in height. After the last crop, the plant dies. When this trefoil is wanted for seed, it is sown along with the wheat. Both are gathered at once by the hand, not reaped or mown, and are thrashed out together, the trefoil seed being afterwards separated by a sieve. This species of clover being so important in its own country, may be worth the notice of British agriculturists, and may, perhaps, be naturalised in this country.

2678. Trifolium procumbens, procumbant trefoil, yellow clover, or hop trefoil. This species of clover seems to be confounded with the procumbent lucerne, Medicago lupulina. Its flowers are yellow. Its name of hop-trefoil is bestowed on it with much propriety, the heads being larger and more resembling the hop than any of the best of the species. It is common on the borders of fields in dry gravelly soils. In some meadows it forms a considerable part of the crop, and makes excellent fodder; and it is now very generally used for pasture, with or without white clover.

2679. These are all the species of clover that seem to deserve special notice, out of 166 described by botanists.*

2680. "Some years ago," says Mr Babbage, "a mode of preparing old clover and trefoil seeds, by a process called 'doctoring,' became so prevalent as to excite the attention of the House of Commons. It appeared in evidence before a committee, that the old seed of the white clover was doctored by first wetting it slightly, and then drying it in the fumes of burning sulphur; and that the red clover-seed had its colour improved by shaking it in a sack with a small quantity of indigo; but this being detected after a time, the doctors then used a preparation of logwood, fixed by a little copperas, and sometimes of verdigris; thus at once improving the appearance of the old seed, and diminishing, if not destroying, its vegetative power already enfeebled by age. Supposing no injury had resulted to good seed so prepared, it was proved, from the improved appearance, its market-price would be enhanced by this process from 5s. to 25s. per cwt. But the greatest evil arose from the circumstance of these processes rendering old and worthless seed in appearance equal to the best. One witness tried some doctored seed, and found that not above I in 100 grains grew, and that those which did vegetate died away afterwards; whilst about 80 or 90 per cent of good seed usually grows. The seed so treated was sold to retail dealers in the country, who, of course, endeavoured to purchase at the cheapest rate, and from them it got into the hands of the farmers; neither of these classes being at all capable of distinguishing the fraudulent from the genuine seed. Many cultivators, in consequence, diminished their consumption of the article; and others were obliged to pay a higher price to those who had skill to distinguish the mixed seed, and who had integrity and character to prevent them from dealing in it." ↑

2681. Clover seeds are not imported into this country from France and Holland to any great extent. "The entries of foreign clover-seed for home consumption, at an average of the three years ending 1831," says M'Culloch, "were 99,046 cwt. a-year. But for the high duty of 20s. a cwt. there can be little doubt that the importation would be much more considerable." +

2682. Since then the duty has been much lowered. By the customs tariff of 1847, Victoria 9th and 10th, cap. 23, the duty on cloverseed imported from foreign countries was fixed at 5s. the cwt, and from a British possession, 2s. 6d. a cwt.

2683. As regards clover in the agriculture of Germany, Von Thäer observes that," this plant is usually sown amongst corn; formerly it was always mixed with the spring grain, but at present it is commonly mixed with the autumn grain, and in most cases with equal success, provided the sowing be performed with proper attention. Clover is not sown at the same time as the autumn grain, but at such a time that it may germinate after the winter season. It is sometimes sown amongst pease, and certainly shoots forth with great vigour among the stubble of those plants. But if the pease are soon laid, and do not ripen quickly, the clover may be completely choked by them; its growth will then be very unequal, presenting large vacant spaces here and there. We are, however, acquainted with two plants which are altogether favourable to clover sown among them-these are flax and buck-wheat. These plants favour the germination and early growth of the clover, and allow it, much better than corn, to thicken and establish itself uniformly on the land. Flax is no longer sown, except in rich and well-prepared soils; it is cleared of weeds, an operation which is productive of benefit to the clover. The latter is not injured by the pulling of the flax, if this operation be performed with proper care. But amongst buck-wheat, I have seen clover growing thickly even on a soil which was not well suited to it. Close by its side, and on a somewhat better soil, there was a crop of oats growing, mixed with clover; and thus I had an opportunity of convincing myself, in the most positive manner, of the great difference between the two crops of clover, and the superiority of that which grew amongst the buck-wheat. This superiority was maintained during the whole of the following year. I would, therefore, recommend the cultivator who wishes to have a thick crop of clover, and does not think his land very well adapted to it, to sow his clover among the buck-wheat. It appears to be indifferent whether the buck-wheat be allowed to ripen, or mown to be consumed as green meat. Clover also thrives well among colza."

tine along the cross-ploughed land, the land should be feered and ploughed into ridges, and the usual form of the seed-furrow is either gathering-up from the flat, fig. 20, or yoking together, fig. 22. Every plough should be employed in ridging up the seed-furrow, and both the crossploughing and the ridging should be deep ploughed. The cross-ploughing should be turned up with a broad, stout furrow-slice, but the ridging should be ploughed with a deep narrow furrow slice, in order to subdivide the former furrow, to pulverise the soil as much as possible, and to make the crests of the furrow-slices numerous and narrow, so as to disseminate the seed among them equally, whether sown by the hand or with the machine.

