28 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
ed about by the ploughs dragged by the harrow, and sunk into the 
soil by the roller, but not sufficiently separated by any of them. The 
remains of them, together with the more finely divided grasses and 
weeds, are dragged up into heaps by the harrow throughout the 
whole field. These are raked up into larger heaps and burned by 
some cultivators. Others suffer them to remain, and when the seed 
is sown, the harrow, by dragging the heaps, drags up much ol the 
seed with them; and vegetation is destroyed wherever they may 
happen to lie. In either case, a great waste of vegetable matter 
takes place; for when it is not burned, its best properties are ex¬ 
haled by the sun, or scattered in the air. Numbers of men, women 
and children are sometimes seen in England, breaking the hard mat¬ 
ted clods into pieces, raking them up into heaps, and burning this 
very valuable vegetation, which, without any of this enormous waste 
of labor, migbt have been very profitably applied to the growth of 
the crops, and improvement of the soil. After the utmost care has 
been taken to prepare a naked fallow in the usual way, a multitude 
of the roots and tops ot the grasses and weeds remain so intimately 
mixed within the sod, that tney will grow in sufficient numbers to 
do great injury to the crop ; especially if the weather happens to be 
dripping during the process of cultivation. In that case, the mois¬ 
ture preserves the vegetative powers of the grasses and weeds, and 
the crop is sure to be much injured by them. 
The seeds of the weeds are as often turned under as uppermost, 
by the usual mode of cultivation; consequently, many of them do 
not vegetate during the process ; and those that are not buried be¬ 
yond the power of germination, when the small grain is sown, will 
grow and injure the crop. If dung is applied for the small grain, it 
is generally spread previously to seeding, and turned under by a shal¬ 
low furrow; of consequence it produces a plentiful crop of weeds, 
for although the cookers of dung say that the fermentation of it de¬ 
stroys the vegetative property of seed, practice and observation de¬ 
termine the contrary. 
In fact, if nature had not calculated seeds in general to withstand 
much more than the heat of a fermenting dunghill, the earth would 
long since have been stripped of vegetation, particularly where plougli- 
ers and croppers reside. Like the locust in Egypt, they would soon 
destroy every green thing, if nature had not reserved seeds for ages 
unhurt, with which she carefully counteracts so much of the injury 
done by this class of farmers, as to prevent actual sterility from tak¬ 
ing place in the grounds cultivated by them.— lb. 
THE USUAL MODE OF CULTIVATING FALLOW CROPS CONTRASTED WITH 
THE PRACTICE RECOMMENDED BY THE AUTHOR. 
Although it is granted, that a naked fallow prepares much food 
for plants, by finely dividing the soil, frequent ploughing and har¬ 
rowing are calculated to scatter much animal and vegetable mat¬ 
ter in the air ; especially while the soil is continually exposed to the 
injurious effects of the sun and air; and unless the bad effects pro¬ 
duced by this process be counteracted by excellent management 
in other respects, it will eventually ruin the soil. If this practice 
be pursued, under the best mode of management, that superior 
talents can devise, the improvement in the soil will bo slow indeed, 
when compared with that which may be readily effected, by the prac¬ 
tice of fallow crops properly ordered. It is also evident, that in the lat¬ 
ter case the grounds are profitably employed, while in the former 
they yield nothing; although the farmer is spending much money in 
the very laborious cultivation of them. 
No improvement made in agriculture has promoted the interest 
of it so extensively as the introduction of fallow crops. Yet it seems 
evident, that the various different modes which have been generally 
pursued in the cultivation of these crops, as well as in that of the 
cultivated crops following them, are by no means calculated to pro¬ 
mote the product of either, or to enrich the soil, to any thing like 
that extent, which might be readily effected with much less labor 
and expense, if a proper system of cultivation were pursued. If, 
however, distinct parts of the very numerous and discordant systems 
of cultivation be selected from the different practices, that are com¬ 
monly pursued by different cultivators, it appears that nothing is of¬ 
fered by me, which has not been more or less sanctioned by the ac¬ 
tual practice of others. Therefore, the merit of my system of hus¬ 
bandry does not consist in overturning what the practice and obser¬ 
vation of ages have introduced : but in uniting into one system such 
practices as are consistent with nature, reason and common sense, 
rejecting those only that seem to be inconsistent with either. The 
undertaking is arduous, especially when ventured upon by a plain 
practical farmer, who depends not on science, but on nature, reason, 
practice and observation. In a work of this sort, errors are to be 
expected; still, as these errors cannot be capital, but little injury is 
to be expected from them, before they may be corrected by those 
who are better informed.— lb. 
