in length. It is more valuable for fodder, but uncertain in produce.

Although peas are nearly of the same nature as beans, in regard to nutrition, they will grow on soils of a lighter and poorer quality, and the preparation of the land is the same for both.

Broadcast-sowing of peas should never be practised. Drilling ought always to be adopted, as it admits of horse and hand-hoeing to keep the soil free from weeds; for it is only when this is done, that the cultivation of peas or beans can be usefully adopted. When sown in drills, four bushels, or about twelve stone of seed, to the statute acre, will be sufficient.

The soil in which peas grow best is a sandy loam, neither too moist nor too dry. A mixture of calcareous earth is highly favourable to the growth of peas, and shell marl, or sand, or lime, is found to forward a crop more than any other kind of mineral manure. The grey or field pea is found to succeed best on strong soils, and the white or garden kind on light dry lands. The straw, or haulm, is cut into chaff, and used as fodder for horses. It makes excellent provender, and sheep are very fond of it. When the peas are made into meal, and mixed with skimmed milk, they form very. good food for calves; and they are also much used for feeding pigs.

LAYING DOWN IN GRASS.

The most important preparation for laying down tillage lands in grass, is to clean and enrich the soil, and the general, and perhaps the best mode of doing this, is by first growing a crop of drilled potatoes or turnips, which are to be well manured, and effectually cleaned and cultivated during summer, so as to eradicate all weeds. The following spring, put in either barley or oats, and when these are sufficiently harrowed, sow the grass and clover seeds, and run them over with a light harrow-Then roll, and if the ground be naturally stiff and cohesive, it may be well to give one turn of the light harrow after the roller, which will surface becoming too hard and cakey, prevent the

If the land is intended for permanent pasture, two bushels of perennial and one bushel of Italian rye-grass, one bushel of cock's-foot-grass, 4lbs. of white and 2lbs. of red clover, and 4lbs. of cow-grass, will be a good proportion, and sufficient for an Irish acre; and about one-third to one-fourth less of each, will be sufficient for the statute acre.

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If it is only intended that the land should be kept under grass for one, two, or three years, the Italian grass is decidedly preferable to all others, and three to four bushels of this grass, with 2lbs. of white and 5lbs. of red clover, will be sufficient for a statute acre. Should the soil be very rich and clean, however, somewhat less seed may suffice; and if the land is poor, and not over clean, a small addition to the above quantities might be useful.

HARVESTING.

The best way to avoid loss by shaking, is to reap the corn before it is dead ripe. Grain allowed to stand until it is thoroughly ripe, assumes a dull dusky hue in sample, whilst grain not sufficiently ripened, shrivels in drying. In both states, it wants that brightness of colour which is important in all grain; and does not yield the quantity of farina which it would do, if reaped at the proper period, when it is neither too green nor over ripe.

All kinds of grain do not shrivel alike, when cut too early, Wheat shrivels the most. Barley suffers next to wheat; and oats least of all, being covered with a strong husk or shell, and possessing the quality of filling and hardening in the stook. Barley shrivels much, and when it is reaped with any green on the grains, it assumes a bleached dull white colour, instead of the rich golden yellow colour which it ought to exhibit. Much loss of grain is incurred every year by permitting the crops to be over ripe. The loss takes place in the reaping, binding, and stooking; in the leading from the field to the stackyard, and again in removing the sheaves to the barn for thrashing. This loss may be in a great measure avoided; and we recommend the

following practice, which has stood the test of experience.

Reap before the corn is fully or dead ripe-ledge for three or four days, according to the weatherclear the corn and straw of all weeds, clover, grass, &c., before binding-in binding, make the sheaves small stook and hood them, when bound-let them rest in the stooks ten days or a fortnight, having regard to the state of the weather, and then cart them to the haggardin making the ricks in the haggard, construct chimneys or openings for ventilation, to guard against injury by heating, and thatch the tops as soon as practicable.

