162 MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



Expenses of cultivating one acre of corn, . . . . $15 00 



Contingencies — Seed corn, scarecrows, powder and shot, strych- 

 nine and arsenic for poisoning squirrels, and time connected 



therewith, 5 00 



Expenses of manure and applying the same, . . . . 20 00 



$40 00 

 Eighty-six bushels corn from one acre, at $1.00 per bushel, . 86 00 



Profit per acre, ■ . $46 00 



SouTHBRiDGB, Nov. 5th, 1863. 



HAMPSHIRE, FRANKLIN, AND HAMPDEN. 



From the Report of the Committee on Grain and Seed. 



We would observe, in the first place, that there should be a 

 proper adaptation of soil to the crop. Some soils do not pos- 

 sess that natural fitness to mature certain crops of grain. 

 Others have become exhausted bj cultivation, and do not con- 

 tain any thing to make a crop of, and therefore cannot yield one 

 of any value for reproduction. 



Some plants will mature their seed to a greater degree of 

 perfection if removed to a different soil from that which pro- 

 duced them. For instance, very fine cabbages are produced 

 upon heavy and perhaps wet soil ; but as a general rule they 

 will mature better seed if transplanted the second year in a dry 

 soil. To how large a class of vegetables this general rule will 

 apply, careful experiments alone must decide. Some kinds of 

 grain are liable to blast on certain soils on account of an 

 improper application of fertilizers. 



This leads us to notice, in the second place, the importance 

 of a judicious application of fertilizers in all their various 

 forms. A liberal application of fresh made, or concentrated 

 manures may, in some soils, produce grain of a superior qual- 

 ity, but the experience of your committee has taught them to 

 prefer manures well composted, and thoroughly incorporated 

 with the soil, for the production of grain and seeds. 



Third. Thorough culture also promotes the growth of plants. 

 It tends to eradicate noxious weeds, which draw their nourish- 

 ment from the soil, some of which are liable to mix and form 



