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COMPEJVDlljM

OE

AGRICULTURE,

OR THE

;li:im^i <©W1B^5»

IN THE MOST ESSENTIAL PARTS OF

HUSBANDRY AND GARDENING 5

COMPILED FROM THE BEST AJIERICAN AND EUROPEAN PUBLI-

CW.TIONS, AND THE UNWRITTEN OPINIONS OF

EXPERIENCED CULTIVATORS.

Hate not laborious work, neither husbandry, -which the Most
High hath ordained. Son of Sirach.

Cultivators of the earth are the most virtuous and independent
citizens. Jefferson.

By WILLIAM DROWN,

WITH THE AID AND IJVSPECTIOJV SP

SOLOMON DROWN, M. D.

PROVIDENCE :

PRINTED BY FIELD & MAXCY.
1824.

Rhode-Island District^ 8,^.

Be if remembered^ That on this thirtieth day of
^ December in the Year of our Lord One Thousand
1^ Eight Hundred and Twenty Three, and in the forty
^eighth year of the Independence of the United States
^ of America, Willisun Drown, of said District, deposit-
ed in this office the title of a Book, the right whereof he
claims as proprietor, in the following words, to wit : " Compend-
him of Agriculture, or the Farmer's Guide, in the most essential
parts of Husbandry and Gardening ; compiled from the best Amer-
ican and European publications, and the unwritten opinions of ex-
perienced cultivators. ' Hale not laborious work, neither husb-
andry, which the Most High hath ordained.' — Son, of Sirach. —
' Cultivators of the earth are the most virtuous and independent
citizens.' — Jefferson. By William Drown, with the aid and in-
spection of Solomon Drown, M. D."

In conformity to an act of Congress of the United State, entitled
" an act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the
copies of maps, charts and books to the authors and proprietors of
such copies during the time therein mentioned ;" and also to an
act, entitled *■' an act for the encouragement of learning, by se-
curing the copies of maps, charts and books to the authors and
proprietors of such copies, during the time therein mentioned, and
extending the benefit thereof to the art of designing, engraving and
etching historical and other prints."

Witness, BENJAMIN COWELL,

Clerk of ifit Rhode-Island District,,

UEC Om^^lEJS'B ATIOK .

The subscribers having been appointed by the
Rhode-Island Society for the Encouragement of Domestic
Industry, to examine Doctor and Mr. William Drown's
COMPENDIUM OF AGRICULTURE, feel great pleas-
ure in stating that they are satisfied with the work, and
de, therefore, in behalf of said Societ}'' recommend it to
their fellow-citizens, as a production highly creditable
to the Authors, and likely to be very useful to the Ag-
ricultural interest of the country.

TRISTAM BURGES,
J. B. FRANCIS
SAMUEL KING,
M. B. IVES,
S. H. SMITH,
W. E. RICHMOND,

)■ Committee.

'ih

■—I

l*\TR0D\]CT10?f.

s,

^)ME Apology may seem necessary for publishing
a new work on Agriculture ; a subject which has been
-so ably handled both in Europe and in this country. —
Let the following suffice as all we have time to offer on
this head. — That as knowledge is naturally advantageous,
and as every man ought to be in the way of information,
even a superfluity of books is not without its use, since
hereby they are brought to obtrude themselves on us,
and engage us unawares. This advantage, an ancient
father observes, we owe to the multiplicity of books on
the same subject, that one falls in the way of one man,
and another best suit« the apprehension of another. —
" Every thing that is written," says he, " does not come
into the hands of all persons : .perhaps some may meet
with my books, who may hear nothing of others which
ha^ e treated better of the same subject. It is of service,
therefore, that the same questions be handled by several
persons, and after different methods, though all on Ihe
same principles, that the explications of difficulties, and
arguments for the truth, may come to the knowledge of
ever}^ en?, by one way or other." Add to this that our
work proibsses little more than to abridge, compress.

"Vl. INTRODUCTION.

and reduce to handy size, the voluminous productions
on this important subject; so that it will require neither
much expense to purchase, nor time to read.

The present is a peculiarly interesting era in the
agricultural history of our country. The prejudices
which have so much, and so long existed against the
introduction of improvements are rapidly disappearing,
and giving place to general inquiry and the adoption of
the most approved modes of cultivation.

Agriculture has within a few years undergone a ma-
terial change, not only by the progress made in^ the
knowledge of the art itself, but also by the introduction
of many new implements of husbandry, calculated to
facilitate the operations necessary in the cultivation of
the soil. This change is evidently owing to the spirited
exertions and publications of individuals, as well as to
the mass of useful and experimental knowledge, which
Agricultural Societies have, with a laudable zeal and at-
tention, given to the public. With the view of more
generally diffusing this desirable knowledge, the editors
have been encouraged to attempt the following publi-
cation, in which they will endeavour to be as concise as
may be consistent with a proper elucidation of the im-
portant matters treated. From attentive observation we
are satisfied there is a great deficiency of American pub-
lications on this subject. European works on Agricul-
ture, are perhaps more common in this country ; but
they are not perfectly adapted to a region so different-
ly circumstanced. " Though English writers may be
perused by the judicious to great advantage, yet local
circumstances so widely differ in the two countries, it
would be unadvisable, and periiaps ruinous, for our
farmers to adopt the methods of culture in gross, which
they recommend to their countrymen." In compiling
this Compendium, therefore, we shall have recourse iiwt

INTRODUCTION. Vll.

6Aly to American, but also to the best European publi-
cations, lest any useful suggestions, or modern improve-
ments in the art, should escape notice ; still keeping in
view the difference of climate, seasons, kc.

Upon a careful perusal and comparison of the works
in our possession, we have found much difference of
opinion with respect to many important operations in
farming. In these cases we shall aim to select the
practices most consistent with common sense.

Who will venture to assert that we have arrived at
absolute perfection in all the complicated operations of
this noble art? If not, why are there so many obsti-
nately wedded to their present practice, and so hostile
or indifferent to all innovation ? The farmer who is
prejudiced in favour of the practices of his forefathers,
fiiay conclude he can do well enough without such aid
as this work offers ; yet let him reflect that a life-tim«
is requisite to determine many things by mere expe-
rience in the business ; and that by adopting the rules
here laid down, much time may be saved and great waste
prevented, because here will be summed up the expe-
rience of practical farmers for many ages.

The great Agriculturist, Arthur Young &ays, " No one
of common sense can deny the vast advantage of judi-
cious collections. I know not for instance of a more use-
ful work than a collection of all the truly valuable in
every book of husbandry ; that the benefit of reading
might be reduced to the labour of a few months, instead
of twice as many years."

Agriculture has been justly termed the most essential
of all arts. In every region of the habitable globe,
where the least appearance of civilization exists, it ne-
cessarily occupies a great portion of the human race ;
and many learned men have made it their chief study
and employment, justly deeming it the original and gen-

Tin. , jii^TRODrctiorT';

uine source of the strength, riches, and prosperfty of \s
nation ; because to it we are indebted for food, clothing*,
the most necessary accommodations, and the materials
of all the arts and comforts of life.

Agriculture corresponds to that degree of exercise,-
says Lord Karnes, which is the best preservative of
health. It requires no hurtful fatigue, on the one hand,
nor indulges, on the other, indolence, still more hurtful.
But what I chiefly insist on is, that laying aside irregu-
lar appetites and ambitious views, agriculture is of all oc-
cupations the most consonant to our nature, and the most
productive of contentment, the sweetest sort of happi-
ness. It is of all employments the best calculated to
raise our contemplations to the all-wise ruler of the uni-
Terse, and to teach us our dependence on him, from day
to day, from whose liberal munificence we derive all
our enjoyments.

Agriculture is undoubtedly a healthy employment. —
Among the pro-requisites to good health and longevity,
may be numbered a suitable degree of exercise of body
and mind, a steady and equal progress through life,
never allowing our passions to triumph over our reason ;
temperance in eating and drmking, cleanliness, timely
and regular sleep, and pure air. The farmers dissolu-
tion is often occasioned by taking a severe cold, most
commonly through great imprudence. la many instan-
ces from standing still or sitting down after violent ex-
ercise without putting on his clothes, or by an immode-
rate use of cold drink when very warm. If they would
learn more prudence in these respects, and abstain from.
the use of spirituous liquors and other hurtful practices,^
the cultivators of the ground would seldom require the
aid of physicians or apothecaries.

" There may be some who, for want ofdue reflection
or competent knowledge of the history of AgriGulture^

INTRODVCTIOl^i- ITSi*

may consider it as a heaven-taught art; as one for
wliich no talent is required, and no knowledge beyond
the meanest practical education requisite. To such per-
sons we would remark, that although it has been the
oldest of all the arts, and therefore it is more difficult
to trace its history than that of any other, yet if we ex-
amine the implements of Agriculture, and the various
modes of cultivation, we shall be convinced that it owes
as much to genius and invention, and a spirit of improve-
ment, as any other."

'' In a philosophic view,. Agriculture is great and ex-
tensive. In a political view, it is important, and per-
haps the only firm and stable foundation of greatness. —
As a profession, it strengthens the mind, without ener-
vating the body. In morals, it tends to increase virtue,
without introducing vice. In religion, it naturally in-
spires piety, devotion, and a dependence on providence,
without a tincture of infidelity. It is a rational and
agreeable amusement to the man of leisure, and abound-
less source of contemplation and activity to the indust-
trious."

Should the present work, the result of considerable
study and careful observation, contribute to the promo-
tion of that art, which is the basis of all the others, the
editors will be highly gratified. They feel unwilling to
close this introductory part without briefly contrasting
the happy state of American farmers, with the deplora-
ble condition of very many cultivators in Europe.

France, the fairest portion of Europe ; renowned for
its fertility of soil, and the miid temperature of its sea-
sons : France, the country of La Fayette, was cultivat-
ed till lately by a wretched peasantry, who were but one
remove from the oppressed Serfs (slaves) of the semi-
barbarian nobles of the north.* Such was the state of
that peasantry, that the amiable Saint Pierre.querulous-

2*

X. INTRODUCTION^

ly asked, What it availed them to hare raised wheatj
affr»rJing the finest flour, if they must live on bran^^-
Thrice and four times happy American cultivators ;—-
yes, too happy, did you but know your happiness !— *
Lords of the soil you cultivate, and sharing in all the lux-
uries of nature. Be assured, there is no occupation pur-
sued on this globe, superior to yours. ^Venerate, then,
the plough, the hoe, the sickle, and all the implements
of husbandry : And, should the soil prove hard, yet joxt
may say ;

" Tho^ rucle, thon art still dear to me.
Land of my fathers i Tkou art free !^
And bless the bard that strikes to thee
The eiinobling harp of liberty .'*'
* The condition of the boors is, in general depIora~
bly wretched. The only property which their lords al-
low them to possess, is the food whish they themselves
cannot, or will not eat, the bark of trees, chaff and oth-
er refuse ; grass, water,, and fish oil. If by any means
they acquire any portion of wealthy it becomes a very
dangerous possession, and when discovered, is invariably
seized by their tyrannical lords. — " It is thus," says Dr.
Clarke, " we behold the subjects of a vast empire strip-
ped of all they possess, existing in the most abject ser-
vitude ; victims of tyranny and torture, of sorrow and
poverty, of sickness and famine." Traversing the pro-
vinces of Muscovy," he continue?, " the land appears as
the garden of Eden, a fine soil, covered with corn, and
apparen.ly smiling in plenty. Enter the cottage of the
poor labourer, surrounded by all these riches, and yon
find him dying of hunger, or pining from bad food, ancl
in want of the common necessaries of life. Extensive
pastures, covered with cattle, afford no milk to him.—
>n autumn, the harvest-field yields no bread for his
thiidren. The lord claims all the produce. Can there

INTRODUCTIONS

&.

be a more affecting sight than a Russian family, having^
got in an abundant harvest, in want of the common
stores to supply and support them, through the rigoum
of their long and inclement winter J"

IMPORTANCE OF MAKING EXPtRIMEN^ t^

AGRICULTURE,

" The task of making improvement on the earthy is much
more delightful to an undebauched mind^ than all the vain
glory which can be acquired from ravaging it by the mosi
uninterrupted career of con^^esi,''— ^Washington.-

AT this period, when the prejudices which have long
existed unfavorable to the improvement of Agriculturev
have been In a considerable degree scattered, by the
beams of truth and science, little need be said perhaps
npon the importance of instituting various experiments
for the further advancement of the art. Men are not
habitually thoughtful and reflecting ; but find it much
easier to receive the creeds of those who have gone be-
fore them as orthodox, than to examine for them-
selves and discover whether those doctrines are
in consistency with the dictates of reason and sound"
policy. So it is in Agriculture — the mode adopt-
ed by the father is almost invariably pursued by
the son ; and the clearest dictates of reason are far less
persuasive than the example of ancestors — like the ma»
who in carrying hisgrain upon the horse, would ballance
it on the one side with a stone, because his father and
his grndfather had done so before him ; whenever the
glimmerings of reason, if once pernii4.ted to dawn upor^

t4 EXPElilMENTS IN

his mind, would have taught him the folly and incon-'
venience of the custom, So it is that our farmers have
been inclined to pursue the same beaten track, not dar-
ing to var}^ from the established mode, which for a long
time presented an effectual barrier to eveiy species of
improvement.

But happily this charm is now broken ; arid Agriculture'
is considered susceptible of improvement, like philosophy,-
from experiment. Much talent, learning and science are
devoted to its cause ; the happy effects of which begin
to appear in many parts of our country ; yet it is to be
lamented that so few experiments have been made, (Cal-
culated to establish useful and permanent systems of
husbandry, suited to our peculiar climate and soil.

The true source of agricultural knowledge, is to be
found in repeated experiments. These are to be made
by ourselves or neighbors, and verbally communicated ;
or by persons at greater distances, and chiefly commu^
nicated by books.

By our own experiments we receive instruction from
the hands of nature herself — by books we receive it
from other men ; the one is more certain and applica-
ble to our own affairs, the other more varied, and cop-
ious and from the principles of science unfolded, enlight-
ening. Neither of them ought to be neglected.—^
The examination of books' ; and a free interchange of
ideas on agricultural improvements, will enable us to
avail ourselves of the knowledge to be derived from
our experiments. Information thus acquired is always
applicable to our own business, it is engraven on our
minds, and it can never mislead ! its very acquisition is
an amusement, and its communication a rational pleas-
ure. For far superior to that mean jealousy which lit-
tle miiids are apt to entertain on their disGoveriesj the,

AGRICVLTURS. 1 5

jjublic spiri+ed individual nobly calls forth every assist-
ant, and invites his countrymen to become his rivals in
promoting' the general welfare of mankind. But before
experiments can be useful, they must be made with
fikiil and reported with fidelity, stating the mode pursu-
ed, and the difficulties encountered.

It has been objected to those who advocate the
■ca^-se of improved tarming, that they are too much at-
tached to theory, and too little acquaiatod with prac-
tice ; and it has often been deemed sufficient to ccndem.n
any thing ©ut of the common course to recommend it as
described in a printed book. Some of our farmers be-
-lieve, that in adopting new inventions, we insult the
memory of those who have gone before us, who, ac-
cording to their way of reasoning, have transmitted to
us all that is necessary to be known in cultivating lands !
Others agree that the late discoveries are useful to par-
ticular countries, but altogether repugnant to the na-
ture of our soil ! There are others, who allow all
these improvements to have advantages in particular re-
spects ; but assert, that their superiority over the vul-
-gar course of husbandry is so doubtful, tiiey must, at
least, be considered of small utility ! Prejudices of this
kind are however passing away. He who endeavours
to add to the fund of useful knowledge deserves cur
thanks, however circumscribed his researches may be.

We admit that there are many theories, the result
of experiments, the adoption of which cannot be reconi-
mended generally ; yet the experiments of enthusiasts,
or mere theorists, are often ibund valuable, or serve as
friendly beacons tp warn us of our danger. That which
is certainly most desirable however, is an union of the-
ory and practice.

It is the practical farmer that we would now invite
^more particularly to come forward ; we are desirous of

1^ IXPERTKEirrS IN

seeing him engaged in those experiments on which im-
|)ortant consequences depend. General reasoning and
remarks may be of some use in many points, that ex-
periments do not reach ; but in general all the reason-
ing upon earth, without them, would be of no avail ; —
and they, in a certain variety, are sufficient to give the
force of ahsolule fact to every noint.

It is the business of the enlightened men who prac-
.tice agriculture, and of authors who practice and write
on it, to help forward the age; to try experiments oq
things newly introduced, and if they are found good, to
spread the knowledge of them as much as possible ; to
endeavour to arouse the attention of the vast body of
farmers. To omit this either in practice or in wriiing,
Is to reduce them.selves to the level of those whom they
ought to instruct ; and to submit to that ignorance anl
backwardness, which cloud a country in an enlightened
nge, with the darkness of a preceding centurj^ It is
Ihe business of superior minds, in every branch of phi-
losophy', to start beyond the age, and shine forth to dis-
sipate ihe night that involves them.

Let not those enterprising enquirers who aspire at
excellence, be deterred by the ridicule that not unfre-
quently accompanies them in their attempts, or, intimi-
dated by the apprehensions of ruin. Let them only be
careful that their experiments be made after due con-
sideration, and commensurate with their means, and
there is httle danger, but that pleasure, and in most in-
stances, profit, will follow their undertakings. New
practices in husbandry are often attempted by persons
not bred to that occupation, and these for want of prac-
tical skill, may often full in the execution ; and whea
successful, the success is ascribed to a liberal expendi-
ture of money, beyond the ability of the mere farmer,
jjut what risk v/ill attend experiments made by farmers

AGRICULTURE. 1 1

tliemseiveg, t-o test the value of these novelties ? Each
one for himself can try them, on as small a scale as
xnay suit his convenience, before he enters more large-
ly into any article of cultivation, and at a very small
expence of time and money. A small field, of a soil
similar to that of his farm in general, appropriated to ex-
periments would be the most proper. The introduc-
tion of improvements would be facilitated, if the money
expended, and the quantity of labour bestowed upon
them were always accurately stated, in all communica-
tions made to- the public.

There is no way of making improvements in farming,
but by experiments. If the farmer is informed of, or
has conceived, a different a,nd better method of culture,
or management, in any branch of his farming, he is to
test the goodness of that method by experiments ; and,
if these prove successful, he may congratulate himself,
on having performed an act which is serviceable to his
country and honorable to himself.

Having urged the utility and even necessity of accu-
rate experiments, w'e will enumerate a few of the more
important objects, on which those experiments ought to
be tried.

The proper selection of seeds is of vast importance.
Experiments should be made to ascertain what kinds are
the best of all the grains, grasses, fcc.and how far they
are susceptible of improvement. Next what quantities
of these ought to be sown or planted on an acre, and,
in what manner, whether in drills, in hills, or broad
cast. Careful experiments should be made on the all
important article of manure. We ought, without loss
of time, to ascertain how far lime, plaister, and ashes
may be used to advantage ; and in what manner the
good manure may be best increased and applied ; how
many crops will each sort benefit, &;c. The best sea-
3

18 EXPERIMENTS &C.

son for plougbin^ and sowing-rwhat depths and what
number of ploughings — what mode, whether level or
ridge, the most advisable mode of tilling the ground, so
as best to ensure the three great objects of tillage,
which are the production of useful grains, roots, and
grasses. Experiments should be made to ascertain wiiat
kind of s il is best adopted to each particular sort of graiQ
&c ; whether any, and what new grains, roots or grasses
might be advantageously introduced; the inost ethcient
mode of destroying or guarding against the ravages of
noxious insects ; the stocking farms with the most ap-
proved breeds of domestic animals ; the cure and preven-
tion of the diseases to which they are subject; the kind
of food most proper for them, and the best mode of pre-
paring it, &.O.

These suggestions might be multiplied to almost any
extent, but the few here mentioned are sufficient to
show that experimeatci agriculture is yet on a wavering
-^•'^^:l"^, and considerable time will be required to estab-
lish by experiment, some important points in the science.

The entertainment which m.ay be received, from an
enquiry into ail the powers and operations of nature
wherein husbandry is conceived, is one of the most noble
that can be proposed to the mind of man. The subject
is so vast it can never be exhausted; could he Uve.and
spend ages in agriculture, he might still go on in his re-
searches, and still make fresh discoveries that would
excite afresh his admiration of the wonderful works of
God.

Necessity of consulting boors.

It is a saying sanctioned by the authority of Bacon,
that " knowledge is power." Of all the various sorts
of power enumerated by that great philosopher says
Sinclair, this seems by far the most important. What
g^ives one man any real superiority over another, but
the knowledge he|possesses ? What enables some indi-
viduals to produce abundant harvests, — to carry on a
prosperous commerce, — to establish successful manufac-
tures,— to excel in mechanism, or any other useful art,
but the acquisition, and judicious apphcation of that
knowledge in which others are deficient ?

That the power and prosperity of a countr}'', depend
6n the diuusion of useful knowledge, can hardly be
questioned ; and there is probably no art, in which a va-
riety of knowledge is of more essential importance, than
in that of agriculture. The extent of information ne-
cessary to bring it to any thing like perfection, is far
greater than is generally supposed. To preserve the
fertility of the soil — to free it from superfluous mois-
ture— to cultivate it to the greatest advantage — to raise
its productions at the least expence — to procure the
best instruments of husbandry — to select the stock like-
ly to be the most profitable— ^to feed them in the most
judicious manner— ;to secure the harvest, even in the
most unpropitious seasons — to separate the grain from the
straw with economy and success — and to perform all the
other operations of agriculture in the most judicious
mode, require a greater extent, and variety of knowl-
edge, than might at first view, be judged requisite.

It is not many years, since chemistry was brought to
the aid of Agriculture, and this will eventually prove
one of its principal pillars. Systematic rotations of crops

20 NECESSITY OF CONSULTING BOOKS.

- — improvements in breeding cattle — the use of plaister
of Paris — soiling of cattle — the extensive field culture of
roots, for the purpose of feeding stock — artificial grasses,
&c. are of modern date, and have brought about great
revolutions in the theory and practice of farming. The
practical farmer, especially in the older and more pop-
ulous parts of the country, must understand, and in some
degree practice these improvements, or he will not only
neglect to make the most of his means, but probably
make so many backward and down-hill movements in
the journey of life, that ten chances to one, old age
will find him in the vale of poverty. The cultivator
who does not keep pace with his neighbours, as regards
agricultural improvement and information, will soon find
himself the poorer, in consequence of the prosperity that
surrounds him. He will be like a stinted oak in the for-
est, which is deprived of light and air by his more tow-
ering neighbours.

There are farmers who feel unwilling to consult agri-
cultural books of any description for information, be-
cause disappointment has attended some attempt they
have made to follow the directions contained in them.
Let such men recollect that the editors of periodical
and other publications, do not consider themselves res-
ponsible for the correctness of the statements, or
the soundness of the theories of the various writers,
whose essays they publish. Their rule is to admit ev-
ery essay, which appears to contain any new hint. It
is impossible for them to judge of the correctness in
point of/acf, of any statement, made by a correspond-
ent. They believe that a free and unreserved commu-
nication of all experiments, whether the conclusion drawn
from them are erronious, or not, is of use. The cautious
farmer, if he is struck with their novelty, may try them
for himself. If they are found to fail, he will not re-

NECESSITY OP CONSULTING BOOKS, 21

peat the experiment, l)uthe will be very careful to in-
quire whether he has faithfully followed the instruc-
tions of the author. Whether his soil was the same as
that in which the first experiment was made, and wheth-
er he has taken the same pains to produce the proposed
result.

We believe that thirty years since, it would have been,
believed impossible to raise the great crops of corn and
roots which: within a few 3 ei^.rs, individuals in all parts
of our country have ::aoCeeded in raising-. Hov/ has
this been effected but by circulating accounts of individ-
ual success ?

It is well known that there is scarcely any part of
the country in which there may not be found persons
engaged in agricultural pursuits, anxious of improve-
ment, and capable of every rational inquiry. At the
same time it musl bs admitted,. that there are too many
still labouring under the most obstina-te prejudice against
what they call hook-farmings conceiving that they know
as much of farming as is necessary, an opmion pregnant
with much self-sufficiency,, and exposing those who en-
tertain it to the greatest possible disadvantage.

Oui farmers have not advanced in. any degree in pro-
portioii, either to their natural intellig^ence, or the pro-
gress of the arts in other countries. They pay but lit-
tle attention to the rotation of crops ; their orcheirds are
as neglected aff their woodlands ; and after you get at
a distance'from considerable towns , horticulture is scarce-
ly known. New-England proba'oly can furnish bread
stuff for the whole of the United Siates, and is depend-
ent on the southern states for flour I

Every farmer, who has natural understanding, ought
to be a well informed man, in reading and thinking, in
theory and practrce. But some flirmerr? tr^ll us that they
never knew any good result from what they called

3*

^2 NECESSITY OF CONSULTING BOOKS.

hook-farming. That gentlemen farmers .^ who know noth*
ing about farming but what they get out of the libra-
ries, spend a great deal, but never make any profit by
their agricultural projects, and schemes of domestio
economy. It is, however, obvious to every person ca-
pable of reflection, that written documents must neces-
sarily surpass in every respect those of the most reten-
tive memor}^, the experience of no simple individual
being capable of comprising all that is or ought to be
known.

That knowledge, which gives man his supremacy o-
Tcr the beasts of the field, and the fowls of the air, and
which bestows on individuals among mankind a pre-em-
inence much more substantial and less invidious than
birth, wealth, title, or popular applause, can be acquired
only by three modes, viz : observation^ conversation and
■yeadincr. Observation and conversation are very impor-
lant inlets to ideas, and reading furnishes perhaps, as
great a quantity of useful materials for the mind to op-
orate upon as either of them. Book.hiozi:leclge then is
'power^ and other things being equal, the farmer who
obtains information from books, or other printed works,
and has strength of mind, and good sense sufficient to
make a proper use of it, has the advantage over his
iinlettered neighbour, who despises book-f\irming. Be-
5-ldes what is this book-knowledge, which some honest
cultivators think is so much to be dreaded ? It is noth-
ing more than the result of observation, or experience,
Vv'hich after having passed through the channel of con-
versation, is at length reduced to writing, sent to the
press, and the moment it is printed, becomes, accord-
ins: to ^^lifi objectors to whom we allude, hook fanning ;
imd therefore is to be considered as something very ru-
inous to the practical husbandman ! Thus, we will sup-
pose that A has found out a safe and easy cure for the

9IZEJ OF FARMS, , SB"-

T)otts in horses, or a method by which he can raisfc
double the usual quantity of Indian corn on an acre ; A
communicates his discovery or improvement to B, his
neighbour, who, although he has a great aversion to
book-farming, makes use of and derives great advantages
from it on the strength of A's oral testimony. But A
isendsan account of his discoveries and processes to the
printer, audit is published in some periodical paper, and
perhaps finds its way into some volume written on agri-
cultural subjects. The whole thus becomes book-far-
ming, and not worthy the attention of real, genuine,
practical farniers.

But these absurdities are fast yielding to reason and
the lights of science. The time has arrived in Europe,
and is fast approaching in America, in which books and
the information which they contain, will be considered
as necessary to make a man a complete farmer, as -a
complete physician, lawyer, or divine.

SIZE OF PARMS.

The size of farms is a subject on which much has
been written, and respecting which a great diversity of
opinion prevails. It is impossible to lay down any pre-
cise or universal standard, as so much depends upon the
nature and situation of the country ; the character, skill,
and capital of the farmer ; and a variety of local cir*
cumstances.

It is well observed in the Massachusetts Agricultural
Repository, that on this topic, perhaps the people of no
country are so little practically instructed as ours. Tliis
arises from the condition in which the agricultural in-
tere-st has been placed from the time of tha first settle-

24 SIZE OF FARMSv

ment ofoiir country. Our ancestors found a wnfTcrnegf
unoccupied except by sarages. Those who fixed them-
seWes in the country, when lands were cheap, naturally
estimated their riches by the number,, rather than by
the prodi^ctive power of their acras^ Two, three, or
four hundred acres were' thought, at first, to be suitable
for a farm. Afterwards, when population- became in-
creased and lands divided, the idea-^ of farmers settled
dov/n to the opinion, that from 80 to 1 50 acres, was
sufficient for the independent support of a family. Up-
on less than 80 acres, though a mati might find ways
and means to live, yet it was thought he could not ex-
pect greatly to thrive. Accordingly tiie fii-st effect of
thriving among men of that size of farms, was generally
evidenced by the purchase of more land. Often these pur-
chases were made at the risk of embarrassment by debt
and almost always to the real injury of such farmers,
whose surplus capital, or even their borrowed capital,
would bavebeen generally much better employed, in
improving the lands they possessed, rather than in the
purchase of more acres-

With respect to men possessing only 30 or 40 acres,
they scarcely ventured to call their possessions by the
name of afarm^ so little is such an extent of land in gen-
eral estimation, entitled to the use of that term. If
they attempted to live and bring up aiamily upon them,
they for the most part looked to other employment for
their support. Turning mechanics, or hireing them-
selves out at the most valuable season of the year, to
their richer neighbour*^ or abandoning their own farm
to tenants, and taking leases of farms, comprehending
a greater extent oflaad, and so much better calculated
to give that ful'; cmplayment to their activity, which to.
their mistaken apprehension, a farm of 30 or 40 acres
did not auord. Until of late years, opinions and con-

SIZE OF FARMS;- 23

liiicl of this kind were almost universal. Even at this
day we know men, active, intelligent and industrious,
possessed of this extent of land, who are labouring for
others, or taking charge of their neighbours concerns,
upon the avowed reason, that they cannot support their
families upon 30 or 40 acres ! Yet their lands are good.
The owners are industrious, intelligent, possessed of a
strong desire of living independent. But they do not
realize the actual efficiency of the soil, undoubtedly
there are many honorable^exceptions to the observation
we are about to make ; as a general truth, it may be
asserted, that the farmers of ^~EV^-ENGLAXD are yet to

LEARN THE IMMENSE PRODUGTIAIE POWER OF A PERFECTLY CUL-
TIVATED ACRE. Instead of seeking riches in augmenting
the number of their acres, let them be sought in better
modes of husbandry. As a general truth, we believe it
may be asserted that every farmer in New-England,
possessed of 100 acres of land, might divide them
fairly, by quantity and quality, into thirds, and by a suit-
able cultivation, make either third more productive than
his whole 100 acres are at present. This is the oper-
ration, at which those interested in the agriculture of
New-England, ought chiefly to aim — to make farmers
realize what cultivation can effect, and to teach the
modes, by which the productive power of the soil can
best be elicited.

It has been said, that the man who makes two ears'
of corn, or two blades of grass grow where but one
grew before, is one of the greatest benefactors to man-
kind ; and that the man who, by good management,
makes one acre produce as much as two did before, has
added another and better acre to his estate. Mr. Mad-
ison illustrates this opinion by quoting one of the Ro-
man writers on husbandry, who enforces the obligation
to improving managementj by the story of one Paritli-

^5 SJZE OF FARMS.

US, who had two daughters and a vineyard. When the
eldest was married, he gave her a third part of the via-'
yard ; notwithstanding which he obtained from two thirds
the same crop as from the whole. When the other
daughter was married, he portioned her with half of
what remained, and still the produce of his vineyard
was undiminished. This story, short as it is, contains a-
volume of instruction !•

The farmer, in every article of his business, should-
consider the event before he lixes upon the means ; and'
always have the end in his eye when he is about to
make a beginning. Every consideration that can have
i-nfluence on a man, calls on him to be cautious in not
buying too much land. The pernicious practice of im-
perfectly cultivating a great deal of land, at much la-
bour, toil and expense, without order, calculation, or'
method ; and finally, without profit ; instead of bestow-
ing a proper degree of labour upon the tillage of a less
quantity, is a very prevalent fault. What makes it the
more to be regretted is, that our most industrious, en-
terprizing, and meritorious farmers must frequently fall
into it.- Instead of confining their labours to a moderate
extent of ground, applying to it all their manure and
physical force, blindly bent upon realizing the greatest
possible profit, they diffuse their culture over so large a
space, as to render it in a great degree ineffactual, and
thus defeat the very object they have in view. The
misthiefs arising from this course are more numerous
than wo can now enumerate. Suffice it to say that the
drudgery and perplexity of farming are thereby greatly
increased ; the time employed in carrying every thing
to and Irom its dixstant parts is much greater ; the crops
are more liable to injury ; the quality, and we believe
we may add (in most cases) the quantity of the produce-

SIZE OF FARMS. ^7

:5s greatly inferior to what it otherwise would be, and
the land is exhausted.

The great andgeiieral anQbitiori offiirm^rs is to occu-
py large fvarms ; the more they possess, the greater con-
sequence chey think themselves of. Distracted with a
confused multiplicity of labour, the augmentation of acres
only serves to increase their perplexity, without increa-
sing their wealth. The fertility of an estate is always
in proportion to the culture bestowed, for if a man doub-
le his number of acres, and em^uoy only the same num-
ber of hands, and the same cjUcUitity of manure, as when
he had half the number, that estate will clear less than
it did before the additional purchase. Thus it is evident
a (firmer may have too much^rpund as well as too much
live stock.

For our conviction, nothmg more is required, than tp
take a survey of an overgrown farm badly managed,
where, on lands which have all advantages of situaiion,
we shall see their crops of hay and corn that will not
produce more than a third part of what iands of the same
quality/ and quantitj^ afford, divided into equal allotments,
amongst the inhabitants of a populous village.

Were farmers to occupy no more ground than they
could cultivate in a masterly manner, there would not be
that general compla,int of scanty crops, or of the land
being worn out ; for there is no land of any sort what-
ever; (which has a sufficient depth of mould for plough-
ing) but what may be rendered fertile by cuitivalion,
and the applicationof proper manures : and in propor-
tion to their different degrees of natural richness, be
managed in such a manner as to produce luxuriant crops:
for the resources of good husbandry are as infinite, as
the fruitfulnes of the earth is inexhaustible, when it is
properly cultivated. By bad conduct good soils often
produce but very scanty crops ; when the blame is totj

S8 StZE OF FARMS,

frequently imputed to their supposed natural poverty;

It may be said, that there are many farmers among
«s, who are poor men, with a farm of from 1 to 2C0 a-
cres. It is common to hear husbandmen complaining of
the burden of pubiic taxes, and that these eat up their
profits, but were the soil of New-England husbanded
with the skill and care, which would entitle our cuUi"
vators to be called good farmers, we should hear no
complaint of taxes in this favoured country.

In conclusion we will observe, that our objections to
large farms are principally occasioned by observing the
inferior managem_ent which they generally receive. But
if farmers in all cases will retain a sufficient part of
their capital to make improvements co-exensive with
their landed estates, the objections are at once remor
yed.

We acknowledge that the farmer should occupy suf-
ficient land to engage his time, not irregularly and occa-
sionally, but fully and completely, by which means his at-
tention is not distracted from this important employment
to others which would interfere with it, and necessari-
ly prevent its correct and profitable management ; and
ihose idle habits, connected with public injury and in-
dividual ruin, are effectually precluded. But whatever
this quantity of land may be thought to be, differing
certainly in relation to different individuals, the impor-
tance of adequately stocking and prepgiriug what is ac-
tually occupied is extreme. To unite the portion of
land necessary to occupy the time of the experienced
farmer, with the complete means of its fertitity and im-
provement, alfords the most auspicious louudation foy
the hope of success.

XJT DIFFERENT KINDS OF SOILS, kt.

The whole surface of the earth is made up of a few
finnple ingredients. With regard to Agriculture our in-
quiries are bounded to tiie soil on whieh we tread, and
to the substratum which supports it. These, in a judi-
cious system of farming, are objects of great importance.
The obstacles, which baffle the hopes of improvement,
are just as likely to lie in the subsoil, which is beyond
the reach of the ploughshare, as in the upper surface ; be-
cause when the former is close or extremely retentive of
Dioisture, the expense and hazard of cultiva'iing the sur-
face is considerably increased, whilst the growth of
plants cultivated upon it is much abridged and impeded,
particularly in adverse seasons ; and for this reason,
neither of them ought to be disregarded, A coat j of stiff
clay has been rendered productive, by the mere circum-
stance of resting on a bed of sand, or a rock of lime-
stone.; and, therefore, every cultivator, who wishes to
pursue a course of good management, shouUl go over
all his tieids, by digging pits in various places of at least
eighteen inches down, that he may know the materials
on which he is to operate. He can then lay his plan
with greater certainty of success, and, what often hap-
pens, the subsoil may furnish him with the means by
which to ameUorate the surface.

The earth which generally presents itself first to the
eye, is no particular kind of soil, but, usually a mixture
of the soil underneath, with every adventitious substance,
either purposely brought to, or accidentally lodged up-
on it, causing it in many places to increase yearly in
depth. It has pleased the creator of the earth, to leave
it in some places more barren, in others naturally im-
proved. We are to uee our understanding in observing
what is the kind of that natural improvement; and our
industry in imitating the processes of nnture.

A farmer, should be well actpjainted with the soil he
has to cultivate, previous to the application of manure^
'Or a selection of crops: because what would be good

o9 SOl-LS.

linsuandry on one soil, would be inexcusably bad oa a
different one. By availing liiniself ofthe qualities it pos-
sesses, or by removing its delects, his prolits are much
increased. Indeed such is the importance of the soil,
and the necessity of" adapting his system to its peculiar
properties, that no general system of cultivation can be
laid down, unless, all the circumstances regarding it be
well known.

Perhaps all the simple soils of importance that are
found on or near the surface ofthe earth in this country
may consist of, clay, loam, gravel, and saiul. There is
not one of these earths, in its unmixed state, that is so
iriendly to the growth of plants, as when mixed with
some other sorts; and it is happy for us that nature in
most places has blended them. Thus we have sandy-,
ioam, gravelly-loam^ sandy-clay, gravelly-clay, Uq.

CLAYEY SOIL.

A clay soil, though distinguished by the colour which
jt bears, namely black, white, j^ellow, and red, differs
i'rom all other soils, being tough, wet, and cold, and
consequently requiring a good deal of labour from
the husbandman before it can be sufficiently pulverized,
Ol placed in a tit state for bearing artificial crops of
grain or grass. Clay soil is known b}' these properties:
it holds water like a dish: it feels smooth and somewhat
unctions : when once wetted it does not soon dry. In
like manner, when thoroughly dry, it is not soon wetted
— if we except the varieties which have a thin surface,
and are the worst of all to manage. In a dry summer,
clay cracks, and shows a surface full of small chinks. If
ploughed in a wet state, it sticks to the plough like
mortar, and in a dry summer the plough turns it up in
iiTeat clods. Those which are soft, unctions, and easi-
ly improved are valuable; while those which have been
deposited by the sea, or muddy streams, are still more
HO. The quality of a clay soil can generally be deter-
mined from its natural productions.

A clay soil must always be made rich ; if poor, it is
the most ungrateful of all soils. A stiff clay, if in tillage,
demands opening by a mixture of sand and dung. Sand
procured at the beach below high water mark (on ac-
count cf its saltoess,) is best. This should be laid 2

soits. ol

or S inches thick, to break the cohesion of its prirticles.
But marl, marl and dung", hme and ashes, are found to
give such soils the highest degree of fertility. Dnng
will not be sufficient, unless in very great quantities.
Dung and sand is better than dung alone. If these can-
not be had in sufficient quantities, burnt cla}^ gravel cr
light loam, saw du-^t, chips, straw, stubble, SAvamp mud
especially with ashes, bark of trees, rotten wood, or
even pebbles will be useful. When once made rich
they are extremely valuable ; holding the manure re-
markably, A small quantity of horse, sheep, or fowls
dung every year, will prevent them from ever returning
to their natural cold state.

A stiff clay, may be reduced to a loam, by dressing the
surface frequently when under a sv/ard, or covered with
herbage, with plaster, sand, and rich manures, until a
rich sward is obtained ; then turn in the sward for til-
lage, and lay down as soon as pos'^ible, and dress again
as before ; in a few years, the stittest clay may be redu-
eed to a rich clay loam.

It is thought proper once in 6 or 8 years to sum-
mer fallow certain kinds of clay, even when in a clear
state, to prevent the sourness and adhesion from wet
ploughing, which exposure to the sun and winds in sum-
mer may remove. Clay soils should be ploughed in the'
fall. No soil requires more ploughings, which should
be given it when neither too wot nor too dry. Fre-
quent harrowings are also necessary to mix the sandr;
and other materials well with thecla}^ la England it iir?
customary to plough a clay soil four or live times.

If water stands on such land, it should he ploughed in
ridges and water-furrowed. The width of the ridg-
es should depend upon the degree of wetness. Some-
times drains are necessary. The value of clayey soils,
depends upon having an open subsoil. A tough clay re-
tains moisture so much as to rot the seeds and roots of
plants.

Clayey soils, though they are supposed to contain more
of the food of plants than any other, are apt to be bar-
ren in a natural state. When not too wet, and proper-
ly manured, they are well qualified for wheat, oats, bar-
ley, beans, peas, flax, clover, and other artificial grasses
in large quantities. But they must not be fed with hcav>

Oi - SOILS.

cattle, nor fed clo^e by any creature in the s]1rin^. A
clay soil receives but little benefit from the grass, an J
when once suiTered to decline it is difficult to restore it.

Fruit trees in general do n; t flourish well in a clay*
soil. Roots of various kinds will not be so good. The
soil does not suffer the roots to expand in quest of nour-
'ishment.

All clay soils are unpleasant to cultivate with the hoe,
though such a crop will mix the sand sooner and cheap-
er than any other methods ; and those which are culti-
vated solely ivith the plough, require more skill, and
perhaps double the expense that are necef^sary on a
light, sandy sell. But when their natural toughness is
subdued they produce abundantly of such crops as are
suited to them, and by their durability will repay the
kiboui' bestowed.

I.OAMY SOIL.

Loam is a combination of clay and sand, some are de-
nonJnated clayey, from the excess of that matter, oth-
ers open and light, from the preponderance of sand. In
fiicA^ these tvvo original ingredients seem capable of be-
irig ccmpounded in such an infinite variety of ways, as
io give occa-ion to that diversified texture of soils met
with in all countries end situations ; and are contrived
to counteract each other''s qualities, that by their union,
they might furnish the basis of that beautiful and splen-
did creation of (lov/ers and plants, of shrubs and trees,
which decorate the face of nature, an<l charm us by a
sweet assemblage of all that is gay and soft in colouring,
with all that is elegant and attractive in design.

Loams being a medium between ligiit and stiiT soils,
are the most desirable of all others to cultivate. They
uro ploughed with greater facility than clay; they are
peculiarly well adapted for the convertible husbandry;
forthey can be altered, not only without injury, but gen-
erally with benelit, from grass to tillage, and frcm tillage
to grass.

A mellow, rich, crumbling sandy loam, such as will
admit tillage soon afier rain; adhesive enough to fear
no draught, and friable enough to strain off superfluous
moisture, and to admit the librous roots of plants ; if in-
cumbent on a sand subsoil, is the most profitable of all

SOIL*. 33

soils, being* easily managed, and raising every species
of crop the climate will admit of. Such loams as are
of a dark red, bright chesnut, or hazely colour, if dry
and mellow, are almost invariably excellent.

Gravelly loams, when warm, sound, and dry, or free
from springs, are useful soils, more especially in wet
seasons.

Stiff loam, is naturally a poor, cold land. On walking
over it, it is found extremely adhesive in wet weather,
and it requires a long time to dr}^, which retards plough-
ing till late in the spring. It may be considered as for-
ming a medium between the clods of clay and the crum-
bUngs of loam. But if well manured, and perhaps drain-
ed, it will become very productive.

The poorer sorts are of a pale yellow, or whitish
colour, and require abundance of manure to render them
fruitful.

I^oams of every kind, whether wet or dry, are natu-
ral to grass : Some, however, which lie Hat become
mossy, when they have been a few years in pasture or
mowing, and require to be ploughed up; unless the
moss is destroyed by scarifying or harrowing and top
dressings. Gypsum will sometimes destroy moss, when
strewed on a dry loam in the spring.

Loamy lands are generally too cold, and often too
wet, for bearing good crops of Indian corn; unless well
warmed and mellowed, by suitable manurings, &c. The
dry, redish, dark coloured kinds, and those which have
a mixture of gravel or sand are most suita])le for til-
lage.

There are writers who speak of a soil which the}' call
black or garden mould ; but this being a species of artiiicial
soil, into which the others are generally brought by the ef-
fects of manures, the decayed remains of animals and vegi-
tables in the course of cultivation, it is not deemed neces-
sary to speak of it particularly. All good mould be-
comes black by being exposed to the sun and air a year
or two. Sir H. Davy says, a black soil containing much
soft vegitable matter, is most heated by the sun and air;
and the coloured soils exposed under equal circumstan-
ces to sun, acquire a much higher temperature than pale
coloured soils.

4*

3i 90ILg»

GRAVELLY SOIL.

The gravelly soil is that in which gravel forms the lar-''
gest part; and is distinguished according to the nature of
the earthy matter mixed with it; as clayey gravel?,
loamy gravels, or sandy gravels. The goodness of such
soils depends upon the properties of the gravelly ingre-
dients, and the proportion of earthy matter mixed with
them. Those are best which partake largely of slaty
gravel. A coarse sand, and a fine gravel are nearly the
same.

Generally speaking, gravelly soils are hard. They
are more porous than sandy soils, atid may properly be
called hungry soils^ especially when the parts of which
they consist, are hard in substance and rounded in form.
As a gravelly soil is more difficult to mellow than a san-
dy one, the former is the least valuable.

The open porous nature of gravelly soils, disposes
them to admit moisture very readily, as well as to part
with it v;rth equal facility ; which causes them to burn, as
it is termed, in dry seasons, but have the property of
quickly recovering with the least rain. They likewise
have the property of being more early than the more
hea?y sorts of land.

Hard gravels must be improved by deep ploughings to
enable crops to withstand drought ; by the application of
clay, marl, peat, or other earth; by the mud of ponds
or rivers, the dung of cows and swine, sea-weed, stravf
partly rotted, or almost any substance which will retain
moisture for some time; various animal manures in the
form of composts, with loam and ashes ; and by irrigation,
■f the water be full of sediment. The appHcation of
iiuli things in abundance, will meliorate it for a long
time. Such soil will answer for crops that require much
heat, as Indian corn, beans, peas, potatoes, &c. With
the aid of i^ypsum they will produce good crops of clo-
ver, which may be followed by rye.

Sometimes the gravel is so covered with stone, that
hardly any mould can be seen. Land of this description
»s very troublesome to work, destructive to implements,
fcc. but with proper management can be rendered pro-
ductive.

The wet, cold, springy gravel, is a very bad soil ; it
may be improved by draining ; by frequent returns of

SOILS. ^%*

grf^ss crops ; and by repeated applications of manure-.
Some gravels and sands are of so burning a nature, that
unless the season is wet they will produce but little.

But as the soils which may be denominated gravelly,
are some more, and some less, so ; some very hard and
dry, some mellower, and not so much affected by
drought: we will not pretend to designate particularly
the most profitable uses of soils of this kind, as much
must depend on their particular character, and as those
of the better kind may often be found very good for
most kinds of culture,

SANDY SOIL.

A sandy soil is that in which sand predominates, but
which contains a sufiiciency of other earthy matter, to
make it more or less retentive of moisture, and thus be-
comes endued with various degrees of feitliity. Wher-
ever unmixed with other ingredients, it is of little or
no value. Very light sandy soils neither ailord sufh-
cient stabilit}' to plants, nor retain moisture enough to
convey to them their necessary food.

Where a sandy soil is underlaid, and at no great depth,
with what is usually called a har-d pan^ it adds greatly to
the retentiveness of the soil, and of course to its fer-
tility.

Sandy soils are usually of a yellowish, or redish cast.
Sometimes they are greyish ; and frequently they are
dark coloured. The latter are generally the most fer-
tile ; the yellowish and redish are commonly the least
so ; and the greyish commonly holds a middle station
between the two extremes. There are writers howev-
er, who consider a red sand one of the most profitable.

The light, open, and porous texture of sandy soils
render them easily cultivated, so that, if what is saved
in tillage be expended in additional manurings, it is
doubtful whether this soil, when skilfully managed, will
not be found as profitable to the farmer as most other
lands of middling quality.

The best mode of improving sandy soils, is, by a mix-
ture of clay, marl, sea-shells, peat, vegitable earth, co\t
dung, awiue's dung-, or mud from swamps and ponds. A
dressing of clay two or three inches thick, and well mix-
ed, will make it fruitful for many years. As these sub-

SB' SOIL9»-

stances are liable to sink into such soils pretty fast, it S^
necessary to plough deep to return them to the surface-.
It is worthy ®f remark, that the substratum of a sandy
soil, is often a strong clay ; thus nature furnishes the
means of perfecting her works for the use of man, upoa
the same ground.

The crops best adapted to sandy soils are, common
turnips, potatoes, carrots, barley, rye, buckwheat, clo-
ver, sainfoin, and other grasses. Wheat is not very nat-
ural to this soil ; but wl.en in good condition, it will pro-
duce tolerable crops of this grain ; particularly when
sown on a sward of clover turned under. The lighter
kinds of it are too little retentive of moisture, during^
the heats of summer, for p;ood crop» cf Indian corn ; but
those which are dark coloured are generally good for
this crop. In some places the most valuable improve-
ment upon this kind of land has been made by laying it
into grass, and treating it with top-dressings of difierent
kinds of soils, which, when liberally applied, have, often
changed the appearance, tmd so much altered its na-
ture, as to render it capable of bearing a succession of
valuable crops of grain. Even a blodng sand may be
reduced to a loam, by eov/ing plaisler, r/ith red top, or
other fibrous rooted gi-asses, until a swai-d can be obtain-
ed, then dress with plaisler ^and such things as mention-
ed above, and mix them Vv^ell with the sandy turf by
harrowing. The'^frosts and rain ©f winter will also as-
sist in tbir?. When the sward hi* become strong and
rich by the aid of manures, break up by deep plough-
ing; take one crop of potatoes, or grain, k-y down, and
proceed as before ; in a few years it will be r rich sandy
loam.

Sandy soils push forward crops much sooner than oth-
er soils, they are of all others the least productive of
weeds. Turnips, &c. raised on them are of a better
flavour, and less liable to be attacked by wonns. Fruitg
or seeds ripened on such soils are better to keep, be-
cause they contain the fewest watery particles.

It is a rule, in regard to sandy soils, never to pick off
any small stones that may be found in them, as they con-
tribute to prevent evaporotion, and to preserve moii.
ture.

DIVISION? OF FARMS. 3*7

Ar. tlie qualities of ail soils vary considerably, everj
S^riculturist ought to make him'^elf acquainted with
the nature of his land, and also the property of manures,
a judicious application of which, with a proper course
of crops and thorough tillage are the chief and gran4
secrets of agrioulture.

DIVISION OF FARMSV

In the dividing of lands, by menn^ of fences, regard
should be had to a variety of circumstance?, such as the
size of the farms, and the nature of them, as well as to
the uses to which they are to be converted; and the
materials of wiiich fences are to be formed,- There is
not a more expensive, perplexing circumstance about a
farm, thon the liekls being in a stragling, disjointed situ-
ation. The judicious division of a farm, will save much
labor, especially in travelling from one part to another.
Crooked fences should be avoided, both on account of
expense, and appearance. Although large farms should
have largo iields, yet small ones need not have propor-
tionally small iields, for the same field may be appropri-
ated to different crops, and the expence of division fen-
ces saved. But whatever the dimensions adopted, at-
tention should be paid to the convenience of water, the
purposes of draining, and the bringing together lands'
of a similar quality, or, such as can be cuiiivated and
sown under the same circumstances.

All tillage lots, especially small ones, should be square,
to save labour in ploughing. For, if a lot be long and
narrow, cross ploughing will be either prevented, or the
labour of it much increased. If possible, tillage lots
should be near the barn, to save labour in carting ma-
nure. Mowing lots should be next to the tillage, if the
soil permits ; as these must be dunged, and their crop*
carted : The lots for pasturage should be next, and the
wood lots the most distant from the house, that the view
of the others may not be obstructed.

FENCES.

Poor fences are productive of incalculable mischief to
the farmer. By these his cropi aro constantly liable

68 CIVISIO?? OF FARMS.

to be destro3^cd, and his cattle become habitually unru-
ly. One unruly creature will learn others to be so ;
and thus the farmer with his poor fences, finds his cat-
tle, instead of being profitable, to become productive
of unceasing losses, and, what follows of course, of un-
ceasing vexation. When the farmer is conscious that
he cannot even sleep in peace, on account of the dan-
ger of his cattle destroying the fruits of his labours, he
cannot be said to enjoy that tranquility which ought to
be the reward of the sweat of his brow. Rather, there-
fore, let him make his fences what might be generally
deemed more than sufficiently high and strong, than too
low and weak. This, if it be an error, is erring on the
safe side ; on the side which secures the fruits of his la-
bors, promotes his tranquillity and happiness, and tends
to the maintenance of peace and harmony among neigh-
bours.

Log fences^ are best when built of white pine, lasting
perhaps 20 years. The next in durability are pitch pine,
hemlock, ash, oak, and white maple. Bass wood,
poplar, birch, beach, and rock maple soon rot. Logs that
are peeled will last much longer.

Worm fences^ are made with most ease, but require
more timber than some others.

Post and rail fences^ and board fences are very good
when the soil is dry. In a wet soil the posts will be
moved by frosts. The posts should be put two feet in-
to the ground. Red cedar, locust, and chestnut are best.
Butter-nut, black-walnut, and oak are pretty good, last-
ing about 15 years. Letting the bark remain on that
part of the post put into the ground, is supposed to ren-
der it more durable. For the rails, cedar is best, last-
ing perhaps an age. If timber is scarce, and the ground
is level and free from stones, post and rail fences, set in
a bank made of the earth of two small ditches throw n
up together, ought to be preferred. If the posts are too
small to have holes made through them, the rails may
be flatted at the ends, and fastened to the posts with
spikes, or with wooden pins well secured.

Stone ■wall. Building walls is not only the way to clear
ground of a bad incumbrance, but it is the best and cheap-
est of all fences in the end, tor if properly made, it will
last an age, with some trifling repairs. On a hard, sandy.

I*[PLEMENT5. * 39

■©r gTavelly bottom, if built with good stones, a wall will
stand very well without digging a trench. On a clay
or miry soil, the foundation should be laid in a trench,
nearij^ as low as the earth freezes. The best way is to
dig a trench to the depth of about eighteen inches ; into
this throw all the small and bad shaped stones, until the
trench is tilled ; then on the top of these build the wail,
in a mason-like manner, to the height of about five feet,
and threw the earth dug out of the trench up against
the wall en each side.

Hedges^ are to be recommended where timber and
Btone are very scarce. Mr. Qr.incy of Massachusetts,
has a hedge 255 rods long, made of American Hedge
Thorn, planted five inches apart. The whole cost for
six years, (when it was a sufficient fence,) including the
plants procured from the district of Columbia, was ^1G7
(about 66 cents a rod.) He thinks, where the labour
is performed by the farmer himself, a complete hedge
may be formed in six or seven years, for less than fiiiy
cents a rod. For his method of management, see Dean's
New England Farmer, 3d edition. See also Cobbetfs
American Gardener.

It is supposed that the New-England Cockspur thors
is equally as good as that used by Mr. Quiacy.

IMPLEMENTS.

The present period of low prices of products, and the
necessity of economy, renders it expedient to enquire
whether the labour of conducting our farms may not be
abridged by the more general introduction of what are
called labour-saving machines.

Mr. Burgess, a noted agriculturist of this state, ob-
serves, that our ploughs are far from the best ; our
harrows quite inditferent : rollers, scarifiers, drills, and
threshing machines, scarcely used. He calculates that
Wood's New-York cast-iron plough, can be moved with
a power, one quarter less, and that it will then do one
quarter more work than any other plough in use in the
state. One hundred and twenty acres were ploughed
.by four of these ploughs in one season ) and the wliole

41) IfflfLEMENTa.

expense of keeping them sharp aiid fit for use did not
exceed 5G cents each. The blacksmith"'s bill for ordi-
Dary wooden and wrought iron ploughs, for the same
work, would, he supposes, have been ^5 each. It will
te found therefore that not less than four shillings per
acre will be saved by these ploughs ; and the woriv done
i:i every respect better. He caiculales in the state there
»re 12,000 acres under the plough ; so that to save four
shillings per acre on this, will gave ^8,000 to the farms
cf the state !

Scaritiers are calculated to do the work of a plough
and a harrow. We believe that Mr. B'jrgess and
Mr. Francis are the only persons who have made
use of this implement in our part of the counli/.—
llr. Burgess says, that in ail ianfis free of stone, or where
the stones are loose, and not too large to pass ber^veen
the shares and teeth, and on which a crop has been rai'S-
ed, a man and a pair of horses or good oxen, will pre-
pare the ground and get in the grain on 30 acres in a
week. In England a man wiih four horses and die broad
scariiier has been known to do 60 acres of wheat in a
week.

In the common method of doing this work, two men,
or one man and a boy, with a pair of oxen and a horse
are employed, and they hardly finish an acre per day. —
It is then to be harrowed or bushed or both. What will
it all amount to ? Probably fifteen shillings an acre. If
jdone with the scarifier, it will not cost two shiiungs an
acre. The use of the scarifier would save to the agri-
culturists of the state g 10,000 per annum !

We could name a number of instances in which la-
bour saving ma<;hines, for farming purposes, have been
confined to a few large farms, although as well adapted
for use on farms generally, and attended with much real
saving. In such cases the only apparent cause has been
the expense of the first cost of the machine ; and yet
the diminution of labour in the employment of such a
machine, would have amounted in many instances to as
niuch, in one year, as the machine cost. But if an indi-
vidual does not feel able to buy a corn-sheller, drill ma-
chine &c. several farmers in a neighborhood could unite
in the purchace and use them alternately. A naanuiac-
tvirerdoes Rot hold any price too high for an iu^prove-

IMPLE'lENTS, 41

nient in machinery, whereby hibour mar be saved. —
Shall it be saiJ of the fanner alone, that he i^riows not
how to appreciate the wonderful inventions and im-
provements, almost daily announced to us.

Imperfect labour is a necessary consequence of de-
fective implements ; but where attention is bestowed
in constructing them, the different processes of labour,
|iiay, with justice, be considered as perfectly executed.

On a trial, in England, to ascertain the quantum of
power required to draw different ploughs, it was found
that some, although lighter than others, employed one
ibird more power to move them in the furrow. In the
formation and construction of all sorts of tools and ma-
chinery for the uses of the farmer, the principal aim
should be that of rendering the work they are to per-
form more cheap, easy, expeditious, and complete, by
having- them perfectly suited to the operations for which
they are intended, and at the same time not too weigh-
ty, v/hi!e they possess sufficient degrees of strength for
the different purposes to which they may be applied.

Every careful farmer, says Sinclair, will lay it down,
as a rule, frequently to inspect all his implements^ and
when any part of any of them is observed in the least
damaged, or in danger of giving way, he will take care
immediately to have it repaired. An implement, als-,
that is not longer wanted during the season, should be
carefully laid up ; but before it is put aside, it ought to
be well cleaned, and rendered perfectly dry, oiled or
painted, if made of iron, and kept so as to be ready for
"use when wanted. No circumstance marks more the
character of an attentive husbandman. Upon every faim
likewise, there ought to be one or more places properly
constructed, for holding the larger implements ; and
some secure place allotted, for containing the smaller
tools. Where machines are necessarily exposed in the
field, a great part of the season, they require to be new-
ly painted, at least every second year.

The importance of proper implements is such, that
the melioration of those in use, would be an essential
advantage to agriculture ; and great as are the mechan-
ical improvements which have been already made, man}''
of them are capable of being brought to stUl greater per-
fection. Persons of genius and experience therefor^^

42 .TILLAGE.

ong'ht to be encourag'ed to devote their time and ritteR-
tion to this most important object ; and to exert them-
selves, either to improve the various sorts of implements
now in use, or in the invention of superior ones, as cir-
cumstances may require. The invention of an useful
implement, by which the labours of agriculture can be
brought to a higher degree of perfection, anil the ex-
pense of cultivation at the. same time dimini-^hed, must
prove of the most essential service to the farmer.

For the benefit of those who are anxious to avail
themselves of the great improvements which have al-
ready been made in agricultural implements, it may be
proper to state, that Repositories for Agricultural Im-
plements and Machinery, have been estabhshed in the
cities of New-York and Boston, and we sincerely hope^
that the exertions of the proprietors, may, by a judicious
public, be liberally rewarded.

TILLAGE.

There cannot, says Mr. Madison, be a more rational
principle m the code of agriculture, than that every farm
which is in good heart should be kept so ; that every
one not in good heart should be made so ; and that what
is right as to the farm, generally, is so as to every part
of every farm. Any system thereibre, or want of sys-
tem, which tends to make a rich iarm poor, or does not
tend to make a poor farm rich, cannot be good for the
owner; whatever it may be for the tenant or superin-
temhmt, who has transient interest only in it. The
profit, vv^here there is any, will not balance the loss of
intrinsic value sustained by the land.

Experiments which have been made with the spade,
shew how great is the yield w hen that instrument has
been employed ; and though it would be impossible to
introduce it when labour is high, yet it affords a useful
lesson, and shews that there is little danger of working
our land too much.

Ncthinof is better calculated to ward off the effects of
droughts, which are often so injiirious in this country
jhan good cultivation by ploughing sutiiciently deep, and

TILLAGE. 43

ifeaiiiireing' well; both of which increase moisture. Be-
sides, ground well prepared, and manured, shoots forth
its crops so rapidly, that the ground is soon covered and
shaded from the heat of the sun ; and, for this reason,
retains its moisture longer. The same may be observ-
ed of mowing lands. Sometimes lands of good soil are
found too closely underlaid with rock, to be sufticiently
retentive of moisture, in times of drought ; such may
answer for orcharding, for the smaller fruit trees, or for
pastures, by having considerable growths of locust at the
same time, on the grounds, to prevent the effects of
drought.

In tilling lands, it is essential that it be done in the
right season ; that it be done effectually^ and, in order to
this, it is of the first importance to have the implements
of tillage well constructed^ and kept in good order.

Lands should always be applied to that tillage for
ivhich they are best adapted ; or, in other words, in
which they will 3ield the greatest clear profit. If there-
fore, the farmer has lands which are only fitted for grass
let him not waste his labour in trying to raise grain on
them. If he has broken hills and declivities, they will
g'enerally but poorly repay the unpleasant labor of
cultivating them with the plough and the hoe : Rather
let such be kept for sheep-pastures, for orchards, or for
raising timber. High lands are most generally selected
for tillage. But low and moist lands, well drained, ridg-
ed, and water-furrowed, are often more productive ;
and there is less danger of exhausting them. If lands
are rocky and ston}^, to plough and hoe them is a diui-
cult and laborious employment ^ and generally can-
not be productive of much profit, till the impediments
are removed. If they are too light and sandy, they may,
nevertheless, be made to yield good crops of tap-rooted
plants, such as turnips, carrots, and clover ; or of such
as ripen early, as rye, for instance ; or that bear the
drought well, as saintfoin, lucerne, provided they are
not hilly ; or if hilly, such trees as flourish in sandy
soils, as the locust, &c. If lands be boggy, When well
drained, they will be found very profitable for hemp,
which they will bear yearly, with the aid of small year-
ly additions of manure; but if they be modern tely level,
smooth, and of a gootl medium soil ; that i-, such as is

44 tlLLAQE;

f quiilly adapted for g^rain and for grasses ; there let th.\
farmer pursue the culture of a rotation of crops, in such,
ciaaner as he linds will alTord him the greatest clear
pro tit.

The expense of any kind of tillage never should be
regarded, where clear profits proportionately great may
be safely calculated on, as a general result. Neither
»houId the expense of tillage be regarded where the
felear profits will be great, though not to be realized ia
some years, if it may be calculated that such profits may
certainly be expected.

OBSTHUCTIONS TO TILLAGE.

Stones lying above or below the surface are, in New-
England, the most formidable obstructi'in to pertect til-
lage. On stony ground, the work is not only imperfect-
ly executed, but in many cases the implement is broken
to pieces, and much time lost. The removal of stones
therefore, ought to be a primary object with every ag-
riculturist ; because a neglect of this kind may atler^
wards occasion him considerable loss and inconvenience.
The soil round a large stone is commonly the best m
}he lield, by gaining the use of it, much benefit is deriv-
ed, independent of the facility which is thus afiorded to
i:he ploughman's operations. When the clearing the
hna of auch Incumbrances, is attended with great diiTi-
'vmU}^, it is always advisable to calculate, whether the ad-
ditional value of the land, when cleared, will warrant
llic expense ; an addilional inducement, however, for
incurring the expense, is, that these incumbrances are
usually good materials for making the most substantial
(and of fence. Where rocks and stones are numerous,
walls may be made thicker and higher than is needful
(.11 other accounts ; and lots should be made smaller;
a:screly to dispose of the stones.

