FARMERS' REGISTER 



yard to (roins; under cover, thotifjli tliey liavo ihe 

 option ol' so dointr. Ciire is iiere.-sary in this piMn 

 not 10 pill loo niuiiy horses logeilier in one } ;inl, 

 and liiiit (here wre no ki( l<er:= amongsi lliom. 'Miis 

 is pre<-iHeiy ilic ()liin [)iii in prac:iit', by jour Ime 

 valUtiLiie concppoiulcni, G. H. Walker ul Hoiiies- 

 bur<r, near Piiiladelphiii ; and duiinif my occa- 

 sional visits to ihal lanienied ireinlemaii, I iiad lie- 

 quent opiiorloniiies of niakinir niy-«e!f" aequainied 

 wiih tlie general excellence ol' all his iliriuing ope- 

 rations. 



The weather is extremely cold here, thermome- 

 ter at zero litis niorniiii:.* 



Markeis excessively hintjuid and discourajfing 

 for farmers. William Bowkkr. 



Middleiown, N. J., Jan. lat, 1S40. 



PRESERVATIOIV OF Slf-lC-WORMS EGGS. ICE 

 HOUSES NOT THE ONLY MEANS BY WHICH 

 THESE MAY BE PREVENTED FROM HATCH- 

 ING. 



From the American Silk Grower. 



Those who design feeding silk worms from the 

 raorus mullicaulis, planted out in thesprinrr, sliouM 

 know how the eggs may be kepi Iroin hatcliiiig liy 

 the increased vvarmlh of liie season, belbre the 

 leaves iiave attained a size sufficient to aHord 

 enough Ibod. 



lce-house5 have been mainly depended upon for 

 this purpose, but the results ol' an experiment 

 made by Aubert, manager ol" the Royal Domain 

 atNeuilly, near Paris, show that siik-wormij- eifirs 

 may be kept two years, and perhaps lor a much 

 lonirer period, wiihuut beinir suhjecied to a greater 

 degree ol' cold than that wliirh lurms the iiannal 

 temperature of the earth, namely, abcn 66, or 

 67° Fahrenheit. So iliai cellars, caves, and wells 

 Irom which ihe aimnspheric air is exrludetl, will 

 answer, as depositories tor the |)reservation ol'eggs 

 as well, il'nol belter, than ice-houses. 



The lollovvinir i« a coiulensed account of Au- 

 berl's experimenist: — SdU-worms' ejiirs, obtained 

 from rnoihs in 1834, at the regular reason, were 

 put into a small tin box which was deposited in a 

 cellar at Neuiily. The temperature <if this cellar 

 during the greatest heat of Aiii;u?t 183-5 never rose 

 above 11«^ Keaumur, or 57° Fahrenheit, nor did 

 the eifga manifest the sliiihtest indication of 

 hatching. Having remained in the same situation 

 during another season, they were, afier a lapse of 

 about 22 months, bronirhi out and hatched by C. 

 Beauvais, under whose superintendence they were 

 reared with the most perlect success. 



The resulis of this experiment makes ns ac- 

 quainted with some highly interesting and uselid 

 fiicts. It demonstrates clearly that silk- worms' 

 egiis, require a terri])eraiiire liigher than that met 

 with in the earth at the ordinary depths of cellars 

 and wells, to give them the hatchmjj movement, 

 and consequently goes to show that the preserva- 

 tion of silk- worms' egjis can prottably be more 

 safely effected in cellars properly adapted lor the 

 purpose, than in ii'e-houses. These last are not 



* The next morning, January 2nd, in Petersburg, 

 our thermometer was at zero, fifteen minutes belbre 

 9; and though not observed earlier, must have been 6 

 to 10 degrees lower before sunrise — Ed. F. R. 



t Published entire in the Annales de la Societe 

 Seriiacole, No. 1. p- 75, 

 Vol.. VIH -5 



always within the reach of persons engaged in 

 rearing pid<-worms whereas almost every (me 

 can have access; to a suiiable cellar, cave, or dry 

 well. 



'J'hR place where the etrgs rire deposiicd slionlJ 

 be •doSe<i or cut olf so as to prevent ibc circulation 

 of its air which will thus always lemam at tlie 

 lemperaiuie of the surrounding earih. A Uier- 

 mometer placed near ilie cjJirs, should be exam- 

 ineil occasionally in the warm season lo ascertain 

 whether the temperaiure keejjs sufficieinly low. It 

 Will not do to trust to the leelinirs lor this purpose, 

 as a place may (eel sufficiently cool wiiili^l it is ai tu- 

 ally warm enough to cause the eggs to hatch out. 

 To insure success the iheimomeier sliould never 

 be above 66 or 67°. The eggs iiaving ouce passed 

 ihrouirh their hybernation, H very short exposure 

 10 warmth will excite the hatrhing movement, eo 

 that handlin<r or breathing upon the vessels con- 

 taining them should be avoided as much as possi- 

 ble. 



In asserting that silk-worms' eggs may be pre- 

 vented from hatchiiijj, if kept at a temperature 

 not exceedinsi 57^ Fahrenheii, some explanation 

 may lie necessary, especially to those who.in their 

 aitempis at preservation, have had the eggs lo 

 haich in ves.<els ainiosi if not direcily in contact 

 with ice. The egtjs desi^'n'^i to be kept from 

 hatchinsr must be deposiied in the situation where 

 they are lo remain, either previon-: to winter, or at 

 least some lime before its close. This will prevent 

 them from starling or getiinira tendency lo hatch 

 l()r if this haiihinir movement ever cominencps, 

 ihe worms must be siillered lo come out at the 

 natural period, and any attempts to restrain them 

 from doing so will desiroy the embryo insect in 

 the yhell, or injure it to such a deixree thai the 

 worms will eiiher die soon alter liaichinc, or drajj 

 out a leebie exisience. If they live lo spin, Iheip 

 cocoons will be very indif^efcnt. Silk- wot ins' egga 

 imporled from Europe last winier iind sprinif, 

 urenerally turned out very unlavorable with ihose 

 who altempied lo preserve them lor late feeding 

 the past season. The reason of litis may doulil- 

 less l)e thus explained. EsfUS of the one crop 

 race generally require to be kept over a winier be- 

 fore they are i-usceptible of halchinjx. Alier pass, 

 intr a vvfiole or everi a ponion of xvinler, all that 

 they re(]uire to raise in ihem the ha'chinir move- 

 ment is a proper decree ofwarrnih, and ihis they 

 meet wiih in crossinij ihe gulfslreant, the temper- 

 ature of which is never below 70° even in the 

 dead of winter. Sdk-worms' etrus that have ijuig 

 had ihe hatciiing letidency excited in ihem dunnfif 

 their voyaije to this country may si rve very well 

 for the first or early crop; but any Htlem|4s lo 

 keep ihem back fiir late leedinij will end in disap- 

 pointment as no (leLTce of co'd will answer uhii ii 

 will [101 eiiher desiroy, or produce irre|)arable in- 

 jury to Ihe tender embryo. Not so however, 

 where ihe egirs have been rieposiied in a cooi 

 situation previous to winter. For beinir thus pre- 

 vented from arqiiirinu any tendency lo haii h they 

 mav be preserved so loriL' as their temperature 

 does not lise above 57° and would, perlin| s, even 

 resist one two or three deurees more. At the same 

 time they receive no irjury tiom exposure in ice- 

 houses or relriLferaiors, to 'he lowest deirieesof cokl 

 which ifioy do afier the Imtciiing movement has' 

 once commenced. 

 All authorities upon the fiubjeot of preserving 



