THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



193 



too large in the hips, it is almost impossible to 

 pick a hole in her. Nectarine Blossom has just had 

 a bull-calf to Sir Samuel, which makes her third ; but 

 her half-sister. Orange Blossom, seems by no means 

 inclined like her 



" To lift her h(>ad for endless spring 

 And everlasting blossoming," 



as she did not hold, in December, 1857, and never took 

 the bull again for thirteen months. Mr. Booth forgot 

 to introduce us to a very promising buU-calf by 

 Windsor, out of Blithe; and we did not see Lady Grace, 

 and four yearling heifers, which were in a field at some 

 distance from the house. 



For a little change, we adjourned once more to the 

 bulls, and first and foremost had an audience with Hope- 

 well, own brother to Charity, who has lately had a severe 

 fall from a cow. The young Lord of the Valley, a very 

 stylish bull, of moresubstance, though perhaps not so true- 

 made as Crown Prince, then stood forth. He has just 

 been transferred over from Mr. Carr's (where Windsor 

 has taken his place at a 200 g^'. hire) to Mr. Willis, 

 near Middleham, and hence there will never be a return- 

 match between him and The Great Mogul. Gradually 

 descending on the age scale came the roan Sir James, 

 by Sir Samuel, out of Nectarine Blossom. He won at 

 Sunderland last year, but he is to be rigidly kept for 

 " what surpasseth show" in Mr. Booth's eyes. We 

 measured him six feet five already, and he is also a 

 wonderful toucher, though not to call handsome, 

 and inferior in this point to his half-brother Fitz- 

 clarenee. 



And so we strolled on, and for a wind-up took a look 

 at three Queens in succession. There was Queen of the 

 Vale, especially good behind the shoulder, and ready no 

 doubt, after a winter's reflection, to try issues with the 

 two Roses— Stanley Rose, and Rose of Athelstane, who 

 defeated her at Sunderland and Northallerton ; and 



Moss Rose from Wetherby into the bargain. Be that 

 as it may, her sister. Queen of the May, has had enough 

 of such honours, and has fairly broken down in training. 

 The mischief began when she was sent with Sir Samuel 

 in a horse-box to Chelmsford, and stood up all the way, 

 hour after hour, till nature almost gave in. She still 

 retains all that beautiful form of fore-quarters, and rare 

 length, which " knocked over" the judges so often; but 

 she is now only a splendid ruin, slightly down in one 

 hip, and seems, for fear of throwing too much weight 

 on to her fore-legs, to stand at times arched like a bow. 

 She was kneeling in the pasture when we first saw her, 

 and had eaten the grass bare in a sort of elfin ring round 

 her, and she had hardly walked a hundred yards to her 

 box, than she favoured herself on to her knees before 

 her hay once more. It is feared that she is not in calf 

 to Highthorn. Many were wont to say, in 1857, when 

 she beat Victoria and Rose of Townley and won the 

 100-guinea Cup at Stockton, as the best animal in the 

 Show (an honour which fell on Nectarine Blossom last 

 year), that she was the finest young animal that ever 

 walked out of the Warlaby yard. We think they are 

 right in not transferring their allegiance to the present 

 plum of the herd, Queen of the Isles, by Crown Prince, 

 who was brought out for us last. To our eye she is 

 quite as wealthy, but with hardly such beauty or length 

 as Queen of the May. She was unbeaten as a calf at 

 York and Stockton, and then swept the three prizes in 

 succession at Chester, Northallerton, and Sunderland. 

 If she is never shown again, it will be her proudest 

 memorial that, when Mr. Booth had nothing else to 

 send, Col. Townley's " Diadem," and Mr. Grundy's 

 " Sweetheart," and thirty others entered the lists in vain 

 against bar on The Roodee. We know we are correct 

 as to the number, for Cuddy, in the honest pride of 

 his heart, " counted them a vast of times to be suir." 



THE EEFECT OF CERTAIN MANURES ON PLANTS, 



BY CUTHBERT W. JOHNSON, ESQ., F.R.S. 



That certain mauures produce very powerful effects 

 on the growth of particular plants was an early re- 

 mark of the cultivators of the soil. This obser- 

 vation, indeed, laid the foundation of the art of 

 manuring ; led the way to the triumphs of modern 

 chemistry, and of the agriculturists of our time- 

 It is hardly a doubtful question, Jiowever, that much 

 yet remains to be done in adapting the manure to 

 the particular plant whose growth we intend to pro- 

 mote — varying the application, as the straw or the 

 seed of the plant is the proposed crop. 



If we dwell a little upon the readings in this page 

 of Nature's book, we learn many things which have 

 from time to time presented themselves for our in- 

 struction. The natural grasses here speak in very 



plain language. The farmer has noticed, from time 

 immemorial, that, on the sides of roads, and other 

 turf-elad places, the ashes of a wood fire, left per- 

 haps by some wayfarer, produce on the site a patch 

 of white clover. "Wood ashes, therefore, evidently 

 promote the growtli of this plant. Now, as wood 

 ashes abound in phosphate of lime, it was soon con- 

 sidered probable that this is the salt which promotes 

 so remarkably the growth of the clover. Later 

 experiments very considerably supported this con- 

 clusion. The use of crushed bones, which still more 

 copiously abound in phosphate of lime, was found 

 to produce a similar effect. The use of bones on the 

 farms at Welbeck and Clipstone, half-a-century since, 

 caused so remarkable and so "spontaneous" a growtU 



