The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1873-08-23 00:00:00

THE CROPS.

The following communicetion, srnt to The Times for pub-
lication, will Interest many readers :

If ever the prediction is verified that a bad beginning
is frequently followed by a good ending, it is likely to
be the case this season in regard to our corn crops.

An Autumn and a Spring seed titre of unusual ddii-
unity, arising from continuous and ex,essive rains, were
followed by retarding dry winds tip to the middle
of June, and then by forcing immmer weather, which
continue to the present time—a succession of influences
much mere conducive to good results than when they
are reversed by having an early Spring and an nmienial
Summer, as was the ease in 1862-67-71 and 72, and in
other bail wheat years, and the consequence is that,
with few exceptions, we have now a fair prospect of in
average amount of produce from all our crops.

The principal exception is in the case of one most
important cereal, wheat, which, on the heavier aid
real wheat soils, especially where ratnrally wet and
tindrioned, and tilled in the ordinmy way by bone
power, is thin on the ground and defective in the ear,

For want of drainage the horse tracks on the surface
remained full of water to the brim during winter, find
only escaped by rhil.ing evaporation in spring, and the
subeoil water, for want of deep cultivation to enable
It to sink, remained in injurious proximity to the roots
of the plants, awl decimated them to such an extent
that mach of the land sown was ',Laughed up in spring
for other crops, and that which remained has only pro-
duced half a crop.
The land ender these conditions probably extends to
a mill-on of acres, and the deficiency of produce to at
least ten bushels an acre, entailing a loss At present
prices, and from easily remedied causes, of not lees
than ai millions.
But for these great drawbacks, the aggregate wheat
product of the year would be decidedly above an
average, as the crops on the lighter and wore friable
soils, not usually dedicated to wheat-growing,
indicate considerably more than an average yield.

The immense area of wheat land left unsown at the
end of October, probably a million of atree, and subse-
quently in part planted out of season and it, inferior
condition, or with Spring wheat, also militates against
our home production; for not only dree late-mown
Autumn wheat decrease in yield as the reason advances
from the month of October, but Spring wheat seldom
realizes as much by £3 an acre as that sown in due time
in Autumn on similar roils. chin sowing is decidedly
proved this year to be impolitic because on 90 per cent.
of the area under wheat, and gown wi:h the usual
quantity of seed, the plants are too few in num-
ber on the ground, have not tillered out well, nor have
thoy large heads, and cannot, therefore, produce
maximum trot,. The v triableners of the wheat crop
generally this season leaves no one at liberty to dog-
matize as to the probable aggrftate yield ; but taking
the hest and worst crope on various farms in wide.
apart dietricts, and striking an average, and then mush
milating these average. from districts ranging from 50
to 100 miles south, north, east, anti west of London, I
have come to the following conclusion :-
1. That we have not more than 3.300,000 acres tinder
wheat in the United Kingdom, being about 500,000
acre. lees Dan last year.
2 That the yield will be two bushels under an average
crop, or NW 28 bushels an acre. This exceeds by six
bushels an acre my estimate in The Times of last vear's
crop, and would yield an agaregate product of 11,550 000
quarters. Deducting 1.000 010 quarters for seed re-
quire I for home nee, 10,500.000 qua:ters remain to meet
a coneumption of 22.1,00,000. The deficit is 11 500,000
quartere, which is 500,000 quarters more than I antici-
pated in The Times on the 21st of Ap, ii hod. Last
year I estimated the aggregate product from a larger
area at lege, and the foreign supply required at 13
million quarters; it has already reached 12i millions,
and there are still 16 days to run to complete the agri
cultural year.
Tole exceeds by tnree millions of quarters or
29.000,000 of money the average imports for the pre-
vious four years.
. . . . .

Fortunately, the great wheat fields of Russia and
America, each with an area six tnnea greater than our
own, are favourably reported on ; the line South Aus-
tralian wheat we are now receiving comes opportunely
ti one shores; and our own unexpectedly early harvest
is likewise as great a b-on to the country we a tam-1y
remittance is to an individual when • bill is due. Had
it been a fortnight or three weeks later, as was ex-
pected, it is bard to say what would have been the
price of bread, for It is well known that we have no
wheat stank on band, either in rick-yards or granaries,
and that all foreign wheat-growing countries are pretty
well cleared.

Not many years ago the dread of abundance haunted
the agriculturalists mind, hut rum he sees the ner inlay
of more produce, and that his own only hope is n extra

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civic.; main drawbacks to the wheat yield this year
have been, 14—the want of drainage, necessitating
the continuance of the ridge-and•furrow system. which
always causes a large percentage of tail corn; secondly,
defective ears from empty cells, caused by rust or
maggot, and occurring not, as usual, at the top or
bottom of the heads, but in the clntre. These blanks,
after examining many hundreds of heads, I estimated
at a loss of • bushel an acre throuLhout the whole
wheat crop, gni .11 on 3 300,000 acres amounts to nearly
half a million quarters and over a million of money;
thirdly, thinness of plants on the ground, especially on
the heavier soils and the absence of tilleriug.
Spring stimulants were extensively used and were
never more re mired or remunerative ; but they failed
to bring the crop up to an aaerage on account of the
above drawbacks.

