EFFECTS OF ELECTRICITY ON VEGETATION. 



one of vast labor; and a cheap labor-saving 

 macliine, which, in case of very large crops, 

 sbonld leave one-tenth, or even a larger propor- 

 tion of the crop in the ground, would be a 

 welcome invention. 



A promising improvement has been made in 

 the grain cradle, by making the teeth of hollow 

 metal, tilling them up with wood sufficiently far 

 to insure strength. The teeth glide very easily 

 through the gi'ain, and ai'e not liable to the ob- 

 jection of warping and sticking where the grain 

 ia wet, as in the case with wooden teeth. 



A simi)le and elicctive instrument for gather- 

 ing fruit from trees has been patented, by which 

 the ladder may he generally dispensed with, 

 and the trees and fruit saved from injury. 



Some important improvements have been 

 made in smut machines, and in machines lor 

 hulling seeds. 



The wheat fan, or winnowing machine, has 

 been of late much improved by the use of the 

 spirid fan in the place of the old Hutter-wheel 

 fan ; and, although the introduction of the spiral 

 fan is not recent, yet it has, during the past year, 

 been introduced under such modifications as to 

 render the instrument very serviceable. In 



connexion with this instrument also, an interest- 

 ing and useful feature has been secured by 

 patent, consisting of a mode of so operating the 

 screens or sieves as to give just that motion 

 which is imparted them when they are used in 

 the hand. 



Bee-hives. — A growing interest is evident in 

 this branch of agriculture, and a large number 

 of applications have been received. Seven of 

 them have been patented, and a greater number 

 rejected. Most of the alleged improvomenta 

 have claimed to be remedies against the bee 

 moth, the pest of the apiai'ian. As bee culture 

 increases, the bee moth seems to become more 

 numerous and troublesome, and should, there- 

 fore be vigorously met by vigilance and in- 

 genuity. In this latitude, it requires every 

 attention to save the bees from this their great 

 enemy ; and so fonnidabli; has it become fi'ora 

 numbers, that the same devices which may, per- 

 hap.s, be found to give protection further North, 

 will not apply here. 



Nothing yet seems to be of any value, except 

 placing the hives upon the ground — the hives 

 being made very tight, and the entrance of the 

 bees being as low as possible. 



EFFECTS OF ELECTRICITY ON VEGETATION. 



We might be charged with indifference to 

 the progress of Scientific Agriculture, were we 

 to send out the first number of the Farmers' 

 Library vvidiout adverting to one of the most 

 remarkable novelties that has lately attracted 

 pubHc notice, to wit : The eflTects of experi- 

 ments lately made in England to test the effects 

 of Electricity on Vegetation. Hence we had ar- 

 ranged for publication what seemed most im- 

 pressive and worthy of regard. On reflection, 

 however, we conclude to postpone for another 

 number all notice, except what follows. In the 

 mean time we may observe that the subject seems 

 to be, practically speaking, exactly in that .state 

 of uncertainty which demands further and more 

 exact experiments, before it can be had recour.«o 

 to by practical men with any certainty of useful 

 results; and again, it will probably be found 

 that in our own country, and by a member of 

 our "Agricultural Association," too, the investi- 

 gation and knowledge of this extraordinary 

 agency, as connected with vegetation, has not 

 been in the real of the fullest and most recent 

 European expositions. 



The paper in our codection, from English 

 journals, the mo.st cautious and candid and wor- 

 thy of regard, (and it is highly so,) is the sketch 

 which one of these journals contains, of a re- 

 cent Lecture by Rev. E. Sydney, delivered be- 

 fore the Royal Institution of London — (one 



before which every man who does speak, must 

 be on his guard) — and it happens to be witliin 

 our knowledge, as it may be in our power to 

 show, that his views had been, for the most part, 

 bj' some w^eeks anticipated, to the effect we have 

 already intimated. Finally, we may venture to 

 promise by the aid of a friend, to keep our read- 

 ers acquainted with what may transpire, as far 

 as any usefid purpose is to be accomplished, or 

 the novel or lately revived subject of EJectro- 

 Vegef.ation. Without his aid, in the midst of 

 such elements, we are free to confess it, we 

 .should feel in some danger of being drowned or 

 blown up. 



For an early and verj^ interesting paper on 

 this subject, the reader is referred to the April 

 number of the American Agriculturist, from the 

 pen of Mr. Norton, a most valuable contributor 

 to that very enlightened journal. In that paper 

 occurs the following passage : 



" It was at first expected that manure would 

 bo of no further use, but it is now said that its 

 action will be much more powerful with the 

 help of this new ally." 



On that passage the following remarks wore 

 made by the gentleman (Mr. Seely) member of 

 the Agricultural Association to whom we have 

 already alluded. With these remarks, (sections 

 of a lecture delivered before the Agricultural 

 Association,) which we have been kindly per- 



