| Title: | Notes On A Discourse On Husbandry, Cressy Dymock |
|---|---|
| Dating: | undated |
| Ref: | 62/4/1A-2B |
[62/4/1A]
Some Notes vpon that excellent paper
or discourse with which you befreinded mee
both to read & coppy out
1 First hee that will bee perfect in husbandry must knowe the nature of all lands as neer as may bee and what seeds are most apt & propper for each severall sort of land both in respect of itts reall and accidentall nature or quallity), and of those that are fitt for the land, which are allsoe most fitt for his present condition or occasion
2 Secondly that a man may liue long & haue mutch experience yett bee to seeke in strange lands & clymates, And the best husband may yett learne something (
3 Thirdly, That in flanders & Brabant betweene Gaunt & Antwerpe sandy heathy land sutch as wee esteeme verry barren may bee <(there)> made by good management better then the best land there or in England by the fitting right seed in right seasons, which are flax, Rye <oates>, turneps & clovergrasse
4 fourthly, that one acre of flax there (by our measure) is worth comonly 50li.sterling seldome vnder 40li
5 fiftly that an acre of turneps there is frequently worth 12li Generally 10li selldome lesse then 8li.
6 sixtly That they sowe att the same tyme with either flaxe or oate clover-grasse seed aboue after the flax or oates, & harrow it in with a bush which will not come vp till the flax or oates bee taken away & then itt will not to faile & may bee once mowed that yeare, & after eaten till christmas, & may bee mowed the next yeare thrice (vizt) about the beginning of Iune when itt will there bee neer two foot long & verry thicke, & againe about a month after, little worse & about six weekes after when itt may bee a foot & an halfe long & thicke enough, & here will bee good feeding allsoe till christmas. but if you will lay itt for seed you must onely mow itt the first tyme & then not againe till the seed bee ripe, & after eat itt till Christmas as before, If itt bee thrice mowed itt will fall of to onely a good sort of ordinary grasse after foure yeares but if you lett itt seed itt will last longer either way (while itt doth last) itt is vallued att 12li. an acre or 10 att least
7. seaventhly, That a Gammett is the tearme vsed for an acre of land which is some thing more then an acre in England
8 eightly That they haue a fine way of letting land vpon improuement (vizt) that the tenant paying as mutch rent as the land in the present Condition is worth or may bee lett for & having a long lease is to vse his vttmost endeavour upon the same as if itt were his owne, for his owne advantage during his lease & futurely for the lords for which the lord [letter deleted] is obliged to giue him suutch reward, recompence or satisfaction as shall bee adiudged iust by foure arbitrators indifferently chosen two of a side.
9 Ninthly that they in flanders knowe noe other soyle but dung of cattle
[62/4/1B]
10 Tenthly, They haue a fine way to make mutch dung, by keeping their sheep all night in a house the floare spread over with soil sand, renued every second or third night, till the house and the passage into itt begins to bee choaked vp with their dung & the sand well mixed by their trampling on it, then they remoue that & begin againe by this meanes 300 or 400 sheep will make 1000 loads of dung
11 That burning the turffe or baite (which some call devonshiring) makes itt not worse for the future if there bee added a convenient proportion of dung or other good soyle, as [Marle? altered from Marse?], lyme or the lyke, This is proved by his owne experiment of six acres, which beeing burn't & 40 loades of some kind of Marle as hee could gett layd on itt each acre & spread assoone as layde & this done in somer, brought forth two excellent cropps of corn & the third [word deleted] yeare (beeing layde downe) proved as good grasse as most mowing ground in England yield, The lyke experryment was made by a neighbour of his one Clement stokes whose farme beeing barren & formerly lett for 12d an acre was by the meanes aforesaid & adding one load 180 bushells of lime (vizt) one to every rod of land made soe good for corne & grasse <as> aforesaid Both these were barren heathy land (in England about ashdowne forrest) in Sussex
12 That hee is of opinion that Marle may bee found in most places of England, And that any mine or gritt free from stones, & that lyes with a veyne of mellow clay or a loamy earth soe thicke that itt may seeme worth the digging of what coulour soever itt bee whether grey yellow, bue or other wise is good manure for barraine land especially sand
13 They vse their turneps to feed cattle of all [word deleted] sorts, thus, they wash the rootes, bruise them in a trough, boyle them in faire water, and soe giue them (with a little salt) to their cattle, And if the greater cattle will not eate them in countryes where they haue not beene vsed to itt yett the yong cattle may bee taught, & brought vp to itt & then they will
14 That 4 or 5 loade of fearne or Bracken (of which enough in most barren, heathy sandy forrest land in any part of England) cut betweene Iune & September will burne in loades of chalke to lyme
That Mechlin in Flaunders, and Chichester in England are both vnder the same degree
15 obserue That in flanders they vsually haue 900 pound weight of flax vpon one acre, & sell itt for 2d ´d a pound
That you gett your flax seed from the East Land, & change itt (att least every 4th yeare how good soever itt seeme, and gett your clover-Grasse & turnep-seeds from Flaunders allwayes, and when you begin gett (if possible) a good servant from thence whose wayes & workings, with their seasons and successes if you will giue your selfe leaue to obserue you may be become master of your trade in a yeare or two
Not to deal with too great quantityes att first
[62/4/2A]
Certaine Queres nessessarye as I conceaue
for the better vnderstand & vse of this discourse
1 First whether Mecklin & Chichester beeing (as aforesaid) in the same degree, whether itt bee in respect of latitude, or longitude & what difference that may occasion
2 whether that part of Flanders bee a hotter or coulder Countrye then England, or more subiect to excesse of Moysture or drought
3 Wee haue mutch flax sowed in many parts of England Query whether ever any [2 words lost, MS torn] to come to that rate of [900 weight? MS edge] vpon an acre, or to bee worth 50li or but 40
4 Wee haue Turneps many growing in England Quere wherin or how they differ in goodnes or vallue from those of Flanders
5 Where as hee sayth himselfe that clovergrasse growes in England but farre short in goodnesse to that of Flaunders Quere how farre short, & from what cause the difference proceeds, & how to bee prevented or amended
