Thomas Tusser

500 good points of Husbandrie

MARCHES ABSTRACT

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MARCHES ABSTRACT

 

White peason sowe         Good bearing hop

scare hungry crow.         climes up to the top.

            Keep hopo from sunne,

Spare meadow for hay,       and hop is undunne.

spare marshes at May.

            Hop tooles procure

Keepe sheepe from dog,       that may endure     .

keepe lambes from hog.       Iron crowe like a stake,

If foxes mowse them,         deepe hole to make.

then watch or howset them.       A scaper to pare

            the earth about bare.

March drie or wet,         A hone to raise roote,

hop grounds go set.         like sole of a boote.

Yoong rootes well drest,       Sharpe knife to cut

proove ever best.         superfluous gut.

Grant hop great hill,

to growe it will.         Who graffing looves,

From hop long gut         now graffing prooves.

away go cut.           Of everie suite,

            graffe dainty fruite.

Here learne the way         Graffe good fruite all,

hop rootes to lay.         or graffe none at all.

            Graffe soone may be lost,

Rootes best to proove,       both graffing and cost.

thus set I loove.         Learne here take heed

            what counsell doth beed.

Leave space and roome,

to hillock to coome.         Sowe barlie that can,

            too soone ye shall ban.

Of hedge and willow         Let horse keep his owne,

hop makes his pillow.         till barlie be sowne.

 

Sowe even thy land,         For sommer sowe now,

with plentifull hand.         for winter see how.

Sowe over and under,         

in claie is no wonder.         Learne time to knowe,

            to set or sowe.

By sowing in wet,         

is little to get.           Yoong plants soone die,

            that growes too drie.

Straight folow the plough,

and harrow inough.         In countrie doth rest,

With slinge go throwe,       what season is best.

to scare away crowe.

            Good peaseon and leekes

Rowle after a deaw,         make pottage for creekes.

when barlie doth sheaw.

More handsom to make it,       Have spoon meat inough,

to mowe and to rake it.       for cart and the plough.

            Good poore mans fare,

Learne here ye may         is poore mans care.

best harrowing way.         And not to boast,

            of sod and roast.

Now rowle thy wheat,

where clods be too great.       Cause rooke and raven

            to seeke a new haven.

Make readie a plot,

for seeds for the pot.         Geld lambes now all.

            straight as they fall.

Best searching minds         Looke twise a day,

the best waie finds.         least lambes decay.

 

For garden best         SEEDES AND HERBS

is south south west.         FOR THE KITCHEN

 

