168 
JOURNAL*  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
August  15,  1895. 
experience  the  extra  labour  so  frequently  involved  in  sowing 
such  crops,  and  the  uncertainty  about  having  a  full  or  strong 
plant.  It  was  many  years  ago,  while  watching  some  Wheat 
sowing  at  a  heavy  land  farm  in  November,  that  we  resolved  to 
avoid  such  unsatisfactory  practice  in  future.  Drilling  so  late 
in  the  year  is  often  more  than  twice  as  heavy  as  it  is  in 
September ;  harrowing  is  still  more  unsatisfactory,  so  many 
turns  being  necessary  before  the  seeds  are  covered  that  they 
are  literally  trampled  in  by  the  borses. 
It  is  such  heavy  work,  and  having  to  wait  so  long  before 
sowing  is  possible  when  the  weather  becomes  broken  and 
unsettled,  that  should  act  as  an  incentive  now  to  push  on 
ploughs,  cultivators,  harrows,  horse-hoes — every  available  imple¬ 
ment  for  getting  the  land  clean.  To  sow  each  autumn  crop 
early  rather  than  late,  to  aim  at  getting  all  tillage  done,  all 
winter  corn  sown  by  the  end  of  September.  This  may  not  be 
accomplished,  but  the  effort  will  assuredly  cause  the  work  to 
be  so  well  advanced  by  that  time  as  to  render  completion 
possible  before  autumn  is  much  in  evidence  Then,  with  corn 
and  green  crops  a  full  strong  plant,  all  uncropped  land  clean 
and  thrown  up  in  ridges,  the  pressure  will  be  over ;  we  can 
rest  contented  even  if  we  should  have  another  ten  weeks’  f»’ost 
and  snow,  feeling  assured  that  the  well  tilled  soil  will  have  its 
particles  so  softened,  so  thoroughly  divided  by  exposure,  as  to 
afford  a  seed  bed  fine  and  workable  as  a  bed  of  coal  ashes,  and 
ready  for  cropping  early  next  spring. 
Of  other  crops  to  sow  now  Giant  Italian  Rye  Grass  comes 
first  where  an  early  crop  of  it  is  desired.  On  farms  where  it  is 
much  grown  there  are  successional  sowings  in  September  and 
October.  To  have  it  at  its  best,  which  means  a  first  growth 
4  or  5  feet  high,  and  a  strong  second  growth  ready  in  six  or 
seven  weeks  after  the  first  mowing,  the  soil  must  be  rich  in 
fertility,  and  fertility  must  be  well  sustained.  If  a  full  dressing 
of  chemical  manure  had  to  be  drilled  in  with  the  seed  now 
we  should  not  hesitate  to  give  a  dressing  of  nitrate  of  soda 
immediately  after  mowing  the  first  crop.  Big  crops  mean  big 
feeding;  they  also  mean  big  profits.  Rye  would  be  the  next 
crop,  and  it  is  worthy  of  all  care,  no  green  crop  beiug  more  so, 
coming  into  use  as  it  does  first  in  spring  for  sheep  folding,  for 
cattle  and  horse  fodder.  Then  in  September  come  the  Wheat, 
Winter  Oats,  and  Tares.  If  there  is  a  large  area  to  sow  with 
Wheat  we  begin  very  early  in  the  month,  so  as  to  have  the 
whole  of  the  winter  corn  in  before  October. 
The  common  custom  of  sowing  Wheat  during  the  last  three 
months  of  the  year,  probably  arose  from  the  fact  that  much 
land  in  a  heavy  crude  condition  could  not  be  got  ready  earlier. 
The  risk  of  waiting  so  long  on  exceptionally  heavy  land 
involved  a  po  sibility  of  not  being  able  to  sow  the  Wheat  at  all, 
such  soil  if  ploughed  when  sodden  by  rain  remaining  unwork¬ 
able  for  a  long  time.  The  remedy,  which  must  have  been  worth 
while  when  the  price  of  Wheat  was  so  high,  was  drainage  and 
mechanical  division.  Though  we  dare  not  recommend  reclaiming 
soil  for  Wheat  under  present  prices,  we  are  bound  to  insist 
that  what  Wheat  is  gro^n  now  must  have  the  best  soil.  To 
sow  Wheat  on  poor  land  never  could  have  been  right,  to  do 
so  under  the  present  condition  of  agriculture  is  positively 
suicidal. 