By experiments accurately made, it is found, that
small stones on the surface of the ground are benelicial,
In a small degree, in increasing its products ; but thej
are too troublesome, in good Cultivation, to be desirable,
on account of all the benetit to be derived from them.
I nless they are calcarious, or partake of the nature of
lime stone, they sliould be taken away, or at least so
much thinned, that pUnghing and hoeing may be com-

TILLAGBi 4o

fbrtably performed, and without injury to the tool?.
^Vhere ground is full of very small stones, they may be
drove down so as to be out of the way of tlie scythe, by
having a roller passed over the ground in the spring,
when it is very soft, as the stones are then easily pres-
sed into it.

To drain the ground also facilitates tillage exceeding-
ly ; for ploughing cannot be performed with advantage,
where either the surface or subsoil is wet. In fact, ev-
ery branch of good husbandry is intimately connected
with another ; and the practice of one branch is neces-
sarily much aifected by the way in which others are ex-
ecuted. To drain land well, therefore, materially pro-
motes good tillage ; and by good tillage the beneficial
effects of manures are considerably increased. To dis-
charge one of these fundamental dutiies of the husband-
man, while the others are neglected, can only be re-
garded as performing a duty which will yield small ben-
efit to those concerned ; but to fulfil the v*^hoie duties
Jncumbent on the husbandman, namely, to keep his
iaiid dry, clean, and rich ; mui^t be estimated the height
©f perfection in the rural art.

PLOUGHING.

The wise and judicious Romans considered ploughing
the most essential of all the preparations which the
earth undergoes. They laid it down as a maxim to sow
but little, and plough much. Cato was thoroughly con-
Tinced of this truth, when he laid down as the first rule
in husbandry to plough well ; the second, to p/ow^o-/i ; and
the third to manure ; intimating by this, that ploughing
alone is of greater consequence than ail the other means
of cultivating lands.

J\'umbcr of plovghings necessary. — It is an important
maxim in husbandry that the earth should be thoroughly
stirred by deep and frequent plovghings and harrozvins^s. —
When this is done the consistence of the soil is impro-
ved, the small fibrous roots oi" plants have liberty to
spread freely, and to accpure such nourishment, as could
not possibly be obtained when confined between large
impenetrable clods of earth. By its assistance, the ma-
nure, and the seed, are most advantageously inserted.
It can be employed to destroy almost all kinds of weeds
5*

4o TILLAoE,.

and various tribog of insects. It is supposed that double
tillaf^e will preserve and continue the effects of manure
nearly twice as long as with ordinary management. —
Where manures cannot be had in due quantity, tillage
will in a manner supply the deficiency ; and where they
are ever so plentiful, it will be a means of giving them
greater effect. The finer the earth is made, the more
it is enriched by dews, rain and air. For it has been
lound by experiment, that by taking some of the most
barren earth, powdering it well, exposing it abroad for
a year, and stirring it about frequently, it will become
so fertile as to receive and nourish almost any plant in
a high degree. Thorough ploughing therefore, is of
such absolute necessity, that whoever is wanting ia
this work, must expect a deficiency of crop.

Agriculture, like other business, having profit for its
object, is a subject of calculation ; and its labors must be
regulated by its end. The number of ploughings must
depend upon the soil, weather^ season, crop and cul-
ture. For wheat the ground should at least be thrice
ploughed ; but wheat requires more preparatory plough-
ing than rye, and rye more than oats. Clay ground
demands more tillage than calcarious earth, and calcar-
ious earth more than sand. Wet or dry weather makes
frequent ploughings (according to circumstances) either
useful, injurious, or impracticable.

Proper season to plough The prevailing opinion is

strongly in favor of fall ploughing; because to the ac-
tion of air and moisture, it adds that of^ro^f, wliich may
be considered as a plough, superior to any thing that
Can be made by the hand of man ; it expands the mois-
ture, which requiring more sppice removes every par-
ticle of earth, and separates them from each other. Al-
most all tillage land should, therefore, be ploughed in
autumn, both in new and old ground. But all clay op
loam}' soils are more particularly benefited by fall plough-
ing ; because on those the action of frost is greater, and
because one ploughing of this kind may save two in the
.spring, when time is every thing ; besides our teams
at that season of the year, are much weaker than they
are in the fall. But land ploughed in the fall must be
again ploughed in the >-:pring ; and a weaker team can
then be able to perform it. Fall ploughing is also con-

TILLASET. 4^

siidered the most effectual method to destroy worms. —
The last of summer, or the beginning of autumn, is the-
right season for ploughing new ground- For it will bo
best to harrow, and cross plough it, before it is seeded,
that the soil may be thoroughly mixed and pulverized.
Therefore the tirst ploughing should be performed so
long before hand, that before the second, the turf may
ferment and become partly rotten. But this is not to
be expected, if the ground be ploughed late in the fall ;
because the sun, at that late season, will not warm the
ground enough to bring on any fermentation before the
following spring, when the ground is to be sowed. For
fall sowing, the ground should be broken up in the
spring or early in the summer.

Soils of so retentive a nature, as to hold more wrter^
than is useful in vegetation, should be ploughed in a
medium state, vvhen neither too wet nor too dry. When
very dry it is difficult to plough them, being so hard and
tenacious, and if very wet, the ground is injured by ths
feet of the cattle. Green sward however, can be plough-
ed when pretty wet, if not mir}' ; because the labour ii
more easy for man and beast. But it v.ill not rot so well
as when dr3\ The proper time for ploughing orjharrow-
ing in general, is when the soil upon stirring crumbles
into small parts.

Spring ploughing will answer very well for a sandy
soil, as such ground does not require the aid of frost. —
Ploughing in such soils should be carried on in damp
weather, particularly the last ploughing and the sowin:^
of the seed. It is likewise recommended to plough such
lands as much as possible, when the dew is on.

Depth of Ploughing necessary. — The depth to plough,,
must generally be regulated by the depth of the soil ;
and the sort of crops to be grown ; tap rooted requiring
deeper tillage than others. If the vegitable soil be deep,
deep ploughing will be proper; especially where the
upper stratum has become exhausted by severe croping
and that below is a strong earth, which can readily be
fertilized by the frost and sun. But if the vegitable
mould be shallow, deep ploughing, will bring up part
of the subsoil, which will not be fertile, until some time
exposed to the atmosphere. If the earth below is natu-
rally very poor, requiring a long time to be made for-

45 TitLAGB,

tile in this way, injury may result from ploughing deep-
er than usual.

Where, however, it becomes part of the farmer's ob-
ject to increase the depth of the surface soil, deep plough-
ing is inJispensible ; and in this, as in many other cases,
we must submit to present inconvenience for the ad-
vantage of future benefit. Farmers are sometimes led
to plough too shallo^v, to save a little labour; and some
are afraid to turn up what they call dead earth ; but all
the soil above the hard pan may be well employed in
tillage ; n4id if a red soil is turned up, it will in a year
or two become dark, if properly tilled.

The depth may also in some measure depend on the
means crimproving the sci) : for where the laud is poor
and the means of enriching it scanty, the depth must be
in proportion to the quantity of manure to be obtained,
and the number ofpioughings to be given to it.

Soils are rarely found, that ought not to be ploughed
in common 6 inches deep; many 8 and some 10, v/hich
wiiibe about as low as the rcots of any common crop
•wi/l descend. One ploughing to the full depth every
i2, 18, or 24 months, will answer — shallower tillage at
other times will do.

A vegitable soil will seldom be deeper, than where
the plough has penetrated. Where, however, shallow
ploughing has always been practised, it may not be ad-
visable to shift at once to the greatest depth that is to
be ultimately hxed upon as proper, lest too great a pro-
portion of barren earth should be turned up, and injure
the crops immediately succeedmg.

The advantages of frequent deep ploughings are ma-
ny. Roots extend far where they meet no resistance ;
and the growth above the surface corresponds to that
below. If more rain falls than the soil can retain, it des-
cends to the l)ottom of the furrow, and seldom does
damage. It keeps the ground moist, and should never
be omitted in drought, or in lands liable to be inju.red by
drought. Bringing up the new mould is peculiarl}^ favor-
able to clover, turnips, and potatoes. By deep plough-
ing, animal and vegitabie manures, which have a ten-
dency to rise to the surface, are properly covered, &:c.

Ridge Ploifghing. — If the soil is naturally dry, plough
flat, and as level as possible, this will give an equal dif-

fusion of moisture thro^jghout the field ; but if the soil
is moist, plough into wide ridges of 18 to 24 feet, and if
it is a wet, heavy soil, let the ridges not exceed 6 to 12
feet. The object of ridge ploughing, is to improve the
furrow between the ridges, as drains for the water,
therefore multiply your drains, by narrowing the land:*,
or ridges, according to the moisture of the soil ; and so
vice versa. This is the best, if not only method of equal-
izing moist and wet lands. Wet clays, and ground ia
which clay predominates, whatever be the culture,
should generally be made to take this form; because,
it powerfully tends to drain the soil and carry off from
the roots of the growmg plants, that superiluous water,
which left to itself, would seriously aflect both the qual-
ity, and the quantity of their prod'.ic s.

Ploughing hills. — Shallow ploughing, and ploughing up
and down hilly land, have, by exposing the loosened soil
to be carried off by rains, hastened more than any thing
else, the waste of its fertility. When the mere surface
is pulverised, moderate rains on land but litttle uneven,
if ploughed up and down, gradually wear it away. And
heavy rains on hilly lands, ploughed in that manner soon
produce a like effect, notwithstanding the improved pcac-
tice of deeper ploughing.

These evils may be remedied by a cultivation in hor-
izontal drills with a plough adapted to it ; or, as propo-
sed by Mr. Butler, of Connecticut, author of the Far-
rarer's Manual, by carrying a furrow down the hill only,
and by inclining this furrow to the left hand, directly
in proportion to the descent of the declivity — and suf-
fermg the team to re-ascend the hill without a furrow.
This will lessen the day's w^ork, not one half, but about
one third, because the team will travel so much faster,
both up and down the hill, when they carry but one fur-
row. In this wa}^, the steepest hill may be ploughed
without a single furrow left open to the wash, except
the last one, and the saving in the strength of tlie team,
and in the value of the crop, which will arise from the
extra goodness of the ploughing, will doubly compea*
sate for the loss of time.

Grounds upon the sides of hills are poorer than oth-
ers, and require a great deal of manure, which with the
finest mould will be soon washed away, unless «om^
method lika the above is adopted.

^0 TILLAGE.

It is a bad practice to plough furrows constantly a*^
gainst the lence. It has a tendency to deprive certain
parts of the field of the necessary quantity of earth, —
They sliould be turned as often from the fence as against
it. Indeed, it would be desinvble, in every part of the
field, to have the gathering-furrows always at the pla-
ces where the last parting-furroAvs were made.

The ploughmen should never turn his furrow wider
than the plough share will cut clean ; but always as
much narrower, as the stiffness of the soil shall render
necessary, to lay his furrows smooth and light, and free
from clods ; in all such cases of narrow furrow, the ex-
tra expense of ploughing, will be saved in the expense
of harrowing, with this advantage to the crop, that the
harrow pulverizes only the surface ; but the plough,
when properly directed, renders the earth mellow, to
the whole depth of the furrow. One such ploughing
will prove as beneficial as two partially performed.

HARROWING.

No instrument of husbandry requires the judgment of
the farmer more than the harrow. The fertility of the
soil, depending upon its being well pulverized, and inti-
mately mixed with the manures applied, render harrow-
ing very important. But many farmers expect too much
from it, they neglect to give their land a due ploughing,
trusting to the harrow to make it fine. After going
over and treading down the ground several times, they
find the clods still unbroken.

Wet ground should be harrowed in a dry time, and in
the middle of the day. Dry soils, when the dev/ is on,
and moderately dry. When land is muddy harrowing
will be injurious, by making it more compact, very light
land will be rendered more compact and improved by
frequent harrowing.

Land newly ploughed is harrowed to the best advan-
tage, the teeth go deeper, and raise morv'^. mould. If
neglected at this time, it should he done after a gentle
rain. On rough soils the faster the harrow moves, the
more the clods are broken, the teeth kept cleaner, and
the land mellowed. Harrows with wooden teeth, are
of so little use, that it is the opinion of some, the feel

TILL AGS. 61

•of the cattle will do as much injury in treading do^.vn
the ground, as the harrow will do good.

New land should he har i-owed as soon as possible af-
ter burning- to mix the ashes effectually with the scil
before it is blown away. A strong and heavy hr.rrow
should be passed several times in the same place to
to raise a .sufficient quiinli'y of mould.

On newly ploughed sward a heavy harrow should pass
the same way the plough did. Where seed is sown on
ridges, the harrow ought also to be run lengthways. —
Or it may be in such a case to plough in the seed.

When there are many ridges left after ploughing, it
ought to be harrowed before the seeds are sown ; oth-
ervvise they will be buried at unequal depths and will
come up in rows ; some will remain uncovered, but
most of them w-ill be thrown into the bottoms of the fur-
rows. This will often be so deep as to injure the crop ;
and in flax and hemp, often double the labour and ex-
pense in pulling. The growth of grass seeds will fre-
quently be destroyed by being covered too deep. —
Where lands are light, once over will answer ; but
when they are stiff, twice may be necessaTj'. It is al-
ways necessary to harrow sufficiently to break the fur-
row, and level the surface, otherwise the operation is
iiViperfectly performed.

It would be a good plan, for farmers to employ two
harrows in succession ; one of heavy frame, with few
and long teeth ; the other of lighter frame, with more
and shorter teeth. The common harrow often covers
the seed too much ; small seed will not vegetate. welj
at a depth greater than two or three inches.

ROLLIXG.

This operation is of nearly as much importance as
harrowing, in reducing and pulverizing strong, heavy,
and adhesive lands ; while by rendering loose soils more
compact, the earth adheres more closely to the roots of
the plants, and thus promotes their growth.

The rolling of land in tillage should be done only in
dry weather ; never when the soil is so wet as to stick
to the roller. But always as soon as possible after the
seed is sown. No soil will admit of roiling, that is very
^uneven, or much rocky or stony. But small stones need

53 TILLA8E.

not prevent it ; for when used upon sucli gronnds laid
down to mowing, it presses the stones into the earth
even with the surface, at the same time that it breaks
the clods, and thus prepares the way for the scythe in
in a cheap, and easy method. It is also usefully em-
ployed in reinstating the roots of meadow grasses, loos-
icned and raised by the alternate freezing and thawing
»»f the ground, and with similar view, may be passed over
winter crops early in the spring. Wiihout it, all crop«
of grain sown with ariifioial grasses, e^^pecially barley,
cannot well be taken up clean with the rake. Some
think a crop of barley in particular, will be larger for
rolling, as it is a dr}^ seed, that needs to be well enclos-
ed with mould. Rolling after so'.ving and harrowiug,
y.'iil cause the mould to enclose the seeds, much of
w hich otherwise lying in cavities that soon drj^, is apt
to fail of vegetating. It is useful in light dry soils, for
preventing their moisture from evaporating too easily ;
and in depriving certain insects of their hiding-places in
the cavities of the soil. Land on which turnips are to
l*e cultivated will be much improved by rolling. Flax
ought to be rolled immediately after sowing; it makes
the seed yegitate equally, and prevents after-growth. It
i-3 necessary in rolling that every part of the ground re-
ceive an equal impression ; once in a place is generally
fluflicient.

A wooden roller about 2 feet in diameter, and 6 feet
in length, may answer the above purposes.

nOEING.

This is so important, that no crop can be expected
without it. The deeper land is hoed, provided the roots
■are not disturbed, and too much cut to pieces, the grea-
ter advantage it will be to the plants. The oftenerland
}A hoed, the more moisture it retiuns, the more the crops
r.re nourished, and the better it stands droughts; draw-
ing fresh earth up near the plants, increases their
growth, makes them stand more tirmly, and protects the
roots from the heat of the sua. Hilling especially ia
hurtful ; it prevents the roots from having so much ben-
efit from rains, and deprives the lower roots of the in-
fluence oi the sun. It should be done therefore by lit-
tle *Bd liftle, at several hocinir^.

FALLOWING.

53.

By hoeing, the land undergoes considerable prepara-
tion, for the reception of succeeding* crops. In soils apt
to bind after much wet, which causes piants to appear
of a stinted growth, hoeing is of vast advantage in pro-
moting their immediate growtii and future progress. It
serves to prevent the standing of water on the surface,
so as to chili the ground, and check ail fermentation in
it, &c. But hoeing should cease, or be only superficial,
when the roots are so far extended as to be much inju-
red by it. Where land is tolerably free from ot'Stacies,
the frequent use of the horse plough to a considerable
depth, renders the labour much less severe and expen-
sive, and more advantageous to the crop, than to depend
upon the hoe alone. The first time the plough is used,
turn the furrow from the rows, as near to the roots as
possible. At the next hoeiiig, and all after hoeings, the
furrows are to be turned towards the rows, this prevents
the plough from injuring the roots. The depth should
be about the same as for any other ploughing, or the in-
tention will be in some measure defeated. This may
render it necessary sometimes to go twice in the same
furrow. A ploiigli, called a cultivator, has been con-
structed, with two moulboards, which turns the mould
both ways at once.

The opinion entertained by some, that no hoeing at
all should be done in a dry time, is irrational and ridicu-
lous. They deprive their land of the benefit ■ f the dew
— suffer it to be overrun by weeds, and allow the ground
to be so hard, that the rnin when ilcomes will not pene-
trate it. There is no soil perhaps, except a thin sandy
one, that will not be benefitted in hot, dry weather by
frequent hoeings.

FALLOWING.

Fallowing is a mode of preparing land for the rficep.
tion of grass seeds, grain, or ether crrps, by repeated
ploughings and harrcwings. Toll, Beatson, and otb.cr
writers on agriculture, have contended, that summer-fal-
lowing should never consatute a part oi a gcod system
oi husbandry ; that the necessity of iaiiowing may be ob-
6

54 FALLOWING.

Yiatedby the adoption of the drill husbandry, or, by a
judicious rotation of crops. This remark will apply
with peculiar force, to the soils and climate of New-
England.

WEEDS.

The farmer views plants in a very different light from
the botanist. All are weeds with the husbandman that
give obstruction to the plants he propagates in his farm.
It is in vain to expect good crops, and folly to go to the
expense of seed and labour, unless they are kept free
from weeds, and particularly, while they are young.

If weeds be neglected, or their destruction but par-
tially performed, perhaps not more than one half of the
crop, will be obtained, even from the very best soils —
To guard against bad kinds of grass and noxious weed*,
plant such lields with potatoes as are infested with them.
Be careful that seed grain, and grass seed are clean, and
free from all foul seeds. Pull out the docks, &c. upon
mowing grounds, before they go to seed. Remove the
thistle, burdock, and every noxious weed from fences,
tc. (For the saving of weeds see manures.) Suffer
no old field to lie waste, as a nursery for weeds ; the
expense of ploughing will bear no proportion to the af-
ter expense of weeding. Weed crops with the plough
and hoe ; not after the weeds are grown, but as soon at
they appear. It is supposed that the expense of weed-
ing wheat, rye, barley, oats, flax and hemp, would be
abundantly paid in increase of grain: for, generally
speaking, any given quantity of weeds growing with a
crop lessens its product, in proportion to the w^eight of
the green weeds with that of the growing crop. After
haying is over, all fern, or brakes ought to be cut, not
oniy for the purpose of destroying them, but of increas-
ing manure, by applying them as litter. If cut while
the sap is in, and left to rot on the ground, they will
gr'^atiy improve it. Sheep are much better than any
other creature for destroying weeds, by pasturing.

DRAINING.

A point of importance in good farming, but in which
our country is defective, is the draining ofwot and marshy
ground*. Much of our best Und is not only rendere4

FALLOWING. 65

useless by this neglect, but it often becomes the local
cause of sickness and death.

Various methods of draining have been suggested by
ingenious men, which are applicable to various soils. It
is the opinion of Mr. Burgess, that if the system was
thoroughly understood, and universally practised by ihe
farmers of Rhode-Island, it would add one third to the
value of the lands of the state ; and by many intelligent
men, it has been calculated, that should all the marshes,
and meadow lands of New-England, be drained and em-
banked, where necessary, that she could sustain twice
her present population.

Ifthe drainis sma.i, a moderate quantity of oarth, grass,
or other matter easily cicgs it, and obstructs the passage
of the water : whereas, it it be large, exactl}^ the re-
verse takes place. If the di ain is wide, and the earth
taken from it removed to a distance, neither cattle nor
frost can fiii it up ; but in spite of the trampling of the
one, and the heaving of the other, a hollow musi sliii re-
main.

The Farmer's Assistant gives tlie following method of
draining bog-meadows effectually : First run a ditch
through the middle, and draw off as much of its waters
in this way as possible. Where the mcddow is very
wet and niir}'^, commence at the lorcest part ofthe ground
where the outlet should be ; and thence carry the ditch
into the meadow, sinking it all the way, as low as Avill
barely give the waters a current to run off ; and the
deeper this ditch can be sunk the better. Then turn a
ditch proportionally deep all round the edge ofthe bog,
for the purpose of cutting off all the springs. Then
cross ditches are to be made, in number and size propor-
tionate to the extent ofthe bog, and ofthe size of (he
middle and surrounding ditches. Generally speaking the
deeper and larger the ditches, the fewer cross-ditches
need be made. It should be remembered, that bog lands
will settle down very much, after draining ; for which
due allowance ought to be made, in regard to the depth
of the ditches.

To drain swamps, ditches ought to be of size and depth
proportionate to the extent of the swamp ; and the quan-
tity of water to be carried off. Those round the edges
of the swamp ought to be so plac«d as to r«ceiv« afl

56 FALLOWING.

the water from the springs which commonly run in on
every side ; or, it' convenient, they should be so placed
as to cut off the springs, by receiving theminto the ditch.
The months of August and September are best for this
work. The proper proportions for these kind of ditch-
es are, to be three times as wide at the top as they are
at the bottom, and a little more than half as deep as
they are wide. To prevent their falling in, it is advise-
able to sow some strong-rooted grass on the sides. The
most expeditious, effectual, and economical mode, where
the ground is not too miry, will be to use a plough and
ox-shovel. It is supposed that two men, a boy, and two
yoke of oxen, will accomplish more in a day, than six
men with only spades and shovels. With the scraper,
all the inequalities of the ground, upon the borders of
the ditch, can be conveniently filled up.

Covered drains being considerably more expensive
thnn open ones, we do not think it necessary to describe
them here, but refer the readerto the Complete Grazier
or Plough Boy, 2d Vol. No. 35-6, for a full account of
them.

IRRIGATION.

The advantages of water to grass lands, are these :
it preserves a favourable degree of temperature ; im-
proves the crop, by the nourishing substances it con-
veys ; destroys weeds ; and, as a mere element it is ben-
Ciicial, more especially in dry seasons. It contributes
so much to their fertiiization, that it is rather surprising,
the pr.ictice ofirrigatioii lias not been more generally"
adopted.

The common principle;^ of irrigation are,

1st. Such command of water, as will cover the largest
surface with the least lai^ '>nr and expense.

2d. Mud Iv water (the effect of loosened soil and heavy
roins) is most favourable lo vegetation, because, be-^i.les
gi\irg the necessary mci-ture, it furnishes a considera-
ble uoriion of alluvial matter.

3d. Water charged with sand or gravel, or very hot
or very cold, is unfavourable to vegi^ation, and ought
not to hf> employed, until, by standing in reservoirs, it
depcs't^ thfse injurioas matters, i;i the one case, and in
the other, reiiuires tke temperiiture ©f the atmosphere.

FALLOWING. 57

4th. Clay and calcarious soils, require less watering
than others.

5th. Irrigation is of less importance in northern than
in southern latitudes : and,

6th. In cold climates, or in situations of much eleva-
tion, irrigation is most usefuilj employed in the spring
and autumn ; and in hot climates and sandy soils in the
summer.

Where a good head of water can be made without too
great an expense ; or where a brook, or part of a river,
can be so diverted from its course, as to be made to
spread its waters over the neighbouring grass grounds,
it should be attended to, as a matter of no small impor-
tance. The means of watering the ground, or of taking
it off, should be completely under controul ; for, if too
much be suffered to run on, it may do more hurt than
good. The quantity should be proportioned to the na-
ture of the soil; as sandy grounds require more, and
stiff soils less. The channels should be so made as to
carry the water to every part, except where the ground
is naturally wet. The main channel should just have
descent enough to cause the water to run ; and the late-
ral branches should be run in such directions as that the
descent be very moderate, and at the same time convey
the water to every part of the ground. Sometimes it
is necessary to carry off the surplus water by other
channels, where the ground has little hollow through it.
When the weather is hot, the water should be taken
off the ground. The night, and days which are cool
and cloudy, are the best times for applying it. In the
spring, it should not be applied till the ground is some-
what dry; and after the grass begins to start let the
quantity be diminished, and let it also be stopped during*
rainy weather. When the grass is pretty well grown,
no water should be applicfl, except in cases of drought.
After taking off the second crop, the water may be
thrown on more plentifully : but it mist be taken off some
time before the winter frost com'nences. Mr. Van
Rensselaer considers a month, a suficient time to let it
remain on in the fall.

It is the easiest and cheapest mode of fertilii'Ing poor
land. It promotes a perpetual fertility without tiie ex-
pense oi manare. It may be made to vield t'le greatest^
6*

58 FALLOWING.

possible proflucts, both in hay and pasturage. It will
greatly increase the means of the farmer to multiply
stock, and thus enrich the other lands with manure. It
is within the power of almost every farmer to derive
some advantao^e from irrigation.

FLOODING.

It differs from irrigation, in which the water ought
constantly to be in ajlowltig state^ whereas in the pro-
cess of flooding, it is wholly, or nearly stagnant.

AVhere swamp-land is to be cleared, and it can be
flooded, by miking a dam at the outlet, at a small ex-
pense, it may be a matter of economy, as it will tend to
destroy the growth of wood. This may also be per-
formed on low meadows to kill the grass, if it be bad, in
order to introduce better. If the water contains a rich
sediment, it will enrich low meadows to flood them du-
ring winter. But by covering large tracts of country
with water, in cold, and still more in the warm seasons
of the year, it must render the climate moist and un-
wholesome.

MANURES.

In the theory, as well as in the practice, of agricul-
ture, the subject of manures is exceedingly important.
Every operation of husbandry, every preparation of
land is calculated to render manure eflicacious in its ap-
plication. It is in vain that the soil is composed of the
best substances, in tlie best proportions ; that when so
composerl, it is kept in the best possible condition for
vegetation, unless manure be added to it of such a kind,
and in such a state, as is favourable to the growth of
plants. In tine, it is that part both of the theory and
practice of agriculture upon which every other may be
said to depend. The ploughing and harrowing of land ;
the exposure of it to the frost of winter; irrigation and
draining, are all regarded as important, only as far as
they adapt it to the reception of manure, and are calcu-
lated to render its uses in vegetation more serviceable.

It may be noticed that the substances capable of being
made use of as manure, are extremely numerous, and
of dilTercnt natures and properties. We will confine
ourselves to those of most importance to the farmers of

FALLOWING. 59

this country, and commence with dung of neat-cattle.
This is a cool, mild and oily substance ; and is, there-
fore, most suitable for warm, sandy, and gravelly soils.
It tends to prevent the soil's becoming- too dry, and the
plants on it from being parched for want of moisture. It
is considered less valuable than the dung of swine and
sheep, but more so than that of horses. Where animals
chew the cud, the dung is so thoroughly putrified, that it
may be incorporated with the soil without any previous
fermentation in a dunghill, better than any other kind
of dung ; but on many accounts, a mixture of hot and
cold, of dry and moist putrescent substances in the same
heap is very advantageous. Cow dung alone, is more ea-
sily dissolved by rain than any other dung. The quality
of the dung of animals, will in a great measure be pro-
portioned to the richness or poverty of its food. It is
also supposed that the dung of fat animals will be more
serviceable than that of lean ones. The dung of lean
hard-working cattle,-^nd young creatures when poorly
fed is quite inferior.

Horse dimg^ is the poorest animal manure, the hottest
of any, and the most apt to excite a sudden fermenta-
tion. If suffered to lie in a heap till it becomes tho-
roughly heated, it assumes a whitish, or mouldy colour,
and is then of but little value. It is difficult to give it
age, without mixing it with other substances. If applied
without mixture it should be done as soon as possible.
It is most saitable for cold, wet, and stiff soils. For
raising potatoes, from its heating quality, for some soils
it may be used alone, nearly fresh from the stables, as
it will ferment in the ground and be of benetit to the
potatoe crop. The richest is that of stable kept horses,
well fed with hay and grain, and this is greatly increas-
ed in richness and utility, if urine and straw mix with it.
A mixture of horse an cow dung is very proper for
land that is neither too light nor too stiff. Horse dung
is a much stronger manure than it is supposed to be by
those whose constant })ractice is to suffer it to be spoil-
ed by over-heating in the heaps; by which it looses
from 50 to 75 per cent, of its value. The diligent and
attentive farmer should giiard against such proHigate
waste of property. The remedy is easy, viz. by never
allowing the dung to accumulate in any considerable

60 FALL0WI?7«.

quantity at the stable doors. It should frequently he re-
moved and thrown over that part of the yard where
the dung from the neat cattle is thrown : or, used as an
ing-redient composts, by its quick and strong fermenta-
tion, it has an excellent effect, speedily dissolving other
substances mixed with it.

Hog dung^ is a very rich manure, and so cold as to
ferment very slowly. A mixture of hog, cattle and
horse dung is therefore very advantageous, as the one
corrects the defects of the other, and prevents the fer-
menting process from going too rapidly forward. These
substances to be managed to the best advantage, should
be placed, layer above layer; almost every tiine the
stables are cleaned out. If a little earth can be put be-
tween each layer, so much the better.

Hog dung resists the ill effects of drought remarka-
bly. It is so strong a manure, that it answers well
where mixed with a large proportion of earth, weeds,
straw or other substances, and in this way it is better
than any thing else for potatoes. Used alone it is ex-
cellent on meadow and pasture ground. It is the best
kind of dung for trees. Hot sands and gravel are par-
ticularly benetited bj' it. IS'o dung yields its virtue so
readily as this ; bnt none looses it so soon by bad man-
agement. The time of laying on should be caret^uUy
regarded ; a rain will wash it into the ground very fast,
and a drj"^ wind will carry away much of its efficacy : it
should therefore be covered as soon as possible.

It is almost incredible how great a quantity of good
manure may be obtained, by supplying a hog stye with
rubish of all kinds to mix with the dung. The month
of August is a good time to cart in turf and other good
earths and cover the vegetables in hog pens; on ac-
count of the great heat and warm rains. In this busi-
ness neither time nor expense ought to he spared.

Sheep dv.ng^ is next in value to hog dung. It is suita-
ble for all soils, but being of a hot nature, it is most pro-
per for cold, heavy lands, especially clays.

Folding sheep on fields, which are ploughed up, is a
very good practice; as in this wa}' the land receives ail
the manure that is made from their dung and urine,
without the trouble of previous preparation, carting,
fcc. Bat foiJiiig sheep on small pieces of ground is

FALLOWING. 61

now g-enerally supposed to do the sheep as much injury as it
will benefit the land. When folded in a large field, they
choose a fresh place to lie dovvn every night, and receive no
injury from the breath and smell of the excrements of each'
other. It is said, that in this way 100 sheep will, in
one season, sufficiently manure a fallow of 8 acres for a
good crop of wheat. The manure thus made should be
frequently ploughed or harrowed under, to prevent
much of its evaporation. It is reckoned by some that
a sheep will manure one rod square in about a fortnight.
Let a slight shed be made in a sheep pasture, and under
this cart a layer of sand or other earth about 4 or 5
inches thick : The sheep will resort to this for shade if
it be the only one in the field. As they saturate the
earth thus carted in, bring in more and spread it over
the other, and keep repeating this, until the mass is
raised so high as to render it necessary to cart it off. A
similar practice might be followed with horses and neat
cattle. In winter, the buildinaf appr- updated to sheep,
should have the floor covered a foot and a half deep
with sand, loam, or other earth ; for the sheep to feed
and lie on. Every week or two, if the weather will
permit, a fresh quantity of earth to the depth of 3 or 4
inches should be added.

Poultry dung, tends much to facilitate vegetation, and
is abundantly quicker in its operation than the dung of
animals which feed on the leaves of plants. Liquid ma-
nure, made of this dung, may be applied as a top dress-
ing with great advantage, to promote the early vegeta-
tion of the seeds of onions, carrots, cabbages, &,c. It
must not touch the leaves of the plants. Goose dung is
of great service in the improvement of meadows. Sheep
thrive best on pastures which have been manured with
it. The false notion that the dung of geese occasions
barrenness, has probably arisen from its laying too thick,
for it is of a very hot and fiery nature : but if spread
thin it will prove a valuable manure, especially if mix-
ed with cooling earth, and left in a heap awhile. The
same may be said of any other water-fowl. In general
it is best to mix the dung of poultry with other substan-
ces before appUed to the soil.

Urine, next to dung, is perhaps the rao«t vaJuable
and important of all manures. It should be used as

6fi FALLOWINa.

fresh as possible. If not mixed with solid matter, it
should be diiuled with water, as, when pure, it con-
tains too much animal matter to form a proper lluid nou-
rishment for arsorption by the roots oi plants. It can
be employed with great benefit both on meadows and
arable lands. When applied to meadows, it should be
Sprinkled during the winter and early in the spring,
when the rains will wash it into the soil.

In some places, stable floors are made with clay, or
paved with stone, with a little descent from the cattle's
heads ; or a light descending floor of plank, and a wator-
tight gutter, that conveys the urine from all the stallt
to a cistern, which is supplied with a pump. The fluid
is conveyed and applied to the land b}^ means of a cask,
which is mounted on wheels, being filled at the purnp.
Or it can be collected in a pit and filled by paiis with
long handles. It may also be saved under the floors of
the stalls, by a large quantity of earth laid there to ab-
sorb it; or by a sufficient quantity of litter laid under
the cattle for the purpose; ana by throwing earth in the
puddles which form from dnn^ heaps, k,c. in the yard.
It would be a most important improvement, to dig a pit
contiguous to the feeding stall, of a size adapted to the
number of creatures fed ; this should be filled with good
loam, and all the urine conducted into it. It is surpri-
sing how large a quantity can thus be enriched in one
winter. The pit should be covered to exclude the rain
and frost. A barn cellar would furnish the most conve-
nient place. It is the opinion of Mr. Pickering, that for
the want of such a reservoir for saving tbe urine of our
cattle, more than half of our winter made manure, (and
this is the farmer's chief dependance) is lost. Urine and
the draining from the dunghill, are much better than
dung for truit trees, as penetrating better to their roots,
and not harboring insects. This manure, forces newly
planted cabbages in a most remarkable manner.

Siraxv^ is very valuable, not only in consequence of
its own substance, but from the quantity of liquid mat-
ter it absorbs. B}' carelessness in reaping, perhaps one
fourth part is left upon the ground, which is generally
wasted by rains and storms. When straw is used for lit-
ter, either ibr hogs, or cattle, or horses, it is generally
aJiowed that one ton (the usual product of one acre ©f

FALLOWING. 6S

wheat or rye) will produce four tons of manure ; this
will dress one acre of corn or potatoes in the hiil, and
thus give a profit on the crops of 10 or 15 dollars;
whereas 5 dollars may be considered as a fair market
price for feeding : leaving a balance in favor of littering
of five to ten dollars, besides the warmth afl'orded the
cattle ; allowing the increased value of the land to pay
for carting, &;c. Straw fermented, is a more managea-
ble substance and furnishes more manure for a single
crop, than unfermented. In the latter state, it decom-
poses more siowly, and consequently, though its influ-
ence will be more lasting, yet it produces at first, lesg
effect. To derive the full advantage from it, it ought
to be hauled out before the substance has been wasted
by rain ; by the sun, and by the wind ; and to be buried
in the earth as soon after as possible.

Stubble. On a light soil the stubble should be plough-
ed in deep immediately after the crop is taken off. The
stubble with the weeds will be equal to a moderate
manuring. To pass a roller before the plough will fa-
cilitate the work. On a stiff soil it may be best to burn
the stubbie and plough in the ashes with a shallow fur-
row. The heat given to the ground is much better than
a larger quantity of ashes. In burning it, the danger
which is to be apprehended from the spreading of the
flames may, perhaps, be obviated by tracing a furrow
round the field, and settiag fire to the stubble on the in-
ner edge of the furrow. Or stubbie and the under-
growth may be rii<» v-i, carted into the hog pen, or barn-
yard, or even housed for liit^^r for the winter. The dif-
ference between the value of it used in this way, and
when left to waste on the ground, will not admit oi' com-
parison. If firmers feel no disposition to avail them-
selvi^s of such resouT-ces to fertilize their lands, let them
be cautious to cut thoir grain so close to the ground, as
to leave no stubbie that can be mown or employed to
any particular use.

Paring and Burning. — This process is particularly
adapted to the improvement of soils which are overrun
by the roots of vegt ^hies that cnnnot be destroyed by
the common methods of cultivation ; and on stiff clays,
and S(,ci a-s contain too much vegetable matter. There
is a great diversity of opinion respecting this method of

64 FALLowirrc.

managing" land. The prevailing opinion of writers how-
ever is in favour of the process. We think that many
of our countrymen, possessing low damp meadows, free
from stone, and abounding with moss, dwarf shrubby
plants, tough grasses, &c. may resort to burning the sur-
face with benefit, provided it be conducted with caution.

The late Mr. iNicholson of New-York in his prize es-
say has thus briefly described the operation.

When the ground is in a good sward of grass let it be
carefully turned over with the plough ; the irons of
which should be well sharpened. Let the plough run
about three inches deep. Then cross-plough wiih a
sharp coulter, and the sward will all be cut into squares
of ten or twelve inches. Set these square chunks up
edgvvays, by leaning two together, and they will soon
dry. When well dried, build a part of them up in the
form of little ovens, at the dist^mce of about eighteen
feet each way. These are to have a little opening or
door, at a common windward side, for the air to en-
ter and another opening above, for the smoke to
pass off. On some dry day, when the wind is fair
for blowing into the holes beiow, place some straw or
other dry rubbish into the hfles, and set fire to it. As
«oon as the fires have got fully going in each of the
heaps, let the holes in the tops be stopped up, for the
purpose of retaining the smoke and keep gradually buiid-
ing up the heaps as the fire penetrates them, until all
tl^e chunks of earth are piled up round them; and when
the heaps have fully burned, and sufficiently cooled,
they are to be evenly spread over the ground, and
ploughed in.

We subjoin Mr. Cobbett's method of buriiijig earth.

Make a cricle or an oblong square ; cut sods and
bui:d a wail all round three feet thick and tour feet
hi^h, then ligb.t a fire in the middle wiih straw, dry
sticks, &.C exieiiding it all over the bottom of the pit ;
keep addmg light iuei at first, then rubbish wood, till
there is* a good l;ed of coals. . Then put on the driest of
the ciods, taking care to keep the smoke m. Continue thus
for a day or tvvo, when you may dig out the earth any
where about the kiln and fling on. Put your finger in-
to the top of the heap here and there ; if you find the
fire very near, throw on more earth; not loo'much at a

FALLOWING. 65

time, for it deadens the fire. The ashes (or torrified
earth) will he cool enough to remove ia a week, peat
or bog eartli may be burnt or bog earth may be burnt
in the same way, or dry^ as in the paring and burning
method. Some only kindle a lire and lay on dry soils
at lirst, and when the whole is under good way, throw
on the earth, (subsoil, fcc.) to be torritiel, till the heap
is sufficiently large. This manure applied to cabbages,
ruta-baga, Indian corn, and buckwheat produces great
effect.

Ploughing in Green Crops, is considered beneficial on
all light soils. By repeating this culture, poor or worn
out land ma}'^ be made rich. It is strongly recommend-
ed for all places where it is difficult to procure manure ;
where g3q)sum will not assist the soil, or where it can-
not be had without too much expense. Buckwheat, rye,
millet, pease, oats, and turnips are all considered suita-
ble lor tiiis purpose. Perhaps buckwheat is the least
suitable of any of them. Two crops of some of them
can be ploughed in before sowing wmter grain. They
must always be ploughed in when in flower, or at the
time the flov/er is beginning to appear. To prevent
the plough from choaking, if the ground is free from
rocks, a roller should be p.assed over the crop, in the
direction the plough is to pass, where this instrument is
wanting, the back of the harrow can be used, giving it
additional weight if necessary. In about three weeks
the ground will be ready for another crop, which can
be sowed upon the furrow.

Mr. Pomeroy, of Massachusetts, considers rye, supe-
rior to any thing within our reach for this purpose. In
order to ensure a sutlicient growth, in season to plough
in for Indian corn and most of our root crops, rye
shoaid be sown the begip.r.ing or by the middle of Au-
gust, and much thicker than when intended for a crop
of grain. If it gets too forward before winter, it should
be fed down with light stock or mown. AVinter rye,
sown early in the spring, grows rapidly, and will generr
ally arrive at sufficient stature in season to be t-irned
in as manure for ruta baga. Rye. plovighed in when iii
full flower, and millet sown, which it will briiSg forward
wlih great luxuriance, rnd that in its most succulent
state turned in for wheat, may be one of the best fal-
7

CO . FALLOWING.

low preparations for it that can be devised ; and is prob-
ably the cheapest and most convenient process to res-
tore an exhausted soil. At the same time it should be
considered, that gypsum acts more powerfully on soils
thus prepared.

Gypsum There is not any manure concerning which

the reports of experimenters have been so contradicto-
ry as in the case of plaster of Paris. Its advantages are un-
doubtedly great. Plaster is more useful on dry than oa
wet soils, particularly on gravelly or sandy loams, and in
some measure prevents the effects of drought. Its dis-
covery has almost doubled the value of land in certain
places. It is supposed to be useful on drained clayey
soils, preventing their baking. It seems probable also,
that it is best fOrland in a state of sward, though it is
usefully employed on others.

The following are the conclusions of Chancellor Liv-
ingston and Mr. Logan after various trials. That there
is no difference between European and American gyp-
sum. It acts as an immediate manure to grass. One
dressing will continue in force for several succeeding
crops. It does not produce any remarkable effects used
as a top dressing for grain. On stiff clays the increase
of vegetation will not pay the expense of the m.anure.
It is uniformly beneficial to Indian corn, unless in very
rich or very wet lands. Beneficial to flax on dry, poor,
sandy land. Particularly adapted to the growth of clo-
ver in all dry soils, or even in wet soils in a dry sea-
son. That it has no effect in the vicinity of the sea —
but from the successful use of planter near the sea
coast in the state of Maine, on Long Island, and near
the salt water in this state, by Mr. Moses Brown, the
editors unite in opinion, with many others, that its ope-
ration depends more on the nature of the soil, or quali-
ty of the article, than on the state of the atmosphere,
contiguous to the sea coast.

Gypsum generally benefits all broad leaved plants —
such as corn, potatoes, peas, clover and most of the
grasses. It is also good for young fruit trees. On gras-
ses, the best time to sow it is when vegetation starts in
the spring, at the rate of 1 bushel per acre, and the same
quantity immediately^ after haying. On corn and pota-
toes, it is generally applied to the growing plant j oth-

FALLOWING. 67

ers recommend that for corn it be sowed broad cast, at
the rate of one or one and a half bushel per acre, pre-
vious to the last ploughing. Plaster is commonly used
upon different plans, varying according to its objects.
If designed to last for a term of years, it is strewed, at
the rate of three, four, five, and even six bushels to the
acre ; others think an annual application like the above
better. In general its effects are not seen till the sec-
ond 3'^ear. Some recommend mixing one bushel of damp
ashes to two bushels of plaster, when sowing it, to pre-
vent its flying.

Plaster applied to seeds of Indian corn, &.c. after be-
ing soaked in some fertilizing liquor, such as a mixture
of old urine, lye of wood ashes, or strong soap-suds,
with a solution of saltpetre, and sown or planted imme-
diatelj^, proves profitable.

That the effect of plaster will be continued indefinite-
ly, under a constant removal of the whole crop from
the soil, surpasses belief. It can scarcely fail to ex-
haust, at length, the productive powers of the earth.

A ton of plaster will make from twenty to twentj'^-five
bushels. To know its quality, a quantity of the powder
when heated in a dry pot over a fire, emits a sulphu-
reous smell. If it briskly bubbles or seems to boil, it is
good, if but little, it is indifferent ; if it remains an inert
mass, like sand, it is worthless. Before it is pounded,
if good, the finger nail commonly makes an impression
upon its surface, and it is not gritty.

Lirne^ is of extensive utility for manureing lands both
in its native state, and after it has been burnt. It is
most useful on stiff clays and cold loams. Light soils re-
quire a much less quantity. It will reduce peat and turf
to a mere vegetable earth. It will produce a high de-
gree of fermentation, in all soils which require it ; and
this is essential to their productiveness, in every
country and climate. The best lime for applying lime
is, when land is newly broken up, after laying a long
time in grass. But it is to little purpose to write on
this article, as lime is so scarce and dear in most parts of
our country, it cannot be often used for manure.

Trials of lime in this country have been quite limited,
and confined mostly to the middle states, particularly
Pennsylvania. It has usually been applied there at the

68 FALLOWING.

rate ofabout forty bushels to the acre. In Europe ten
times this quantity is frequently used. It is found that
the lands which have there been limed, are more pow-
erfully sliiiialated by the application of gypsum, than
those which have not. It is an easy matter for our far-
mers to ascertain how far it will be profitable for them
to use lirnc, by making experiments with a single cask.
But if too little, is applied the application may prove
usciess, and the whole expense be lost ; whereas, it
rarely hajjpens that injury is sustained from an excess,
especially if more or less dung is soon after administer-
ed. Mr. Anderson was firmly convinced, from repeated
observations, that lime and other calcareous manures,
produce a much greater proportional improvement upon
poor soils, than on such as are richer. And that lime
alone, upon a pof;r soil, will in many cases, produce a
much greater and more lasting degree of fertility, than
dung alone. Generally where lime is applied, a less
quantity of dung will answer.

The best way to apply it, according to Mr. Picker-
ing, is to slake it with water, and as soon as it falls to a
fine powder and is cool, to spread it evenly over the
land, and with the harrow mix it with the soil immedi-
ately, and thoroughly.

Lime having a tendency to sink in the soil, cannot be
kept too near the surface. The quality possessed by
lime ot producing a great degree of fermentation, ren-
ders it cf singular use in making composts ; operating
upon a heap of earth, in some degree, as yeast does upon
a quantity of flour or meal. If a handful of lime be thrown
upon a spot of iong rank grass, that has been rejected for
years, cattle will afterwards eat it close to the ground. 1

Although lime is dearer in the first instance, than
plaster, yet as the former continues its powerful effects
for seven or eight years ; in the end it may be cheaper
in certain districts.

tSea-shells^ when burnt, make a strong lime. The far-
mer can burn them with a trilling expense. For some
Sf.iis they may be partially burnt; but for light soils
they ma} be applied by merely breaking them. A thor-
ough dressing of shells enri< hes land for many years.

Ashes. — The properties of ashes, from whatever de-
rived, are nearly the same. They are a valuable ma-

, FALLO'iVING. 69

nure, and should be carefully preserved from wet and
air. One load of dry well preserved ashes, will go
as far as two or three that have been carelessly kept.
They are good for almost all crops, and are to be used
as a top-dressing, because they soon tind their vray into
the soil. By their tendency downwards, if put under
the surface they will siak too low. They are consider-
ed rather more useful near the sea than in the interior.
They are most beneficial to cold and damp lands,
but of great service to ail. A few bushels on an acre
are a good dressing for grass lands that are low, and in-
clining to be mossy. Besides their fertilizing qualities,
they check the ravages of worms and insects, andshould
therefore be applied to cabbages, turnips, cucumbers,
melons, peas and other pulse. Ashes should be spread
evenly, not in too great quantities, just before ruin is the
best time. They are an excellent nourishment for the
roots of trees. Ashes do well in composts if kept un-
der cover, making a fine mixture with cow, fowls, and
short horse dung; and mixed with mud have been tho't
by Arthur Youngs superior to ashes alone, and four times
better than mud alone.

Perhaps ashes may be most profitably applied to In-
dian corn, particularly where the soil is not suitable to
the plant. On sward land about a gill of dry ashes, (the
effect from a greater or less quantity about the same,)
or half a shovel full of leached ashes, should be spread
circularly round the top of the hill at the first hoeing,
not touching the plants. A re-application at the time
the ears are forming will be profitable.

Soot, as a top-dressing, is much more valuable than
ashes, and is proper for almost all arable lands.

Jl/f/r/, is a substance scarcely known in this part of
the world, 3^et it is not improbable that it abounds in
many places amongst us. It is therefore of importance
that -its distinguishing qualities should be briefly pointed
out, that every parcel of earth, which bears any resem-
blance to it, should be examined with care, as the dis-
covery would be invalulable. Marls are various in their
qualities and colors, some hard, some earthy, and some
shelly, &ic. Beds of it are sometimes found under light
sandy soils, sometimes in bog swamps, in clayey lands,
?iad along the banks of rivers. Boring may discover
7*

70 FALLOWING.

wliere it U. Marls have been known to fertilize all
kinJs of soil, but light sandy ones more than any other.
It can be di.itin^uished from clay, which is the onl}'^ sub-
stance it is likely to be mistaken for, by its effervesing
with acids; if any of the mineral acids, or even strong
vinegar, be dropped upon the surface of the marl, it will
produce an immediate effervesence, or in other words
tne drop v/ill assume the appearance of boiling ; this
will not be the case with clay. A more simple
mode may be adopted where no acid is at hand ; take a
lump the size of an ounce ball aodwhen it is well dried,
drop it into a tumbler of clear water ; if it be marl it
will immediately crumble into a fine soft paste in the
bottom of the glass, giving off innumerable tine air bub-
bles which rise to the surface in rapid sucession ; if
clay it will not be much changed by the water. Marl
should be placed upon the land late in the fall, and left
in small heaps to be pulverised by the frosts, &.C. and
late in the spring spread equalh'^ over the surface. If
applied in sufficient quantity, its effects will be as per-
ceptible as that produced by the most judicious applica-
tion of gypsum.

Peat^ is often found in low miry and boggy places, that
lie between hills, and is sometimes found in cold hilly
tracts. That which is the most solid, is the most valu-
able. It sometimes forms, and in other places is very
near the surface ; and sometimes 8 or 10 feet below it.
It is known by cutting smooth like butter, being free
from grit, and burning when dried. After long exposure
to the air, it becomes hard, like a cinder. When put in
composts, in which lime is an ingredient, it is converted
into a substance, similar to the black dirt of bog-mea-
dows. Until lately, it has been the practice to burn
peat earth, and use the ashes for top-dressings ; (which
are supposed to be much stronger than wood ashes ;) but
we believe this practice in Europe has mostly given
way to that of rotting peat in compost. One ton of
dung will ferment three tons of peat or mo«;s earth. —
This, it is observed in the Code of Agriculture^ is a most
valuable discovery.

Mud, taken from swamps, ponds, ditches, rivers, and
the sea, becomes excellent manure, consisting of pnlri-
fied animal and vegetable bodies mixed with the rich

FALLOWING. 7 1

earth deposited by rains, &c. It is most suitable for
sand}^ or gravelly soils. It should not be put upon
ground, especially those in a state of grass, until it has
been reduced into a considerable degree of fineness, by
means of frequent turning over, and the mixing of por-
tions of lime, rotten dung, or other materials of the
same kind, in order to render the decay of its parts
complete. As a top dressing for grass it should not be
laid on very thick. Mr. Deane says he has known it to
have as good an effect as barn dung, in the culture of
Indian corn, upon dry soils; and that it meliorates the
land for several years. The best method of managing
all sorts of mud, were it not for increasing the labour,
would be to lay it in farm yards, and let it be thoroughly
mixed with the dung, and state of animals. When it is
so managed, the compost is excellent, and fit for almost
any soil, though best for light ones. Perhaps the advan-
tage is sufficient to pay for the increased expense of
twice carting. Mud taken from the docks, and sides of
wharves in large towns is very valuable.

Salt. By numerous experiments, it it decided, that
sea salt acts as a manure in some cases to a degree that
proves its excellence when properly applied. In pla-
ces where experiments have been made, salt has been
called, the most efficacious.^ the best., and the cheapest of all
manures. Its effects are said to have been visible in
some places after 30 years ! It is considered the most
grateful to vegetation of all manures. Cattle fed on
land manured with salt, are said to fatten in two thirds
the usual time. Their flesh is also finer flavoured. Salt
is considered most efficacious, when mixed in composts,
in dunghills, or strewed over dung when carried to the
field. If unmixed, undissolved, or used in too great
quantities, it endangers the existence of tender plants.
Pulverised, and applied as a top dressing, at the rate of
from 2 to 4 bushels to the acre, it has had a powerful
effect. Flax has been much assisted by two bushels per
acre, and even five instead of being injurious has been
of extrordinary advantage. It is supposed that flax and
all oily seed should be sown with double their quantity
of salt. It is recommended for turnips, onions, destroy-
ing weeds and noxious vermin. Sown thick over a as-
paragus (a maratime plant) in the fall, and lightly

72 FALLOWING.

sprinkled over in Ihe spring, promotes its growth and
destroys weeds. Barn dung is much improved by salt-
ing stock li^'erally. Quaniity of salt, and qilalities of
the soil, make a diiference. Too much bunn ; too lit-
tle is ineffectual. The safest way is to begin by using
it sparingly, always ieavin-; a small portion of the same
land without salt, that a ju^^t comparison of its effects
may be made.

Sen-water^ applied tc manures in small quantities is
found to possess powerful effocrs in promoting putrefac-
tion, and would probably prove highly beneficial to all
farmers near the sea side. A ton of water contains
from one to one and an half bushel of salt. Mr. Deane
makes mention of 100 hills of potatoes, which had two
quarts of sea-water applied to each, immediately after
planting; and he sa3^s that the product of these was
one-halt more than the same number of adjoining hills
produced. Most probablj'^, a quart to each hill would
have been better. He mentions also a piece of flax, of
which one side was short and yellow ; but, on its being
sprinkled with this water, it equalled the rest in about
ten daj^s, and eventually was the best. He found it
equally good for stiff and sandy grounds.

Sca-wecih where used with judgment, never fails to
enrich coast lands, especially those that are light and
dry. It should be ploughed in while green ; if there is
much delay in this business, especially in hot weather,
much of its goodness is lost. If that cannot be accom-
plished, a portion of quick lime should be blended with
the henps, and a quantity of earth placed beneath, mix-
ed with, and covered over them ; in this way the quan-
tity of manure can be increased, and its elfects render-
ed more lasting. It is best calculated for barley, endu-
ring for two crops.

Fish-iJianure ! — My corn should not grow at the ex-
pense of so much life. Swim on ye harmless tenants of
the deep; and sport at freedom in your native wave.
If I lived on the shores of ocean, your decomposing bo-
dies should not contaminate the air of my fragrant iields,
nor mar the happy rural scene. Nor wou!-! I manure
my soil with such phosphate of lime as some of the Bri-
tish farmers use, — bones transported from the baltlc-lield,
and ground in their sweet mills.

FALLOWING. 73

Dead Animals. When animals die, it is nsual to let
them lie above ground ; and some farmers hang dead
lambs, cats, dogs, &.c. in the forks of trees, or throw
them on hovels or stumps at some elevation from the
ground, to the annoyance of the public! By covering
dead animals, says Mr. Davy^ with five or six times their
bulk of soil, mixed with one part of lime, and suffering
them to remain for a few months, their decomposition
would enrich the soil, so as to render it an excellent
manure ; and by mixing a little fresh quick lime with it,
at the time of its removal, the disagreeable effluvia will
be in a great measure destroyed ; and it might be em-
ployed in the same way as any other manure to crops.
Or without lime, if left a suitable time they can be re-
moved without difficulty.

Scrapings of streets^ a good manure for all soils, but
particularly for stubborn clays.

Leaves. It is said that the mould and fallen leaves
from the woods, are good tor potatoes, as a substitute
for other manure. This may be worth the attention of
those who are deficient in other manure.

Brick and lime rubbish., is very good for cold plough
lands.

Apple pummice., may be converted into a manure.
Good earth with a little dung should be mixed with it
before it is applied to the soif.

Tanners'' bark., is sometimes mixed with lime, but will
do best made into a compost with dung. It is a good
manure for cold, stifl' lands. On grass lands it should al-
ways be spread in the fall. It will revive orchards.

Saw-dust, when rotten, is useful for strong lands ; a
little wet decays it, and the eflect is more speedy than
tanner's bark, but not so lasting.

Composts., furnish a supply of manure when a suffi-
ciency of animal dung cannot be obtained.

When manure is not made by hogs kept in the pen
during the summer, the compost heap should be particu-
larly attended to. The following, extracted from the
Plough Boy., is a very easy and economical method of
making a compost heap. Let every farmer mark out a
!«pot, from six to thirty feet square, according to the
size of his farm ; this spot should be dug down two or
three feet and the earth formed in a bank around it ; a

•74 iPALLOVVING.

few stout posts with crotches should be planted in a
line along the middle of the pit, and shorter ones should
be placed at the sides, to receive strong poles, on
which to erect a shed of common boards. Having thus
cheaply made a shelter, which secures the manure from
the sun, from rain, and from water running into it,
(while by removing a few of the boards, a little rain can
be admitted in a dry time) the materials can be thrown
together. A quantity of top earth or soils, and if the
soil of the farm is stiff, a quantity of sand should be
mixed and laid in the pit a foot thick. On this may be
laid every ingredient that can be gathered together,
that is calculated to manure the soil for which it is in-
tended. Clay, sand, mud, lime, peat, &.c. may therefore
be parts. To these may be added the scrapings of the
back yard, turfs on which cattle have long dunged, old
rubbish of buildings, earth that has been long covered,
banks of rich earth thrown up by the plough against
fences, weeds, some animal manure, leached ashes, old
fodder, feathers, refuse wool, woolen rags, hoofs of cat-
tle, burnt bones, raw skins, bits of leather, curriers
shavings, olTall of fish, moss, old brine, soap suds, &c.
These substances should be mixed as much as p- ssible in
forming the heap ; which should be about five feet high,
and when this settles by decomposition, more must be
added. The heap should have such a degree of mois-
ture as best promotes fermentation and corruption. This
should proceed no farther than to destroy the seeds of
weeds. Complete putrefaction seems of importance
with regard to these ; if they remain sound, they are
carried out with the manure, and infest the ground. A
cavity may be made at one side of the heap, to receive
any liquid that runs from it, and this should be thrown
from time to time, on the top of it with a scooping
shovel. To prevent swine or fowls from disturbing the
heap, it may be enclosed with wide boards, or walled
two or three feet high. It should not be prepared too
long before used.

Composts are well calculated for grass lands, and
ought to supercede the offensive, and wasteful practice,
of laying putrescent matter on the surface of the soil.

If our farmers in general would be persuaded to avail
themselves of as many of these manures as fall in their

FALLOWING. 75

way, or cnn be easily obtained, we should no longer hear
so mm\y dismal complaints, ot short crcp^, and worn
out lands. The i'ace of the country would soon be sur-
priringiy improved.

preservation cf manures. It is well observed in the
American Farmer., that the careful preservauon, and
suitai:le application, of manures, form one of the best
criterians of a good farmer. Without atteniion to these,
in old cultivated districts like ours, lauds must become
impoverished, and tiiiage an unprotitabie branch of hus-
bandry.

The prevalent errors, observes Mr. BueU in the econ-
omy of manures, are a want of properly constructed
farm yards ; a neglect to stable or yard stock during-
some of our winter weather; and a waste of straw,
stalks, and other vegetable litier. We seldom see
among us yards so constructed as to retain the iJuids
which are produced in them. On the contrary, cattle
yards are often located with the a[. parent intention of
being drained into an adjoining field, a neighboring
brook, or the highway ; and we frequently see them
destitute of any substantial and permanent enclosures.
The practice of feeding cattle at stacks, remote from the
farm yard, occasions a waste of fodder, a great loss of
manure, and serious injury frequently to grass grounds,
by the poaching of the catties feet. The waste of
green and dry litter, is a still more serious injury to
good husbandry. Straw, and stalks and hu«ks of Indian
corn are often fed in open fields, or suffered to waste ia
heaps; while the practice is very general to permit
weeds of all kinds, after the crop is harvested, to ripen
and shed their seeds upon the fields, to the ver}' serious
injury of future crops.

Experience points out that a barn-yard should be a
little hollowed. Its principal use, besides that of hold-
ing the dung, being to bring the rain water failing with-
in the yard into the state of stagnation, and to let it pass
off superficially, so as to prevent any thing of a cur-
rent from carrying away the dung, either in a mas«;, or
thick fluid condition ; merely suffering the more watery
particles to run off into a reservoir or receiver, con-
structed for the purpose, or into adjoining cultivated
fields.

76 FALLOWING.

If a reservoir is formed for the superfluoui? wash of
tlie yartl, large quantities of earth and Ut.er should be
thrown into it; for a compost, so collected, is an admi-
rable top-dressing for permanent grass land, or young
clover. The yard should be free from rocks, and sur-
rounded by a Viigh close fence. If the soil is not com-
pact enough to retain moisture, it should be beded with
clay six or eight inches deep, beat down compact, and
covered with gravel or sand, to prevent its removal
when manure is taken out. Before the commencement
of the foddering season, the yanl should be covered
with some kind of earth, to the depth of eight or ten,
or more inches, according to the num!)er of cattle. The
cattle should be strictly confined during winter, (except
to exercise occasionally, and not turned out, as is fre-
quently the case, into the pastures and meadows, by
which the making of much manure i prevented, great
injury in m.any situations done to grass^lands, and the
stock, from being much exposed to cold and other cau-
ses, benefitted in a far less degree than is commonly im-
agined. A well should be made close to the yard to
supply them with water ; this will save much manure,
prevent accidents, and in times of ice and snow prevent
the stock from suffering for drink as they often do,
when the owner is ignorant of it. Where the number of
cattle confined in a y;iri is considerable, it may be ne-
cessary, occasionally, to remove the bottoms, and the
matters littered upon them, to dung heaps, after they
have become blended with rich materials. These must
be immediately replaced by more earth, &c.

As great waste is occasioned by the evaporation of
the more liquid parts of manure heaps, when exposed to
the sun or NVinds, and the wa«*hing of rains and melting
of snows ; it is sasr^este 1 that moveable coverings of
some light kind of materials be placed over them. Ma-
nures kept in this way are far more efficacious. If this
1-; not done, mining dry earth, or other absorbed substan-
ces with the heaps will assist in preserving them. Or
if the heaps are to remain some time exposed to the sun,
&c. they should be covered with turf

It is an excellent practice to cover the whole surface
of the dung heap ^vith a light coat of earth every time
the stables are cleaned out, if there is no other cover-

FALLOWING. 77

ing". Troughs should conduct the water from the eves,
and every reasonable precaution shouid be used to pre-
vent the manure from being washed by rains. As soon
as the manure is cleaned out of the yard for spring
crops, if the cattle are to be kept in it at night, it should
be covered with litter, and a coat of earth, or mud ;
and as often as once in two weeks, a new coat of earth
should be introduced. In this way manure may be in-
creased in a four fold degree. Or every morning after
the cattle are turned out, the manure shouid be thrown
in one corner of the yard, and on this a load of earth
should occasionally be thrown. But if a yard is left na-
ked until autumn, exposed to our burning summer suns,
w^ithout litter or mud, or earth of any kiiid, to absorb
the essence of the manure, much the largest part will
be exhaled and given to the winds. Fresh manure should
be kept as careiully from the sun and rain as grass
which has been cut for hay.

By keeping hogs in a large open pen during summer,
large quantities of manure may be made by a plan simi-
lar to that recommended for the barn yard. Mr, But-
lev recommends the sowing half an acre of clover on a
rich soil near the barn, to be cut green and fed to hogs,
as both cheap and profitable. Into the hog pen can ba
thrown coarse hay, pumpkin and potatoe vines, oorn
bottoms, husks, weeds of allkinds, &c.

Application of manures. — A few ol;servations remain
to be made under this head, in addition to what has
been said on the various articles.

Animal manure should not be suffered to ferment,
previous to its application, except in a very slight de-
gree. Mr. Davy says, it looses 60 parts out of 100, when
the process of fermentation is allowed to proceed unin*
terruptediy. A slight fermentation is undoubtedly of
use in the dunghiil, where there is a considerable col-
lection of straw, hay, &lc. for by means of it a disposition
is brought on to decay when ploughed into the soil, and
the work is more conveniently executed. Too great a
degree of fermentation is however very prejudicial to
compost manure in the dung hill ; it is better that tliere
should be no fermentation a- ail before the manure m
used, than that it should be carried too f\ir. There are
many arguments and facts which shew it is prejudicial
8

^7 ^f

78 rALLOWINflf.

to the interests of the farmer, to permit the violent fer-
mentation which is necessary for reducing- farm yard

manure to the state in which it is called short muck

We allow that when well rotted, it is more eflicacious
for a single crop, but its utihty is of much shorter dura-
tion.

To prevent inconvenience from seeds in unfermented
barnyard dung", it should be applied to no other than hoed
crops. Compost manures, having fermented sufficiently
to destroy the seeds of weeds, can be used for all crops,
where the hoe is not used. To avoid any inconven-
ience by applying long, or unfermented manures to cer-
tain crops, such as flax, wheat, turnips, &c. we have on-
ly to apply the manure to the preceding crop.

