466

ON THE ARABLE LAND

wheat, which practice has been occasionally had recourse to,in the knowledge of the reporter^ In those parts of Eng-land where summer wheat is best known, it is preferred toall other corn as the nurse to a crop of clover and rye-grass;which is said to be owing to the small quantity of its leaf,and its short duration, as the leaf fades and falls down almostas soon as it has attained its full size; by which means theinfant clover and rye-grass plants are better furnished withair to assist their growth *. In 1810, the reporter soweda large field with clover and rye-grass, among several de-scriptions of corn, winter wheat, summer wheat, barley, andoats; and in 1811 the crop over the whole was equally good.The produce of the summer wheat hung long unsaleable inthe market, and was at length sold late in spring 1811 at aninferior price.

§ 8. Culture while growing .—In respect to this head of in-quiry, little need be said in this place, as, except the opera-tions of harrowing and rolling in spring, when the seeds ofclover and rye-grass are sown among the growing crop, andthe careful opening up of the water-furrows, so frequentlyinsisted upon, the only thing done to growing wheats inScotland , is to cut any thistles which happen to spring upamong the crop. Hand-weeding is not often practised,though gaining ground among good managers on spring-sown fields which are infested with annual Weeds . : Whensown in drills, wheat is for the most part hand-hoed; andwhen grass and clover seeds are intended to be sown amongthe growing crop, this operation takes place either imme-diately preceding the sowing of these, or sometimes directlyafterwards to cover them in, according to circumstances.

§ 9. Feeding on young wheats .—The practice of feedingyoung wheats in spring by ewes and lambs is by no means

Commun. to the Board of Agriculture, vol. v, Part i, p, 182.