AN IMPROVED METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR SOWING SEED
Year: 1872

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by William Pidding at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 4th
March 1872.
I, WILLIAM PIDDING, of Bedford Square, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"AN IMPROVED METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR SOWING SEED," to be as
follows:-
My said Invention relates to a novel method of and apparatus for
sowing seed singly or separately at any desired intervals or distances
apart. It is well-known to farmers and others that by the ordinary
method of sowing broadcast the seed is sown too closely, a portion
of it being entirely wasted, while the crops raised are frequently poor
and unequal, and attempts have been made to remedy these evils by the
introduction of machines for single or separate seed sowing. Hitherto
however these attempts have not been successful, chiefly because of the
great cost of these machines, and the difficulty or impossibility of sowing
very small seed such as clover, turnip or mustard seed, singly by a

page_text: machine. But my Invention is designed to afford the means whereby
the sowing of seed singly or separately and at regular or uniform
distances apart may be accomplished as expeditiously and as econo-
mically as the sowing of seed broadcast. For this purpose I take
string, cord, or narrow strips or bands of any suitable material, and
apply to the same at any desired distances apart some adhesive sub-
stance such as ordinary glue, which may be printed on or otherwise
applied to the string, cord, or band in small portions or patches.
The apparatus for applying the glue or other adhesive substance
consists of a number of small tubes which have a wick or filling of
sponge, cotton, or wool. The said tubes have cups at the top containing
liquid glue or other adhesive substance, which should be heated by gas
or otherwise. The lower end of each tube is provided with a small
india-rubber collar or ring. The glue or other substance is supplied
from the cups through the wicks to the lower ends of the tubes, which
are pressed upon the string or line. The india-rubber collar prevents
the spreading of the glue. Or instead of using this apparatus, I take
yarns or strands of wool or other suitable material and saturate them
with hot liquid glue or other like substance. I then stretch them at
suitable distances apart across a number of the strings or lines, and at
the points of intersection I press them upon the said strings or lines so
that the latter are printed or impressed with the adhesive substance.
The said string or other line is stretched on a frame to keep it properly
distended, and before the glue or other adhesive substance becomes dry
or hard the string or line is covered with the seed which may be thrown
or scattered upon it. Those seeds which come in contact with the
patches or spots of glue or other adhesive substance will be thereby
attached to the string or line. The latter is allowed to remain covered
by the seed till the adhesive substance is dry, it is then removed from
the frame and will be found to have the seeds adhering to it at those
places to which the glue or other adhesive substance was applied, the same
being applied at such distances apart as best suits the peculiar nature of
the crop to be raised. This string or line with the seed adhering
to it is then taken to an apparatus which has a drum or roller mounted
on travelling wheels and the string is wound on the said drum. The
loose end of the said string is then made fast in the ground at one end
of a furrow or channel, and the apparatus is drawn away from this end
along the furrow. As the said apparatus travels forward the string

page_text: is uncoiled from the drum and deposted in the furrow where it is
allowed to remain, and is covered by the soil in any suitable manner.
The string, cord or other line coiled on the drum may be of any desired
length, or in a number of lengths, according to the quantity of seed to
be sown.