the catalogue of wheats which he has published, and which he seemed, with a meritorious enthusiasm, so anxious to send to every friend of farming. To him, in all probability, we are indebted for many of our old varieties in the north of England, and perhaps in Scotland. Of those authors who have endeavoured to give a correct classification, Bailey and Culley are the best I have yet examined. The great defect of all the authors on this subject, is, that they do not lay down any definite principles by which we are to determine ourselves in the selection of the most prolific variety. Ellis alone has given a useful hint; but his remarks upon it are better calculated to cause the despondence, than to animate the exertions of the young experimentalist. At some future period, I may perhaps communicate the remarks occasioned by the perusal of some of the most distinguished authors on this subject. My present design is merely to detail the few experiments I have myself made, and am still making, with a view to direct the attention of some of those actively engaged in farming to the same inquiry. Every farmer must feel the importance of ascertaining what variety of wheat is most likely to enable him to pay high rents and heavy taxes, at a period when the price of grain is reduced, the system of rack-renting not diminished, and the rage of farming has lulled to silence the voice of prudence and observation. Surely I may expect the assistance of all those landed proprietors whose attention has been directed to agricultural inquiries, either by avarice, fame, science, or that most delightful of all motives, disinterested benevolence. Any hints from Dr Coventry, to whose kindness and instructions I am so much indebted, shall be received with that pleasure and gratitude which must have pervaded the sentiments and feelings of all his pupils. At the present eventful crisis, I look with confidence to his extensive influence with the large landed proprietors in Scotland, for the formation and adoption of those plans, which will secure agriculture that protection and honour to which she is so justly entitled. "While farmers are in an independent flourishing condition, it may be expected that real improvements will be further extended: But when rents are raised to such a height as to distress and discourage the farmer when landholders, in consequence of this, farm large tracts of lands themselves; then Britain will teach posterity, as the Roman state teaches the present age, this important lesson-That agriculture declines as well as other arts; and that this must happen, whenever it falls into the hands of persons who, either from their education cannot acquire a proper knowledge of it, or, from their station, cannot give proper attention to it. Every northern farmer, impressed

with these truths, must look for support to Sir John Sinclair and Dr Coventry, whose stations in society, and extensive knowledge, must not only secure the attention of every one engaged in agriculture, but of the Legislature of our country. Is there an enlightened statesman and patriot, who has been a recent observer of the inability of commerce and manufactures to support this kingdom, who must not be induced, for the future, to consider them, on all occasions, the subsidiary allies of agriculture?

At the commencement of my experiments, I was contented to select, from my own county, those varieties of white wheat with which I was acquainted. I accidentally also procured two varieties of red wheat; one the Burwell Cambridgeshire wheat, so strongly recommended by the late George Culley esq., that worthy and able agriculturist; the other a red wheat, chiefly used, I believe, in Shropshire. These two were sown in the same field about the beginning of February. The produce of the greatest part of both these wheats I forwarded to our indefatig able president J. C. Curwen esq., whose ardour in adopting any thing which has even the appearance of improvement, is well known. These varieties he has continued sowing since that period. He sows also a variety sent him by Mr Baker, which has a great resemblance to the Cambridgeshire red wheat. Meeting accidentally at the Schoose Farm with Mr Housman, a steady friend to the interests of agriculture, steward to the Duke of Norfolk, I expressed my desire to have some of the valuable varieties of wheat, which were in high estimation in that county. This he very readily and kindly engaged to do, and forwarded me five varieties:-1st, Red Sprat Wheat; 2d, White Norfolk Wheat; 3d, Red Norfolk Wheat; 4th, Clog Wheat; 5th, Spring Wheat. These were all sown contiguously in the same field. When J. C. Curwen esq. favoured me with a visit, he expressed a great wish to know the result of my experiment, in consequence of his having been informed that Messrs Gibbs & Co. were engaged in a similar one, expecting they would be enabled to discover some more valuable wheat than any they at that time possessed. This idea is confirmed by the amiable Adam Dickson, who says" It is not improbable that the male dust of the common wheat may be carried about by the wind, and impregnate the seeds of the foreign ones; "and (may we not add?) vice versa. It is a striking instance of the contradiction of agricultural writers, that Mr Dickson of Dunse considers the importer of wheat from England to Scotland for seed, a benefactor of his country; whilst Sommerville of Haddington wholly condemns the practice,

The first variety, Red Sprat, answered remarkably well, and, on rich soils, has produced upwards of sixty Winchester bushels per acre. It surpasses all other varieties I have yet tried for rich soils; since it rarely lodges, ripens very early, a week before any of our white wheats, and is very abundant. Nine rows or spicula of this wheat are contained in 24th and 24th inches.` 2d, White Norfolk Wheat is wholly sown by my brother, in preference to any other variety: it is a very beautiful wheat, and brings the highest price. 3d, Red Norfolk Wheat had nine spicula in 3th inches, and appeared very much to resemble the Burwell Red Wheat. 4th, Clog Wheat being one: of the downy-chaffed awny wheats, was sown no more. 5th, Spring Wheat, resembling in every respect the Huntingdonshire Spring Wheat, was also discarded. On examining the first crop, I observed no other varieties of either red or white wheat. The following crop surprized and pleased me with three or four new varieties of both. They are only in small quanti ties; and it will require two years before I shall be enabled to provide other farmers with them. To detail the trials I have inade with the other varieties of White Wheat in this county, is unnecessary, since it is almost impossible to communicate to. other counties a knowledge of our merely local names; and no new varieties were observed in consequence of the trial. It is probable, from the preceding statement, that more new varieties will be discovered, by the admixture of red and white wheats, than of white wheats alone. The Sardinian, an awny red wheat, was the most worthless sample I ever saw. It is not better than rye.