OBSERVATIONS ON THE VALUE OF GRASS LAYS, AND THE PROPER CUL¬ 
TIVATION OF THEM. 
Agriculture will never reach its zenith, until the value of grass 
lays is sufficiently appreciated, and the cultivation of them much 
better understood. The value of a clover lay, when applied for 
wheat, is well known. Still, most farmers continue frequent mow¬ 
ing, or close pasturing, until the clover is nearly run out. This 
greatly impoverishes the lay, and unless the soil be rich, the wheat 
crop is light. The clover plant cannot withstand frequent cutting, 
even during the first season it is mown. This causes the lateral 
roots of the plants to become weak, and incapable of holding the 
tap-roots in the ground; and they are thrown out by the frosts of 
the ensuing winter and spring. The same happens if red clover be 
pastured, unless a well grown covering of the tops of the grass be 
preserved ; especially to defend the roots and crown of the plant, 
from the frosts of the ensuing winter and spring. If this plant be • 
thus defended, it will far better withstand, not only the frosts in win¬ 
ter and spring, but also the injurious heat of the sun.— lb. 
THE RED CLOVER PLANT IS DESTROYED BY FREQUENT MOWING AND 
CLOSE PASTURING. 
Both red clover and speargrass lays are very justly esteemed by 
many farmers, as the best preparation for a fallow crop of maize. 
Some, either to save labor or from a just conviction that the value 
of the crop is also greatly increased, do not turn the sod in the cul¬ 
tivation of the fallow plants. Too many of them, however, as well 
as other cultivators, believe the health and vigor of the plants are 
greatly promoted by harrowing over them while they are young. 
Some, also, use harrows with sharp cutting tines, for the purpose of 
cutting through the sod deeply, and as near to the stems of the plants 
as may be conveniently done, without cutting or tearing up. These 
practices are certainly opposed to the economy of nature, and the 
enlightened reason of man. None of these gentlemen would wound, 
bruise or mangle a young animal, to increase the health and vigor of 
it; neither would they rend and tear the choice trees in their nur¬ 
series to make them grow better; although less evil would arise 
from mangling them, as trees are calculated much better to with¬ 
stand and outgrow this very manifest injury. The practice of mu¬ 
tilating the tops, and separating the roots of plants from their stems, 
for the express purpose of causing them to grow much more luxuri¬ 
antly, is not confined to maize ; potatoes and other hardy plants, that 
are capable of withstanding this truly barbarian practice, are too 
often subjected to it.— lb. 
FERMENTATION, PROPERLY DIRECTED, IS THE MAIN SPRING OF VEGE¬ 
TATION. 
Although some farmers do not turn up the sod in the cultivation 
of maize, all of them, so far as my observation extends, plough it up 
previously to seeding the small grain that follows this plant. This 
exposes the rich matter arising from the fermentation of the roots 
and tops of the grasses, and the dung also, if that has been applied, 
to a serious waste. It is exhaled by the sun, scattered in the winds, 
and washed away by the rains and melting snows. Fermentation, 
which is the main spring of vegetation, is checked. None of these 
evils happen when the small grain is put in by a superficial cultiva¬ 
tion ; as the rich fertilizing matter remains securely buried within 
the soil. This, nature applies, with the least possible loss, to the 
use of the cultivated crops, and the grasses following, and with the 
overplus she enriches the soil. The fermentation and decay of this 
enriching matter, more effectually expands, and minutely divides, the 
soil, than can be done with the plough. The plough, harrow and 
roller, with, too often, the addition of very expensive manual labor, 
are capable of pulverizing the soil to any desirable extent. After 
this has been done, it settles, and too often becomes impervious to the 
roots of the plants, unless the ground be so rich, that it is not mate¬ 
rially affected by the loss of the animal and vegetable matter which 
always takes place, when the soil is cultivated in the usual way. 
It should, also, be recollected, that every crop which is sown broad 
cast, principally depends on the expanding force of fermentation, to 
keep the soil open and mellow, for the ready admission of the roots 
of the plants; likewise, that when the grain is filling the plants re- 
