lazy-beds

• Format: Manuscript
• Language: English
• Published: 1974
• Subjects: English language > Dialects > Newfoundland and Labrador; Newfoundland
• Online Access: http://collections.mun.ca/cdm/ref/collection/elrcdne/id/39991

lazy a Both in the Avalon and Miramichi root crops were planted in ridges or "_lazy- beds,_" and in both areas the craft of ridge making was similar. On ley land a furrow or trench 1-1 1/2 feet wide was first marked out with twine and pegs and this strip was then cut and dug with the spade, or the [i]grafan[i] in parts of the Cape Shore. The 3-inch sod was turned on to what was to become the "bed" or ridge on either side of the furrow. Furrows were carefully alligned to the shape of the land to aid in drainage and the seed-bed was raised well above the water-table. Potato ridges were often less than two feet wide, especially on wet ground, but ridges sown to other roots were twice this width. The ridge itself was not dug. Manure was spread on the grassy sward and was covered by sod and clay from the furrow. (over) [reverse] Along the Cape Shore _"lazy-beds"_ are stilll used for potatoes and other vege- tables, but in the settlements north of St. John's the technique was gradually abandoned after the introduction of the plough. There is no memory of potato ridges in Freshwater or Peterborough and they were made by only a handful of settlers by the end of the last century in Miramichi. Drills, formed by the plough, have been used in these areas as far back as local memory extends. Drilling was introduced to most farms north of St. John's only in the present century. Spade and "lazy-bed" culture lingered longest in the small kitchen garden where the plough could not be used. PRINTED ITEM JUL 1974 G. M. Story JULY 1974 JH Used I and Sup Not used 2 Withdrawn [see also 'bed'] Checked by Jordyn Hughes on Mon 08 Jun 2015; Reverse of card at L_15477