66 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ July SI, 1887. 
misfortunes. It was bad enough to sell good corn for the 
low prices of last year ; this year we shall have none to 
sell.” Expressions of sympathy come readily enough to 
the lips when we meet with such a case—and they are 
common enough in certain districts this summer—but 
practical help is what is wanted, and that, alas ! is impos¬ 
sible. A black year indeed will the Jubilee year be for 
many a light land farmer; and what makes it all the 
harder for him is the splendid appearance of the crops 
upon good mixed soil farms. AVe have such a farm in 
hand which at the present time is in a more satisfactory 
condition than we have ever had it before. Not only is 
the Wheat a fine full crop in every field, but other crops 
are equally good; Barley, Oats, AVinter Beans, and Peas 
all give fair promise of an abundant yield. Peas espe¬ 
cially are remarkably vigorous, the haulm being long, 
stout, and well podded. There is a capital piece of AVhite 
Clover for seed on this farm, both the hay and stover are 
a full crop well saved, Mangolds are a full strong plant, 
and Swedes have grown out of all risk of harm from 
insects. 
Repeatedly have we advised our readers to meet the 
agricultural depression with a full hand, with crops so 
abundant that a profit should still be possible. Acting 
upon this conviction we have striven year by year by 
drainage, by keeping down weeds, by sheep folding, by a 
judicious application of chemical manures, and by sowing 
pure seed of the best sorts, so to improve both the 
quantity and quality of our farm crops that we might 
make them answer while we have them in hand, and be 
let to good tenants in such good order that they too 
might still find farming both a pleasant and profitable 
calling. AVe may take it for granted that high profits 
arising from old prices in the good times will never again 
become possible, and we must therefore be content with 
what is often termed a living profit. 
The farm to which we have called attention for the 
exC3llence of the crops upon it this year is only one of 
several which we have in hand, and we are glad to say that 
the others all show unmistakeable signs of improvement. 
One farm, however, cannot answer so well as the others 
this year. This is a large heavy land farm upon which we 
have expended considerable sums of money for improve¬ 
ments ; there will, however, be from forty to fifty acres of 
inferior corn there this year owing in a great measure to a 
want of drains. The wet land may now be compared to a 
huge honeycomb, for it has a network of cracks all over 
it, which cause the crops to become parched and stunted. 
AVe greatly regret this, but with several hundred acres of 
land to drain it is just a question of having enough means 
to do all or a part only of the land. So far as we have 
gone the draining has been well done, and its beneficial 
effect upon soil and crops may now be seen clearly, for 
there no exception can be taken to any of the crops. 
Wheat and winter Oats especially are quite equal to any 
we have elsewhere. Winter Beans, too, and Peas are a 
good crop. The lesson taught by the drought here is the 
great importance of drainage whether the season of 
growth proves wet or dry. In the present summer when 
evaporation must be excessive the sour crude wet soil con¬ 
tracts so much that it is intersected in every direction by 
deep wide cracks, which give free admission to the hot dry 
air, parching the roots of spring corn and spoiling the 
crop. AVell drained land, on the contrary, becomes so 
mellow and friable by the free circulation of air in it 
that it loses much ol its original tendency to extreme 
cohesion, its particles do not unite like those of the un¬ 
drained soil, and therefore there is little if any cracking 
upon the surface. Strongly do we advise landlords to 
aid the tenant so far as they can to underdrain every acre 
of wet land. Help in such a matter is really better for 
the interests of both than heavy reductions of rent. 
WORK ON THE HOME FARM. 
A full crop of grass upon most pastures, a bright sky, and an excep¬ 
tionally hot temperature day after day, good and willing workmen well 
handled, sound useful implements, plentiful relays of quick stepping 
Suffolk horses enabled us to bring our haymaking practically to an end 
a week ago. By working late for once on Saturday night we managed 
to clear up all the hay except a few acres which was so forward as to 
enable us to put the whole of it in cocks so to remain over Sunday, and 
then we felt safe, for a falling barometer and cloudy sky warned us to 
do all that was possible to get the hay together in as close quarters as 
we could. To do this well some half-dozen of the regular workmen 
were taken off from hoeing among roots to make the haycocks, and 
glad were we as the evening fell that we had done so, for a dozen of 
the extra men struck work at 7 P.M. A few minutes’ thought enabled 
us to decide to pay them off and tell them they would not be wanted 
again. This done they hastened off to swallow in drink the few extra 
shillings paid them for overtime, while the other men cheerfully loaded 
up the remainder of the hay that was ready for the stack, and we took 
care to reward them for doing so. 
