66 
THE CULTIVATOR 
Feb 
from the common lane, and the operations in each kept 
entirely separate from all the rest. The boundary fences, 
and those forming the lane, are permanent; the others 
may be moveable, to vary the size of the fields, or to 
bring every portion of the farm into occasional cultiva¬ 
tion. The smaller divisions, for garden, calf-pasture, 
hog-yard, &c., are placed near the buildings. This is 
perhaps the simplest mode of properly sub-dividing a 
farm, and with some slight variations will apply to a 
large portion of those of more moderate size. We fur¬ 
nish a single instance of a modification to suit a farm of 
uneven surface. Suppose for example, that at the field 
A, there is a high and broad hill, extending nearly across 
to the opposite boundary; and at B there is another hill, 
stretching as far in the other direction. A valley will be 
thus formed from C to D. Fig. 2 exhibits the form of 
i 
Fig 2. 
the first plan varied to apply to this piece of ground. To 
avoid going over the first hill, the lane bends so as nearly 
to pass round it, rising however gradually as it extends 
backward, until at E it crosses the valley, and continues 
to rise by a moderate ascent to its termination. A 
bridge and embankment are made at the crossing, the 
cost of which will be according to the means of the pro¬ 
prietor, and also adapted to the amount of cartage across 
it. 
Here, some one who prefers driving a load up hill and 
down hill three hundred times in the year, to spoiling a 
pretty plan on paper, exclaims, 11 How crooked! How 
distorted! I want all my fields with straight boundaries 
—and no crooked lanes running through my land.” Such 
a farmer would have no deflections in the public roads 
to avoid mounds or gulfs, hut would prefer mounting 
right over a hill a hundred feet high, to bending a hun¬ 
dred feet to the right or left, for a level. To such an one 
these remarks are not addressed, hut to those only who 
prefer making all their flexures in a horizontal plane, 
rather than in a perpendicular one. We have indeed 
seen those who for years had drawn in all their farm crops, 
and returned all their manure, over a laborious ascent 
and down an inconvenient plunge, and we could not help 
wishing that they might at least make a short trial of a 
few easy curves with a fine level road, even though the 
beauty of the plantation, as seen from a balloon above, 
might be somewhat diminished. 
Large farms usually border the public road for a great¬ 
er breadth than smaller ones, and hence a different ar¬ 
rangement becomes necessary. The annexed plan, (Fig. 
3) represents one of this sort, with the disposition of the 
farm-road and fields. The two extreme fields adjoining 
the public road, are entered as in the first plan from the 
latter. 
This subject might he very easily extended to an in- 
definite length, but we close with a few general rules, 
which, if borne in mind, would he of essential use in 
planning the sub-divisions of every farm:— 
1. The farm-road or lane should he as short as possible 
in connecting the fields with the buildings. If much used , 
the form, of the fields if needed, should be made to con¬ 
form to this requisite, and to its levelness. 
Fig. 3. 
2. The barn and other farm buildings should he as near 
as practicable to the centre of the arable land, for econo¬ 
my and expedition in the cartage of manure and crops; 
at the same time that access to the public road should 
not he forgotten. 
3. The number of fields should he accommodated to 
the system of rotation established on the farm, and should 
therefore be as nearly as may be of equal size. 
4. The fields should be made nearly square, for econo¬ 
my of fencing material and to save occupancy of land 
by boundaries, less being needed for a square than for 
any other rectangular form. 
5. When the land varies greatly in character, as in 
wetness or dryness, &c., such as is most similar should 
be brought within the same boundary, to he subjected 
to the same treatment in rotation. Dissimilar fields 
may however he often rendered alike by draining and 
subsoiling, when not otherwise easily subjected to a regu¬ 
lar system. 
6. Bringing streams of water alongside the fences, 
rendering facilities for irrigation, and also supplying wa¬ 
ter to each field, should not he overlooked. 
7- Hills should he brought, near the centre of fields, to 
enable the plow to pass around them to throw the earth 
downwards from the mould-board. 
8. The area of each field should be determined, to 
enable the farmer to judge of the requisite quantity of 
seed and manure—and to measure the amount of crops, 
and time required for mowing, reaping, plowing, See. 
