The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1878-03-01
Drill Sowing and Root-Pruning.


That drill sowing and horse-hoeing il
very general throughout England, on
the best farmed lands, may be readily
gathered from even a casual examina.
ton of the different volumes of the
Journal of the Royal Agricultural So
ciety. Mr.. Pussy, in the Journal for
1851, p. COL, says, "The beautiful sys-
TEN of horse-hoeing depends, too, OF
course, entirely on the use of the drill,
which may be regarded as the key OF
the new system. We ought, then, to
regard the whole as "A system; not, u.s.
ing the drill, retain ancient courses of
blowing which were meant for the seeds
man, nor, on the other hand, fall short
in the consequences of the tlrill-use it,
that is, as some farmers do, but with no
artificial manure and without a horse
hoe to follow" 1t was in this year that
"nearly twenty of these implements
were selected and sent down to Pusey
for trial" Ten years later, at the socie-
tvs exhibition, thirty-ninc drills were
selected for trial from the numerous
ones on exhibition, and twcnty-nine
horse-hOes were selected for trial from
the many admirable implements exhib-
tied in this class. In 1874, there were
over one hundred and twenty drills ell
tered for competition at the field trials.
We also find ten horse-hoes on trial, and
nineteen entries of "grubbers" for grub
bling up the soil between the rows of
turnips to a depth of six or seven inch
es.
II this extension of drill sowing and
horse-hoeing, as indicated by the num-
Der exhibited at the leading show of the
world, is to be taken as an indication of
the extent of the use of the new culture
among the best farmers, then is por-
ton of the success attending the new
culture to be ascribed to the root-prun-
ing unconsciously and thus at times UNI
seasonably accomplished.
A NOT UNCOMMON PRACTICE.
We will now pass, in quick review, a
few of the most successful farms in Eng
land. Most naturally is that of Mr..
Prout Sawbridgeworth, Herts, pur-
chased in 1861, where the land was wet.
Overrun with weeds, and the land pre-
sumably in the best condition, produced
but twelve bushels of wheat, or twenty
bushels of oats per acre. Mr.. Prout
Immediately commenced to put his land
into condition, and now the whole land
has been SUBSIDIZED, and the farm thor
onghly improved. Gan almost original
system of husbandry has been inangur-
ated. Cereals and clover are year after
year sold to be removed from the occu-
patton; all ordinary rotations are ig-
nOred; corn crops follow each other in
the same field for several consecutive
years; wheat has been taken for five
years following; cereals have been re-
iteratcd for eight years. For his conse-
cutive corn-crops Mr.. Prout only desires
deep, thorough cultivation, extirpation
of weeds, and the regular supply of
plant food in the form of appropriate,
portable manures." AS to the culture,
we find the report, "In early spring the
wheat is sometimes narrowed (Which
breaks the coronal roots, induces tiller-
ing, and better distribution of succeed
ing rootlets in the soiD, and invariably
AS soon as practicable, it is horse and
hand hoed, every advantage being TAX
Ell of fine weather, and all available
hands being set to work." That the
root-pruning has somewhat to do with
his success, may be made certain from
the fact that he prefers to apply his
phosphates as well as his guano by the
drill. "Thus deposited i'm close vicinity
to the rootlets (and by the horse-hoeings
the rootlets are forced to keep close to
and fully occupy the MANFRED spaces)
more immediate effects are prOduced,' y
etc. What success had Mr.. Prout; il is
sufficient to say that his average crops
of wheat, for the seven past years, have
been about fifty bushels per acre; as
the crops were sold at auction, standing
we have no more accurate account, but
one thing is sure, the average receipt
per acre for the wheat and straw for the
seven years, has been fl2 1885,, or about
$4,000 per acre for the unharvested OIL
standing crop. Taking the whole farm.
accounts for the seven years, we have
IAN annual profit of fS25 l Is 3D., or 81 ;.
1900, and the farm has increased from
its original valuation of $50, 900 90 &c
$l55, 10000. To the use ofthe drill anC
the horseshoe must these results be
largely credited; without ignoring the
great advantage of thorough pulveriza
ton and the scientific application O
manures, the key to his success, the pro
ductiOn through series of years of hi
large yields from the application OF Blu
$1,000 TO S14.00 worth of manure pei
acre yearly, is the culture of the crops
during growth, which culture, uninten
tional though il was, gave the root
such mastery over the area which con
tanned the fertilizer, that these large re
suits followed, grain being produced il
excess of straw, rs appears must be I'M
case from our previous considerations.
Mr.. Middleditch, disciple of Mr.
Prout's, commenced on this system il
1866. His 1874 crop of wheat was iron
IN I'll vi hnI n,
the different fields. His crops are ais,
sold standing.
FIRST PRIZE FOR RooT-PRUNINa.
Among the prize farms of England
we find drilling crops universal. Thu
1874, the first prize farm yelled, as a.
average for the past three years, fort
bushels of wheat per acre. The secon
prize farm, the wheat drilled along tn
seams of the furrow, but not hoed, GRO
not given, but said TO be good. Tn
specially commended farms used III
drill and horseshoe, and the averag
product of wheat on one of the farms
forty-three bushels per acre, and on th
others, thirty-six bushels. Anothe
highly commended farm drills an
horse hoes, and averages for whea
thirty-two bushels per acre. Still al
other, drill again, and yield for tn
last four years of thirty-three and one
half bushels per acre. Still another
drilled wheat and thirty-eight and three
fonrths bushels for the crop.
As two by four rod culture is unabl
to furnish results which are sufiicien
for safe deduction TO be applied to eS
tended practice, such experiments ar
pnrposeIy omitted.
AMERICAN VS.. ENGLISH PRACTICE.
After this discursive view, let ms ex
anime little into American agriculture
as compared with the English. Tn