The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1879-08-16 00:00:00

(Copy.)

". . . . I hope you will not think me presumptuous
if I give you a brief sketch of my practice. I never
make what would be called an orthodox fallow, conse-
quently my growth of roots is not large, the only
portion of land devoted to roots being such as has given
me a crop of rye-grass and trefoil= either fed off by
sheep or mown for the stack. Such fend I plough but
once, five inches in depth, taking care to have very
strong skim coulters in use, so as to get hold of two
inches of surface soil. I then apply 3cwt. of salt, roll
and harrow, harrow and roll, until I get a depth of
three inches of fine but solid mould. I then drill, even
as late as the end of June, the Tankard or Intermediate
mangold, 61b. per acre, the seed being soaked for
a week or ten days previously, which plan gives
me a good start. The land has been mannred by 500
sheep, which consume daily lilb. of cake and corn per
head, and I thus spend on each acre one ton of cake
and corn. By this plan, in an average season, I get
good roots. When July sets in I still keep on plough-
ing up (in the same way as for mangolds) for swedes,
so that, you see, I get my roots by catch-cropping.
You may ask what I do with my land, which, accord-
ing to the antiquated plan, would come to fallow.
Here is the answer: In harvest, and immediately
afterwards, I cultivate all the stubbles four inches
(no more) by steam power, leaving the polish-
ing to be done by the teams. When cleaned,
I close-fold this land with sheep, which are
kept all through the autumn and winter on cut hay
and straw chaff, with a liberal allowance of supple-
mental food in the form of cake or corn. The sheep are
supplied with water all through the winter, as the
quantity of roots which I allow them is very small.
This treatment snits the sheep and suits the land also.
as may be seen by the barley which is now growing on
land which ordinary custom would compel to be sown
with root seeds. My barley last year grew too
luxuriant, and this year I am having it flagged, much
to the astonishment (I was going to say to the con-
sternation) of the passers-by by rail. I keep my land
quite clean by this means, and although farming
to many is not the high-road to fortune, I make
It pay. I have a gentleman for a landlord who
knows how to treat a tenant who behaves well to
his property, or he would not long have me as a
liberal tenant. In addition to the sheep, I keep
three beasts to every ten are& I have a covered
homestead, which enables me to make first-rate dung,
while the economy in the use of them is beyond belief.
I should add that I farm a free-working soil of mixed
loam and sand inclining to light. I use but little
artificial manure, confining myself principally to dis-
solved bones and nitrate of soda, preferring to make
my own mixture rather than to have it done for me.
Of common salt I use largely, always sowing 3cwt,
per acre on the land ploughed for wheat, and also for
mangolds and swedes. Poppies and salt do not agree.
This must be a trying time for the Tiptree land, but
under. draining will stand you in good need. A great
deal of land which is undrained shows but a sorry
aspect,"

The Times of Wednesday also published the following
letter :

Sir' —I dare say many of your readers have been
much impressed by the dreary look of the harvest
fields, and are most reasonably alarmed at the pro-
spects for farmers and for the country.
But all fields are not alike, and if any of your
readers wish to know what science can do even in
1879 towards securinK vigorous and healthy crops, I
hope they will visit Blount's Farm, near Sawbridge-
worth, the property of Mr. Prout, whose experiments
have often been noticed in The Time.%
I had the pleasure on Saturday of seeing these fields,
In the company of several men of great experience, and
I think I may say we were all astonished at such a
magnificent prospect in such a disastrous season. The
crops of wheat and oats look really splendid, Ido
not well see how they could look better. The weeds
have had no chance, for the corn has choked them,
and so has reversed the usual order of things, though,
of course, Mr. Front takes extreme pains as to cleaning
his land, and has had this year an ample reward for
his trouble.
I am confident that these results are of national
importance, and this must be nay excuse for troubling
you.—l remain, yours faithfully, W. Fowix B.
London, Aug. 11.