SECRETARY'S REPORT. 87 



SECOND SERIES OF EXPERIMENTS FOR THE YEARS 1861, '62 AND '63. 



To the Trustees of the Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agriculture. 



The undersigned committee liave examined the reports of 

 the competitors for the premiums for experiments in manuring 

 and cultivating land for crops for the years 1861, 1862, and 

 1863. There are eight reports ; last year the number of them 

 was twelve. The rules and directions appear to have been 

 complied with, and with care and accuracy. Two or three 

 small deviations will be noticed below. 



Tabular statements are presented herewith. 



The reports contain remarks and opinions relating to the 

 seasons as they affected the growing crops. These are too 

 extended to be inserted in this report, and besides, they do not 

 affect, necessarily, the purpose of the experiments, which is 

 believed to be to ascertain how to manure and cultivate land 

 in order to get from it the largest number of pounds of crop. 



Tiie quantities and values of manures used, and the soils, 

 more or less fertile, or made so by previous manuring and culti- 

 vation, may differ very much ; but, nevertheless, the figures in 

 the tables showing the detailed pounds of crop in each lot, and 

 the figures showing the aggregate pounds of crops on all the 

 lots, serve equally well to obtain simple and plain answers to 

 the inquiries made by the State Board, which were by these 

 experiments to ascertain the best mode of using manure on 

 land. 



Mr. Lincoln reports on two lots of twenty square rods each, 

 differing very much in the quality of soil and subsoil. 



The report of the Essex Society Farm states that rye and 

 grass seeds were sown on the corn in 1861, tliat they grew well, 

 and were ploughed under in 1862 for the crop of barley and 

 seeds for that year, which excludes it as a competitor for 

 premium. 



Mr. Weld reports the product on a sixth lot which received 

 extra manuring. This lot six is in table No. 1, but is not 

 included in tables Nos. 2 and 3. His hay crop on lots 4 and 5 

 was increased in weight by much sorrel. 



Mr. Breck reports the results for the two years, 1861 and 

 1862, of the use of super-phosphates and wood ashes, on lots 



