
^ . 
. Sj +J 
cv- 2 
Shade Tem- 
Radiation 
a 
ter. 
£ a 
perature. 
Temperature. 
■5 
September. 
em 
Soi 
lfc 
5 s a ^ 
ffl " CJ 
In 
On 
Dry. 
Wet. 
Qo 
Ph 
Max. 
Min. 
sun. 
grass. 
Inches. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
In. 
Sunday . 23 
30.360 
49.8 
49.8 
W. 
56.2 
66.3 
41.4 
97.4 
35.4 
0.185 
Monday. 24 
Tuesday.25 
29.685 
57.8 
56.8 
s. 
56 1 
67.9 
49 4 
100.3 
49.3 
0.018 
29 804 
61.8 
57.5 
w. 
57.0 
68.8 
55.2 
11».3 
503 
0.119 
Wednesday .. 26 
29.673 
62.9 
61.9 
s.w. 
57.2 
69.1 
548 
113.4 
47.5 
— 
Thursday .... 27 
29 674 
59.3 
53.7 
s.w. 
57.0 
65.1 
51.7 
103.4 
45.7 
0.383 
Friday.28 
29.712 
56.3 
52.8 
N.W. 
56.3 
63.8 
493 
99.7 
45.0 
0.182 
Saturday .... 29 
29.289 
52.2 
48 3 
NAY. 
56.S 
59.4 
48.0 
102.4 
45.3 
0.653 
29.751 
57.2 
54.4 
56.6 
65 8 
50.0 
103.8 
45.5 
1.540 
REMARKS. 
•23rd.—Thick mist and cold in early morning; fine bright day. 
24th —Wet morning ; fine afternoon ; rain again in evening. 
25th.—Windy morning ; fine day ; short sharp shower at 1.45 p.M. 
26tlr.—Wet at first; bright breezy day. 
27th.—Very heavy showers with bright intervals. 
28th.—Fine bright morning ; overcast afternoon ; slight rain in evening. 
29 th.—Fine at first, afterwards showery. 
Very unsettled weather during the week.—G. J. Symons. 