The following is what I consider the best classification of wheats according to my own trials. 1. Triticum Hibernum2. Triticum Estivum; perhaps the Trimestre of Columella. Triticum Hibernum divides into two varieties; 1. downy, and hoary chaffed, generally awny; 2. smooth chaffed: and these again into red, white, and yellow.

The most remarkable variety of the downy chaffed is the Smyrna, Turkish, Persian, double-eared or many-eared cone wheat; since all these names appear to have been given it by different writers, unless the double-eared, generally sown (as per Lawrence) at one period in Essex, ought to be considered another variety. It very much resembles, when green, the common reed (arundo), both in the size and appearance of its leaves, and the thickness of its stalks. The uppermost joint is long, and full of pith, enabling it to bear the immense head it produces; many of which have 200 grains and upwards each. The. other joints resemble more the joints of a reed than of wheat.

From these causes I never yet observed it to lodge, as some of our treatises on farming state. I had this year, on moss or bog soil, 48 Winchester bushels per statute acre of this variety. Its flour does not appear inferior to what is procured from the other cone wheats. Its awns, when ripe, generally drop off. I have not observed it to tiller much; on which account it requires more seed. The other varieties of coned wheat, both red and white, I have never sown more than once. They appear to answer very well for exposed situations, on account of the chaff closing on the grain. Being much more liable to the mildew than other varieties, and to grow in wet seasons, they have justly been condemned by our most eminent agriculturists. Mackie of Ormiston (as per Rep. of East-Lothian-Boy's Rep. of Kent) seems to have introduced by selection the old hoary wheat of Kent; which, for the preceding reasons, has also been rejected and banished from East-Lothian. By coned wheat I mean awny wheat, both red and white, whose awns fall off in general when ripe. These wheats require to be sown early in autumn.

Smooth-chaffed Wheat.-Of this I have observed chiefly five varieties of red and white, corresponding with each other, distinguished by the spicula, or rows, being close or wide set. Of the closest set spicula, 9 are contained in 2 inches; of the widest, 9 rows or spicula, in 3 inches; of a very beautiful wheat, the spicula are 9 in 24 inches. It must be well known to every attentive farmer, that when the ears are long, or the spicula thin set, the straw is long and more apt to lodge; when the ears are short, the straw is frequently short, except on very rich land, where it grows to a very considerable height, and very rarely lodges. The middle-eared wheats promise to be the best on the generality of soils; they are a beautiful wheat, not so long and guttery as the greatest part of the long-eared wheats, nor so plump as the short-eared. From these five varieties, both of red and white wheats, I am also selecting others distinguished by 4, 5, and 6 spicula or rows, on both sides of the ear, containing 4 grains each; whilst the generality of wheat, at least in this county, contains only 3 grains in a spiculum or Should this be a variety, and not an accident, which my present experiments will, I hope, ascertain, every ear will contain 8, 10, 12, and in some instances, 14 more grains than the common white or red wheat. In a few, very few, instances, of the long-eared wheat, I have found 2 spicula or rows on both sides containing 5 grains each. I would esteem it a kindness if any of your numerous readers would inform me whether they have discovered a wheat consisting chiefly of 4 grains in each of the spicula or not. The long-eared wheats promise to have

row.

the greatest number of grains in each spiculum; though I have found the same circumstance to take place in all the five varieties both of red and white wheats before enumerated. There is one Selector mentioned by Ellis, who discovered a wheat, each of whose rows contained 4 grains or kernels. He observes, the ear was too heavy for the stalk, and on this account its culture was relinquished.

In all the varieties where I have found 4 grains in each spiculum or row, I never observed a greater tendency in the wheat to lodge than in the common wheat; and an attentive observer of the laws of the Author of Nature must feel convinced he orders nothing in vain. With respect to the colour of the smooth chaffed wheat, I have found all the red varieties have red straw and chaff; in many instances I have observed white straw, chaff -grain yellowish brown. The rest have white straw, chaff, and grain. A wheat called Clark wheat is said to be grown in Sussex with a red blossom, chaff, straw, grain white-this variety I have never observed. Red wheat, though heavier than our white wheat, is not so highly valued by the millers in this county. The Norfolk white wheat is much approved.

Triticum Estivum, or Trimestre.-This wheat has so completely disappointed the expectations of all the Cumberland farmers, that when Sir J. Sinclair forwarded to our President a great number of varieties which had been sent him from France, there was not one present at the meeting who thought fit to make any trials. If Sir J. Sinclair, or any of his friends, have introduced a variety of this wheat, which is found to answer in the north, I shall be extremely happy to try it a second time. The progress of improvements in agriculture is frequently impeded by the injudicious trials of her friends, whose failure creates a degree of doubt and uncertainty in the great class of professional farmers, with respect even to those plans which have been found to answer. There is no farmer, however prejudiced against new practices, who will not adopt, with ardour, any variety either of winter or summer wheat, which his own observation convinces him to be superior to those generally cultivated. Should our fashionable agriculturists introduce amongst us more valuable varieties of grain, &c. than any we can at present boast of, they would soon find all the farmers in the kingdom their most firm scholars and admirers,

Canonby, Mary-Port, 11th January 1814,

F. SIBSON.