great loss sustained by these had been wholly owing 
to the havoc committed by the birds, it is evident 
that the varieties marked Nos. 12 and 15, would not 
have been so slightly injured, while Nos. 11, 13, 14, 
and 16 suffered so severely. The figures in this co- 
lumn may, therefore, be said to indicate with toler- 
able accuracy the relative ability of each variety to 
withstand the effects of a severe and changeable win- 
ter, such as that during which the experiment was 
made. ‘The number of plants of each variety which 
came to perfection, is placed opposite the name of 
each in the seventh column. This was ascertained 
by pulling each as they respectively ripened, and 
counting the plants of each before proceeding to the 
others. In this way, by a simple subtraction, the 
numbers contained in the sixth column also were 
ascertained. When all the plants of any variety had 
been pulled, the number of ears also belonging to 
them was counted, and the results are placed in the 
eighth column. By dividing these by ninety-nine, the 
number of square feet which each variety occupied, 
we obtain the number of ears in each square foot; 
and this is placed opposite the name of each wheat, 
in the ninth column. The average number of ears 
to each root, ascertained by dividing the number of 
ears by that of the roots, is placed in the tenth co- 
lumn. This column shows the degree in which each 
species possesses the important property of spread- 
ing and shooting out stems, or, as it is technically 
termed, of tillering; and it will be seen that they 
vary in this respect greatly. After having been pull- 
| ed and dried, the wheat was carefully rubbed out; and 
_ after the light and imperfect grains had been separ- 
ated, the weight of the remainder was taken, and 
placed opposite each sort in the eleventh column. 
The thirteenth column contains the number of bush- 
els per acre raised from each variety. As the quan- 
tity produced was so small, there was some difficulty 
in obtaining the particulars which this column con- 
tains. The mode adopted was this. The average 
weight of several of the varieties was ascertained by 
weighing eight pints of each, to be at the rate of 
sixty-four pounds per bushel, some being rather 
more, and others less. The number of bushels were 
then obtained from the weight of wheat per acre, by 
dividing it by sixty-four. The weight of straw, 
which is placed in the fifteenth and sixteenth co- 
lumns, was ascertained after the roots had been cut 
off, and after it had remained out sufficiently long to 
dry it perfectly. . After the earth had been removed 
from the roots, which had been cut off with about 
two inches of the stem, they were weighed, and the 
result placed in the seventeenth and eighteenth co- 
lumns. The object of this was to ascertain the 
amount of vegetable matter left in the soil after the 
wheat crop has been removed, and the result greatly 
exceeds any conception of it that had been previous- 
ly entertained. The inferences which, it is presum- 
ed, may be drawn from the above details. are the 
following :—lIst. With regard to the hardiness of the 
varieties, which, as we have already said, may, to a 
certain extent, be deduced from the particulars con- 
tained in the sixth column, that they may be placed 
in three classes,—Nos. 5. 6. 8. 12. 15. 4. and 2. be- 
ing the hardiest; Nos. 13. 14. 16. and 10. being the 
most delicate; and Nos. 1. 3. 7.9. and 11. oecupy- 
ing an average station. 2d. With regard to the pro- 
perty of tillering, of which we have already spoken, 
that Nos. 12. 14. 16. and 1. possess it in the great- 
est degree; that Nos. 3. 13. 4. 5. 6. 15. 8. and 2. 
possess it in the least; and that Nos. 7. 9. 10. and 
11. hold a medium rank. 3d. That with respect to 
the relative value of each variety mentioned in the 
table, No. 12. is undoubtedly the best of any, in pro- 
ductiveness, and in being sufficiently hardy; that 
No. 13. is as undoubtedly the worst of any, as will 
be seen by a reference to any of the columns; and 
WHEAT. 
679 
that the others vary greatly, some possessing nearly 
three times the productiveness of others.” 
