378

fc»N THE ARABLE LAND

bandmen fully aware of the great injury they sustain from aprofusion of weeds, and the profitable advantages whichmust necessarily accrue to them by the extirpation of theserobbers of the soil, both by the amelioration of the individualcrop among which they grow, and by preventing them frommaturating and shedding their seeds to injure future crops,they would surely see the propriety of exerting their own su-perintending industry, and of expending a moderate sum, tocure the evil. It is not the operation of the best worked fal-low or fallow-crop, once in a rotation of four or six years,that will free land filled with annual weeds, from the destruc-tive ravages of these enemies ; as the seeds when allowed toripen and scatter themselves over the surface of arable land,are known to remain for many years torpid within the soil,till circumstances favourable to their growth call them intoaction. On this subject, there is an old rural proverb whichought to be held in remembrance by every husbandman :—One year’s seeding causes seven years’ 'weeding.

In land that is much infested with annual weeds, an in-dustrious application of hand-weeding, combined with wellwrought fallows, or fallow-crops, according to the nature ofthe soil, will do a great deal towards a cure in the first courseof rotation, and render the cleaning process comparativelyan easy task afterwards *. Among broadcast crops of grain,the expence of pulling up weeds by hand will vary accordingto circumstances, from perhaps ten shillings an acre down tohalf-a-crown, or even less. In the experience of the Reporter,a field that was well stocked with annual weeds cost six shil-lings an acre for their removal by hand five years ago ; andit has not required any further weeding, though twice undergrain crops, since that time. No husbandman would dreamof permitting the live-stock of his neighbours to feed per-

* Tlie most effectual mode of extirpating, or at least of repressing the growthof annual weeds, is by eating turnips on the ground by sheep, when the soil willadmit of it. The subsequent grain crop is almost always free from annual weeds.