It seems to be generally agreed^ that iising fresh^ iinfer'
merited manure for drill crops, burying it at a good depth^
and raising the plant over the dung thus buried, is the best
possible way in which it can be used The shortest dung
should be used for these purposes, except for potfitoes.
Throw the mora strawy parts of the dung in a heap four
or five feet high under cover, sUr it up from the bottom
in five or six we^^ks, and it v/ill do well for ruta baga.

Fibrous-rooted grasses should receive top-dressings of
manure, and tap-rooted grasses, and all grain and root
crops should have manure applied at a depth suited to
the nature of the roots. All dressings must consist of
materials adapted to the soil, and such manures as are
likely to receive injury from l)eing spread upon the sur-
face, should be lightly ploughed, or harrowed in. The
fall is supposed much the best time to spread manure on
grass lands. But those manures which exert all their
strength suddenly, such as ashes, soot, and warm com-
posts, should be applied just before the time when the
plants will need the greatest supply of vegetable nour-
ishment, which is when their growth is most rapid, or
near the time when the ears are shooting out.

All kinds of manure, should be mixed with the soil as
soon after carting out as possible. To do this to advan-
tage it should not be cart-ed, spread, &c. faster than it
can be covered with the plough or hoe. Rich fermen-
ting manures should be applied as near the time of plan-
ling as possible.

FALLOWING. 79

As regards the depth at which manure ought to be
placed, extremes must be avoided. Barn dung should
be buried to a good depth ; and in this state should re-
main till it has sufficiently rotted ; for by lying too near
the surface much of its efficacy is lost. Other manures
which have a tendency to sink, must have a different
management.

A sound discretion is essential, in determining how
much manure may be expended, to advantage, on lands ;
generally speaking, much is lost in falling short of that
point where, by the aid of plentiful manuring, the
greatest profits are to be expected. Enough should be
applied to fertilize the ground,, and render it capable
of producing good crops. Soils may, however, be over
charged with composts, or with raw barn-dung. But it
has been too much practised in this country, to apply
scanty portions of manure to lands in tillage, and hard-
ly sufficient to have a perceptible effect. Mr. Deane re-
commends a plentiful dunging, once in two years, or in
a course of crops ; and the year the manure is laid on,
take a crop that bears high manuring best, as Indian
corn : Afterwards crops that need less manure, till the
end of the course.

There is a system of management (says the celebra-
ted Arthur Young'^ which has attracted a good deal of
attention, and that is, to use dung fresh as made ; thus
requiring no dunghills at all, or nearly none. He men-
tions the late Mr. Ducket, who conceived that the more
dunghills are stirred, and turned over, and rotted, the
more of their virtue was lost. Long dung he esteemed
much more than the same quantity of short dung. A
very accurate farmer, of Hertfordshire, says the fresher
dung is used, the better, even for grass. Near Meaux,
in France, the farmers carry out their dung quite in a
long strawy state, which they contend earnestly is much
better than to leave it to be more rotten. He quotes
many other authorities in f\ivour of this management,
which tends to reduce their labour and increase their
crops. Warmth and nutriment will in this way be more
gradually applied to the roots of plants. Vegetable and
animal matters cannot serve as manures, says Senebier^
till they begin to ferment; nor are they of any utility
when the fermentation is finished. Fresh long dung;

80 FALLOWING.

more particularly should be applied to hoeing crops, or
to grass land. Upon this system the dung which is
made in the depth of* winter may be spread in May, for
corn and potatoes ; the next made, and what is not want-
ed for corn and potatoes, niay be taken out, in June, for
ruta-baga, cabbages, &c. The best time for manuring
grass (in England) is immediately after hay is cleared
irom the tield. 1o conclude — He who is within the
sphere of the scent of a dunghill, smells that which his
crop would have consumed, if he would have permit-
ted it. Instead of manuring his land, he manures the
atmosphere ; and before his dunghill is finished turning,
he has manured perhaps another town !

If every kind of putrid substance that could be col-
lected in the spring of the year, was properly applied
as manure, this dead ' matter would be springing into
life ; and those farmers who would do it would be doubly
paid for their labour in enriching their lands, and caus-
ing them to produce abundance, and in being able to
breathe a pure air, ^vhich is too often poisoned by the
noxious effluvia which are rising from barn-yards and
putrid substances around buildings, and which no doubt
frequently produce fevers and other diseases during the
/Glimmer and fall season.

Having thus briefly described some of the most im-
portant circumstances connected with the collecting,
preserving, and application of manures, we shall con-
clude this branch of our subject with Mr. Close''s very
valuable table for manuring land, which will enable the
farmer at one inspection to calculate, with accuracy, the
number of loads which it will be necessary to employ
in manuring a field per acre ; at the distance therein
specified.

Number of loads per acre.
Kumher of heaps to a load^ 1 |2|3|4|5|6j7l8

At 5 yards distance, 193 06 64 48 33 32 27 24

At 5 1-2 yards distance, 160 8U 53 40 32 26 23 20

At 6 yards distance, 134 67 44 33 2G 22 19 16

At 6 "l-^ vards distance, 114 57 38 28 22 19 16 14

At 7 yards distance, 98 49 32 24 19 16 14 12

At 7 1-2 yar.ls distance, 86 43 28 21 17 14 12 10

At 8 yards distance, 75 37 25 18 15 12 10 9

FALLOWING. 81

Explanation of the first two rows of figures in ike prece-
ding Table.
The number of heaps consisting" of one load each,
laid at five yards distant, is 193 to cover one acre; at
two heaps to a load 98 ; 2ii three heaps, 64; at four., 43;
and so to the end: — each of the following rows is to be
read in a similar manner.

CULMIFEROUS CROPS.

The varieties of corn ranked as culmiferous, or rob-
bing ones, are, wheat, barley, oals, and rye ; to which
may be added Indian corn, and millet. These we are
inclined to consider as bearing hard upon the soil. Du-
ring the ripening of the seed, they draw probably their
whole nourishment from tha soil ; as the leaves by this
time, being dry and withered, must have lost their pow-
er of drawing nourishment froni the air. But such
plants, while young, are all leaves ; and in that state
draw much of their nourishment from the air. Hence it
is, that when cut green for food to cattle, a culmiferous
crop is far from being a robber. It is by fixing upon
the most proper of each for the soil cultivated, that the
judgment of the farmer is correctly ascertained. In
other respects, such as the exhaustion of the ground,
we view it as a matter of little importance Avhich of
them is preferred. The above are also called whiie
crops.

LEGUMINOUS CROPS.

Though culmiferous crops have, in all ages, been re-
garded as most profitable, there is no doubt, but that ru-
ral management is most saitably exercised when due
attention is paid to the preparative crops, orthose which
are naturally calculated to enrich or fertilize the soil,
and to furnish an increased stock of manure. These
preparative or enrichiu'r crops are usually called iegu-
miaous ; under this head are ranked, beans, peas, clov-
er, potatoes, ruta-baga, mangel-wurlzel, turnips, cabba-
ges, carrots, parsnips, and buckwheat. The above are
also called green crops.

ROTATION OF CROPS.

No branch of husbandry requires more skill and sa-
gacity than a proper rotation of crops, so as to keep
H=8

8.2 FALLOWING.

the ground ahvays in heart, and yet to draw out of it
the greatest protit possible. In many parts of the Uni-
ted States, it is very little, if at all attended to. In
new settled districts, the extreme fertility and abun-
dance of the lands lessens the necessity of an attention
to rotation of crops, but in any situation, the farmer
will tind, if he takes the trouble to make a comparative
experiment, that some crops are much more abundant
when they succeed certain grains and roots, than when
put in at random. Some kinds of vegetables extend
their roots near the surface, others penetrate deeper in-
to the soil, some by overshadowing the earth with their
broad leaves render it soft and mellow ; others, w^hose
naked stalks admit the free circulation of the air, con-
solidate the soil ; some derive the greatest part of their
nourishment from the juices lodged in the earth ; others
draw a considerable proportion from the atmosphere ;
some, having a longer period of existence, continue long
to demand nourishment; others arrive more quickly at
maturity, and must be easier supported. Besides, among
the various tribes of insects so feeble in themselves, but
so formidable and destructive by their numbers, each
has some vegetables which it prefers to others for its
food, and resorts to the places where such food is pro-
duced ; and as they propagate their kinds where their
food is found, they must become more numerous, and
consequently more destructive, where the cultivation of
the same plant is often repeated. Rozier^ in his diction-
ary of agriculture remarks — Every tap-rooted plant suc-
ceeds very well after a crop of plants with fibrous roots,
and thus alternately. That is the grand art of agricul-
ture— when the nature of the soil is well understood.
The cultivator never swerves from these data or posi-
tions, without paying dearly.

Whatever may be said to the contrary, all soils cer-
tainly suffer some degree of deterioration by long, un-
remitted tillage. When divested of that clothing with
which nature always defends it if undisturbed, and when
turned up naked to abide the force of the blast, the
happy medium of consisience is deranged, its best par-
ticles carried away in 'orrents, and it is left a feeble
skeleton, possessing only the faint semblance of depart-
ed fertility. Land also which lies perpetually in gras^,

FALLOWING. 83

is deprived of the advantage of having the vegetable
substance accumulating on the surface from time to
time mixed into the soil. It is a maxim of Mr. Peters,
President of the Philadelphia Agricultural Society, To
lay down land and break it up often. Convertible hus-
bandry, or regulur alternations of tillage crops and pas-
tures and meadows, seem therefore, to be the only sys-
tem by which the fertility of the country can be pre-
served and improved- Whatever pains we take, what-
ever expenses we incur, in collecting instruments of
husbandry, in accumulating and applying manures, and
in tilling the earth ; all is to little purpose, unless to
these we superadd a succession of crops^ adapted to the
nature of the soil — to the laws of the climate^ and to the
physical character and commercial value of the article
raised. The practice of applying manure and cropping,
so as to draw out the strength of it, and that of the
soil, as soon as it can be done, until the land is rendered
quite barren and incapable of affording any more pro-
duce without some respite, is most miserable, and de-
serves the highest reprobation.

Crops are generally divided into two kinds, viz. those
that exhaust and impoverish the soil on which they
grow ; and those that ameliorate and improve it. The
first are fibrous-rooted plants, as Indian corn, wheat,
barley, rye, oats, flax, &c. The second includes all the
leguminous and tap-rooted tribes, as beans, peas, tur-
nips, parsnips, carrots, clover, &c. Agricultural im-
provement depend in a great measure on the judicious
interchange of their different crops; in soils which are
well adapted to a variety of plants ; for under proper
management land may be constantly cropped, without
the intervention of a fallow, as was formerly the prac-
tice. It is easier and cheaper to keep land in heart,
than to restore it after it is worn out. Weeds will so
increase, especially in old farms, as almost to spoil a
crop, unless a hoed crop intervene to check them <nce
in two or three years. And a green hoed crop helps to
prepare land for producing other crops, by enriching it.
Wheat land, for instance, may be recruited, and cleared
of its weeds, by a crop of beans, or potatoes, as effec-
tually as by fallowing.

B4 FALLOWING.

It is difficult to determine what particular routine of
crops is best. Green and white crops, alternately, are
in general reconrimended. Soils differ so greati}^ even
in fields which lie contiguous, that the course ot^ crops
which is suitable for one is unsuitable for another.

The following important rules, in regard to rotations,
are particularly recommended.

1. When any farm begins to be improved, it is neces-
sary to commence with such crops as are the most likely
to produce manure ; nor should two exhausting crops be
attempted, in succession, until the soil has acquired a
considerable degree of fertiiity.

2. The crops should be so arranged, that the labour
of ploughing for each, and of sowing, weeding, reaping,
&:c. shall proceed in a regular succession.

3. All forcing crops, or frequent repetitions of the
same articles or species, should be avoided ; as a dimi-
nution both in the quantity and quality of the produce,
is the usual consequence. In soils of moderate fertility,
the greater the distanxe, at which the repetition of any
sort of crop can be kept, the better.

4 Tho e crops should be mixed, which are known to
be most productive of manure, and are best calculated
for the extirpation of weeds. Hence it ia better to cul-
tivate a greater proportion of green crops than of grain.

It is supposed that hemp- carrotts, onions and buck-
wheat, may be cultivated successively upon the same
grounds for many j^ears ; but clover, potatoes, and In-
dian corn, oats and barley, wheat and rye, v.ill not an-
swer well for more than two years, without high naanu-
ring; and even then, they do best under a change of
crops ; flax will not succeed well upon the same ground
oftener than once in seven years, therefore, a larm
should be so arranged as to have a regular routine of
crops, once in four, five, six or seven years, according
to the nature or circumstances of the farm. Where
circumstances render ploughing not so advantageous as
pasturing, the land may remain in grass till these cir-
cumstances are obviated ; care being always taken,
when it is broken up, to follow alternate husbandry du-
ring the time it is under tillage. In this way the alter-
nate system can be followed in every situation ; nor do
we consider the land being in grass for two, three or

FALLOWING. &5

four years, as a departure from that system, if called
for by a scarcity of manure, poverty of soil, &c.

The following rotations may serve as an outline sub-
ject to be varied, as circumstances may require.

Light reddish sandy soil. First crop, turnips, well ma-
nured with compost. Second, peas, with some gypsum.
Third, rye with red clover-seed harrowed in with a
light harrow in the spring. Fourth and fifth, clover,
with a light dressing of gypsum, after each mowing.

Dark sand^ and a sandy loam. Indian-corn with pota-
toes, may be the first crop. It is recommended to plant
the corn in rows north and south, six feet a part and in
hills about two feet from each other. The rows of po-
tatoes are planted between the rows of corn. Indian
corn, in order to afford the greatest quantity of ears, re-
quires to stand more widel}^ separated, than it is when
grown in the usual way ; while, at the same time, other
plants, of more humble growth, may be raised in the in-
tervals ; without essential injury to the growth of the
corn. It would seem, that as much as one-fourth of ad-
ditional aggregate product may, in this way be raised
from any given quantity of ground. Second turnips;
then wheat or rye, if the turnips can be removed from
the ground in time ; then clover ; then another crop of
ivheat or rye ; then the Indian-corn and potatoes again.
Or barley with clover may come in after turnips.

Dry loam. Some of these soils are good lor Indian
corn, especially the mellow reddish-colored loams. The
rotation may be similar to the last. Sometimes, the-
first crop should be potatoes, well dunged ; then Indian
corn manured wi^h gypsum.

Wet loam. If very wet, few crops can be raised to
advantage, except grasses. If not very wet, potatoes
may be the first crop ; let the ground be siifiiciently
mellowed with ploughing, and then very shallow fur-
rows run for forming the beds for the dung ; cover the
seed with a furrow of a one horse plough, run on each
side, so that in this way the roots will be more elevated
than is necessary in drier soils. After the potatoes are
taken off, throw up the ground in high narrow ridges —
mellow the ground In the spring, and plant Indian
corn on rirlges to be raised by two furrows thrown
up against each other. Ridge it again in the fall ; and
in the spring sow oats, barley, or summer wheat as most

?>C> FALLOWING.

suitable. Good crops of flax may also be raised in such
soils ; and the}^ are suitable for winter-wheat, where
they are sufficiently dry to enable that crop to withstand
frosts. ^\itli the third crop i>rass-seeds should common-
ly be sown, which should be those of timothy or some
other kind calculated to withstand frosts. Clover, will
do if the ground is sufficiently dry for wheat. When the
grasses begin to fail, break up the ground. Oats, on
the sward, if properly turned over will do for the first
crop.

Dark dry loams, are well calculated for an extensive
rotation of crops, which may be similar to those men-
tioned for a dry-loam. They are not generally so good
for wheat as stiiTer soils; nor for turnips as sandy ones.

Gravelly soils, are generally best adapted to crops of
rye and red-clover, aiternately; and with gypsum and
deep ploughing will bear tolerably good crops of each.
In this way good crops of buckwheat may be had from
such soils, which are naturally very poor ; and this in-
stead of rye, may be the intermediate crop between
those of clover, from which the most profit is to be ex-
pected. Sainfoin will also answer for hard gravels. On
tine gravels approaching to the nature of gravelly loam,
crops of potntoes, Indian corn, and even wheat may be
had, in rotation, beside clover, with suitable manures,

"Gravelly loam, with the aid of gypsum and other suit-
able manures is properly calculated for a rotation, say,
first of potatoes, then Indian corn, followed by wheat in
the fall, after the corn has been cut up ; or, barley in
the srjring, and thv^n clover. Some of the mellower and
richer Sorts of this soil niay answer well for turnips,
carrotts, and other roots, and for almost all kinds of
crops suitable for dry upland soils.

Clayey soils, if sufficiently dry, with a proportion of
calcareous or silicious earth mixed with them, mav be
well suited for rotations of such culmiferous and legu-
minous crops as may be found most advantageous ; and
also for some of the root crops. The rotation may be
similar to that for dry loams, substituting the potatoe
for the turnip crop. If the soil be a stiff dry cla}^, the
first crop may be oats,* well harrowed in on the sward.

The tendency of the oat is to pulverise the soil by the expan-
sion of its roots whii£ growing, perhaps more than any ether
fxrain.

FALLOWINO. 87

Turn the stubble under ; and in the fall throw up the
ground into high narrow ridges. In the spring, cleave
these down and prepare the ground for barley, after ma-
nuring with suitable compost. Plough up immediaiely
after harvest ; put it in wheat in the fall ; and in the
spring harrow in clover and timothy-seed. When the
grass begins to fail, begm the rotation, as before. When
too wet for wheat, they admit of but Uttle change ; and
should be kept mostly in timothy or other grass suitable
to the soil. The changes may be oats, and then sum-
mer wheat, or perhaps barley, as before mentioned.

It has been said, that the foundaliou of all good agri-
culture was the raising roots, as winter food {or cattle.
What other cultivation can enable a farmer to rai?e on
aspeciiied quantity of ground, so great a quantity of ex-
ceilent food? On lands iike ours, of medium character,
in point of f?rii!ity, mnnures in abundance are indispensa-
ble. These cani^ot be c uained in sufficient qjaniities,
esj ecially in interior- situations, but by cattle. A rich
a^^L'icuitural couniry must be in general a c.-jitle-raiiing
country. New-England cannot become a great caitle
rai^riiog country, unless it mike provision for their sup-
port during our long cold winters, by raising roots upon
ah extensive scale. Instead of the farmer's unaerstock-
ing his pasture ground, as is the case in most parts of
the country, through fear of not boing able to maintain
his summer stock on his winter food, this system ena-
bles him to stock liis pasturps up to their full power.
We therefore recommend, that in addition to the intro-
duction of ruta-baga, mangei-wurtzel, cabbages, and
common turnij)s into the regular rotations, that the far-
mer appropriate every year more or less land of a suit-
able quality to carrots and parsnips, which requiring un-
common preparation, are not so suitable to enter the list
of a general rotation of crops.

Mr. Nicholson's calculation of the value of crops, and
the expense of raising each, may be some guide in mak-
ing selections for rotations. He supposes the average
crops of wheat, barley, and Indian corn, at the greatest
extent, may be ^50 per acre when the grain is ready for
market; crops of rye, oats, and peas, not more than
two thirds of this amount; buckwheat, still loss. From
five to six hundred bushels of ruta-baga, or mangel-

88 FALLOWING.

wurtzel may be had from an acre, and worth, at 18 cents,
^100 per acre. And these roots are suitable for almost
all the |)urposes of grain for live slock. As grain crops
are nfa'iy as expensive as roots, the clear profit will be
irom ^oO to ^50 per acre less than roots.

The following six years' rotation recommended by a
writer in the Massachusetts Agricultural Repository,
may be a good one for farmers in general in New-Eng-
land.

1st year. After breaking up the sward is oats sown,
thick, to be cut for fodder.

2 I year. Potatoes or Indian corn, or both.

3d year. Ruta-baga.

4th year. Barley or wheat, sown with clover and
herds'-grass, or red top.

5th year. Clover mowed.

6th year. Herds'-grass and clover.

In the autumn of the sixth year, the land to be brok-
en up, and on the seventh year the same rotation re-
commenced.

It is difficult to designate particularly the most suita-
ble changes of crops ; as they are more exactly to be
ascertained by the known product of lands, when pro-
perly cultivated. But such crops, in rotation, as are
found to 3 ield most clear profit, and are at the same
time best suited to follow each other, should usually be
cultivated, after making due allowance for the greater
exhaustion of the soil, occasioned by the growing of
some more than others.

IN^DIAN CORN.

This plant may justly be considered the most valua-
ble in the whole circle of American husbandry. It is
food for most animals, and yields a great increase of
grain. It is not so liable to injury as other grain?. As
food to man it is remarkably wholesome and nourishing,
and admits of the greatest variety in its preparations.
In cultivating it the soil is cleaned and lightened, prepa-
rative to other crops: though it is inferior to prepara-
tions with au".i{iorating crops giving more shade and
moisture.

The proper soils for this grain are the sandy, sandy
loam, gravelly-loam, and rich red, or dark-coloured

FALLOWING. '•^^

earth?, which hare no clay in them. Gold or wet
loams are as unsuitable as stiff clays, unless well mana-
g-ed.

It is not considered best to plant maize on green
sward ground. It is apt to be backward in its growth,
and not to ripen so well. (See Rotation of Crops.) But
if this is to be made the first crop, the ground should
be ploughed in the fall, or rather soon hWgt mowing,
re-ploughed in the spring and made mellow with the
harrow ; and if very wet, it should be formed into
ridges. As a general rule no more land should be plant-
ed than can be made very rich, and kept perfectly
©lear of weeds.*

If 20 loads of good manure can be afforded to
an acre, it should be spread on the surface and plough-
ed in; if but ten it should be put into the holes. Or
spread a quantity of green manure over the ground as
evenly as possible, and put the compost manure into
the hill, or drills. In this way the rotted manure will
supply nourishment to the plants the first part of the
season, and the fresh manure, which was spread over
the whole surface, will assist the plants most materially
abont the time the ears are filling.

The seed should be taken from the finest ears, and
if possible from the largest and most perfect plants,
particularly from those which have two or three ears.
It is said that by selecting the eariiesi and ri')est seed,
the succeeding crop will be a number of days earlier.
Shell the seed by hand, rejecting about an inch at each
end, and all imperfect seeds. A change of seed will
doubtless be found serviceable.

If planting a second time should become necessary,
we would advise to soak the seed about twelve hours
in a strong soiiition of saltpetre, or common salt, and
then rolling in gypsum. This is said to have ^ a very
imporlant effect in bringing the crop forward. To pro-
tect corn from animais, take equal parts of tar and tr.;in
oil, siDimer them together and turn them over the corn,

When if. is planted on sward recenfly turned over, holes jhoiiM
be made quite Thrui!2;h the ir.rroTr-slic e. aui.! duiis; piu ir* the
holes. If this caution is not observed the crop ^i\\ be uneven,
as <he roots, whare the fi-rr^^w alice i=« thickest, wiii have but lit"
tie benefit from die rotting of the sward.
9

9© FALLOWING.

after having ssoaked it well ; then sift on ashes, lime, er
l)laster, stirring it till each kernel has taken up as mucii
as will permit its being conveniently handled. Another
method is, to soak the seed, then roll it in sulphur, and
plant it immediatelj. Perhaps a little sulphur mixed
with gypsum might render the seed sufficiently obnox-
ious to birds, &.C.

The time of planting is that at which the earth first
acquires the warmth necessary to vegetation, and which
is sufficiently indicated by her spontaneous productions.
[{ we plant eariier, the seed is apt to rot ; if later, the
ripening of the crop is hazarded. The old ladian rule,
is to plant when the leaves of the white-oak are about
the size of a mouse's ear ; which generally takes place,
between the 2uth of May and the first of June. Thii
"will answer for all soils except dry ones, which should
lie planted a little earlier than this rule directs.

There is some difference of practice, without any
great difference of result, in the modes of planting. If
land is rough or strong, and the object is to make the
most of labour^ the better way is to plant in hilis ; but
if the soil is rich and easy to till, and the object is te
make the most of land^ the drill method should be cho-
sen. According to the first method, let the ground be
Gut into squares, by shoal furrows with a horse plough,
(say half as deep as for common ploughing) from three
to four feet apart, according to the kinds of corn to be
planted. If nearly a shovel full of dung is to be put
into each hill, the furrowing must consequently be pret-
ty deep. If care is taken in planting to place the
kernels four or five inches apart, four or five stalks can
stand in each hill to advantage ; but if thrown promis-
cuously in, they generally fall together, and three are
sufficient for a hill. When planted in drills, the rows
should be about four or five feet apart, and the corn
about six inches apart in the rows, and covered about
two inches deep. The rows must always run north
and south, that the corn may receive equally the bene-
fit of the sun. At other times two rows of potatoes, or
mangei-wurtzel, are interposed between as many rows of
cprn, which is said to be a profitable practice.

Corn should not be annoyed with running beans,
wkich by winding round the stalks and ears, cramp them

FALLOWING. 91

in their growth, and sometimes bend them to the ground.
Pumpkins should not be planted with corn, except along
the margin of the field ; they rob the hills of much vegeta-
ble food, and by their shade shut out too much the in-
fluence of the sun.

No crop while growing, requires more attention than
corn. To prevent it from being stunted at the outset,
it is adviseabie to apply some stimulants to the plants
when very young; such as bog-dirt, ashes, or gypsum,
and this should be repeated at the third hoeing. When
the plants are three or four inches high, the plough
must pass in the intervals, making two furrovv^s in each,
turned from the rows ; the weeds killed and a little fresh
earth drawn about the plants with a hoe. In about half
a month after, plough again, turning the earth towards
the rows, and draw up some more earth with the hoe.
Just before the corn spindles give it the last ploughing
and hoeing in a manner similar to the last, keeping the
plough as far as possible from the hills. Avoid the
harrow at weeding ; it leaves the earth close and heavy,
and injures the crop. Hoeing when the ground is soak-
ed with water is also disadvantageous.

The practice of making very large hills is injurious,
by diverting the water, and preventing the intiuence of
the sun upon the lower roots, subjeciing the plant to
the exertion of sending out new sets of roots, at a suit-
able distance from the surface, and causing it to be more
frequently broken by winds. (See Hoeing.)

The growth of suckers is injurious to the crop, and
ought to be either pulled up, or bent down to the ground
and covered with earth sufficient to kill them ; this, by
not wounding the principal stalk is no doubt the best
way.

If this crop is harvested too early, it will lose much
by shrinking. It should not be topped before the grains
have somewhat hardened. It is probably the best plan
to cut up the stalks by the roots, some days after the
visual time for topping, and set it up in shocks to harden.
In this way it is supposed, the ears derive the same
nourishment from the stalk as when standing; much fod-
der is saved, and the ground is ready to be ploug;hed in
preparation for aaother crop.

92

FALLOWING.

Tlie husbandman with bad manag'ement, has been
known to receive but live bushels of corn per acre for
all his toil ! and the skilful husbandman, upon the same
qiinntitv of ground, has been known to raise upwards of
172 bushels.*

On suitable soils, well tilled and manured, an average
crop is supposed to be 40 bushels.

Mr. Valentine^ of Massachusetts, raised last year 116
bushels on an acre. The whole expense, including ^2h
for manure, was g44.

Mr. Lefferts^ of New-York, raised 125 bushels in 1821,
on a heavy loam, by the following culture. With a
heavy harrov/, levelled old corn hills, ploughed 10th
April, harrowed twice, furrowed 3 inches deep, 4 &
4 1-2 feet apart, put half a shovel full of compost ma-
nure in each hill. Planted 3d May, 6 kernels to hill ;
steeped, tarred, and rolled in ashes. Ploughed 3d June,
turning the earth from the hill. Dressed with hoe 8th
June, after which it was ploughed five times.

Corn is sometimes cultivated with a view only to the
forage it may yield; and is sown' broad cast, at the rate
of 3 1-2 bushels to the acre. Sweet corn is supposed to
be best, on a rich soil it will produce about 12 tons of
green fodder in 4 months. This can be fed out to
cattle, at the tin^e when our pastures usually fail ; or
the whole can be mown when the blossom begins to
appear, dried as quick as possible, and housed for fod-
der. The ground may be immediately ploughed, and
sov/n with any winter grain. Thus it proves a iallow
crop.

Indian corn contains a large proportion of farinaceous
matter, and this substance experience has shown to be
very nutritive. It is probable, says Dr. Gorhara, that if
In;]ian corn were submitted to the same processes as
wheat before it should be used as tbod, it would be
eqii »lly nutritious, because the proportion o solub e and
nutritive matter would be increased by the removal of
its cuticle and fibrous substance.

The most celebrated travellers assert that when the
Europeans landed at St. Domiiigo, one of the first ali-

* Messrs. J. & M. Pratt of Ea'^ton, Madisf>n counly, N. York,
in lO^^?, rai-ed 172 1-4 bushels of corn on an acre. — See New-
ilngland farmer, p. 334.

FALLOWING. 93

meats the natives offered them was maize ; that during
the course of their navigation they found it at the An-
tilles, in Mexico and Peru, forming every where the ba-
sis of the nourishment of the people of these countries ,
— that this plant, whose post is so imposing and so ma-
jestic constituted the ornament of the gardens of the
palaces of the Incas ; — that it was with its fruit the
hand of chosen virgins prepared the bread of the sa-
crifices ; and thus in tine, gratitude, this sentiment so
delicious for worthy hearts, had determined even the
rude people of the isles and continent of this new he-
misphere, to institute annual festivals on occasion of the
harvests of maize.

Maize, then, this most excellent cosmopolite plant,
which seems adapted to so many climates, and created
for a benefit to so many regions of the globe, may be
justly considered as one of the best gifts of nature to
mankind.

WHEAT.

Bountiful as nature has been to man in the abundance
and diversity of her gifts, it is tor this plant, observes
Mr. Russell^ he ought to be particularly grateful. It
has in every age furnished the principal nourishment of
civilized man ; and while it is singularly qualified to sus-
tain his health and life, and to administer to his com-
forts and even to his enjo3^ments, it appears to be spe-
cially priviledged to dwell with him in every region of
the earth, and every where to promote and to reward
his industry.

Common wheat has many varieties ; some of which
are bearded, and others bald ; some oval and others
round or square ; some yellow or red, and others white ;
some soft and others flinty.

It grows vigorously in clay, in loam, in calcareous
earth, and even sand, when aided by manures, or in
succession to peas, clover, kc. But after whatever
kind of crop, this grain is cultivated, the soil should
constantly undergo that degree of preparation that may
be sufficient to bring it into a state of considerable pul-
verization and mellowness ; for whoever has watched
the progress of ^ this crop in such lands as have been
well broken down and reduced, and in such as have been
9^

94 FALLOWING.

left ill a lumpy crude state, at the time of sowing, must
have remarked the cUfl'crence to have been very con-
siderable. Experience has shewn, that this crop should
never, where it can be avoided, be grown after other
kinds of grain crops, as rye, barley, or oats ; and that
animal manure should not be applied for it, but for
such crops as may precede it. Clover or other vegeta-
ble substances, or, where they can be obtained, mineral
manures, should be alone employed as the means of en-
riching the soil. Gypsum may be strewed over the
ground at the time of sowing at the rate of two or three
bushels to the acre.

The wheat intended for seed should be some of the
best grown of the crop ; it should be well ripened be-
fore it is harvested, and if there be any smut in the
crop, the part intended for seed should not be put in
the mow with the rest. Changing the seed, or sowing
it on a different soil, is supposed to prevent it from de-
generating. Before sowing, pass it through a screen,
to take out the seeds of weeds, fee. To prevent smut,
steep or float the wheat in brine, urine, lye of wood
ashes, &c. for a longer or shorter time, say from twelve
to twenty-four hours ; skim off the light kernels which
float, take out and before sowing sprinkle the seed with
lime, leached ashes, or plaster of Paris. The quantity
of seed recommended for an acre varies from five pecks
to two bushels ; six pecks is the usual quantity. Lands
weedy and of a deep rich soil require more, as well as
lands newly broken up. The size of the grain and the
time of sowing must determine in a great measure the
quantity to be sown; for the later it is sown the more
will be required.

With respect to the time of sowing winter wheat
there is a diversity of opinion. About the middle of
September, however, is the prevailing opinion, if the
ground is in a suitable condition. (Respecting getting in
the crop, see article Harrow.) If it is likely to grow
too large before winter, the best way is to feed or mow
it down; this will make it more strong and productive.
Spring wheat should be sown as early as the ground
can be made mellow. Some of the best crops raised ia
New England were sown in the month of March. The
<|uality of this wheat is inferior, and the '-crop usually

FALLOWING. ' ^

smaller, but it is cultivated generally with more suc-
cess.

It is believed, there is nothing gained by letting wheat
stand till it is fully ripe ; that is, tiii the heads turn
down, before it is harvested. If it stand so long con-
sivlerable wiil be shelled out before it is got into the
barn; and even if the bulk in this case be greater, the
weight may not be increased ; and it is known that the
best flour is made irom the earliest harvested wheat.
If it is aifected with rust, cut it down as soon as the ker-
nai becomes affected ; it will be the only way to pre-
serve the crop, and it is said to improve after being cut.
The same ma}'^ be said of rye. On*^ acre is a large
day's work for a reaper. It should be remove! to the
barn when there is a slight dew.

Some calculators have supposed, that the average
produce of this grain over the whole face of the globe,
will not exceed six bushels reaped, for one bushel
sown. Mr. Livingston has calculated the average quan-
tity of wheat per acre, upon unmanured lands, through-
out the middle, northern, and eastern states, without
taking in the new settlements where the yield is much
greater, to be thirteen bushels. In the southern Atlan-
tic states, it is much less. It appears that in the single
district of Newbury — Newtown, Massachusetts, there
were raised in 1817, by thirty-two persons, on lifty-
eight acres of land, thirteen hundred apd twenty-tive
bushels of wheat; making an average of twenty-two
bushels to the acre, an average greater, it is believed,
than that of some of the most favoured wheat countries,
llr. Emery raised thirty-three bushels on an acre ; and
Mr. JVezcall eighty-one bushels on two and a half acres.
In New Hampshire, five persons, raised on eleven acres,
three hundred and fifty-two bushels, equal to thir-
ty-two bushels to the nzve. If farmers will look over
the accounts of late experiments on spring wheat, even
on the sea-board in Massachusetts, where it is supposed
to be the most subject to blight, they will find the aver-
age produce to exceed twenty bushels. Mr. Tuft of
Uxbridge, Mass. estimates the quantity of whea raised
in that town for three years preceding 1814, to have
been one thousand bushels annually. We beiieve there-
fore that its produce is much more certain and profita-

90 FALLOWING.

ble than is ;^eneraUy supposed. The expense of culti-
vating wheat, is thouj^ht to be only about half that of
Indian corn. Is it not unaccoimtable then, when all
these things are considered, that our farmers should ne-
glect this valuable crop so much ? We hope they will
be induced to enter upon its culture with spirit.

For interesting particulars respeciing its cultivation, see
Massachusetts Agricultural Repository^ vol. 4, 5, and 6 —
Plough Boij^ vol. \,p. 122,228, 229, 371.

RYE.

There is but one kind of rye , but this may be made
either winter-rye, or spring-rye, by gradually habituat-
ing it to different times of sowing. Take winter-rye,
for instance, and sow it later and later each fall, and it
may at length, be sown in the spring ; and then it be-
comes spring rye. On the contrary, sow spring-r3'e
Tery late in the fall, at first, and you may gradually
sow it earlier each succeeding year, until it may even
be sown in May, and used the first season for pasture,
or mowing, and then grown to perfection the second
year.

Soils of a sandy or gravelly texture, are the most na-
tural for rye. Weak land will produce it, and it does
not exhaust the soil so much as other grain. These
circumstances render it peculiarly precious to poor soils,
and poor people — to mountains of great elevation and to
high northern latitudes.

A small quantity of dung or mud, about half the quan-
tity used for other grain lands, will, if laid upon rye
ground, greatly increase the value of the crop.

Rye is subject to rust, but seldom to smut. If affect-
ed with rust, the same management must be used as for
wheat. The seed should be carefully selected, and
thoroughly washed in lime-water, as the means best
calculated to prevent the ergot ; a disease to which it
is most liable, and which is supposed to be an effect of
too great humidity.

The quantity of winter rye usually sown, is about a
bushel, if sown early ; of spring-rye, a bushel and a
half or more. If the grain is small, less is required.
The seed should undergo the same preparation as
wheat.

FALLOWING. 97

From the middle of August to the middle of Septem-
ber, is the best time for sowing-. A poor soil requires
earlier sowing than a rich one. When early sown, it
affords excellent pasture both in the fall and spring. If
the growth is luxuriant feeding it is necessary. Spring-
rye should be sown as soon as the ground will permit.

Rye, intended for fam.ily use, should be harvested as
early as the grain can be prevented from shrinking,
and let lie on the ground a day or two, to harden, and
well dried before housed. The flour will be whiter,
and perhaps nothing lost in weight. Nearly all kinds of
grain suffer on absorption, if they stand on the stalk af-
ter being ripe or fit for gathering. Rye is thought to
be more liable to this kind of diminution, than any oth-
er kind of grain, except wheat. When mildewed. Rye,
by standing too long before it is cut, not only loses a
part of its heaviness, but it generates a rank quality,
which is neither agreeable nor wholesome.

Although we cannot by any means, approve of sow-
ing rj^e for many years in succession on the same
ground ; yet for the benefit of these who intend to per-
sist in the practice, we will extract an excellent sys-
tem of management from the Farmers Assistant.

The soil most suitable for rj/e, is usually that wiiich
is most benefitted by the use of gypsum, it quicldy cov-
ers the ground with a sward of white clover. Sow plas-
ter in the spring, on the growing crop of winter rye ;
and in the latter part of the fail, turn in the clover. In
the spring, sow spring-rye ; and immediately atter this
is taken oif, turn in the stubbie, &lc. for a crop of win-
ter-rye ; and in the spring repeat the process of manur-
ing with gypsum, as before, lor a crop of spring-rye ;
and thus proceed with these crops alternately. In this
way, by the addition of the spring crop, nearly double
the amount of grain can be obtained.

BARLEY.

Barley is adapted to various soils and climates ; it is
less subject to the attacks of insects, and more easily
pr\serve ! than other grain. In limes of scarcity, it is a
good substitute for wheat, and at all times, yields a bever-
age, under the names of beer, ale or porter, equally
wholesome and invigorating^. It is besides, a food, on

98 FALLOWIXG.

which cattle do well, and horses arrive at their greatest
possible perlectioQ.

Though not so nice in relation to soil, as either wheat
or rye, still barley prefers a loose, warm and moist
(not wet) soil, and even grows remarkably v/ell in a
sandy one, in succession to suitable crops. It requires a
soil in good condition, and, like many other crops, turns
to poor account when sown on such as are poor.

Mr. Deane found it to answer well in a clayey soil,
that was scarcely fit for any other grain. It is well cal-
culated for New England, bearing drought well, and gen-
erally 3 ielding a good crop.

About two and a half bushels, is a suitable quantity
for an acre. It receives essential benefit from being
soaked in lye, brine, the black water taken from a re-
servoir in the barn-yard, or some other fertilizing li-
quor. Adding some saltpetre to the liquor in v/hich it is
soaked, may prove of great service. All the oats and
poor seed that rise to the top of the water, should be
skimmed off. To prevent it from degenerating, the
seed should be frequently changed. To change the
kind, may also be advantageous.

The ground should have two ploughings at least.
As the roots of barley extend deep, the ground should
be mellowed at least six inches. It should be covered
Avith a short toothed harrow, and then a roller passed
ever it, which, besides other advantages, makes it tiiier
into numerous stalks. Sea weed is an excellent manure
for this grain.

It should be sown as early as the ground will permit,
and immediately after ploughing, while the ground is
moist.

If the blade grows rank, mowing is better than feed-
ing with sheep; for the sheep, by biting lotv, injure its
future growth.

Barley is ripe, when the red color on the ear is gone
off, or when the ears fall down against the straw, and
the stalks have lost their verdure. No grain perhaps
requires more ripening ; and it is not apt to shatter out
when very ripe. By lying a night or two in the devr
after it is cut, it is supposed the beards will come off
easier. If it is full of weeds, it must lie in the sw^rlh
kli they are dry. It should be threshed soon after har-

FALLOWING. 99

resting. Forty bushels can generally be obtained from
an acre.

Some farmers have not been successful with barley.
It was probably owing to the want of manure^ or suffi-
cient ploughing and harro-wing ; to degenerated seed ; to
the kind not being adapted to the soil ; or, to an insuffi-
ciency of seed, which caused the grain to be choaked
with weeds. If the farmer has satistied himself as to
all these particulars, and still finds himself unsuccessful,
he may conclude that the soil or the climate where he
lives, is unfavourable to its culture.

BUCK WHEAT.

The principal excellence of this grain is for making
an agreeable bread ; for the cakes made of its Hour,
if eaten while warm, are generail}- much relished. —
When ground, or steam boiled,' it U very good for fat-
ling swine, and other animals : The straw is useful for
caUle and sheep, if salt is spriokied amongst it, when
staked : And the flowers afford food for bees at a season
when the meadows and trees are nearly stripped of
them.

A hght mell w soil suits it best. It will grow with
more indifferent culture than, perhaps, any other grain.
It is much assisted by gypsum, where that manure is
suitable to the soil.

It should be sown from half a bushel to 3 pecks to
the acre, if the land is good ; if poor land, one bushel
is best. To wet the seed, and dry it witii a sufficient
sprinkling of plaster, will much assist the growth. Rol-
ling immediately after harrowing has been found useful.

Buck-wheat should be sown just early enough for the
crop to escape the frost. It is an old maxim not to
sow it until the chesnut trees are in full bloom. Mr. Dcane
says it should not be sown till after the middle of May.
About the first of July may be considered the proper
time.

The crop when ripe, is cut with a cradle, left a few
days to dry, raked in small bunches in the morning,
carted in the heat of the day to the barn, or centre of
the field, and threshed out im.mediately. It is said, the
crop is easier raised^ harvested and threshed, than any
other.

100 FALLOWING.

OATS.

The oat is, among grain, what the ass is among ani-
inals — -very little respected, but very extensively em-
ployed. In the poorest soil and with the smallest pos-
sible labour, oats give something ; but because they do
not give much, (in circumstances under which other
grains would give nothing,) we infer, that the grain it-
self is a poor one. This is considered a better crop
than barley to sow grass seeds with. Oats succeed well
after almost every sort of green and root crop, but should
uot be cultivated after wheat, rye, or barley, where it
can possibly be avoided. In a succession of crops, oati
may sometimes be sown to advantage the first year af-
ter the breaking up, before the land can be made mel-
low and deep enough for oiher crops. (See rotation
of crops.) Being hardy they vmy be cuhivated upon
almost any kind of soii ; but are most productive on
such as aie strong, nch, and adhesive.

The quantity recommended to be sown, by different
writers varies from one and a half to four bushels per
acre ; from two to three bushels, however, may be con-
sidered most proper. To change the seed occasionally
is recommended.

Generally, it is best to sow oats as soon as the ground
ean be properly prepared in the spring; but where land
is not liable to be much affected by drought, they may
be sown at an} time that will enable the crop to ripen
before the close of the season. A late crop of oats is
very effectual in destroying weeds. It would be a great
improvement to have the seed steeped, and the land
roiled, as for barley. In whatever way they are culti-
rated, they require the ground to be well stirred up and
mellowed, and to be in go^d con iition. It is a mistaken
notion, though entertained by many, that slight culture
will answer for this crop, or that this grain' can be cul-
tivated, to any advantage, in poor lands, without man-
ure. Gypsum is a suitable manure for oats.

The crop should be harvested rather green, as this
makes the str;iw much better for fodder, without any
injury to the grain. Besides, as oats are extremely lia-
ble to shed on being cut down, cutting the crop a iesv
days before it is perfec'iv n;*'^, wil be a consi ■crable
saving in grain. The straw in so vdiuable a fodder, it is

FALI^OWING. lOl

better to cradle than to reap this crop. Though ^hey
should be well dried on the ground atler cutting, they
should not be raked or handled at all, when they are
in the driest state. It should rather be done in morn-
ings and evenings, when the straw is made limber and
pliable by the moisture of the air. V/hen housed, they
will pack closer than other grain, and therefore a little
more caution is required to prevent their heating. Oats
make a good substitute for hay, if mowed while green ;
and this may be more profitable than suffering them to
ripen when there is a prospect of scarcity of this article.

BULLET.

(Panicum miliaceum,^

The stalks and leaves of this plant resemble those of
Indian corn, though much smaller. It grows to the
height of three or four feet. A sandy soil suits it best.
It bears drought admirably well. It is said to produce
as large a quantity of grain as Indian corn ; when culti-
vated in drills three feet apart and six inches in the
rows; but owing to the difficulty in saving the crop on
account of birds, of its ripening unequally, and its shell-
ing out, it is generally thought best to sow it broad cast
and cut it when in milk for fodder.

- Mr. Reeder, of Pennsylvania, sowed one peck to the
acre in May, and put in four acres ; cat it middle of Au-
gust, and dried it in the sun two or three days. He had
75 bushels of seed to the acre, and six tons of fodder
on four acres. His cattle relis/ied it very well. "^

It is stated in the Plough Boy, that millet sowed in
June on good ground will give from two to four tons of
'fodder, and from twenty to thirty bushels of seed, eoual
to corn for fattening- hogs. It is cultivated in Pinns^ Iva-
nia and Maryland as a fodder-crop, and cut in the milk.
It is preferred in winter, by neat cattle, to clover.

The American Fanner, gives the follov/ii^g very flat-
tering account of this grain. Millet sown from the lirst
of May, to the 20th June, has invariably furni-:h?J mora
fodder than could have been obtained from grass under
similar circumstances. On the 5th of May, tivc bushels
were sown on four acres — on the 5th of Juiy it was bar-
Tested, and estimated at four tons per acre. It requires
10

1 02 FALLOWING.

in all cases, fine tilth, and as much strength of soil as is
necessary to produce heovy oats,

A crop of fodder can be produced if sowed as late as
the last of Jul}^

SEED.

The choice of seed intended to be sown, is an object
of greater importance than many farmers seem to ima-
gine. It is not sufficient that the finest grain be chosen
for this purpose, unless it be likewise clear from w^eeds.
In procuring seed, it should, therefore, be a rule with
the farmer to purchase or reserve such as is the mast
full, plump, sound, clean, and healthy, whatever the sort
may be ; as it is perhaps only in this way that crops of
really good grain can be ensured. It is the same in
some measure with plants as with animals, that the pro-
duce is in a degree similar to that from which it origina-
ted. Where shrivelled-up and imperfectly ripened seed
is sown, in general, but a little of it vegetates ; and that
Vfhich does, mostly sends forth plants of a weak and fee-
ble kind.

Whenever we perceive that what we possess is dete-
rioting or inferior to that of others, no time should be
lost to obtain by purchase, exchange, and by our own
exertions those kinds that promise a better and more
certain yield.

As it is not practicable for farmers generally to change
their seeds either annually, or even every few years;
they must select therefore with great care, the best part
of their own seeds and roots for future cultivation.

Make frequent selections of the most perfect plants of
every kind, cultivate those by themselves, for the pur-
pose of raising new and improved stocks of seed of every
kind; and, when these are ditferent species^he careful to
set or plant them as much as 100 yards from each other,
to prevent them from mixinpc, and producing spurious or
degenerated seeds. Thus, in making selections in wheat,
search for such heads as have the largest seeds, and the
greatest number in each head. In flax, for the longest
stjilks, and such as have, at the same time, seeds of good
size. In pumj>kins, for such stalks as bear the greatest
number, and these the largest, and sweetest, &c.

FALLOWING. 103

In many kinds of plants, such as Indian corn, pump-
kins, &;c. the selections may be yearly repeated, with-
out much inconvenience. In others, such as wheat, bar
ley, &c. yearly selections would be too expensive. In
such, let selections be made, say, every eight years ; and
from the seeds of the plants thus selected raise a yearly
stock, sufficient to serve for seed. The more constantly
the selections are made, however, the more valuable the
products will be.

The inferiority of our seed grain, is attributed in a
great measure, by a waiter in the Plough Boij^ to the
practice of stowing into the barns every sort of agricul-
tural produce. On the hay, new wheat, rye, oats, bar-
ley, are ail promiscuously piled, and are taken thence
to be threshed, as occasion or convenience may dictate.
It is known to be impossible to handle corn of any de-
scription, after it is ripe and dry, without shaking out
and dropping some of the grain. If the wheat be upper-
most, straggling seeds will fall among the barle}^ or the
rye beneath, and these latter, in their turn, will conta-
minate the oats, so that an unmixed sample, fit for seed,
can scarce!}^ be produced, under such treatment.

Grain that is designed for sowing should always be
kept well aired ; for, if deprived of air for a considera-
ble time, it will not vegetate. Seed recently threshed
irom the straw, with a clear and thin skin is best.

In order to determine the goodness of seed, especial-
ly when old, take fifty grains at random from the par-
cel ; sov/ them in good mould, at a proper depth, and
carefully observe how great a proportion fail of coming
up. They may be sowm in a pot, and kept in a warm
part of the house, when too early to plant in the open
field. This method of determining the"*qua}ity of seed,
may save much labor and expense.

Previous to sowing, seeds should generally be soaked
about twelve hours in some fertilizing liquor ; a strong
solution of saltpetre, or common salt with lye of wood
ashes and old urine is believed to be best ; sowing them
immediately after being dried, with a sprinkling of gyp-
.«um ; or lime, or ashes, when gypsum is not to be had.
This is more particularly necessary when tlie v\^\\i sea-
son for sowing has elapsed.

104 FALLOWING.

SOWING.

There are three methods oFcommitting seeds to the
ground, viz. hi hills ; — i?i drills ; — or continued rows ;
and in the broadcast method,, or a cast of the hand.

The first thing* relating to sowings is the preparation
of the ground. It may be more or less fine,, according
to the -sort of seed to be sown. Small seed require finer
earth, than those which are larger. But, still, the
finer the better for every thing ; for it is best if the seed
be actually pressed fe^- the earth in every part ; and ma-
ny seeds are benefitted by the use of the roller. The
ground should be good, either in itself, or made good by
manure of some sort. In all cases, the ground should
be fresh ; that is to say, it should be ploughed, &:c. just
before the act of sowing, in order that the seeds may
have the full benefit of the fermentation, that takes
place upon every moving of the earth.

Sowing too early in the spring may be as injurious as
sowing too late ; for, if the ground be not w^ell pulver-
ized, and sufficiently warmed, before sowing, the seeds
will come up slowly, and be stunted in their growth. A
due temperature of the season, with respect to heat or
cold, drought or wet, for all these greatly influence the
state of the earth, is essentially necessarj'^, and should be
carefully attended to by the husbandman, when he sows ;
but the precise time most proper for this work, cannot,
by any means, be invariably fixed, because it will al-
ways depend on the concurrence of a variety of circum-
stances. The seasons are more or less forv/ard, and the
ground is more or less dry, in some years, than in oth-
ers. A proper series of well made observations, would
furnish the best rules in this respect, but certainly would
not fix the time of sowing to any particular day, or
week, for years to come. Z/mncews' 5 method, of observ-
ing the foliation of trees, &c: would determine the pro-
per times for spring sowing. Why, says Pliny,, does the
husbandman look up to the stars, of which he is ignor-
ant, whilst ever}' hedge and tree point out the season
by the fail of their leaves ? This circumstance will in-
dicate the temperature of the air in every climate, and
show whether the season be early or late. This consti-
tutes an universal rule for the whole world ; because
/rees shed their leaves in every country, according to

FALLOWING. 105

the difference of the seasons. This giyes a general sig-
nal for sowing ; nature declaring that she has then cov-
ered the earth against the inclemency of the winter, and
enriched it with this manure.

It can, therefore, only be observed in general, that it
is better to sow early in autumn, than too late, provid-
ed the season will admit of it ; because the plants are
better able to resist the severity of the winter, after the j
have acquired a certain degree of strength ; and their
roots being then longer, and better fixed in the earth,
will be less liable to be thrown out by frost.

A spot that has been newly cleared by burning, may
be sown later in autumn than other land, to prevent the
grain from attaining too large a growth before winter,
which will render it liable to be killed by frost.

Where land is very rich, it ought generally to have
more seed than if it be poor ; and if the size of the
grain be large, the quantity sown should be greater than
when the}^ are small. When seed is very large and full
growH, two bushels may not be more than equal to one
that is sm.all and pinched.

The expense of English grain, as we call it, has
brought the people of this country into the bad habit of
sowing it too thin. Need the farmer be told, that, in
all his operations, parsimony is never so ill judged, as
when exercised in withholding the requisite quantity of
seed ? The greatest increase from the seed, is not to
be accounted the most profitable crop. A yield of thir-
teen for one may be of more advantage than twenty for
one. If one bushel of wheat sowed on an acre, produce
twenty, and two bushels sowed on an acre, produce
twenty-six, it is manifestly more profitable to sovv the
two bushels. The farmer may consider one of the two
bushels as yielding twenty, and the other six. But as
the labor in both cases is precisely the same, it is clear-
ly more profitable in this case to have thirteen for one
increase, than to have twenty tor one. Besides, by
sowing thin, there is room given for weeds to rise, and
overrun the crop, without interruption.

M. Dvhamel found, by experiments, that few seeds

will come up, if buried more than nine inches ; that

some will rise very well at six inches ; and that others

will not rise if buried two inches. Those seedswhicK)

*10

1 Oo FALLOWING.

in vegetating, are thrown out of the grountl, such aa
beans, &:c. ought to be buried lightly ; and, in general,
it may be observed, that very lew seeds require to be
deeply buried. In light soils they should be buried
deeper than in stiff and cold ones. When the ground is
rolled, after sowing, seeds will come up with a lighter
covering of earth, than where this is not done.

Much depends on having the seeds sowed as evenly as
possible ; and for this purpose they ought to be sowed
when the weather is not windy, particularly those
v>'hich are light, or easily wafted away. In sowing some
seeds, it i^ advisable to go over the ground twice ; sow-
ing one half of the intended allowance of seed one wa}* ,
and the other half crosswise.

For the proper time of commiting each kind of seed
to the ground, and the quantity to be sown of each, see
the articles of v/hich the seeds are to be sown.

DRILLING

Is a method of sowing seeds with a machine, by open-
ing one or more furrows, at proper distances from each
other, of a deph suitable to the seed to be sown, and at
rhe same time dressing the seeds, and covering them all
at one operation. It is drawn by one or more horses,
according to its size ; or it may be drawn by hand, or
pushed forward, something similar to the manner of
pushing a wheel barrrow, where a machine for drilling a
row at a time is to be used.

Of this latter description, may be those for drilling in
the seeds of Indian corn, beans, turnips, onions, and
generally all seeds which may be cultivated in roAvs, or
drills, to advantage, and which have seeds of such
«hape as can be properly dropped at suitable distances
with this implement of husbandr3^

One man with a drill, to be drawn either by hand or
by a horse, as the case may require, will perform as
much as six, eight, or ten men, in the same length of
lime, without the use of this implement ; besides, the
work done with the drill, will be found much better ex-
ecuted, and with a great saving of seed.

Drills, however, are only proper for grounds which
are clear of stones, and other impediments to the use of
these machines.

HARVESTlNtt. 107

Those who have used them in this part of Nev/-Eng-
land, consider them of ^reat utility.

For the descriptions and drawings of the different
kinds of drills, we refer the reader to the Encyclopedias
latelj^pubhshed.

HARVESTING.

When crops are suffered to stand on the gronnd un-
til they have fully ripened, they exhaust the soil con-
siderably more, than if taken off in a green state. The
same is the case in regard to weeds of every descrip-
tion. Perhaps the remark is not so fully applicable to
crops of roots.

It may therefore be said that lands are negatively im-
proved, in a saving of their usual exhaustion, by taking,
such crops off the ground as soon as they have attained
a suflicient degree of maturity. This is a matter that is
worthy of consideration, especially when it is remember-
ed that several kinds of crops may be severed from the
ground, without injury, in some cases with a saving, be-
fore they have fully ripened.

Thus, Indian corn may be cut up while the stalks are
still greenish, and set up in shocks for the ears to har-
den ; and in this way much good fodder will be saved ;
the ground is less exhausted, and the grain is said to be
as good. By harvesting oats while the stalks are some-
what gree^, they will be the better forTodder, and the
grain will receive no injury thereby. The same may
be observed, to a certain extent, in regard to crops of
wheat and rye.

Flax pulled when just out of blossom is considered by
some the best. The pea-crop is injured by stasding too
long ; as in that case the hull becomes of little value.
In short, no crops of grain derive any benefit from stan-
ding until the stalks are completely dead, except when
the grain is to be used for seed.

The period at which wheat, and in short, all the oth-
er sorts of white crops should be cut, is when the straw
begins to shrink, and becomes white about half an inch
below the ear; the circulation is then cut off, and all

HARVESTi:>fC.

further benefit from its standing is at an end ; the grain
has, in fact taken every thing" that is requisite to per-
fect it from the cfrounrj.

By cutting' early it will yield more and whiter flour ;
will waste less by shelling ; the harvesting will be expe-
dited, so as to prevent the waste of sheiUng, by having
the last cuttings become too ripe ; and as far as the val-
ue of the straw, whether for fodder or other purposes, is
concerned, an advantage is gained by cutting it vvhile
the circulation is going on, and by that means preserv-
ing a part of the natural juices ; the value of straw, like
that of hay, depending upon the proportion of natural
juices it contains, and the pains which have been taken
to preserve them.

Some farmers determine when grain is fit to cut, by
the following signs : when the straw is all turned, ex-
cepting at the joints ; when the kernel becomes so hard,
that it cannot be mashed between the thumb and finger ;
or when the straw below the ear becomes so dry, that
no juice can be forced out by twisting it. If the weath-
er is fine, it can be bound, and put into the shock imme-
diately after cutting ; but if the stalk is stout, and the
ear full and lieav}^, it should lay till the after part of the
day; it can then be bound, shocked, stacked, or carted
with safety, provided it is housed where it can have free
air, or the mows do not become too large. Sheaves
should generally not be larger than can be bound v»ith a
single length of the straw. Grain should be carted wiien
the air has a small degree of dampness, to prevent scat-
tering.

When a severe blight orrust has struck rj'e or wheat,
it should be cut immediately, even if the grain be in the
milky state ; and it should He on the ground, but not so
close as to injure the heads, until such time as the stalks
have become dry and the grain somewhat hardened.

It is mostly advised that such grain as is much infest-
ed with weeds, should be cut three or four days earlier
than is usual, that tlie weeds may wither before the grain
become too ripe. A single shower, or even a day's gen-
tle rain, while it lies in swath, will not injure it. It is
a most essential object, to cut the crop very low, to pre-
vent both the waste of grain, and the loss of straw, the
unavoidable consequences of high cutting.

HARVESTING. 109

When grain is stacked, a light floor of boards should be
mounted on four blocks, set in the ground, and so high
as to prevent the entering of vermin. In building a
stack, care should be taken to keep the seed ends of the
sheaves in the middle, and a little higher than the outer
ends.

As soon as Indian corn is ripe, it should be harvested.
If killed by a frost, it should be immediately cut up by
the roots, before the leaves have had time to wither
and set up in shock, having the tops tied together to
keep out the rains. In this way the ears will ripen, in
the same manner as when left to ripen in the stalk.

MILDEW OR RUST.

Mildew is that disease of wheat which causes the stalk
to become covered, in a greater or less degree, with a
redish or dark substance, something similar to the rust
of iron. It is undoubtedly occasioned by parasitic plants
of the Fungi order. The spots in the stalks consist of
bunches of small/u??oi, of the mushroom tribe. What
is called blight ; is apt to affect wheat sown on intervale
grounds, adjoining waters which occasioned a heavy fog
in the morning. We know of no remedy for this.

Mildew or rust is the principle obstacle to the growth
of wheat and rye in New-Engiand. It is said generally
to commence in warm rains, or a long season of warm,
moist weather.

Mr. Butler attributes it to the application of rich ma-
nures ; to the cultivation of wheat upon a strong, or rich
soil ; or their two frequent application, or too long con-
tinuance upon light or moderate soils.

The remedies against rust or mildew are :

1. Cultivating hardy sorts of wheat.

2. Early sowing.

3. Raising early varieties.

4. Thick sowing.

5. Changes of seed.

6. Consolidating the soil after sowing.

7. Using saline manures.

8. Improving the course of crops : and

9. Exlirpating all plants that are recepticles of rust.
If a field of wheat or rye be evidently affected, and

the progress of vegetation stopped, the only way iopre-

110 HARVESTING.

serve the straw and the grain, if any -has been formed,
from being entirely lost, is to cut it down immediately,
even though the crop should be far from ripe. The
straw is thus preserved either for food or litter ; and it
is maintained that any nourishment in the straw, will
pass into and feed the grain, and make a greater return
than could well be expected.

SMUT

Is a distemper in grain, which dissolves the substance
of the kernel, turns it to a black dust, and bursts the
coat ot the kernel. The real cause of smut has escaped
the researches of many philosophers. The methods of
preventing it, recommended by different writers, are va-
rious.

It is said in the Pennsylvania Farmer^ that smut in
wheat may be removed by sinking a vessel that contains
the seed beneath a running stream, or under a pump ;
stirring it briskly with a broom, whereby the balls, if
any, of this pernicious substance, will lioat away or may
be skimmed off, and if there be not any of them, butsome
of the powder adhereing to the seed-wheat, this active
stirring and brushing will cleanse it.

From various experiments it has been found that steep-
ing grain 24 hours in lye will prevent smut. Let the lye
be made pretty strong, and if the wheat be steeped lon-
ger than this length of time it will not injure it, unless it
be kept too warm. Lime water, and brine, applied in
the same manner, will no doubt answer the same purpose.
— (See the article wheat.)

Seed-wheat which has been well ripened before har-
vesting, is much less liable to smut than that which has
been cut early. Wheat that is very smutty, should not
be harvested, until fully ripe. Great care must be ta-
ken, not to thresh wheat on a floor where smutty grain
has been threshed, to convey it in the same bags, or to
mingle it with other wheat in the same mow; because
smut is believed to be somewhat infectious. It is rec-
ommended therefore, that smutty wheat should be thresh-
ed in the field.

POTATOES.

The potatoe, the prince of roots, being of easy culti-
vation, generally abundant in its produce, and of quick

POTATOES* 111

growth — ripening in three or four months, and being al-
lowed by all to be the best substitQie for bread, (though
it is not riianj years that it has been in so general esti-
mation,) has now attained its true point ol" estimation and
usefulness in ikrming ; being applied to numerous and
important purposes.

There is almost an endless variet}'- of potatoes. Val-
uable kinds are every year disappearing, and new sorts
coming into notice. It wonid be easy lo name manj^ sorts,
but quite useless. The best way to obtain new varieties,
is from the seeds of the apples. Gather the ripe apples,
wash thtm in water to clear them from the pulp ; then
dry the seeds, and nest spring sow them in a bed which
is to be kept clear from weeds In the fall the small
potatoes produced by those, can be ai>orted and planted
the <oJ lowing spring, when they wi-l produce potatoes of
the usual size, and the varieties can be ascertained.

Potatoes will grow in almost any soil if suitably ma
nured ; but best in one that is light, cool and good, es-
pecially a fresh oiic.

Wet land produces too much top, and a watery fruity
unpleasant to the taste. Very dry land produces a small
and nurly crop. Land that is apt to bake or shaded by
trees should also be avoided.

The preparation of the ground for potatoes should be
similar to that for Indian corn. It should be deep, be-
cause roots will commonly grow as low as the soil is stir-
red, and no deeper ; and all land that is not green
sward, ought to be well pulverized before planting. The
quantity oi manure necessary for a potatoe.crop, must
diflfer according to the nature of the soil and other cir-
cumstances. Twenty loads ot barn-dung spread over an
acre ot land, may generally be considered a suitable
quantity. If a sufficient quantity cannot be furnished to
cover the whole surf>;ce, apply it to the drills, or hills
oniy. Coarse crude manures, such as fresh barn-dung,
moss, peat, U\ri\ in short, any manure, that serves to
keep the ground loose and meilow, will answer for this
plant. If land is moist, manure should be of a light or
strawy kind; if dry-, liner and moister.

No field culture admits of greater variety than thfi
potaioe ; some farmers select the largest for seed, and
plant one in a hiii ; others select the smallest, and 'plant

112 POTATOES.

several in a hill ; some divide the largest potatoes into
two parts, and put one half in a hill ; others both
halves ; some divide both the large and small po-
tatoes into four parts, and place the four pieces in the
hill at 4 to 8 inches asunder ; others cut out the eyes,
and plant them promiscuously, like Indian corn, 4, 5, or
6 in a hill ; all these modes have answered well. We
believe, however, it will be found the best economy to
plant at least middle sized whole potatoes, of the best
formed and soundest roots, or cut potatoes, equal in
bulk to those. Each piece should have one or two good
eyes. Cut them about a week before planting, to pre-
vent them from imbibing too much moisture. If the land
is dry, wet and roll them in piaster : or it may be better
to sprinkle on gyp. um before the cut parts have dried.

