F A R M E R S' R E G I S 1 E R . 



>31 



tain (he shape they sustained on the tree — round 

 like ;i wale.r hox, vvnhout tup or bottom. Tiiey 

 should \.<i about two inches liigh or deep. Let 

 each sirip enclose a pUnit, and |)ress it genliy into 

 the earth. The ffrub can (hen neither crawl under 



IMPKOVING I.AND BY GRUEN CROPS. 



Trom tlie Farmers' Advocate. 

 Philadelphia, 3rd month \Slh, 1S40. 

 Dear Friend. — Soon alter our return, I applied 



nor climb over it. L ok lie ever so vvislUdly tiint i to a friend who has the reputation ofbeing a skii- 

 way, he cannot set his iceih into the delicioua ] ful ajjriculturist, (or his advice as relates to the best 



fibres ol the young cabbage stalk. 



LIQUORICE. 



From the rciiiiy Magazine. 



This plant, which requires a deep loamy sand, 

 vvitii a bottom of clay at the depth ol' three or lour 

 li=;et, is chiedy grown at I'onteli'act in Yorkshire. 

 The properties lor which the liquorice is cultivated 

 are found in the root, which contains an abundance 

 of mucilaginous juice, of a sweet and sub-acrid 

 taste. 'J'he pectoral qualities of this juice are well 

 known, and the Ponleliact cakes, which are a pre- 

 paration li'om the liquorice root, are in considerable 

 demand, both in England and on the continent. 

 These cakes are not so large as a sliilling, and 



method of proceeding under your circumstances — 

 his reply is now before me, and 1 know no better 

 plan than to copy his letter ; he says — 



" My farm having been in a high stale of im- 

 provement for many years past, I have nut done 

 any thing in the way of improving land by green 

 manures, having a full supply from my barn-yard 

 for all my wants ; [ can however say, when the 

 latter cannot be had to sulHcicnl extent, and where 

 lime or marl is not to be obtained but at too great 

 a cost. I would look as my chief dependence, 

 to green crops, and lirom the experience 1 have 

 had, would give a prcfL'rence to corn for that pur- 

 pose, sown broad-cast, say l.J to 2 bushels to the 

 acre, not only on account of ihe greater qiiantity 

 of saccharine matter contained in the corn stalks, 

 but also on account of the greater produce to the 

 acre, and the facility ofcovering it with the plough. 



bear the impress of a castle. Jjitjuorice is also a : I have, n)yselfj made but or^e experiment vviih 

 chief ingredient in lozenges and other nledicaments \ green manure alone, being generally in the prac- 



taken (or coughs. The liquorice plant being a na- 

 tive of ihe warmer climate of southern Europe, is 

 not always a profitable crop in this country. Great 

 care and good management are absolutely essen- 

 tial, and the land must be of superior quality, well 

 manured, anil stocked with choice plants, or the 

 cultivator vvill not succeed in bringiuij; them to per- 

 fection. A wet and cold summer is injurious, and 

 an unfavorable season will produce only one fourth 

 of an ordinary crop. The mode of cultivation in 

 the liquorice-groujuls at Pontefract is first to trench 



tice of liming previous to sowmg ilie grain, — m 

 that inslance I pursued the following course : about 

 the 15lh of the 5lh n)onth, alter co7n planting. I 

 prepared the ground, and sowed U bushels of Corn 

 per acre, harrowed it in lengthwise — then across; 

 the grain was well covered, I shnnld however pre- 

 fer covering with the plouii:h lightly, when it can 

 be done, and harrowed once to level the ground ; 

 as there was no rain for several weeks, sufficient 

 to cause the grain to vegetate, not more than about 

 one third came up, in consequence I considered it 



to the depth of three spades, the bottom to be j pretty much of a failure; what there was I had 

 loosened but not thrown out. Old stable-dung I ploughed in wheti in tassel, as deep as I could, 

 must then be spread on the land, in the proporiion j having first rolled it down with a heavy roller; 

 of from thirty to forty cart-loads per acre; and it j afier ploughing it in, it was again rolled, and so left 

 must aliervvards be well dug in. The land is then until seeding Time, when the wheat was sown 

 laid out in beds about thirly-eighl inches in width. 



broadcast and harrowed in ; the land in this case 

 Wdspoor, yet a good crop of wheat was cut from it. 

 i have known several experitnents made in my 

 neighborhood, similar to the above, and alwaya 

 with good success. 1 will mention one case direct- 

 ly to lite point: a near relation of mine liad some 



thrown up about a foot in height, and after being 

 neatly raked over it is reatly to receive the plants, 

 which should be put into Ihe ground in March or 

 April. They are of two kinds, slock and runner- 

 buds, and are dibbled. in fijur inches deep in alter- 

 nate rows across ihe ridge, one on Ihe lop, and one j poor land on his farm, that he said he could do 

 on each side, and loiigitudiiially at the distance of I nothing with, it was a light sandy soil ; I proposed 

 6ix or seven inches. The lieds are then carelully | to him to fiince off about five acres, and try the ex- 

 raked, the dibble holes being well covered in. The j peritnent of improving it by green manure alone; 

 space between each row of plants is usually sown i he laughed at the idea, but at my particular request 

 with early dwarf ur York cabbages, or early kid- j submitted ; the result was as follows: the first 

 ney potatoes. The l)eds will soon require weed- seed sown was oats, which grew to the height of 

 ing, and this is done two or three limes during the i 3 inches on an average ; these were ploutrhed in, 

 summer. In aulumn the (op, which is four or five | and again sowed in oats ; this crop was about 

 leet high, is cut off near ihe bud. In the ensuing ; double; the 2nd year, again sowed oats in. the 

 spring and summer the ground must be hoed and .-pring— crop pretty good,— ploughed it in and 

 carelully weeded, and in autumn the tops, which j sowed buckwheat, produced a fine crop whicli he 

 are four or five feet in height, are cut down as be- j cut ; then ploug'ied the ground— sowed with 

 fore. The same management must be repealed , wheat and cut a fine crop. — My wish was, that 

 each year, for the part of the plant above the sur- he should have continued the experiment for 5 

 face grows annually, though the root is perennial. - years without cropping, but the improvement was 

 About the third or fourth year after planting, the , so great, that the temptation to crop could not be. 



roots, which should be three or four feet lonff, are 

 taken up some time between November and Fe- 

 bruary. They are tied in bundles for sale, which 



resisted beyond the 2 years. 1 atn decidedly of 

 the opinion that [loor ground can be made good 

 by green manure only — but to do this the cropping 



is effected ae early as possible, as they become dry, I must be light, until assisted by uianure made 

 and of less value the longer they aie kept. ' Ifrom the grasses produced— I would prefer the 



