You might think Horse-Hoeing Husbandry is a little-known album by the 20th-Century progressive rock band Jethro Tull – but no. It is, in fact, a well-known book (in agricultural circles) by the 18th-Century progressive agriculturalist Jethro Tull, after whom the band was named. (Ian Anderson, leader of the rock band, once said that his agent, a history buff, came up with the name. Anderson had no idea it was “a dead guy who invented the seed drill” and wished he had changed it to “something less historical”). The volunteers at Distributed Proofreaders and Project Gutenberg have now made it possible for you to tell the difference.
Jethro Tull (the agriculturalist) was born in Berkshire, England, in 1674. He read law at Oxford and became a barrister. After he married, he and his wife settled on his father’s farm in Oxfordshire, where he became an avid gentleman farmer. Tull then traveled to the Continent to improve his health. He was struck by the similarity between his agricultural ideas and those actually in operation in the vineyards of France and Italy. He had theorized, and to his mind the success of the vineyards proved, that fertilizing the soil with manure was unnecessary – frequently tilling the soil was not only enough, but was also much more cost-effective.
On his return to England, Tull moved to the aptly named Prosperous Farm near Hungerford, where he put his farming ideas into practice. He invented a seed drill that automatically sowed and planted seeds, a method that was far more productive than hand-broadcasting. He also found that hoeing the soil with a device pulled by a horse was much more effective and less labor-intensive than hand-hoeing by individual workers. He expanded on his ideas about tilling in Horse-Hoeing Husbandry (subtitled “An Essay on the Principles of Vegetation and Tillage. Designed to introduce a New Method of Culture; Whereby the Produce of Land will be increased, and the usual Expence lessened”), first published in 1731.
In addition to finding fertilization with manure to be unnecessary, Tull railed against the use of it in growing food for human consumption. In a chapter entitled “Of Dung,” he writes, “’Tis a Wonder how delicate Palates can dispense with eating their own and their Beasts Ordure, but a little more putrefied and evaporated; together with all Sorts of Filth and Nastiness, a Tincture of which those Roots must unavoidably receive, that grow amongst it.” Later it was proven that some fertilization with manure is still necessary for the best results, but Tull’s innovative methods revolutionized agriculture in Europe and America, and are still in use today, albeit with more sophisticated machinery.
Tull died in 1741, but Horse-Hoeing Husbandry continued in print for many years afterward. The edition that Distributed Proofreaders contributed to Project Gutenberg is the fourth, published in 1762.
This post was contributed by Linda Cantoni, a Distributed Proofreaders volunteer.
Hot off the Press 
Great post, Linda. I grew up on a small farm. The seed drill was a very important advancement in farming. My dad adapted a horse-drawn drill so he could pull it with an Allis-Chalmers tractor. Mom would ride the seat of the drill, making sure that everything was working properly, and refilling the bins as needed. Combine harvesters were another innovation that was very helpful—but they post-dated Tull by quite a long time.
I have actually heard of the band “Jethro Tull,” but I didn’t know this was where they got their name. That’s pretty amusing!
Sue.
My ancestors are the “purls” in the knitting of my life.
>
Wow, Sue, thank you so much for sharing that memory! Jethro Tull (the agriculturalist) lives on!