338 JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. t October z, isso. 
but also yielding an acreable return of profit equal to some of the 
best soils. 
We propose to consider first the rotation of cropping for light 
chalk soils. We shall, however, find it necessary to make some 
distinction between those farms possessing irrigated meadows or 
useful pastures. We will therefore take first for example a farm 
having the advantage of meadows at the vale end, and we assume 
that the farm contain 550 acres, 50 acres consisting of pasture 
—viz., 25 acres of water meadow, and 25 acres of down or sheep 
walk on the hills ; we then have the cropping of 500 acres to 
arrange. Our opinion is that a five-course rotation will be best, 
as it will carry more sheep than the four-course, to which we 
shall have to allude further on. The cropping will be—1st, 
Wheat; 2nd, roots and green crops ; 3rd, Lent corn ; 4th, Clover 
and grass ; 5th, old field grass. We shall have first 100 acres of 
Wheat, half of which will be sown after Rape, Turnips, &c., fed off 
by sheep on the land ; and the other half once ploughed out of 
old lea. In the next course we have to crop 100 acres with green 
crops and roots ; 50 acres of this should be autumn-fallowed, 
taking the foulest land for the purpose, and this portion will then 
be ready in the spring for drilling with Mangold seed and Swede 
seed, for upon the exposed chalk hills the roots must be early to 
obtain full crops. The Mangold should not exceed 10 acres, leav¬ 
ing 40 acres for Swedes. On very thin poor land Mangold may 
be omitted and Swedes only grown. We have then 50 acres left 
for green crops, to be followed by roots, and this should be the 
cleanest land ; but in the event of couch being present it should be 
forked-out to save time and tillage. About 10 acres of Rye may 
be sown for early feeding, 10 acres of early Trifolium, and 10 acres 
of second early Trifolium, and 20 acres of winter Vetches. All 
these crops should be fed off by sheep, except that perhaps a little 
green fodder may be required for horses, &c. Still the object is the 
manuring of the land by sheep, to enable it to produce a full crop 
where it is to be occupied with roots, and upon this poor land a 
liberal dressing of manure applied by the drill will also be necessary. 
The roots should be Swedes after the Rye, Hybrid Turnips after 
Trifolium, and Grey Stone Turnips after the Vetches, to be sown 
in divisions as fast as the land is cleared of the green crop. 
The third course will consist of 100 acres of Lent corn. The 
question to be decided will be, What sort ? Now, on very ex¬ 
posed aspects we recommend taking a crop of drege, but on the 
kinder soils and sheltered vales Barley will succeed. The reason 
for sowing drege is not only because the Oats will bear the bleak 
winds, but because when two sorts of grain are grown together 
there is a greater probability of obtaining a plant when attacked 
by wireworm, which on the soils we are referring to is the greatest 
enemy we have to fear. If 10 acres of Mangolds are grown these 
should be carted away, heaped, and covered secure for the winter 
upon old lea ground, because the land whereon they grow may 
then be sown early, and the fact of feeding them on the old lea 
will supply the sheep at a time when they would otherwise be 
feeding the Swedes on the land, which would delay the time of 
sowing the Barley or drege that may follow. It will at once be 
seen how desirable it is that the sheep-feeding should not delay 
the sowing of corn. In the next course we have 100 acres to be 
sown with Clovers and grass in the Lent corn ; and in order that 
these should not become too gross and injure the com at harvest 
time the seeds should not be sown until the corn is growing, 
about a month after sowing, and the seeds rolled in ; the advan¬ 
tage of this is that the young plants will be more likely to avoid 
night frosts, and their growth somewhat delayed, and thus pre¬ 
vent their injuring the corn. We recommend the seeds to be sown 
as follows :—50 acres with Red Clover, Alsike Clover, and Giant 
Saintfoin, the object being to obtain two fall crops of hay for the 
sheep. The other 50 acres should be sown with Dutch Clover 
and Trefoil or Hop Clover, together with Perennial Rye Grass and 
Timothy Grass, as it will be entirely required for feeding with 
sheep. When the grass course comes round for seeding again at 
the end of five years the portion which was Clovers and Saintfoin 
should be reversed, and seeded with Dutch and grasses. In this 
way each will be likely to succeed better, because there will be 
nine years between the periods of growth. 
In the fifth and last course we must bear in mind that we have 
to prepare for the succeeding Wheat crop, which is the first crop 
of the rotation. Having 50 acres of Clover and Saintfoin lea this 
should be reserved for sowing Wheat upon, previous to which it 
may be either cut for hay or fed with sheep, as circumstances and 
the seasons may render requisite. In the month of August the 
land may be dunged with farmyard manure and early ploughed 
in readiness for sowing with Wheat at the usual period. We have 
now to deal with 50 acres of old lea in grasses. This may be fed 
off by sheep, and on which the produce of 10 acres of Mangold will 
also be consumed up to midsummer, after which the land should 
not be pared and burned, but ploughed and pressed, and sown 
with Turnips and Rape seed, with artificial manures, the roots fed 
off by sheep, and the land sown with Wheat. 
