Edwardsville spectator. [volume] (Edwardsville, Ill.) 1819-1826, 1820-11-07
AGNICVlIYURAA.
FROM AN ENGLISH PAPER.
ON THE CULTURE OF POTATOES.
Shout Bank, Ahrii |


SRI take the liberty to send you the
following method of cultivating Potatoes,
which, if you think worthy corner OF
your Journal, it is at your service.
There are great quantities of this valua-
BILE root grown in this county (Lanca-
shire,) of course there are different
modes of cultivating them; but shall
only state the method which have taken
for three or four years back, and which
has answered better for me than any
other have yet followed.
1 In the preceding autumn, as soon as
The crop is removed, give the land a
deep ploughing, in order for it to receive
all the benefit it possibly can from the
action of the frosts, &c. and at the same
time the stubble will be decomposing.
In the latter end Of March or beginning
Of April, harrow it we'll across; alter
which, give it another deep ploughing
then let it lie two or three weeks for
weeds to vegelate, and then harrow it
we'll across again, when it will be ready
for drawing into ridges, except the land
be very full of weeds if that be the case,
it ought to have another ploughing and
narrowing. Allow me here, sir, to di-
gress little. l am going to advance
something which am almost afraid TO
do, as know the opinion Of the gene.
yality of farmers is against me; but,
however, am determined to do il bold
Iy. 1t is general practice for farmers
TO collect weeds and burn them on the
land, or cart them off and make COM
post of them, which should prefer to
burning them. do neither: have ne
yer collected weed since / commenced
farming, as, however full the land was
of them, and whatever kind they were of,
j should just as soon think of setting fire
to my dunghill as collecting the weeds
and burning them. One half of my
farm, when l began farming, was almost
as full of weeds as it possibly could be,
and of nearly all sorts, and now l think
il is as clean as most farms are; at least,
am not ashamed of it on that head
! have sown one field with oats this year,
which, when began farming, was near
~ furrow thick of couch grass, besides
other weeds, and now there is scarce one
to be seen in it; and you must remem-
Der, it is the last crop in the rotation, that
IS, it is to be turnips next year; and this
field has never had weed collected from
it yet since begun. And, as have
said in former communication, when
land is once clean, it ought to be kept SO,
and is easy to keep SO. l never yet
Knew weedy crop turn out produc-
tive one. You may perhaps, think, Mr..
Editor, this savours little of egotism i;
but hope, sir, you will not think me
guilty Of that erroneous crime. am
only stating real facts: l am far from
thinking myselfa perfect farmer. The
above practice is not original with me,
I am only an imitator. Two or three of
the best farmers in this neighborhood
follow the same practice, and whose
farms are as clean as any which can be
found in most parts of England: one in
particular, which an uncle of mine did
farm, and which, at that time, burst
have challenged it against any ever yet
saw, Mr.. Cookies excepted, and at the
same time had nearly one half of his farm
each year in white crop. The methods
have taken to clean my farm have been
deep ploughing Especially when fa!!ow-
Jig, .ad for wina;;es,;Scr; hild OF crop am
following for,) adopting better rotations,
drilling Potatoes, turnihs, beans, sc
and well horse and hand-hoeing them ;
and, by what have seen of drilling corn
crops, am far from being an enemy to
that system, though have not practised
it much. BY adopting the above prac'
tices, the farm which l now occupy has
nearly doubled its produce. The tur
alp crops have been more than four times
the weight they were before l followed
i the Northumberland method of cultiva
ting them. r
On deep ploughine, there are various
opinions, and no doubt ever will be-
Some who are advocates for it on goot
!. land, are not upon bad. 1t is agenera
saving among farmers, that if you plougl
such and such land deep, it will produce
nothing but weeds. That is the yer.
ching wanted; for if land will produc'
Beautiful weeds, my opinion is, it may b.
made to produce something better.
en- for ploughing deep in every case bu