Horses Only(' very well upon tares, even better than they do upon clover and rye-grass ; and the same re Mal k is applicable to fattening cattle, who feed faster upon this article of green fodder than upon any kind of grass, or ( sculent, with which we are acquainted. Danger often arises from their eating too many, espe cially \inch podded ; as colics, and other stomach dis orde.•s, are apt to be produced by the excessive load which they devour. Perhaps a gi cat quantity of fixed air is contained in this vegetable ; and as heavy crops are rarely dry at the mot when cut, it is not to be won Owed tha accidents often happen when the animal indulged with die unrestrained consumption of them. Were oat straw mixed with the tares in racks or stalls in NVIOCII they are deposit Cu, it is provable that fewer accidents w onto fallow, though tins assistant is only required will11 the tales are wet, soul, and over succulent. Be this as it may, the utility of tares is anuodantly evident ; because they are lurnished at a time wnen of ten no other green food call be obtained It is only by using a Jai ge quantity of green food that a sufficient stock of dung can be gathered, for carrying, forward a profitable system of management upon arable land. With clover and lye-grass, tares, turnips, and ruta baga, it is perfectly practicable to feed through the whole season ; thereby causing all arable farm to feed a great number of cattle, whilst the corn land is supported and enriched by the offal or dung produced by these cattle. This is a subject, however, which falls noire particularly to be treated of in the succeeding Chapter; we shall therefore reserve what we mean to say upon it, till the Grass Husbandry comes under consideration.
Of Potatoes.
Potatoes, as an article of human food, are, next to wheat, of the greatest importance in the eye of a poli tical economist. From no other crop that can be culti vated will the public detive so mucn food as from this valuable esculent ; and it admits of demonstration, that an acre of potatoes will feed double the number of peo ple that can be fed from an acre of wheat. Potatoes are also a nourishing and healthy food, relished almost by every palate ; and without them it is believed there is hardly a dinner served up for six months of the year, in any part of the kingdom. Notwithstanding all these things, and they arc of great importance in one point of view, we are doubtful whether potatoes can be placed so high in the scale as several other articles of produce, when the profit and loss account of the agriculturist is to be ascertained. They require a great deal of manure from the farmer, while, generally speaking, little is re turned by them ; they arc a bulky unhandy article, trou blesome in the lifting and carrying processes,and inter fering with the seed season of wheat, the most important one to the farmer. After all, from particular circum stances, they cannot be vended unless when raised in the vicinity of large towns ; hence they are in every respect an unprofitable article to the agriculturist. To him the real criterion is the profit which potatoes will return in feeding beasts ; and here we apprehend, the result will altogether be in favour of turnips, and ruta baga, as the most profitable articles for that purpose.
But laying that criterion aside, and considering pota toes as an article useful to mankind, and consequently beneficial in a public point of view, it is proper to illus trate the culture of this esculent in the various stages, from preparing the ground, till the crop is digged up and ready for market. The subject has been so amply
discussed in many recent publications, that it is unne cessary in this place to enlarge upon the several pro cesses.
Prenaration of the ground.—To work the ground till it is completely reduced and free from root-weeds, ma.
be considered as a desideratum in potatoe husbandry; though in many seasons these operations cannot be per fectly executed, without losing the proper time for planting, which never ought to be beyond the first of May, if circumstances do not absolutely interdict it. Three ploughings, with frequent harrowings and roll lugs, are necessary in most cases, before the land is in suitable condition. When this is accomplished, form the drills as if they were for turnips; cart out the ma nure, which ought not to be sparingly applied, plant the seed above the manure, reverse the drills for covering it and the seed, then harrow the drills in length, which completes the preparation and seed process.
Quantity of seed.—lt is not advantageous to cut the seed into small slips ; for the strength of the stein at the outset depends in direct proportion upon the vigour and power of the seed-plant. The seed-plant, therefore, ought to be large, rarely smaller than the fourth part of the potatoe; and if the seed is of small size, one half of the potatoc may be profitably used. At all events, rather err in giving over large seed than in making it too small ; because by the first error, no great loss can ever be sus tained ; whereas, by the other, a feeble and late crop may be the consequence. When the seed is properly cut, it. requires from ten to twelve hundred weight of potatoes to plant a Scottish acre of ground, where the rows are at 27 inches distance ; but this quantity de pends greatly upon the size of the potatoes used; if they are large, a greater weight may be required, but the extra quantity will be abundantly repaid by the supe riority of crop which large seed usually produces.
Of the kind of potatoes which can be most profitably cultivated.—The varieties of this excellent root culti vated in Britain are become so numerous, that it is im possible to treat of each, or even to give a list of their names or particular properties. It is almost certain, that a new variety may be propagated at any time, by mixing contrary sorts in the same drill ; and if these are allowed to come to maturity, a kind of connexion takes place betwixt the blossoms of each, which produces a new race or variety. In this way, the numerous varie ties of the potatoc root now prevailing in Britain have been procreated and introduced. Thu leading and pre vailing variety of field potatoes, is the yellow kidney, which, though not the most prolific, is the most gene rally relished potatoe that is cultivated. The black po tatoe is the next favourite; though it deserves to be re marked, that this kind being rarely taken up in a ripe state, is not fit for use till the spring months, when it gets a closeness of texture and mellowness, which it does not possess at an earlier period. These two varie ties, therefore, serve every useful purpose ; the yellow kidney for winter use, and the black afterwards. It is unnecessary, in a work of this kind, to enter upon the early sorts of potatoes, because they are hardly known in common husbandry.