196 



FARMERS' REGISTER, 



[No. 4 



every poor acre of the farm in two year?. And 

 much lias certainly been done towards its (ertiliza- 

 lion. considerino; the existing obstacles; altlioua;h 

 much more remains to be done, and which, ibr the 

 doini^, promises sure and higli profits. 



What are known as salt-water pines, are the 

 ahiiost entire ijrowth of the still lower land lying 

 between the fields and the bay shore. These 

 pines seemed, to my eye, to be the same land as 

 the common woods-pine, (short-leaved) of the 

 highercountry; but theseappear more dwarfish and 

 stinted, as if on a very unlcind soil ; and they are 

 of remarkablj' slow growth compared to the pines 

 of the poor upper country. A beneficial efiect of 

 this slow growth, is the large proportion of heart- 

 wood, and the longer durability of fences made of 

 this timber. It is thought that the salt drawn up 

 in the growth of the trees conduces to the dura- 

 bility of the dead timber. It is certain that the 

 sap-wood of these, or of any more perishable 

 pines, is made more durable in fences, by having 

 been first left covered in the salt tide-water for six 

 months or more. This is a common practice in 

 this part of the country ; and the rails in the fences 

 are so thickly stuck over with attached shells of 

 barnacles, as to show the long continuance of their 

 salt-water immersion. 



The belt of pine- forest, though probably not so 

 designed, must be of much benefit to the ara- 

 ble land, by sheltering the crops from the cold and 

 violence of the east winds, coming from the 

 Chesapeake and the Atlantic. The soil on which 

 the pines grow, low as is its level, is of the gray 

 kind ; and though, like all the rest, under-laid by 

 the great bed of marl, is sufficiently thick above it, 

 and (judging by the growth) sufficiently acid and 

 poor, to furnish the proper food Ibr pines, unadul- 

 terated by the neutralizingquality ol'the subjacent 

 calcareous earth. It is, however, a singular lo- 

 cation for a pine-tbrest; and, like some other still 

 stronger apparent contradictions, would cause ma- 

 ny to doubt the doctrine of calcareous soil being 

 incapable of sustaining pines, and some other 

 common acid plants. 



There has been no regular course of crops on 

 this farm, nor any approach, in practice, to what 

 would deserve the name of a rotation. The pro- 

 prietor, being constrained, in a great measure, by 

 the former foul state of the ricli land, which de- 

 manded repeated hoed crops — and tempted to 

 draw fi'om it heavily, both by its power to pro- 

 duce, and his own need for the returns — the gene- 

 ral course of cultivation has been irregular, severe, 

 and also totally opposed to the established general 

 rules of good husbandry. Still, circumstances 

 well justified this departure from sound theoretical 

 and general rules; and, on the whole, it has proba- 

 bly conduced much to the profit of the farm, and 

 also to its general improvement ; for quicker and 

 greater profits served to furnish more labor for im- 

 provement, as well as for more effective tillage; 

 for both of^ which so much labor was wanting. 

 But the time and the circumstances have now ar- 

 rived, which will make a more regular and me- 

 liorating rotation the most profitable here, as well 

 as in most other situations. 



Until about seven years ago, Mr, Sinclair had 

 not sown clover, nor had he been induced to de- 

 sire to commence its culture, from any witnessed 

 prior trials of others in his county. His com- 

 mencement was determined, not by design, but 



by accident, or rather by a ridiculous blunder. 

 He had requested the captain of a northern ves- 

 sel to bring him a peck of' flax-seed. By a fortu- 

 nate mistake of the captain, he brought, instead, as 

 much clover-sced ; which was sown, merely be- 

 cause on hand. The product, however, was so good 

 as to induce the contmuation and increase of the 

 annual sowing, until the last amounted to 8.^- bush- 

 els of seed, and the present clover crop covers 

 60 acres. 



But though his clover-culture has been entirely 

 satisfactory in products and in the conjectured 

 clear profiis, it has, as yet, furnished almost no- 

 thing to the scythe, either for green-food or for 

 hay, nor as green or vegetable manure to the 

 land — except Ibr the latter, so far as may go the 

 mere roots, and the little of the stalks remaining 

 after grazing. Besides the grazing of other 

 farm-stock, there is a large number of hogs fed 

 on clover, from the time it is 6 inches high; and as 

 I heard a neighbor of Mr. Sinclair's charge him 

 with, in some jocular censures of his manage- 

 ment, he docs not even give his clover a chance 

 to get into blossom. The hogs are not, however, 

 turned upon the whole field, but upon a part sepa- 

 rately inclosed by a temporary or moveable fence; 

 and li'oni that they are changed to another, and so 

 on, so as for them to graze all the allotted space 

 in succession. 



If about 100 hogs are desired for annual slaugh- 

 ter, then 20 female pigs are left as breeders, and 

 three or four male pigs. It is so arranged that 

 all the pigs are littered in April or early in May, 

 soon after the hogs have been all put upon the 

 young clover. The births are easily thus timed, 

 as the practice is to castrate all the boars soon af- 

 ter the sows are pregnant, and to fatten and kill 

 them, and all the sows also that have had pigs once, 

 the next winter. Thus there is an annual succes- 

 sion of very young breeders, male and female, 

 and no hog ever remains to be as old as two years. 

 Of course there ore but the 20 sows, all pregnant, 

 to feed, from killing time to the beginning of graz- 

 ing on clover, after which, they have no other 

 food, except the gleanings of the wheat and other 

 smail-grain-fields alter harvest, until put up to fat- 

 ten in autumn. For five years there had been killed 

 from 75 to 108 hogs aniuially; not large, of course, 

 but fat, and of good size for family ijacon. The 

 annual sales of pork add largely to the income of 

 the fi^rm. In 1835, the fresh pork sold brought 

 ^1200, and the weight of the hogs averaged 

 133 lbs. 



Mr. Sinclair made an experiment last winter 

 and spring with his winter-kept hogs, or breeders, 

 which, so far as one experiment may be relied on, 

 seems decisive against letting hogs run at large in 

 woods and marshes, to aid in supporting them- 

 selves. In the beginning of winter, the hogs were 

 divided into two parts, as nearly equal as possible, 

 in numbers, sizes, and condition. Those of one 

 division, were suffered to run at large, in the sea- 

 pine woods, and having access to the close adja- 

 cent bay shore, and 300 acres of firm marsh ; and 

 received every morning, each, one ear of corn, and 

 another at night ; or, when shattered corn was used, 

 as much morning and evening as was supposed 

 to be equal to one ear to each hog for each meal. 

 The hogs of the other division were confined to 

 a well littered pen, in which was a close and dry 

 house or shelter, which they could enter at plea- 



