1876. ] 
THE HOE AND ITS USES. 
113 
set at an angle which serves to scrape up the surface soil, instead of cutting 
through it—either shallowly, moderately, or deeply, as required, according to season, 
soil, and circumstances. All hoes, whether draw-hoes, or push, f.e.. Dutch-hoes, 
should have nicely rounded corners, instead of being finished off with sharp 
square corners, which are liable to cut and injure the stalks or bulbs of the 
plants, right and left, intended to be left for the crop, and to encourage which in 
their growth is one object in performing the operation. 
My practice was never to have the ground raked in order to get a smooth 
and fine surface, but always to encourage an open, crumbly, uneven surface 
amongst and about all the growing crops, in order to admit a free circulation of 
the air and ensure the penetration of the rain as it descended, thus avoiding 
surface-binding; while immediately after rains, or as soon after as the surface of 
the soil became in a fit state, I set to work and surface-stirred every inch of 
the ground with the hand-scarifiers, of which I had small-sized ones, with two 
or three tines to each, and with goose-necks, to be used one in each hand. In 
the same manner, the small-sized goose-neck hoes were used, being brought into 
play according to the state of the soil, the season, and other circumstances. 
I always practised sowing the crops in drills, so that I could make use of the 
small 1-in. to 4-in. hoes, and the one-hand small-pronged scarifiers to run across 
the crops in the drills ; then, the larger two-hand scarifier, draw, or Dutch hoe, 
to work between them, always cutting through every inch of ground. This 
never gave the weeds a chance to gain a footing at any season, or allowed a slug, 
grub, or other pest peace or breeding-time. It is astonishing what an extent of 
cropped ground an active handy man will rattle through in a day, if he is pro¬ 
vided with fitting, handy, well-planned tools, and possesses a little energy and 
tact in their use. My invariable practice was thus to cross-stir the drifts or 
rows of the growing crops, which was performed with every crop as soon as the 
seedlings could be seen, using care and caution at first, and going through seed¬ 
beds as well. This not only encouraged a luxuriant, healthy growth, but never 
permitted a crop of weeds to get established, so that there was never any weed¬ 
ing to be done, nor any necessity for a weeder—either woman, old man, or boy 
—to tramp about the seed-beds or drills. 
My next care was to rattle through both the alleys and the drills between 
and about all crops with the two-hand scarifier, if the soil was close and hard, 
or the Dutch hoe, if in a lighter workable state, working backwards, so as to 
leave the whole surface open and free to admit sun and air. If the surface was 
too heavy for the easy working of the Dutch hoe, and the draw-hoe was preferred, 
as being more efiicient, the surface could still be left free from foot-prints, by 
walking in the adjoining space. 
The seasonable performance of this work with the hoe, or scarifier, is the 
masterpiece of good cultivation. It is not only a preventive against the intrusion 
of all weeds and ground-pests destructive to our crops, more particularly when 
in their infant state, but it encourages robust healthy growth. Indeed, methodi- 
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