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On Milht, By Nathan Harper, 



Frankford, A^thmo, {April) 1th, 1820. 



Respected Friend, 



I WILL cheerfully communicate, as far as my know- 

 ledge extends, the information thou wouldst like to have 

 respecting Millet. It will grow on any soil, but a light 

 loam suits it best ; it will produce from 20 to 30 bushels 

 of seed per acre ; the seed is good food for horses, cows 

 or swine, and on a farm where there is poultry raised, it 

 is very nice food for young chickens ; the straw is good 

 fodder, both cattle and horses are fond of it ; I consider 

 it equal to equal quantities of clover hay, and where land 

 has become what the farmers call clover-sick, I think i£ 

 is an excellent substitute. It is an annual plant, and 

 must be sown every spring ; it will produce from two 

 to three tons per acre ; it is sown in the fourth month-— 

 I believe the fore part of the month is the best time ; it 

 is generally cut in the seventh month ; it ought to stand 

 until about half the seed is ripe before it is cut for hav, 

 and when given to the cattle in the winter, the ripe seed 

 will fall off on the barn floor, and with a little care can be 

 collected for seed the ensuing spring ; about half a bushel 

 of seed to the acre is sufficient — some say less. I con- 

 sider this plant most valuable as a substitute for the 

 artificial grasses ; after such a dry season as we had last 

 summer, almost all the clover and timothy seed sown 

 last spring perished. The millet, when cut either for 

 hay or seed, sprouts inimediately, like the orchard grass, 

 and makes very good fall pasture. The hay from this 

 plant is most valuable if left standinff until the seed 