Early in May is perhaps the right season for planting
potatoes in a dry soil. They will som.etimes do well
planted the last of June. On all soils they should be
planted as soon as the ground is warm. An early crop
will be dry and mealy, a late one unsolid and watery. —
Planting in hills is no doubt best for rough ground. But
in a rich, mellow soil, vvell prepared, the drill method is
best. Furrow the ;>round about three and an half feet
apart, after the manure is placed, drop the potatoe on it
about 8 inches apart, and cover them thinly.

When they are about 6 or 6 inches high, the plough
shouiJ go andreturn in an interval, turning the earth at
the iirst ploughing from, and at the second (which should
be before th-^y blossom) towards the rows. After each
ploughing a little earth must be drawn round them with
the hoe, taking care not to l)ill them too much : For they
will not grow v/Al more than 4 or 5 inches under the
surfixce. The ridges or hills should be rather broad than
steep; and d at on the top, to retain the moisture. If any
weeds should afterwards rise, they should be cut up with
the hoe, that none may go to seed.

The blossom should l>e taken off as soon as they ap-
pear, as this has been found, by experiments accurately
made, to increase the crop about one sixth part.

Potatoes should be dug and housed as soon as they are
ripe, before the vines are entirely dead. Exposing them
to the sun and air, is generally supposed to be injurious
to them. In gathering a crop it is recommended to run

RUTA BAGA. 113

furrows on each side of the rows and then a deep one
n the middle, which turns most ot them to the surface.
Passing a tine toothed harrow over the ground, will aid
in the work — hogs can be turned in to take the few that
are left. It is said that one man can throw out of the
hill, with a four-pronged fork, as many as five or six
hands can pick up and cart. (Suitable forks are for
sale at the Repository in Boston.)

For fatting ail kinds of cattle they are very good, when
steam boiled ; the juice of potatoes is injurious, the wa-
ter in which the}'^ are boiled should always be thrown
away. In a raw state they are considered less nourishing
for hogs, than any other animal. The potatoe is a very
important article. Some writer calls it a little loaf ready
for cooking. This plant, and maize, are indigenous, —
the most valuable vegetable productions of which this
happy continent can boast.

RUTA BAGA.

The Ruta-Baga, or Swedish turnip, is considered su-
perior to any other kind of turnip for stock ; and is suita-
ble for all kinds of creatures except milch-cows. It is
the sweetest kind, especially when steam-boiled. Its
flesh is harder and more consistent, which better enables it
to withstand frosts, and to keep from one year to another.
It is raised as cheap as Indian corn. The average pro-
duct on land well prepared, is from five hundred to six
hundred bushels. The tops, when cut before the roots
are gathered, are valuable as green feed for stock ;
yielding, according to Mr. Cobbet about four waggon
loads per acre. Sandy and sandy-loam soils, where they
are sufhcientiy manured, are considered best for ail kinds
of turnips ; but any rich, dry, mellow soil is good.

To prevent degenerating, Mr. Cohhett recommends the
following mangenient. Select the fairest and best form-
ed roots for seed, rejecting those of a whitish color, or
greenish towards the neck, preferring such as are of a
redish cast. Preserve them carefully over the winter ;
and set, in March or April, ia a rich soil, remote from
the roots of, the turnips, or cabbage-kind, to preserve
the seed pure and unmixed. Two or three roots if they
do well, will yield seed sufficient for an acre of land.
Let the seed remain in the pods, until the time of sovr-
11

114 RUTA BAGA.

ing ; which is from the 20th of June to the first, or even
10th of Julj^ It is recommended, if the soil is dry, to
steep the seed and roll them in gypsum.

The gi'ound should be twice deeply ploughed, and
then harrowed. Furrows are then to.be run at the dis-
tances of about thirty inches, the plough passing tv.'ice
in the same place, and turning the furrows back to back.
In the bottom of these furrows suitable manure is to be
placed evenly along. If the soil is previously pretty
rich, fifteen horse-cart loads will be sufficient ; if other-
wise, thirtv ox-cart loads should be used. A furrow
with a horse plough, is then to be run on each side to cov-
er the dung. Level the top of the ridges, which should
be but very little elevated, except in wettish land, and
drill, or plant the seed by hand, about a foot apart, or
less if the ground is not rich, and two or three seeds in each
hole ; pressing the earth upon them a little. When the
plants are well up, plough and hoe them. In due sea-
son, thin them, leaving but one in a place, and fill up
vacancies by transplanting. After this, they must be
ploughed and hoed once or twice, and the weeds on the
ridges taken out with the hoe or the hand.

Another method highly recommended is to transplant
ruta baga. This may be done after the 15th of July,
and after a crop has been taken from the ground ; but
the first of July is probably a better time. In trans-
planting it is recommended, that it be done immediately
after a heavy shower, that the plants be of five or six
weeks growth, and that in setting, particular care be
taken to press the earth closely against the bottom of the
roots.

To save labor, some prefer sowing the seed broad-
cast ; and hoeing once among them, thinning out the
plants to proper distances. A crop of six hundred bush-
els was raised upon one acre of a clover lay in New-
York. The grass was cut about the 20th of June, about
twelve loads of manure spread over the ground, which
was immediately ploughed, one pound of seed sown, and
harrowed in lengthwise of the furrows.

The time of harvesting is before the frosts set in, say
not to exceed the 10th of November. The earth can
be turned from the roots with the plough, in dry weath-
er, and then gathered by hand. The crop may be se-

TURNIPS. 115

cured over the winter, in the usual manner of securing
potatoes, either in the cellar, or in pits dug in some dry
field, and covered close and secure. The tops should he
put in small heaps to prevent them from heating, and fed
to cattle.

Ruta Baga does not come t© its sweetest taste till Feb-
ruary. To fat cattle, they must not be given in so great
a quantity as to occasion a continual looseness. Hogs
will feed and fatten on them ; cut small, they are re-
markably fitted to fatten sheep ; and the horse, when
accustomed to them, is said to prefer them to grain.
They should be put into a tub, and cut small with an
instrumant like a hoe, with the blade put perpendicular
into the shaft. A man will with this instrument cut as
much in one hcv:r, as six hors^es will consume in twenty-
four. For all animals, they are improved by steaming
or boiling.

The French turnip nearly resembles the Swedish, and
requires about the same culture, &c.

TUB NIPS.

Turnips are cultivated in two ways, viz. — in the broad-
cast and drilled methods. They succeed best in a light,
sandy loam. Upon new or fresh ground the}^ are always
sweeter, than on old cultivated fields. Though such is
the kind of land best adapted to the raising of turnips,
yet they are cultivated upon every sort of soil in use as
arable land. Much of the sandy soil now lying waste in
various places, might, with the assistance of culture,
and a small portion of manure, be profitably employed
in producing turnips ; for such ground, if dressed with a
light coat of clay or loam, would yield excellent crops of
this vegetable.

The ground intended for the production of turnips in
the ensuing season, ought to be deeplj'^ ploughed in Oc-
tober or November, and to be left in that rough state, to
receive the benefits of the winter frosts, &lc. In the
April following, harrow it, about the middle of May
give it a deep cross ploughing; and in June harrow it
again. Just before sowing', spread a good coat of man-
ure, plough it in lightly, and mix it well with the har-
row ; sow the seed and harrow it in with a light harrow,
and roll the ground.

116 TURNIPS.

Ah ! says the farmer, this will never do ; the crop will
not be worth the expense. First make one fair experi-
ment, and we are confident you will not give up the pur-
suit ; you ought to take into consideration, that after the
turnips are off the ground, it will be in a high state of
preparation for several succeessive crops, of various
kinds, and that without this, or similar tillage, it may re-
main during your life in an unproductive state.

The time of sowing depends upon the application of
the crop ; from the middle of July to the first of August,
is the proper time, if intended for winter feeding. A
damp time should be chosen.

The quantity of seed sown on an acre by the turnip
farmers, is never less than one pound, more frequently
a pound and a half The crop may be greatly aug-
mented in product, by going over the ground, once at
least, with a hoe, for the purpose of extirpating the
weeds, and thinning the plant, so as to stand from six to
eight or ten inches apart, according to the size they are
expected to grow. If the weeds rise again, as they
commonly will in old ground, the hoe should be applied
the second time. Here again will the farmer exclaim
against the expense and trouble of hoeing ; but let him
try one acre in this way, and leave another of the same
quality to nature, as is too frequently done, and he will
find, says M. Mahon^ that the extra produce of the hoed
acre, will more than six times compensate for the labor
estovved.

Among numerous precautions, recommended to pre-
vent the destructive ravages of the lly, the following are
considered the most eifectual. To steep the seed in fish
oil twelve or twenty-four hours, drain it off, and mix
the seed with dust or piaister, to separate and enrich it.
Or in a dry season, soon after the plants have come up,
sow very thinly over them, some powdered soct or
lime, in a dewy morning. But probably the most effec-
tual method is, to use a heavy roller after sowing. The
turnip fly is always found most numerous in rough work-
ed ground, as there they can retreat and take shelter
under the clods, from the weather, birds, &c.

Some strongly recommend cultivating the common
turnip in drills, in a manner similar to ruta baga, except
that they are allowed to grow nearer each other in the

TURNIPS. 117

rows. The seed should be liberally strewn, in order
that if part ot^ the plants be destroyed by the files,
enough may still remain.

Turnips are raised very successfully, by ploughing in
the stubble on rich land, harrowing the ground lightly,
and sowing two pounds of seed to the acre. When the
plants are above ground, give them a light covering of,
ashes, When they are four inches high, run a furrow
with a horse plough through the field, and return with
another, at the distance of three feet from the former,
in this way the whole can be ploughed into rows, thin-
ned and hoed in a proper manner. The plants turned
under, furnish considerable manure.

Another method is, to plough in the. richest stubble
fields immediately after Imrvest, dress the ground with
plaster, live or leached ashes, or compost manure, and
harrow in the seed.

When the ground is folded for raising turnips, instead
of sowing this crop the first year, let it be frequently
ploughed; in order to kill all the weeds, and sown early
with flax the next sprin<r, and then with turnips, after
the flax is taken ofl". Great crops of flax may in this
manner be raised.

As turnips are thought by some to be an exhausting
crop, it is necessary to apply considerable manure, or
to feed a part of the crop upon the ground, to prevent
the soil from being injured. Where sheep are a part of
the stock of fatting cattle, a quantity sufficient for them
may be left in the ground. Thus, if they are to con-
sume a fourth part of the whole crop, leave every
fourth row, and by this means their manure will be more
equally distributed.

Those that are not fed on the ground, must be har-
vested (in New England) about the end of October, or
even earlier in some places. Those that are intended,
for early feeding, may be topped, and preserved from
frost some time in the barn, covered with litter. Such
as are intended to be kept till spring, should be covered
with potatoes, or dry sand, to prevent them from being
pithy. ' ».

Common white turnips require to be fed out before
they grow spongy. The most excellent mutton is fatted
on turnips, and they are a good food for horned cattle.
*11

lis MANGEL WURT2EL

But if fed plentifully to milch cows, they are said to give
•the milk an ill taste. (For saving the seed, see seed.)

Mr. Little^ of Massachusetts, in 1821, raised 615 bush-
els of common turnips on an acre. The entire expense
of cultivating this acre, including thirteen dollars for
manure, was twenty-eight dollars and seventy-five cents.

Mr. Melville, of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in 1817,
raised about 800 bushels of common turnips on an acre !
We will briefly state his method of culture.

The ground was old improved land, half in sward, and
halfpotatoe ground. Ploughed it 20th May, and har-
rowed it well twice. Ploughed and harrowed it again
20th of June, and formed it into drills, about twenty-
eight inches apart, — next day, carried on fourteen loads
hog manure, seven of sheep, and seven of barn manure,
applied it to the drills, and planted it immediately. Next
day sowed on thirty bushels slacked lime, and fifteen
bushels ashes ; to extend the experiment, divided the
top dressing equally on the different kinds of manure,
(so as to ascertain which manure, and which top dress-
ing was most suitable for turnips) left about two square
rods without either manure or top dressing, and marked
off three drills not to be hoed at all. On 10th July har-
rowed; 15th hoed them, leaving one plant in four or
five inches. That part with sheep manure and ashes
was the most promising ; and that with hog manure and
ashes next. After hoeing, the drills with hog manure
and ashes took the lead ; those not hoed, were very
diminutive. The 21st of July, harrowed again, and the
26th, hoed the second and last time. The 1st of Au-
gust, began to thin out, to feed to cattle — in this man-
ner, sixty-three bushels were used previous to harvest-
ing. On the 5th November, began to take them in,
and had tweiity-Jive oxen cart loads. The expense of cul-
tivation was seventeen dollars seventy-five cents. The
average weight of the turnips was from four and a
half to six pounds ; several weighed ten, and one weigh-
ed thirteen and a quarter pounds ; whilst those without
manure, and those not hoed, did not average more than
one and a half pound each.

MANGEL WURTZEL.

The Mangel Wurtzel, or Root of Scarcity, is a species
•f the beet. It grows like that, chiefly above ground,

MANGEL WtrRTZEL. 119

into which it does not penetrate more than half its whole
length. It would be apt to rot if the root was covered
with soil. Its culture is easy — its advantages numerous.
Both the leaves and the roots are good food for man and
beast ; nor are they liable to be destroyed by insects ;
they are also proot' against the summer's drought, and
the change of the season. It prepares the ground ex-
tremely well for other crops.

The more the land is manured and cultivated, the
better the plants. In ordinary land, with common cul-
ture, they will weigh five or six pounds, and the leavei
can be stripped four or five times in a season. In good
land they often weigh nine or ten pounds, and are strip-
ped eight or nine times. In a suitable soil, well manur-
ed, they frequently weigh fourteen or fifteen pounds.

Rich, deep, loamy soils arfe properly adapted to it«
culture ; it is cultivated with success, on loamy land,
with some mixture of sand in it; on such it is consider-
ed by some more profitable to cultivate than any other
root, especially when the leaves are used for selling.

The ground should be prepared to receive the seed,
and cleared the same way as for ruia-baga. The manure
shouW be of the finer kind. The roots will not get to a
larger size in rows three feet apart than they do in rows
two feet apart. The seed should be carefully selected
from tiie most perfect plait*, and that have been cultiv-
ated at a distance from other varieties. It is best when
fresh, but will keep several years. It must be deposit-
ed in the earth about an inch deep, and from ten to fif-
teen inches apart, according to the quality of the soil.
If vacancies occur, they can be supplied by trans-
planting.

The proper time for planting is the month of May.
Every seed will have two or three roots growing to-
gether; as soon as they shew their fourth leaf, all, but
the most vigorous plant, must be taken away. As soon
as the head of the plant has spread, no weed can live
underneath its shade, and the expense of hoeing after-
wards is very trifling.

When the outward leaves are about a foot long, the
first crop can be gathered, taking the under ones that
bend towards the ground; breaking them ofi' near the

1 20 CARROTS.

root In good land the leaves can be plucked off every
two or three weeks.

Gather and store the roots away dry, hefore any frost,
taking care that they' are not bruised, which occasions
their speedy decay. They may be kept in dry sand,
to protect them from frost ; or without sand, if in a
place sufficiently guarded against frost. Those that are
intended for the table, will be found much better, if
covered with sand, or with other vegetables.

Mr. Peters, of Pennsylvania, gives a preference to
this root, having tried all other?, particularly for fatten-
ing neat-cattle, sheep, and store hogs ; and says, that
to some horses it is grateful and nutritive, though some
refuse to eat it. T.ne leaves, which are very abundant,
he considers superior to £iny other green herbage, now
in common use, for cattle that are not pastured.

In giving these roots to cattle, they are lirst washed
and then choped into small pieces. It is best to accom-
pany them, when given to horned cattle, wilh some
kind of hay, or choped straw. Fed in moderate quan-
tities to miich cows, they impart a delicate flavour to the
cream and milk. Steam boiling improves them very
much for fatting cattle. If they become frozen, they
may be uned for cattle, before they have thawed, by ex-
tracting the frost from them in v/ater. In this way all
kinds of roots can be managed.

In the year 1820, Mr. Prince^ of IMassachusetts, rais-
ed six hundred seventy and a half bushels of mangel
wurtzel on one acre.

In 1822, Mr. Little^ of the same state, raised nine
hundred seventy/ and a half bushels on one acre, the
whole cost, inchiding manure, was g23 96 cents.

Mr. Powell^ of Philadelphia county, raised nine hun-
dred eighty-two and a half bushels, on one hundred fifty-
five and a quarter perches of land, which had not re-
ceived more manure than is usually given to potatoe
crops in that county. The whole expense was about
equal to that of Indian corn.

CARROTS.

The field culture of carrots^ for the purpose of provid-
ing a succulent food for winter^s stock, begins, to
be, very deservedly, more and more an object of at-

CARROTS. 121

tention. Among vegetables, the carrot is deemed by-
many writers, both in Europe and America, to combine
more" advantages than almost any other, considering the
quantity and quahty of its produce, and the etfect of its
cultivation, in deepening, clearing, and ameliorating the
ground, for subsequent crops. They will yield, with
the best cultivation, from six to eight hundred bushels
to an acre. They require a mellow soil, into which
they can easily penetrate deeply. They will grow verj
well on one which is moderately rich ; provided it be
well and deeply mellowed, to the depth of ten or twelve
inches. If the plough do not go deep enough at once,
it should be trench plou^jhed ; that is, the plough should
pass twice in the furrow. A fertile sand, a sandy loam,
a dry warm loam, or a fertile gravelly loam, are each
suitable for them, with proper manuring and cultivation.

The seed should be obtained from fine deep-red, or
orange colored roots, carefully preserved, and collected
only from the centre seed stalks. The pale colored
roots, and yellow ones, are fast degenerating. About four
and a half pounds of seed are sufficient for an acre, when
sown broad cast.

Carrots should be planted as soon as the ground caa
be made light and loose, the last of April or first of May
is late enough. They will do tolerably well later, es-
pecially if the seed are steeped. Before sowing or plant-
ing, rub the seed betwixt the hands, to take otlMhe
beards, to prevent them from sticking together ; with the
same intention it is soAetimes mixed with sand, or tine
saw dust. Put on a sufficient quantity of the most rot-
ten compost, to make the ground rich. Fresh dung
should not be applied to this crop.

The sowing is performed, either in the broad-cast way
or the drill. In the former, the seed is covered with a
rake instead of a harrow, to prevent its being covered
too deep. The first hoeing being finished, after they
have arrived to a suitable size, the ground can all be
harrowed over, without any injury to one plant, per-
haps, in fifty, if they are uncovered of the din thrown
on by the harrow : This is a proper time to thin them,
letting them stand about six inches assunder. A second
hoeing should be given as soon as the weeds and the
growth of the crop render it necessasy. If the plants

'122 CARROTS.

grow luxuriantly^ they can be thinned again and fed to
the hogs. The crops are much larger, when the roots
have sufficient room. (In England the usual distance is
fii'teen to eighteen inches each way.) Further hoeings
will occasionally be requisite to keep the ground deep-
ly stirred and perfectly clean. The hoeings are best
performed with a sharp narrow hoe.

If the ground is not too dry, carrots should be sown
on ridges, two feet apart ; they may be made with a
'^ horse plough; and the top of each ridge should be le-
velled with a rake. Immediately after the ground is
ridged and raked open a drill with a hoe, plant the seed
pretty thick, cover about an inch deep, and press down
a little with a hoe or shovel. About two pounds of
seed will be found sufficient. Success in cultivating
this vegetable, depends entirely on early attention, in
w^eeding, thinning, hoeing, and ploughing — the plants
should not be left for a crop nearer than three or four
inches. It is not the number but the size of carrots
tliat makes a large crop. If the plants are suffered to
fttand thick, they Vvili necessarily be small, and of an in-
ferior quality. The}'^ should at all times be kept fre*
from v/eeds, and the earth lossened w'th a hoe. If they
are planted on a side hill, be caref'il not to have the
rows go v.p and down, as they are apt to wash. If heavy
rains fail, the ground between the rows should be stir-
red as deep and as near to them, as can be done with
safety to the roots.

Instead of one row on a ridgef some sow two rows,
ten or twelve inches apart ; and thin the plants to four
or five inches distance in the rows, with intervals of
three feet between the double rows, for tilling them
wiih the plough.

Carrots grow considerably in October — the first of
November is ei\r\j enough to gather them. Run a
plough close to tlie plants, so as to turn the earth from
them, and they may then be easily pulled up. Where
it is not convenient to do this, the spade and dung-fork
will be found most convenient. Cut off the tops near,
but not quite to the crown of the plant. All that are
Kroken, or cut, being liable to decay must not be put
with the heap. Carrots are easily kept in masses, in a
cellar or place out of reach of frost, provided they be

rARSNiPS. 1 23

dry when put into it. But if wet, they will be in great
danger of heating and decaying. To prevent this they
ought to be taken out of the ground in dry weather.
If possible, after they are topped, they should be per-
mitted to be in heaps, undercover, for eight or ten days.

Carrots will amply repay every expense of the finest
culture ; and from their extensive utility, it were much
to be wished, they were more generally introduced. In
the stable, they are a good substitute for grain to hor-
ses, not employed in any quick work, and partially to
those that are : they are pecuharly well calculated for
fattening oxen and sheep, as well as feeding cows, hor-
ses and hog3. One bushel per day is the usual allow-
ance for working horses. The tops are valuable for
c6ws, sheep and swine.

Mr. Butler, says that 500 bushels to the acre is a
good crop, but that he has known 2,500 bushels to be
raised upon an acre, or in that ratio ; and that it is worth
2s. v.'hen given raw to. hogs, cattle, and sheep, or 2^. Qd.
when boiled, or steamed, and mixed with bran ; such
feed makes excellent pork, beef, mutton, butter and
cheese.

PARS^'IPS.

The cultivation proper for parsnips, is very similar to
that for carrots, and the same kind of soil and manures
are suitable for each. They, however, require the soil
to be loosened eighteen inches deep ; therefore they
• should be planted in a stronger soil than that appropri-
ated to carrots ; as they demand perhaps a better soil
than an)'^ crop the farmer can put into the ground.

Trench ploughing may be suitably employed for this
and the carrot crop. It is performed by first running a
furrow the usual depth ; then another plough follows,
in the same furrow, and throws up the fresh earth over
the old, sufficiently deep to bury that below the com-
mon depth of ploughing; then the next light furrow,
with the iirst plough, throws the old earth into the bot-
tom of the deep furrow and this again follows, with the
second plough, and throws the new layer on the top of
the old, Slc.

" Parsnips are considered as good foj^, feeding and fat-
tening of cattle as carrots, and are about equally pro-

124 ■ CABBAGES.

ductive. They might be cultivated to advantage for
feeding in the spring, when the stock of carrots has be-
come exhausted ; as the best way to keep them over
winter is, to let them remain in the ground. If dug up
in the fall, tlie best time is the last of November. Let
none of the roots be Avounded in digging up. The tops
should not be cut off very close. It is better to keep
them in a cellar that freezes than in a warm one. To
prevent them from drying, cover them with dry sods or
sand.

TJie greens of parsnips are as good for cow-feed ai
those of carrots ; but if the crop' is to stand out in the
ground all the winter, the tops should not be cut off in
the fall.

These have been long known among us as a garden
vegetable, but are rarely met with in field culture ;
a fact the more extraordinary, as in England, they have
been very extensively and profitably employed that way
for more than half a century. They are easily raised,
subjeci to i'ew diseases, re=i.«t frost more than the com-
mon turnip, and are palatable to cattle.

Cabbages require a rich soil, rather moist than dry.
A clay soil, well mixed vvith other matters, is very pro-
per for them. Thc}"^ are said to grow well in drained
swamps without manure. Hog dung, mixed with fime
or ashes, or door dung and ashes are suitable manure
for them.

The species most recommended, are the early Salis-
bury and York, the great Scotch, the Drumhead, and
the green Savoy. The last is probably best both for
man and cattle. The preparation of the soil for this
crop, may be the same as that de=?cribed for potatoes,
which, therefore need not be repeated here.

It is a question, whether it is best to transplant cab-
bages, or to set the seeds in the spot, and at the proper
distances where they are to grow. As the latter method
is amended with the least trouble, it is to be recom-
mended for field culture. New seed vegetates quicker,
and is more to be depended upon.

About the last of May, plant the seed in rows three
and a half or four feet apart, the hills one and a
hair or two fee,t from each other, and plough and hoe as
for oiher hoed crops. In regard to the distance of

BEAN'S. 1 2b

planting, it must depend in a great measure upon the
goodness of the soil, and the natural size of the variety
of the cabbage employed. In clayey soils, retentive of
moisture, they should he planted on three feet ridges.
Six or seven thousand cabbages will grow on an acre of
ground. Strewing soot, ashes, or lime, round them,
while young will assist considerably in keeping off in-
sects which attack them.

Cabbages aiford a most excellent forage for sheep,
cattle or swine, till the month of February. AVhen fed
to milch cows, the decayed leaves must be taken off, or
they will impart a bad taste to the milk and butter.

Cabbages for winter use should be pulled in dry
weather, and hung up in a cool part of the cellar, with
the heads downwards. But, to preserve them better
for winter and spring use, let a trench be made in a dry
soil, and line it with straw^ ; set the heads closely to-
gether with the roots upwards ; cover them with straw,
and then with earth, piled up as steep as possible. In
this manner, it is said, they will keep till May, and may
occasionally be dug out as they are wanted.

Mr. Winship^ of Brighton, Massachusetts, raised, in
1820, upwards of thirty-two tons on an acre. In Eng-
land, twenty-five tons are considered an average crop.

BEANS.

The only species of beans much used in this country,
is that which, in England, is called, Kidney-Bean^ and
in France, Haricot; {^Phareolus vulgaris.') The bean of
English writers, is what is commonly called here the
Horse-Bean^ {Viciafaha.) Considerable confusion has
arisen from the indiscriminate use of the term bean, ap-
lied as it is, by some good American writers on agricul-
ture, to two very distinct genera or sorts of plants.
The horse-bean (vicia) being tap-rooted, is much used
in England as a fallow crop ; and probably might be
advantageously introduced here. V/hite kidnej^-beans
are almost the only kind used for field culture at pres-
ent. They require dry land that has been tilled with
care, so as to destroy the weeds ; and of such fertility
as would produce a • moderate crop of Indian corn.
Poor sandy soils, or gravelly loam, will produce them ;
provided the beans are wet and rolled in plaister before
12

126

PEAS

planting. They can be planted in hills, or drills, the rows
two and a half or three feet apart, according to the
streng-th of the soil, and ploughed and hoed like other
hoed crops. The time of planting is the same as Indian
corn. Hog's dung mixed with ashes, is said to be the
best manure for them. The hills should be from four-
teen to twenty-four inches apart, according to the soil.
They must not l-ie so thick as to preclude the sun and
air. Five beans will be sufficient to remain in a hill.

When about two thirds of the pods are ripe, and be-
fore the frosts, pull and spread them in rows ; but they
must be turned occasionally at midday, that the damp-
ness of the ground may not mould those underneath.
After thrashing, if there are any unripe ones which re-
quire more drying, spread them on a clear floor, under
cover, till they are thoroughly dried.

White beans will yield from ten to forty bushels to
the acre ; twenty bushels is called a good crop. They
are valuable for the table and for stock, particularly for
sheep and hogs.

PEAS.

. Peas, a leguminous crop, is proper to intervene be-
tween two calmiferous crops, they are a good prepara-
tive crop for grain, as the ground is left mellow, and
but little exhausted by them.

They are best adapted to smooth lands ; as it is some-
what difficult to cut the crop on stony grounds. With
the aid of gypsum they will grow very well on light
sandy lands ; and, generally speaking, they will grow to
advantage on almost every soil that is sufficiently dry,
and rich, for a good crop of wheat. If the ground be
too rich, however, they will run too much to haulm,
and yield the less. But the crop, to make it profitable,
should be of a luxuriant growth ; and as such will cover
the ground more completely, it will, on that account,
be in better condition for succeeding crops.

The allowance of seed when sown broad cast, is fr«m
one and a half to three bushels to the acre ; thin soils
requiring the greater quantity. When sown too thin,
tho plants will lie upon the ground, and perhaps rot :
v^hen bey are thick, the plants will hold each other

PEAS. 127

up with their tendrils, forming" a continued web ; and
will have more benefit of the air.

Peas should be sown as early as the g-round can be
well mellowed. The harrow not coverins^ them sufTi-
cientl}^, they can be ploughed in with a shoal furrow.
If caution is. used, there i» not much danger of them
being" buried too deep in this way. Soaking the seed in
some fertilizing liquo-r, and drying them with lime or
plaister, will be- of service to the crop. If they are in-
fested with bugs, put them for a few seconds in this li-
quor, made hot ; dry them in the manner above men-
tioned, and sow them immediately. If this precaution is
ijsed, and new fields selected for their culture, it is said
the crop will not be buggy. Those designed lor cooking
may also be cleared of these bugs, by the use of hot
water; as they will drop out of their holes, after they
are dead, and may then be easily sifted out.

The length and feebleness of the stems of peas, and
the little tendrils they throw out for support, indicate
the advantage of mixing with them other plants of more
erect growth, which may prevent the peas from falling
and lodging. For this pur»»ose, rye and oats have
been selected, and with great advantnge.

Peas, when sown early in April Vtith oajs, or in May
with beans, (xucia, horse-beans) say one bushel of
each to the acre, come forward early, and give a hand-
some profit, to bring forward young hog^ in summer.

This crop must be mown before the peas begin to
shell out, laid in small heaps until dry ; removed to the
barn when the air is not dry ; and threshed in the com-
mon mode. Before putting tliem into casks, spread them
on a floor for two or three weeks to dry. They yield
from sixteen to forty bushels an acre. Their haulm af-
fords a wholesome fodder to neat cattle.

Peas are superior to Indian corn, for fatting swine, or
cattle. For this purpose they should be steam-boiled.
When fed to horses, they should be mixed with oats.
The marrowfat peas, v/hen dried before fully ripe, are
best for culinary purposes. Feeding stall cattle at the
rate of two quarts twice a day, to each head, accompa-
nied with plenty of long food, fatten them kindly.

Some recommend turning hogs in upon them, as soon
as the pods fill ; the advantages are, the hog's feed and

128 PUMPKINS.

fatten themselves ; no particle of their manure is lost ;
that part of the crop refused hy them, is given bacli to
the soil ; and the rooting of these animals, in this case,
is a benefit. The refuse part of the crop can be imme-
diately ploughed under, after the hogs have left the
field.

A farmer in North Carolina, who has been in the habit
of planting on an extensive scale, as many as live differ-
ent kinds of peas for the last seven or eight years; say*
that when cut for hay, they will make more nutritious
and heavier crops than any thing else.

PUMPKINS.

Pumkins v/ill grow well on every kind of soil that is
fit for hoed crops, and the richer the better. In raising
them, it is usual to mix them with the crop of Indian
corn. But it is doubtful whether any thing is ever gain-
ed by raising Uvo growing crops together. If planted
with Indian corn, they may be put between the
hills of corn, of every fourth row, and every fourth hill,
upon a shovel full of rich manure, two seeds in a hill ;
in this way they do well.

It is recommended to plant this crop by itself, in hills
eight or nine feet apart. Give the hills plenty of seeds,
that if some of the plants should be destroyed, enough
may be left. Two or three plants are sufficient for a
hill. Tliough the crop will require as much ploughing
as other hoed crops, yet the expense of hoeing will he
trifling ; it will exhaust the soil but little ; and it will be
a fine preparative for wheat, as the ground, if the pum-
kins are planted early, can be cleared sufficiently early
for sowing that grain.

It is believed that an acre, properly cultivated, would
yield ten tons; and that these would be v/orth sixteen
cents per hundred for feeding and fatting cattle. Mr.
^Vicholson estimates the expense of cultivating an acre,
including manure and rent of the ground, at Jl3 75
cen s ; and the value of the pumkins as estimated above
wou'd be §32, leaving gl8 25 cents of clear profit.

Pi mk ns, if steam-boiled, are a rich food for swine;
the see is should be taken out, as they prove injurious
to tl o e a'.iimals. They are valuable, as affording an
early supply of food for feeding horses and fattening ai

HEMP. 129

sorts of cattle in the fall and fore part of the winter, be-
fore the ruta baga crop should be used

To save the seed pure, plant the several kinds at as
great a distance from each other as possible. The sum-
mer and Avinter squashes, if they flower near together,
will degenerate ; and the neighborhood of a pumpkin
will deteriorate the future progeny of both.

CROPS USED IN MANUFACTURES.

Three other green crops remain to be treated of;
namely, hemp, tiax, and hops. ]>fone of these, how-
ever can be viewed as improving crops ; on the con-
trary, they may be characterized as robbers, that ex-
haust the soil, and return little, or rather no manure for
restoring its fertility. They are, however, all neces-
sary articles, and the culture of the tAvo lirst, may be
considered as materially connected with national pros-
perity.

HEMP.

This plant requires a mellow dry soil, and the richer
the better. It turns to but little account, where the
soil is not sufficiently fertile. It will grow year after
year on the same ground, if properly manured ; and it
is not so exhausting, as some other crops. It succeeds
well on drained swamps. If the soil be sufficiently rich,
it is the surest of any crop ; it is subject to no diseases ;
severe droughts but little affect it ; and cattle will not
touch it. It has been found to thrive well in New-Eng-
land. From two to three bushels of seed are requisite
for an acre ; two where the soil is middling, and three
where it is very rich. The goodness of the seed may
in some measure be known by its feeling heavy in the
hand, and by being of a bright shining color. It mist be
of the last year's growth.

Let the ground be well mellowed, b}'^ repeated plough-
ings in the spring, and let it be harrowed before the
seed is sown, and then harrow the seed in. It should
be sown pretty early in the spring ; but not before the
ground has sufficiently dried and can be put in ample
order. The seed should be buried equally as possible,
in order that it may all start equahy ; otherwise a part
of tne plants will out-grow and keep down the rest.
*12

130 HEMP.

When sown as early as above directed, it will be fit for
pulling or emitting' about the first of August, the exact
time being- indicated b}' the falling of tke flowers and
withering of the leaves.

Hemp must be pulled, the earth shook from the roots,
or it can be cut, tied into bundles,' and without delay put
into the water to rot. The water^-in which it is rotted,
(or retted as some wTiters express it,) should not run
rapidly, as such will wash away the coat. Let the
sheaves be laid lengthwise across the stream, and sunk
completely under. Standing water is good for rotting ;
but unless the hemp be once turned, that which lies up-
permost will be rotted most, owing to the water near
the surface being warmer than that below. When suf-
ficiently rotted, which Avill generally be in about five
days, a small handful may be pulled asunder with a lit-
tle exertion ; and then it must be taken out very care-
fully, so as not to injure the coat, spread and dried as
soon as possible.

If there is not a sufficiency of w^ater at this season of
the year, the hemp can be spread on the ground as pull-
ed, and left till dry ; which in good weather will require
about a week. When dried it can be gathered in bun-
dles, bound with straw, and carefully stacked, or housed
till there is a supply of water. Or hemp can be dew
rotted.

When sufficiently dry, it is to be broken with a coarse
break, (and if very long may be cut in two,) then again
broken with the common flax-break, and then dressed
in the manner of flax, but more gently, as it will waste
with hard beating. An expert hand will swingle clean
about 100 pounds per da3^

The male plants of hemp bear the flowers, and the
female plants the seed. A sufficiency of the latter are
to be left for seed ; and these will require about sis
weeks further time to ripen; the ripeness being known
by the seed turning brown. The seeds may be gently
beat off the stalks when dried; or they may be taken
off by a coarse kind of comb made for the purpose.
The female hemp, which has stood to ripen the seeds,
requires a longer time to rot than the male, and when
dressed is harsher. The better way is to sow some

FLAX. 131

hemp, thinly, bj iiself, for seeda and then the rest of
the crop maj be all pulled or cut together.

If hemp be suffered to stand after the right time for
pulling, the stalks of the male wither and blacken, and
then the coat is but of Uttle value.

FLAX.

Such crops of flax as are usually raised do not pay
for the labour bestowed on them. As this is a crop that
the farmer must raise, if he has any regard to domestic
ecoiiomy, the means of raising it to advantage should be
closely attended to.

Soils most suitable for flax are those of the deep
loamy kinds, and such as contain a large proportion of
vegetable mould. On strong loamy clays that have been
well broken down and reduced by tillage, it has also been
found to answer well. The sandy or very light gravelly
lands are improper. But whatever the nature of the
soil may be, it should neither contain too large a pro-
portion of moisture, nor be too dry ; but have the mould
in a fine and well pulverized condition. Such lands as
are situated rather low, as upon the banks of rivers,
are found to be well adapted to flax. The best prepa-
ratory crops in this country, at present, appear to be
potatoes, corn and roots, if they have been well manu-
red ; particularly if pains be taken to prevent any weeds
going to seed in the fall.

In the preparation of the land, as it is necessary that
it should be made perfectly fine, it must be repeatedly
ploughed over, with a shallow furrow, and broken down
by harrowing. Sometimes it is successfully raised on
grass land when ploughed early in autumn, and properly
prepared in the spring. No dung should be applied to
the land when the flax is sown, but may be pyt on boun-
tifully with the previous crop. The objection is, that
dung forces the gi*owth so rapidly that the plants are
weak and liable to lodge. Lime, shells, leached ashes,
&,c. do not produce such effects. Top dressings soon af-
ter the plants appear, of plaister, ahes, soot, &c. arc
highly beneficial, as they increase the growth, and de-
stroy worms. In addition to the above, it is requisite,
that the ground shall not have borne flax for about seven
years previous to sowing. Because when not pulled in

132 FLAX.

a green state, but allowed to stand for seed, it is as se-
vere a sconrge as can be inflicted.

A very essential point in raising great crops of flax, is
to have frequent change of seed. That of the last year's
growlli- should be obtained if possible. The usual marks
of good seed are, that it be plump, oily, and heavy, of
a bright brown colour, sinking readily in water, and
when thrown into the fire to crackle and blaze quick.
Experience must determine the quantity to be sown. It
is probable that a bushel or six pecks is the least, and
two bushels the extent that should be sown. The rich-
est soil requires the most seed, as not more than one
plant is wanted in a place. If sown thinly^ the stem is
shorter, the fibre coarser, and the seed more ab mdant
— and vice versa. It should be sown as early in the
spring as the ground can be prepared for it ; and covered
in by regular harrowing, once or twice in a place, with
a light common or bush-harrow, not covering it too deep.
Rolling land after the seed is sown brings on an even-
ness of vegetation. A top-dressing of four or live bush-
els of fine salt to the acre is found to be of great ad-
vantage. Some recommend to divide the seed, and sow
half one way and half the other, that it may be sown
as evenly as possible.

If flax is to be water-rotted (a process similar to that
for hemp,) it should be pulled as soon as the blossoms
have fallen off; and at this time the coat of the siaik is
stronger than afterwards. If it is to be rotted on the
ground, (dew rotted) it should stand until nearly ripe ;
or until the under leaves fall off; and then the seed (as
they will continue to ripen afterwards) can be saved,
which is a matter of some consequence. That which is
designed for a,ffording seed for sowing again, should have
the sepds ripened most before pulling.

The method common in this country, of rotting on
the ground, is so well known that it is not necessary to
say more, than that the flax should be spread thin and
evenly, and that it should be turned over, when about
half rotted. That which is rotted too much may be re-
stored to its strength, by keeping it a few years.

It is a very nice point to give flax the proper degree
of rotting. If rotted too much, its strength is impaired
for present use, and it wastes more in cleaning ; and, if

FLAX. 133

rotted too little, a great addition of labour is requisite
in fitting it for use. That which is coarse will not quick-
en that which is fine ; these should, therefore, be kept
separate while rotting. The short and the long should
also be sorted, as it is inconvenient to have them mixed
in dressing. The process of rotting should be finished
during the month of October if possible.

It has been proposed to pull flax when dry, — free it
from seed,— steam or boil it in water or white lye about
twelve hours, — then spread and dry it, — break, &:c.
There is no difficulty, it is said, in pulling your flax one
day and having a part of it spun into thread the next
day."

To Fave the seed ; as soon as the flax is dry enough
to be put under cover, it should be rippled. A comb,
resembling the head of a rake, but with teeth longer
and nearer together, made of hickory or oak, is fastened
upon a block, and the flax, taken in parcels no larger
than the hands can firmly grasp, is drawn through, and
the bolls ripped oft'; attention can be paid to sorting at
the same time. The bolls are to be riddled and win-
nowed immediately; spread then on a clean floor, or on
sheets, in the sun, and when sufficiently dry, and begin-
ing to open, threshed. By this method the foul seed*
are completely separated : A great improvement.

The farmer, perhaps, would do well to make more
of a business of raising flax, when he becomes engaged
in it, b}'^ raising enough in one season to Inst two or three
3^ear3, By cultivating it in the most complete manner is
the only way to make the business profitable.

It is the opinion of Mr. Pomeroy of Massachusetts, that
four hundred pounds of good fiax, and eight or ten bush-
els of seed, may fairly be assumed as a medium crop on
favourable soils, where the culture becomes such an ob-
ject as to make other farming operations subservient to
it, and due attention is paid to change of seed. [See his
E'isays on Flax Husbandry^ Mass. Agr. Repos.

The expense of dew and water-rotting, and of break-
ing by hand, is saved in some paris of our country, by
the operation of machinery, recently invented for the
purpose ; machinery, by which more is gained in quan-
ti y, (0 the dressed flax, than sufficient to pay the ex-
pense of the operation.

134 HOPS.

HOPS.

The following very good directions for cultivating
hops, are taken from the Farmer^s Assistant :

This plant requires a rich mellow soil, well prepared
by digging or deep ploughing. Bog meadows are good
for raising it, when properly drained.

The plants are raised in hills, six or seven feet apart,
where the soil is not very rich, and at a greater distance,
when richer. When the plants begin to shoot, take cut-
tings from branches which grow from the main root : If
of the last year's growth, the better ; and these are
known by their white appearance. Let each have three
or four buds ; bury them lightly in the hills, with the
buds uppermost ; allow two or three sets to a.pole, and
three poles to a hill. For making the hills, dig round
holes three feet in diameter, a loot in depth, and deeper
if the soil will admit it ; iill up these with the earth
thrown out, well mixed with old compost, if the soil be
not already very rich.

The first year, the hills are not to be polled ; but the
ground in this, as in succeeding years, is to be kept
mellow and free from v/eeds, by ploughings and hoeings.
As the vines rise this year, let them be slightly twisted
together, on each hill, and let the hills be raised a little
by hoeing in some earth round the vines.

Early in the spring, the second year, and always after
this, the hills are to be' opened, and the sprouts or suck-
ers cut ofi' within an inch of the old root ; but that must
be left entire, as well as those shoots which inclined
downwards to form new roots. Some manures should
occasionally be applied. Poles ten feet long are suffi-
cient for the iir.^t 3'ear ; after that they arc to be fifteen,
eighteen, or twenty feet long, according to the strength
of the ground. Each pole should have three vines ; and
all the others should be broken off" in the spring. As
soon as their color is changed, and they emit a fragrant
smell, they are to be gathered. When the poles are
drawn, cut the vines three or four feet from the ground.
The best way to dry them is on kilns, with a moderate
heat ; for if it turn the hop brow n it will be injured. Let
them lie about six inches thick, and be frequently turn-
ed. When the seeds crackle a little they are sufficiently
dried. Or they may be dried in the sun. or on floors

GRASSES. 135

under cover. Before they are bagged, they should lie in
a heap about four days, to sweat and grow tough. The
bags are to be of coarse hnen cioth, (the thicker the
better,) about eleven feet long, and two and an half
yards in circumference ; so as to hold about two hundred
and fifty pounds. To bag them, a hole is made through
an upper floor, to which the bag is suspended ; the hops
thrown in, in small quantities; and trod down as hard as
possible.

The long white hop is most esteemed, as yielding- the
greatest quantity and being the most beautiful. Care
should be taken to have the hops all of one kind ; for, if
there be different sorts, some will probably ripen before
©thers.

An acre of hops well cultivated, will amount to two
or three hundred dollars, and the expense will not be
more than one hundred. If not wanted at home, they
are a good article for exportation. If well harvested
they will keep good a great many years.

GRASSES.

The advantages which have been derived from the
introduction of cultivated grasses, cannot be too highly
appreciated. Amidst the variety of natural produce
there must be many plants of an inferior quality, which
are rejected by horses, cattle, and sheep. Old turf, on
that account, is never eaten so bare, as a field where a
few selected plants alone are cultivated, known to be
grateful, salubrious, and nourishing to stock.

The mould of the ground, which is laid down to grass
should be made very fine, as the seeds, being very small
may otherwise be covered too deep, by fallino- below
or be scorched by lying above great clods. Like other
seeds they require a due degree of moisture to cause
them to vegetate, and therefore should not be left expos-
ed to the rays of the sun without being covered ; for un-
less rainy weather follows immediately after sowing
many of the seeds will not vegetate. Sow them as
so«n as possible after the ground is ploughed, while
the soil remains moist, and harrow with a light harrow
after whioh a gentle rolling would be useful. It is al-
ways good economy to lay down rich, and not poor
ground to grass.

13G GRASSES.

It has been disputed, whether grass seeds should be
sown with or without grain. The result of much care-
ful inquiry, however, has been, that where equal pains
are taken, the futufe crop of grass will succeed equally
well in either method ; while the same tilth answers
for both crops. Barley is considered preferable to oth-
er grain, to sow grass seeds with. In cases where the
soil is so rich, that there might be some risk in sowing a
full crop of grain, less seed is sown, even as low as one-
third of the usual quantity ; and in that case, the grain,
nurses the young plants of grass, and protects them from
the rays of too hot a sun.

Land intended to be converted from tillage to grass,
must either be dry by nature, or be made so by art, be-
fore it is possible to get a valuable crop of grasses ; all
the best sorts abhor a wet bottom when they are young,
and will not root deep enough in it, to bear the vicissi-
tudes of the seasons.

It is a bad system to mix seeds of different plants be-
fore sowing them, in order to have fewer casts. It la
better to sow each sort separately, as the expense of go-
ing several times over the ground is nothing compared
to the benefit of having each sort equally distributed.
The seeds of grasses, being so light, ought never to be
sown in a windy day ; wet weather ought likewise to be
avoided, as the least degree of poaching is injurious.

The species of grass appropriated to any particular
soil or application being determined upon, its seeds can-
not be sown too plentifully, and no economy less deserv-
ing the name can possibly exist, than the being sparing
of grass seeds. The seeds of grain may easily be sown
too thickly ; but with respect to those of grass, it is
scarcely capable of occurring. The smaller the stem,
the more acceptable it is to cattle ; and when the seeds,
particularly of some grasses, are thinly scattered, their
stems tend, as it is called, to wood, and the crop is lia-
ble to be infested with weeds.

Some think that if ground is well manured, good
grasses will come in of themselves. Perhaps so ;-— but
how long will it be before that happens ? Clean seed,
and that which is known to be suitable to the soil,
should alwaj'S be sown. For though grasses will gra-
dually come in, no great crop is to be expected the first

GRASSES. 137

rear, unless it be a crop of rank and useless weeds.
And he that misses of the lirst year''s crop, loses much,
as the longer the land lies, the more compact, or bound,
it will become, and produce the smaller crops.

It cannot be doubted, that if a third part of the land,
now under tillage, were properly laid down in grass, for
the purpose of feeding stock, it would be of the greatest
benetit both to the farmer and the public, as the remain-
der would be better manured, more easily cultivated, and
would produce as much for consumption, as the whole
now does. The failure of new crops of grass, is in a
great measure owing to a deficiency of seed, or to the
land being sown, when out of condition, and without an
adequate supply of manure ; and many farmers have, in
these circumstances, continued their fields under a
course of planting, to their own impoverishment, and
the loss of the public. Whereas improved rotations,
and in particular, a greater number of green crops,
would enrich any poor or exhausted arable land.

The advantages to be derived from the alternate, or
convertible husbandry, cannot be too much dwelt on.
Mr. Rob'jins of this state, in his address, very justly ob-
serves, that a farm best fitted for the convertible hus-
bandry— convertible from grass to grain, and from grain
to grass, is the most profitable farm ; and hence the
value of all those means by which the farm is brought
into this desirable state. None but those who have tried
it, can be fully aware of the vast improvement effected
by laying down old ploughed land into grass, as well as
converting pasture and meadow lands into arable. Un-
der that system, when judiciously conducted, the crops
are always abundant, and the soil is kept in a constant
state of increasing fertility.

The chief food of cattle consisting of grasses, their
importance is as obvious as it is great, and the distin-
guishing and selecting them cannot be too fully attended
to. By this care the best grasses, and in tlie greatest
abundance that the land admits of, are secured ; while,
for want of this attention, pastures and meadows are
either filled with weeds, or bad and inappropriate grass-
es. It would require a large volume to describe all tl?
kinds of grass which are and might be cultivated in the
United States. It is said, that there are in all 215 grasses
13

138 GRASSES.

properly so called, which are cultivated in Great Bri-
tiiin. The number of grasses fit, or at least necessary,
ior the purposes of culture, novvever, is but small.
Some of these are best calculated for moist soils, some
for dry, some for pasture'', and some for mowing. By
the careful separation and sowing- of the seeds of these,
the husbandman would soon be enabled to accommo-
date the varieties of his soil, each with the grass best
adapted to it : the advantage of which would infinitely
exceed the trouble necessary for its accomplishment.

Some of the most valuable kinds are here noted, to-
gether with their proper soils, &,c.

Clover^ is universally known as being an excellent
grass ; while it produces the best hay for horses, it, at
the same time, enriches the ground. As it is tap-root-
ed, it draws a portion of its nourishment from a depth
below the surface, to which the roots of niost other
plants do not extend ; and after the sward is turned
ever by the plough, and the roots are dissolved, they
make a fine manure, and in a measure prepare the
ground for v/heat, or almost any other crop. But to il-
lustrate the many advantages of clover not only for soil-
ing, (or stall-feeding) pasture and hay, but for the im-
provement of the soil, and its efficacy in withstanding the
drought, would require a greater scope than our intend-
ed limits will permit.

Clover will thrive luxuriantly in any tolerably fertile
soil, except a wet one. It prefers lignt sandy or loamy
soils, and will, wiT.h the assistance of piaster, thrive well
upon gravels. A light top dressing should be given
early in the spring. On tenacious soils, a small quantity
of lime, would be preferable, but on light land the ef-
fect of gypsum is astonishing.

In respect of preparation, it is less nice than many
other herbaceous plants, yet the finer the state of ihe
mould the land has been brought into, the more certain-
ly and the better it succeds.

It is now generally sown with barley, or other spring
grain of the culmiferous kind, and rarely by itself. (If
the land is poor, choose the crop that Vv'ill aiTord it the
43esl protection against the sun, as rye, &c. and if rich,
the crop which will smother it least in its infancy as
wheat, oats, kc.) The advantages proposed by this

GRASSES. 1 39

practice, are these : the preparation given to the soil
for the grain crop, which is exactly that best fitted for
the clover; the protection given by the grain to the
young clover, against the combined effects of heat and
dryness ; the improved condition in which it leaves the
soil for subsequent culture. In this practice, however, a
less quantity of grain must be sown than usual, because
without ventilation, the clover plants will perish. It is
frequently sown in the spring, on winter grain ; but in
this way it often happens that the seeds do not grow,
owing to their not being covered. This difficulty ma}^,
however, be obviated, by giving the ground a brushing,
where it is rough ; or a light harrowing where it is
smooth ; either of which methods, but particularly the
latter, will be a benefit to the growth of wheat or rye.
It may also be sown with grain in the fall ; but there is
danger in that case of its being killed by the succeeding
winter. Some recommend sowing half in the fall with
the grain, and half on a light snow in March. It is in-
dispensable to a good crop ; that the seed be good ; and
regularly and equally sown. The tests of good seed
are; its comparative size and weight, its plumpness, its
yellow or purple colour, its glossy skin, and lastly its
cleanness, or separation from other seeds and from dirt.
About twelve or fourteen pounds is a suitable quantity
for an acre.

Clover should never be cut the first season, nor fed
close ; but the second season, it should be cut when in
full bloom, and before the heads begin to turn brown.
It is thought best to exclude sheep and horses from clov-
er, unless intended for pasturage only. The cutting-
and curing, if the crop is heavy, is very nice and criti-
cal farming. After being cut in dry weather it should
remain in the "swarth till it is dried about two-thirds its
thickness; it is then not stre-a^cd^ but turned over; the
hay should be as little shaken or scattered about as pos-
sible ; and raked up before night. The next day it must
be opened, turned once or twice, af}d cocked up again.
It the weat«;er permits, it will be im})roved by standing
one or two days more before housing. If it is housed
without using these precautions to prevent heating, the
application of salt will be important ; or interpose be-
tween two layers of clover, one of clean straw. By

1 40 GRASSES.

the fjrst method, the whole mass is made acceptable t»
cattle ; by the second, the quantity of nutritive forage
is increased — and by both methods the clover is effectu-
ally prevented from healing, which greatly injures it,
and renders it hurtful to horses. If on twisting some of
the largest stalks like a string, no moisture appears upon
the surface, it may be housed with safety.

When a crop of clover seed is to be raised, let it be
from the last crop of the second year; and sometimes in-
stead of cutting the first, let it be pastured till the 10th
of June : as suffering ibe crop to ripen, injures the
roots for a succeeding crop. In the first crop, of either
season, very little seed is to be found.

It is said by DukameU that one acre of this plant will
feed as many cattle as four or live oj" common grass : but
they must not be suffered to eat too plentifully of it at
first. It should be given by degrees, liii they are fully
seasoned to it : nor should they ever be turned into this
ibod in wet weather.

Green clover is good food for swine in summer ; and
when cut green, and salted, after being a little wi.her-
ed, with about half a peck of salt to a load, it makes
good food for them in winter, after being steamed or
boiled.

Half a bushel of plaister, well mixed with a suitable
proportion of ashes and fine salt, strewed over an acre
of clover ground, after each mowing, will make it much
more productive.

Herd's-grass^ or Meadow-catstail (^Botanical name Phe- \
hum Pratcnse) called Timothy in the middle and south-
ern states. It is improperly called Fox-tail^ quite a dif-
ferent species. Herds grass grows best in rich moist
soil ; but it will grow well, for a few years, in a rich
wet, or a rich arable soil. In the rich wet soil, it grad-
ually lessens in product ; while at the same time it gives
way to wild grasses. In a rich arable soil, it gradually
fails, by reason of the ground becoming bound, and the
sward thickened with other grasses. Probably if it were
well torn with the harrow in the spring, and not too
closely pastured in the fall, and not at all in he spring,
it would grow well ibr many years in such soil. By
close pasturing in the fall, it is ajjt to be torn out by the
roots, and by cropping it a^-ain in the spring, it suffers

GRASSES. 141

much. It will yield, according to Mr. ?^^icholson^ one
half more hay, when not pastured at all, than when
pastured closely both fall and spring. In the richest
soils, and when not pastured, upwards of four tons may
be had from the acre, in a season, at two mowings. It
requires about ten or twelve quarts of the seed for an
acre.

The proper time for mowing it is, when in blossom,
or a little later ; but if left till the stalk, or even the
under leaves begin to turn, the true value of the crop
is lost. It is a common practice to sow Timothy and
clover mixed ; but this should not be done when clover
is sown for the purpose of being ploughed in for man-
ure ; becnuse if clover is cut when just arrived at per-
fection, Timothy is then so young as to be in a very im-
perfect state.

It is not so much a fertilizer of land as clover : on the
contrary, it is said to bind, and somewhat exhaust the
soil. It is perennial, and wjU last beyond the memory
of man, if not destroyed by close pasturing.

Lucern^ (JMedicago Sativa) is undoubtedly the most
productive, and that which comes into use sooner than any
other of the artificial grasses. It endures drought well,
and grows very late. Horses, cows, sheep, and swine,
are very fond of it, when it is mown gnd given to them
green, which is the most useful application of it. It
does best upon rich, dryish ioams, ^vhere, if the soil is
clear, three to five tons of excellent hay can be cut to
the acre. It is said to grow well in the coldest climates ;
but those which are mild are most suitable for it. It is
supposed that our dry warm summers are more favora-
ble to its gro\Yth, than the cool and moist ones of Great
Britain. Mr. Livivgsion of New-York, has obtained
greater products than those mentioned by British wri-
ters. With the best cultivation and plentiful manuring,
nine tons per acre have been had in a season. It can be
cut several times a year.

The ground should be prepared by deep and frequent
ploughings. It can be sown in May, or as soon as the
ground is sufficiently warm, either by itself or with a
crop that will not lodge, thinly seeded. About twenty
pounds of seed are required for ;.n acre.

As soon as it begins to blossom, it should be mown.
IS*

142 «JRAS9ES.

In making it into hay, the same direction3 should be at-
tended to as for clover. During- the first season of its
growth, the product will not be so large as at\erwards :
In this season it is most infested with weeds, which can
easily be destroyed by frequent mowings, for the pur-
pose of soiling. After the first season, it may be fed
without much injury.

It is. recommended by European writers, after the
grass has stood two or three years, to harrow it early
in the spring; and it issaid, if the roots are considerably
torn by the operation, they will not be injured. This
should be repeated every second spring, after applying
a good top dressing of manure.

On dairy farms it is of great utility. Where the soils
are suitable, a few acres under this grass, round the
house, must, in all cases, be valuable for the purpose
of early green food. Lucern is much superior to clover
for soiling milch cows, giving no taste to the milk or
butter, and one acre is sufficient for three or four cows
during the soiling season. This grass lasts twelve years
or more, and exhausts the soil but little. When it turns
yellow it should be mowed, and the plants will come up
free from the disorder.

Sanfoin^ (^Hedysarum onohrychis) will grow very well
•n dry stony soils, that are unfit for any good cultiva-
tion, and will produce on the worst lands a ton of hay,
beside considerable after-math in the season. Noth-
ing is better to soil horses and cows with. On good
dry lands, the product will be much larger. This plant
will make a much greater increase in poor ground thaa
any of the natural grasses ; which is principally owing
to its having a long perpendicular root, which sinks to
a depth of several feet.

It requires a soil free of the seeds of weeds, and well
mellowed by deep ploughing. The seed should be
fresh^ and three or iour bushels to the acre, sown very
early in the spring. Those which have a bright husk,
a plump kernel, bluish or gray without, and greenish
within, are best. It is the best method to sow from on a
to three bushels, with five pounds of clover, to the
acre ; as the clover serves to keep down the weeds till
the sainfoin has become well rooted. it may also be

aRA33E«. 143-

lown with oats or barley. No cattle should feed on it
the two tirst seasons.

When cured into hay, it should be cut before the
blossoms turn much ; (it is at no time to be cut before
it is in full bloom ;) and manag"ed the same as for clov-
er. It is a fine hay for sheep. If saved for seed it
must be the first cutting. In collecting the seed, cut
the grass when the early seeds are getting ripe, with-
out waiting for the latter blossoms to shed. Thresh it
in the field on a cloth, as much will be lost by shedding
if carried to the barn.

It is the opinion of Mr. Rohhins^ that this plant is as
hardy as the red clover, as little liable to be winter
killed; for the winter of 1822, which killed so much
clover, did not affect at all the sanibin plants, in his
garden, and no way protected from the irost.

Redtop^ (^Agrostis vulgaris'^ — with spreading panicle,
and the branches divergent and capillary, differs from
spear grass (^Poa pratensis^ also excellent) with which it
has been confounded, and which flowers much earlier.
Red-top is cultivated considerably in this part of the
country, and seems to succeed well on either moist or
dryish land. Some say that on wet land no grass an-
swers so well as red-top. It yields a good crop, and
makes good hay.

Orchard Grass^ {Dactijlis glomerata) called Cock's
foot by English writers. This grass is worthy of being
cultivated on account of its uncommon luxuriance. Ox-
en, horses, cows, and sheep eat it readily, and it is val-
uable on account of its expellent after-feed. It affords
an abundant crop, springs early, and grows fast, makes
excellent hay, and yields abundance of see*^, which is
not easily shaken out. It is a hardy grass, found highly
useful on moist loamy soils, — thriving under the shade
of trees, which probably occasioned its name. In.in-
stances where Herds-grass (^Thnothy) is now used with
clover, farmers would do well to make the experiment
of substituting orchard grass. This comes early, is soon
mature, and continues green until late in the season as
clover does : Herds-gra^s is late in coming in the spring,
and late in ripening. Orchard grass intended for fodder
should be cut while young and tender.

144 GRASSES.

Tall Oat-grass (^Avena elaiior) flowers in June, and,
though coarse, is very profitable when closely fed down,
It is very luxuriant in its growih, and makes tolerable
hay, to which a little salt applied when laid down in
the mow would he an improvement. All animals that
are commonly fed with hay, eat it with pleasure. It
has two advantages over Herds-grass, — earliness, and
great after crop ; and would probably answer well for
^oiling, as it starts very early, and grows very late. It
produces well both in good and bad soils, — but should
be cut in flower while the stalk is fine and tender.

Fo's'l Meadozv Grass (^Poa aviaria.) It acquired this
name by being supposed to be brought to a meadow in
Dedham, Massachusetts, by water fowl. It is an excel-
lent grass for wet meadows, affording very good hay for
horses, and neat-cattle particularly. Mr. Eliot thinks
drained swamps are a very proper soil for the cultiva-
tion of this grass ; and observes that it keeps green for
a long time, so that it may be mowed at any time from
July to October ; and that it is so fruitful as to produce-
three tons of hay on an acre.

Siriped-leavcd reed grass^ (^Phalaris arundinacea .) Tins
like the last does well on wet soils. This grass (in the
Appendix to Davy's Elements of Agricultural Chemis-
try) is said to succeed on almost any soil, — but is par-
ticularly luxuriant on strong moist lands. The strong
nutritive powers which it possesses, recommend it to the
notice of occupiers of such lands,-^-which cannot be
drained. Its produce is great, and the foliage will not
be denominated coarse, if compared with those which
afford a produce equal in quantity. We have made trial
of it; andlRnd it will flourish on common loam, spread-
ing freely by its roots. Some of it in a dried state, of-
fered to oxen, was readily eaten.

Cichory: or Succory^ {^Cichorium intyhus^'^ is a hardy
plant, and may be found beneficial on poor sandy or
gravelly soils. For feeding cattle, it is usually sown
with oats, or other spring grain ; but for soiling it is
sown alone. Mr. Yovn^ thinks it best to be drilled alone
on poor land, in rows about nine inches asunder. On
large tracts of poor land, it is thought it would incr ;'re
the produce ten fold. Cichory is very luxurinnt, and
will admit of being often cut for soiling. It may also

GRASSES. - 145

be made into hay, which, though coarse, affords consid-
erable nourishment. Sir J. SidcJair says, it is strongly
recommended, as hardy ; — calculated for the poorest
soils ; and adapted even for bogs ; excellent for pasture
or soiling ; producing a greater quantity of food for
sheep, than any other grass now in cultivation. It bears
close feeding well.

The following grasses are not generally cultivated
here; but are well deserving- of attention, and will, pro-
bably, be soon introduced : — some of them native plants.

Florin {^Agrostis Stolonifara) requires a moist climate
or a wet soil, and is perhaps the most useful plant fhat
bogs can produce, it yields abundantly ; and sheep,
neat caf'ie, and horses, are very fond of it.

Fertih Meado^j-grass (^Poa feriUis) contains a 1 arge
proporticn of nutritive matter.

Stleadoro Foxtail {Jllopecurus pratensis.^ This is one of
the earliest grasses ; and is considered as holding a high
place among good grasses, whether used in a fresh state
as fodder, or made into hay.

Sweet'scented Vernal grass {Anthoxantriiiin ordoratum;^
and

Jvleadow soft-grass (^Holcus lanatus) deserve some at-
tention ; the last v/ell calculated for sheep.

Fall Fescue grass {Festuca elaiior^ stands higii, as to
nutriment afforded by the whole crop, when cut at the
time of lloweriiig.

Sheep'^s Fescit (^Festuca ovhia) grows well in dry, sandy
soils. Sheep are Ibnd of it, and soon become iat from
its use.

Blue grass {Foa compressa) is worth cultiyating. It
flourishes in dry sells ; and itd darl: green, succulent
leaves, alTord excellent pasture, particularly for sheep
To these may be added,

Guinea grass (^Panicum maxhnvm) which may be cut
repeatedly, and is very productive. It is cultivated in
the state of Mississippi, and no doubt, can be cultivated
here to advantage.

Barn grass (^Panicum cms galli) so common on rich
cultivated grounds, should arrest our a.tention as an arti-
cle suitable for soiling.

14b ' MEADOWS.

MEADOWS.

The lands which are most proper to remain in grass,
and which, if in a state of tillage, ought to be converted
into grass, are the following, viz.

1. Lands in the vicinity of largo towns, where manure
is plentiful, and where hay is always in demand, and
consequently dear.

2. Lands situated near rivers or brooks, which are
capable of being improved by irrigation.

3. Lands i;ying in the vallies of hiiiy countries ; where
old meadow land is scarce and valuable ; and where the
p;rea{er part of the tillage land is of such a nature, that
it is almost impossible to convert it into good grass lan«j.