‘In Sept. 1841,” says Mr. Miles, ‘I chose for my 
experiment a one-year old clover ley, on a sandy loam, 
gently sloping to the north-north-west. The crop of 
elover had been very good, nearly 50 cwt. an acre; 
from some part of the field I had taken a second crop, 
feeding the remainder with sheep and young beasts; 
no visible difference, however, was afterwards appa- 
rent in the grain crop, either in quantity or quality, 
from these distinct modes of treating the second crop 
of clover. The field was ploughed on the 20th of 
September, and, having been laid out in half-acres for 
the ploughing-match of the Bath and West of Eng. 
land Society, was continued in the same state for the 
experiment, each half-acre being separated by 27 
inches of grass-balk. The sorts selected for trial 
were, of white wheats, No.1, Bellevue Talavera, 
No. 2, Chidham, No. 3, Silver drop, No. 4, a seed- 
ling—Jonds’s prolific, No. 5, Sheriff's, and No. 6, 
golden swan; and of red wheats, No. 1, Burwell, 
No. 2, red champion, No. 3, Britannia, No. 4, Mr. 
Fisher Hobbs’s red marigold, and No. 5, old red Lam- 
mas. ‘To each of these wheats 3 half-acres were 
allotted, except to Mr. Jonas’s seedling, of which I 
had but sufficient seed for an acre: the quantity sown 
per acre was 2 bushels‘and 1 peck. On the 27th of 
September, previously to breaking up the clover, 10 
bushels of 34-inch bones were sown broadcast over 
the field. On Tuesday the 12th of October, I com- 
menced putting in No.1 white with a Suffolk drill, 
and finished No. 5 red on the Friday following. On 
Tuesday the 26th No. 2 white appeared; on the fol- 
lowing Saturday all the whites were up; on the 8d 
of November the red wheats were partially, but with- 
out any apparent priority of germination, showing. 
The appearances of the white wheats were—No. I, 
sixth; No. 2, first; No. 3, fourth; No. 4, third, 
No. 5, fifth; No. 6, second. No. 1 eame up very 
indifferently; indeed it seemed, from the incessant 
rains, which had continued almost without intermis- 
sion from the time of sowing to this period, to have 
perished in the ground; and as this wheat never 
afterwards improved, but was entirely hoed in again 
in February, it may be considered as having totally 
failed with me. Last year, however, in which there 
were several very sharp frosts and a good deal of 
catching weather, I reaped a most capital crop of 
Bellevue Talavera, nearly 5 quarters an acre, which 
had been sown in October, 1840. ‘This wheat in 
our climate I consider essentially a spring wheat, and 
as such invaluable; for in the parts of the trial-field 
this year where the plant was very deficient, or had 
totally failed, I hoed it in from the 6th of February 
to the beginning of March, and the wheat so sown 
was ready for the sickle as early as those sown in 
October. On the 21st of November I found the 
appearances of the wheats thus noted :— Whites, No. 
2, third; No. 38, fourth; No. 4, second; No. 5, fifth; 
No. 6, first: Reds, No. 1 and 2, first; No. 8, fourth; 
No. 4, second; No. 5, third. The first fortnight in 
January was very trying to the plant, as we had al- 
ternate sharp frosts and sudden thaws without’snow. . 
On the 22d the wheats were going off terribly, and 
the wire-worm was general in its ravages: I imme- 
diately put the heaviest roller I could get on the 
field and rolledit till the surface was as hard as a 
turnpike-road; still the damage apparently done was 
immense, and a neighbouring farmer guessed that the 
product of the field would not be above 16 bushels 
per acre: the rolling, however, stopped the progress 
of the wire-worm. On the 5th of February I began 
hoeing in Bellevue Talavera on those spots of the 
trial-pieees where the plant had nearly disappeared: 
of the whites the whole of No. 1 was put in afresh; 
of No. 5, about two-thirds of an acre: of the reds a 
little was put in in Nos. 1 and 2; nearly all in No. 