As • proof that I have not made too much of a de-
duction for late own and spring wheat, at %tr. Middle-
ditch's sale of crops at Broad Blimsdon, Wilts, on the
7th inst., at which 120 tote on 650 acres were competed
for by 200 purchasers, the Autumn sown wheat reached
£l5 17c. 6d. an acre, and that sown in Spring only
£B2. 61

Again, at Mr. Front's sale in Hens on Ws day
week, when there was • sal larger company to com-
pete for the produce of 450 acres, and over which 1 had
the pleasure of presiding. the maximum price of
Autummsown wheat was kl 4 2s. al., and of later and
Spring sown 4.11 17s. 6(1.
The barley crop of this year covers an extra area, and
is good in quantity and fair in quality. The' 6" ter is a
more essential element in its value than in relation to
any other cereal, as no foreign produce equals it for
malting purposes.
Oats occupy about the same width ax last year, and
promise an average.
Seeing that we can get this grain from many coun-
tries, and that its borne me for horse provender is in
many cases being superseded by maize, its success or
failure is reduced in importance. The earliest I saw
cut this year was in Surrey, on the 17th of July, and
the crop looked like yielding from 60 to 70 bushels an
acre. _ .

Bean are well podded and will be an average crop,
and pea. above.

The bay harvest, which wan late this year arid in not
yet finiehed in northern oistricts, WAR not very antis-
factory. aft the crop, thoegh better than anticipated in
early Spring, is not above three-fourths of an average,
and is coaree in quality. Except in hay districts, this
crop is not taken much into account; but as it
occupies 5,000 000 acres in the United Kingdom, and
yields as many tons of produce annually, worth
£'20000,000; and NI the health of much stock and the
rent of much land depends upon it, it is of more • impore
tacos than many are accustomed ti think. Pretties
these epeedalitiee, it now appear+ by universal si atietics
to be the most import .14 crop in the world and equal
in value to two fifths of all other crops put together I
Our artificial grasses, clovere, and forage plants have
not yielded well this year, becawe many of the plants
were rotte.l out during th% Winter by the wet.
Potatoes occupy about threerfourthe of the breadth
of last year, and look extremely well. There will be
a great bulk of produce if they escape the disease,
and the poor will likely he supp led with this favourite
rcot at less than half the prices of last year. Laat
year tin, few farmers who hwi marketable crops made
little fortunes, but they cannot do this under any dr.
cumstances, as they ,lante I their crops at a tniple co.it
for reed, and the produce is now selling at half last
year's prices.
Mangold is an excellent crop, and as it may be
grown successively on the same soil for many years,
and keeps wind until the present mouth if required,
few farmers should be without it.
fritvede and all other turnip crops are good, and kohl
relit, which I have often pressed upon the attention of
sgriculturiete ref a snlatitute for the swede for sheep
keep on heavy lands, is extending at the rate of 10.000
acres per annum, and now occupies from 40,000 to
50,000 acme.

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Cabbages are not nearly grown to the extent they
should be, probauly because they require three opt ra.
Cone instead of out— namely, to be sown in July,
transplanted In September. and planted out in March.
They will then be tit to W9O in July, August, and
Se Amber, will produce more green food than any
other plea, say horn 40 to 80 toot an acre, under
generous treatment, and are invalable for ewes and
latub4, milch cows, and other live stock.
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As there is litorAlly no cattle disease now in the
country, live stock has increased most rapidly since
1870—lr:sh cattle alone at the rate of 100,000 a year—
it is quite evident we must make morn provision for
their maintenance by increasing our Summer and
Winter stock food. If we do this, we may soon do
away with the necessity of importing the 12f per cent.
of our animal food which we now do. Beef and mutton
are still on the rise, and at present considerably over
the average prices for the lift ten years. This in, per-

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halm, what helps to drive away the 100,000 people who
emigrate yearly; bnt as pauperism is at the same time
decreasing over the three kingdom., it cannot logically
ho attriOutad to the dearness of fool or the want of
aderplaie wages.
From these causea, however, and the action of the
Labourers' Union, farmers dreaded • dearth of harvest
hands this season ; but they have been agreeably dis-
appointed. Laboorers are everywhere abundant, and
prices for work only such as employers are willing to
Pay.
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klany agricultural labourers have had attests of town
life and occupation since last harvest, and find nothing
so pleasant and congenia' to their tastes as field labour
as indeed ft is to 9-10ths of the human race—and
have, therefore, returned to their old country-houses,
wiser if not richer men.
When we have greater facilities for obtaining cheap
loans by limited owners of land—at present repre-
senting two-thirds of the surface of England—labourers
will be better housed and i armanently employed, the
spirit if not the act of co-nperatsin will epring up be-
tween them, and the rentpaying occupier, and the
agriculture of England will then more and more become
its backbone and its pride, and he wonder and admira-
tion of all other civilized nation& am, erc.,

THOMAS C. SCOTT.
King's Armayard, 510orgate-street, E 0,, Lug. 15.