Good tilthe brings seedes,       Avens

evill tilture, weedes.         Betanie

            Bleets or beets, white or yellow

Where horse did harrow,       Bloodwoort

put stones in barrow,         Buglas

and laie them by         Burnet

in heapes on hy.         Burrage

            Cabage remove in June

Let oxe once fat         Clarie

lose nothing of that.         Coleworts

Now hunt with dog,         Cresses

unyoke hog.           Endive

            Fenell

With Doves good luck,       French Malows

reare goose and duck.         French Saffron set in August

To spare aright         Langdebiefe

spare March his flight.         Leeks removed in June

            Lettis removed in May

Save chitkins poore buttocks       Longwort

from pye, crowe and puttocks.     Liverwort

            Marigolds often cut

Some love now best         Mercurie

yong rabbets nest.         Mints of all times

            Nep

Now knaves will steale       Onions from December to March

pig, lamb, and veale.         Orach or arach, redde or white

            Patience

Here learne to Knowe         Perceley

what seeds to sowe.         Peneriall

            Primerose

And such to plant         Poret

whose seeds do want.         Sorell

            Spinage for the sommer

Rosemay in the sprintime       Sea holie

  to grow south or west     Sperage, letbgrowe two years and then remove

Sage red and white         Skirrets, set these plants in March

English Saffron set in August       Suckrie

Summer saverie         Tarragon, set in slippes in march

Sorrell             Violets of all colours

Spinage

Suckerie            These buie with the penie

Siethes              Or looke not for anie

Tanzie

Violets of all sorts         Capers

Winter saverie           Lemmans

            Olives

HERBES AND ROOTES FOR     Orengis

SALLETS AND SAUCE       Rise

            Sampire

Alexanders, at all times

Artichoke           HERBES AND ROOTES TO

Blessed thistles, or Carduus benedictus   BOILE OR TO BUTTER

Cucumbers in April and May

Cresies, sowe with lettice in the spring   Beanes, set in winter

Endive             Cabbegis, sowe in March

Mustard seede,         Carrets

  sowe in the spring and Mihelmas   Citrons, sowe in May

Musk million, in April & May       Goordes in May

Mints             Navewes sowe in June

Purslane           Pompions in May

Radish ans after remove them       Persneps in winter

Rampions           

Rokat, in April           HERBES BRANCHES AND FLOWERS

Sage             FOR WINDOW AND POTS

Runcivall pease set in winter

Rapes sowe in June         Baies, sowe or set in plants in Januarie

Turneps in March and April       Batchelers buttons

            Botles, blew, red and tawnie

            Colembines

STROWING HERBES       Campions

OF ALL SORTS         Cousleps

            Daffodondillies

Bassel, fine and busht, sowe in May     Eglantine, or sweet brier

Baulme, set in March         Fetherfew

Camamel           Flower armor sowe in May

Costmarie           Flower de luce

Cousleps and paggles         Flower gentle, white and red

Daisies of all sorts         Flower nice

Sweete fennell           Gileflowers, red, white & carnations

Garmandar             set in spring and Harvest in

Isop, set in February           pots, pailes, or tubs

Lavendar             or for sommor in beds

Lavendar spike         Holiokes, red and white and carnations

Lavendar cotten         Indian eie, sowe in May or set in slips

Majorom knotted, sowe or set at the       in March

  spring           Lavendar of all sorts

Mawdelin           Larkes foot

Penal riall           Laus tibi

Roses of all sorts, in Januarie       Lillium cum valium     

  and September         Lillies, red and white, sowe or set

Red mints             in March and September

Sage             Marigolds double

Tanzie             Nigella Romana

Violets             Pauncies or hartesease

Winter saverie           Paggles, green and yelow

            

Pinkes of all sorts         NECESSARIE HERBES TO

Queenes gilleflowers         GROWE IN THE GARDEN

Rosemarie           FOR PHYSICK

Roses of all sorts         NOT REHERSED BEFORE

Snag dragons

Sops in wine           Annis

Sweete Williams         Archangel

Sweete Johns           Betanie

Star of Bethelem         Charviel

Star of Jerusalem         Cinqfile

Stocke gillieflowers of all sorts     Cummin

Tuft gilleflowers         Dragons

Velvet flowers           Detanie or garden ginger

  or french Marigolds       Gromel seed, for the stone

Violets, yelloe or white       Hartsong

Wall gilleflowers of all sorts       Horehound

            Lovage for the stone

HERBES TO STILL IN SOMMER     Licoras

            Mandrake

Blessed thistle           Mogwort

Betanie           Pionees

Dill             Poppie

Endive             Rew

Eiebright           Rubarb

Fennell             Smalach, for swellings

Fumetorie           Saxefrage, for the stone

Isop             Savin, for the bots

Mints             Stitchwort

Plantine           Valerian

Roses red and damaske       Woodbine

Respis

Saxefrage

Strawberis

Sorell

Suckerie

Woodrofe for swete

  waters and cakes

 

 

 

MARCHES HUSBANDIRE

 

WHITE peason, both good for the pot and the purse,

by sowing too timelie, proove often the wurse.

Bicause they be tender and hateth the cold,

proove March er ye sowe them, for being too bold.

 

Spare meadow at Gregorie, marshes at Pask,       Spare eating of meadow

for feare of die Sommer, no longer time ask.

Then hedge them and ditch them, bestow theron pence,

corne, meadow and pasture, aske alway good fence.

 

Of mastives and mungrels, that manie we see,     In Lent have an ey to sheep biters

a number of thousands too manie there bee.

Watch therefore in Lent, to thy sheepe go and look,

for dogs will have vittels, by hooke or by crooke.

 

In March at the furdest, drie season or wet,       Setting of hops

hop rootes so well chosen, let skilfull go set.

The goeler and yonger the better I love;

well gutted and pared, the better they proove.

 

Some laieth them croswise, along in the ground,

as high as the knee they doo cover up round.

Some prick up a stick in the mids of the same,

that little round hillock the better to frame.