With  autumn  tillage  and  the  sowing  of  autumn  crops  the 
farmers’  year  begins ;  it  ends  with  the  ingathering  of  the 
summer  crops  of  next  year.  Much  of  the  success  of  the  year 
before  us  depends  on  how  autumn  work  is  done,  what  crops 
are  sown,  how  the  land  is  prepared  for  sowing  now  and  in 
spring.  We  hope  it  is  realised  that  modern  farming  is  very 
much  more  than  a  mere  waiting  for  weather  fluctuations  or  : 
extremes,  that  the  soil  we  cultivate  is  a  medium  for  conveying 
food  to  plants,  that  its  condition  is  a  matter  of  primary 
importance,  on  which  the  success  or  failure  of  our  work  very 
much  depends.  If  we  would  have  the  soil  do  its  work  for  ui  in 
the  best  way,  we  must  see  to  it  that  our  treatment  of  it  is 
correct,  well  timed,  and  thorough. 
WOEK  ON  THE  HOME  FARM. 
Where  Wheat  is  grown  specially  for  flour  for  the  household  thorough 
harvesting  before  placing  it  in  ricks  is  essential,  in  case  it  should  be 
required  for  threshing  soon.  The  ordinary  farmer  ofren  carts  his  Wheat 
in  a  soft  condition,  and  waits  six  or  eight  months  before  threshing  ;  but 
the  home  farmer  has  ever  to  think  of  supplying  household  requirements, 
and  must  lay  his  plans  accordingly.  We  do  not  forget  the  superior  dry¬ 
ness  of  foreign  Wheat  ;  it  is  only  in  an  emergency  that  the  home  farmer 
must  even  think  of  that  where  home-grown  Wheat  is  insisted  on. 
In  connection  with  corn  for  home  use,  we  are  reminded  of  a  prejudice 
in  hunting  and  training  stables  for  old  Oats.  This  fancy  is  easily  met 
by  keeping  an  abundant  supply  the  year  round — one  year  under  another. 
This  involves  an  extra  amount  of  storage  space  and  a  rat-proof  granary. 
We  have  found  Winter  Oats  much  liked  by  trainers,  and  we  do  not 
wonder.  When  well  grown  this  is  a  large  heavy  Oat,  highly  nutritious, 
and  a  very  different  thing  from  the  thin,  light,  imported  Oat. 
Lucerne  has  again  proved  invaluable  for  a  supply  of  green  fooder 
throughout  the  drought.  We  have  also  had  a  capital  supply  of  fodder 
from  the  layers  of  mixed  seeds.  One  piece  on  cool,  rich  soil  in  a  valley 
which  had  a  heavy  first  crop  mown  about  the  middle  of  June  had  a 
second  crop  of  almost  equal  bulk  ready  by  the  end  of  July.  This  was 
rather  exceptional,  but  the  superiority  of  the  crop  on  well  cultivated 
layers  over  very  much  on  pastures  has  been  especially  remarkable  this 
year. 
East  Anglian  farmers  are  wont  to  complain  that  they  have  been 
unsuccessful  in  trying  to  lay  down  land  to  permanent  pasture.  Without 
inquiry  as  to  the  cause  of  failure  we  may  point  to  the  cultivation  of  tem¬ 
porary  pasture  as  being  much  more  profitable  than  permanent  pasture, 
and  with  their  admirable  system  of  growing  such  green  crops  as  Clover, 
Sainfoin,  Trifolium,  then  grand  crops  of  Mangolds  and  Swedes,  they 
should  be  able,  with  modified  corn  crops,  to  do  better  than  struggle  for 
bare  subsistence.  We  fear  Barley  in  that  district  is  grown  much  more 
for  the  benefit  of  the  maltster  than  the  farmer  ;  it  ought  to  answer,  and 
there  is  a  decided  local  advantage  in  the  sowing  of  Clover  and  other 
seed  which  the  dry  climate  renders  so  possible. 
OUR  LETTER  BOX. 