We cannot conclude our “ work” note this week without reference 
to the excellence of the Hornsby grass mower. We have had four of 
them at work, but one on the home farm cut 170 acres of grass without 
a hitch of any kind, and much of the pasture was in a rough state, un¬ 
level, and with numerous molehills thrown up among the grass after it 
had become tall enough to conceal them. It is true that we had a good 
driver, but to go on for seventeen working days at the rate of ten acres a 
day is a piece of downright good work that is worthy of record. We had 
four sets of knives in use for this mower, and a handy man was 
employed the whole of the time in sharpening and putting on fresh 
knives as any became broken or worn. We must own that the mower 
was examined and put in thorough order before the haymaking began, 
yet even with such precaution we have known inferior implements break 
down repeatedly. 
THE HESSIAN FLY. 
In my capacity as Chairman of the Seeds and Plants Diseases 
Committee of the Royal Agricultural Society, 1 have just received 
official information from Miss Ormerod, the consulting entomologist, 
of the discovery of the larvce and puparia—pupa-cases—of the Hessian 
fly upon growing Barley plants in Perthshire and Cambridgeshire. This 
afternoon I heard from Mr. Palmer, of Revell’s Hall, Hertford, that 
puparia can be found to a great extent all over the Barley and Wheat 
fields of his farm, upon which, it may be remembered, the attack was 
first noticed last year. It is much to be feared that the presence of 
this destructive insect will be found to be very general this season ; and 
as it will be most useful and interesting to get some definite ideas of its 
range, I would, if you allow me, ask farmers to carefully examine their 
Wheat and Barley crops, and to report to Miss Ormerod, or to myself, if 
they find larvae or puparia of the Hessian fly upon them. In the present 
circumstances no remedies can be suggested, but I hope that we may be 
able to recommend methods of prevention, and general measures of 
precaution, in due season.— Charles Whitehead, Banning House, 
Maidstone. 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
CAMDEN’ SQUARE, LONDON. 
Lat. 51° 82' 40" N.; Long, 0° 8- 0" W.; Altitude, 111 feet. 
DATE. 
9 A.M. 
IN THE DAT. 
1887. 
Hygrome- 
a . 
OT3 
S fl 
O <-> . 
Shade Tern- 
Radiation 
a 
S2*£ 
ter. 
emp. 
soil a 
1 foot 
perature. 
Temperature 
as 
« 
July. 
Wet. 
In 
On 
Dry. 
Qo 
* 
Max. 
Min. 
sun. 
grass 
Sunday. 
Inches. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
In. 
29.754 
69.2 
64.0 
N.W. 
66.0 
77.8 
57.0 
127.7 
57.4 
0.072 
Monday. 
Tuesday .. . 
29.906 
66.2 
62.9 
s. 
65.8 
78.2 
59.2 
124.2 
55.9 
0.124 
12 
30.015 
69 3 
62.8 
s.w. 
65.4 
78.9 
60.8 
123.4 
569 
_ 
Wednesday. 
13 
29.788 
76-8 
68.2 
S.E. 
66.2 
82.9 
60.3 
126.2 
56.3 
_ 
Thursday... 
14 
30.011 
66.7 
60.1 
s. 
66.3 
75.6 
59 8 
116.8 
57.1 
_ 
Friday . 
30.13 J 
65.1 
58.1 
S.E. 
66 2 
80.3 
56.0 
126.2 
51.7 
0.264 
Saturday ... 
10 
30.194 
64.8 
58.0 
N.W. 
65.6 
75J 
55.0 
122.9 
54.7 
0.053 
29.972 
68.3 
62,0 
65.9 
78.4 
58.3 
123.9 
55.4 
0.513 
REMARKS. 
10th.—Cloudy early, and occasionally during the day, with a heavy shower about 
5.45 p m., otherwise fine and bright, 
ltth.—Variable, with shower*. 
12th.—Fine and pleasant. 
13th—Bright and hot till about 4.30 P.M., then a slight 6hower, followed by a cool evening. 
1 4th.—Fine and pleasant, though frequently cloudy. 
15tb.—Cloudy and cool in morning, then bright for a time; cloudy again by 4 P.M.; 
tthunder at 4.20, followed by heavy rain and two or thiee flashes of lightning, ve.y 
vivid at 4.3L and 4.40; showery, with lightning, in evening. 
lGth.—Fine, bright, warm day, with heavy shower and lightning in evening. 
Another warm week, the sixth in succession, and the first of them in which any 
material quantity of rain has fallen. In fact from June 3rd to July 9th (thirty-six days) 
no rain fell except the insignificant amounts of 0052 in. on June 8th'and 0.037 in. on 
July 4th.-G. J. SYMONS. 