4. All cold, strong grass-lands, which, if ploughed up,
would be inapplicable to root crops, and to the purpos-
es of modern liusbandry.

The generality of farmers, in this country, mistake
tncir interest, by having too large a proportion of their
lands in grass, for mowing. Half the usual quantity
with the best management, would produce as much hay
as they need, a great deal more than they commonly
get; besides saving them expense and much hard labor.
I'armers shoald study tlieir own ease, pleasure and pro-
fit, by fitting a small piece of meadow so as to yield them
a sufliciency of hay. An acre, at two mowings, can be
made to yield four tons of hay, and at this rate, ten
acres would yield sufficient for a hundred acre farm.
The greater ease, and saving of expense, in gathering
forty tons of hay from ten acres of tine smooth meadow,
instead of, perhaps, twenty-five of rough meadow, ought
to induce a farmer to improve a part of his meadows, to
answer in place of the whole.

Bog-meadows, if well drained, and manured with up-
land earth, will produce prodigious crops of herds-grass,
&.C. Where moss prevails in gniss-ground, that is not very
Wet, apply a heavy sharp toothed harrow ; strew sonie
seeds of herds-grass, or other good grass, over it, and
give it a good dressing of a mixture of sheep dung and
sand, or other warm manure that is suitable to a cold
soil/' There is no danger of destroying tiie roots of gra^s
by this operation.

Land should never be laid down to mowing, that has
been exhausted by cropping. It is always advantageous

HAYMAKIXG. 14?

to manure it well. Rolling, immediately after the seed
is sown, has many advantages. Upland meadows should
have a dressing of good dung, or compost, every two or
three years : Every year would be better. A bush har-
row should be drawn over the surface, which will break
the small lumps remaining in the manure, and bring it
closer to the roots of the grass. When the sward binds
too much, break it up and till the ground ; or scarify and
apply manures. The binding is generally occassoned
by too close feeding.

Meadows may be pastured moderately in the fall, but
not closely. A part of the after growth should be left
to cover the roots during winter. They should never
be fed in the spring ; the feet of the cattle at that time
do great injury. By this bad management, too, all the
best grasses are eaten out, and destroyed by the feet of
the cattle ; and wild grasses usurp their places. Mea-
dows which are entirely of wild grass, are much less lia-
ble to be injured, by close feeding than others.

Where a meadow is quite wild, it should be mowed
rather before the grass has attained its full size, and in
this way it may yield a tolerably good second crop. By
early mov/ir^g, the grass may be out of the way before the
heavy rains which often fall in Juh^

Grass lands, under the above management, would pro-
duce larger crops. The surface would be covered in
the spring with a fine verdure. The crops would cover
the ground so soon as to prevent most of the ill eifects
of drought ; the thickness of its growth, causing it to
retain most of the moisture that fails in dews and rains.

HAYMAKING.

In cutting grass crops, it is necessary that they be in
the most suitable state of growth and maturity, for af-
fording the best and most nulricious fodder. With this
view, they should neither be cut at too early a period,
nor suffered to stand too long ; as in the former case
there will be considerable loss in the drying from the
produce being in so soft and green a condition, and in
the latter from a large proportion of the nourishing pro-
perties being expended. It is probable, therefore, that
grass, in general when mown before it is in full flower,
while the rich saccharine juice is in part retained, is in

148 HAYMAKING.

the most proper condition for being cut down, as at that
period it must contain the largest proportion oi" nutri-
tious materials, but which then begin to be absorbed,
and taken up in proportion as the flowers expand, and
the seeds ripen. But there are other circumstances,
besides those of ripeness, to be attended to in determin-
ing the period of cutting crops of gras-^, as in some cases,
■when they are thick upon the ground, the ]>ottom parts
become of a yellow colour before the flowering fully
takes place ; or in moist meadows when very tall it is
liable to fall down and lodge; under such circumstances
it will always be the most advisable practice to mow as
soon as the weather will possi!)ly admit ; for if this be
neglected, it will rot, or acquire a disagreeable flavour,
and Lecome of little value. It should be remembered
also, that the soil is much less exhausted if the grass is
cut before the seed forms. If a meadow is to be mowed
twice in a season, the first crop ought to be cut earlier
than where mowed but once, in order that the roots
may recover immediately and be ready for vegetation
afresh.

Where mowing grounds have a smooth surface, care
must be taken to cut the grass as close and evenly as
po?siI>le. Grass will not thrive well that is not mown
quite close ; and the loss in the crop where this is not done
is very considerable, as one inch ai the bottoimreighs more
than several at the top. But in cutting rowcn or second
crops of grass, more attention in these diflerent respects
will be necessary, as the crops are more dilficult to cut.
They should always be cut as much as possible when
the dew is upon them ; and as soon as there is a tolera-
ble growth, as by waiting the season is getting more un-
favourable for making them into hay ; and vvhen not
well made this hay is of little value. It requires u much
longer time to dry than the flrst crop.

For haymaking, it is essential to have dry weather ;
and the prospect ibr this ought always to be an object
of attention. It has been found by actutil observations
for a number of years, that on an average, more rain
falls in Slimmer al\er the 15th or 20th of July, than be-
fore. Farmers \v\\\ do well, therefore, to improve as
much as possible the forepart of the season in ha}'-
making. It is a fact not generally known, though made

HAYMAKING. 149

public some years asfo by a French philosopher, that
the web of the common spider is a sure index of the
state of the air for twelve or fourteen days to come.
If the weather is to be fair and calm, the principal
thread will be spun to a great length ; if on the con-
trary the weather is to be stormy and boisterous, the
thread will be short and thick, for obvious reasons; and
if the spider is seen to repair the damages its slender
thread may happen to sustain, you may calculate with
certainty upon pleasant weather lor many days.

In converting cut grass into hay, the great art consists
in rendering it sufficiently dry to prevent its heating too
much in the stack or mow, and at the same time pre-
serving as great a portion of the natural juices of the
plants as the process is capable of admitting of without
danger.

If the weather is so unfavourable, that hay cannot be
thoroughly cured ; the application of from four to eight
quarts of salt to the ton is recommended. In this way
it can be saved in a much greener state, and the benefit
the hay derives from the salt is more than four fold its
value. Ground mows are more liable to take damage by
moisture, than those upon scaffolds. The larger the
mow, the drier the hay should be. To prevent hay
from damaging in a large mow, some recommend bar-
rels or stuffed sacks to be placed near the centre, and
gradually raised as the mow is raised: These form open-
ings in the middle, through which the steam of the heated
hay can pass off, and thereby prevent it from being mow
burnt. Another method is, to put the driest hay in the
centre, and the wetest nearest the outsides. Some
choose that a barn should have large gaps between the
boards that the ha}, &c, may have air. This is a mista-
ken notion ; for the hay that is nearest to the gaps will
lose its sweetness.

Stacking hay in meadows, to be fed out there, is a
poor plan ; as the meadows are in this way often much
injured by the treading of the cattle ; and, when this
is not the case, much hay is generally wasted, and the
dung of the cattle turns to little or no account. If the
farmer has not sufficient room to house ail his hay, he
ought to stack it adjoining his barn, and then it can be
easily thrown in at once, when his barn is emptied.
14

1 50 HAYMAKING.

As narrow wheels sink into the ground and destroy
miich grass, they should ne?er be used on meadow
grounds, but broad ones should be substituted in their
stead.

Horsc-rakes are very useful on all smooth meadows.
It is said, a man, horse, and boy, will gather hay with
this implement, as fast as six men in the ordinary way.
The expense of the rake will not exceed two dollars.
It is composed of a piece of scantling three by three
inches, ten feet long, into which twenty-five teeth, one
inch by one and an half in diameter, nearly two feet
long, and three inches apart, are inserted horizontally.
The teeth should be made to turn up a little at the end,
to prevent their running into the earth. Eight pins
twenty-four inches in length are driven perpendicular
into the scantling, and into another light piece at top,
and there are also attached two handles, similar to those
of a plough. The horse is connected by a rope at e ich
end. When in operation, the teeth run along the ground
under the hay, and as they take it up the upright slats
retain it till the rake is full, when the man who holds it
turns it over, and thus empties it in a row ; then lifts it
over the hay thus emptied, and sets it in beyond it ; and
so on till it is again filled. When one strip across the
piece is thus raked up, the horse is turned round, and
another strip is raked in the same manner, emptying
the hay at the ends of the last heaps raked up, so that
in this way winrows are formed. The winrows can
then be dragged up by the rake into bundles, large
enough for making into cocks. This instrument is very
useful in the grain field after the harvest is off. It not
only combs the stubble, and gives the grass a better op-
portunity to grow, but it saves a large quantity of grain.

Iq summer harvesting and mowing it has been too
customary to use ardent spirits. We are confident the ef-
fects of Pandora's fabled box never produced one half the
ills among mankind (even in story) that have ia reality
been occasioned by the fell products of the accursed
alembic, — " whose worm out-venoms all the worms of
Nile." Health and activity are to be looked for only
among those who use not ardent spirits. In harvest
time, or on any occasion of increased labour, farmers
could »ot use perhaps a more refreshing drink than milk

LIVE STCCK.

151

^nd water, sometimes sweetened and a little cyder ad-
ded, or vinegar and water sweetened ; or good small
beer. We know, from long experience, ardent spirits
are by no means necessary ; even when on long jour-
ney's, and suffering "the paltings of the pitiless storm."
Even were we strong calvinists, or as firm fatalists as the
Turks, and so should conclu.de that all the temperance
we could possibly exercise, would not prolong life a sin-
gle day ; yet we might cherish the sublime satisfaction
of living while we live ; for we look on those as worse
than half dead to all true enjoyment, who drag out a
wretched life of intemperance. O beware of inceptive
(often deceptive and seductive) ingurgitations. In our
revolutionary war. Dr. Rush recommended that instead
of rum, which could not be had, the labourers in har-
vest should mix a very small proportion of vinegar with
the water used as drink. This succeeded so well that
years afterwards, in many places vinegar continued to
be used, though rum could easily be had. The pref-
erence of vinegar to rum is accounted for in this man-
ner; severe labour or exercise excites a degree of fe-
ver, and that fever is increased by spirits or ferment-
ed liquor of any sort ; but vinegar at the same lime
that it prevents mischief from drinking cold water during
the heat and perspiration occasioned by exercise, allays
the fever ; and the labourers found themselves more
refreshed and less exhausted at night, Avhen vinegar was
used instead of rum. The Romans used vinegar to mix
with water for the drink of their soldiers. I cooled
the heat of my blood with vinegar, which I mixed
with water and sugar, and drank of it largely ; said
the celebrated Denon^ who was with the French ar-
my in Upper Egypt. The labourers in some districts
of England, it is said, during harvest make use of no
other beverage than milk and water, which is found to
allay the fever, and quench the thirst, much more than
beer or ale : they confess that they are much sooner
thirsty after drinking either of these, than they are af-
ter drinking milk and water.

LIVE STOCK.

According to the present improved system of farming,
there Is such a connection between the cultivation of
the ground and the breeding, rearing, and iattening; of

152 LIVE STOCK.

•lomestic animnls, that the one cnnnot he neglected with-
out injury to the other. If no more Hve stock were
kept on the farm, than should he necessary lor lahour and
food; and all the crops were sold off, the income for a
few years might exceed what could be derived from a
full stock of beasts kept on the farm and fattened. But
how grea^ the injustice to the soil ! to what a heartless
unproductive state it soon would be reduced! Experi-
ence clearly demonstrates that there are few countries
so well adapted as New-England to the breeding and im-
provement of live stock. The extent and richness of
her natural pastures are admirably calculated for this
purpose. That with comparatively few exceptions, lit-
tle attention is bestowed to the improvement of our breeds
of cattle, is not to be denied; and yet if we consider
the immense dilTerence there is between the profits de-
rivable from domestic animals of an inferior and superi-
or quality ; and at the same time bear in mind, that the
degree of care and expense necessary to be bestowed
upon each is not materially varient, we shall find abun-
dant cause of wonder that the fact should be so. And
as domestic animals are found to degenerate, unless
pains be taken to prevent it ; it becomes an essential
point, therefore, for the iarmer to be diligent in select-
ing those breeds which are found to be most valuable,
as well from those raised in his own stock, as from
those which may be obtained elsewhere.

The most desirable properties of live stock in gen-
r»ral : are, suitable size ; form ; early maturity ; a
hardiness of constitution ; proUfick quality ; a ten-
dency to grow ; a disposition to fatten ; and lightness of
oifal. The passion for the largest kinds of animals has
been a great error with the improvers of live stock, in
this country. The largest and smallest breeds are the
very worst ; and ought to be avoided in cattle, and gen-
erally in all animals. The form should be compact, so
that no part of the animal should be disproportioned to
the other ; and the whole distinguished by a general
fulness and rotundity of shape ; the chest should be
broad ; for no animal whose chest is narrow, can easily
be made fat ; the carcass should be deep and straight ;
the belly should be of a moderate size ; the head and
bones and other parts of inferior value, should be as
"mall as is consistent with strength, and with the other

LIVE STOCK. 153

properties which the animal ought to posses:*. The
form must likewise be such, as to contain the greatest
possible proportion of the finer, compared to the coars-
er and less valuable parts of the animal.

The art of improved breeding consists, in making a
careful selection of males and females, for the purpose
of producing a stock, with fewer defects, and with great-
er perfections than their parents ; in which their mutu-
al properties shall be combined, and their mutual
faults corrected. It was upon this principle ot selec-
tion, that Bakewell of England, has rendered himself
famous by his breed of cattle and sheep. His principal
aim was to gain the best, whether sheep or cow, which
would weigh the most in the most valuable joints ; and
at the same time that he gained the shape which was of
the greatest value in the smallest compass, he found by
experience that he gained a breed much hardier and
easier fed than others. In his breed of cattle, his max-
im was, the smaller the bones the truer will be the make
of the beast ; the quicker it will fatten, and the weight
will have a larger proportion of valuable meat. If there
was deficiency in any point, he would cross his animal
with one that was amply supplied in that part ; and if
any point of his animal was too heavy, by an opposite
cross he would reduce the superfluity. By such man-
agement, diligently pursued, he, at length, gave to his
stock the shape and qualities he desired. So far as
we breed domestic animals in this country, we must ex-
tend our views beyond beef and mutton — and wiLh the
former combine milk^ buiter and cheese^ and a fitness for
labor^ and together with mutton^ aim at the greatest,
quantity of the most useful wool.

It is best to begin with a considerable variety of ani-
mals ; that the farmer, by observing the profit he gets
from each kind, may afterwards vary, as he finds to be
best. Where farms contain a large proportion of high
and dry pasture grounds, the greater quantity of sheep
should be kept. Where low meadow abounds, the kind
of stock should be increased, which will do best on
coarse water-grasses ; which is neat-cattle that are young
and growing. But if a farm yield a plenty of good
sweet grass, it is more suitable for a dairy farm. But
let a farm be what it will, it should never be over stocked.
The number of cattle should not be greater than the re..
14*

154 LIVE STOCK.

sources of food will keep in good plight. If a poor farm
be unprofitable, so are poor cattle. The half of any
given number of animals, where they are well kept,
will always be found to yield as much clear profit, as
the whole when kept in poor condition.

It is an object of very great consequence to every
husbandman, to expend, in the most economical and ad-
vantageous manner, the vegetable produce allotted for
the maintenance of his stock. Foddering should not be
commenced till it is really necessary ; for when the cat-
tle have been taught to expect it, they will neglect their
other feeding. Fodder at first in the morning, when the
frost is on the ground. Neat cattle should not yet be
housed ; but horses should. In cold rains they should,
however, be sheltered, as these are more hurtful than
cold dry weather. The meanest fodder should be re-
served for the most severe weather. The early part of
winter is the most improper time to pinch cattle. They
©ught not to be kept constantly on salted fodder. A
change of food, sometimes salt, and sometimes fresh, is
best. Too much fodder should never be laid beibre
cattle at once : Rather let them have a little at a time,
and be fed the oftener. By constantly breathing on their
tood, it becomes less palatable ; and for this reason they
will eat that which has been exposed to the open air
and winds, after they have rejected it in the stable.
Exactness in regard to time and quantity, is of the ut-
most importance. Cattle which run out during winter
should have a shelter, and a rack under it to hold their
fodder. This not only saves them from much suffering,
but much dung is preserved by the shelter. If expos-
ed to cold, attended with rain, snow or sleet, their
wretchedness claims compassion : and the owner feeling
for the beasts committed to his care, should resolutely
practice giving them due shelter and attention. Much
chaff and straw, that is often thrown away, may, with a
little pains be made useful for stock, by mixing some-
thing green with it, and sprinkling a little salt through-
out the whole. Straw ought to be laid away as soon as
threshed, and brine sprinkled over each layer, so as to
give a degree of saltness to the whole mass, and occa
sionally fed out to all the neat-cattle. A great saving
can be made by cutting straw. One of the most econo-

LIVE STOCK. 155

mical machines can be had for ^3 or $4. It i3 consider-
ed an excellent practice to keep salt undev- cover, in
such a !3*ituation that cattle or sheep may have recourse to
it at pleasure. A liberal use of salt is proper at all limes,
except, perhaps, in the coldest weather^ when it may
cause them to drink too much cold water. From trials
in England it has been found, that the following quanti-
ties may at ail times be administered in that country with
perfect safety. To neat-cattle, four ounces a day, mix-
ed up with steamed chaff, or other moistened food ;
one half to be given in the morning and the other in the
latter part of the day. To horses four ounces a day, as
aforesaid. To young heifers two ounces per day, at
twice as aforesaid. To calves one ounce per day, di-
vided into two portions. To sheep, two ounces per
head, per week. It is believed by many, that salt is a
cure forbotts in horses ; and that the wool is materially
improved of such sheep as have a suitable qu^^mtity.
Mixing salt with water and fine clay in a mass lor crea-
tures to lick, is better than to give it to them alone.

Animals intended for the butcher, should be kept ia a
state of regular improvement. They ought never to
be allowed to lose flesh, in the hopes of afterwards re-
storing it by better feeding. Great care should be tak-
en, not to overstock pasture. The food, whatever it
may be, should not be too suddenly changed. They re-
quire a progression from coarser to better food, as they
grow m.ore in flesh, otherwise, when half fat they will
go back, and are with dithculty again raised.

Among the most useful improvements of modern hus-
bandry may be numbered the practice of steaming or
boiling food for domestic animals. A steam boiler is an
implement that no farmer should be without, as pota-
toes particularly, are nearly doubled in value, when
boiled turnips and other roots, and pumpkms, are also
much improved, as food for cattle, by a similar process.
Clover hay, corn tops, blades and husks, when steamed,
have been found greatly to improve the quantity of milk
and the condition of animals in the winter season. —
Boiled clover-hay is found very good for keeping swine
in the winter. We believe this to be well worthy at-
tention, by having a box to hold the hay, &c. sufficiently
large for the purpose. A steam-boiler i» commonly

15S LIVE STOCK.

made by setting a kettle, holding twelve gallons or more.
in a furnace, of brick or stone, and over this a hogs-
head, with one head taken out, and the other bored full
of holes, is set so close that the steam of the kettle,
when boiling, can only rise through the holes, and
thence ascend among the articles to be boiled in the
hogshead, and pass off at the top. In this way a hogs-
head full of potatoes will be nearly as soon boiled, as
a small part of them only could have been, if placed in
the kettle underneath. As the kettle must be so closed
as to prevent any steam passing off, but through the
bottom of the hogshead or vat, a pipe or tube must be
set in one side, through which, with the aid of a funnel,
the water is to be poured into the kettle, as often as oc-
casion may require. When poured in the tube is to be
stopped with a plug. Grain of all kinds may be steam-
boiled to great advantage, for feeding and fatting cat-
tle ; but, in that case, it is requisite to have the bottom
of the hogshead covered with a cloth, to prevent the
grain running down through the holes. It was the opin-
ion of a late excellent writer in this country, that steam
boiling food, for feeding or fatting all sorts of cattle,
generally increases the value of the food, as much as
forty or i\fty per cent.

Mr. Davy^ from analysis, has found, that the best
wheat contains ninety-five parts in one hundred of nutri-
tive matter ; good barley, ninty-two ; rye, seventy-nine ;
oats, seventy-four; pcis, and beans, fifty-seven; pota-
toes, twenty-five ; beets, and mangle wurtzel, fourteen ;
carrots and parsnips, ten ; common turnips, four; ruta
baga, six ; cabbages, seven ; clover, four ; other grasses,
from two to five. Thus it would seem, that as much
nourishment is to be derived from one bushel of wheat,
as from upwards of twenty bushels of turnips. This,
however, is not the case. What is called the stimulus
produced by distention must be taken into the account, in
forming a proper estimate of the effects produced in
supporting life, by any kind of food ; and it is on this
account that, perhaps, fourteen bushels of turnips, par-
ticularly when boiled, would sustain life as long, or fat-
ten as much, as one bushel ot' wheat.

The method of littering all kinds of stock, cannot be
too highly recommended ; it not only renders the animals

LIVE STOCK. 157

SO much more warm and comfortable, as to lessen the
expense of food, but it greatly increases the quantity of
manure. The author of the Farmer''s Manual^ suppo-
ses, that each creature properly stabled ^nd littered,
with coarse hay, straw, &c. furnishes the means of sav-
ing nearly the whole expense of wintering, in the next
year's tillage.

Too little attention is paid in this country to the dis-
eases of domestic animals. We are bound by interest
and by motives of humanity to perform this reasonable
service. In consequence of the dominion man holdfs
over them, they acquire new and violent diseases, and
are made subject to casualties, that do not take place ia
those beasts which roam the forest ; they live only for
our benetit ; they cost us notliing in wages or clothing ;
•for all their services they require only at our hands, food
and shelter, and these of the cheapest and coarsest kind.
Who can reflect upon the services of the noble horse,
the labour of the ox, the utility of the cow, the cloath-
ing of the sheep ; and not acknowledge that we are
vastly their debtors, and that gratitude as well as inter-
est should move us to their relief, in all their maladies.
By making ourselves acquainted with the diseases of our
domestic animals, we prevent imposition, and rescue
them from the hands of the ignorant pretender, who,
by his improper and untimely remedies, disturbs the ef-
forts of nature, and increases the difficulty he would
wish to remove. Every grazier, therefore, ought to be
in possession of some approved book on the diseases of
live stock.

On the proper selection of cattle, horses, sheep and
swine, and their management, the profits of a farm must
at all times materially depend. If we have those of
an unproductive kind ; if too many or too few — if fed
without judgment, or fattened at too great an expense,
they will deprive us ot that recompense which a farmer
ought to obtain. To close our remarks we would re-
commend to farmers not to keep more of any species of
animals, than they can keep well. It is much more
agreeable to see a small stock in fine order, than to see
a large stock of poor meagre looking animals, and it is
far more profitable.

-15S HORSE*.

HORSES.

The marks of a good horse are, a high neck, full
breast, a lively eye, a strong back, stiff dock, full but-
tocks, ribs reaching near to the hips, good hoofs, and a
good gait. The size should be in proportion to the
work in which he is chiefly to be employed.

Mares should not breed till after they are four years
old. They should be free from distempers, and possess
those qualities desirable in a horse. When with foal
they should be housed pretty early in the fail, and be
well kept till foahng, wiiich should be about the last of
May. (They go with young about eleven months.)
They should not be ridden swiftly, nor put to drawing
or carrying burdens, ibr one or two months before that
time.

Colts should be weaned the beginning of foddering
time ; and then they ought to be put in a stable by
themselves, kept on good hay, and fed regularly twice a
day during winter, with oats, or some other nourishing
food. The next summer they ought to have good pas-
ture. If colts, as well as other young animals, are not
well kept the first winter, they are very apt to get
stunted ; and of this they never wholly recover.

In breaking a horse gentle means are best. First let
a young horse be tamed by leading with a bridle; then
saddle him, and lead him about smartly so as to make
him trot; then fasten a small weight on the saddle, add-
ing more and more till he carry the full weight of a man.
If he be very fractious, lead him with another horse.
After he has been broke to leading well, and carrying
burdens, let him be gently mounted, while some person
hold him, and rode about in a ploughed field, with anoth-
er horse before him, if necessary, until he learns to go
by himself In teaching a young horse to draw, the
same gentleness should be used ; first putting him with
a gentle horse that i« true to draw ; then loading him
lightly, and gradually heavier, till he has learned, like
his fellow, to exert his utmost strength.

The best method of keeping working horses in the
summer is to soil them. They should have a yard ad-
joining the stable, in which they may run at large at
times. This practice is a great saving of pasture land ;
the horses will keep much better, and they are always at

iJORSKS. 1,59

Rand for service. This management prevents them
from watering, or slavering at the mouth, which is often
very injurious.

The stable should be so well enclosed as to defend
them from winds and storms in winter ; and at the same
time not so warm as to injure them when exposed to
the weather. It should have a floor descending back
for the stalls to run off; which ought to be kept clean
and well littered. In the summer time, it is thought
better for them to stand upon turf There should be
sufficient room in the stalls for horses to turn their
heads to every part of their bodies, and to raise them
as high as they please. The rack should be pvirpendi-
cular and not too high. Some prefer putting the hay
into a very large manger or trough ; and what is left
by horses, other cattle will eat readiiy. Crowding hor-
ses together in stables that are not sufficiently aired, is
so injurious, that it has been oi>served in Boston that
most horses from the country become diseased the tirst
week, and frequently in twenty-four or forty-eight hours
after they are placed in the stables of that city.

Clover and Herd's grass together are the best grasses
for horses. When grain is given them, let it be either
ground, or boiled. Raw potatoes or carrots, washed
clean, though far inferior to boiled roots, will keep
them in good order. Pumpkins will fatten them. Chop-
ed straw (^particularly oat straw) mixed with meal and
water, witn a moderate proportion of hay, will keep
horses that are not at work in excellent order. This
method is considered cheaper and better than feeding
them on hay only. If no kind of fresh food can be fur-
nished for the horse to eat with his dry hay, it is recom-
mended to place a basket of snow near him to supply
the waste of saliva which is absorbed by the hay while
eating.

To avoid the catalogue of disorders to which this use-
ful animal is exposed, regular treatment seems to be the
surest course. The kind of treatment which deserves
this character is, never to heat nor fatigue them more
than is necessary ; and if they are at any time over-
heated and tatigued, to cool them in a gradual manner,
rubbing them well down, and covering them, so that
perspiration may not be obstructed, and administering

160 NEAT CATTIE.

some warm boiled food, so that the intestines may be
kept open, and the consequent disorders avoided. They
should at all times be kept clean, and their skin curried
and brushed, but not too severely.

When a horse is on a long- journey, he should be fed
with hay and provender, and not turned out to grass at
evening, ibr his joints to be stiffened by the dampness
and cold of the night, after the warm and severe exer-
cises of the day. To prepare him for a journey, he
ought to be previously kept to hay, with provender, and
have moderate daily exercise, in order that his fat may
become more soiirl, and of course his body better inu-
red to fatigue. He ought also to be shod some days be-
fore in order that the shoes may become easy to his feet.
If the skin should be rubbed off his back, sprinkle over
the raw flesh a little dry whitelead, which will soon
heal the sore.

NEAT CATTLE.

The marks of a good Bull are, a quick countenance,
forehead large and curled, eyes black and large, horns
large, straight and black, neck fleshy, belly long and
large, hair smooth like velvet, breast big, back straight
and flat, buttocks square, thighs round, legs straight, and
joints short.

The principle distinguishing marks of a good cow are
said to be these : wide horns, a thin head and neck, dew
lap large, full breast, broad back, large deep belly ; the
udder capacious but not too fleshy ; the milch veins pro-
minent, and the bag tending far behind ; teats long and
large ; buttocks broad and fleshy ,• tail long, pliable, and
small in proportion the size of the carcass, and the
joints short. To these outward marks may be added a
gentle disposition, a temper free from any vicious tricks,
and perfectly manageable on every occasion ; a vora-
cious and indiscriminate eater of all foods, and industri-
ous whilst on a thin pasture, seldom laying down.

Early calves are best for raising, as they will endure
the first winter better ; and, if heifers, will generally
have calves a year sooner than those brought forth late,-
April may be ns suitable a time as any if the calves are
to be reared ; if not perhaps May is better. The most
promising calves should be selected for rearing, for the

NEAT CATTLE. 161

uses intended, and the rest fatted and killed. Those in-
tended to be killed should be taken from the cow the
next day after they are calved ; and let them have only
two teats of the cow to suck the first week, three du-
ring the second, and all during the third and fourth ;
in this way they will be fatter in the end, than if they
had all at first. Feeding calves three times a day is
considered much better than onl} twice; but, whether
fed twice or thrice a day, the times of feeding should
be regular, and as nearly equi-distant as possible. It is
generally recommended to place a lump of chalk conve-
nient for the calf to lick at. Fresh litter should be con-
stantly provided for them to lie on, and particular at-
tention paid to their cleanliness. The calves intended
to be reared may go with the cows the first three or
four days. They should have milk, more or less, for
about tw^elve weeks. They may be fed with skimmed
miik, or water porridge, after the first fortnight ; or their
milk may be mixed with meal and water. After a calf
has sucked, or drunk milk, for a month, take some of
the freshest and sweetest hay, and puj; little wisps of it
into cleft sticks, and he will soon learn to eat. If skim
miik is given to calves, it should be boiled, and then
cooled to the temperature of that from the cow. It is
better boiled than when warmed only. If given too cold
it will cause the ealf to purge. If this is the case, put
two or three spoonfuls of runnit in the milk, and it will
stop the looseness. If the calf is bound, pork broth is
said to be a good thing to put into the milk. Mr. Budd,
of Mass. directs to feed ihe calves when three days old
with gruel, composed of one third barley and two thirds
oats, each ground fine, and the mixture sifted. A quart
of this gruel is to be given to each calf, morning and
evening. The gruel is made by taking one quart of the
flour, and twelve of water, and boiling them together
for half an hour, and is to be given while milk-warm.
If calves are put into pasture, it should be such as is
dry and sweet. White and red clover is best. There
should be no water in the pasture but sufficient shade.
When the dews fail, a little nourishing drink should be
given th'^m in the middle of the day, if the weather is
warm. During the first winter they should be kept in
a comfortable place, and have plenty of good fodder and
15

liit NEAT CATTLE.

a little Indian meal, or other nourishing food ; and they
should have shelter earlier than larger cattle. The best
time for castrating calves is at tii'teen or twenty days
old.

Young steers intended for labor, should be early yok-
ed, and worked moderately at iirst with old oxen. When
oxen are worked in wet weather, let that part of the
yoke which rubs against the breast and neck be rubbed
with tallow, to prevent soreness.

The signs of a good ox, are, thick, soft, smooth, short
hair ; short thick head ; glossy smooth horns ; large
shaggy ears ; wide forehead ; full black eyes ; wide nos-
trils ; black lips ; thick fleshy neck ; large shoulders ;
hroad veins ; large belly ; thick rump and thighs ;
straight back ; long tail, well covered with hair ; and
short broad hoofs. The best colors are brown, dark-red,
and brindled. When an ox has completed his eighth
A'ear he should be fattened.

Cows should not be milked during two months pre-
vious to calving ; and for some weeks before this event
should receive particular attention. The day and night
after a cow has calved, she should be kept housed, and
her drink should be luke-warm. Let her not be expos-
sed for some time after to the dampness of the night.
Cows should at all times be kept in high health and good
condition : for if they are suffered to fall in flesh during
the winter, it will be impossible to expect an abundant
supply of milk by bringing them into high condition in
the summer. The happiest consequences will ensue,
both in regard to milk and improvement of the cows by
currying them well. Pure water also is a most essential
article to them. It has been ascertained, that if water
is at command, cattle will drink of it eight times a day :
hence it is evident, that they cannot get enough, if only
driven twice a day to an adjoining stream or pond.

The common cattle stalls of our country are so ill
contrived, that the cattle lie d"wn in their own dung.
This dries and forms a thick coat on their hind quarters,
from which they are not relieved till they shed their
hair in the spring. They are thus rendered uncomforU
able. To be uncomfortable is to suffer some degree of
pcdn ; and no one will suppose that animals in pain can
thrive or preserve their plight, with the same food, equal-

NEAT CATTLE. 163

ly with others perfectly at ease. Even hog-s, though
prone to wallow in the mire in warm weather, are al-
ways pleased with a dry bed, and thrive best when kept
clean.

Oil-cakes^ are of great use, for feeding cows before
calving. Flax-seed broth, or jelly, is much recommend-
ed for fatting. It is made by putting about a quart of
flaxseed to seven of water, and then let stand about
forty-eight hours; after vvhich il is to be boiled gently
for two hours, stirring it trequently to prevent its burn-
ing. When cool, it is to be mixed with meal, bran, or
cut-straw, and fed out at the rate of about two quarts a
day to each beast, and it is said to make a great saving
in the article of food. It is also uselul for fattening
calves.

The more cattle can be made to eat with an appetite,
the sooner they grow fat. It is bad economy to spare
food in this case : a certain quantity daily is requisite (o
preserve a beast from falling awa}'^ ; and an addition is
necessary to put fat on him. Therefore the sooner he
is fatted, the greater proportion of what is necessary for
bare maintenance, is saved.

Cattle ought not to be turned to pasture in the spring,
until there is a good bite of grass. x\nd if it consists of
the artiiicial grasses, care must be used to prevent them
from receiving injury. The milch-cows and fatting cat-
tle should have the best or first feeding of each pasture
lot.

The cow is generally in her prime at five years old,
and will continue in a good milking state till ten years
of age or upwards. The time of milking ought to be
regular, and as nearly equi-distant as possible. Where
the feeding is full, milking three times a day in summer,
will increase the milk nearly one third. Omitting to
milk regularly and clean, tends very much to dry them
up. The milk last taken from a cow has been found to
produce a much larger proportion of butter than the
iirst.

It is considered best to select cows from the stock
raised on the farm ; if brought from other farms it is
frequently two years before they will give the full quan-
tity of milk. In the improvement of the breed of cat-
tle, select those cow* vvhich yield the most of such

164 SHEEP.

cream as makes the best butter : for there is a consider-
able diiTerence in the quuiii^' of milk, from cows fed in
the same manner.

SHEEP.

Among the Tarions animals given by the benevolent^
])and of Providence for the beneiit of mankind, sheep is
one of the most useful. They multiply fast; they are
subject to but few diseases in this country ; and they not
only supply us with food and clothing, but also afford
employment to many persons, in the various branches
of woolen manufacture.

It is highly desirable that our country should be stock-
ed with sheep of various kinds, in order to supply it-
self with the various sorts, of clothes which are neces-
sar}' in different uses. Many questions which were once
problematical, observes Mr. Lowell^ are now settled in
favour of the merino. — It was doubted whether it would
inland oar climate : — It does perfectly. — Whether its wool
would not degenerate : — It rather improves. — Whether
its meat won id be good for the table ? It is as fine at
least as any mutton we have. Whether the wool could
be exported to England and sell there at a fair price ?
It has been done, and met such a sale as would yield a
much greater profit on merino sheep than on the com-
mon sheep.

The farmer should carefully examine the nature of
his land ; and having attentively weighed its relative
degrees of fertility, and his various sources for suppl}'-
ing food, he m-^y then proceed to purchase that breed,
which, after mature consideration, he has reason to be-
lieve is best calculated for him. The difference of land,
v/hence the sheep are to be purchased, ought to be at-
tentively weighed ; for with sheep, as with cattle stock,
if any breed be brought from a rich to an inferior soil,
it must necessarily decrease in value and condition. It
may be found equally true, that difl'erent soils are best
suited to different breeds of sheep ; and that the soil of-
ten serves eventually to produce a difference in sheep.

That our sheep may be profitably managed, none
should be kept for breeders that have not good fleeces.
It is the opinion of Mr. Deane that lambs should not
come till about the 20th of April, when the grass begins

SHEEP. 165

to start. The ewes should therefore be kept from the
ram till the 20th of November. For a few weeks before,
and for a considerable time after yearning, they should
have plenty of juicy food : For the want of milk is the prin-
cipal cause of the loss of so many lambs. Sheep should
have hay of the liest quality during winter. Red clover
that has been salted in the mow is esteemed the best.
If sheep are fed daily upon potatoes, carrots, turnips,
&c. no article of stock will repay with greater protit ;
the quantity of wool will be greater, and quality finer ;
they will be fiee from ticks, unless kept in too warm a
covering, and too man}^ in a fold ; they will not shed
their wool, and seldom lose their lambsc When sheep
are badly kept they take colds, and discharge a mucus
from the nose. Good feeding, together with seme pine
boughs given them occasionally, will cure this complaint.
If pine boughs cannot be had, spread some tar over a
board, and over this spread some salt, which will induce
the sheep to lick up all the tar, and this will efiect a
cure. The yard and shelter should be spacious ; the
shelter close over-head, but open to the south, and it
should have some small apartments for the ewes at
yearning time. The different appartments must be kept
well littered.

If lambs are weak, it is necessary to give them, the
first day or two, a small quantity of cow's milk, warm,
three or four times in the day ; if it is cold weather,
the cup containing the milk should stand in another ves-
sel, that is partly filled with warm water. Should the
lamb be chilled, rub his legs with tow, and let a warm
cloth be wrapped round it. But if corn, barley, oats, or
white beans, are given to she.ep, during the winter, in
small quantity, the ewes will have plenty of milk, the
lambs will be strong, and the trouble of nursing saved.

Water is not necessary for sheep during the season
of pasture ; as they will feed while the dew is on ; but
in winter they should have free access to it, although
they can do many days without it. They thrive better
if changed frequently from one pasture to another, if
of equal goodness.

* The weaning of lambs, before the time when they
naturally wean themselves, is believed to be by n'*,
means advisable, unless the ewes are to be turned off
*1S

16G - SHEEP.

for fatting*. In this case, care miist.be taken to milk
the ewes every day or two, for the first week, until
the milk dries up.

In washing sheep, to prevent danger from exposure,
sink a tub or barrel for the person to stand in. The
water must be warm as can be had, and perfectly clean.
It is necessary to keep sheep, some days previous to
shearing, in a clean pasture, that their wool may im-
bibe some of the oil which is lost by washing, which
will render the shearing more easy, and require less oil
afterwards. If any are cut in shearing, the wounds
should be smeared with a mixture of tar, fresh butter,
and sulphur. At shearmg but few should be brought
together at a time, and they should be penned in the
open air. After shearing, they require shade during
the heat of the day, free acccess to their shelter during
rains and cold nights, and plenty of salt. At shearing
time, the lambs should be docked, castrated and mark-
ed ; and all old and broken-mouthed sheep, and all that
do not possess good qualities should be marked, in order
to be put in good pasture and fatted. To destroy ticks
on sheep, part the wool along the back, and down
each side of the neck, and sprinkle snuff thin : it will
kill the ticks in the course of three or four days. This
operation ought to be repeated in ten or twelve days,
to kill those newly hatched. This operation performed
on the lambs after the old sheep are shorn, will expel
the vermin from the flock.

The wool ot yearhng sheep should be kept by itself;
as its difference of texture will cause cloth to shrink un-
equally if mixed with other wool. The other fleeces
may be sorted, by making separate parcels of the thighs,
belly, back, and sides. Mr. Hayden of Massachusetts,
recommends the following management for wool that is
to be sent to market. After separating from the fleece
all tag locks and manure, wind up as tight as possible,
with the skin side inward. After which, it. would be
well to put it into a clean dry apartment for a week or
more, for the purpose of drying before packing. The
most convenient bags may be made of tow cloth, from
7-8 to 4-4 wide, of three breadths each, from two to
tw-o and a quarter in length. As merino sheep cannot
fee washed to much advantage, the wool must be wash-

SHEEP. 167

ed soon after shearing", to pre rent it from fermentiog
and spoiling in hot weather.

Ewes should not have lambs until they are two years
old, as it stints them in their growth ; and they have so
little milk, that their lambs either die, or are always
small and inferior. A yearling sheep has at its first
shearing, two broad teeth before, besides its narrow
teeth ; when sheared the second dme, it has four ; the
third time six; and the fourth, eight. They are then
said to be full-mouihed. At seven and eight years they
begin to lose their front teeth. Whenever this happens,
they should be turned off to fat, as they are then upon
the decline.

Mr. Livingston says, the size of the ewes, more than
that of the ram, governs the size of their lambs ; that
the ewes of a small race cannot bear large lambs, though
the ram be ever so large. For this reason, the lambs
which are raised from a merino ram, on our common
ewes, will be larger than those raised from one of our
common rams on merino ewes. But as sheep are sup-
posed to eat nearly in proportion to their size, those of
a medium size are the most profitable. To improve our
breed of sheep, take ewes that are at least three years
old, as large as can be obtained of the sort, with the
belly large and well covered with wool, chine and loin
broad, breast deep, buttocks full, the eyes lively, the
bag large, and the teats long. They must have fine
short thick wool, with the least hair on the hinder
parts. In the choice of a ram, which we will suppose
to be three-fourths blooded, select one that is of good
size, broad in the chine and loins, deep in the carcase,
the back straight, the ribs well set out, so as to give room
for a large belly, well covered with wool, the forehead
broad, the eyes lively : Let him also be strong, close-
knit, and active ; and let his wool be of good quality,
and as clear of hair on the hinder parts as possible. The
product of such a ram, with common ewes, would be
lambs nine twenty-fourth parts of merino blood ; and
twice repeating the process on the females of successive
products, would give three-fourth blooded lambs. Two
further repetitions from a full-blooded ram, would give
Jambs possessing fifteen-sixteenths of merino blood,
which is probably sufficient. The ram, however, ought

16 J SWINE.

to be changed at each time ; as it is believed that the
rearing of succeeding stocks, between which there is
the closest consanguinity, must eventually tend to
degenerate the breed. About forty ewes may be al-
lowed to one ram. »See Livingston'' s Essay on sheep.

SVvTNE.

This species of live stock may be regarded as one of
the most profitable, while the number kept on a farm is
proportioned to the quantity of offal on the premises ;
especially as the benefit arising from their dung, more
than counterbalances the expense of attendance, and as
they are the onl} kind of animals that can be fed upon
those articles, that would otherwise go to waste about a
farm.

The marks of a good hog are, a moderate length, in
proportion to the size of the body ; the nos^ short, the
cheek plump and full; neck thick and short; quarters
full , carcase thick and full ; hair fine and thin ; with a
symmetry adapted to the breed to which it belongs.
Above all, it is essential that it be of a kindly disposition
to fatten early. The long nosed hogs should be avoided.

The sow will bring forth a stronger and better litter,
if kept from the boar till a year old; and he should be
kept from sows till that age. He should be kept in
good condition, and not go to more than ten sows in a
year. The sow^s should also be kept in good condition,
but not too fat. The period of gestation is about four
months ; they usually bring two litters in a year ; the
most proper times will be April and early in September.
They should be kept clean and well littered ; but should
not have too much litter at the time of piging, lest they
overlay their young. In eight or ten days they should
be let out of their sties into the yard, for several hours
each day. Where several sows are farrowing, about
the same time, they should be kept in separate apart-
ments. To prevent sows from eating their pigs, let
them have plenty of water. The pigs intended for
market, should h<i killed in about three weeks. The
finest ones should be saved, and castrated and spayed,
at the age of six weeks. If pigs are to be weaned, it
should be at the age of two months ; and they should
have a stye by themselyes; be kept clean, well littered,

SWINE. 169

and have plenty of good food. When three months old,
they will do well by turning them with the hogs in the
clover field. The pasture in which hogs are kept,
should have a supply of v/ater.

In preference to feeding swine on clover in the field,
during summer, Mr. Young directs soiling them in a
a yard ; in this case, sainioiiv, iucern, clover, kc. can
he cut and carried to them ; also, ail kinds of weeds
from the borders of inclosures ; the haulm of peas, beans
and potatoes, fern or brakes, &,c. and where situation
will admit, eel grass and rock weed, towards increasing
manure, with mud from the bottoms of ponds, and scrap-
ing from the yard, occasionally sprinkling upon the
mass, a little quick lime, to favor the decomposition.
Mr. UHommedien thinks the manure made in this way
will more than pay for their keeping.

Another good method, is to have two small enclos-
ures ; the one to be kept for feeding them, while the
other is under tillage for a fresh- supply of clover, or
other good grass, when that in the first has failed. As
sweet apples and peaches are valuable food for them, let
a ie.\w trees of»these be planted, in the enclosures, of
the best yearly bearers ; some being early ripe and some
later ; but not so near each other as to injure the
ground for cultivation.

Boiled or steamed clover hay cut a little sooner than
usual, and salted in the mow, will keep hogs during
winter, but to this it is best to add steamed potatoes,
carrots, Sic. The cleaner they are kept, the better
they will grow and fatten. They never should be with-
out a good shelter, summer and winter. But how many
leave this poor degraded creature, exposed to the in-
clemency of the season. The hog appeals to all our
senses ; he shivers, his thin hairs are clotted and drip-
ping, he utters loudly his complaints ! But he is not a
tavourite ! he is rude and dirty ; neither amuses nor
renders an}'- daily services ; he is destined to slaughter,
and suffers unpitied any natural evils that befall all the
few days allotted o him by the will of his master.

The sows may be allowed to breed till they are six
years old, and the boar until five. After this, the form-
er is to be spayed and fattened, and the latter castrated
and fattened for bacon.

1 TO PASTURES.

Hogs for fatting should be in a healthy state ; and, to
increase their appetite, let a dose or two of sulphur be
given them in their food. Change of food is also good
to increase their appetite. Probably changes of boiled
roots, and of meal and water, at intervals, would be
found best. All kinds of grain, ground to meal, and mix-
ed v/ith water, in the proporiion oi five bushels of meal
to one hundred gallons of water, well stirred several
times each day, until it has fermented and become acid,
is said by Mr. Youngs to be the best food for hogs. It
should be made in large quantities, as it will require two
or three weeks to ferment. Mr. Deane says, that while
hogs are fatting, little or none of the wash of the kitch-
en should be given them ; but that their drink should
be clean water, of which they will drink considerable.
Mr. Bordley^ recommends not to force hogs to eat salt
by mixing it vviih their food, but place it where they
can have access to it at their pleasure.

Swine kept in too warm, and more so in filthy pens,
are ever subject to diseases and unprofitable feeding.
There is no greater mistake than that o[ gorging swine,
when lirst penned for fatting. They 'should, on the
contrary, be moderately and frequently fed ; so that
they be kept full, but do not loath, or reject their food ;
and in the end contract feveis and dangerous maladies ,
originating in a hot and corrupted mass of blood ; against
some of which, dry rotten wood is a preventive. Their
meals should be regular, and as nearly equi-distant in
point of time as possible. Posts ought to be set up in
the stye for them to rub acrainst.

To keep hogs in health, and prevent them from hav-
ing the measles ; about once a week mix two spoonfuls
of madder in their food ; and on some other day in the
week, give a spoonful or two of an equal quantity of
flour of sulphur, and saltpetre, well pounded and mixed,
and added to their food.

The business of fatting hogs should be begun so early
in the iall, (say first of October) as to be completed
early in December; as after cold weather sets in, they
will fatten very slowly.

PASTURES.

The grounds that are the most perfectly adapted to
this uscj are all those which have a considerable deptk

PASTURES. 171

df good mould, and at the same time that they aflford a
good herbage, are so dry in their nature as to admit the
animals to feed upon them at almost all seasons without
hijury by poachiiig.

The subdivisions of land, that is kept for the sole pur-
pose of pasturing, should depend as well upon its fertili-
ty, as upon the number of different kinds of cattle that
are to be fed on it. Fifty acres of land,' that would on-
ly feed three cows during the season, would not pay
the expense of subdividing. On the contrary, if the
farmer has but three cows, and has three acres of the
best pasture land, he ought to divide this into at least
two parts; so that the one can be growing while the
other is feeding. Or, if he keep twenty c^ws, and has
twenty acres of the best pasture, it wiU be protitable to
divide it into four parts, pasturing each enclosure three
©r four days, alterndlely. In this way, pasture lands
will keep at least one fourth more cattle, than if the
whole were in one field.

Not only a change of pasture is beneficial, but a change
of different kinds of cattle in the same pastures should
be attended to. Thus, let the milch cows take the first
cropping of each field, in rotation ; then the horses and
oxen, and the sheep next. In this wa}', the last feeder
will eat much grass that has been neglected by the
former.

It is hurtful to pastures to turn in cattle too early in
the spring ; particularl}^ to those which are wet. Poach-
ing such land destroys the sward, so that it will pro-
duce the less quantity of grass. They should not be
turned in till there is a good bite. The latter part of
May is early enough.

By draining wet miry spots in pasture, the grass will
probably be doubled in quantity, and much improved in
quality. Bushes should be cut out and destroyed ; this-
tles and other noxious weeds should be mowed down be-
fore they go to seed, and every mean taken to eradicate
them. It is never advisable to pasture lands too close-
ly, particularly in the fall, as this only tends to diminish
the quantity the next year. The dung that is lefl,
should be beat to pieces, and scattered over the field.
Plaster, or lime ashes, sown upon pasture grounds, will
repay a handsome profit, by increasing the quantity and

172 SOILING OF CATTLE.

value of feed, by bringiog in the finer grasses, such as
while clover, &c.

Sheep require no water in their pastures ; it is also
said that calves should have none : and, horses require but
little, except wnen they are worked. The effect of this
treatment is, that they become habituated to iie by in
the heat of the day, and feed at night, when the dew is
on the grass, which renders it more nouri^^hing. Cows,
however, must have water: and where it is scare..', the
farmer may select some small stream, spring, or pond,
or large trough, supplied from some neighbouring spring,
and divide the pasture so as to have four or more in-
closures centre in, or upon the brook, pond, or reser-
voir ; in this way lifty or sixty acres may be supplied
with water. But if there is no water, the best way is
to sink a well at that spot where the pasture lots corner
together ; and then by a lirtle cheap wind-machinery,
the trough may'be filled as often as necessary. In pas-
tures which are on the sides of hills, water may be ea-
sily obtained, by digging horizontally into the hill tiU
you come to it, and then carrying it out in a pi[>e. An-
other method is, to dig a well on a steep part of the hill,
and place a syphon in it, with bO small a pipe that it
will not let off the water fast enough to exhaust it in
the well.

'■ Lastly, as a matter of ornament, profit, and shade for
cattle, let your pastures be planted with a few useful
trees; and prohably, for this purpf;se, the locust will be
most suitable for dry, and the sugar-maple for moist
lands.

SOILING OF CATTLE.

By this is meant, the feeding of stock in a house,
shed, or fold, during the growing season, with grass, &:c.
cut and carried in to them. It is particularly recom-
mended for miich cows, working horses, and oxen, and
for fatting cattle ; and it has been found to answer well
for swine.

It is observed by Mr. Quincy^ of Massachusetts, that
there are six distinct advantages, which those, who ad-
vocate soiling, propose to themselves by the practice,
and on which they establish the preference of this mode
to the common one of pasturing cattle during the sum-
mer.

SOILING QF CATTLE. 173

1st. The sating of land. For it is said by those who
have practised soiling, that a spot of ground which,
"vvhen pastured, will yield only suthcient food for one
head, will abundantly maintain four^ when kept in the
stable.

2d. The saving of fencings The general effect of
soiling cattle is, to render all interior fences absolutely use-
less.

3d. The economising of food. There are six ways by
which beasts destroy the article destined tor their food ;
viz. By eating ; walking ; dunging ; staling ; lying down ;
and breathing on it : Of these, the tirst only is useful.
By cutting the same, and feeding it to them in the stall,
sparingly, in point of time, but sufficiently in point of
quantity, every particle will be consumed ; and beasts
will eat many products of the earth, in the stall, which
they will refuse in the pasture.

4th. 7he better condition and greater comfort of the cat-
tle. They are less subject to accidents and diseases ;
they are protected from the flies ; and they do not suf-
fer from the heat of summer. Stall feeding, does not
imply keeping cattle in stalls, or in the house the whole
time. It only intends, always feeding them there, and
keeping them there the chief of the time. On the con-
trary, it is an essential part of the system, to let them
loose in yards well shaded, at least two hours in the fore-
noon, and two in the afternoon.

5th. The greater product of milk. Although the quan-
tity of milk may not be greater in the early part of the
season, when pastures abound with a flush of feed, yet
Mr. (^uincy has found from experience, that by provid-
ing a regular succession of succulent crops, the milk
product will be undiminished ; and therefore greatly ex-
ceed that obtained by pasturing.

6th. The attainment of manure. Soiling is supposed to
afford more than double the quantity of manure from
the same number of cattle ; for the best summer ma-
nure is produced in the stable, and carried to the field
when in the most suitable condition; whereas, when
scattered about lields, and exhausted by the air audsuD,
it is much wasted.

There are other advantages attending this method of
husbandry. The trouble of driving the mikh cows to
16

171 SOILING OF CATTLE.

and from the pastures, is saved ; the working horses and
oxen are always at hand ; and, what is of no small im-
])urtance, when the cattle are housed the growing crops
are in more safety.

The only ofiset to all these advantages is the labour
of raising and cutting the food, and feeding and taking
care of the stock.

The crops necessary for soiling, may be r3^e (sown
the preceding year) oats, barley, millet, (this has been
cultivated to advantage in this State the present year)
Indian corn, sown broadcast, clover and various grasses ;
besides cabbages and roots, so arranged as to have a
succession of succulent food through the season. Any
sorts of grain sown to produce fodder for soiling, after
being harrowed in, should be rolled, to make the ground
smooth for mowing. If the soil be rich and the surface
smooth, the grass may be cut when only three or
ibur inches high, and will then yield a good swarth.
Such ground well set with the grasses usually cul-
tivated and inclined to moisture, may in this man-
ner be mown three or four times in a season. The cut-
ting of the rye, oats, barley and millet should commence
as soon as they will yield a good swarth, and be finish-
ed before they have passed the flowering stnte. If
mown before they flower, they will shoot again ; and if
the growth be rich, yield second crops,

Indian corn will be well grown for soiling by the 10th
or 15th of July : and will continue green, and in full sap
until the last of August. And in order to continue a
supply of the rich, green food — to which probably no
other vegetable of our countr}'' is equal, especially for
milch cows — pieces of land may be planted or sown in
succession, so that some may be in full sap to the last
of September.

Rich mowing land will furnish a second and third
crop, of green fodder that will answer to the middle or
iast of October. Perhaps hie sown oats, hardier plants
than, Indian corn, may supply the place of gras«?. Pump-
kiltps, also, during this month and the next, will furnish a
riu»st valuable food. To these may be added the tops
of. winter vegeiablcs, such as carrots, turnips, &,c. which
will be useful till the middle of November. Mr. Quincy
has been abie to support I'O head of cattle, from the
\hi\i of October to the middle or latter end of Novcm-

SOILING OF CAITLE. 175

ber with the tops of veg-etables raised on eight to twelve
acres of hiiiil, with the addition of only a sinj^le fodder-
ing of salt hay, per day. If, however, the farmer is not
in the practice ot raising a sulTicient quantity of roots, to
yield a support for his stock, for five or six weeks, cab-
bages are, in tins climate, the farmer's best dependance,
after the second cutting of the grass and corn, and oat
fodder fail.

After November, potatoes, mangel wurtzel and car-
rots, added plentifully to their dry fodder, even if
this be only barley, or oat straw, or wet or low meadow
hay, will doubtless keep cows in milch till within a suit-
able time of their calving. Cows, during the time of
their going dry, and other stock at all times, fully sup-
plied with ruta baga, or common turnips, with the same
poor dry fodder, may be kept in high condition. In
England, cattle intended for beef are often fatted on
wheat straw and turnips, giving of the latter as many as
they will eat. They commence feeding in this manner
in Autumn, and b}' the spring the cattle are fat for the
market.

Rye, oats, barley and millet when destined for soiling,
should be sown twice as thick as when intended to ri-
pen their seeds. In like manner Indian corn may be
planted iii continued rows only so far apart as to admit
a small })iough in its culture, and with the plants onl;/
foar or live inches a part in the rows. The surface of
the ground should be smooth in the rows, so as to admit
of mowing the corn : Or it may be sown broadcast,
ploughed or harrowed in, by harrowing both ways, and
afterwards rolled.

The essential point in soiling, is to make and save the
greatest possible quantity of barn-dung. Some of the
most intelligent farmers, therefore have barns with cel-
lars under them, for the purpose of receiving the dung
of the cattle, and into these the dung and litter are con-
stantly thrown. Suitable earths are also laid behind
the cattle to absorb the stale as it runs backward, and
these, when saturated, are also thrown down and mix-
ed with the dung. The cellar should not be very deep,
and should be open for the admission of air during the
summer. The bottom ought to be made water tight
with clay. Others prefer sheds adjoining the barn, to
keep tha dang under cover to protect it from the rains,

170 SOILING OF CATTLE.

The proportion of valuable manure that the Careful
husbantJMuui may provide by this system of management
is scarcely to be conceived.

The whole supply of food for the da)"^, can be cut and
carried to the barn in the morning-. A light hand-cart,
or wheelbarrow, will be found convenient for bringing
in the grass from the parts of the field nearest the barn ;
and a horse-cart, from those most distant. Double
siieds, in which a sufficient space is left before the cattle,
for the feeder to go with a large wheelbarrow to dis-
tribute their food, are, perhaps, the best constructions
for feeding houses ; being not only most commodious,
but less building will be required for the same number
of cattle, than by having them all to face one way.
The food is distributed, under cover, about six times
a day, in due proportions, which the usual practical
knowledge of a farmer will easily regulate.

Mr. Qiiincy has kept for several years the same
amount of stock, by soiling, on seventeen acres of land,
though not in high tilth, which had always previously
required fifty acres. But he advises the farmer to keep
on hand, a month or six weeks stock of hay or other
food ; so as to have assurance that his cattle should not
suffer by drought, or any other untoward accident of
season. A mixture of dry food with the succulent, is
very conducive to the health of the animals soiled, and
enables the feeder to check the too great looseness of
the bowels ; often the effect of high feeding upon juicy
vegetables.

It has been observed, that those cows which have
been always used to be kept by soiling, during the grow-
ing season, are usually more profitable than those which
have been newly put to this method of keeping.

The practice of soiling cannot, of course, be advisa-
ble to that class of agriculturalists, whose farms contain
tracts of land suitable for nothing else than pasturage,
but to that class, whose farms are small, and who are
stimulated by that correct ambition of possessing a little
land highly cultivated, rather than a great deal misera-
bly managed ; to that class, also, whose entire farms are
capable of being tilled or mown — where fencing stuff is
dear — where grass is of great value — where cultivation
is carried to great perfection — where population is dense

Bl/TTER. 177

—and particularly where their situation Joes not place
them within any easy access to manures ; — in such sit-
uations, the practice above proposed presents advanta-
ges of the most decided and unequivocal character.

Mr. Robbins thinks that a system, combined of soiling-
and pasturage, might be a great improvement upon our
present system — soiling of our working cattle, in the
season of work, and soiling of our cows, combined witli
pasturage. Under this system, almost any farm, even a
very rough one, might be greatly improved

There can scarcely be any doubt of the advantage of
soiling, where that close sort of attention which is requi-
site in most of the operations of farming, is bestowed :
but in order to the success of the practice, it is necessary
that the cattle be kept clean ; that there be plenty of
pure water for them to drink ; that the food be given
them frequently and in due portions, without its becom-
ing injured by keeping; and that they be turned out for
a few hours ia the cool of the morning and evening, in
the summer season, and in the middle of the day, when
the weather becomes more cold. It might also be of
additional advantage where different kinds of green food
can be easily provided, to vary them occasionally.

There is no proposition in nature more true, observes
Mr. Q/u'/icy, than that any larmer may maintain by this
system, upon thirty acres of good arable land^ ticcntij head
of cattle, in better condition, with more prolit, with more
comfort to the animals, with less labor, less trouble, and
less cash advance to himself, than he at present usually
expends upon one hundred acres. In addition to which
he will have the great satisfaction of seeing, in time, ev-
ery square inch of his land productive, instead of seeing,,
as he does now, not more than one part in four of his
farm producing any thing; or at least, any that will pay
the expense of harvesting.

BUTTF.R.

Pans, or trays, for holding milk, to raise the most cream
ought to be broad and shallow, and the milk put in theiiK
should not be more than three or four inches in depth.
Tin or wood are the best materials for making tliesc.
Some line wooden trays with lead ; but this is a bad
practice, as lead may sonaetimes be dissolved by the

*16

178 BUTTER.

ncid of the milk, and then it is poisonous. Wooden
tra^^s ought to be well scalded, and dried in a cool place,
as often as new milk is put into them.

If new milk be kept as warm as it comes from the
cow, no cream will rise on it ; but, when sufficiently cool-
ed, it separates from the rest and rises to the top. la
order then to eifect this, to the best advantage, the new
milk should be made as cool as possible, and the cooler
it is thus made, the more suddenly and effectually the
cream will rise. The cooler the cellars, therefore, in
which milk is kept, the better. To set milk pans, made
of tin, in beds of salt, would, no doubt, be useful when
the cellar is too warm ; and to set all milk vessels on a
lloor which is constantly covered with cold spring water,
is also an excellent plan ; and, where it can be done,
ought never to be omitted. Wetting the floor will an-
swer.

Most of the cream comes last from the cow in milk-
ing. The last half pint, contains as much cream as the
IJrst quart, or perhaps three pints ; and, for this reason,
they ought to be milked as clean as possible. The
quantity of cream will be greater, if the milk of each
cow be strained into a pan by itself. In cold weather
the milk should be strained immediately after milking,
but in very warm weather it can be left till nearly
cool.

In hot weather the cream should be skimmed from the
milk at or before sunrise, and in about twenty-four
hours after it is taken from the cow. In winter, milk
may remain unskimmed thirty-six or forty-eight hours.
The cream should be deposited in a deep pan, kept du-
rino" summer in a cool place, where a free air is admitted.
Unless churning is performed every other day, the cream
should be shifted daily into clean pans. If a pump
churn is used, it may be plunged a foot deep in cold
water, and remain in that situation during the whole
lime of churning, which will much harden the butter.
A strong rancid flavour will be given to butter if the
churn is placed so near the Are as to heat the wood in
the winter season. In churning it is necessary to keep
a regular stroke. After the butter is churned, it should
be perfectly cleansed from the milk before salting.

BITTTER. 179

For curing butter, take two parts of the best com-
mon salt, one of brown-sugar, and one ofsalpetre ; beat
them together so as to blend them completely, apply
one ounce of this to every pound of butter ; and work
it well into the mass. It should be put into firkins, and
so closely packed and crowded, that no air can be in
contact with the butter ; which should be carefully
covered with a piece of fine cloth, after diping it in
melted sweet butter. When more is to be put into the
tub, take up the cloth ; and after that is well crowded
in and levelled, put on the cloth again so nicely as to
shut out, if possible, every particle of air. Butter salt-
ed in this manner and put down in close tubs, with a
little melted butter poured over the surface, to fill up
every vacuity, before the top is put on, will keep much
longer, and be worth at least twenty-five per cent, more
than that which has been cured with salt alone. It must
not, however, be used sooner than three or four weeks
nfter it has been laid down, as it does not fully acquire
its rich marrowy taste, until about that length of time.
The tubs, during summer and fall, should stand on the
coldest part of the cellar.

For keeping butter sweet that is salted in the usual
way, it should be salted with an ounce and a half, or
more, of the strongest and best salt, finely powdered,
to each pound, and so thoroughly mixed that every part
may be equally salt ; made into rolls, and then put into
a cask of pure strong brine, and, for keeping the rolls
completely immersed in this Hquid, there should be a
cover, suitable to the dimension of the inside of the
cask, to be laid on the rolls, and sunk beneath the sur-
face of the brine by a weight, which may be a block
of wood, fastened to the cover, that will sink only a
given depth. The brine does not penetrate the butter
so as to give out any additional saltness. For clarifying
the brine it should occasionally be scalded, the scum ta-
ken off, and more salt added if necessary. Butter made
in May is observed to be best for keeping.

Milk or butter should not be put in stone jars, as they
communicate a poisonous quality extremely injurious to
the human constitution. Wooden vessels are the most
proper for containing salted butter, and oak the best
kind of wood. Iron hoops should not be used, as the

1 80 ELTTER

rust of them will in time sink tbrough the wood and in-
jure the butter. As it is very difficult to season new
firkins, it will always be preferable to employ those
w^hich have been already used. The most speedy me-
thod of seasoning firkins is, by the use of unslacked
lime, or a large quantity of salt and water well boiled ;
with which they should be repeatedly scrubbed, and af-
terwards thrown into cold water, to remain there three
or four days till wanted. They should then be scrubed
as before, and well rinsed with cold water ; and, before
the butter is put in, every part of the inside must be
well rubbed with salt.

If any ill flavour is apprehended from the cows hav-
ing eaten turnips, Sic. the addition of one eighth part of
boiling water to the milk before it is poured into the
dishes will effectually remove it. Or a small bit of
saltpetre, powdered and put into the milk pan with the
new milk, prevents the cream and butter from being
tainted, although the cows be fed on the refuse leavei
of cabbages and turnips.

