1P37] 



FARMERS' II E G I S T E R 



•')49 



f xeni] t from iho. action of the winter's frost, ft 

 'p an old reniarW, Ibundeil upon accurate obsorva- 

 tiop, that RPasoiiP of tbe same cliaracter cluster 

 tPiretlu'r. Until the last few years?, our crops of 

 wiieat were abundant, and of good quality. 

 Their lailure cannot be ascribed to any other 

 cause, tiuin the unliivorable seasons ; and by no 

 means, as some have supposed, to a sudden dete- 

 rioration of the soil. From the character of the 

 last winter and sumn)er, we may now reasonably 

 conjecture tliat more propitious seasons are at 

 hand, and that the eyes of the farmer will once 

 more be ijladdened b_v bountiful crops. It is earn- 

 estly to be wished that the spring wheat may real- 

 ize the most sani^uine expectations ; but it is 

 greatly to be feared, even if it should be Ibund 

 fully to succeed, that its introduction may bring 

 with it a pest, which will more than counterbal- 

 iince all its advantages. If the (Canada thistle 

 should ever effect a lodgment in Virginia^ where 

 we have so much waste land, it will be impossible 

 ever to eradicate it. This species of thistle is a 

 congener of our common downy thistle, (cricvs 

 Uinceolatus), and has so little preference in regard 

 to soil, that it flourishes equally well in all situa- 

 tions. It is a perennial plant, and every effort to 

 destroy it, either by digging up the roots, or culti- 

 vating the land, serves only to invigorate it. It 

 abounds extensively in New York, though hap- 

 pily its progress is partially arrested by birds ex- 

 clusively seminivorous, which ft^-ed on it iti great 

 numbers. It was first discovered in Canada, by a 

 Jesuit, who, thinking it might be an acquisition to 

 his botanical friends in Europe, transmitted it thi- 

 ther ; and li'om this small beginning, it has spread 

 pver England, and several portions of the conti- 

 nent, where it is known by the appropriate name 

 of the "cursed thistle." 



The small size of the Indian corn on lands so 

 fertile as those of New York, is calculated to ex- 

 cite a feeling of surprise. It may, in part, be ow- 

 ing to the influence of climate, but in some mea- 

 sure, and perhaps chiefly, to the character of the 

 soil. A field which came under observation, con- 

 taining two varieties, namely, the Dutton, and a 

 kind fri)m Vermont, exhibited a greater growth of 

 the latter than of the former, though if climate 

 had alone operated, the relative size should have 

 been reversed. The southern varieties are diffi- 

 cult of acclimation, and attain a much larger size 

 than those in general cultivation ; but this might 

 be expected to continue only for a few years, and 

 may be attributed to the constitution of the plant, 

 which cannot at once, adapt itself to tlie change. 

 On the other hand, the small northern corn, when 

 brought to our southern climate, is at first small, but 

 gradually increases in developement, until, after a 

 due course of cultivation, it exhibits the gigantic 

 proportions of our own varieties. The opinion has 

 been entertained, that the introduction of seed 

 corn from the north, to take the place of the large 

 southern kinds, together with the consequent 

 change of culture Jrom thin to thick plantiajj, 

 would be followed by an increased product. Ex- 

 perience, however, does not sanction the correct- 

 ness of this opinion, except on land of the best 

 quality. The close planting, which is requisite in 

 the small kinds, to produce a full crop, would here 

 be attended with disastrous consequences, in a dry 

 season. Under a similar constitution of soil, the 

 result might be more favorable ; for the small va- 



rieties are certainly more, productive than the 

 large, under circumstances equally conducive lo 

 the growth of each. The size of the ear ia 

 gnuiter m the former, in projioriion to the stalk, 

 than in the latter; and the ntuuber of stalks is 

 nmltii)lied several times beyond the closc.-t plant- 

 ing that is ever practised in Virirjiiia. When the 

 corn attains its full siz(% it isdilTiculi to distiniruish 

 the rows, and the field is then termed " a swamp." 

 If the crop is sufficiently luxuriant to merit this 

 appellation, a heavy yield is aniicipated. The 

 largest product to the single acre in Virjiina, has, 

 perhaps, seldom exceeded senventy-five bushels, 

 after the utmost care and attention have been be- 

 stowed in the preparation of the land. On the 

 calcareous soils ol' New York, from seventy-five 

 to one hunured bushels are frequently gathered ; 

 and, in some remarkable instances, as much as 

 a hundred and twenty, and even a hundred and 

 fifty, have been obtained. The chief obstacle to 

 the production of full crops, is, the shortness of the 

 season, and the consequent liability to early au- 

 tumnal frosts. Of late years, the corn has been 

 materially injured li-om this cause; but wlien the 

 earliest varieties come to be generally cultivated, 

 less danger is to be apprehended. The crops are 

 seldom affected by drought. 



The product of oats is extremely abundant. 

 They are more extensively cultivated than corn, 

 as they constitute tfie principal grain fcir horses. 

 Peas mixed with oats, are a tavorite food for hogs : 

 whole fields are sown broad-cast, the oats serving^ 

 lo support the vines, or rather to prevent them 

 from trailing on the ground. It is the larger va-, 

 rieties of the garden peas that are used in field 

 culture, and the product is about twenty-five bush- 

 els to the acre. It is objected to them, however, 

 that swine are so fond of them, as to acquire a dis- 

 taste for other kinds of food. 



The system of agriculture, in the interiorof New 

 York, is so different from that which is practised 

 on the eastern side of the mountains, that is diffi- 

 cult to institute a comparison between them, with 

 a view to practical results. Here, we have, or 

 ought to have, a regular rotation of crops, as in- 

 dispensible to the improvement of our lands. The 

 field that is now in wheat, must be followed i:»y 

 clover, the ameliorating eflects of which during a 

 rest of one or two years, are intended to prepare it 

 for an undiminished, perhaps increased product, 

 when it is brought into cullivation again, assisted 

 by the auxiliaries of plaster and manure. It i'o\-. 

 lows, therefore, of necessity, that a considerable 

 part of every well managed fiirm — say fi"om one- 

 fourth to two-fifths — must lie in an unpruductive 

 state, which is equivalent to an unproductive in- 

 vestment of that portion of our capital. The 

 practice of this system exists in the nature of our 

 soil ; and where it is not adhered to, the penalty 

 of ultimate impoverishment must be paid, as our 

 extensive waste lands too plainly demonstrate. 

 On the calcareous lands of New York, no such 

 nurture has been found necessary. None of the 

 fields, on any of their fiirms, are suffered to lie at 

 rest, for the purpose of acquiring renewed energy ; 

 but every acre is in profitable cultivation, either 

 for grain or meadows — a judicious alternation of 

 crops being scarcely attended to, or even thought 

 of. Allowing, therefore, that one of their farms 

 was three-fifths of the size of ours, and their land 

 of the same quality, their profits would be the 



