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The coarser grains, adapted to the i-earing and fattening of cattle and liogs, 

 •uniformly succeed well. The yellow deiit Indian corn succeeds better in Dane 

 and some of the adjoining counties, than in most iocalities in the same latitude, 

 and is generally cultivated in preference to other varieties. The quantity of black 

 sand mixed with the soil, in the prairies and openings, has the eflect to bring 

 fonvard and mature this crop with great rapidity, when the warm season an-ives. 

 The soil yields large crops of rye, barley, oats, <fec., with rare instances of failure. 

 Flax flourishes well ; and so soon as mills are erected for the manufacture of lin- 

 seed oil, it is believed that it will be a profitable crop to raise for the seed. 



The usual variety of esculent roots are produced in the county in great abun- 

 dance and with but little expense, the soil being peculiarly adapted to their 

 growth. The potatoe crop, for the past two or three yeai-s, has sutt^red much 

 from the potatoe disease. In this region, potatoes planted on new ground have 

 suflered less from the disease than those planted on old ground ; and some of 

 our farmers are of the opinion, that entirely new gi-ound broken up in the month 

 of June, with seed dropped in the furrows as the breaking progTesses, so as to be 

 left near the crevices of the sod, will uniformly produce a middling crop, and a 

 sound and healthy product ; and«that while the disease continues to prevail, this 

 is the only sure method of obtaining a supply of this indispensable vegetable. 

 The fact that this product is less liable to disease in new ground than in old, (so 

 far as it may prove to be a tact,) would seem to indicate that the cause of the 

 disease resides in the soil rather than in the seed; and this indication is corrobo- 

 rated by the well known fact, that old grounds, or those which have been 

 ploughed for a number of years in succession, are frequently infested by insects 

 which are seldom found in grounds newly broken up. The striped bug, so des- 

 tructive to vines, and the cut-worm, are examples in point. But this indication 

 is not to be relied upon with absolute certainty, for the cause of the disease may 

 reside in the seed, while some conditions of soil may be favoi-able, and others 

 unfavorable to its development. The mystery in which this singular disease seems 

 to be involved, and the great value of the potatoe crop, should admonish the 

 farmer to use every precaution, both in respect to seed and soiL, which promises 

 €ven a mitio-ation of the evil. 



I do not recollect to have seen any account of this, or any similar disease, 

 attacking other vegetables; but last fall I noticed in my garden, apparently the 

 same disease preying upon the ruta baga. I sowed a patch of ground, upon 

 which, for three years in succession, I had tried in vain to raise potatoes, which 

 were as often destroyed by the rot. The ruta baga plants gi-ew well until the 

 bottoms were about two inches in diametei', when the outside leaves turned 

 black, withei'ed and dropped oft', and from tiiat time forward the bulbs grew 

 slowly, and the necks of the plants spindled up, in many cases a foot above the 