An improvement in the dasher of the common churn
has been made, by which that kind of churn is consid-
ered by many to be, for common purposes, equal, if not
superior, to any in use. The dasher turns on the han-
dle, by being fixed to it by a pivot. The dasher is
merely two cross-pieces, say, three inches square, put
together, by being let into each other, which then form
four wings. These are cut leveling on each side, at an
angle of Ibrty-five degrees, so that they stand diagonal-
ly ; the whole being very similar to the wings of the
little windmills (so called) which are set up, on poles,
to be turned by the wind. As this dasher goes down in
the milk, it turns one way, on its pivot in the lower end
of the handle, and as it comes up, it turns the other
way ; and this produces an agitation of the milk, better
calculated for producing the butter, than any method
ever yet known. It is so efficacious in its operation,
that the churning must be performed moderately, or the
butter will come too soon, and be sivelted^ as it is tech-
nically called by some.

CHEESE. 181

CHEESE.

Cheese is mentioned by the most ancient writers.

" Around the grot we gaze ; and all we view,

In order ranged, our admiration drew :

The bending shelves, with loads of cheeses prest, &c.'"

Homer.

But let us attend to the best mode of loading our
shelves with first rate cheeses.

Make your milk blood-warm, and put in your runnet ;
but no more than will just make the curd come. Add an
ounce of fine salt to so much curd as will make a cheese
of fitlteen pounds, and in proportion for a greater or less.
Stir the curd till it is gathered ; put it in a strainer,
and with your hands work out all the vvhey ; then lay it
in a clean linnen cloth, put it in the hoop, and, cover-
ing it with the cloth, put it in the press, and let it stand
there two hours ; then take it out, rub it over with fine
salt, put it in another dry cloth, and put it in the press
eight hours ; then take it out again, put in another dry
cloth, and put it in the press again, where it is to remain
till the next cheese is ready. When taken out of the
press, put it in brine twenty-four hours, and add to the
brine about a tea spoon full of saltpetre. Some little
additions of salt and saltpetre must be occasionally made
to the brine ; and let it he cleansed as soon as necessa-
ry, by heating it and taking off the scum. When you
take the cheese out, dry it with a cloth ; bind it round
with a long string to make it keep its shape, which must
be kept round it tor some days, and let it be daily turn-
ed on the shelf, for two months.

Let the evening milk be put with that of the morning ;
and, to make the best cheeses, let none of the cream
be taken away. If the evening milk, however, be
skimmed, and added to that of the morning, it will
make tolerable cheese. Skim-milk cheeses are also
made ; but they are not worth much.

Wooden vessels are considered most wholesome for
holding the milk ; but if tin be used, they should be
washed every time they are emptied, with warm water,
in which a little salt has been dissolved, and should be
kept clean by scouring; and to prevent acidity in wood-
en vessels, they should in like manner be scoured and
cleaned with warm water.

182 CHEESE.

The dairy requires too apnrtmeiits ; and a clean cool
room in the cellar for the miik, and a dark room above
ground for drying and keeping the cheese. Cheese
sliould not be set to dry in the safne room where the
milk is set, for they commiiaicate an acid matter to
the surrounding air, v/hich will have a tendency to make
the milk sour. The room must be perfectly dark, to
keep out Hies, and every thing belonging to the dairy
must be kept quite clean. To prevent skippers, take a
pod of red pepper, and put it into a piece of fine linen,
moisten it with a little butter, and rub the cheese witli
it frequenth^ To prevent flies from depositing their
eggs in the cracks of cheeses, let them be lilled with
paste made of butter and flour. To give them a fine
color, let a little annatto be put in the milk. This is
harmless. But beware of coloring them with any thing
that is poisonous.

But no good cheese can be made unless the runnet be
good. The rank and putrid taste, which is so often in
cheeses made in this country, is attributed to a putridity
in the rennet. In order to have the rennet in perfection,
the calf should have lived on new milk only, and be
quite in health at the time of being killed. Under these
circumstances, the maw-skin is always found to contain,
when taken out of the calf, more or less of a firm, white,
curd-like matter. A good method of making the rennet
i^ as follows : Empty the maw of its curd ; wash it slight-
ly ; soak it in strong brine till it is well salted ; dry it on
boughs mads for the purpose ; then take two quarts of
.strong brine that will bear an ei^g. blood-warm, and let
the maw steep in this twenty-four hours, when the liquor
will be fit for use ; bottle it up, and cork it tight, and it
will keep ibr a twelve month. About a tea-cup full will
be sufficient for the miik often cows. Some direct spi-
ces, and a lemon sliced, to be put into tliis liquor. Or
the runnet bag may be salted and dried, as before di-
rected, and pieces of it occasionally used, by being pre-
viously soaked in warm water, and a quantity of this
water used, in proportion to the quantity of milk to be
turned.

The following method of cheese making is recom-
mended in the Massachusetts Agricultural Repository.
The milk i:-: unJVi.'rsa]!y set for cheese as soon as it

CHEESE. 183

comes from the cow. The management of the curd de-
pends on the kind of cheese : thin cheese requires the
least labor and attention. Breaking the curd is done
with the hand and dish. The finer the curd is broken
the better, particularly in thick cheeses. Turning the
milk differs in different dairies ; no two dairy women
conduct exactly alike. Setting the milk too hot inclines
the cheese to heave, and cooling it with cold water pro-
duces a similar effect. The degree of heat is varied ac-
cording to the weather. The curd, when formed, is
broken with what is called a triple cheese knife. The
use of this is to keep the fat in the cheese ; it is drawn
the depth of the curd two or three times across the tub,
to give the whey an opportunity of running off clear ;
after a few minutes the knife is more freely used, and
the curd is cut into small pieces like chequers, and is
broken fine in the whey, with the hand and a wooden
dish. The curd being, allowed about half an hour to
settle, the whey is Inded off with the dish, after it is
pretty well separated from the curd. It is almost an in-
variable practice to scald the curd. The mass is first
broken very fine, and then the scalding whey is added
to it, and stirred^ a i'ew minutes ; some make use of the
hot water in preference to the whey, and it is in both cases
treated according to the nature of the curd; if it is soft,
the whey or water is used nearly boiling; but if hard,
it is used only a little hotter than the hand. After the
curd is thoroughly mixed with the hot stuff, it is suffered
to stand a few minutes to settle and is then separated,
as at the first cj oration. After the scaldiug liquor is
separated, a vat, or what is often called a cheese hoop,
is laid across the cheese ladder over the tub, and the
curd is crumbled into it with the hand and pressed
into the vat, to squeeze out the whey.

The vat being filled as full and firmly as the hand can
fill it, and rounded up in the middle, a cheese cloth iai
spread over it, and the curd is turned out of the hoop
into the cloth ; the vat is then washed, and the inverted
mass of curd, with the cloth under it, is turned into the
vat and put into the press ; after standing two or three
hours in the press, the vat is taken out and the cloth is
taken off, washed, and put round the cheese, and it is
replaced in the vat and in t'ae press. In about seven or

184 FRUIT TREES.

eight hours it is taken out of the press and salted, the
cheese is placed on a board, and an handfull of salt is
rubbed all over it, and the edge? are pared off if necessa-
ry ; another handfull of salt is strewed on the upper
side, and as much left as will stick to it ; afterwards it
is turned into the bare vat without a cloth, and an equal
quantity of salt is added to it, and the cheese is return-
ed into the press ; where it continues one night, and the
next morning it is turned in the vat and continues till
the succeeding morning, and is taken out and placed on
the dairy shelf; where they are turned every day or
every other day, as the weather may be. If it is hot
and dry, the windows and door are kept shut, but if
wet or moist, the door and windows are kept open night
and day.

FRUIT TREES

There is probably no part of rural economy, observes
Mr. Coxe^ which combines in so great a degree the
agreeable occupation of the mind with active employ-
ment, as the cultivation of fruit trees, with the other
branches of an extensive orchard establishment : to the
man of wealth and leisure, it offers the means of im-
proving and adorning his estate ; the scientific cultivator
will find in it inexhaustible sources of intellectual occu-
pation ; while the practical farmer, whose views are
limited to objects of certain profit, will be amply remu-
nerated for every expenditure of labour or money, by
the immediate comfort, and eventual emolument, which
will be derived from such an establishment.

As nothing, says Mr. Robbins, is more delicious, so
nothing is more wholesome, than well ripened fruit. It
is its deliciousnei.3 that makes its danger. It tempts to
excess in eating, and to eating it, unripe. But taken in
moderation, it is as wholesome to the constitution, as it is
delicious to the palate. Fruit seems to be the favourite food
of nature. All animals devour it with eagerness. There
is no luxury of the unadulterated palate so much covet-
ed ; and in places where nature has denied the produc-
tion, no cost in forcing it is considered too great. Be-
sides the unfailing market, that may be expected for the
fruit, there is the farm, where so much is wanted for
family consumption, where it contributes so m.uch to

FRUIT TP.nES. 185

the pleasure of the family tabic, and vv'here it is manu-
factured into so many liquors ; the cider, the perry, the
wines, &c. both for fannily consumption, and the market ;
so that a few acres of fruit become a source of more
revenue, than the whole farm besides. Nothing", in ag-
ricuiture, gives so much value to the land it occupies,
as a good fruit tree. In many ins ranees, it adds many
hundred per cent, to its value. The original cost is a
mere nothing, even if the 3'oimg tree be purchased.
But if it be raised, and formed, as it may be, a little la-
bour procures it. The time, it requires to come to
a state of bearing, ought to be no objection ; for in the
mean time the land may be cropped, and the tree will
be the better for the tillage. Its growth and maturity
will be perceptibly hastened. The new value begins
with its plantation, and grows with its growth. Notwith-
standing, these advantages, and the ir.ntije ^sue
fruit trees, it is truly said by Dr. Tliacher^ of Massa-
chusetts, io his Orchardist that their cultivation has re-
ceived but inadequate attention from the farmers of our
country. It must be confessed, as a notorious truth,
that an orchard, planted and cultivated in the most ad-
vantageous manner in point of beauty, profit, and con-
venience, is scarcel}^ to be found. The most palpable
neglect prevails in respect of proper pruning, cleaning-,
and manuring round the roots of trees, and of perpetu-
ating choice fruit, by engrafting. Old orchards are, ia
general, in a state of rapid decay ; and it is not uncom-
mon to see valuable and thrifty trees exposed to the
depredations of cattle and sheep, and their loilage an-
noyed by catterpillars and other destructive insects. In
fact, we know of no branch of agriculture so unaccount-
ably and so culpably disregarded.

Every thing depends upon care, enlightened care ia
securing, training, and forming the tree in the first place ;
and then on its subsequent management. It is this which
is to ensure its vigor and constant fertility. Men often
object to planting fruit trees and nurseries, on the plea
that they may never live to enjoy the fruits of them.
Such an objection is mercenary and selfisii, and betray*
an ignorance, or disregard, of the obligations we all
owe to posterity and to patriotism. For the well-being
and comlbrt of future generations, all good minds have
17

186 APPLK TREE.

feelings of sympathy ; and the planting and protecfloo
of orchards has been considered, by every age, as a '
kind of indispensable duty. That one may plant the
tree, and that another, to come after him, may enjoy the
ffuit, ought to occasion no hesitation. Every one hopes
to leave value to his children or relations. The shape
is of no material consequence, whether it be in a grow-
ing tree, or in one grown. If at the verge of life he
plant — he adds so much to the value of the land, for
the benefit of his heir. But these objections, can be
felt only, as to the apple and the pear, which come late,
but last long. As to all other fruits, he that plants at
almost any age, may hope to enjoy, their maturity is so
earW.

When we consider the various manners in which fruits
are beneficial ; when we recollect the pleasure they af-
ford to the senses, and the chaste and innocent occu-
pation which they give in their cultivation ; when we
consider the reputation which they communicate to a
country in the eye of strangers, especially as affording
a test of its climate and industry ; w^ien we remember
the importance of improving the beverage which they
are intended to supply ; when it is calculated under how
many solid forms they may be exported (as dried, and
preserved, as well as in their natural state ;) and lastly,
when we reflect upon the utility of giving to our rural
labours a thoughtful turn, which is the best substitute
now left, after having quitted our primeval state ; I say,
when we consider these things, it will appear that the
subject of fruits, which were the tirst earthly gift cf
Providence to man in his more favoured state, may well
continue to merit both the public and individual atten-
tion.

APPLE TREE.

Among the numerous varieties of fruit-bearing trees,
cultivated in our country, the apple is, coni'essedly, of
superior importance and utility. It is among the excel-
lencies of a fruit orchard, that it affords a salubrious bc-
-jerage, an adequate supply of which would have a ten-
dency to diminish, if not supercede, the consumption of
ardent spirits, so destructive to the health and moral
character of our citizens.

APPLE TREE.

IGT

JYurseri/. Ever}'' planter ouirlit to raise liis own trees,
that the removal may be easily effected without the
roots becoming dry, that the tree may be continued in
nearly the same kind of soil and atmo«;phere in which it
originated ; and that there may be no hazard respect-
ing the kind of fruit intended to be phmted. The first
step therefore, tovvards obtaining a good orchard, is to
create a good nursery. Respecting tiie soil suitable for
a nursery, there is among writers, a considerable diver-
sity of opinion. Some think it the better plan, to make
a nursery on such ground as is but illy suited to the
growth of the trees to be raised ; for, by afterwards
placing them in a soil that is natural to them, they will
grow more thriftily than trees raised in a nursery where
the soil is suitable to their growth. Others are of opin-
ion that the soil should be rich, tor the vigor of a young
tree, say they, is one of its most valuable properties;
no cultivation or soil will effectually overcome the want
of it; trees will seldom fail even when removed to a
soil of different character from the nursery wherein
tliey were raised, if they have the benefit of good cul-
tivation and good soil ; these will produce a correspon-
dent effect on the growth of the tree wherever raised.
This is a subject, on which, as Sir i?oger de Coverhj says,
much may be said on both sides ; the deci?ion of which,
with that of several such cases occurring before, we
submit to the umpirage of experiment.

We agree with a late writer in opinion, that the soil
ought to be naturally good, for at least one full spade
deep, or if more, the better; that a loamy soil, of a
moderately light temperament is best, and that it cannot
naturally be too good. It is very wrong to enrich nur-
series with dung^ particularly until it is very old, and
almost turned into earth. It is not absolutely necessary
that the soil should be exceedingly rich, nor over care-
fully manured : a medium between the two extremes
is best ; such as any good substantial garden-ground ; or
good mellow pasture land. The situation most favour-
able, is a piece of level ground, neither wet nor dry,
free from stones, in an open situation, where fruit trees
have not lately grown, or indeed any other deep-rooted
plants. Let the ground be ploughed very deeply early
in the fall, and be well mellowed : and plant ike seeds

188 APPLE TREE.

about the month of October. Make the rows three and,
a half, or four feet apart, and plant the seeds plentiful-
ly with or without the pcnnace, one or two inches
deep. If the pomace is not used soon alter taking it
from the press, it must be spread and dried, as it is liable
to heat and destroy the seeds. Those seeds that are
saved eari}^ or are to be kept through the winter for
spring- sowing, (which some prefer,) should be preserv-
ed from air in dry sand : Let them be put in a box lay-
er upon layer, covering them several inches with sand.
Soon after coming up they are to be thinned, so as to
stand at proper distances, (sny four or five inches apai t)
and the ground is to be kept hoed, but not deep near
the plants, and clear of weeds and grass. After they
have had two summer's grov/th, they may be taken up,
grafted near the root, and set again in the nursery, at
the distance of about a foot and a half or two feet apart
in the rows ; where they may remain until sufficiently
large to transplant into the orchard — or they may be
engrafted in the ground.

The cultivation of a nursery is effected By ploughing
and harrowing, each operation twice or thrice in the
season, with ploughs and harrows of a small size, in
using which, great care should be taken to avoid galling
and injuring the trees The plough is not to go so near
the rows as not to leave some ground to be dug with
the hoe. The earth is first thrown from the trees, and
then towards them, and the ground is also worked with
a hoe between the trees to destroy the weeds ; the
.more the earth is stirred, and the cleaner the ground is
kept, the faster will trees grow in every stage of their
progress, from the seedling to the full grown tree.

In pruning trees in the nurser}"^, care should be used
not to run them up too high ; this weakens the stems,
and throv.s the growth too much into the braiiches. —
Tliey must be pruned gradually, and a little each year.
No suckers that spring up from the roots should be suf-
i'ered to remain ; and all buds should be speedily rubbed
oil", which would make branches too low on the stems.
This attention is not required for those that are intend-
ed as stocks to engraft on.

Deep snows are apt to bend down young trees, and
»ake them crooked. The besst remedy for this, Is to

APPLE TREE. 189

idrive dewn stakes, proportioned to the height of the
young' trees, and tie them to these in such a manner,
that the bark will not be injured by the string, nor by
rubbing against the stakes. This is to be done after
grafting them.

Engrafting. Miraturque novas frondes^ et non suet
poma. — V^iRG.

This quotation may serve at least, to show something
of the antiquity of the art of grafting: in which Virgil
represents the stock or tree thus altered, as astonished
at the new leaves^ and apples not its orsrn. What pity that
the name of the inventer of this useful art should have
been lost, who had deserved to rank high among the
benefactors of mankind. Grafting was known long be-
fore the time of Virgil, having been mentioned by
Hesoid, &c.

Fruit trees bear several years sooner for being graft-
ed or innoculated. In the choice of scions for grafting,
the first essential requisite is, that they are of the same
genus and natural family with the strck which is to be-
come their foster parent. Scions from a winter apple
tree should not be grafted on a summer apple stock,
because the sap in the summer stock is liable to decline
and diminish before the wiater fruit has become fully
ripe. It is next important, that scions be taken from
trees that have attained to the maturity' of full bearing.
They are directed to be cut in March, just before the
buds begin to swell ; and in order to preserve them in
good condition, they must be placed, with their lower
ends in the ground, in some dry part of the cellar till
wanted. ^ But somo experienced operators prefer cut-
ting them as near the time they are to be employed as
convenient. Scions should always be taken from the
extremities of the most thrifty and best bearing trees,
and of the last year's growth, except only just enough
of the growth of the year before to fix in the earth to
preserve them moist until they are to be used ; and
they must be kept at full length. It is generally sup-
posed that grafting may most successfully l?e performed,
by allowing the stock to have some advantage over the
graft in forwardness of vegetation. If grafts are to be
brought from any considerable distance, tli<n' ought to
be paCxked in light earth, and enclosed in mosi or damp
straw.

*17

190 APPLE TREE.

The most proper season for grafting", in out climate.
is from about the 20th of March, to the 20th of May,
though the operation has succeeded well, as late as the
lOih of June, provided the scions have been properly
preserved. It is always most successful, however, when
done at the period that the buds of the stocks are swell-
ed, so as to be nearly ready to burst into leaf: this
should be very particularly attended to. It should be
observed, as a ruie, never to employ suckers from old
trees as stocks for grafts, or buds, as the}' have a con-
stant tendency to generate suckers, and thereby injure
the growth of the trees.

Grafting can be performed in various ways. In every
method it should be a general rule to adjust the inner
hark of the stock and of the scion in close contact, and
to confine them precisely in (hat situation. As cleft-
g'rafti?ig is the most simple and certain of success, and
that most practised in New-England, we think it unne-
cessarj'^ to describe any other. Cleft-grafting is done on
the stocks in the nursery, or on the small limbs of trees.
The head of the stock or branch being carefully cut off
in a sloping direction, a perpendicular cleft or slit is to
be made, about two inches deep, with a knife or chisel,
towards the back of the slope, into which a wedge is to
be driven, in order to keep it open for the admission of
the scion. The latter must now be cut in a perpendi-
cular direction, and in the form of a wedge, leaving the
side of the graft, which is to be outside, the thickest, so
as to fit the incision in the stock. As soon as it is pre-
pared, it should be placed in the cleft in such a manner
that the inner bark of both the stock and scion may
meet exactly together. In making the cleft, care should
be taken not to injure the pith, or to start the bark
from the stock, the scion being inserted in the sap wood
of the stock or bracch. When not grafted within the
surface of the ground, the whole must be daubed with a
quantity of stitT loam worked fine and mixed with chop-
ped hay or coarse horse-dung. This must be applied
closely round the parts, tapering at both ends ; particu-
lar care being taken not to move the graft. This mor-
tar must be surrounded with a winding of tow or old
cloths. The middle part of the scion is best. The
grafts should be four or five inches long, with two or

APPLE TRBE. 191

three buds to eacli. A good substitute for the above
application is a composition of equal pa:t3 of tallow,
bees-wax and rosin, softened by heat, and spread on
strips of linen or paper, six inches long, and about two
inches wide ; one of these strips must be wrapped round
each stock, so as completely to cover the fissure at the
sides and in the end. Instead of taking the young trees
up to engraft them, it is recommended by many to re-
move the earth about an inch from the stocks, which
can then be sawed off, so as to leave the top of the
stump rather below the level of the ground — ingraft
them, and then draw up the earth so as to cover the
tops of the stocks one or two inches ; leaving one or
two buds of each scion exposed — no comp sition is ne-
cessary in this operation, the covering of earth suffi-
ciently protects the scions from the air and sun. But
as it is necessary that the trees should stand at a greater
distance from each other after being engrafted, and as
it is considered advantageous to remove young trees in
the nursery, previous to their f-nal removal to the or-
chard, that the tap root and latteral roots, may be
shortened, so as to induce them to form a regular glo-
bular root, sufhcientlj'^ small to be removed with their
plants; we believe it will be best to take up the young
trees, engraft them, cut off the extremities of the longer
roots, and all the small fibrous roots, if out of the ground
any length of time, set them out at proper distances in
the rows, and draw the earth around the grafts as be-
fore mentioned.

Young trees properly pruned in the nursery, will, it
u said, come to bearing sooner, and continue in vigour
for nearly double the common time. All superfluous or
rambling branches should be taken off annually, and on-
ly three or tour leading shoots be left to every head.

That new varieties of valuable fruit may be obtained,
it is best to reserve some of the most promising trees
in the nursery, which can sometimes be determined by
the large, thick and woolly appearance of their leaves ;
these should be transplanted into the orchard in their
natural state, and if they prove poor can be immediate- .
ly engrafted. When trees of six or eight years old are
giafted, thels'gowth will not be retarded more than two
or three years, frequently not one. When a tree of

192 APPLE TREE.

consiclerabie size is grafted, only a part of the bmnche*
must be cut away at a time, to prevent it from being"
injured. When grafts have acquired some inches in
length, it may be well to rub off all the buds which
have pushed out below them on the stem, and perhapf
a few of those which have appeared above them, and if
the gratts themselves put out any latteral shoots, spare
them till the succeeding year, when you are called to
re-graft such as have failed. In pastures v/here apple
trees are scattered about, it is best to graft them with
sweet apples, which will injure the cows less than such
as are sour ; and large sweetings will not be so likely
to choak them as smaller apples.

Engrafted af>ple trees sometimes bear fruit w^hen two
or three years old ; but if this premature produce he
permitted, the prolific powers will be greatly impaired.
If, therefore, the blossoms appear abundant, the fruit
should be taken off as soon as formed, leaving only four
or five to ascertain the kind. By permitting trees to
bear too plentifully when young, they are more apt, it
is said, to be alternate bearers.

The choicest kinds of fruit must be selected for mak-
ing the best cider. Trees may be found which will
bear excellent fruit for this purpose, and which, when
grown to good size, will each yield, yearly, from twen-
ty to thirty bushels, or more ; which is perhaps five
times the quantity that the common sort of such tr^.es
usually bear. This is surely a sufficient inducement to
search for the most valuable fruit-trees, when about to
collect scions to engraft trees for an orchard, instead of
planting in the common way,

Soil^ Situation and Aspect. With respect to soil, it
should be of a deep loamy nature, neither too wet or
heavy, nor too light or dry. The sub-soil has a power-
ful influence on the health and prosperity of trees. If
this be rock, or what is called hard pan, (whatever be
the surface,) the tree and its fruits are mucb deteri-
orated— nor will the remedy sometimes resorted to of
cutting off the tap-root, and having the tree to subsist
by those wliich are merely latteral, be sufficient.

Good cultivation, and a system of high manuring, will
always remunerate the proprietor of an orchard, ex-
cept it be planted on a qiiick-sand, or a cold-clay ; in
such soils, no mana^^ement can prevent an early decay.

APPLE TREE.

19:

As to situation and aspect, that is not of much impor-
tance, especially for apple, pear and other hardy fruit
trees ; for you will find these growing and bearing froit
in the greatest perfection, in every aspect where the
soil is suitable, and proper care taken of the trees. —
But a moderately low situation, iVee from wet, may be
more eligible than an elevated ground, as being less ex-
posed to tempestuous winds; a gentle declivity is the
most desirable, it will be most advisable for the far-
mer to make use of uneven grounds, and let those which
are level be reserved for the plough.

Transplanting. The proper season for planting, will
be found to depend on a variety of circumstances — in
light soils, fhe winter settles the earth round the roots,
and best secures them against the drought of the follow-
ing season — and it is a time of leisure to the farmer.
In stiif or wet soils, spring planting is considered best.
If transplanted in the fall, it should be done in October,
or as soon as the foilage falls oft* ; if in the spring, as
soon as the buds begin to swell, or rather a little before.

The distance between trees should be such as to pre-
Tent the extreme branches from locking into each other
when attained to full maturit}'^ of growth. We are not
to expect that the quantity of fruit will be in propor-
tion to the number of trees in an orchard ; for a few
trees of large size will produce more and better fruit,
than six or eight times the number of those v/hich grow
near and crowd one another. The most generally ap-
proved distance is forty feet.

To remove a ^ree, though young, is a severe test ;
and, therefore, every thing should be done to render
the shock as little injurious as possible. It is recom-
mended to prepare the ground with diligence before the
trees are planted ; by deep ploughing, and the cultiva-
tion of such hoed crops as will not exhaust the soli.
The holes should be dug a considerable time before the
trees are planted ; if the trees are to be planted in the
spring the holes should be dugin the fnll. They should
be five or six feet in diameter, and the spade must be
carried to the full depth of the soil ; and if it be gravel-
ly, a considerable portion of this should be removed,
and its place supplied by a due quantity of rich mould.
In digging the holes, throw the top of the earth into a

194

APPLE TRF.E.

hcnp bj itself, and ilie earth from beneath in another.
The trees to be planted should be as young- as circum-
stances will allow. In taking* them up, the roots should
be preserved of the full length, if possible ; the surface
earth should be removed, and the running' roots care-
fully traced and raised. If they must be cut, let it be
done with a sharp instrument. The tap root, may be
shorTSned to the leng-th of about one foot, and all brok-
en or bruised parts should be removed. The small
matted fibres should be cut off, as they are apt to mould
and deca}^, and prevent new ones from shooting. This
need not be done, however, unless the tree has been
out of ground seme time. Lay some of the^ fine mould
six inches deep at the bottom of the hole, place the
roots upon this, in their natural order, and hold the tree
perfectly upright, and the same side to the sun as it
.stood before, while more fine rich earth is put round
the roots. Sway the tree backward and forvvard a lit-
tle, and give it a gentle lift and shake, so that the finG
earth may find its way amongst the roots and leave not
the smallest cavity. Every root should be closely
touched by the earth in every part. When all the
roots are covered with this fine earth, and the tree
stands about as high with regard to the level of the
ground as it did in the place where it before stood, al-
lowing about three inches for sinking, fill up the rest of
the hole with common earth, and when you have about
filled it, tread the earth that you put in, but not very
hard. Put on the rest of the earth, and leave the sur-
face pcriectly smooth. Trees must not be watered, it
sinks rapidly down, makes cavities amongst the roots,
and is very injtirioas. But it is useful to place a small
quantity of old liay or straw around them, to prevent
the sun from taking up too much of the moisture, and
to keep the ground from becoming dry and hard. This
should be removed before snow falls, lest it harbor
mice. Or small stones may be laid on the ground three
feet around the tree. During the time of transplant-
ing, the roots should be out of ground as short a time as
possible ; and should by no means be permitted to get
dry, if it can be avoided; for, thoug-h some trees will
live after having been a long while out of ground, the
•shorter the time out of ground, the sooner the roots

APPLE TRfiE. , 195

strike ; and, if the roots should get dry, thev ought to
be soaked in rain or pond water, for half a day before
the tree be planted. If the head of the tree is large in
proportion to the root, it must be thinned a little to
prevent it from being swayed about by the wind. (But
the tops of the young trees must not be shortened, lest
they produce a growth of suckers.) Even when prun-
ed, it will be exposed to be loosened by this cause, and
must be kept steady by a stake ; but it must not be
fastened to a stake, until rain has come to settle the
ground ; for, such fastening would prevent it from sink-
ing with tiie earth ; the earth would sink from it, and
leave cavities about the roots. Care must be taken to
prevent the tree from being rubbed by the stake. It is
Tery useful to lay round the trees, a compost made of
river-mud, wood ashes, and a small portion of lime, at
the rate of about a commoQ wagon load for every tea
trees.

Should the earth be rather shallow, so that the roots
cannot be sufficiently cove.-ed with good soil, a quantify
must be brought from a distance to bank the roots around
with ; for there is no alternative, between planting them
in the good soil, where their roots can take a wide ex-
tended horizontal direction, and lie within the reach of
the genial influence of heat, rain, dew and air, and that
of an untimely end, if planted too deep. One or two
loads of mud from meadows or ditch banks, laid round
each tree, on a light soil, and ploughed the next spring,
where the mud has become pulverized, has been found
highly usoiul.

If a far.'ner has not an eligible situation for a regular
orchard, he can plant trees in various parts of the farm,
not otherwise occupied, as on the borders and corners
of fields contiguous to roads, lanes, &,c. In some instan-
ces it is deemed a preferable method to set trees on
the sides 'of a square tield, the centre of which is left
open for pasture or tillage.

Mr. Coxe^ who is considered the most experienced
orcharnist in the United States, from experiment, is
satisfied with the soundness of the prevailing opinion,
agjiinst the sites of old orchards for new plantations.
This remark however, he says, ought not to be applied
to the spots where young trees, or those even of mi4-

196 APPLE TREE.

ling- ag-e, have grown — in filling up vacancies in growing
orcliards, the deterioration of soil produced by the
growth of a tree lor tiiteen or twenty years, cannot be
sufficient to injure one replanted in the sanie spot — on
the contrary, the digging deep, and manuring the earth
for the first tree, olten renders the spot mere eligible
for a second, or third.

PioKgking. The looser the ground is kept for the
first, and indeed lor the several succeeding years, pro-
vided the plough does not go so deep as to hurt the
roots, the more certain and the more vigorous will be
the growth of the orchard. All fallow crops are pre-
ferable to oats or barley ; and these are more favour-
able than winter grain : buckwheat is one of the best
crops. Clover or any other deeply rooted grass, is con-
sidered injurious, unless dressed with plaster, or fed off
when young. In cultivating an orchard, regard should
he had to such a rotation of crops, and manuring, as will
prevent the ground from being impoverished. Where
grass or grain are cultivated, says Mr. Coxe^ the ground
should he kept open by diging the earth about three
f&et round each tree : A man will dig round a hundred
trees in a day ; or four or five furrows can be ploughed
on each side nf a row. When the shade of the trees,
and the extension of their roots, impede the growth of
crops ; and the roots and bark are liable to be injured
by ploughing, it had better be discontinued. The grass^
however, must be kept away by digging round the trees,
and suitable manures applied. Let them be kept as
pastures for calves and swine. Neat cattle must not be
admilted, unless they are guarded in such a way as to
prevent their eating the lower branches, or rubbing
against them.

Manuring.. It has been found by experience, that
apples, pears, peaches, oic. attain to their highest per-
fection only when the soil about the roots is kept open,
and frequently manured. Among various substances
wl ich have been found suitable manures for trees, the
following may be enumerated : — horns, hoofs, bones,
where reduced to fragments or powder, leather, shells,
hair, wool, woollen rags, tanner's bark, refuse flax,
sea weed, swamp or pond mud, and ashes, chip or
compost manure, soap-suds, the liquid substance whicli

APPLE TREE. 197

13 left nt the bottom of stercoraries and barn yards ; and
in short almost all manures which do not harbor insects.
(Fresh stable manure is therefore improper.) These
substances applied annually, or once in two years, will
produce surprising effects, and the farmer will be am-
ply compensated. Manuring, however must not be car-
ried to excess, as too great a stimulus applied to trees,
facilitates the luxurient growth of wood, and renders the
branches less productive of fruit.

Pruning. There is no branch of the management of
orchards less understood, or more unskilfully perform-
ed, than the operation of prunmg. When it is judic-
iously done, fruit trees, it is said, will come into bear-
ing sooner, produce more abundantly, and continue in
vigour for nearly double the common age. When trees
are properly pruned in the nursery, there will be less
employment for the pruning knife at all future periods ;
it will nevertheless be indispensably necessary to re-
trench superfluous shoots and branches in every succes-
sive year of their existence. The most proper season
for pruning, is when the sap is in active motion. If
large Ifmbs are lopped off, several inches from the
trunk, before this time, the fresh bark round the wood
becomes dry, large cavities are formed, which rapidly
extend towards the trunk and heart, and the tree is soon
deprived of its vigor. In New-England the sap com-
mences its circulation about the 10th of April. From
this period to about the first of May the pruning should
be accomplished. If the work is done much later than
this, the bark is apt to peel, which is very injurious.
For performing the work, a saw, chisel, and pruning
knife, are necessary. Various substances are recom-
mended to apply to the wounded parts, to defend against
wet, cold air, or the scorching sun. Fresh cow dung
tied on with a cloth ; the composition used for grafting ;
tar or thick paint ; or an ointment composed of rosin,
bees-wax, and turpentine : have all been found good.
Large limbs should not be cut close to the main trunk of
a full grown tree, nor indeed a branch, which is too
large at the place of excision to close over again, as it
may destroy the tree, by opening an avenue to the air
and water, which induce rottenness, and, in course of
18

198 APPLE TREE.

time, the limb or trunk becomes hollow, frequently to
the roots. Always prune at a fork, and remove the
lower branch, that the wound may be on the lower
side. Care must be taken not to cut away too many
large limbs at a time. All large limbs should be cut
first at some distance from the place where they are to
be pruned, to prevent the weight from peeling the bark :
the bark on the lower side should be cut through to
prevent the same accident. In every instance, after
sawing off the branch, let the bark and edges of the
stump be pared close and smooth with a sharp knife,
(a drawing knife will be found convenient,) and immedi-
ately apply the composition so as to cover the whole
surface of the wound. All dead limbs should be cut off
close to the trunk. Such branches as intersect or cross
each other, ought to be removed, and all others cleared
of suckers to their extremities. Such branches as have
received any material injury ought to be removed.
Never suffer a sucker to remain near the root ; nor by
any means upon the body, which is not intended to be
permanent. Those vigorous young shoots, which otlen
spring from old arms, near the trunk, and incline to grow
up into the head, must be annually extirpated, lest they
fill the tree with too much wood. The outer surface
only is able to mature fruit properly. Every inward and
every underling branch ought therefore to be removed.
Young trees if hide bound, should be relieved by cutting
the bark with the point of a knife, from the top to the
bottom of the stem.

Canker. This disease occasions the bark of apple
trees to grow rough and scabby, and turns the wood af-
fected to a rusty brown colour ; and if no remedy be ap-.
plied, will in time kill the tree. Mr. Forsyth directs all
the diseased parts to be cut out with a sharp instrument.
The same kind of compositions used for pruning and en-
grafting must then be applied.

Moss and Scaly bark. Fruit trees suffer much injury
from these. They can be readily removed, by rubbing
the trees in damp weather with a hoe, or the back of a
knife. Good cultivation generally prevents the growth
of moss. Whitewashing the stem, not only cleanses the
tree of moss, hut destroys many kinds of insects very
injurious to fruit trees.

APPLE TREE. 199

Mr. Forsyth, recommends washing trees annually with
the tbllovving- mixture, which he says will destroy the
eg-gs of insects, prevent moss from growing, and have
the same ellect upon trees as a top dressing has upon
grass land.

Mix fresh cow-dung with urine and soap-suds, and
with this mixture wash over the stems and branches of
tlie trees, as a white-washer would wash the walls of a
room ; taking care to cut off all the cankery parts, and
to scrape off all the moss, before it is laid on. In the
course of the season, he says, you will see a line new
bark coming on.

Canker -worm. The female of this insect comes out
of the ground very early in the spring-, and ascemls the
tree to deposit her eggs, which she does in suitable
places in the bark, where they are brought forth, and
the young brood live on the leaves of the tree. Several
methods for subduing them have been tried with some
degree of success. 1. Tarring. This must be com-
menced as soon as the ground is bare of snow ; (which is,
in some years, as early as February ;) that the hrst thaw-
ing of the ground may not happen before the trees are
prepared. A strip of canvass, or linen, three inches
wide, should be put round the tree, having first tilled
crevices of the bark with clay mortar ; draw it close and
fasten the ends strong. A thumb-rope of tow should be
tied round the lower edge of the strip to prevent the
tar from running down on the bark and injuring the tree.
Let the strips be plentifully smeared with cold tar, of a
proper consistence, to be put on with a brush. It must
be renewed once a day without fail. The insects are
so amazingly prolific, that if ever so few of them get
up, a tree is ruined, at least tor the ensuing season. The
best time is soon after sun-set, because the insects pass
up in the evening, and the tar will not harden so much
in the night. This work must be continued with care,
generally, till the last of May. 2. Mr. JVichobnn recom-
mends to scrape off the shagg bark to the width of 2 or
3 inches ; then make a mixture of oil, or blubber, with
suitable proportions of sulphur and Scotch snuff; and
lay this on with a brush, forming a ring an inch or two
wide ; and no insect will ever attempt to pass this bar-

SOd APPLfi TRER.

I'ier as long as the composition has any consi<^erab]e
moisture left in it. Let it be repeated when it inclines
to hatden; though perhaps this is not necessary. 3.
The pasturing of' svvine in an orchard in the tail and
spring has been found very servicable. These animals
appear to possess a natur.il instinct directing to search
for vermin and insects, which conceal themselves in the
earth. 4. The late Air. Peck, of Massachusetts, recom-
mends as an effectual remedy, turning up the ground
Gurefully in October, as far as the branches of a tree
extend, to half a spade's depth, or five inches, so as com-
pletely»to invest the surface. Break the clods, smooth
the surface with a rake, and pass a heavy roller over
it, eo as to make it very hard, and without cracks. If
the frost should heave and crack the smooth surface in
the winter, it must be smoothed and hardened again in
March. This will be found less expensive than the long
course of tarring. 5. Dr. Thacher thinks it highly prob-
able, that a quantity of sea-weed pressed round the
trunks of fruit trees, extending 3 or 4 feet, would prove
a remedy, by forming a compact substance, through
which the canker moth and worm would not penetrate.
6. Mr. Kenrick^ of Massachusetts, proposes to destroy
canker worms by the following method : From anytime
in June, after the worms have entirely disappeared, un-
til the 20th of October, let the whole of the soil sur-
rounding the trees, to the extent of 4 feet, be dug up
and carted away to a considerable distance ; and let there
be returned an equal quantity of compost, or rich earth,
intermixed with manure. By this operation, the farmer,
besides exterminating the worms, promotes the growth
and fruitfulness of his trees, and defends them against
the moles. The author of the Farmer''s Assistant ob-
serves, that, by taking the earth away from the roots of
the trees, very early in the spring, and destroying what-
ever may appear to be the abode of any insects ; and
then returning the earth back, mixed with a small quan-
tity of sulphur, sprinkling some of this upon the surface,
is, he believes, the most effectual methed to keep every
kind of insect from ascending. 7. Mr. Kiiapp., of Boston,
has been very successful in the application of lime, as
/oUows : Dig the turf, lay the ground smooth, and ap-

APPLE TREE. 201

ply the lime in the fall. Take air-slacked lime, strew it
about an inch thick, to the extent of 2 or 3 feet from the
roots of the trees. The digging round the trees is high-
ly useful, while tarring is injurious. The expense is
not great; a man can dig round 50 large trees in a day.
The lime is a most salutary manure to the trees. After
the spot has been once opened and limed, the labor of
keeping it open will not be great. Three hogsheads of
air-slacked lime, or sweepings of a Ume store, will suf-
fice for 50 trees, and will cost f, 3. As it is done but
once a year, he thinks it cannot be half so expensive as
tarring.

Caterpillars. The foregoing directions, for keeping
cankerworms from trees, are equally applicable to these
destructive insects. When a nest is formed early in the
spring, run a pole into it, twist it round till the nest and
its contents are wrapped round the pole, and bring the
whole down and kill the worms. Let this be done early
in the morning, when the dew is on, or in had weather.
If any escape this operation, repeat it when they have
rebuilt the nest. It is asserted that spirits of turpentine,
or common fish oil, applied to the nest with a mop of
rags, will penetrate through, and kill every caterpillar
within it ; and it is also said, that soap-suds will answer
the same purpose. This attention, continued for a short
time every spring, will destroy those in existence, and
will prevent their increase in future years — if left till
grown strong, they wander from their nests, and cannot
be eifectually overcome without great trouble and ex-
pense.

Gathering, and Preserving Apples. The first requisite
is, to ascertain precisely when the fruit is fully ripe, as
it is said, that the longer winter apples are suifered to
remain on the trees, provided they are not overtaken
by frost, the longer they may be preserved. It maybe
considered a correct rule, that apples are ripe when
those that are sound and iair fall naturall}'^ from the trees,
or separate very readily on being lifted by the hand —
They should be gathered during a clear dry air, after
the dew has evaporated. In gathering apples and
pears, it is necessary carefully to avoid injuring the blos-
som buds, which are already formed for the next yearV

^18

202 PEAR TREE,

truit. These buds are placed at the side of the foot
stalk of the fruit, and, if the spurs are broken, there
will be no fruit on that part the next season. The press-
ing against the trees, therefore, with heavy ladders, and
the rash practice of thrashing the limbs with poles, ought
to be entirely abandoned ; for by such means, the bark
and limbs are bruised, and the blossom buds for the suc-
ceeding year are destroyed. Instead of ladders, step-
ping frames should be employed, and a pole, furnished
with a hook at the end, and covered with coarse cloth,
may be used to shake the small limbs, without injuring
the bark. When perfectly ripe, apples for cider may
be shaken off without injury to the buds, but still they
will be bruised, unless the ground be covered with blan-
kets or straw. Particular care is requisite in gathering
winter fruit for keeping: they should be gathered by
the hand, and without injury, lemoving them from the
gathering basket to the casks prepared for them, with
great care : if bruised, they soon decay ; and the less
those that are sound are moved, the better. When in
barrels, they should be placed in a dry, cool, shaded sit-
\iation, above ground, and remain until danger by frost,
and then put into the cellar. If apples are packed in
layers with clean and perfectly dry sand, late in October,
they will keep much longer, and be in a much better
condition to ship to a distant market. Some persons
construct shelves in a cellar secure against frost, and
place their apples separately upon them, and iind an ad-
vantage in saving their fruit over to the spring, which
fully repays the expense. This is considered in the end
as cheap as barrels. If put together in large parcels, in
very warm cellars, they heat, and then they rot ; and,
fho e of them that happen not to rot, lose their flavor.

PEAR TREE.

This tree will grow better on a stiff clay, than most
•ther fruit trees ; but the soils which best suit the ap-
pletree are also most suitable for it. Most of the direc-
tions already detailed, relative to the cultivati* n of the
appletree, may be applied to that of the pear tree.

Pear trees require but little pruning, comparatively
frith the apple tres, and if carried to excels, proves

PEACH TRKE» 203

very injurious. All dead branches, howevep, and even
thrifty ones, which interfere and chafe each other, and
every sucker proceeding from the trunk or roots, should
he carfully removed. Pear trees, and other fruit trees,
are frequently affected, and sometimes suddenly, with-
out discovering the causes of their decline. A gentle-
man of Maryland has been very successful in preserving
his trees by washing their trunks with soft soap.

From the pear is prepared a pleasant liquor, known
under the name of perry, which is made in the same
manner as cider. In England, particular kinds of pears
are cultivated for this purpose, and the hquor is held in
high estimation.

PEACH TREE.

Peach trees require a warm, dry, fertile soil : A san-
dy loam is best. If the spot where they are planted be
sheltered from the northerly winds, it will be the better.
It is exceedingly to be regretted, that these trees of late
years have become liable to premature decay, and the
period of their duration is greatly diminished, insomuch,
that their continuance in a healthy bearing state seldom
exceeds 3 or 4 years. This misfortune is increased by
the circumstance, that a peach orchard cannot be rear-
ed a second time on the same spot, unless the soil be
renovated by several years intermediate culture of other
crops.

To raise the young trees, take stones that are fully
ripe, and plant them in October, about 2 inches deep. —
They will come up and grow to a good size in the
course of the summer. They are to be kept clear of
weeds, while in the nursery. At a years growth, they
may be inoculated, and, after two summer's growth,
they may be transplanted. This may be done when
the leaves have fallen in autumn, or in the sj)rino'. If
the stones are not planted in the fall, they must be pre-
served in sand, and planted in March : in this case they
must be broken open without injuring the kernel. Some
think it best to plant stone fruit, on a small spot, and
afterwards plant the seedlings out in the nursjery. This
may be done the next fall or spring after they are
planted.

204 PEACH TREE.

Budding or Inoculating is commonly practised upon
all sorts of stone fruit ; such as peaches, nectarines,
(Cherries, plums, &,c. When the stocks are from about
an half an inch, or a little less, to an inch or more in
diameter, in the places where the buds are to be insert-
ed, they are then of a proper size for working. In making
a selection of trees, from which to inoculate, care should
be had to obtain the buds irom the trees bearing the finest
fruit ; that this fruit ripen at different times, from the
earliest to the latest for peaches ; and that they be tak-
en from trees which are good bearers, and in a healthy
condition. The proper season for budding, is from the
beginning of July to the end of August. The method
of perlbrming it, as described in the Orchardist^ is as fol-
lows : The buds preferred, are the shortest observed on
the middle of a young shoot, on the outside of a tree. —
For gathering the shoots containing the buds, a cloudy
day, or an early or late hour is chosen. The buds
should be used as soon after being gathered, as possible,
and the whole operation should be quickly performed.
In taking off the bud from the twis-, the knife is inserted
about half an inch above it, and a thin slice of the bjiirk,
and wood along with it, taken off, bringing out the knife
about an inch and a half below the bud. Or the knife
may be inserted three quarters of an inch below the
bud, and cut upwards. This lower part is afterwards
shortened and dressed, and the leaf is cut off, the stalk
being left about half an inch long. The portion of
wood is then taken out by raiding it from the bark, and
pulling it downwards or upwards, according as the cut
has been made from above or below. If the extraction
of the wood occasion a hole at the bud, that bud is
spoilt, and another must be prepared in its stead. For
the performance of this operation, provide a sharp
budding-knife, with a flat thin haft, of ivory, suitable
to open the bark of the stock for the admission of the
bud, and also with a quantity of bass strings, or woolen
yarn, to bind round it when inserted. On a smooth
part of the bark of the stock a transverse section,
(that is across the stock) is now made through the
bark down to the wood ; from this is made a longi-

PEACH TREE. 2IQ5

tudinal cut downward, about an inch and a half long', so
that the incision may somewhat resemble the letter T;
by means of the tlat ivory haft of the budding-knife, the
t>ark is raised a little on each side of the longitudinal in-
cision, so as to receive the bud. The prepared bud is
placed in the upper part of the incision so made, and
drawn downwards; tbe upper part is then cut off trans-
versly, and the bud pushed upwards till the bark of the
bud and of the stock join together. It is retained in this
situation by means of tying with strands of bass, or
woolen yarn, applied in such manner, as to defend the
whole from the air and sun, but leaving the leaf stalk,
and the projecting part of the bark, uncovered. In
about a month after the operation, the tying is slacken-
ed ; buds, that have taken appear swelled, and the foot
stalk of the old leaf falls off on being slightly touched.
All shoots that spring below the budded part are care-
fully cutoff. The head of the stock is not removed till
the following March ; after this, the bud grows vigor-
ously, and, in the course of this summer, makes a con-
siderable shoot. Against the next spring, the shoot is
beaded down in the manner of young grafted trees.

In taking up the young trees, care must be taken to
preserve the roots as much as possible. Such parts as
are bruised should be removed, and the small roots may
be a little shortened. Be careful not to plant them too
deep. They should be planted 12 or 15 feet apart. —
It is important to transplant these trees, as young as
possible, where you mean them to stand ; if in the ker-
nel so much the better; because in that case there will
be no check pf growth, which always injures peach
trees.

Pruning must be omitted until they have taken root ;
and then but very little is necessary, except cutting
away the decayed branches. In gummy trees, as the
peach or cherry, all wounds should be carefully covered
from the weather. When young trees are overloaded
with fruit, it is absolutely necessary to thin them out
while small according to the strength of the tree.

The premature decay of peach trees has been ascrib-
ed to various causes. But the true causes, as detailed
by Dr. Mease, seem to be the following.

206 PEACH TREE.

1. The fly that deposits eggs near the root, and there
forms a worm.

2. The bursting of the bark bj'^ severe frosts in wet
winters.

3. The spliting off the limbs at the fork of the tree.
The worms are said to be produced by a blue fly,

which attacks the trees from about the middle of July
to the middle of September, and generally deposits its
eggs in the bark at or near the surface of the ground.
To take out this worm the roots must be uncovered as
soon as the tree begins to bud in the spring, and the
spot looked for where the gum oozes out. Follow the
cavity round with the point of a knife or a chisel, until
you come to the solid wood, lay the whole open, and
you will find the worm, with a white body and black
head, which must be destroyed and the hole filled with
cow dung, rendered adhesive by lime, sand and ashes.
Soap suds, heated, and poured on the roots of trees,
about the middle of August, have been used with suc-
Cf!S5 ill uesiroyiug the egg'e, &.c. Or as soon as the buds
begin to put forth, remove from the bottom of the tree
entirely all the dirt or turf till you come to the base roots,
from which scrape all the loose old bark : then take three
quarts of fresh slacked lime for a full grown tree, and so in
proportion for a smaller and younger one, and lay it care-
fully on and about the roots, covering it from the weath-
er, and it is said to destroy the destructive maggots, entire-
ly. Ashes used in the same way has been recommended.

It is stated in the American Farmer^ that boxes made
round trees, about one foot in height, and in capacity,
exclusive of the tree, to hold a peck, filled with bark
from tan vats, and pressed a little together, will secure,
the trees from worms a long time. It is also useful for
plum trees, and in restoring all kinds of decayed fruit
trees. It is considered best to renew the tan once in
about two years. To wash the trunks as recommend-
ed for apple trees will be useful.

To guard against frost, plant the trees where the wa-
ter will run off, and procure the sweetest and richest
fruit as the inferior qualities are more injured by cold.

The spliting of the trees at the forks is guarded
against by preserving as many upright branches as pos-

PLUM TREE.

207

sible, by breaking off, in bearing 3'ears more than half
the fruit while small, and by careful pruning.

Let no kinds of beasts into peach orchards, hogs ex-
cepted^ for fear of wounding the trees ; as the least
wound renders the tree less productive, and the quality
of the fruit inferior.

Mr Coxe says, the fine peaches which are raised for
the Philadelphia market, are cultivated in the following
manner. The trees are procured from nurseries estab-
lished on fresh ground ; they are planted on land not
previously occupied by peach trees ; the land is culti-
vated with manured crops of corn, potatoes, vines, or
pulse, without intermission ; the trees are carefully
searched for the worm, in the spring, summer and au-
tumn. Fresh cow dung is an excellent application ibr
wounds made by the worms ; ashes and lime, are offen-
sive to the worm; marie has been successfully used as
a manure round peach trees — several shovel fulls to each
tree — with this management, a peach orchard near a
market, or on navigable waters, will be a profitable
application of land, but no precaution will ensure its du-
ration beyond three or four years. In some soils and
situations it maj'^ succeed much longer.

We may have great abundance of this delicious fruit,
in every variety, if every farmer and horticulturalist,
would plant the number, to which he could utteiKJ, with-
out interference with his other concerns. He might
keep up a constant succession, by setting out a few eve-
ry year, our grain and garden plants in general, require
renewal annually ; and peach trees require no more
trouble. A tree with very little attention, will protUice
three or four crops. Its growth is quick ; and it may
be propagated easily, and come to perfection, in any soil
of tolerable staple. As the older trees decay, and grow
sickly, young and vigorous trees will begin to bear.

PLUM TUEE.

The management proper for raising this tree is the
same as that for peaches.

A good sandy loam, well manured, is the best for this
tree. Stifl clays are very unfit for it. It is increased
by grafting or budding on its own stock.

2081 OHKRRy TREE.

Curculio. This is a bug, about the size of that which
eats into the pea, and has proved very troublesome to
most of the smooth skinned stone fruits, and even to
peaches, apples, and pears, in some parts of the United
States. It ascends the trees in the spring, and as the
fruit advances it makes a wound in the skin, and there
deposits the embryo ; from which a maggot is produced.
This preys upon the fruit until it dies and falls off;
when the maggot makes its way into the earth, and is
there changed into a bug, which is ready to ascend the
tree the next spring, and make its deposit, as before.

It is recommended to put a ring round the tree, of
a mixture of greese, or blubber, mixed with salt. Per-
haps some of the other ingredients for destroying worms,
would answer abetter purpose.

Mr. Philips^ of Pennsylvania, finds hogs of great use in
an orchard of plum trees. They cause his trees to bear
plentifully ; while, without those animals, the trees bear
very little. The reason of this is, that the swine, by
eating up all the fruit which falls from ihe trees, destroy
the voung brood of curculiones deposited in the fruit,
which is the cause of its early falHng off.

CHERRY TREE.

It is to be regretted, says Dr. Thacher, that the cul-
tivation of the valuable kinds of cherries is so generally
neglected. Many i^dvantages would accrue to the farm-
er from the cultivation of the cherry tree ; it would
serve the useful purposes of ornament and shade to hi*
orchard and buildings, and the fruit would afford
his family not merely an innocent, but salutary luxury ;
and if near a market, the profit would re»unerate him
for ail his labor and expense.

Cherries are propagated by budding them upon stocks,
raised from the stones of the common black or red cher-
ry, or upon stocks raised from the stones of any other
kind of the same fruit ; but the two first are most es-
teemed for that purpose, because they generally shoot
much *reer than any other. The stocks are obtained by
planting the seeds in a nursery, and the seedlings are
afterwards transplanted. The whole method of man-
agement pertaining to cherry trees is so precisely simi-

QUINCE TREE.

209

lar to that already detailed, when treatin* of peach
trees, that it is thought unnecessary to say any thing
more.

QUINCE TREE.

The quince may he propagated by layers and cutting?.
(See layers and cuttings.) It may also be propagated
by budding or grafting. Quince trees flourish best, and
are more productive in a moist soil, though the fruit
from those set in dry situations, is said to possess a finer
flavor. It requires but very little pruning; the most
important part of their management consists in clearing
their stenis from suckers, and in cutting off such branch-
es as interfere with each other. All luxurient shoots
that strike up from the middle of the tree, must be lop-
ped off, 10 prevent the head from being too much crowd-
ed with wood, which might impede the growth of the
fruit. If the tree becomes diseased or rotten, the dead
parts should be cut away, and the composition applied,
as in appie trees. We aie advised to plant them at a
good distance from apple and pear trees, lest the fari-
na become mixed, and the fruits degenerate.

Method of forcing Fruit Trees to blossom andhear Fruit.

With a sharp knife, cut a ring round the limb or small
branch which you wish shouid bear, near the stem or
large bough where it is joined ; let this ring or cut pen-
etrate to the wood. A quarter of an incli from this cut,
make a second like the first, encircling the branch like
a ring a quarter of an inch broad between the two cuts.
The bark, between these two cuts, must be removed,
clean down to the wood ; even the fine inner bark,
which iies immediately upon the wood, must be scraped
away, until the bare nuked wood appears, white and
smooth, so that no connexion whatever remains betweea
the two parts of the bark. This barking, or girdling,
must be made at the precise time when, in all naiure,
the buds are strongly swelling, or about breaking out
into blossoms. In the same year a callus is iormcd at
the edges of the ring, on both sides, and the connexion
of the bark is again restored, without any detriment to
19

«10

CIDER.

the tree or the branch operated upon. By this simple
operation, the following advantages will be obtained :

1. Every young tree, of which you do not know the
sort, is compelled to show its fruit, and decide sooner
whether it may remain in its present state, or requires
to be grafted.

2. You may thereby, with certainty, get fruit of a
good sort, and reject the more oriiinary. The branch-
es so operated upon, are hung full of fruit, while others
that are not ringed, often have none or very little on
them.

CIDER.

When of a proper age and well refined, pure cider
may be considered as a pleasant and salutary beverage,
if used with moderation, and calculated to obviate a pu-
trid tendency in the humors.

We have heard the opinion expressed, says Mr. Pick^
ering^ that orchards of ungrafted fruit make the best ci-
der. This surely is an error. For although in a large
orchard some gobd natural fruits may be found, yet ma-
ny of the trees produce apples so small as to cost too
much labor to collect them, and others have juices so
meagre as when collected to be of little worth. A few
sorts >vhich in England have been celebrated for yield-
ing the finest ciders, were always grafted with as much
attention as apples designed for the table are with us.
In some parts of New-Jersey, in which ciders of su-
perior excellence are made, the farmers produce them
wholly by grafting : nor can we expect fully to rival
them, until we adopt the same practice. Perhaps there
are few extensive natural orchards in New-England in
which valuable cider fruits may not be iound, with rich
yellow tlesh, capable of yieldino- liquors strong and of ex-
cellent flavor From such trees, if still young, or in vig-
orous life, whole orchards might soon be formed. And
probably different kinds might be selected which ripen
their fruits at the times n)ost proper for making them
into cider. Apples until ttiellow do not attain their high-
est flavor ; and till then ciinnot give the highest flavor
to cider. Many reach that mellow and ripe state in Oc-
tober and November, which may be called the cider-

CIDER.

211

niuking months in New-England. It would require bul
little attention to select and propagate the best apples
thus ripening in .succession. Such ciders, made of ripe
and unmixed fruits, would be more easily managed in
the most difficult and important part of the process of
cider making — its tirst fermentation.

To make the best cider, there are several requisites.
The apples should be of one sort, and of the best kind.
They should be perfectly sound, ripe, clean, and dry.
Those which are shook from the trees by a gentle shak-
ing, late in the season, are best; and all knotty, wormy,
and rotten ones should be rejected. Such as are not of
this prime rate may be made into common cider.

The apples thus selected should be spread on a floor,
covered from the dews and rain ; but exposed to a cur-
rent of air. Here they are to lie about fourteen days
for the purpose of sweating. After this they must be
dried by exposure to the sun, the rotten ones thrown
away, and ground imnjediately. A clean, convenient
and covered mill and press, is the tirst pre-requisite for
making good cider ; and the straw should be clear from
mustiness, as cider readily imbibes oftensive tastes. The
apples should be reduced to a fine pulp. The colour
of the liquor and its smoothness are both improved by
laying from six to twenty four hours, according to the
weather, in the trough after grinding ; turning it fre-
quently to prevent fermentation. Lay up the pomace
on the press without using a drop of w^ater in any part
of the process. Press the cheese gently at first, and
advance slowly to the utmost power of the screw. It is
in all cases necessary to return the first running on io
the cheese, until it runs free from pulp. To clean ca^ks
which have been used for cider, as soon as one is empty,
put in two or three quarts of fine gravel, and three oi
four gallons of cold water, and shake and roll it well.
Aiter this is emptied out, pour in a pail full of boiling
water; roll and shake the water to every p-art of the
cask, so as to heat it on all ^^ides. Then pour out the
water, and lay the cask exactly bung h' le downward.-^,
the water running clear and entirely off; the heat in the-
cask will dry it perfectly. In this state, bung it up
carefully, and it will keep sweet. When casks have u

212

CIDER.

sour smell, put in about a pint of unslacked lime for a
barrel of common size, and pour in three or four gal-
lons of hot water ; shake it well, giving it vent occa-
sionally ; let it stand till cool, and then rinse with cold
water. Repeat this operation till the cask smells per-
fectly sweet. Wood ashes might perhaps answer as a
substitute for lime.

In pouring the cider into the cask, let there be a
strainer of coarss cloth in the bottom of the funnel, or
let it pass through sand, to keep out the pomace. Af-
ter it has been tilled, the next process is the fermenta-
lion. In warm weather, or in cider made from weak or
immature fruit, the fermentation commences in a few
hours — but if the fruit is ripe, and the weather cold, it
\vill be delayed for a week, and sometimes for a month.
The casks should stand in a cool place near the press
under cover, and where there is a free current of air.

There are three fermentations ; the vinous, the acid,
and the putrid. When the first ceases, the second be-
gins, and when that ceases, the third begins. The first
is only necessary for cider, and care must be taken to
stop all further fermentntion, as soon as this is over.
This is known b} the liquor ceasing to throw up little
bubbles to the top. Then too all the pomace is raised
up, and if siifiered to remain there, will again sink to the
bottom and render the liquor turbid. Let this time then
be carefully observed, and let the liquor then be drawn
off, not too closely, and put into clean casks, and set
away in a cool clean cellar. If the cider remain bright
and quiet, nothing more need be done to it till the suc-
ceeding spring ; but if a scum collect on the surface, it
must be again racked ; as this, if suffered to sink, would
be injurious : if a disposition to ferment continue, it will
be necessary to rack off again, whenever a hissing noise
is heard. The casks into which liquor is put, whenev-
er racked off, should be made perfectly clean with lime
and water as before mentioned. If intended to be bot-
tled it should be fined with isinglass and drawQ off in ten
or twelve days.

After the first racking of cider, a quantity of lees re-
main, which when filtered through coarse linen bags,
velds a bright liquid; if this be added to the cider

cfi)ER. 21S

racked off, it will contribute to prevent fermentation^
an excess of which is injurious. To prevent fermenta-
tion, it is also recommended, to let the cask be first
strong-ly fumigated with burnt sulphur ; then put in
some of the cider, burn more sulphur in the cask, stop
it tight, and shake the whole up together ; till the
cask, and bung it perfectly tight.

To improve cider, draw it off from the first casks^
put it into fresh ones, filling each about three quarters
full, and set them away till winter ; at which time let
them be exposed to the frosts, until one half or even
two thirds of the contents of each are frozen ; give the
liquor some vent while freezing ; draw off the unfrozen
part, bottle it, or put it in clean new casks, and in 2 of
3 years, it will nearly equal the best wines. It is also a
good method to boil cider immediately from the press.
It should be boiled down till all the scum has risen and
been skimmed off. It ferments but little, and makes a
pleasant drink for the next summer, diluted with water,
if bottled, or otherwise kept well. Cider may be kept
for years in casks, without fermenting, by burying them
deeply undei* ground, or immersing them in Spring wa-
ter ; and when taken up the cider will be very fine.

Where the farmer is rich and forehanded, it is advis-
able to have a vat m.ade near the press, which will con-
tain from 8 to 20 barrels. This may be made square or
round. Into this vat the cider, as it is made, should be
turned, and suffered to work off in the open air. This
will save much future trouble. There should be a tap
and faucet, near the bottom, to draw off the cider, when
the scum or crust is perfectly formed. For want of
this, large open hogsheads will answer ; or, leave tlie
barrels not full by a gallon or two, and as they work off
fill them up, and after the} have done working, rack
them into other ca^sks.

19*

GAKDE^IXG.

Gardening is the most productive and advantageous
mode of occupying the surface of the soil. It also pro-
duces the most refined and luxurious articles of human
food, and in some respects the most wholesome.

It is truly astonishing in this enlightened age, an age
characterized by so many useful establishments, that
Horticulture should have been so remarkably neglected,
and by that class of citizens too who are most interested
in its advancement, we mean the agriculturalists ; while
so productive a source of comfort, profit, and economy
lies so completely within the compass of their operations.
The garden has, or ought to have, many attractions. —
It is the household farm. It is always under the eye —
it may be made the companion and the friend of many
a leisure hour, it furnishes a spot, where, at chance in-
tervals of severer labour, every man, even the humblest
in the community, who has a garden patch, may benefit
himself, and take a pleasure in his labour. The cultiva-
tion of a garden furnishes a pleasant and rational amuse-
ment. At a small expense, and a little labour, it pre-
sents to you a great variety of the beauties of nature,
and it may be made to supply most families with a moie-
ty of their sustenance. To be sure there is no great
profit in cash arising to the farmer from gardening be-
yond the limits of 20 miles from a great town^ — but
when men have arrived to the degree of comfort which
our farmers generally enjoy, they ought to seek innocent
luxuries.

A kitchen-garden, well stored with vegetables, is high-
ly important to the Farmer, as the us*i of these super-
cede the necessity of consuming much meat ; a practice
equally inconsistant with economy and with good health.
But the great mass of citizens do certainly deprive
themselves of much convenience, saving, and perhaps

GARDENING. 215

health, by not possessing .a liberal supply of vegetables
from their own g-ardens.

We do not invite the husbandmnn from the utility of
his farm to the pleasures of a gardin ; we do not wish
him to sacrifice his grain fiel.ls 'o the culture of a tulip
bed; but we wish to call his aUeviiion to the utility, con-
venience, and economy that can be found in the cultiva-
tion of a substantial kitchen garden, from which his
healthful family can draw many of those really innocent
luxuries, which a bountiful Providence has spread
around him.

