A 



YEAR'S RESIDENCE, 



CHAP. III. 



EXPERIMENTS, IN 1818, AS TO CABBAGES. 



Preliminary Remarks. 



165. At the time when I was writing the First Part, 

 I expected to be able to devote more time to my farm- 

 ing, during the summer, than I afterwards found that 

 I could so devote without neglecting matters which I 

 "deem of greater importance. I was, indeed, obliged 

 to leave the greater part of my out-door's business 

 wholly to my men, merely telling them what to do. 

 However, I attended to the things which I thought to 

 be of the most importance. The field-culture of Car- 

 rots, Parsnips and Mangle Wurzel I did not attempt. 

 I contented myself with a crop of Cabbages and of 

 Ruta Baga, and with experiments as to Earth-burning 

 and Transplanting Indian Corn. The summer, and 

 the fall also, have been remarkahltj dry in Long Island, 

 much more dry than is usual. The grass has been 

 very short indeed. A sort of Grass-hopper, or cricket, 

 has eaten up a considerable part of the grass and of 

 all veo^etables, the leaves of which have come since the 

 month of June. I am glad, that this has been the 

 case ; for I now know what a farmer may do in the 

 worst of years ; and, when I consider wjiat the summer 

 has been, I look at my Cabbages and Ruta Baga with 

 isurprise 95 well as with satisfaction. 



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