 

Some maketh a hollownes, halfe a foot deepe,

with fower sets in it, set slant wise a steep:

One foot from another, in order ti lie,

and thereon a hillock as round as a pie.

 

Five foot from another ech hillock would stand,

as straight as a leveled line with the hand.

Let everie hillock be fower foot wide,

the better to come to on everie side.

 

By willowes that groweth thy hopyard without,

and also by hedges thy meadows about.

Good hop hath a pleasure to climb and to spred,

if Sunne may have passage to comfort hir hed.

 

Get crowe made of iron, deepe hole for to make,       Hop tools

with cross athwort it, as sharpe as a stake.

A hone and a parer, like sole of a boote,

to pare away grasse, and to raise up the roote.

 

In March is good graffing, the skilful doo knowe,     Graffing

so long as the wind in the east doo not blowe.

From Moone being changing til past be the prime,

for graffing and cropping is verie good time.

 

Things graffed or planted, the greatest and least,

defend against tempest, the bird and the beast.

Defended shall prosper, the tother is lost,

the thing with the labour, the time and the cost.

 

Sowe barlie in march, in April and Maie,       Sowing of barlie

the latter is sand, and the sooner in claie.

What worser for barlie than wetnes and cold?

what better to skilful than time to be bold.

 

Who soweth his barlie too soon or in raine,

ot otes and of thistles shal after complaine.

I speake not of Maie weed, cockle and such,

that noieth the barlie, so often and much.

 

Let barlie be harrowed, finelie as dust,

then workmanly trench it and fence it ye must.

This season well plied, set sowing an end,

and praise and praise God a good harvest to send.

 

Some rowleth their barlie straight after a raine,       Rowling of barlie

when first it appeareth to leavell it plaine.

The barlie so used, the better doth growe,

and hansome ye make it at hatvest to mowe.

 

Otes, barlie and pease, harrow after you sowe,

for riw harrow first, as alreadie ye knowe.

Leave wheat little clod for to cover the head,

that after a frost, it may out and go spread.

 

If clod in thy wheat will not break with the frost,

if now ye do rowle it, it quiteth the cost.

But see when ye rowle it the weather be drie,

or else it were better unrowled to lie.

 

In March and in April from morning to night,         Gardening

in sowing and setting, good huswives delight:

To have in a garden, or other like plot,

to tuen up their house and to furnish their pot.

 

The nature of flowers dame Physick doth shew,

she teacheth them all to be known to a few.

To set or to sowe, or else sowen to remove,

how that should be practised, learne if ye love.

 

Land falling or lieng full South or southwest,         To know good land

for profit by tillage is lightly the best.

So garden with orchard and hopyard I finde,

that what the like benefit, growe out of kind.

 

If field to beare corne a good tillage doth crave,

what think ye of garden, what garden would have?

In field without cost be assured of weedes,

in garden be suer thy looseth thy seedes.

 

At spring (for the sommor) sowe garden ye shall,

at harvest (for winter) or sowe not at all.

Oft digging, remooving, and weeding (ye see),

makes herbe the more holesome and greater to bee.

 

Time faire, to sowe or to gather be bold,

but set or remoove when the weather is cold.

Cut all thing or gather, the Moone in the wanr,

but sowe in encreasing, or give it his bane.

 

Now set do ask watering with pot or with dish,

new sowne doo not so, if ye do as I wish.

Through cunning with dible, rake, mattock, and spade,

by line and by leavell, trim garden is made.

 

Who soweth too lateward, hath seldome good seed,

who soweth too soone, little better shall speed.

Apt time and the season so divers to hit,

let aier and laier helpe pactise and wit.

 

Now leekes are in season, for pottage full good.

and spareth the milchcow and purgeth the blood.

These having, with peason for pottage in Lent,

thou spareth both otemell and bread to be spent.

 

Though never so much a goo huswife doth care,

that such as doe labour have husbandlie fare.

Yet feed them and cram them til purse doth lack chinke,

no spoone meat, no bellifull, labourers thinke.

 

Kill crow, pie and cadow, rooke, buzard and raven,       Destroie pie, rooks, and or esle go desire them to seek a new haven,         ravens nest, etc.

In scaling the yoongest, to pluck off his beck,

beware how ye climber, forbreaking your neck.