Many persons, sensible of the utility, are often dissuad-
ed from constant attempts in cultivating a kitchen garden,
because they have experienced some failures in partic-
ular plants. But there will never be a failure of vege-
tables enough for a family's use, if the following requi-
sites be well regarded : Richness of soil ; due care in
the selection of seeds ; proper cultivation^ and a sujficient
variety of vegetables^ that if one kind fails^ another may be
a substitute.

Soil and Situation. It is found that a sandy loam
which is several feet deep is best for a garden ; but
any loose mellow soil is suitable. It is fortunate, how-
ever, when a garden contains a variety of soils ; as
some vegetables require a strong and heavy soil, and do
not thrive in a light one. But, we must take what we
find, or rather what we happen to have. If we have a
choice, we ought to take that which comes nearest to
perfection, and, if we possibly can, we ought to reject
clay and gravely not only as a top-soil, but as a bottom
soil.

A garden, if possible, should have a southerly ex-
posure. It should be near the house, not only for the
purpose of having it under the eye of the owner, but
to save time in its cultivation and the daily gathering of
its products. If it be practicable, to make a garden
near to running water, and especially to water that may
be turned into the garden, the advantage ought to be
profited of From a kitchen-gj^rden all large trees ought
to be kept at a distance of 30 or 40 yards.

Size. The size of the garden should be proportioned
to the wants of the family. It ought to be sufficiently

21 G GiARDilNIKSv

large to raise many of the useful and various kinds of
vegetables and fruits, which contribute to the suste-
nance, comfort, and pleasufre of life Such fruit trees,
which make but little shade, as grapes, currents, quinces,
&c. may be very ag'reeably intermixed with the growths
of the kitchen-garden. It will be found that a garden
of this kind should not contain in general less than a
quarter of an acre. But if the family is large, half, or
three quarters of an acre ought to be cultivated as a
garden. It is probable, that matters may be so arrang-
ed, that a farmer may, with the assistance of his familj^,
cultivate such a portion of ground, without improperly
interfering with regular labour. It should be enclosed
with a high close fence, which besides rendering every
thing secure ; serves to keep off the strong cold winds
of Spring, which are very injurious to the young plants,
and also to the fruit, which is then about putting forth.

Tools. The most important instrument in the farm-
er's garden, is the plough. The spade is the next in-
strument. This may be thin and sharp, and if used on-
ly in the garden, will last many years. The hoe is an
indispensable tool, aad of this you must ha', e three va-
rieties : the large, the small, and narrow hoe, all of which
should be sharp, and kept exclusively for the garden.
Two iron rakes, a coarse and tine one, will often be
wanted ; and a strong line of at least 40 feet in length.
A rake can be made in about 30 minutes, which will
mari: out more ground for the gardener to seed than four
men could perform in the common way in equal length
of time. The head of the rake is to be about 6 i'eet
long; into this, bore holes with an inch auger, at such
distances as you wish to have the seed sown ; put in
teeth, sharpened at their lower ends ; and attach a han-
dle 5 or 6 feet long. The head of the rake should be
eufficiently heavy, and the handle and teeth should be
at right angles. Begin at the left hand end of the bed
and draw the rake across it ; then proceed, taking care
to keep the left hand tooth in the right hand drill that
has just been made (for a guide.) In this way a pretty
long bed is formed into straight drills in a very few min-
utes. Wiih these few and simple tools, all the work of
a garden may be done, and well done ; and if to these

GARDENING. 217

vou add the wheelbarrow, you have every thing nec-
essary.

Preparation of the ground. This may be done by
ploughing and harrowing, until the ground, at top, be
perfectly clean ; and, then, by double ploughing; that
is to say, by going, with a strong plough that turns a
large furrow and turns it cleanly, twice in the same
place, and thus moving the ground to the depth of 14
to 16 inches. When this has been done in one direc-
tion, it onght to be done across, and then the ground
will have been well and truly moved. The ploughing
ought to be done with 4 oxen, and the plough ought to
be held by a strong and careful ploughman. All those
parts where the plough cannot go must be deeply turn-
ed with the spade.

If the garden be of a wetish or stifif soil, it will be
greatly benefited by being thrown up into high ridges in
the fall: at the same time, this will assist in destroying
the seeds of weeds ; but particularly in destroying insects.

Manure. The species of manure must depe.id upon
the soil. It is generally thought, that dung, of any sort,
is not what ought to be used in the raising of garden
vegetables, liis very certain that they are coarse and
gross when produced with aid of that sort of manure,
compared to whatihey are when raised with the aid of
ashes, sea-weeds, rags, lime and composts. And, be-
sides, dung, in hot soils and hot climates, adds to the
heat ; while those articles just mentioned do not. If
dung is used, it should be old and destitute of seeds. —
Hog dung is supposed to be best. All the ground in a
garden ought always to be good ; and it will be kept in
this state if it be well manured once every year.

Change of Crops. Skilful gardeners recommend at-
tention to a rotation of crops that is fibrous rooted and
tap rooted alternately ; and occasionally lay down por-
tions of their gardens with clover, which seldom fails to
restore them to their former fertility.

Seeds. It is quite useless to prepare land, and to in-
cur trouble and expense, without duly, and even verij
carefidhf^ attending to the seed that we are going to sow.
The sori.^ the genuineness^ the soundness., are all matters
to be attended to if we meua to avoid mortification and
loss.

218 GARDENING.

If the farmer does not save his own seed, which can.
not always be done with convenience, all he can do, is,
to take every precaution in his power when he pur-
chases, and of whom he purchases. Some kinds of seed
will keep a good many yenvs ; therefore, when any that
is venj true can be procured, it is best to g^et as much as
will last for the number of years that such seed will
keep. Allseeds which are sound, and really good, wili
.sink in iuke-wann zi-ater in a short lime, if divested of ev-
ery thing which adheres to them.

Commonly speaking, new seed is to be preferred to
old, as growing the more luxuriently, and comeing up
the surer and quicker. If old seed is knowingly sown,
some allowance in point of time must be made.

As to the saving of seed, such plants should be select-
ed as are of the most perfect shape and quality. In the
Cabbage, we seek small stem, well formed loaf, few
spare or loose leaves ; in the 1\irnip, large bulb, small
neck, slender-stalked leaves, solid flesh or pulp ; in the
Radish, high color, (if red or scarlet,) small neck, few
and short leaves, and long root. Of ' plants, the early
coming of which is a circumstance of importance, the
very earliest should be chosen for seed. They should
he carefully cultivated during the time they are carry-
ing on their seed to perfection. But, effectual means
must be taken to prevent a mixing of the sorts, espec-
ially among cabbages, turnips, &c. Mr. Cobbett found
that Indian Corn would mix when the plants were three
hundred yards from each other. What, he asks, must
be the consequence, then, of saving seed from cucum-
bers, melons, pumpkins, and-^ squashes, all growing in
the same garden at the same time. It is not unfrcquent
to hear persons complaining that their melons are bad.
On an inquiry into this circumstance, it will often be
found that they have been raised and have flower-
ed with cucumbers; and that instead oi' thut flavor wliich
is natural, and which constitutes the excellence of the
fruit, they ar€^ rapid and unpalatable. To save the seed
of two sorts oi^ any tribe, in the same garden, in the
same year, ought not be attempted ; and this it is that
makes it diflicult for any one man to raise all sorts of
seeds good and true. However, some may be saved by

OARDZIfJXG.

21^

every one who has a garden; and when raised, they
ought to be carefully preserved. They should stand
till perfectly ripe ; and be gathered in a dry time. If
any moisture remains about them, they should be placed
in the sun ; and when quite dry, put into bags and hung
up against a dry wall. Thus preserved, seeds will keep
good for the number of years stated in the follovving"
list :

YEARS.

YEARgk.

Asparagus

4

Marjoram

4

Balm

2

Melon

8 or 10

Basil (sweet)

2 or 3

Mustard

3 or 4

Beans

1 or 2

Nasturtium

2 or 3

Beets

8 or 10

Onion

3

Borage

3

Parsley

5 or 6

Cabbage

6 or 8

Parsnip

1

Carrot

1 or 2

Pea

2 or 3

Celery

6 or 8

Pumpkin

8 or 10

Corn (Maize)

2 or 3

Peppers

5 or 6

Cress

2

Radish

6 or 8

Cucumber

8 or 10

Rue

3

Carraway .

4

Ruta Baga

4

Fennel

5

Salsafy

2

Garlick

3

Savory

3 or 4

Leek

3 or 4

Spinage

3 or 4

Lettuce

3 or 4

Squash,

8 or 10

Mangel Wurtzel

.8 or 10

Turnip

3 or 4

Seeds of all soft fruits, &;c. should be taken out,
cleaned and dried ; their preservation will be more cer-
tain by putting them in dry sand, which sucks in the
moisture from the seed, and prevents mustiness. It
Avithal retains so much moisture as to prevent the seed
from withering. This method is chiefly useful in pre-
serving, during winter, seeds that require spring-sowing,
and in the conveyance of seeds to a distance.

Planting, Two essential rules to be observed in the
management of a kitchen garden arc, never to crowd
the ground with more plants than it is able to nourish
properly ; and never to let any part of it remain unoc-
cupied, for want of a due succession of crops. In laying
out a bed the earth should not be raised above the aF-

220 GARDENING.

leys but two or three inches. The beds laid out four
feet in width are the m st convenient. Never phmt
when the ground is wet ; nor in':ieed, if it can be avoid-
ed, perform any other act with, or on, the ground of a
garden. If you dig ground in wet weather, you make a
sort of mortar of it ; it binds when the sun cr wind dries
it. The fermentation does not take place ; and it be-
comes untavoural le to vegetation, especially if the
ground be of a stiff nature. Sow, therefore, if ptss^ible,
in dry weather, but in freshly moved ground. Seed
should be *own deepest when the ground is dried ; but
an almost universal rule, is to j'ropoiiion the depth of
the sowing to the size oi" the seeiL if seed be ever so
good, you oughi to sow at least doutle what you Vvould
wish to have grow. Injects and various other causes,
may destroy many of the sp.iall and tencier plants. Sow
liberaiiy if you would rea]? abundantly; for it will be
found m'lcn ea-ier to thin out the surplus, than to sup-
ply any detioieijC}';

Thinning, la thinning close crops, as onions, carrots,
parsr.ipi^, fee. be sure t>iOy are not loft too near; for in-
stead of rta['ing a gre;.tf.r i reduce, there would surely
be a less. When they stand lOO cio're, ihey will make
tali and large tops, but are prevented swelling in their
ro- is; better to err on the tic'ide side, /or tbonc,h there
are fewer plants they will le tiJior. Let ihem also
be thinned early ; for, even wlii.e in seed loaf, they in-
jure each other. Every tlnug ought to be tl inned in
the seed leaf.

lioeinpr and V/eedin^. Hoe, o^- weed, immediately af-
t2r the crops are up. Onions, cirrois, parsnips, and all
other close and low growing crops, should be always
kept free from weeds, from tl^e n»oinent they appear
above ground, till grown to their full size. A small
hoe may be applied where it will answer, but where
not, hand-weedi!ig mu'^^t be practis d. A large piece of
ground may soon be gone over with a hoe, wJ-cn the
weeds aie small ; but when they are perm)iU;d to grow
large, it requires double labour to destroy them. Weeds
grow much faster than the p ants cuKi . ated, and if not
cleared away in time vvi;! totally ut'Siro\ the crops.
Hoeing requires to be frequently repeated, and to a con-

GARDENING.

221

sirlerable depth. A mere flat hoeing does nothing but
keep down the weeds. The hoeing' when the plants
aro- become stout, should be deep ; and if done with a
hoe that has prongs the better. Deep hoeing is enough
in some cases ; but, in others, digging is necessary to
produce a fine and i'ull crop. If any body will have a
piece of cabbages, and will dig between the rows of one
half of them, twice during their growth, and let the oth-
er half of the piece have nothing but a flat hoeing, that
person will find that the half which has been digged be-
tween, will weigh nearly twice as much as the other
half.

In hoeing, caution must be used not to get dirt on the
plants, particularly such as have large leaves or wide
stems where they join the principal stalk, for dirt re-
mains longer on such places and injures the healthiness
of the plant.

That a garden may be kept clean, not one weed
should be suffered to have its seed ripen on it. To pre-
vent the ground from receiving injury, no more plants
ought to be suffered to go to seed than will be sufficient
to furnish seed for planting for the next year.

All refuse leaves of cabbages, &c. should be carried
off the ground and given to cattle, or they will give a
bad smell to the garden.

Transplanting. In transplanting plants, a wet time is
to be chosen, and the evening is better than any other
time. As much of the earth should be left round the
roots, as possible, in taking them out of the ground ;
and if they are raised with a trowel, by which a bunch
of earth can be raised with them, they will be the bet-
ter for it. The holes where they are sjet should be wa-
tered, and the water should previously be well warmed
in the sun. In the act of transplanting, the main things
are, not to bury the hesrt of the plant ; and to take
care that the earth be well pressed about the point of
the root. To press the earth very closely about the
stem is of httle use, if you leave the point of the root
loose.

Wateriiig. With regard to watering of plants, all that
is necessary to be said, is, that cold water, as drawn from
20

222 PEAS.

wells, should never be applied to them. The water
should be exposed to the sun for such lime as will ren- "
der it as warm as rain-water ; and the quantity applied
at once should never be very great ; but rather like the
application of a gentle rain. Water should generally
be given, late in the afternoon, or very early in the
morning, but the former is preterable ; that the plant
may have as much benefit from it as possible, before any.
part is exhaled by the heat of the ensuing day.

PEAS.

The best peas for garden-culture are the small early or
early frame-pea, and the marrowfat ; the former for early
use, and the latter for an after and more abundant sup-
ply. Plant peas as soon as the ground is in good work-
ing condition ; and from this time forward once a fort-
night or three weeks, to keep up a regular supply for
the table. Or it will oe a good rule, when the first
plants are up, to put in another crop of the same sort
for succession. In this way green peas may be had from
early in June, till the sharp frosts set in. For the early
crop, select the driest and warmest soil in the garden,
particularly such as is secured from the north winds, by
a tight fence, or a wall. Those that are planted late
in season ought to be under the south fence, so as to
get as much coolness as possible. After the ground has
been well dug, raked and levelled, mark it out in double
rows, about 10 inches apart, and leave intervals of three
feet for the early small kind; four feet for the larger;
and five feet for the largest, so that when they are
brushed in proportion to their respective growth?", there
may be a free passage through the intervals. Open the
trenches 3 inches deep ; and scatter in the peas at the
rate of about one to an inch, and then cover them with
a rake. The ground should be hoed, and kept clear of
weeds ; and when the young plants are 6 inches high,
the stems should be earthed up a little, and each double
row filled with brush wood, so that each plant may
climb, and none of them trail upon the ground. The
brush should be set strongly in the earth, or they will
not bear the weight of the plants in windy weather. —
Early peas are found to be most productive when plant-

BEANS. 223

ed in separate double rows in different parts of the gar-
den, or with very wide intervals between, which can be
callivatfcd with crops of low plants. In this way they
are furnished with a sulhciency of sun and air. (5ee Peas
I2ijth puge.)

BEANS.

The variety of kidney beans is almost endless. The
mode of propagating and cultivating is nearly the same
in all, except that the dwarfs require smaller distances
than the climbers, and that the latter are grown with
poles, which the former are not. Select for cultivation
those w^hich experience shows best suited to our climate
and soil, and which best supply the wants of your family.
Every sort of kidney-bean must have rich ground to
produce a large crop.

Bush Beans. It is a great object to have beans early,
and they should be planted as soon as the ground is
warm ; but it is useless to plant them when the ground
is cold. A principal crop should be planted early in
May, and successional crops, about the middle, and also
towards the end thereof. For the early kinds, select a
piece of light rich ground ; let the drills be made about
two feet and a half asunder, and an inch and a half deep ;
drop the beans therein, at the distance of 2 or 3 inches
from one another, and draw the earth evenly over them.
As soon as they are in full bloom, and the lower pods
are beginning to set, the tops or runners should be cut
off; this will greatly promote the swelling of the pods,
as well as their earl}^ maturit}'. But with respect to the
small early beans, if you would have them come in as
soon as possible, top them when the blossoms at the bot-
tom of the stalks begin to open.

Pole Beans. For beans whose vines ne^d support, let
poles of a proper height be fixed in the ground about 2
ieet apart, in row^ 3 or 4 feet distant from each other —
around each pole let 4 or 5 beans be planted ; the poles
should have small knots left on them, or pins put
through to support the vines. This way of planting
gives an opportunity of keeping the soil loose around the
roots and prevents the injuries arising from driving poles
into the hills. Of the various sorts of pole-beans oue

224 CABBAGES,

planting- is enough; for, if 3^011 gather as the beans be-
come fit for use, they continue bearing all through the
summer, especially the Lima bean, which delights in
heat, and which should not be planted till the ground is
quite warm. The scarlet bean, (laulujlorus) is well
worth cultivating, both for use and ornament.

CABBAGES.

Sow cabbages in an open situation, distant from fences,
&c. early in May, in rows 6 inches apart, and put the seeds
thin in the rows. As soon as up, thin the plants to 3 or
4 inches in the rov/s. Hoe deep between the plants,
and keep them free from weeds while they stand in the
seed bed. To prevent a sudden check by breaking all
the roots at once, in hot weather, dig every other inter-
val, leave the rest, and dig them a week later. If they
are transplanted into other beds, when 3 or 4 inches
high, it will greatly strengthen them, and render them
in a much better condition for final transplanting.

The ground for cabbages must be well manured,
deeply spaded, made fine, and intimately mixed. They
require a deep, very rich, and moist loam, and agree
exceedingly well, with large quantities of manure. —
"VV^here manure is scarce, a spade or two of earth is tak-
en out at a proper distance for the plants, and the rotten
dung laid at the bottom of the hole. When about 6
inches high, they will be fit to transplant. (See Trans-
planting.) Set the larger kinds in rows about two and
a half feet each way. You can set some between rows
of forward bush-beans, and other low growing crops,
which will occupy the ground when those are off. If a
hot sun cause them to droop, a shingle stuck into the
ground will be sutiicient shelter. Or plant 2 shingles,
one on the southeast side, and one on the southwest,
meeting at the south corner. Covering them with
leaves, &c. is a bad practice. In bringing plants from a
distance, be careful to preserve the latteral roots, lay
them in a basket upon some moist grass, and cover them
lightly with green leaves, and immediately before set-
ting, dip their roots into water, and afterwards, unless
the ground is quite wet, give them a sprinkling from the
water pot. There is scarcely any crop that derives

ONIONS. 225

more advantage from having the soil frequently stirred
and applied to the roots of the plants, than the cabbage.
It is only by a due repetition of those operations that
the plants attain their most perfect growth and size. The
later the plants are, the more necessary it is to earth
them up, and the higher should the earth be drawn. —
After they have been earthed up, hoe deep the rest of
the ground. When the underleaves begin to decay,
they may be taken off and fed to cattle. The plants
will not be injured by it. (See Cabbages 1 24th page.)

CAULIFLOWER AND BROCCOLI.

These are a species of cabbage, but of a superior
quality. They are cultivated in the same way as th«
common cabbage.

ONIONS.

This root requires a mellow, dry soil, and the richer,
the better. The soil may be a rich sand, sandy-loam,
ith-y-loam, or a gravelly-loam ; or either of these earths,
of common quality, when strongly manured, will answer.
It is supposed that well rotted and fermented composts,
formed of such materials as are most suitable to the soil,
will always be found the best manure for this root. la
April, or as soon as the grountl is sufficiently dry to pul-
verize well, make it very fine, but not deep ; make the
rows a foot apart, and scatter the seed thinly an inch or
more deep. Then fill in the drills, and harden the sur-
face with the back of a shovel. When the plants are
2 or 3 inches high, thin them to 4 or 5 inches. Or
make the drills about 10 inches apart, each way, and
drop 6 or 8 seed, where the drills intersect each other.
Though the largest onions are those that grow singly,
some inches apart, those that are more crowded produce
large crops. A small quantity of ashes and sand spread
over the ground after planting, is useful. Keep the
ground clear of weeds by hoeing and weeding, but, do

not hoe deep, nor raise earth about the plants.

They should be hoed 3 or 4 times before the tops have
arrived at their full height. After the bulbs begin to
swell, hoeing must be discontinued. It is said to be
very useful, to apply soot and ashes when the buld be-
20*

"226

ONIONS.

gin to form. Some are in the practice of beating down
the tops, after the roots have attained considerable
size, for the purpose of making the latter grow the faster;
but the practice is no doubt injurious. When the stalks
shrivel and fall spontaneously, the;f have ceased to
grow and should then be pulled up and laid on the
ground some days to dry and harden. If the weather
should prove moist, they must be turned or they will
strike new roots and grow. When sufficiently dry, cut
oif the tops, carry them in and spread them thin over
the floor ; here let them remain until the commence-
ment of cold weather, then put them into a box or cask
with alternate layers of dry chaff or fine straw, and set
them in a place where they will not freeze. A little
frost, however, will not essentially injure them, unless
they are moved while frozen ; but it is better to keep
them in a temperature a little above the t>eezing point.
Those which are shipped from New-England, are usual-
ly tied up in wi<5ps of straw, and if they be hung up in
this way they will perhaps keep longer than any other.
If they incline to sprout, sear the roots with a hot iron,
which will slop their growth. Those which have thick
necks and the bulbous part small, may be left in the
ground during winter : Many of them will stand the frost,
and in the spring may be taken up and set in a bed
where they will grow to be good onions. At all events,
they are good for nothing, without a second year's
growth ; and must not be mixed with good onions lest
they cause them to rot.

To obtain seed from onions, plant them very early in
the spring in bed.-^, about 9 inches apart. Take the
largest and soundest for this purpose, and keep them
clear of weeds while ijrowing. When they have come
to head, tie them loosel}? to stakes drove down for that
purpose ; otherwise they will fall to the ground, and
then the seeds will not come to perfection. In a garden
there always ought to be a crop to succeed seed onions.
Onions are not an exhausting crop ; and they may be
constantly nised on the same ground.

Field Culture of Onions. Haviog omitted to speak of
the field culture of this valuable root in the foregoing
part of this work, we proceed to make some selection^,

ONIONS. 227

from the Farmer^s Assistant^ which may prove useful to
tho?'e who wish to cultivate them on aa extensive s»ale.

The ground should be perfectly clear of stones ; and
if it contain the seed of weeds, these should be first era-
dicated by a hoed crop. The ploughin^s, tor preparing
the land, in the first instance, need not be deeper than 3
or 4 inches. If the ground be suitably mellow, any fur-
ther ploughing*, for succeeding crops, will be unneces-
sary ; all that will be found requisite, will be, to re-mel-'
low the ground as deeply aod effectually, as it can be
done bj-^ a heavy iron-toothed harrow, having the teeth
well pointed, and turning forward, so as to run about 2
inches deep. But, where the ground is not of the mellow
kind, it should be prepared as at first. Whatever manure
is applied, should be very finely rotted, clear of the seeds
of weeds, and well mixed with the soil, by. the harrow.
x\t\er the surface is finely pulverized, it should be roll-
ed, and then it is fit for the reception of the seed. The
sowing should be as early as the ground can be complete-
ly prepared. The seeds should be drilled in, in rows
about 10 or 12 inches apart, by a small hand-drill
plough. This machine may be made to drill in 2 rows
at once. The seeds should be drilled in pretty thickly,
ibr fear they may not all vegetate. If the plants are
too thick, they must be thinned by hand, when the first
weeding commences. This is the most laborious opera-
tion in the whole process of raising this root, as well as
some others ; but here we propose another labor-saving
implement, in the shape of a small hand-weeding plough.
(See Hand-Plough.) Every part of the interval be-
tween the rows should be cut with this plough ; after
which it would probably be found requisite to use a
small narrow iron-toothed rake, for the purpose of com-
pletely separating the roots of the weeds from the soil.
After this, the cleansing of the rows of the weeds, which
the plough could not touch, must be performed by hand.
When the weeds begin to rise again, this operation must
be repeated, and again, if it be necessary, as no weeds
should be suffered to grow among the crop.

By the use of the drill, and weeding-plough, it is be-
lieved that one ball of the labor usually bestowed would
be saved.

228 BEETS.

Onions have been successfully cultivated in light,
black, swampy grounds, when laid suffiiciently dry by
small open ditches, about 3 rods apart.

Mr. Knight^ of Newbury, Mass. raised last year, 651
bushels of onions, on one acre. The soil is a rich grav-
elly loam, with a gravel bottom; in 1821, it was culti-
vated with onions, and cabbages; and was manured with
about 5 cords of barn manure, and produced a good
crop; after the crop was oif the ground, there were 5
cords of barn manure, and 2 and a half cords of leached
ashes ploughed in ; in April, 1822, it was once ploughed,
and sowed ia rows 14 inches apart, which took between
3 and 4 pounds oi" seed ; in the course of the season it
was hoed between the rows and weeded four times ; in
September they were harvested. The entire expense,
including <J 21 and 37 cents, the cost of manure, was
$ 57 and 38 cents.

BEETS.

There are varieties of beets ; but the best are the red,
and the redder the «weeter. A full and abundant sup-
ply of this very excellent vegetable, ought to be culti-
vated in every garden. Sow them early, if the soil be
not very rich ; but they may be sown later, where it
is strong. The soil should be well mellowed to a good
depth. A soil naturally mellow is best for them. Make-
the rows a foot apart ; sow the seed pretty thick all
along the drill; and when the plants come up, thin them
to 8 inches apart, or 12, if the ground is very rich. Mr.
Cobbeit advises to soak the seed 4 days in rain water be-
fore it is sowed. It should be put in about 2 inches
deep, and the earth pressed upon it. The seeds gen-
erally come up double, but should be separated while
young, otherwise both roots will be small. Those which
are taken out may be traasplanted ; but they are not
apt to make good roots. Beets should be kept clear of
weeds, till the leaves covering the ground prevent their
further growth. The under leaves may be broken off
towards fall, and thrown to swine, which are very fond
of them.

The roots should be dug up before any severe frosts;
none of the fibrous roots should be taken awav ; nor

CARROTS AND PARSKIPS. 229

should the tops be cut close. In this situation they
should be boiled, to prevent any loss of their juice. In
winter, they are best kept in sand ; and they should not
be suffered to freeze, as this makes them tough and un-
fit for use. Beets, carrots, parsnips, &lc. designed for
the table, will pay well in their relish and flavor, if
packed in sand, in dry casks.

The Mangel Wurtzel Beet may be cultivated much in
the same manner, excepting the seeds may be further
apart. The leaves of both make excellent greens — -
(^ee Mangel WurtzeU^ page 118.)

CARROTS.

Carrots require nearly the same cultivation as beets.
They do not, however, require so much room. They
are considered best for culinary purposes, when plant-
ed as late as the last of May ; as they do not attain their
full growth, and are more delicate than those planted
early. (^See Carrots^ page 120.)

PARSNIPS.

The cultivation is the same as for carrots, except that
they require the soil to be dug deeper. The beet, car-
rot, and parsnip, all call for a generous, rich mould, and
bountiful supply of manure to be well mixed in with the
soil by deep digging.

From time immemorial our fathers in the country
have raised the parsnip only as a rarity, to be sought
for a few days in the spring. And few farmers think
of digging this vegetable in the fall, to provide their ta-
bles with a very pleasant and useful variety in winter.
By taking it up in the l\ill, we not only gain a long use
of the plant, but we have it in greater perfection ; for
rarely can it be taken up in the spring before it has
sprouted, and the inside of it become ligneous. Indeed,
all roots shouhl be dug in the fall, and it is said, if pack-
ed in a box with earth from the beds from which they
were taken, that the same moisture may be preserved ;
they can be kept until quite the beginning of summer,
possessing all their richness of juice and nutritious qual-
ities. (^See Parsnips, page 123.)

230 TURNIPS AND RADISHES.

TURNIPS.

It is useless to attempt to raise them by sowing in the
spring- ; they are never good till fall. Round Turnips
.should be sown about the end of July, in rows (in a gar-
den) two feet apart, and thinned out to a foot distance
in the rows. Good and deep hoeinsr and one diarorinof
should take place during their growth ; for, a large tur-
nip of the same age is better, wpight for weight, than
a small one. The Swedish Turnip, or Ruta Baga, pre-
ferred by many for the table, ought to be sown early
in June, in rows at a foot apart, and thinned to 3 inches
in the rows. About the middle of July they ought to
be transplanted 3 feet apart, and, during their growth,
kept clean, and dug between twice, at least, as deep a»
a spade can go. The Swedish Turnip produces excel-
lent greens in the spring, and at a very early season. —
Leave a row or two in the ground, and, when the win-
ter is about to set in, cover them all over with straw or
ceder boughs. Take these off when the winter breaks
up, and you will have the greens, (^ee Ruta Baga^
poge 1 1 3 — Turnips^ page 1 1 5.)

RADISHES

Require a sandy, rich soil. Doubtless there might be
a bed prepared for them. They should l>e s wn Ibia in
little drills, 6 inches asunder, as early as possible, in the
spring, and a little bed, every three weeks, during the
summer. As soon as the central cough leaf is half an
inch broad, thin them to 2 or 3 inches apart. As they
are uncertain in their growth, some put in the seeds be-
tween rows of other plants; and they are so soon pulled
up, that they will not incommode the plants among
which they gro\v. This root being li;>.h]e to be eaten
)»y worms, the following msthod is recommended for
raising them : Take equal qi:;mtities of buck-wheat
br;?i;, and Ircsh horso-dmig, mix them well and plentifully
in th«-. ground, by digging. Suddenly after this, a great
fermentation will be produced, and numbers of toftd-
stoo's will s?art up in 48 ho!]rs. Dig the ground over
again, and sow the seed, and the radishes will grow with
greai rapidity, and be free from insects. Do not let the
seeds of dili'erent species be mixed ; and when you wish

CUCUMBERS AND MELONS. 231

to raise seed of any particular root, take care that it
does not tlower in the vicinity of any other kind. The
early scarlet is the best.

CUCUMBERS.

Light sandy soils produce the best. It cannot be too
rich, nor too well cultivated, to raise a great crop —
hoi^s*" dung- and ashes are considered best for them. —
(»S>e Radiihes for a good manure for them.^

It is generally observed, that cucumbers, squashes, and
melons of everj kind, may be planted as early as Indian
corn ; but in order to have them as early as possible, a
(ew may be planted 8 or 10 days before the usual time
of planting thnt grain. The seeds are considered be»t
when 3 or 4 years old, and they are said to be benefit-
ted by soaking them in a solution of nitre, and covering
them with soot. Three or four plants f»re enough to
stand in a hole together; as their roots are said to ex-
tend to the distance of 10 feet in fine earih ; therefore,
ivhen they get into rough leaf, they should be thinned
to this number. After two rough indented leaves are
produced, a pimple that portends a future sprout, on the
second stalk is to be pinched off, to prevent its growth ;
this will make the other branches grow more strong,
and be more prolific. The vines should be so conduct-
ed as to interfere as little as possible with each other.
If you save a cucumber for seed, let it be the first fine
fruit that appears. The plant will cease to bear much
after this fruit becomes yellowish.

Cucumbers are rendered more wholesome by slicing
them into cold water. See Insects for the method of
keeping them off the young plants.

MELONS

Require all the season and great care to bring them
to any degree of perfection. About the middle of May,
prepare a piece of rich sandy ground, well exposed to
the sun ; manure it highly with compost, prepared a
year at least before it is used ; and give it a good dig-
ging, then mark it out into squares of 6 or 8 feet every
way ; at the angle of every square, dig a hole 12 inches
deep and 18 over, into which put 7 or 8 inches deep, of

232 SQUASHES A!?D ASPARAGUS.

old dung; throw thereon about 4 inches of earth, and
mix the dung and earth with the spade, draw the re-
mainder of the earth over the mixture so as to t'orm a
round hill about a foot broad at top. Plant in each near
the centre, 8 or 9 good seeds, distant 2 inches Irom one
another, and cover them about half an inch deep. When
the plants are in their rough leaves, thin them to 2. or

3 in each hill, the extra number in some, may serve to
fill vacancies in others ; draw earth, from time to time,
round the hills, and as high about the roots of the plants
as the seed leaves ; when fit, stop them as directed for
cucumbers; after which, keep the ground, by frequent
hoeings, perfectly free from weeds.

The ends of the runners, and the fruit last formed,
should be taken off', in order that the fruit first formed
may have more nourishment. The same method can be
taken to keep away insects as for cucumbers.

Seeds brought from the southward are said to be best.
For saving the seeds, see garden seeds.

SQUASHES.

These, in all their varieties, are cultivated like Cu-
cumbers. (»See Pumpkins I28th page.^

4ASPARAGUS.

This useful plant is best propagated from the seeds,
and its successful culture almost entirel}"^ depends on the
the proper quality of such seed. Hence, some of the
most promising buds should be marked with a stick, and
the seeds gathered when they are dead ripe.

To make a bed, open a trench early in the spring

4 feet wide, and one foot deep, in the warmest part of
the garden. Fill the trench half full of good barn dung,
mud, or a mixture of rich earth and dung ; level it, and
fill up the trench with good soil. Draw the drills 10 or
12 inches apart each way, and in the angles plant 2 or 3
seed about an inch deep. When the plants have been
up some time, they must be thinned, leaving only one
of the strongest in each place, and carefully cleared of
weeds. The first year or two a thin crop of onions may
be sowed in the intervals. When the haulm is yellow,
in the fall, and before the frost sets in, cut it off cltse to

OYSTER PLANT. 233

liie ground. Lay some litter on the bed till spring*, to
prevent the frost Irom being too long coming out ofthe
ground in the spring. When the frost breaks up, throw
sonie^ ashes, or some other manure about an inch deep
over the bed, having first loosened the top of the bed
with a fork about 3 inches deep, and raked it. Upon
this manure, throw a layer of earth over the bed, out
of the paths, and break it fine at the time. Continue
this management every succeeding year. When the
bed becomes too high by the constant addition of dung,
&c. part ofthe earth may be pared off in the spring, be-
fore the plants shoot, and the bed covered again with a
thin compost of rotten dung. The third year some
shoots or buds will be large enough for cutting. When
these are about 3 or 4 inches high, they should be cut ;
slipping the knife down almost perpendicularly, close to
each shoot, and cutting ofi^ slantingly a few inches within
the ground, taking care not to wound the successional
buds advancing from the same root. Terminate the
general cutting, as soon as the shoots begin to appear
small, or weaker than usual. In New-England, it is
supposed they may be cut till about the middle of June.
Asparagus being of maratime origin, a little brine or
salt, may now and then be sprinkled on the beds with
advantage. The beds will continue to bear veil to 10
or 12 years, and with proper management 20 or 30
years.

It is advisable to have two beds, the one 30 situated
as to come on as early as possible, the other late. The
warmest situation is necessary for the former j for the
latter the coolest, or that which is shaded.

OYSTER PLANT.

The salsafy, or oyster plant, is^a vegetable of easy pro-
duction, and universally eaten, when introduced to the
table. It resembles a small parsnip in iis appearance.
It is raised annually from seeds, requiring no more care
than the carrot. It bears a tolerable crop. In Europe
it is eaten both boiled and f/ied. In thi ; country it is par-
boiled, and then fried either in butter or without. In
its taste, it so strongly resembles the oyster, that when
sliced, and fried in butter, it can scarcely be distinguished

21 "

234 LETTUCE, CRESS AND NASTURTIUM.

from it. It is in eating from November to May. Like
the parsnip it will stand out the whole winter.

LETTUCE. ^

As early in the spring as possible, (March,) prepare a
ypot in a warm situation, and sow earl}' kinds of lettuce.
Continue to sow of the best kind every two weeks,
in rich ground, and in open situations, that you may have
a regular supply. The different sorts should generally
be sown separate, and in digging the ground, let the earth
be well pulverised. Sow the seed on the surface, even,
and not too thick, and rake them in lightly, taking care
not to draw the earth in heaps. Scatter a few seeds
among other general crops, and they will grow large and
tine. If the early sown lettuce stands thick, draw it out ;
and .when the ground is fully moistened with rain, ma-
nure it, dig it a spade deep, and transplant some of the
best. There is nothing that hears transplanting better,
und the heads will grow larger, and will not so soon run to
seed. They should stand afoot from each other, that
the weeds may be destroyed with a hoe, and the soil
kept loo^-e around them. Water them occasionally, till
they have taken good root. Such as are lelt for heading,
where sown, should in May be thinned to 10 or 12
inches distance every way, and those among other cr/)ps,
to 3 feet. It is of much importance to have good sorts,
and such as will not run to seed before they attain full
growth ; these are not commonly to be met with, and are
worth procuring.

CRESS.

Cress, or Pepper Grass, is very good in salads along
with lettuce and white mustard. It should be sown in
drills, pretty thick (as should the white mustard) and cut
young. A small quantity, in the salad-season, should be
sown every ten days, and slightly covered.

NASTURTIUM, OR INDIAN CRESS.

This, for the sake of ornament, and that no small one
in a kitchen garden, should be where thin stalks may
find support. The seeds, when green, lorm a iavorite
pickle ; they are often called capers and substituted for

MUSTARD, PEPPERS, SAGE AND PARSLEY. 235

fhem. The young leaves are us§d in salads. The seeds
should he sown Ciirly, and the plants require pretty
long bushy sticks.

MUSTARD.

This plant requires a soil sufficiently strong for tur-
nips. Let the ground be well prepared early in the
spring, and sow the seed broadcast. When the plants are
a few inches high, thin them to 8 or 10 inches apart,
and destroy the weeds with the hoe. When the lower
seeds are ripe, the middle seeds green, and the tops in
blosiom, cut them, bind them in small bundles, and lay -
them in piles for a few days. In this situation the green
seed will soon ripen. The best mustard for culture is
the common or black.

(^Siaapis nigra.^ Every farmer ought to raise this
useful plant, as imported mustard is often adulterated.
The culture of mustard is protitable.

PEPi»ERS.

The seeds of peppers germinate tardilj'", and should
therefore be put into the ground as early in May, as
possible. Thsy will not flourish unless the land is good,
and highly manured. For this use, manure from the
hog-&tye^or hen-roost is the best, make it fine, and nicely
incorporate it with the soil — level the surface with the
rake and plant the seed in drills 13 inches apart, sow it
thick, cover it half an inch with fine earth, and press it
down. When grown an inch or two, thin them to G or
8 inches, and keep the ground free from weeds. The
large heart shaped kind is generally used for pickling.

SAGK

Is raised from seed, or from slips. To have it at
hand for winter it is necessary to dry it ; and it ought to
be cut, for this purpose, when beginning to bloom, as
indeed, is the case with all other herbs.

PARSLEY.

Sow it in Tory clean ground. A bed G feet long, the
seed sown in drills at 8 inches apart, will probably be
eaough for a family. To preserve it green through the

236 BROOM CORN AND FRUITS CULTIVATED IN GARDENS.

winter, put straw, or leaves of trees, 6 inches thick on
the bed, and lay on something to prevent the covering-
from being" blown off. This will preserve its leaves
from being destroyed ; and, when you go to get it, you
must lift up the covering, of a part of the bed.

BROOM CORN.

This requires the best oi'land and tillage. The place
assigned for it should, early in May, be laid up in
small ridges, that it may dry and become warm. About
the 20th of that month, level down the ridges, pulverise
the soil, and intimately mix the manure — then stretch
the line, and with the small hoe make a furrow 2 inches
deep, scatter the seed, and cover it v.ith light earth —
Then move back your line 3 feet^ and in this way plant
whatever quantity you please. When up, thin plants, re-
serving those only which appear stout and healthful. —
That seed only which is heavy, and of a bright, shining
colour, is worth planting. The best seed will lose its
vitality in 4 or 5 years. The grain is good for poultry.

FRUITS CULTIVATED IN GARDENS.

The useful and the agreeable concur to recommend
the cultivation of fruit in gardens ; as the plants, being
perennials, require only occasional care, little trouble,
and hardly any expense.

Propagation by cuttings, suckers, and layers, may be
practised iu the early part of April ; or as soon as the
frost is out of the ground.

Cuttings must be taken from shoots of the last year,
and it is, in most cases, best if they have a joint or two
of the last year's wood, at the bottom of them. The
cutting should have altogether, about 6 joints, or buds ;
and 3 of these should be under ground when plant-
ed. The cuts should be performed with a sharp knife,
so that there may be nothing ragged or bruised about
either wood or bark. Make a hole sufficiently deep
and large to admit the cutting without ruffling the bark ;
let those which are most difficult to grow be set as deep
as 12 inches ; those less difficult, 0, 8, or 10 ; any vacu-
ity left ii) the hole must be filled up with fresh earth, and
pressed down close to the cutting. Let them be fre-

FRUITS CULTIVATED IN GARDENS. 237

qnently watered when the ground is dry, until they have
got shoots several inches lon<^. If the weather is hot
cover the ground with leaves, or muck, (mulch,) or
something to keep the ground cool. Where cuttings ai»o
to be kept some time before setting, let the cut ends
be kept in moist earth, and soaked in water before they
are set. Plant them in rows 2 feet asunder, at 6 or 8 in-
ches distance in the row.

Suckers. Many kinds of shrubby plants, furnisfc abun-
dance of suckers from the roots for propagation. They
may be separated from the parent plants, each with some-
roots, and planted either in nursery rows for a year or
two, or (he largest, at once, where they are to remain.
They are considered inferior to cuttings.

Layers. Trees and shrubs, which cannot be easily
propagated by seeds, cuttings, &lc. may nevertheless be
propagated by layers. Take shoots of the last year's
growth, bend them to the earth, and bury them half a
foot deep in a good mellow soil ; fasten them with hook-
ed pegs to prevent their rising, and bend the tops so as
to bring them above the surface. A slit upwards should
be made in that part of the twig which lies deepest, or
u wire drawn tightly round it there, lo prevent the sap
from mountmg too fast. Let the ground be covered
with stones, &lc. to keep it moist, and let it. be watered
if necessary. When the twigs have struck root, they
may be cut off in the spring and transplanted.

Transplanting^ <^'C. In planting shrubs of every kind,
Jet all convenient expedition be made in doing it, so that
they may be planted as soon as possible after they are
taken up ; that their roots may not be dried by the sun
and wind ; but when brought from iiuy distance, and can-
not be immediately planted, untie the bundles, lay the
roots in a trench, and cover them with earth, to lie, till
the places allotted are ready to receive them.

Dig a round hole tor each shrub, from half a yard to 2
feet or more wide, according to the size of the roots,
and a spade deep, capacious enough to receive them
freely ; and loosen the bottom well. Prune off broken
•or bruised roots, and irregular productions of the heads;
^nd place them in the holes upright, break the earth
well, and throw it in equally about the roots, whick
21*

238 . CURUANTS.

cover a proper depth, shaking" the plants gentlj^ as the
earth is filled in, tread it moderately, and place some
long" litter on the suri'ace, to preserve moisture. Sup-
port the tallest with stakes.

The g-round must always he kept clear of weeds ; for,
whatever the}' take is just so much taken from the fruit,
either in quantit}^, or in quality, or in both. Taking oif
the earth round the roots of fruit bearing shrubs and
vines, throwing in soap-suds, that has been uped in wash-
ing, and then replacing the earth, has a most beneficial
effect.

As the time of planting varies in diiTerent seasons, the
only sure guide is, to phmt all kinds of shrubs, k,c. as
soon as their buds begin to swell, or a little before.

CURRANTS.

Currants are easily propngaled from cuttings. (.Sp«
Cuttings.) They will furnish themselves with roots, and
bear fruit the second 3'^ear. They will do very well
even on light and sandy soils ; but, pei"haps, the best
soil for them is a good mellow sandy loam. With prop-
er culture, however, they will grow pretty well on al-
most an}^ soil that is not too hard and poor. When the
bush has stood 2 years in the nursery, plant it where it
is to stand; and take care that it has only one stem. —
Let lio limbs grow nearer than 6 inches of the ground.
Prune the shrub every year; and keep it thin of wood,
keep the middle open ; the limbs extended ; and when
these get to about 3 fett in length, cut off, every spring,
all the last years shoots. Cultivate and manure the
ground. It will be most convenient in a garden to set
them next the fence. By planting some on the south,
and some on the north side of a wall, you can have the
fruit from June to October.

To cultivate them upon an extensive scale for the
purpose of making wine ; set the bushes in rows, 6 or 8
feet between each, and about 3 feet between each bush,
with intervals of proper width and at regular distances
for passing across the rows. It is estimated tliat an acre,
well cultivated, would probably yield, on an average,
a quantity of fruit sufficient to make 1000 gallons of
wine yearly. The expense of making this wiae is about
SO cents a gallon.

GOOSBER'PJES. 239

Vurrani Wine. To miike this wine, gather the cur-
rants when tally ripe, let them be picked in fair weather
and with as nauch expedition as possible ; break them
well in a tub or vat, (some have a mill constructed for
the purpose, consisting- of a hopper, fixed upon two lig-
num vitie rollers,) press and measure the juice, having
first strained it through a woollen cloth; to every gal-
lon of pure currant juice, add two gallons of cold water,
then to every gallon of this mixture, immediately put
three pounds of go d brown sugar, (some think it better
with three and one fourth pounds,) stir it well, till the
sugar is quite dissolved, and then till up the cask. If you
can possibly prevent it, let not your juice stand over
night, as it should not ferment before mixture. Observe,
that the casks be sweet and clean, and such as never
have had either beer or cider in them, and, if new, let
Ihem be first well seasoned. The cask must nit be so
full as to work over. Lay the bung lightly on the hole,
to keep out flies, &.c. fn three weeks or a month, the
bung-hole may be stopped up, leaving only the vent-
hole open till it has fully done working; then stop it up
tight, and in six months it will be fit for bottling or for
use. Like other wines, however, it improves much by
age.

If you intend to make 30 gallons agreeably to this re-
ceipt, you will require 8 gallons of juice, 16 of water,
and 72 lbs. of sugar.

GOOSBERRIES.

Goosberrles require a deep and rich loam : the ground
must be well manured and kept free from weeds ; and
be careful to plant none but those that are of a good
kind. The best mode of propagating them, is by cut-
tings or layers. (/See Layers^ Cuttings, and TranspIa7ithirrA
Early in the spring, spade carefully around the roots,
turn over the soil, and pull out all grass that may grow
near them. Prune them by cutting out every worn-out,
decayed, or irregular branch — let none be permitted to
grow across each other; but let all be pruned to some
regulan order — cut out all the super-abundant, latteral
shoots of the last summer, close to the ground, or old
wood, only retaining here and there a good one, to sup-

210 RASPBERRIES AND GRAPE VINES.

ply the place of casual, worn-out bearers. Never per-
mit the extremities of the branches to stand nearer than
6 or 8 inches of each other. The best form for a well
trained goosberry or currant bush, is that of a wine
glass.

Goosberry Wine is made in the same manner as currant
xvine, except that one third less sugar is required. In
picking the berries, take none that have iallen upon the
jjround, or that have been shaded and grown sour.

RASPBERRIES

Are raised from suckers, though they may be raised
from cuttings. The suckers of this year are planted
out in rows, 6 feet apart, and the plants 2 feet apart, ia
the rows. This is done in the fall, or early in the spring.
At the time of planting, they should be cut down to
within a foot of the ground. They will bear a little,
and they will send out several suckers, w hich will bear
the next year. About four is enough to leave, and those
of the strongest. These should be cut off in the fall,
or early in the spring, to within four feet of the ground,
and should be tied to a small stake. The next year
more suckers come up, which are treated in the same
%vay. Fifty clumps are enough, if well managed. —
There are white and read : some like one best, and
some the other. To have them tine, you must dig in ma-
nure in autumn, and keep the ground clean during sum-
mer, by hoeing.

GRATE VINES.

Wherever any kinds of grapes gro«v wild, they may
be there cultivated to advantage.

The spots most favorable for them, are the sides of
hills, sloping to the south, with a loose and mellow soil,
but not liable to be washed bv heavy rains. Stiff soils
are not good ; though by carting on sand, and other loos-
ening manures, they will answer tolerably well. The
ground must be well mellowed by ploughing, and mixed
with sand, if not naturally sandy, and such manures as
will keep it rich and mellow.

The best mode of r-.i-ing the plants, is by cuttings,
takea from the vines at the fall pruning, and preserved

GR-APE VINES.

241

in earth, with litter over their upper parts, to protect
them from frost, till spring. These may be made either
cf one eye or bud, or of four or five, attached to a small
portion of the two years' old wood, forming a cutting in
the shape of a small mallet, in May, take them out
and wash them from dirt, and if they are very dry, let
them stand with the lower parts in water six or eight
hours. Open the holes fifteen or sixteen feet from each
other, which will allow about eight feet for the vines
to run each way on the trellis or wall, and put 3 cut-
tings into each spot, a few inches apart, to insure the
setting of one. When this is ascertained, the two weak-
est must be withdrawn. Lay the cuttings a little slop-
ing, that their tops may incline to the vvall or stakes to
which they are to be tied : they must be put in so deep
that the uppermost eyes may be level with the surface
of the ground. They should be kept moist, but not wet.
(/See Cuttings.') One bud only should be allowed to grow
the first year ; the plant should be kept free from weeds ;
the earih kept light ; and as soon as the shoot produces
latterals, they should be pinched off, but not so close as
to injure the vine, and the shoot tied to the sunny side of
a stake. By the first of November, this shoot may be
cut down to two eyes, not reckoning the lowermost one
next the old wood. In our climate, it is probably best to
take down the vines, for the first three years, about the
middle of November, if the weather is dry, and cover
them slightly with earth, forming a slope to prevent the
rains from penetrating. The head must not be covered
with earth, but with chaff, or some such dry stuff. The
plants should not be uncovered till the middle of April.
The second years growth should only exhibit 2 branches
trained. The good eyes will all shoot forth in ihe spring ;
and let them all grow to the length of about eight inch-
es before you select the two most proper. Those that
are selected must be fastened to the wall or trelli'', as
they extend in length. The trellis is to be 5 feet high,
and js to consist of a row of liltle locust posts, about .^
inches square, put 2 feet into the ground, and placed about
3 feet from each other. Chock the branches of tlie
second year's growth at" about 5 feet, pinchiijg ^ff the lat-
erals, &c. at about 4 inches, in the fall, trim the vines

242 WINE.

again. Now you have two main branches to trim, and
these should be cut down to within 4 or 5 good eyes of
hist year's wood. The third year presents two main
branches, each furnished with 4 or 5 eyes. Proceed as
before in the choice of shoots, training only two from
each branch. Thus you will have four main branches
this year. If the vines begin to bear this 3'ear, pluck oif
n'iarly all the clusters while young, to prevent the vine
from being injured. With respect to cropping and prun-
ing the vine, be always careful to check its aspiring na-
ture, and keep it of humble size, by which means it is
always easy to be managed, and less subject to be injured
by violent winds. In the fourth year, training again two
branches from each trained branch of the previous year,
you will have 8 branches to each vine. You therefore pro-
ceed as before in humbling the vine; and proportioning
its quantity of fruit to its abiJit}' to bear; and remem-
ber not to let fhe vines bear all the fruit they put
forth, until they are fully able to do it without injury to
them afterwards. No more shoots should be permit-
ted to grow than can be laid in clear and handsome,
and without confusion on the trellis, and so as to ad-
mit the sun and air freely among the branches. All
this time the ground is constantly to be kept light and
mellow, and perfectly clear of weeds and grass. For
this purpose, straw, chaff, flax-shives, &,c. spread over
the ground, will keep it mellow and moist, and pre-
vent its washing. It is said that a vine properly man-
aged will not decline under 50 years.

By packing grapes in dry saw-dust or bran, they
can be presefrved a long time.

WINE.

To make good wine, the grapes of the same -kind
should be gathered at different times. The tirst should
be of the ripest clusters. Those which are not suffic-
iently ripe, must be gathered at another time ; the green
and rotten ones must be. rejected. Wines of different
colors are made from the same grape. To make white
wine, grapes sufficient ibr a pressing are gathered early
in a damp, misty morning, while the dew is on. When
the sua comes out warm the gathering is diicontiuucd.

WINE. £43

Thev must be iminediately carried to the press or vat,
stripped from the. stems, and pressed out without delay.
The first pressing should be gentle. After the first
pressing, the press is raised, the cake cut up and press-
ed again. The cutting and pressing is to be repeated,
as often as you find the liquor to run.

In making red wines of the same grapes, they are to
be gathered when the sun shines the hottest. They are
washed in a vat, and are then to lie in the liquor for a
length of time, which must dt^pend on the heat of the
weather, the flavor of the musk^ and the height of color
intended to be given. They are to be stirred irequently,
the better to raise a fermentation and redden the liquor.
After laying as long as is thought proper, it is poured
oft, strained, and put into casks. Afterwards the re-
mainder of the grapes in the vat, is put into the press,
and undergoes the pressings and cuttings before men-
tioned.

The finest wines will work the soonest, and the fer-
mentation will take 10 or 12 days, according to the kind
of Avine, and the season of the year. Those that are
backward in fermenting may be quickened, by putting
into them a little of the froth or yeast that works from
others. During fermentation, the bung-holes of the
casks are to be left open, and should be closed when it
abates, which is known by the froth ceasing to rise so
fast as before. The cask is also then to be filled to
within 2 inches of the top, and a vent-hole left open to
carry off all that is thrown up afterwards. The filling
of the cask should be regularly done every two days,
for about twelve days, in order that the foulness thrown
up by the continued fermentation may be thrown out at
the vent-hole, or it will fall back and prevent its be-
coming clear. After this the cask should be filled to
within an inch of the bung, every 5th or 6th day, for a
month; and then once a fortnight, for three months lon-
ger. Where the fermentation is entirely over, the casks
are to be filled up, and this is to be repeated once a
month as long as they remain in the cellar. They
should be filled with wine of the same kind which they
contain, which may be kept in bottles for the purpose;
and the vent-hole should be stopped when the fermen-
tation is over.

244 WINE.

The first drawing off from the lees is done about the
niddie of December, and the casks containing the liq-
uor drawn off, should stand without the least disturbance,
by shaking, until the middle of February, when the liq-
uor should be again drawn off to other casks. If there be
then still so much lees as to endnnger their contracting
a putrid taint, draw off again in due season. Sometimes
it may be necessary to repeat the racking several times ;
but let the casks be kept full, and let no wines of dis-
similar qualities be mixed.

Turbid wines are tined by isinglass, or by putting a
pound or two of fresh bloody meat into them.

YV' here wine has become sour, let some salt of tartar
be mixed with it, just before it is used, which will neu-
tralize the acid.

In summer, cool, clear days, with northerly winds, are
the best limes for drawing off wines.

For white wines, the casks must be new, to prevent
their coloring the liquor, but red wines may be put into
any casks, provided they are sweet and clean. Wine
should not be bottled, till it is clear and fine and all fer-
mentation subsided.

Good wine may be made with our native grapes ; those
Tvhich ripen in September. For a barrel (iJO gallons)
take two bushels, a little heaped; mash them well in a
suitable vessel, adding a considerable quantity of water,
and press, or squeeze through a cloth. In this mixture
dissolve 48 pounds oi" good brown sugar : then put it into
the barrel, and fill up with Avater. The after manage-
ment, time of bunging, &;c. the same as for currant
wine.

INSECTS.

Of all tlie enemies which agricultural pursuits have
to encounter, none are equal to the insect tribe. The
injuries sustained from these hostile myriads are of aa
extent, amount and nature, bejond what a superficial ob-
server is aware of. Immense numbers of these prey
upon the labors of the farmer, against the ravages of
which ii is, in many instances, difficult to provide ade-
quate remedies. But it is a fortunate circumstance, ob-
serves the New-England Farmer^ that the remedies pre-
scribed against the ravages of one kind of insect, will
frequently be found effectual against every other sort.

Among the substances, which are either offensive or
fatal to all kinds of insects, may be numbered sulphur,
elder, tobacco, quicklime, lime water, soot, unleached
wood-ashes, strong lie, tar or turpentine, or water im-
pregnated with those substances, common salt finely
pulverized, brine, old urine, boiling water apphed im-
mediately before planting, &c. kc.

Quick hme and even strong ashes may injure tender
vegetables ; the safest way, therefore, is to apply such
caustic and corroding substances to the soil, some time
before the seed is put into the ground.

Yellow striped Bug. Set an onion in the centre of a
hill of cucumbers, squashes, melons, &c. and it will ef-
fectually keep off this insect : or sprinkle the plants
with a little sulphur, Scotch snuff, or gypsum.

Grubs. Very injurious to Indian corn. Most of the
articles before mentioned, either boiled in, or diluted
with water, and applied just before a rain, will drive
them away.

Top, or Spindle-worms. White worms, that eat off the
stem, which forms the top of Indian corn. Sprinkle the
corn with weak lie.
22

246 INSECTS.

Timber-worms. Felling timber about tbe middle of
Printer, is said to prevent the smaller kind from doing
injury.

The large boring-worm takes its residence chiefly in
pine timber. Scorch the trees in a light flame, or
soak them in salt water.

Hessian Fly. Immerse the seed wheat 10 or 15 sec-
onds in boiling-hot water ; cool it suddenly; dry it, with
lime or gypsum, and sow it immediately. The nits, by
a good glass, can be discerned near the sprouts of the
grains.

Maggots. Troublesome to the roots of cabbages, tur-
nips, and radishes. Manure the ground with salt, or ap-
ply weak brine to the roots of the plants. (6ee Radishes.^

Turnip Fly. (^See Turnips., pcg''^ 115.)

Garden Flea. Very destructive to young cabbages.
Sow some onion or tobacco seeds with the seeds of the
plant, or sprinkle sulphur or snuff on the plants. Soap-
suds is good.

Lice. These infest cabbages, but are destroyed by
the frost. They can be extirpated by the smoke of to-
bacco.

Weave!. A little black bug, very destructive to wheat
in graneries. On thrusting the hand into wheat irjfested
with them, considerable warmth will be felt ; but, as
they are usually collected togetMfer, every part of the
heap or bin should be examined. Sulphur or snuff, put
up in little papers or bags, and properly distributed
among the wheat, will drive them away. A bin made
of boards ofLombardy poplar will never have a weavel
in it. To keep them from wheat, before threshing, mix
little pieces of this wood every where through the mow,
or sprinkle salt among the sheaves.

Grasshoppers. The only known remedy, and it is
sometimes very inadequate, is to raise large flocks of
turkies and other poultry, which feed on them.

Lice on Cattle., and Ticks on Sheep. Where colts and
young neat cattle become lousy, by poor keeping, or
otherwise, oil the creature, or wash it with decoction of
tobacco ; and they should hare better keeping, to pre-
vent a return of the lice. To destroy ticks, see sheep.

BIRDS. 247

For Canker-ixorms^ Caterpillars, and Curculis, see those
articles.

See Peach-tree, for the methods of preventing the in-
juries done by a worm to that tree.

For destroying the Black Bug, that eats into the pea,
see this article.

BIRDS.

As insects have increased greatly since the birds have
been thinned by the increased number of sportsmen, and
as we know that insects are the favorite food of most Itinds
of birds, particularly of the smaller kind: it would be
advantageous, therefore, to encourage the increase of
the feathered tribe, by all the means in our power.

What immense numbers of these, our benefactors,
are a'lauall}'^ destroyed through mere wantonness and
cruelty, while we are constantly hearing of the ravages
of worms and bugs, in the various departments of vege-
tation. It is from small birds we are to look for assist-
ance ; their habits, wants and capacity quahfy them to
check and restrain the multiplication of insects. The
parents of one nest of young birds have been calculated
by some ingenious observer to destroy many thousands
of insects in one day, and thus at the commencement of
the warm season, one day's havoc prevents the exist-
ence of many millions.

The destruction of vast fields of grain, by flies, in some
parts of our country, has been reasonably attributed to
the extermination of the birds. It has indeed been found
necessary to protect several species by law, but policy
and humanity require, that the protection should be
much farther extended. Some birds are pursued with
unsparing hostility, from erroneous notions of their per-
nicious habits. The woodpecker is of this class ; yet he
deserves the gratitude, instead of the ill will of man. —
He bores no trees, but those which are unsound, from
which he extracts the insects which are slowly effecting
their destruction. Linnoius relates an occurrence in
Sweden, which is pretty much to the point. Among the
birds of that country was a particular species, which the
country people apprehended were somewhat destructive
to their crops. They accordingly made war upon

248 BEES.

them, and by yearly repeated attacks exterminated them.
In consequence the insects which were the principal
food of these birds increased so as to do an hundred fold
more damage to their crops of grain and grass, than the
birds had done ; they then strove to reinstate that spe-
cies, and encourage their spreading in the country.

It would be very wrong to destroy almost any species
of this interesting part of animated nature. Who would
grudge them a little grain in compensation for their
cheering songs, even if they were of no other service to
us? But when v/e take into consideration the vast num-
ber of insects they destroy which would prove injurious
to our crops, they ought to rank as auxiliaries to husband-
ry. Providence seems to have intended them for impor-
tant purposes to us ; and the person who sportively, or
through mistaken apprehensions, should lay them low,
would discover a disposition, little short of savage.

BEES.

Rural economy is incomplete, where bees are wanting.
The cost of keeping them is nothing, and the care that
is required about tbem is but trifling.

There are three sorts of bees in a hive. 1. The
queen bee, which is larger, and of a brighter red than
the rest. Her business is to conduct the new swarms
j»nd lay eggs in the cells for a new brood. 2. The
drones, which have no stings, are of a darker color than
the rest, and are supposed to be the males. 3. The
honey bees, or working bees, which are by far more
numerous than the other two kinds.

A bee-house should be at a suitable distance from any
place where cattle are kept, or where horses are tied ;
from hog-sties, and every other place where filth is col-
lected. It is well to place it in a remote part of the gar-
den, and let some shrubbery (currant or gooseberry
bushes) grow round it for the bees to light on, if they
are so disposed, when they swarm. No trees should be
near it; but in very hot weather, it may be occasionally
shaded with boughs of trees. Let it stand leaning for-
ward a little, facing the south-east, with the front part of
the roof projecting over considerably, to prevent rains
from wetUnj the hives. These should be kept clean.

BEES. 24d

dry, and sufficiently warm in winter ; but not so warm
as lo leinpt t!ie bees abroad in warm winter days. All
seams should be stopped which would admit insects ; and
the board on which the hive stands, should be carefully
secured against warping". In very cold situations, the
house should be tilled with straw, watching against mice,
and removing the straw in the spring.

Stocks should be removed either early in the morn-
ing, or in the evening, well tied up in a cloth, and sus-
pended on a long pole carried on men's shoulders.

It is advisable, says Mr. Kicholson^ to have large
swarms ; and for this purpose two or more small ones
should be put together. The swarm should w§igh from
4 to 6 pounds. This can be easily ascertained by know-
ing the weight of the empty hive, which should be mark-
ed thereon, (5000 bees generally weigh a pound.)

For joining two or more swarms, take a full hive, set
it on a cloth, 5?nd then give it a smart stroke, which will
cause all the bees to fall : search for the queen and de-
stroy her; have another full hive ready, and put it over
the bees, and they will soon crawl up into it, and be-
come incorporated with those of that hive. This may
be repeated for the purpose of adding a third swarm.

The following signs, according to Mr. Huish, generally
precede the swarming of bees. 1st. An extraordinary
number hang in clusters about the hives. 2d. An appa-
rent idleness among the bees. 3d. A particular noise
of ckip^ chip^ made by the young queen, two or three
nights before taey swarm. 4th. An unusual bustle
amongst the drones. 5th. A sudden silence succeeding
a violent uproar. 6th. The continual motipn of the
wings of the bees which stand at the entrance. 7th,
Violent commotions at the entrance of the hives, and the
bees crowding out in great numbers.

In hiving, &c- approach them with the smoke, that
arises from burning leather. This will make them re-
treat into their hive at any time, or leave the branch or
trunk ot a tree when hiving them, should they attempt
to regain the place they at first occupied. Besides, this
act of fumigation will disarm them of all resentment, and
render them harmless. If, in swarming, they light on a
bx'anch of a tree or shrub, after they have settled, the
12*

BEES,

branch may be gently cut off and laid on the ground ;
and then the hive, supported on two sticks, is to be set
over them, and the whole covered with a sheet, when
they will soon ascend into the hive and commence work-
ing". In the evening, when all is still within, the hive i*
to be placed in the bee-house.

In dealing with bees, care should be taken not to
breathe on them, as nothing is more irritating to them.
When they are to be scraped together, make use of a
■wing for the purpose. It is advisable to fit your dress
to them, by putting on clothes through which they can-
not sting; and to protect the face, and particularly the
eyes, by a pair of goggles. But at the time of swarm-
ing they are less inclined to sting than usual. If two
clusters form in swarming, and remaitr separate, a queen
will be found in each ; and as no swarm that leaves a
hive is ever too large, one of the queens must be de-
stroyed, and then they will unite.

