592 



FARMERS' REGISTER 



harrow it well — planted our seed — threw a spoon- 

 ful oC plaster on eai'h hill — and hoed our potatoes 

 once; and vvilhom hiiliiig uj) more than half an 

 inch — without any manure we raised the lartjesi 

 crop of potatoes that we ever harvested. The 

 land was more lii/ht through the summer than we 

 could make it by means ol manure. 



CUTTING AWD PRKPAKING HEMP FOK MAR- 

 KET — WITH ITS PRICES FOR THE LAST 

 EIGHT YEARS. 



From the Soutliern Cultivator. 



Dear Sir : — Some remarks having been made 

 in a Ibrmer No. of your paper, in regard to the 

 growing, or primarily, to cutting of hemp, I feel at 

 liberty to extend those remarks, and say some- 

 thing about the time when hemp should be cut, 

 and how and when it should be taken up, stack- 

 ed, &c. 



Observation seems to warrant the conclusion 

 that well grown hemp should be cut and fully ma- 

 tured, and short grown, low, fine or poor land 

 Jiemp should be cut before maturity. It is a fact 

 clearly demonstrated to all common sense, that all 

 vegetation, whether plants, roots, trees, or shrubs, 

 ,as long as they are in a thrifty, growing condition, 

 have not arrived to maturity or fuhioss— so ol 

 hemp. We should let hemp that is full grown, 

 usual size and length, remain undisturbed until it 

 has fully matured— it has then received all the 

 nourishment and strength that nature gives, and 

 undoubtedly should he cut at that period. 



Shorter poor land hemp, should not be permit- 

 ted to remain to maturity. It is a well attested 

 fact that such hemp is usually more difficult to 

 water and get clean, than better grown hemp. 

 The reason seems to be founded on this fuct— the 

 stalks are much smaller and more compact ge- 

 nerally, and the lint of a much finer texture, clo'ser 

 grain, and of course better protected against the 

 watering showers and dews. Now for the reason 

 why it should be cut before maturity : I presume 

 no one will doubt lor a moment, that when ma- 

 tured, the sap lias ceased to flow ; that being the 

 case, there is greater affinity for the stalk than be- 

 Ibre. and less susceptibility of an early maturity. 

 When you cut before the sap has ceased to flow, 

 you preclude that affinity for the stalk that it would 

 otherwise have, and leave it susceptible ol an ear- 

 ly maturity. It is well understood that timber cut 

 when the sap is flowing, will not endure as long 

 as when otherwise cut. This I presume proves 

 the point, that when cut before maturity it is soon- 

 er watered and much lees labor required to clean 

 it. The reason why the same argument will not 

 apply profitably to well grown hetinp, is to be found 

 in the fact that when matured it carries more 

 weight, while it is easier watered, from the fact of 

 the stalks being more parous, nnd presenting at 

 the same time more surlace to the contracting" in- 

 fluence of wet and coU\—saturaiion and freezins 

 — bursting loose from the stalk, smiling at the 

 Iiope of an appro.Nimating deliverance fiom such 

 low grounds, and claiming a rank among thedio-- 

 nilaries of the field. "^ 



When your hemp is cut. let it remain on tlie 

 ground until it gels a rain on it.— There arc seve- 

 ral advantages resulting Irom this course. Fust, 



you get rid of the leaves that are found to be trou- 

 blesome, (ifyon attempt to stack your hemp with- 

 out first taking them off.) Next, it leaves your 

 hemp in a condition to water much sooner tfan 

 otherwise, (losing some chemical property.) 

 When soon watered, it cleans easier — in liict yon 

 may lay it down as a settled maxim, that when 

 your hemp is hard to water, that it will be difficult 

 to clean ; hence the necessity of the utmost pre- 

 caution and vigilance at this stage ofj'our crop. 



Next in order ofsaving your crop comes stack- 

 ing. There are several reasons fi^r this. Hemp 

 when cut has nothing to lose ; its troublesome 

 roots are improving your soil, and what you have 

 left will be wanted to protect against the beam of 

 a summer's sun, and ravages of an autumnal 

 storm. To do this, you must put it up in large 

 stacks, upon ihe same principle you would wheat, 

 rye or flax, excepting you keep the sides of your 

 Slack perpendicular until you get it high enough, 

 then let your last course on the lop extend over 

 about 12 or 14 inches, to give eave that the ends 

 of your hemp may be proiecied against the drip- 

 ping — protection at this time being the order of 

 the day — cap well, and all will be well. 



As early in the fill! as the heavy iVosts and fre- 

 quent rains commence, you may spread out your 

 hemp ; when watered sufficiently, take \ip, break 

 out, and send to market, and my word for it you 

 will carry home a heavier purse than either cotton 

 or corn will award you. I have been at some 

 pains to ascertain the average price of hemp in 

 iVliddle Tennessee the last eight or nine years. 

 I find that from the most authentic sources com- 

 pared, we have the average of S6 25 per hundred 

 pounds lor the last eight years in Maury county ; 

 while that of Kentucky is reckoned at $5. In 

 Maury county, in the year 1S33, hemp was worth 

 S5 per hundred pounds; 1834, .^5; 1835, .^9; 

 1836, %7 ; 1837, $6,50; 1838, ^6; 1839, $5,50 ; 

 in 1840, $6 — thus eiving the mean or average 

 price of §6 25. From the best sources, I learn 

 that cotton grown in Middle Tennessee, has, since 

 perhaps as iiar back as 1799, been gradually de- 

 creasing — commanding in that year an average 

 of 44 cents. In 1840, 6^ cents. 1 admit that it 

 is owing perhaps to circumstances with which we 

 are surrounded at the present lime, that cotton 

 commands such a pitiful price, (circumstances 

 which will perhaps not occur again in half a cen- 

 tury ;) yet for the la?t twenty years, Ihe average 

 price has been about 9 cents fur Tennessee cotton 

 at the gin. "The average annual product of 

 lands in Middle Tennesse is believed to approxi- 

 mate to 200 lbs. clean cotton to the acre." Thus 

 taking the average product of one acre of cotton, 

 we have 200 lbs. at els.— 818; deduct for 15 

 days' labor, which amount is thought to be a (ijir 

 average on one acre, at 50 cts. per day — we have 

 the sum of fij 10,50 as profit, or proceeds. Taking 

 hemp, we find that a fair average annual pro- 

 duct 1o be about 500 lbs. clean hemp to the 

 acre — which at 86,25, gives us the sum of ^31,25 

 — deduct lor labor 10 days, and superior land ^2 

 — we have ihe sum of §24,25 proceeds. Showing 

 a balance in favor of hemp of ^13,75. E.sacfness 

 in these calculations is not to be expected, but a 

 li^ir calculation has been aimed at. G. 



Columbia Sept. ?,, 1840. 