2690. The sowing of barley on a fine pulverised surface requires strict attention, inasmuch as on whatever spot every seed falls, there it lies, the soft earth having no elasticity like the firm furrow-slice of lea, to cause the seed to rebound and settle itself on another spot than what it first struck. Hence, of all the sorts of grain, barley is the most likely to be happergawed in sowing by the hand, and on that account every handful should be cast with greater force, and more completely spread from the hand, than other sorts of grain. The walking on soft ground in sowing barley is attended with considerable fatigue, and as short steps are best suited for walking on soft ground, so by small handfuls you are best enabled to grasp plump slippery barley. The broadcast machine, fig. 204, is used for sowing barley as well as oats. The grain drills, figs. 205 and 206, are used to sow barley in drills, and this is best effected by sowing across the ridges after the surface has been harrowed.

2691. When the surface has been grubbed for the seed-furrow, the seed is best sown with one of the drill machines, as they afford the seed a hold of the ground, independent of ploughing.

2692. When the surface is ribbed with the small plough, the seed is best sown by the hand, or with the broadcast sowingmachine, and, on reaching the ground, it falls into the hollows of the ribs, out of which the young plants arise in drills * Brown On Rural

almost as regular in line as if the seed had been sown with a drill machine, provided they have not been disturbed in the ribs; and the surest way of not disturbing them, is to harrow the ground a double tine only along the ribs, and not at all across them.

2693. Barley may be sown any time proper for spring wheat, and as late as the end of May; but the earlier it is sown the crop will be better in quality and more uniform, though the straw will be shorter.

2694. The average quantity of seed sown broadcast is three bushels to the acre; when sown early less will suffice, and when late, more is required; because there is then less time for so quick a growing grain as barley to tiller and cover the ground. When sown with the drill, two bushels suffice. Mr Brown makes some sensible remarks on this subject :-" Amongst the farmers," he says, "it seems a disputed point, whether the practice of giving so small a quantity of seed (three bushels per acre) to the best lands, is advantageous. That there is a saving of grain, there can be no doubt; and that the bulk may be as great as if more seed had been sown, there can be as little question. Little argument, however, is necessary to prove that thin sowing of barley must be attended with considerable disadvantage; for, if the early part of the season be dry, the plants will not only be stinted in their growth, but will not send out offsets; and if rain afterwards falls, an occurrence that must take place some time during the summer, often at a late period of it, the plants then begin to stool, and send out a number of young shoots. These young shoots, unless under very favourable circumstances, cannot be expected to arrive at maturity; or if their ripening is waited for, there will be great risk of losing the early part of the crop,-a circumstance that frequently happens. In almost every instance an unequal sample is produced, and the grain is for the most part of inferior quality. By good judges, it is thought preferable to sow a quantity of seed sufficient to insure a full crop without depending on its sending out offsets. Indeed. when that is done, few offsets are produced, the crop grows and ripens equally, and the grain is uniformly good."* Affairs, vol. ii. p. 45.

2695. No grain is so easily affected by weather at seed-time as barley: a dash of rain on strong land will cause the crop to be thin, many of the seeds not germinating at all, whilst others burst and cannot germinate; and in moist, warm weather, the germination is certain and very rapid. Indeed it has been observed, that unless barley germinate quickly, the crop will always be thin. I have seen the germ of barley pierce the ground only 36 hours after I had sown it myself, when the ground was smoking by the evaporation of moisture, caused by a hot sun in a close atmosphere. I have also traced the germ of barley to its root to the depth of 9 inches below the surface; and this shows that land may be ploughed deep for barley.

2696. The harrowing which barley land receives after the seed has been sown broadcast is less than oat land, a double tine being given in breaking-in the seed, and a double tine across immediately after. When the seed is sown with the drill machine, the land is harrowed a double tine along, and another double tine across the ridges, before the seed is sown. When the seed is sown on ribbed land, the only harrowing given is a double tine along the ribs, just to cover the seed, as the ribs afford a sufficient hold of the ground.

2697. The grass seeds are then sown with the grass-seed sowing-machine, fig. 204; the land harrowed a single tine with the light grass-seed harrows, fig. 232; water-furrowed, fig. 209; and finished by immediate rolling, fig. 222. On strong soil, apt to be encrusted on the surface by drought after rain, the rolling precedes the sowing of the grass-seeds, and the work is finished with the grass-seed harrows; but on all kindly soils, the other plan is best for keeping out drought, and giving a smooth surface for harvest-work.

prevent water standing upon it; and in spring it is cross-ploughed and ridged up for the seed-furrow.