Thistles  (^Anxious'). — To  destroy  Thistles  they  must  be  pulled  up 
by  the  roots.  On  arable  land  this  is  done  by  repeated  hoeing  among  root 
crops,  or  by  thorough  autumn  tillage,  ploughing,  harrowing,  deep 
stirring  with  cultivator  or  horse  hoe,  so  as  not  only  to  sever  the  roots 
well  beneath  the  surface,  but  to  bring  the  loosened  plants  on  the 
surface,  to  be  killed  by  exposure,  or,  better  still,  collected  and  burnt. 
On  pasture  the  practice  of  mowing  Thistles  once  or  twice  during 
summer  may  weaken  growth,  but  we  always  regard  it  as  a  waste  of  time 
and  money.  Root  them  up  once  for  all,  and  there  is  an  end  of  them  ; 
we  have  had  them  pulled  up  by  hands  protected  with  stout  leathern 
gloves  when  the  land  is  softened  by  heavy  rain,  also  dug  up  with 
Dock  spirds.  The  plan  may  be  tedious,  but  it  is  certainly  thorough. 
Never  suffer  a  Thistle  to  run  to  seed;  turn  everyone  to  the  rooting  up 
of  them  at  odd  times,  and  by  the  exercise  of  a  little  perseverance  you 
will  get  rid  of  them. 
METEOROLOGICAL  OBSERVATIONS, 
Oamden  Square,  London. 
Lat.61°  32'40"  N. ;  Long.  0°  8/ 0"  W.;  Altitude  111  feet. 
Date. 
9  A.M. 
In  the  Day. 
Rain.  | 
1895. 
August. 
Barometer 
at  32°,  and 
1  Sea  Level. 
Hygrometer. 
Direc¬ 
tion  of 
Wind. 
Temp, 
of  soil 
at 
1  foot. 
Shade  Tem¬ 
perature. 
Radiation 
Temperature 
Dry. 
Wet. 
Max. 
Min. 
In 
Sun. 
On 
Grass. 
Inchs. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
Inchs. 
Sunday  . . 
4 
29  357 
58-8 
53-0 
W. 
eo-0 
68-1 
52-2 
118-7 
50-8 
0-204 
Monday  . , 
5 
29-535 
60-6 
55-0 
N.W. 
59  3 
67-8 
47-4 
106-2 
44-7 
0-045 
Tuesday  . . 
6 
29-4-8 
59-7 
55-9 
W. 
59-1 
67-4 
56-9 
109-6 
55-2 
0-129 
Wednesday 
7 
29-799 
62-2 
56-3 
w. 
59  0 
70-7 
50-9 
116-4 
48-1 
0-087 
Thursday . . 
8 
29-881 
60-9 
55-9 
w. 
59-0 
72-J 
48-9 
119-6 
45-1 
0-162, 
Friday 
9 
29  741 
64-3 
61-2 
3.W. 
59-7 
73-1 
56-1 
123-3 
55-0 
0-010 
Saturday  . . 
10 
29-814 
63  8 
60-0 
S. 
60-6 
74-2 
58-0 
108-9 
54-9 
0-670- 
29-656 
61-5 
56-8 
59-5 
70-3 
52-9 
114-7 
50-5 
1-307 
REMARKS. 
4tli. — Sunny  morning ;  showers  in  afternoon,  and  heavy  rain  with  thunder  and 
lightning  at  6  P.JI. 
5th. — Sunny  early,  fair  morning  ;  cloudy  afternoon,  showers  at  4.3U  P.M.  and  in  night. 
6th. — Stormy  and  showery  throughout ;  sunny  at  times  in  afternoon,  but  thunder  and 
heavy  rain  from  2.30  r.XT.  to  3.30  P.il. 
7th.— Generally  fine  and  sunny,  but  heavy  rain  at  10.15  A.M.  and  11.20  a.m. 
8th.— Fine  and  pleasant,  but  not  much  bright  sunshine  ;  rain  from  7  P.M.  to  midnight. 
9th.— Overcast  and  drizzly  early  ;  frequent  sunshine  after  10.30  A.M. 
10th.— Generally  overcast  in  morning  and  sunny  in  afternoon  ;  frequent  vivid  lightning 
from  9  P.M.  to  10.30  P.M.,  and  very  heavy  rain  from  9.45  P.M.  to  10  P.M. 
Another  week  of  nearly  average  (and  steady)  temperature  and  of  excessive  raii>, 
more  or  less  having  faUen  every  day.— G.  J.  Symons. 