(To be continued.) 
WORK ON THE HOME PARM. 
Horse. Labour .—The horses have for some time past been unable to 
have upon the land under tillage as autumn fallow, but in those 
cases where the steam cultivator has been employed there has during 
several weeks previous to the 10th of September been much useful 
work done. As, however, the late rains came suddenly on the un¬ 
finished fallows in many cases the horses will be required on the first 
favourable opportunity to work out the grass and weeds, so that they 
may be dealt with on the surface, and be either burnt or carted 
away as the weather may permit. It is essential that in the event of 
the weather being adverse every thing on the surface should be carted 
away to heap or laid out on the meadows, so that after Wheat-sowing 
is finished the land may be deeply ploughed and laid up for the winter 
months. No hindrance, however, need take place in the horse labour, 
for the manure from the yards, heaps, or cattle boxes may be laid 
out and spread upon the Clover leas, upon any dry land intended for 
Wheat and ploughed in, the late rains having softened the ground 
for ploughing and pressing. The land, also, where Turnips or Rape, 
&c., have been fed off by sheep will now be in good order for plough¬ 
ing afad sowing; for we like upon this preparation for Wheat to 
plough and drill the corn the same day, this being the surest plan to 
obtain the best seed bed, for as the season advances it will be found 
difficult after heavy rains to get the fallowed land in working condi¬ 
tion if the seed time is delayed. Upon lea ground it is different, for 
rains settle the land down firmly and secure a good seed bed, espe¬ 
cially upon any light soil. Upon any heavy soil it is often found 
best to secure a good seed time by sowing or drilling the land as fast 
as it is ploughed, any land being then more freely worked. 
Hand Labour .—Men should now be employed in cutting off the 
bunches of grass upon the pastures, which may have been.refused by 
the cattle and run up to seed stems, either with the scythe or the 
mowing machine. The cut grass should be raked up and carried 
away, because these grass stems often have ergot in the seed heads. 
Now, this is often the cause of abortion in dairy cows, and is some¬ 
times a very serious matter, for when abortion commences in a herd 
of cows it cannot always be prevented from extending. We have 
also always been very particular in having the grasses and weeds cut 
off the banks and borders and carried away before seed heads were 
ripe, in order to prevent the formation of ergot, the effect of which is 
but little understood by many home farmers, or the insidious nature 
of the disease resulting in abortion. The men will still be employed 
in spreading dung. If the stubble Turnips, which have made great 
progress lately, should be considered worth hoeing, this work should 
be done if the weather is favourable, and if the land is dry enough 
the horse hoe and hand hoe may both be employed with advantage if 
the land is rich enough to give good Turnips, as these of a mild and 
open season will continue growing until Christmas. If the plants 
have not made much progress harrow or drag occasionally in suit¬ 
able weather, and they will then, if thick enough, give in the spring a 
crop of greens, which may be valuable if fed off by sheep as a pre¬ 
paration for a crop of Mangold or drege corn. 
As we have often advocated the building of ricks of corn or hay in . 
the fields where grown, it will be necessary w'hen the corn is thrashed 
to have the straw or haulm carefully ricked and thatched immediately, 
so that the straw, either required for fodder or otherwise, may be 
found dry and sweet when the cutting-out and carting to the home¬ 
stead is required. The low-lying meadows should now be trenched, 
so that the first heavy rains may drain away quickly. The water 
meadows, too, where they have been fed down sufficiently may now have 
all the mains and drawing trenches done out in order that they may 
be used at the first opportunity, thus taking advantage of the first 
flooding rains, which always carry a valuable sediment brought down 
from the high lands under tillage. The dairy cows should have some 
early Cabbages scattered over the pastures to supplement the grass, 
or else receive them in their stalls at milking time ; but in the absence 
of Cabbages, and where but little arable land is under occupation, 
cotton cake may be given with great benefit to the cattle and advan¬ 
tage by manuring the grass land. When, however, cattle receive 
cake whilst feeding on the grass land it will always pay to employ a 
man or woman to spread the cattle droppings every few days, other¬ 
wise the benefit derived only makes the grass grow luxuriantly in 
bunches, which are refused by the cattle during the first year of 
growth. Horses, however, may be turned in to consume these 
bunches of grass in the absence of the cattle, but this does not affect 
the irregular action of this valuable manure, and which will certainly 
answer for spreading in some way. The chain harrow is sometimes 
used for the purpose. In buying in sheep stock it will still be neces¬ 
sary to obtain a written warranty of soundness, for in the grazing 
districts, where there is but little change of food for the animals, it is 
said that various flocks are still affected with the fluke rot. The 
purchase of sheep is still going on, and in the event of first-class 
Hampshire downs being required as well as the Dorset horned ewes 
for early lambing, if sought for, Weyhin fair in Hampshire, to be 
held on the 11th of October, is the best opportunity for obtaining the 
choicest stock. The crop of roots generally is so early and abundant 