The hive should be proportioned to the size of the
swarm ; one, therefore, weighing from 4 to 6 pounds,
should have a hive that will contain about 2 or 3 pecks.
The hive is to have a hole in the top, say two inches
square, which is to be covered with a sliding shutter ;
and is to be kept closed until the hive is filled. When
this is the case, which is to be known by the bees lying
inactive about its mouth, open the hole above, by draw-
ing the shutter back, and set a small hive on the top,
into which they will ascend, and fill it with the purest
honey, without any mixture of bee-bread. When the
tipper hive is full, take it off in a cool morning, when
the bees are inactive, and carrj? it into a room with the
windows open to the sun, and as this enlivens them they
will fly off to the hive left standing, to join their com-
panions in filling another small hive, which is to be plac-
ed on the top, as before. When this is full, take it away,
and put another in its place, which, in due time, is also
to be taken away ; closing the shutter, and leaving thq
lower hive for the winter food of the swarm. The up-
per hives should be sufficiently lar'^-e to contain about 17
pounds of honey, which the bees, if the swarm is as
large as it should be, will usually till about 3 times in
the season. In taking out the honey from these small

BEES. 251

iiives, which should be done speedily, let those bees
which are found unable to fly be thrown into a vessel
of cold water, so contrived that they can crawl out
again, and they will soon recover their activity. In this
method of managing, it will be seen, that there is no
necessity for the process of fire and brimstone forget-
ting rid of the bees ; a procedure equally cruel and de-
structive of the race.

Another method of taking the honey, without killing
the bees, is by driving them out of the full hive, at
night, into an empty one, by placing the full hive bottom
upwards, and fixing the other upon it. There should be
cross-pieces in the empty one for the bees to light on.
Strike gently on the two sides of the full hive to which
the edges of the combs are fastened. This method is
also used to join two or more swarms together.

One of the greatest errors in the management of bees,
is, in giving the swarm old and decayed hives; these
hives are generally intested with those insects which
are the enemies of bees and ruin the swarms.

Were we merely to consult our own feelings, we
should advise to feed bees when their stock is exhaust-
ed. If this be near the close of winter, interest alone
will dictate the measure ; but, if they are found desti-
tute at an earlier period, their destiny should be averted
from motives of compassion. Is the industrious insect,
that toils for us incessantly during summer, unworthy of
pity in the hour of distress? Honey is the most natu-
ral food for them. It is to be conveyed into the hives
by little troughs, and the food is to be given daily, un-
til they can provide for themselves. Let some good
sweet-wort be mixed with the honey, and it will then
go much farther. Sugar or molasses may also be used
in place of honey. Some prescribe toasts of bread,
sopped in strong ale, of which they will not leave one
crumb remaining. The quantity of provisions they
have in store is known by the weight of the hive. —
The weight of the swarm, and the hive containing
them, should always be known and marked ; and then,
after a reasonable deduction for the weight of the comb,
the remainder must be honey and bee-bread.

252 BEES.

In Huish''s Treatise on Bees, is a list of trees and othej*
plants from whose flowers, &c. tliey extract their honey
and wax. Some of them foliow : and first stands the
Apple^ whose blossom is eagerly sought by the bees ; Jip-
ricot^ Ash, Aspin^ Balm^ much frequented by them ; Black-
berry^ valuable to bees in honey and farina ; Borage^
this is an important plant for the bees, producing many
flowers, and continuing in bloom for several months ; —
it should be cultivated ; Beans., Buckwheat^ Burnet., Cab-
bages^ every species ; Cherry., Clover., white and red ;
Chesnut., and Horse-Chesnut^ Currant^ valuable, as flower-
ing early and turnishing much honey ; Dandelion^ Elm^
Goosberry^ equal, if not superior to currant ; Golden-
Rod^ very valuable, late ; Gourds^ Melons., Cucumbers^
all supply food. Hawthorn., Lucern., a valuable pasturage
for bees ; Lavender., Lily., Mignonette., rich in honey ; —
Melilot., Mustard^ Oak., Paisley., Pear Tree., Parsnip^ Pop-
py.. Primrose., Plum Trees, of every species ; Rosemary,
Radishes, Ragweed, Raspberry, Strawberry, Sage, Savory^
Saffron, Sainfoin, Suiiflower, Single Roses, Turnips,
Thyme, " the love of bees," invaluable. Willow, Vetches^
Violets, Viper'' s Bugloss. All resinous trees. Add Milk-
weed, (Asclepias Syriaca.)

Mead or Metheglin. Take 90 or 100 lbs. of honey, and
enough clear water for a barrel, boil them an hour ;
when cool, barrel it ; adding some ginger, cloves, and
mace ; though it will answer without these. Some
yeast must be put in the cask, to ferment it. Let it
have a little vent, while fermenting ; but close the vent
as soon as most of the fermentation is over. It improves
by age, and becomes as strong as common wines. It i3
better for being bottled after 5 or 6 months.

Simple Mead is made by boiling 3 parts of water to
one of honey ; the honey may be increased, or dimin-
ished to the taste. The process is over a slow fire un-
til one third has evaporated, then skimmed, and put into
a cask, until the cask is full ; alter 3 or 4 days it will
be fit for use. The cloths which have been used in
filtrating the honey from the combs, may now be used
'and cleared from their honey in the boiling mead.

WOODLAND. 200

WOODLAND.

Of all the errors in our rural economy, none is per-
haps so much to be regretted, because none is so difli-
cult to be repaired, as the injudicious and excessive de-
struction of timber and firewood. It seems never to
have occurred that the fund was not inexhaustible, and
that a crop of trees could not be raised as quickly as one
of wheat or corn. Abundant as is the timber and wood-
land in many parts of New-England, the period is not re-
mote, when a scarcity and exorbitancy of price will be
severely felt, accompanied with deep r grets for past
neglect. No provident farmers should delay silting a-
part for future necessity a wood lot, duly protected, and
to guard the second growth of timber against the rav-
ages of cattle.

The quantity of ground to be kept in wood, must de-
pend on the size of the farm ; the soil, the climate, and,
frequently, on the market for wood ; for, in some cases,
it is more profitable to keep tolerably good land in wood,
than in any other cultivation. Of the natural growth of
wood, it will require between 20 and 30 acres, to keep
two fires, according to the common method of usin^*
wood for fuel. If woods are old and decaying, the bet-
ter way is to cut all off, as you want to use the wood,
and let an entire new growth start up, which will grow
more rapidly. It is considered best to cut all off in this
way every 40 or 50 years.

To thicken a forest, or to prevent its becoming too
thin, cattle should be kept out at all seasons. The
seeds, or cuttings of trees, of rapid growth, should also
be set, or planted, in every part that becomes destitute
of growing wood : For if Ihe sun can get in and cause
the ground to be covered with grass, the further growth
of young timber will be prevented. But grass will not
check the growth of locust. Perhaps the farmer will
jBnd this the best tree to plant ibr fuel.

The easiest method of raising the locust is as
follows: Plant, 15 or 20 trees on an acre; when
12 or 15 feet high, run straggling furrows through the
ground, and wherever the roots are cut with the plough,
new trees will start up, and soon stock the whole ground
with a plentiful growth.

234 TIMBER AND MAPLE TREES.

Much poor exhausted lands in this country should be
planted with forests, to supply the waste of wood that
is constantly increasing.

TIMBER.

The winter has generally been considered the right
time for felling trees for timber; but it is observed, by
Mr. Kenrick^ in the New-England Farmer, that Mr.
Pickering appears to have established the important
fact, that white oak, felled or stripped, in barking time,
will be stronger, more com[)act, and nearly twice as du-
rable as timber felled in the winter season. Can there
be a doubt but the same means which produced this ex-
traordina'-y strength, &,c. in oak, would be productive of
similar effects in pine, and every other sort of timber ?
We can hardly imagine a discovery of more importance
to every section of our country, than the certainty, that
by merely felling their timber at a particular season of
the year, their bridges, fences, and buildings of every
kind, would last nearly double the usual time.

Soaking timber in salt-water is very good to increase
its strength and durability.

In order to preserve timber from cracking, while sea-
soning, let it be blocked out (from timber felled in the
spring) for ^he purposes wanted, and laid in a hay-mow
where the hay is carted in. When the hay is dealt out
in the winter, the pieces may be taken out well season-
ed, and free from cracks.

The right time for cutting down trees for timber is,
xvhen they are in their prime, as the wood will then
have arrived to its greatest perfection, for hardness and
durability.

Timber used for posts, will last considerably longer,
by setting the end in the ground which was uppermost
as it grew.

Painting wood before the sap is dry hastens its decay.

MAPLE TREES.

There are many sorts of maples enumerated by bota-
nists ; the most valuable of which is the rock, or sugar-
maple, (^Acer Saccharinnm.) This tree seems to be
equally well adapted for ornament and for profit. Its

MAPLE TREES. 255

shade is but litte injurious to the growths of grain and
still les? to those of grass. For fuel it is perhaps infe-
rior to no wood whatever. In clearing land, it is better
to leave small maples, or to protect and rear a second
growth, than to undertake to preserve the large trees,
because these when left alone, are apt to be blown down
by strong winds. Trees which have ever been accus-
tomed to free currents of air will put forth roots adapted
to their exposure.

They can be raised from cuttings and the seed ; and
will begin to yield sugar when 15 or 20 years old. If
tapped in a proper manner they would probably afford
yearly supplies oisap for more than a century. An av-
erage quantity of sugar from full grown trees may be
estimated at 4 pounds.

The rapidity of their growth, depends essentially on
the manner of transplanting them. Let the holes for
the trees be dug, say, a foot in depth, and 5 in di imeter,
and then spade or loosen the ground at the bottoms to
the depth of 8 or 10 inches before the trees are set in.
20 or 30 trees to an acre of pasture will do but Utile in-
jury to the grass, will afford a good shade ibr cattle, and
6 or 8 acres thus stocked, will aiford a valuable sugar
orchard. ^

As good white sugar can be made of maple as of cane
sugar. What a value would not be added to it, by the
reflection upon the different manner in which these kinds
of sugar are produced? the cane sugar is the result of
the forced labor of the most wretched slaves, toiling un-
der the ardent rays of a burning sun, and too often un-
der the cruel lash of a cutting whip. While the maple
sugar is made by those who are happy and free.

Maple Sugar. Where the farmer wishes to save his
sugar-maple trees, he ought not to tap them in the com-
mon way; but instead of this, bore a hole 2 or 3 inches
into the tree, cut of which the sap can be drawn ; and
let it be plugged up after the sap has done running. Old
troughs, which have lain for years ex|)Ofied to the
weather, are not very proper receptacles for the sap, if
regard be had to the cleanliness and value of the sugar.
The following method of making the sugar, we extract
from the JV. E. Farmer : bcald the vessels for catching

f56 BUSHES.

(he sap. Keep the sap clean from dirt while boiling ;
and avoid leaving it long in an iron kettle. When nearly
boiled down to syrup (or thin molasses) a little lime
thrown into the kettle will be of use. At this stage of
boiling, as well as in sugaring off, avoid heating the top
of the kettle too hot, or burning the sugar in any other
way. When the syrup is well boiled down, turn it while
hot, into a clean wooden vessel, let it stand 2 or 3 days
and settle ; then turn it carefully from the dirt at the
bottom and strain it. Hang it over a gentle fire, and
when it is warm, stir in one pint of milk to 4 or 5 gallons
of syrup, which will rise as it begins to boil, and must be
taken otf. If you wish to make your sugar very nice,
cool it until one half or two thirds will grain, turn it hot
into a tight cask ; let it stand undisturbed in a cellar,
until it is grained at the bottom. Turn off the molasses
and turn the cask bottom upwards over some vessel to
catch what will drain out : let it stand as long as any
will drop, then set your cask upright, and the moisture
will settle to the bottom. If you wish to make dry su-
gar without draining, to ascertain when it is boiled
enough, drop some on snow and let it cool ; if brittle as
rosin, it is sufficiently boiled.

BUSHES.

Tn many parts of our country, the pasture grounds are
infested, and often overrun with noxious shrubs; this is
the most slovenly part of our husbandry, and ought to
be cured.

Eradicating them, says Mr. Deane^ requires so much
labor, that farme»s are most commonly content with cut-
ting them orce in a iew years. But the more cuttings
they survive, the longer lived they are apt to be ; and
the harder to kill, as the roots continually gain strength.

It is undoubtedly true, that cutting bushes in the sum-
mer will .lo more towards destroying them, than doing it
in any other season, particularly in August. Other cir-
cumstances being equal, the wettest weather is best for
destroying shrubs by cutting. Spreading plaster on
ground where bushes have been cut, may tend lo check
their re-sprouting, by encoura§^ing the growth of grass.

SALTfNe OF MEAT, iiC. 257

It is said to be a good method of destroying" bushe?, to
cut them with hoes close to the surface, when the
ground is frozen hard ; and that more may be destroyed
in a day, in this way, than in the usual method of cutting
with a bush scythe.

Bushes which grow in clusters, as alder, &c. may be
expeditiously pulled up by oxen ; and this is an effect-
ual way to subdue them.

Elder is considered harder to subdue than almost any
other kind of bush ; mowing them 5 limes in a season,
it is sai 1, will not kill them. The roots of the shrub
oak will not be killed, but by digging them out.

To destroy bushes *' --amps ; flooding 2 or 3 sum-
mers is the most appri.- J method. But if this is not
convenient, draining wih so alter the nature of the soil,
that the shrubs, which it naturally produced before,
will not be any longer nourished by it; and one cutting
may be sufficient.

After ail, extirpation, by digging them out, and by lire,
is cheapest and most effectual.

SALTING OF MEAT, &C.

In packing down pork, apply a large quantity of salt;
then make :i pickie, sufficient to cover all the meat, as
strong a«! it can be made with salt, and, when cold, pour
it on. When the pickle becomes considerably colored
with the blood of tl^e meat, draw it off, boil it, (ake off
the scum tiil it become c:eiir, and apply it again. Re-
p<^at this, if the pickle ai^ain become colored too much,
anl add more fresh brine, if necessary.

For a barrel of beef, take 4 quarts of rock salt, pound-
ed line ; then 8 ounces of salt petre and 5 pounds of
brown sugar. Let the silt be well rubbed inlv> the pieces,
as soon as the meat is cold, p ick them clost', and sprin-
kle the salt petre and su?ar over each layer. T'he
juices of the meat, if well packed, will form a sufficient
qu;mtity of brine to cover the whole. The next spring,
draw off the brine, clarify it, as before dirocted, ad«iing
a little salt to it, and apply it again, and the beef will
keep very s ^ , aud line tasted during the whole sum-
mer following.

23

258 BEER.

The above is also an excellent method for curing
pork and hams. When hams have been sufficiently cur-
ed in this, or any other way, they should be smeared
over with molasses ; smoaked sufficiently and suddenly ;
the quicker the better; and let them be vvell sprinkled
over with slaked lime, and put away in casks, filled
with bran or oacs, to keep during the summer. The
box or cask in whieii they are put ought to be perfectly
tight, raised about 6 inches from the ground, and the
bran or oats packed in quite tight.

By the use of charcoal^ (which is a very powerful an-
tiseptick,) it is said, meat mav^e^ preserved froia the rava-
ges of all small animals^ andvu%, and sound for any length
of time.^ and 'hi any climate. Take a tierce or Ijox, and
cover the bottom with charcoal, reduced to small pieces,
but not to dust ; cover the legs or pieces of meat with
stout brown paper, sewed around so as to exclude all
dust ; lay them down on the coal in compact order, then
cover the layer with coal, and so on till the whole is
finished, and cover the top with a good thickness of
coal.

The use of charcoal, properly prepared in boxes, is
of great benefit in preserving fresh provisions, but-
ter, and fruits, in warm weather ; also, in recovering
meats of any kind, when partially damaged, by cover-
ing the same a i'ew hours in the coal.

Meat ought always to be salted as soon as it is cold.
Tendency to putrefaction soon commences ; and long be-
fore it is discernible. Salting should precede this ten-
dency, and so prevent it ; for salt cannot so effectually
itop putrefaction, as it Ccunprevent its commencement.

BEER.

Spruce Beer. Boil some spruce boughs with some
wheat bran till the water tastes sufficiently of the spruce ;
strain the water, and stir in at the rate of two quarts of
molasses to a half barrel ; work it with the emptyings of
beer, or with yeast. After working sufficiently, bung
up the cask, or, which is better, bottle its contents.

Molasses Beer. Take 5 pounds of'^tilvl'^sses, half a
pint of yeast, and a spoonful of powdered giUjger ; put
these into a vessel, and pour on two gallons of scalding
hot soft water; shake the whole till a fermentation i»

YINEGAR. 259

produced ; then add, of the same kind of water, suffic-
ient to fill up your half barrel, if the cask be greater,
or smaller than this, the component parts must be in
proportion. Let the liquor ferment about 12 hours?
then bottle it, with a raisin or two in each bottle.

If honey instead of molasses be used, at the rate of
about 12 pounds to the barrel, it will make a very fine
beverage, after having been bottled a while.

To make Beer with Hops. Take 5 quarts of wheat
bran, and 3 ounces of hops, and boil them 15 ininutes in
15 gallons of water ; strain the liquor; add 2 quarts of
molasses ; cool it quickly to about the temperature of
new milk ; put it into a half barrel, completely filling it.
Leave the bung out for 24 hours, in order that the 3^east
may be worked off and thrown out ; and then the beer
will be fit for use. About the fifth day, bottle off what
remains in the cask, or it will turn sour, if the weather
be warm. If the cask be new, apply yeast, or beer-
emptyings, to bring on the fermentation ; but, if it has
been in this use before, that will not be necessar}^ —
Yeast, particularly the whiter part, is much fitter to be
used for fermenting, than the mere grounds of the beer
barrel.

To recover a cask of stale Small Beer. Take some hops
and some chalk broken to pieces ; put them in a bag,
and put them in at the bung-hole, and then stop up the
cask closely. Let the proportion be two ounces of hops
and a pound of chalk for a half barrel.

To clarify Beer. For a half barrel, take about six
ounces oichalk, burn it, and put it into the cask. This
will disturb the liquor and fine it in 24 hours.

VINEGAR.

Cider, (particularly such as is of an acid tendency,)
placed in the sim^ becomes very strong vinegar in a short
time; the bungs are left open for the discharge by fer-
mentation of the pomace, and for the admission of air at
all times. If new cider be put on vinegar, or upon the
lees or mother, after racking off the vmegar, it will hast-
en the operntion. By adding one pound of honey to a
gallon of cider, it will become such powerful vinegar,
after standing some months, that it must be mixed with
Tvater lor common use. •

MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES.

EARTHEN WARE.

Much of the earthen ware made in this country is glaz-
ed with lead: and it is laid on very savingly, thin and
slight: <o that it is not only worn away by vegetables,
and every thing acidulous, but is apt to scale off, and be
swallowed with meat, greens g.nd drinks. It is a pre-
paration of lead, and consequently a strong poison. —
Pickles, preserves, &c. should never be kept in earthen
Tessels.

CELLARS.

If you wish to live out half 3'onr days, be careful to
cleanse your cellars, and not to be in the habit of breath-
ing the gasses of putrelaction, vegetable or animal. We
have every reason for believing that bilious or typhus
fevers, of a malignant and fatal kind, have originated
from the rotting of potatoes, cabbages, turnips, and eth-
er vegetables, in cellars. Beef brine, or pork brine,
suffered to stand too long, become very offensive ; and
whatever offends the sense of smelling, is injurious to
the health. Dead rats or mice, in a wall or ceihng, are
detrimental to health, as well as offensive.

The following has been recommended as an effectual
mode of freeing a room frem the offensive smell, occa-
sioned by a dead rat, or other animal : Take a small
earthen vessel, into which, put a little salt petre, more or
less, according to the size of the room ; pour upon this
a sufficient quantity of sulphuric acid, (oil of vitriol,)
so as completely to saturate it, and shut the room up
closely for an hour, in which time it will be found \o be
perfectly free from the offensive smell.

HAND rLOUGIt AND STIMSON'S FARM. 261

HAND PLOUGH.

A small hand plough might be very advantageously-
used j'or the purpose oi" eradicating weeds among sever-
al kinds ot^ growing crops of roots : such as onions, car-
rots parsnips, &,c. It should have two light handles,
leaning well backward, of the length of, say four and a
half feet,' or of such length as will be found most proper
for the purpose oi" pushing the plough forward by hand.
It saouid have a beam and share, of such dimensions,
that the plough would cut a furrow off", say an inch in
depth, and about four inches wide. The share should
be shaped similar to that of a large plough ; and it should
be kept well ground, so as to cut off all the roots of
weeds which come in its way. It should be ran close to
the rows of roots, turning the furrows, from (hem, in tbe
first place, and then turning it back to them again.

stimson's farm.
{^Froin the American Farmer.^

Mr, St{mso7i''s farm in the township of Galway, Sara-
toga county, New-York, contains about 350 acres, of
which he cultivates, as yet, only between 80 and 100
acres, which are laid off into 8 acre lots. He has cer-
tificates of premiums from the Agricultural Society of
that county : For having the best managed farm in the
county. For having raised 62 bushels of barley from
one acre. For having raised 4 1-2 tons timothy hay
per acre, from a lot oi 8 acres, and he took the pnins
to weigh the hay from one of those acres 4 days after
it was cut, and found it to weigh 5 tons and 324 lbs. —
For having raised 104 bushels of corn to the acre. For
having raised 357 1-2 bushels potatoes from half an
acre.

His method for raising potatoes is, he opens the fur-
rows 33 inches apart, plants 10 inches apart;. hoes or
hills them one way only; plants them shallow, viz:
about 2 inches, as soon as they show themselves about
3 inches above the ground, he covers about 2 inches of
them; in 8 or 10 days, or where the tojjs are about 6
inches high, he spreads the tops open, and hoes and
covers them again to about 2 inches ; and when grown
up again to about 6 inches, he hoe§ and covers them ai
23*

262 SALEM ALMS-HOUSE FARM.

before. By this process he thinks it possible that 100(J
bushels may be raised from an acre.

His method for raising corn, is, he has a machine that
crosses the ridges, he plants 3 to a hill ; the ridges or
hills are about 30 inches apart. He suckers after the
second ploughing — he cuts the stalk and blades to-
gether close to the ground. The average product is

4 1-2 ears to a hill, the corn weighs 60 to 62 lbs. to
the bushel.

His general method of farming is to lay off his land in-
to lots of 6 to 10 acres, each lot is manured once in 4 or

5 years ; his usual quantity is 8 waggon loads, with 4
horses, to each acre — first year is in grass — second in
corn — third in barley — fourth in wheat, spring or win-
ter wheat, with clover and timothy ; 5 lbs. clover and 2
quarts timothy per acre, the northern or late clover he
prefers — he mows his timothy for 2 years, pastures it
one year ; in the 4th year he turns down the sod, puts
in wheat on the sod — 1st and 2d corn — 3d barley, or
spring or winter wheat, and stocks it down as before.

Mr. Stimson has a field u&ed as pasture, which he in-
tends to plough, roll it well, give it a top dressing of
manure, plough it the second time, manure it again, put
it into wheat, harrow it in, and expects to make 35 to
40 bushels per acre.

The following is his product from 100 acres, as re-
ported from actual survey and examination : 10 acres,
havinor 400 apple trees on them, produced 25 tons hay ;
8 acres corn, 550 bushels; 8 acres do. 720; 10 do. do.
SOO, and 16 tons of hay : 4 do. wheat, 140 bushels; 1
do. flax, 600 lbs. ; 8 do. oats, 560 bushels; 8 do. hay, 32
tons ; 8 do. do. 36 do. ; I do. barley, GO bushels ; 3 do. hay,
10 1-2 tons; 4 do. do. 12 do. ; 8 do. do. 24 do.; 2 acres
1000 bushels potatoes ; 2 acres in vegetables, which also
raised 400 chickens.

0:^/" His wheat cost him 30 cents per bushel — corn l5
do. do.

SALEM ALMS-HOUSE FARM.

(From the Mass. Agricvlinral Repository and Journal.')
One of the r.u.st successful experiments in agriculture
that we have ever known, is that of the alms-house farm,
in Salem, which is under the care of Mr. Paul Upton.

BRITISH AND AMERICAff AGRICULTURBi 263

This farm con-ists of about 35 acres, (as we are in-
formed,) and was, two years since, in a state of nature,
and very rough land. It has been brought to, and the
produce during the year 1818, was as follows, viz.: —
Pork killed, weighed 7960 lbs. 12 live pigs, sold for
§42. On hand, 57 pigs. Corn, 400 bushels. Pota-
toes, 2250 bushels. Turnips, 900 bushels. 3 tons of
squashes. 50 tons of pumpkins, together with all the
common summer vegetables for the alms-house.

We doubt whether any farm in the United States, hai
produced more, in proportion to its size ; and it is a proof
what well directed industry can effect.

A brief comparison between the advantages and disad-
vantages of agriculture in Britain and in America. Se-
lected principally from the writings of Mr. Livingston.

The first advantage England possesses, consists in her
early spring; this enables the farmer to commence his
work sooner than he can in this country : to this cause it
is owing, that such crops as require early sowing on a
well prepared fallow, succeed better in Britain than
here. Barley, for instance, requires four good spring
ploughings, and yet should be put in by the first of May ;
this cannot be done here, except upon very light lauds,
our clays being hardly fit to plough before May ; but
light land will not produce good barley without manure.

In England it may be raised to advantage on strong
loams, and even on clay. It is for this reason that bar-
ly is nearly as cheap in England as here, though every
other grain is generally much dearer. The same rea-
soning applies to beans, (horse beans,) which are unpro-
ductive in England, unless sown in February and March,
which is hardly possible here on strong clays, the soil
these require. Turnips cannot be raised in our climate
to so much advantage, as a food for cattle ; the season
in which they are sown being usually very dry, and the
plants Uable to be destroyed by the fly.

Great Britain has also some advantage over us in the
shortness of the winter, but much less than is generally
imagined. Their autumn is cold and wet; and though
there is some apparent verdure, yet the vegetption is so
slovf, as to render it usual for good farmers to house

264 BRITISH AND AMERICAN AGRICULTURE-.

their cattle by the first of Norember, rather than suffer
them to poach their fields, in gleaning a scanty subsist-
ence from them ; nor do they turn tiiem to pasture till
late in April.

These are the principal advantages that the British
farmers claim over us. Let us now examine those we
exclusively possess. The noblest of these is Indian corn,
[which does not grow in England.] Neither the beans
or turnips of Britain can be compared with this plant. —
Carrots may be raised at less expense here than in
Britain, because we have much fewer weeds, which are
the greatest enemy to that root. Cabbages, potatoes,
and pumpkins, would not be so much neglected here as
they generally are, were it not that hay is made in this
country at half the expense that it requires in the moist
climates of Britain. Vegetation there is extremely slow;
their spring is nearly one month earlier than ours; yet,
though their wheat begins to grow in March, it is not
reaped till late in August ; ours is cut 6 weeks earlier,
though it does not begen to vegetate till late in April; so
that it takes five and a half months in Britain to perfect a
crop which is performed here in little better than three.
The same causes intiuence the growth of grass. In
soils, therefore, of equal quality, much less will grow in
a given time in Britain than in America, as far as may be
inferred from the general average of their clover and
natural grass in not exceeding ours, though they are
longer in a growing state. It is true, that the moisture
of the climate, and mild winters, give a great verdure to
their fields at some seasons ; but this only nn apparent
advantage, which deceives superficial observers, while it
is attended with real inconveniencies ; first, the grass it-
self is b}^ that circumstance rendered less nutritious, as
is well known by every farmer; secondly, while the
hay is lighter, it is got in at more expense than ours,
which is made at the driest season of the year. In our
crops 1 f grain we enjoy similar advantages; their har-
vests are frequently wet, while nine years in ten ours is
got in without the least obstruction from rain. The
produce would also, I am well satisfied, be greater here
than in England, on highly cultivated soils, since it is
'tvell known that the strength of the straw depends upon

BRITISH AND AMERICAN AGRICULTURE. 265

Hie dryness of the season. In a moist climate, therefore,
without sun to harden the straw, heavy crops must be
very often injured by lodging, especially if we take into
consideration, that high winds are much more usual in
Great Britain than here. Blight and mi'dew are effects
of a moist climate. These are seldom and partially
known in this country, prevailing only in particular dis-
tricts, in extraordinary seasons. In Britain it often hap-
pens, that wet weather, when the wheat is in blossom,
affects all the wheat in the kingdom, many parts of which,
on this account, do not pretend to raise it.

If vegetation is slower in Britain than here, and if the
grass is also less nutritious, it must follow, that with the
same attention to stock our pastures with the best grass,
and to keep the cattle out of them at improper seasons, a
larger stock may be maintained on the same quantity of
ground in this country than in England ; and thus the
difference in the length of our winter be am;)ly compen-
sated. This observation leads me to a circumstance in
British husbandry, v/hich might be advantageously prac-
tised by us. Many of their farmers sow rye, for the use
of their sheep and iambs, in the spring. In order to do
this they must be at the expense of a fallow ; and as
their rye grows two-fifths slower than ours, it must fol-
low, that they can only keep three sheep where we
may have five. If, therefore, this practice is advantage-
ous in England, it would be much more so in America,
to sow our corn fields with rye, to feed off with sheep
in the spring, not only because of the additional numbers
we can keep, but because we are more pinched lor
sheep-food in the spring; besides that, the rye that costs
the British farmer a complete fallow, costs us nothing"
but the seed.

In the healthfulness of our stock, we have great ad-
vantages over Britain. Although some disorders pre-
vail among neat cattle, Mr. Livingston observes, that
during 20 years he only lost one creature, unless it was
by some accidental hurt ; or by bad keeping in the
spring ; and while the rot svvepps aw ly whole lloc'cs of
sheep in Britain, it is a disorder entirely unknown in this
eountry.

266 UTILITY OP AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES.

All these natural advantages being ia favour of the
American fanner, we shall be asked how it happens
that the lands in Britain are more productive ? The an-
swer is : More labour is expended upon less land there ;
and the product is always in proportion to the labor, the
soil, and the climate.

The difference between the two countries in the price
of labour, and of cattle, was formerly much greater than
at present. The average price of labour in Britain ac-
cording to Mr. Lo-well^ is about 67 cents per day, and
ours does not exceed, probabl}^, 75 cents. To balance
this, may be placed the extra price of rents in that coun-
try. The fanner is seldom, there, the owner of the soil,
and he pays a rent of from 5 to 30 dollars per acre ;
bis taxes also are at least three times as great as those
paid by our farmers. Must not our inferior Success in
man}'^ of the operations of farming, compared to that of
European cultivators, be owing to some radical defects
in our system ? We believe it is a want of enterprizc
among the farming class cf our countrymen.

UTILITY OF AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES.

The experience of ages, the increase of human
knowledge, and its more general diffusion, tend to throw
much light on agriculture, as well as to dissipate preju-
dices which have long existed; nor can it be doubted,
that whenever a spirit of emulation and enquiry is ex-
cited among the farmers of any country, the result will
be beneficial to themselves and useful to the community.
So necessary has it been considered in Europe to prose-
cute agriculture, that many persons of great abilitiea
(distin,8:ui«hed in the -various walks of life) have almost
exclusively devoted their time and talcnlsto it ; societies
have been formed, liberally su]>ported, and their utility
demonstrated. They have well repaid every individual
who has contributed by his wealth and intelligence io
render them respectable and useful.

The vast improvement cf agriculture in Great Britain,
within a few years, is at^cribed to the attention that gen-
tlemen of fortune and leisure have paid to it, and to the
establishmenl of a board of ngriculture, ar»d of societies,
to foster and encourage individuals, and to bring to light

UTILITY OF AGRICULTURAL .SOCIETIES. 267

new discoveries. A combination of these has led to the
high state of cultivation which now exists in England ; a
country which, generally speaking, i^ less favoured by
nature, as to its soil than our own. If in those nations
where they have so long had the benefit of experi-
ence in i'arming, their importance is acknowledged, and
by the information which they have spread, the value of
land has increased, and its products been greatly aug-
mented, can we hesitate to believe, that similar effects
will be produced here, if our societies are surticiently en-
^oiiraged, and enabfed to excite an honourable compe-
tition among practical farmers ? By means of honorary
rewards, in those countries, a laudable compeliiion has
been excited ; experiments have been made on extv'^n-
sive as well as more limited scales ; new modes of culti-
vation have been successfully attempied ; the various
grains suited to the climate have been tried, and tiie re-
sults on different soils taithfuily staled ; those species
of cattle most proper for labour, for the dairy, or for
food, have been selected or introduced ; that noble ani-
mal, the horse, has deservedly claimed the greatest at-
tention, and t'uily repays the care wldch has been be-
stowed in proc'iring different breeds for the various
purposes to wjiich they are best adapted by their strength
crfleetness; the kinds of sheep remarkable for the
quantity or quality of their fleece, or best s^iited for hu-
man sustenance, have by unremitted care and juriicious
selections been correctly ascertained, and their numbers
greatly increased ; the most profitable swine have been
sought for, and the means pointed out of faUing them
to tbe best advantage ; implements of husbandry have
been invented, and such as stood the test of repealed
experiments have be. Ml brought into use ; and a system
of farming has been e na!i!ished, which, by a rotation of
crops for different soils, >^nd ihe judicious use of manures,
preserves the land iii a s^ Ue most likely to ensure an am-
ple return for the labour and '*^pense bestowed on it. —
Notwithstanding all that has ..oen done, they think it
proper to coniinue their exertions, and to endeavour to
attain a still greater degree of perfection.

But independent of the light of experience, the ques-
tion admits of the most full and satisfactory deterniina-

S68 " VTILITY OF AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES.

tion in the affirmative. Confining ourselves to a few ©I
the more obvious views of the question, let us ask, is
there any thing novel or absurd in the idea that a large
number of persons, by associating together and applying
their faculties to the snme subject of mutual interest,
may thus enlighten, aid, and benefit each other? Differ-
ently constituted by nature ; brought up under different
circumstances ; having had different opportunities for ob-
servation, and thus having been led to take different
views of the same things, is it not naturally and most ra-
tionally to be expected, that what one may never have
thought of, another ma\ h;'Ve had the opportunity to ex-
amine ? what one has invfntfd, another may impiove —
what one has never tried, another may have submitted
to ihe test oJ" experiment — and what one may be igno-
rant of, another may know ? Thus by communicating
one to another all that each individual may have learn-
ed by study, cb-ervation or experiment, each becomes
possessed of the whole mass of inforn.ation, and receives
the full benefit of the collected nisdom and experience
of all. No art would ever be improved by individual
skill in any ratio equal to that to which it would attain
by mutual c<>mmunic3iion. The gi eatt. st genius that the
world ever produced would find himselt ujrch Lenefiied,
and his schemes much corrected and improved, by sub-
mitting them to other".

Agricultural soci'-ties fiirnish one of the mogt effectu-
al ntethods for the eir culaiion ot useiul iniormation. At ^
their annual n»eeiing, useful observa'ions are made, ne\T
fnciv are s ated, erurs are di,-coveren, truths are estab-
li«!»('d. an 1 [iractical knowledge, derive! from experi-
ence, is elicited, and c( mmunicaled to the publick, which
olbervsise might have remained for many years conlined
wi'hin H very limited sphere.

ivery man who cuidvates* the ground should be am-
bit nu-; to contribute S( metlii g from the stock ol his
lin«>\vif<^a:e, whether acquired by reading, observation or
ex| eii»r.c'% to tl-e genc-ral fund of agricultural inlorma-
tion. Ii be i- convinced that he has made any improve-
ment-, ' ! :! prtnj"^^' to be n-ciul to his fellow-creat-
ur -. ' I ' i not p^Tit'rm the part of a patriot nor phi-
lauihru^iai| ii he does not put mankind in possession of

UTILITY OF AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES. $6^

socb improvements. If he can g.iin any equivnlent for
his discoveries by virtue of patents, preminms, or other-
wise, let him ol»tain it. If not, he will do well to hw
them before the public, and take his reward in the con-
sciousness of having- been of service to his fellow-creat-
ures. The man who refuses a benefit which he might
bestow without injury to himself, i^ but iiitle better tliaa
one who does an injury without receiving any benefit
from the injurious act. The latter destroys human hap-
piness, and the former withholds the means by which
iiappiness might have existed.

No plan perhaps can be found more effectual to ex-
tend a practical knowledge of ploughing, than the com-
peti ions excited at ploughing matches.

Another, and very important effect of these institu-
tions will be, to cause farmers to think more of them-
selves as a body, and of the respectability of their pro-
fession than they have done.

These institutions must also have a tendency to illus-
trate tie important truth, that there is no science in
which so great a variety of knowledge is necessary, as
that of agriculture. When this truth is admitted, pa-
rents will be more interested in the education of their
sons, and more particular in bringing them up to the pro-
fession of farmers. If schools and colleges are requisite
to promote one species of knowledge; if mi iiary and
naval academies have been painnrzed to prf^mcte an-
other; is it true of agriculture ahnc, that it requires no
aid — that art, which of all others, is the most important,
and contributes most, and in the most direct and visible
manner to the happiness, wealth and prosperity of
society ?

Important consequences would result to the communi-
ty, could agricultural societies make a thorough investi-
gation every year into the state of farming- in their res-
pective districts, for the purpose of publishing the dis-
tinguishing features of each. Such an investigation
might form the basis of a series of systematic efforts oq
the part of these societies ; and act as a stimulus to in-
dustry. It would lead to a consideration, how far the
aggregate of the harvest corresponded with the capa-
bilities of the soil, assiated by a judicious husbandry. It
24

270 UTILITY OF AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES.

would be perceivable, at one view, how large a sum
the difference would be between the gain ot^ a negligent,
and that of a skilful culture, on the mass of crops in the
whole district. The great difference in the profits of
farras, equal in extent and quality of soil, would lead us
to inquire: Is it in the quality of the implements? Is it
in the character of the stock ? Is it, that in one case, ar-
tificial means are made use of to make manure, and not
in the other? Is it in the greater economy of the
household ? Is it that tl e wet meadow is on one farm
ditched and warmed with a coat of gravel, and not
on the other? Is it that the fruit trees are pruned
and kept clean, and the soil kept open around them
while young, in the one case, and not in the other?
Is it that the barn is open between the boards, and
lets in the weather, so as to injure the hay in one
instance, and not in the other ? Is it that the farmer in
one case ploughs his land in the fall, and in the other
does not? Questions of this sort would naturally arise
in seeking the results for the year, and the answers to
them would furnish a mass of valuable facts, that Djight
lead to reform. Farmers should be awakened to feel
that they are united by the ties of interest, and that by
lending the aid of their council and experience to teach
each other, they may one and all be beuelited. To this
end, it might be useful to «hew the sum of the produce
of one farm added to that of another, and that of all the
farms of u county, or state, gathered into one gross
amount, and held up as an object of interest and impor-
tance, and set in comparison with other counties or
states. For though a general knowledge of agriculture
may be diffused over a great country, it is found by ex-
perience, that it cannot be materially improved unless
by comparing the various practices which subsist in dif-
ferent parts of the same country. Whenever men unite
in a common object of interest and honor, whatever in-
telligence and activity belong naturally to the few, are
always in a greater or less degree transfused into the
whole.

JMany of our fiirmers when they see accounts of ex-
traordinary crops raised in our country, are apt to sup-
pose, that the difference between a common crop, and a

UTILITY OF AGRIClULTURAL SOCIETIES. 271

Tery large one, is the effect of so much additional labor
'and manure as would exceed in value the difference be-
tween the crops. Hence, it is so rarely the case, that
farmers avail themselves of the experience of the few
who have been greatly successful from superior method,
diligence, and skill. And although the whole mystery
may be resolved into thorough tillage, clean husbandry,
and a liberal use of manure, the common cultivator will
have it, in the face of well authenticated facts, that
there is some secret fallacy, and that he of course, who
has the best managed and most productive farm gets the
least profit, and that a man is poor in proportion to the
magnitude of his crops ! The only means of counter-
acting this unfavorable id<?a, is to bring frequently into
view of the farmer, examples as near home as they can
be found, of substantial prolit as the fruit of every im-
provement. A^Ticuitural societies may do this, not on-
ly by means of the exhibitions and statements, offered
at their annual shows, but by disseminating information,
through the medium of the newspapers, of all the im-
provements on particular farms which come within their
observation. The effects of negligent husbandry, ex-
hibited in its consequences when it pervades a whole
county, might, we think, afford an impressive lesson.

Although these societies, owing to the want of patron-
age, have effected but little in some parts of our coun-
try, there is no reason for discouragement : on the con-
trary, when we consider the recent date of their estab-
lishment, and the difticulties they have had to encoun-
ter, we shall find more occasion for rejoicing that so
much has been done, than for being disheartened be»
cause more has not been effected. The agricultural
class of the community has been almost universally at-
tached to established practice. Many of our larmers
seem to think it a sufficient justification of their S3'tem of
farming, whether successful or not, that they have al-
ways pursued it, and that thoir fathers did so before
them ; they listen with unwillingness and distrust to any
proposed innovation, and look upon the person who re-
commends it as a visionary man, whose councils it would
be ruinous to follow : in short, it is the misfortune of too
man}^ of our farmers that they think the}' know enough

272 UTILITX- OF AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES.

of their profession already, and that they therefore stand
in no need of any additional light upon it. Considering
these things it is not so much to be wondered at, that
there are not more persons belonging to these societies.

It is greatly to be desired, that the prejudices which
still exist in the minds of some, against agricultural so-
cieties, may soon give place to a full conviction of their
utility, and it is incumbent on us to neglect no opportu-
nity of pointing out and endeavouring to convince our
fellow-citizens of the advantages of such institutions. —
It is to be hoped, that those who really possess the means
of contributing, will, instead of relaxing in the noble
■work, increase the support which they have been in
use to afford, and that farmers in general will see the
propriety of becoming members of them.

We conclude, by quoting Washington's opinion of Ag-
ricultural societies. He remarks : It will not be doubt-
ed, that with reference either to individual or national
welfare, agriculture is of primary importance. In pro-
portion as nations advance in population and other cir-
cumstances of maturity, this truth becomes more appa-
rent, and renders the cultivation of the soil more and
more an object of pubUc patronage. Institutions for
promoting it, grow up, supported by the public purse :
and to what objects can it be dedicated with greater
propriety ? Among the means vvhich have been em-
ployed to this end, none have been attended with
greater success than the establishment of Boards, com-
posed of proper characters, charged with collecting
and diffusing information, and enabled by premiums
and small pecuniary aids, to encourage and assist a
spirit of discovery and improvement. This species
of establishment contributes doubly to the increase
of improvement, by drawing to a common centre the
results, every where, of individual skill and observa-
tion, and spreading them over the nation. Experience,
accordingly has shown, that they are very cheap instru-
ments of immense national benefit.

ADVICE TO A YOUNG FARMER. 273

Objects of attention^ with a viezv to the settlement and suc^
cess of a young agriculturalist.

Let this be held the Farmer's creed,

For stock, seek out the choicest breed ;

In peace and plenty let them feed.

Your land soav with the best ef seed ; ^-

Let it nor dung, nor dressing need ;

Inclose and drain it with all speed.

And you will soon be rich indeed.

Sinclair.

It is an object ef extreme importance and difficulty to
awaken due attention, without exciting useless anxiety.
In selecting a situation in which to exercise tiie occupa-
tion of a fai'raer, various circumstances are minutely and
deliberately to be regarded, and great consideration is
required to form an accurate comparison of advantages
and disadvantages. After these have been fully ascer-
tained, a balance is to be drawn, and a decision to be made.
More attention than time is requisite for this purpose,
and hesitating, broken application, v/ill often occupy a
longer period in arriving at an inj'o.dicious determination,
than, with persevering and dispassionate examination, is
necessary to obtain a correct one. The soil is an ob-
ject of particular consideration, in reference to a vast
variety of circumstances ; as to its stiffness and moisture ;
levelness or slope ; its exposure or its stoniness ; the
manuring, draining, and fencing that may be required ;
the state of the roads ; the accessibility of markets ; —
the prices of manufactures, of produce, of labour, &sc.
To tix on good land is a prudential general direction. —
For such it is not easy, with ordinary discretion, to pay
too much, while for pour soils a small price very fre-
quently exceeds their worth. No degree of fertility
should tempt a man to purchase in an unhealthy part of
the country, nor the pleasantest situation in a barren
part. Examine how the neighbouring inhabitants fare.
It is best to purchase from a good husbandman and a
good improver.

Independently of the general salubrity of the place
where farm mansions are proposed to be built, the nature
24*

274 ADVICE TO A YOUxVG FARMER.

of the air and water requires particular notice ; tiie form-
er should be pure and temperate, the latter wholesome
and easily obtained. The most healthy spot, therefore,
ought to be selected for building the house ; which,
where choice of situation can be commanded, should
be as nearly in the centre of the farm as circumstances
■will allow, and be exposed neither to the summer heats,
nor to the rage of the winds and storms of winter. —
Hence a gentle elevation will be found the most eligible.
The buildings should be strong, substantial, and conven-
ient. Trees planted around buildings, occasion a cool,
refreshing, healthy air and shade during the heat of
summer, and very much break t^e cold winds and tem-
pests from every quarter in the winter. It is highly im-
proper to build near ponds, or low wet lands, because
the miasma which proceeds from them is so productive
of fevers.

The constituent parts of a good system of agricnlture
are few and simple. To prepare the earth, by enrich-
ing, if necessary, by draining, by tilling sufficiently, by
securing the crops with proper enclosures, and provid-
ing suitable buildings for their preservation, when har-
vested, in connexion with npaking suitable appropriations
of lands for different kinds of crop*, constitute a good
system of husbandry.

But there are other things necessary to the success
of the farmer. Industry, economy, and system, are in-
dispensably requisite to the improvement of agriculture ;
and, without these, no one has a right to anticipate suc-
cess. Without industry, nothing important can be ac-
complished ; without economy, the best directed efforts
will prove abortive; and, without order and system,
confusioa will obtain in every part, and the most efficient
energies be deranged. It is a maxim, that diligence
and perseverance will surmount every obstacle, howev-
er difficult ; and that with determinate resolution, maa
may accomplish any object to which he shall prudently
and skilfully direct his efforts. The duty, the com-
fort, the convenience, and the happiness of man, all
require him to be industrious and persevering; the en-
ergies of his mind, and the powers of his body, are suited
to activity, ia whatever employment he may be engag-
ed.

ADVICE TO A YOITNG FARMER. 275

At the foundation of a proper arrangement, it is nec-
essary to have a plan of the farm, or at least a list ot
the fields or parcels of land into which it is divided,
describing their productive extent, the soil, the preced-
ing crops, the cultivation given to each, and the species
and quantity of manure they have, severall3i, received.
The future treatment of each lield, for a succession of
years, may then be resolved on with more probability
of success.

With the assistance of such a list, every autumn, aa
arrangement of crops for the ensuing year, ought to be
made out ; classing the fields, or pieces, according to the
purposes for which they are intended. The quantity
of each crop, whether plough-land or mowing, as well
as the extent of ground intended for pasture, will thus
be ascertained. It will not then be difhcult to anticipate
what number of horses or oxen and laborers will be re-
quired during the season ; nor the stock that will be
necessary for the intended quantity of pasture land. —
The works of summer and harvest will be foreseen,
and proper hands engaged in due time to perform
them. ^

As nothing contributes more to facility and satisfac-
tion in business, than to prepare for what must be done,
a farmer should arrange his plans regarding his crops,
for three or four years ; regarding team labor, when
frost and bad weather do not intervene, for as many
months ; and regarding hand labor for as many weeks,
according to the season of the year. A general memo-
randum list of business to be done, is therefore essen-
tial, that nothing may escape the memory, and that the
most requisite work may be brought forward first, if
suitable to the state of the weather.

The following rules, connected with the arrangement
and the successful management of a farm, are particu-
larly to be recommended :

1. The farmer ought to rise early, and to see that
others do so, that both his example be followed, and his
orders obeyed. An hour is gained in this way, which
many farmers lose by indolence : this is a material ob,
ject where si number of hands are employed.

27o ADVICE TO A YOUXG FARMER.

2. The whole farm should be regularly inspected,
and not onij eve^y field examinea, but every lieast seen,
at least once a day.

3. Every means should be thought of, to climuiish la-
bor, or to increase its power.

4. A farmer ought never to engage in a work, whether
of ordmary practice, or of intended iniprovemeat, ex-
cept after the most careful inquiries; but when begun,
he ought to proceed in it with much attention and per-
severance, until he has given it a fair trial.

5. It is a main object in management, not to attempt
too much, and never to begin a vvorij;, without a proba-
bility of being able to finish it in due season.

6. Every farmer should have a book, for inserting all
those useiul hints, which are so frequently occurring in
conversation, in books, or in the practiciil management
of a farm. Loose pieces of paper are apt to be mislaid
or lost, and when a man wishes to avail himself of them,
for examining a subject previously investigated and dis-
cussed, he loses more time in searching ibr the memo-
randum, than would be sutficient for making half a doz-
en new ones. But if such matters are gntered into a
book, and if that book has an index, he can always find
what he wants, and his knowledge will be in a progress-
ive state of improvement, as he will thus be enabled to
derive advantage from his former ideas and experience.
Without some record of this kind, the farmer may grow
old, wilhout growmg wise, and many material circum-
stances must escape his memory, and be lost. It is from
v.'anting the facts which such a book might contain, that
we see farmers so tardy in improvement, so positive ia
error, and at three score, so little advanced in the knowl-
edge of their profession. He may make this book a
valuable legacy to his children. It may teach them our
present mode of husbandry, and they may derive bene-
fit not only from his success, but from his failure. Im-
provements will be perpetuated.

By the adoption of these rules, every farmer will be
master of his time, so that every thing required to be
done, will be performed at the proper moment; and
not delaved tili the season and opportunity have been
i6st. ' -^

ADVICE TO A YOUNG FARMER. 277

To prevent random speculations and ruinous project?,
xvith their ill consequences of every kind, it may be ob-
served, that it is of the very first importance, that per-
sons engaged, particularly on a large scale, in the pro-
fession of agriculture, should keep correct accounts of
all their transactions, profits and losses. The advantages of
clear accounts are obvious in every other occupation of life.
Persons who are engaged in speculations of merchandize,
t(\ any extent, and who are known not to attend to this
department, are always supposed to be in dangerous cir-
cumstances. But agriculture is erroneously considered
by many as an exception to all other species of business,
that it may be engaged in without preliminary study, and
is capable of being properly conducted, even to a large
extent, without any regular accounts, necessary as these
are admitted to be in other situations !

It is a maxim in the science of agriculture, that by
displacing a weed you make room for a useful plant. —
The idea may be extended and applied to the habits of
men. By exterminating habits of idleness, intempe-
rance and litigation, room is left for all those innocesit
and useful habits, which insure to the possessor, inde-
pendence, and respectability at home and abroad — and
the fire-side blessings of harmony and ease. By the
substitution of which, on the ruins of those demoralizing
practices, which are so prevalent in many parts of our
country, the American farmer not only improves his
domestic condition, but renders himself worthy of that
high rank and distinction in society which both the theo-
ry and practice of our government have assigned him,
and which alone can render him capable of appreciating
the blessings he enjoys, or thankful to the God who
gave them.

The use of ardent spirits can scarcely be indulged in,
without the certainty of an injur3^ The system in
health requires only nutriment, and the addition of u
stim'ilant so powerful as ardent spirits, is foreign to its
wants, and of course must be hurtful in its effects. To
good health, no addition can be made, and of conse-
quence, any change produced must be a recession to-
wards disease.

278

ADVICE TO A YOUNG FARMER.

Too true was the assertion of Lord B;icon, that all the
crimes on the earth do not destroy so many of the hu-
man race, nor alienate so much property, as drunken-
ness. It expels reason — drowns the memory — is the
beg-gars companion — and the true and only cause of the
vast increase uf crime in the work). There is certainly
no character which appears so despicable as that of a
drunkard ; he displays every little spot in his soul in its
utmost deformity. When once the youth become^^ a
devotee at the shrine of Bacchus, and fond of his liba-
tions, it is time for him to think. Let Iiim not lull his
conscience with the delusive idea of quitting when he
chooses, but take a noble stand, and from that moment
cease indulging- in his cup. Drunkenness, that fell de-
stroyer of mind and morals, has elicited the exhortation
of the preacher — the pen of the moralist — the warning
of the physician — the remonstrance of relations, and the
yawning of the grave — but all will not do. It has
reached an awful and alarming height — it daily in-
creases. It is known to require an extraordinary and
noble firmness of the heart to resist its blandishments
end allurements. Is it then the temptation you are to
quit when you choose ? — Ah ! no — young friends, heark-
en to advice ; when the seductive goblet is offered to
your lij)s, think not you will once more sip the liquid
poison because you can quit when you choose ; but con-
sider that cup may probably be the one that will establish
that habit with j'ou, which you will never be able there-
after to conquer, and dash the proffered cup with indig-
nation to the ground. (For suitable drinks in hot
weather, see the article Harvesting.)

When youn^ men take to gardening nnd planting, it
is an happy circXmistance, arjd they should lose no time
in the business, for it is a tiling that persons advanced
in years have often repented of. It produces considera-
ble satisfaction, and a peculiar pleasure, in the evening
of life, when a man can point at good trees, and say,
*■'• These are my own planting /" but it v.ere a superior
thing to add, " And of my own raising too.""

It is the simultaneous duty of th=> tarmer, (says Mr.
Cowen^ of N. York.) to superadd to the cultivation of
his farm, that of his mind ; and to extend the same care

ADVICE TO A YOUNG FARMER. 279

to the mind of' his fnmilj^ For this purpose it'sboul<] be
his object, in the lirst place, to acquii-e himsell, and to
impart to his offspring at least a common ediicntion. —
This is a good foundation for mental imi)rovejnent, but
nothing more. It should be regarded in every man's
hands, merely as the instrument of rearing and establish-
ing that intellectual superstructure, which is to give hitn
character, consecpience, ca[)acity and happiness in the
various stations he may be called to sustain in society.

There is no greater mistake, than in imaginino-, lii.^t
because a scholar' has mastered his spelling, rea-Jin.^,
writing, grammar and arithmetic, he is then entitled to
dismiss his books, take up his farming tools, and bend a
single eye to his agricultural avocaliQus. Such a course
is inexcusable. A wide and unbounded field of knowl-
edge lies beiore him, inviiing bis culture, of which he as
yet possesses no more than the utensils for improve-
ment.

Nothing but absolute poverty can excuse a man from
the purchase of books, and attention to study. But the
farmer in the mi Idle walks of life, who wi:h his brethren
constitutes the greal body of our popu:ation, no matter
how numerous bis family, if bred as they should be to
habits of strict economy and industry — he has leisure to
pass without employment in business, many of his lono-
•winter evenings, and much of the day time during the
same period, in the improvement of his mind. He has
the means of purchasing a small collection of hooks for
purposes of the most immediate utility, to serve as a
manual for himself and family, and to till up those little
interstices of leisure continually occuring, which the po-
et calls " Catching the transient hour, and improving-
each moment as it flies." While his more enlarged re-
searches are cheaply and liberall}'^ supplied by the well
selected public library of the neighbourhood. Books,
newspapers, kc. principally devoted to agricultural sub-
jects, should occupy an important share of his attention.

If the farmer is advanced in life, he most probably has
children who will mould their future lives by his exam-
ple ; and he already tills a station which gives am})le
play for all the knowledge lie can place in store. He
i^ the member of a great and rising republic, whose con-

280 ADVICE TO A YOUNG FARMER.

sfituUcn and general policy invite his scrutiny ; in (he
selection of whose functionaries he is annually called to
assist; upon whose conduct he sits in judgment. In the
exercise of so important a duty, what speed can he
make, without tlie aid of that cool monitor, a well in-
structed understanding-?

To form the character of the mere elector, he should
study his national and state constitution with its ablest
commentators. He should examine the hislcry of na-
tions, their rise, their progress, their, decay, and final
extinction, lie should understand the resources, the
geography, and the religious and moral habits ot his own
country. He should iiivestigate the spirit of her laws,
and search out her commercial relations. Until he does
so, he cannot appieciaie the conduct of his rulers. Dit-
ficuliies, (disasters, and itieviiaLle misfortunes are con-
iounded with faults and crimes ; or even the most up-
right, beneficial and prosperous efforts are metamor-
phosed into siate viilany, by those who are interested to
hoodwink the master in his search to determine the
merit of the servant. His ignorance and credulity are
thus made the mere sport of the artful and desigtiing
knave, whom he gratifies periraps at the expense of an
able fathful delegate. ,.^a^

Again — By a judicious course of reading and reflec-
tion he disperses the darkness and terror which v\i.l
ever attend superstition and ignorance. He forms a
^^^m re correct esiimate of the duties, fiowing from the
relaiion to his lamiiy, to society, and to his God ! — Be-
comes bett(;r contented with the world, smf oths the as-
perities and removes the peevishness and pueriiities of
age. He of all others is best qualified to attain and en-
joy that enviable state of human happiness, so elegant-
ly described by the Poet of the Seasons :

Rural quiet, friendship, books,

Ease, and alternate labor, useful life,

Progressive virtue, and appioving heaven.

CONCLUDING REMARKS.

CONCLUDING REMARKS. .^i?

In the compilatioQ of the foregoing sheets, much
more time and labor have been required than was at
first anticipated. The pubUcation of the work has in
consequence been delayed several months longer, than
the time calculated upon, when the proposals were
issued.

Owing to the numerous sources, whence we have
gleaned materials for almost every article, (not less than
80 volumes having been examined in m;iking the com-
pilation,) it has not been thought necessary to refer to
every publication from which extracts have been made.
But we tjiink it proper to observe, that we have gener-
ally u?ed the language of others, whose opinions coin-
cided with our own.

25

.W

#

m.

ERRATA.

Page 13, line 2 from bottom, for whenever, read wJien even : p 17, 1 2
from bottom, for good, r yard ; p 18, 1 7 from bottom, for conceived, r
concerned ; p 22, 1 8 from top, for simple, r single ,• p 26, 114 from bottom,
for must, read most; p 51, 1 11 from top, the word better, after be, is left
out ; p 52, 1 5 from bottom, for especially, r excessively ; p 53, in the rim-
ing title, Fallowing is improperly continued through many pages ; p 76,
) 7 from bottom, for a6sor6e^, t absorbent ; p 83, I 13 from bottom, for
their, r these ; p 93, 1 5 from top, fox post, x port ; p 103, 1 13 from top, for
■new, r now ; p 124, at the commencement of the article on Cabbages, at
the Sdparagrapli, the word Cabbages was omitted ; p 126, 1 15 from top,
for clear, x clean ; p 127, 1 6 from top, for the7n, x their ; p 133, 1 2 from top,
for not quicken, x rot quicker ; p 145, for Fall Fescue Grass, x Tall Fescue
Grass ; p 153, 1 13 from top, for best, r beast; p 159, 1 8 from top, for
stalls, r stale; p 160, line 18 from bottom, fox principle, x principal ; p
165, 1 3 and 23 from top, for yearning, x yeaning ; p 171, 1 2 from bottom,
for lime ashes, x live ashes ; p 174, 1 15 from bottom, for the rich, x this rich ;
p 180, 1 13 from bottom, for leveling, r beveling ; p 182, 1 15 from bottom,
for boughs, X bows ; p 196, 1 4 from bottom, for where, x lohen ; p 200, line
12 from top, for invest, r invert; p206, 1 21 from bottom, fox base, x bare;
p 222, 1 18 from bottom, after in, the word the is left out ; p 233, 1 1 and
3 from bottom, for butter, r batter ; p 234, I 3 from bottom, for thin, r
their ; p 243, 1 9 from top, for washed, r mashed; 1 11, for musk, r must ;
p 261, 1 4 from bottom, for where, r ivhen.

INDEX.

Page.

Ashes - - - - 68

Apple Pomace - . - - 73

Apple Trees - - - - - 186

Apples, gathering and preserving of - 201

Asparagus _ . - . - 232

Agriculture, British and American, compared - 263

Agricultural Societies, Utility of - - 266

Advice to a Young Farmer _ - - 273

Books, necessity of consulting - - 19

Brick and Lime Rubbish - - - 73

Barley . . . . - 97

Buck Wheat . . - . 99
Beans _ . , - 123—223

Butter - - ... 177

Budding or Inoculating . - 204

Beets - - - - - 228

Broom Corn ----- 236

Birds - ... - 247

Bees ----- 248

Bushes - - - - - 256

Beer - - r - - 258

Composts ----- 73

Culmiferous Crops -" - - - 81
Carrots . . - - 120—229
Cabbages - . . . 124—224

284

IxNDEX.

Cheese - - - - - 181

Canker Worm - - - - 199

Caterpillars '- . . > 201

Curculio - - - - . 208

Cherry Tree ... - 208

Cider - - - - . 210,

Cauliflower and Broccoli - - . 226

Cucumbers - - - - - 231

Cress - - _ . . 234

Cuttings - - . _ _ 236

Currants - - - - - 238

Currant Wine - . .> _ 2S9

Cellars - - - - - 260

Draining - - - . . 54

Dead Animals - - - - 73

Drilling - - - - - 106

Experiments, Importance of - - - 13

Earthen Ware - - - - 260

Farms, Size of - - - - 23

Farms, division of - - - - 37

Fences - - - - 37

Fallowing - - - - 53

Flooding - - - - 68

Fish Manure - - - 72

Flax - - - - 131

Fruit Trees - - - 184

" 'i Transplanting of - - 193

" " Ploughing among - - 196

'i " Manuring - - 196

" " Pruning - - - 197

" " Canker - - 198

*» '■<■ Moss and scaly bark - - 198

" " Method of forcing them to blossom
and bear fruit

2U9

INDEX. 285

Gypsum - - - - 66

Grasses - - • 135

" Clover - - 138

« Herd's Grass - - 140

« Lucern <- - 141

« Sainfoin - - - 142

" Redtop - ' - - 143

" Orchard Grass ^ - - - 143

" Tall Oat Grass - - 144

" Fowl Meadow Grass - - 144

" Striped-leaved Reed Grass - 144

" Cichory or Succory, &c. - - .144

Grafting - - - 189

Gardening - - - 214

" Tools - - ' - 216

« • Preparation of the Ground - 217

"* Manure - - 217

" Change of Crops - - 217

« Seeds - - 217

♦ " Planting - - - 219

" Thinning * - - 220

" Hoeing and Weeding - 220

" Transplanting - - - 221

it Watering - - 221

Gardens, Fruits cultivated in - - 236

Goosberries - - - 239

Goosberry Wine , - - 240

Grape Vines - - - 240

Hedges - - - - 39

Harrowing - - - 50

Hoeing - - - - 52

Harvesting -> - - 107

Hemp - - - - 129

i286 INDEX.

Hops - - - 134

Haymaking - - - 147

Horses - - - 158

Horse Rakes . . . 160

Hand Plough - - - 261

Implements - - - 39

Irrigation - - - - 56

Indian Corn . - - 88

Insects - . - - 245

Lime - - - 67

Leaves - - - - 73

Leguminous Crops - - 81

Live Stock - - - 151

Lettuce - . - 234

Layers - - - 237

Manures - - - 68

Marl . - - - 69

Mud - - - 70

Manures, Preservation of - - 75

Manures, Application of - - 77

Millet - - - - 101

Mildew and Rust - - 109

Mangel Wurtzel - - - 118

Meadows - - - 146

Blelons - - - 231

Mustard - - - 235

Mead or Metheglin - - - 252

Maple Trees - - - 234

Maple Sugar . - - 255

Bleat, Salting of, &c. - - 257

Neat Cattle - ' - - 160

Nurseries - - - 1S7

Nasturtium, or Indian Cress - - 234

INDEX.

287

Oil Cakes - - - 163

Onions - - - - 225

Oyster Plant ... 233

Post and Rail Fences . . .38

Ploughing ... , .45

Paring and Burning ... G3

Ploughing in Green Crops . . .65

Peat . . • . 70

Potatoes . . . • 110

Parsnips . . . 123 — 229

Peas .... 126—222

Pumpkins . . , . 128

Pastures . . . ... 170

Pear Tree . . . . 202

Peach Tree .... 203

Plum Tree . . . . 207

Peppers . ' . . , 235

Parsley . . , . 235

Quince Tree . . , 209

Rolling . . . .61

Rotation of Crops . , . 81

Rye • ... 96

Ruta Baga . . ^ . ^ . 113

Radishes . . , . 03Q

Raspberries ... . . 24q

Soils ... . .29

Stone Wall .... 38

Straw . . , . .62

Stubble ... , (53

Sea Shells . . • . 68

Salt . , . . 7j

288

INDEX,

Sea Water . . . .72

Sea Weed . , , 72

Scrapings of Streets . . .13

Saw dust . , . .73

Seed

102

Sowing . . . .104

Smut , , . 110

Sheep . . , ,164

Swine . , . ^ 168

Soiling of Cattle . , . 172

Squashes . . . 232

Sage .... 235
Suckers . ... 237

Stimpson's Farm • . , 261

Salem Aims-House Farm ' » . 262

Tillage ... 42

" Obstructions to, . . 44

Tanner's bark . . .73

Turnips . . . 115-230

Transplanting shrubs . . 237

Timber . . . 254

Vinegar . . . 259

Weeds . • , . 54

Wheat , , , 93

Wine . . .242

Woodland . . « .253

.ittHe