395 



sheep. Auother 300 are for Messrs. Ripley & Thomas, of the same 

 county, and the remainder for the general market. They are to leavo 

 Vermont about the 1st of October. 



Effect of clbiate and soil on the European larch.— Professor 

 J. Mathews, of Iowa Agricultural College, is reported as having experi- 

 mented with- this tree, in Iowa, for the last seventeen years, with results 

 quite satisfactory, respecting the rapidity of its growth, "but unlavorablo 

 respecting its durabilitj'. He has one tree 45 feet in height and 15 inches 

 in diameter one foot above the ground. Many others are from 15 to 30 

 feet in height. In 1869, ho cut several trees and manufactured them 

 into gi^ape-stakes, setting them about the 1st of May. In April last, he 

 found them aU so decayed that they either had fallen or would break 

 with a slight pressure. Assuming that its durability depends upon its 

 peculiarity of texture, together with the amount of resinous substance 

 it contains, he cites authorities to show that it undergoes great changes 

 in these and other respects as the result of differences in climate, loca- 

 tion, and soil. In the most northern regions in which it is found, it is 

 only a trailing shrub, while upon the Alpine hills, and in other con- 

 genial localities, it grows to the height of 100 feet and more. He quotes 

 from a circular, published in 1869, by E. Y. Teas, as follows : ' 



Tu Savoy, according to a Fi-ench writer, honses aro built of larcb-logs, squared aud 

 placed one upon another, in the style of our American log-houses. The heat of the 

 sun melts the resin contained in the logs, and the structure, thus rendered impervious 

 to air and moisture, will last for centuries. In some parts of Franco houses are now 

 standing that have been built two hundred and fifty years, and still show no signs of 

 decay ; the great amount of resinous matter rendering the wood imperishable ; and 

 on this account it will outlast red cedar. There seem to be well authenticated in- 

 stances in Europe in which larch-timber, having been in use for a thousand years, still 

 remains sound. 



He further quotes from Loudon's Encyclopedia statements that resin- 

 ous timber indigenous to cold regions loses the qualities on which its 

 durability depends when transferred to a warm climate and fertile soil, 

 and that a certain degree of coldness of climate and inferiority of soil 

 is essential for producing larch-timber in perfection. Whether upon 

 our rich prairie soils it will lose durable properties is a practical ques- 

 tion upon which further light is needed. 



Hops in England.— According to the estimates of the Mark Lane Ex- 

 press 65,600 acres are devoted to the culture of hops in England, and 

 the area is gradually increasing. Kent, the largest hop-growing county, 

 had 32,000 acres in this crop last season, the early grounds averaging 

 1,400 to 1,600 pounds per acre ; Sussex, next in importance, 14,500 acres, 

 averaging 1,800 to 2,200 pounds per acre. Surrey is noted for a choice 

 quality of hops of bright color and superior aroma. 



Grass cultivation at the South.— Many southern farmers are 

 diligently adapting themselves to the new order of things by modifying 

 their system of culture. Cotton, in some districts, is even now regarded 

 as of secondary consideration, and the cultivation of a diversity of 

 crops has been entered upon with commendable zeal. An enterprising 

 farmer in Mississippi has instituted experiments in raising fruit and in 

 seeding down a portion of his land to grass, both of which appear to 

 have been quite successful. His orchard, embracing winter-apples, has 

 already become a source of profit, and his success with grasses has 

 been such as to constitute him a strong competitor with the hay-makers of 

 the North. He has been especially successful in clover, obtaining a luxu- 

 riant growth of three tons to the acre. Having failed in seeding with 

 small grain, he adopted the method of securing a stand of clover by 

 6 



