by Thomas Jefferson
Folding. mr Taylor says he knows by accurate
& constant experience that
40. head of cattle, folded of nights only, dung completely
20. yds square.
before folding the ground should be coultered & covered with straw, then
folded one week, and the straw &
dung immediately turned in with
the great plough.
an Experiment to be tried. lay off a square acre, & put 25 loads [yds] of dung on
it.
lay off 8. acres separately around it. fold 4. of them with a
given num-
-ber of cattle, and the other 4. acres with 5. or 6 times as
many sheep,
giving a week to one acre, 1 1/2 to the 2d. 2. weeks to the 3d.
& 2 1/2 to the 4th.
sow the whole with wheat, and see which of the folded acres is
equal to the dunged one, in order to ascertain the equivalence
be-
-tween folding and spreading dung.
Dung beneficially used as a top dressing in the spring. Report on
Manures. pa. 15.
Dung hill should be on a level, paved, with a well round it, shaded,
channels at bottom to
lead off superfluous moisture. ib. 27. plant trees round it.
ib. Append. 7.
Young sais that 20. head of
sheep will fold 1. acre a year in a manner to equal 20. loads of dung.
then the folding of one sheep a year is equivalent to one load
of dung. 3. exp. agr. 166. This
makes 20 sheep only equal to 1. cow. Mr Taylor's
estimate in folding makes 1. cow
fold 9/10 of an acre in a year. This makes 1. cow equal to 18.
sheep.