
          91a

Bradley, Richard

A general treatise of husbandry and gardening, for the
month of April [-March]. Containing such observations and
experiments as are new and useful for the improvement of land.
With an account of such extraordinary inventions, and natural
productions, as may help the ingenious in their studies, and
promote universal learning. To be continued monthly, with
variety of curious cotts. London, Printed for J. Peele [n.d.]

Each month has a separate title-page like the above, and a leaf
with dedication to some patron of husbandry or learning. The parts
are paged consecutively, with slight irregularities because of the
insertion of the title and dedication.

There is no authoritative information about the original issue
in parts; but the title as given above suggests that it may be the
earliest of those quoted for different editions of the work. The
catalog of the Sturtevant collection, Missouri Bot. Gard. Rpt. 7:
135 (1896), lists "The monthly register of experiments in husbandry 
and gardening; for the months of April and May, 1722". At first
glance one might suppose these to be original parts of this work;
but as the May number of the "General treatise" was actually published 
in 1721, these "Monthly registers", if indeed parts of the
same work, are more likely to be reprints of parts that were exhausted 
before the complete series was issued in book form.

The exact date of Peele's edition has not been discovered. The
queried date [1725?] has been supplied for cards printed by the U.
S. Dept. Agr. and John Crerar libraries; but this has not been confirmed, 
and there is reason to suppose it was published earlier.

Martyn, in Miller's "The gardener’s and botanist’s dictionary",
l:xxvii, says "These were tracts published monthly, and collected
into volumes, and seem to have been republished with additions in
four volumes, 1726"; but no edition in 4 vols. has been discovered.
However, there is an edition in 3 vols., published by T. Woodward,
London, 1724, which is in the Arnold Arboretum library, as well as
one in 2 vols. published by Woodward in 1726. The Arn. Arb. Cat.
does not give extended titles; but the partial title for the 1724
ed. corresponds more nearly to that of Peele’s ed. than to that of
Woodward’s ed. of 1726, and the paging of v.1 and v.2 of the 1724
ed. is practically identical with that of the 2 vols. of Peele's
ed., while v.3, 1724, has three separate pagings: 94, 80, 196 p..
        