Ch 39: Agriculture

Time came to August. Farmers near Tyneburg tilled the farmland, preparing for sowing winter wheat a month later. Bored, Vig casually rode his grey horse around, carefully observing his subjects’ labor.

Currently, the local area implemented the Two-Field System. Farmers divided their lands into two fields; one for winter wheat, the other left fallow. Before cultivation, farmers drove oxen to pull a light wooden plow. The efficiency of tilling the mud was very poor, and a field often needed to be plowed twice.

In Vig’s understanding, tilling farmland would make the soil loose, enhancing aeration, and benefiting crop growth. From this perspective, plowing should be done as deeply as possible, rather than shallowly plowing once.

He stopped an Anglo-Saxon farmer nearby. “Hey, this wooden plow is too light. Why not use a heavy iron plow?”

The other man showed a wooden, shrinking face. “We have always used this ‘Roman plow,’ and never had the idea of changing it.”

Roman plow.

Vig stared intently at this light wooden plow, his brain rapidly working, quickly realizing its fatal defect.

“The Mediterranean Coast has a dry climate and relatively loose soil. A light wooden plow is enough to plow to a suitable depth. In contrast, the North Atlantic coast has a humid climate and sticky soil. Even plowing a field twice won’t achieve the expected effect. Sigh, I’m really fed up with you. You only know how to copy the Romans’ things and use them for hundreds of years without improvement.”

Returning to his study, Vig searched his memory and recalled a large heavy plow popular in Europe after the 11th century. It was pulled by two oxen and had an iron plowshare and two wheels.

“Mm, it should be this structure.”

After consecutively drawing more than a dozen sketches, Vig scratched his head, fell into deep thought, and selected two presentable sketches to give to Cadfael.

“Settle it. Remember to put in more effort. This farming tool is enough to benefit most of Europe’s peasants.”

After dismissing the blacksmith, Vig took the opportunity to recall the contents of the Three-Field System to further increase agricultural output.

Under the Two-Field System, the winter wheat yield per acre of farmland was approximately 8 bushels.

（Bushel, similar to the dou and sheng of the East. 1 bushel of wheat is approximately 27.216 kilograms.）

Assuming a five-person household owns thirty acres of farmland, half of the land is used for cultivation, and the annual harvest is 120 bushels.

Regarding expenses, 2 bushels are reserved per acre as seeds. Half of the land is fallow. 15 acres are cultivated, totaling 30 bushels of seed grain.

Pay 15% tax to the lord, 18 bushels. Pay 10% tithe to the church, 12 bushels. A total of 30 bushels.

Regarding food and drink, assuming each person eats 600 grams of grain （staple food, excluding other grains） per day, the annual consumption is equivalent to 40 bushels.

Subtracting the above three major expenses, 20 bushels remain. In addition, farmers also need to purchase farming tools, livestock cubs, salt, clothing, socks, and other daily necessities. The amount of grain that can be stored in the granary is very small.

As time went on, the Three-Field System gradually replaced the original Two-Field System.

The Three-Field System divides the land equally into three parts: one for winter wheat, another for spring crops such as oats and peas, and the last left fallow.

In terms of land utilization rate, the Two-Field System only uses half of the land, while the Three-Field System uses two-thirds. Moreover, legumes have nitrogen fixation effects, which can increase soil fertility and improve crop output.

“Increased yield will also increase taxes. Promote it on a small scale for a year. If the effect is good, then promote it to the whole territory.”

After much persuasion, Vig convinced ten Viking peasants to implement the Three-Field System, promising to compensate them for their losses if the yield was less than that of the original Two-Field System.

Soon, September arrived. Amidst the whispers of others, ten Viking peasants divided their land into three parts, sowing only ten acres of winter wheat, leaving the remaining twenty acres fallow awaiting cultivation next year.

After sowing, peasants from various places came to wash woolen cloth. Practice proved that the efficiency and quality of the water-powered laundry were far superior to manual washing. Users were willing to pay a 5% fee. Looking at the water wheel turning day and night, Vig sighed with emotion. Unexpectedly, he also had a day when he could make money while sitting down.

This morning, the bored Vig sat in front of the water mill, basking in the sun. The girl who sold books last time found him and asked to borrow the water-powered laundry.

“No problem, Elf. Give the textiles to the workers inside. Remember to pay the fee afterwards.”

“Sir, my name is Herigifu.”

Taking a piece of woolen cloth from her horse, the girl curiously entered the workshop. The worker gestured for her to put the woolen cloth into the washing tub. Under the scouring of the river water, the water wheel drove two wooden hammers, alternately hammering the woolen cloth in the washing tub.

“Incredible,” Herigifu exclaimed softly. In the past, washing a piece of woolen cloth required the labor of her parents and herself, time-consuming and laborious. Now, this laundry only relies on the river’s current to drive the machinery, and its efficiency far surpasses manual labor.

At this time, Vig’s voice came from outside, “You can watch, but you can’t build workshops in other places to steal my business.”

“I know.” Herigifu went outside, raised her fair hand to shield her eyes from the sun, “Our family is in financial difficulty, and we can only honestly farm and raise sheep for the foreseeable future. We don’t have the money to build a workshop.”

“Is that so? For me back then, farming and raising sheep was a rare blessing.” Mentioning the past, Vig frankly admitted that thieves were everywhere in Northern Europe, and his home village had been robbed ten times a year, by both lone thieves and gangs of raiders.

“In the past two years, the winter climate in Northern Europe has been harsh, and the villagers really couldn’t survive. They abandoned their family estates and came to Britain to seek refuge with me. Compared to Northern Europe, the climate here is relatively mild, and crop yields are 20-30% higher. It’s barely second-rate, but it’s still not as good as the black land along the Dnieper River.”

“Did you pass the Dnieper River, Sir? Are you planning to go to Constantinople for trade?”

Vig was surprised by Herigifu’s question. “You actually know this trade route? That’s rare.”

Mentioning Constantinople, he recalled his royal duel. He noticed a hint of doubt in her eyes. Casually drawing his sword, “Look, this is the best weapon in Europe. Ivar’s ‘Heartbreaker,’ although also Damascus steel, is ultimately inferior to my ‘Dragon’s Breath.'”

During the warfare, Eric, Leonard, and other nobles repeatedly proposed purchasing the Dragon’s Breath sword. The highest price reached twenty pounds of silver. Some even intended to win it through a duel.

To prevent this trouble, Vig consecutively killed three duel opponents. After that, Ivar also made a harsh statement: even if someone won the sword through a duel, he would use the same method to take it back, barely stopping everyone’s covetousness.

“A good story, just a little bloody. Goodbye, Lord Vig.”

After listening, Herigifu smiled at the well-traveled lord, curtsied slightly, holding her skirt in both hands, and then walked away carrying the cleaned woolen cloth.