210
AGRICULTURE ON THE RHINE.
suited to the soil, which is generally light, and demands
a wheel-plough. But even the plough is suited to the
soil for which it is made, and on stiffer soils has a deep
mould-board well curved ; while on the sand near
Friedrichsfeld the mould-board is narrow and almost
straight. On some of the larger farms, the Strassen-
heim Hof for instance, a heavy subsoil-plough is used
when tobacco is to be planted. This plough is only the
common plough of the country on a larger scale, that
opens a furrow 1⅜ to 2 feet deep. The subsoil is of
such quality on that farm, that turning it up is equivalent
to manuring the surface. On other farms the land is
carefully ploughed for tobacco twice in autumn, and
three times or oftener in the following spring. The
winter corn is usually ploughed in. Summer corn is
harrowed under ; clover is often sown after the barley
has been harrowed and the ground is rotted. Dung is
copiously distributed, and is required for the exhausting
crops taken off the soil. Although the number of
draught cattle is not great, yet cows are very numerous,
and it has been calculated by M. Rau that one head of
eattle was kept for
2⅛ morgens at Dossenheim and Handscliuhsheim.
5⅛ „ at Kirchheim and Wiblingen.
6⅛ „ on 8 small farms from 30 to 75 morgens.
9⅛ >, on 2 farms of 162 and 180 morgens.
As the calves are not included in this estimate, and
the dung of the pig-sties, that are very numerous, as
well as that from the sheep-folds, have also to be added,
it is supposed that one head of eattle may be assumed
for every 2⅛ English acres. Liquid manures are in
great use in this neighbourhood, and the dung-heap,
AGRICULTURE OX THE RHINE.
211
which is raised in an enclosure of mason-work on good
farms, has a wooden pump attached to it to raise the
liquor into the carts with barrels affixed for its convey-
ance. An ohm is considered equal to If cwt. of cow-
dung, and 32 barrels of 5 ohms are used to the morgen,
or 48 barrels to the acre, when no other manure is
applied. The effect of the liquid manure is, however,
limited to the one crop, and is not felt in those succeed-
ing. A cow is reckoned to give 21 ohms or 4∣ barrels
in the year. Sheep-folding for manure is common, and
the money paid for the benefit is a great inducement to
those who keep sheep. A calculation has been made
for the soil of Wiblingen, according to which 400 sheep
must be folded for tobacco ten nights, for spelt six nights,
for barley four nights on the acre. In Schwetzingen 150
sheep are folded eight successive nights upon an acre of
land for barley.
In the course of the stroll that we have suggested
the stranger may make himself acquainted with many
plants that are not common objects of farming in Eng-
land. Instead of wheat, spelt (Triticum Spelta) is
the common bread corn. It suits a dry climate, and,
like the hard Odessa wheat, contains more nourishing
particles than the ordinary wheat. It is, however, en-
cumbered with a husk which makes the cleaning and
grinding expensive. Rye is common on the sands.
Maize or Indian corn is very frequent as a fallow crop,
and is daily increasing in use. Ingenious machines
have been invented to shed the grains, but it still remains
a difficult process. The fallows are here covered
with cabbages, carrots, and beet-root that attains an
extraordinary magnitude. In good seasons the potatoes