340 MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



my own, I shall feel fully compensated for contributing the fol- 

 • lowing : — 



In the spring of 1850 I sowed forty-two square rods of land 

 to carrots, on which corn was raised for fodder the year pre- 

 vious, ploughing in two cords of well-rotted stable manure. 

 There were sixteen young apple trees growing on the land, 

 which had been set three years ; the soil a black, strong loam — 

 the yield was one hundred and fifty-six bushels. 



January 1st, 1851, I purchased twelve new milch cows and 

 commenced selling my milk. After the first two weeks, my son 

 observed that he did not have milk enough for his customers 

 by about three gallons per day, and that I had better buy more 

 cows ; but, believing, as I did at that time, I could easily in- 

 crease the milk of my present number one quart each per day, 

 by feeding with carrots, I accordingly ordered the man who 

 tended the stock to commence the next morning, (January 

 15th,) to give two and a half bushels of carrots to the twelve 

 cows, morning and night, for the next seven days. I then 

 inquired of my son how much the cows had increased, and to 

 my surprise his answer was, not quite two gallons for the week* 

 I then resolved to attend to the feeding myself, and fed the 

 next seven days with hay only. The result was no diminution. 

 I then fed with carrots as before, the next seven days, and 

 there was less than one gallon increase. I continued the same 

 feed alternately for the next four weeks ending March 12th; 

 during which time the cows fell off some in their milk, but not 

 more than one gallon when fed on hay only, than when carrots 

 were added. The hay used during the trial was first quality 

 English hay, with a small foddering of salt hay in the morning. 

 I continued feeding the same kind of hay night and morning; 

 giving at noon as much rowen hay as they would eat in thirty 

 to forty minutes, which increased the milk more than one quart 

 to each cow daily for the next four weeks. By this time I was 

 fully satisfied it would not pay to raise carrots for milch cows, 

 and that I would try some other method. 



In April, 1851, I prepared and sowed the same piece of land 

 with onions, where carrots grew the year previous, using the 

 same quantity of manure. The yield was one hundred and 

 sixty-eight bushels, which I sold for forty-seven cents per 