2700. Barley is sown also at times after wheat or oats, and the sample in such a case is always fine coloured; but the practice is bad farming, and should never be pursued. It is practised in the Carse of Gowrie, because, as is alleged, the wheat grows too strong for the grass to be raised amongst it, and the succeeding barley is made to receive the grass-seeds. Such expedients are an excuse, but no justification of the practice.

2701. Barley is never sown in Scotland after lea, but might be after the land had received a partial fallowing in spring.

2702. When sown in autumn, barley does not stand the winter well in Scotland, though it does on the warm calcareous soils of the south of England. Winter barley is always early ripe, but is seldom a prolific crop; and when it tillers late in spring to cover the ground, the produce exhibits an unequal sample, and contains a large proportion of light grain.

2703. As an instance of sowing very late barley, I may relate what has fallen under my own observation. The late Mr Guthrie of Craigie, near Dundee, one season had early ploughed the greater part of a field of strong soil after turnips, and much rain had afterwards consolidated it. Being desirous of giving the land another furrow before sowing it with barley, he found the plough bring up large waxy clods, unfit to form a seed-bed for that grain. He consulted me, and I advised him to rib the land that had just been ploughed with the small plough, fig. 230, while the remainder of the field, about two acres, the old ploughed land, were ploughed in the ordinary way. His men. never having seen land ribbed, I showed

2699. Barley is sown after potatoes and beans in the spring, but never when the weather will permit the sowing of wheat in the autumn. When intended for barley, the land is gathered up for the winter, water-furrowed, and gaw-cut, to

more

and harrowed with one double tine along. The sowing took place as late as the 26th May, in 1819, and the ribbed land produced 10 bushels the acre barley than that ploughed with the common plough,--so essential it is to have mellowed soil for the reception of the barley seed.

2704. The spring treatment of barley in Germany is thus described by Thäer :-" All species of barley require a light, rich, loamy soil, which retains moisture, without, however, suffering from damp-a soil which contains from 50 to 65 parts in a hundred of sand, and the rest chiefly clay. If, having the former of these proportions, it is situated in a dry position, and having the latter, in a moist one, it will be rendered still more adapted for the production of barley. This kind of grain, however, thrives wonderfully well on more clayey or stiffer soils, where there is a sufficient quantity of humus to prevent the land from being too tenacious; in short, in land which may be classed among good wheat lands. If the clayey soil contains a certain quantity of lime, and the proportion of clay in it is sufficiently diminished to render it light, without ceasing to be consistent, it will then be peculiarly adapted for barley; and the more so, from the lime purging the soil of its acidity, which latter quality militates against the success of barley. On the other hand, in moist summers, barley will be found to succeed very well on land in which sand is the predominating ingredient, and where it is found in the proportion of from 70 to 75 parts in a hundred; provided, however, that the soil is in tolerably good condition. But during dry summers, the crops of barley would fail on such lands; consequently its produce can never be depended on. A poor, tenacious, moist, cold, acid soil, is by no means proper for barley, nor will that grain often succeed when sown upon it.

2705. "Land in which barley is to be sown must be thoroughly loosened and pulverised. When, as usually happens, it is sown on the stubble of autumnal grain, the land must be ploughed at least three times for its reception; but where the soil has been thoroughly loosened during the preceding year by weeded crops, one ploughing will be quite sufficient.

2706. "If those crops by which the barley was preceded have not left a sufficient, or, indeed, a considerable quantity of nutriment behind, an ameliorative compound of manure, which has undergone fermentation, must be bestowed upon the soil. The tender nature of the grain renders it necessary that the nutrition intended for it should be easy of digestion, and properly prepared for and adapted to its organs.

2707. "All those kinds of barley which are usually sown in the spring, support and require a tolerably thick covering of earth; they may be buried by a shallow ploughing of three or four inches deep; and, in fact, when sown on a very light soil, must be placed at this depth beneath its surface. The land, however, must always first be allowed to get thoroughly dry, as nothing is more conducive to the success of this grain than a period of dry weather succeeding to the sowing.

2712. The ordinary treatment of dunghills of farm-yard manure is very simple, -the principle upon which it is founded is quite consonant to reason,—and the results of the application of their contents are quite satisfactory in the crops produced. The treatment is, to spread every kind of straw used in litter, and every kind of dung derived from the various sorts of animals domiciled in the steading, uniformly in layers, as supplied, over the area of the respective courts; to take this compound of straw and dung from the courts at a proper period, and form it into large heaps in the fields where they shall be needed; to prevent fermentation of the heaps by compression until the manure is wanted; and to turn the heaps over in such a way, and at such a time, as the manure they contain shall be ready as a uniform compound, to be applied to the