Various means have been recommended, and are found useful, in expediting the work of reaping-such as the cradle scythe, the Hainault scythe, and other implements. The cradle and Hainault scythes may be used where the corn stands upright, and on level and cleanlycultivated ground; otherwise the sickle and common reaping-hook will be found most advantageous. If, however, it becomes important to get rapidly through with the reaping, the improved cradle scythe will be found valuable in expediting the work; as with this instrument one man accustomed to its use, will perform the work of four, and lay the corn as neatly for the subsequent operations of turning and binding, as if it had been cut with the reaping-hook.

HAY-MAKING.

The following practical rules for conducting this very important operation, have been found generally successful, and are confidently recommended for adoption by every farmer.

Cut the grass when it has come to its full growth, and yet before it has ripened its seed. If cut when in a growing state, the unripe juices of the plant are apt to bring on violent heat and fermentation, and thus deprive the crop of much of its substance and nourishment.

Never shake the hay out of the swathe on the day it is cut, but on the second day shake all that was cut on the previous day, giving it two turnings. By shaking it out the day on which it is cut, the hay is reduced much

by the heat of the sun; but by leaving it in the swathe, it soaks its own sap,' and will be reduced very little afterwards.

Never leave the hay on the ground the night it is shook out, but gather it up into small grass cocks that evening. By so doing, the dew goes off the ground much earlier the next morning, and one shaking out of the grass cocks on comparatively dry ground, will be of more service than three turnings, if left spread the night before.

After breaking out the grass cocks, turn the hay twice that day, and gather it into windrows in the evening, and there make it into cocks containing about a cwt. each. Let the hay remain in cock the next day, in order to soak the sap,' as above-noticed, for by exposing the grass too often to the sun, it becomes much reduced in bulk and nourishment.

The next step is to gather these cocks into plats, about eight cocks in each, and if the day is likely to be fine shake them all out, taking care not to spread them too wide, as by this means the hay would be too much -exposed to the sun, and be injured in colour. Carefully turn the hay thus spread out, at least twice that day; and in the evening put each plat into one cock, so as that they may be safe from rain, should there be any, but do not allow them to be tramped.

In this state let the cocks remain without further disturbance, and on the day after pull them all round, observing to leave them as small in the bottoms as possible, in order to admit a free circulation of air under and about them-then rake them carefully, to secure them against storms; and continue this system until the whole of your hay is made up.

The above operations are supposed to be carried on under favourable weather; but when the weather is bad or broken, turn all the small cocks often, and double them continually, without shaking any out, until you have them fit to go into the large cocks; and then, if the day is likely to hold fine, shake them out thoroughly, and make them up the same evening.

When the hay is thus all made up, give it no time in the cock, but draw it in immediately, beginning with that first made; and if there be any newly-laid meadow,

mix this hay carefully with that of the old meadow, and shake a small portion of salt on each course.

By the above process, there are but three days Occupied in making the hay, until it is put into finished cocks. The hay thus made up may heat moderately, but this will rather be advantageous than the reverse. If there be tarpaulins for securing the rick when drawing in the hay, they will be found of the greatest advantage; and no farmer should be without these important appendages to good husbandry. They may be expensive in the first instance, but the loss which one rainy day might occasion in the quality of the hay, would in all probability be much greater than the cost of the tarpaulins; which will enable the farmer to draw in any part of his hay which may be fit, and keep the rick open until the whole crop is brought in, without risk or inconvenience.

The advantages of the above management deserve particular attention, as compared with the injury sustained, both in the quantity and quality of the crop, by the slovenly practice now so generally pursued. Every season the Irish farmer suffers serious loss, by permitting his hay to lie so long spread out when making, and then putting it into large cocks, and allowing it to remain in the field till late in the season. It must be much under the mark, to say, that one-tenth part of the hay so left exposed in cock, is lost by being weather-beaten on the outside, and by the bottom being damaged; to say nothing of the loss in the next year's crop of grass, from the injury sustained by the ground on which the cocks stood.

CULTIVATION OF FLAX.*

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No crop gives so much employment as flax, and none better the farmer for the care bestowed repays it; and when it is considered that large sums of money are annually sent out of this country to purchase flax, whilst our own soil is equal to any for the growth of the plant,

; These instructions are taken from a paper printed and circulated by The Society for the Improvement of the Growth and Preparation of Flax in Ireland."