ORIGIN JV£> GCaSMt^S^ICATlOHS. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



[Jan. 13, 



r be 



XfOR THE KEW ENGLAND FARMCK. 



No. 9. 

 AGRICULTURAL REPORT. 

 The Committee on AgricuItnriU Es>)erimenls, 

 recommend lliat the ^Trustees autliorize the 

 Treasurer of the Society to pay premiums to 

 the following persons, in addition to those nam- 

 ed in their report of the 2P'.h of October last, 

 to wit : — 



To Messrs. Thistram and HENr.v Little, of 

 Newbury, in the county of Essex, luenly dol- 

 lars, for having raised the greatest quantily of 

 Mangel Wurtzel, heing 924 bushels on one acre. 

 A description of their culture is as I'ollovvs," upon 

 a clay soil, the most stubborn and sterile tliat we 

 think of tilling, the said lot has lain down to 

 grass since the year 1812, until the summer of| 

 1823, when it was jiioughed, and'pluntcd with ' 

 potatoes, and would not have teen ploughed 

 then but to destroy the white weed \villi which 

 it is infested; the soil on the most pail of the 

 lot is so thin that in ordinary cases it breaks and 

 cracks; the other part of the lot is more fit for 

 the plough ; this will show that tlie Mangel 

 AVurtzel root will thrive on a clay, though per- 

 haps not to that size w iiich it will do on a more 

 loamy soil. In 182-1 tliis jiicce of land was cul- 

 tivated with potatoes, and manured in the hill 

 with about 10 ox carl loads of good manure to 

 the acre; and yielded about 100 bushels. In 

 April 1825, the land was twice ploughed, one 

 plough following the other, which threw it up 

 in ridges aboul one rod and a half wide, and j 

 wide furrows were left to carry ofl' the super- 

 fluous moisture. The ridges made smooth with' 

 a harrow, and furrows opened on l.'ie rid^'es a-' 

 hout 2^ feet apart, and 10 ox cart loads ot'com-! 

 post manure were put in the furrows, which was j 

 covered with a double mould-board plough; they; 

 were sowed and cultivated similar to the state j 

 ment made in page 215, vol. VIII of the Massa- 1 

 chusetls Agricultural Repository ; and harvest- ] 

 ed between the 1st and 1 Itb of November; the I 

 produce was 23 loads and 16 bushels; 2 aveiage: 

 loads were v/eighed, the weigher's certificate 

 will show the u eight of the crop. 



Messrs. T. and II. Littlc are also entitled to 

 the Society''s premium of j^2t), for having raised 

 '"he greatest quantity of Barley, lieing 51i bush- i 

 _ls on ?.n acre; " the soil is a clay loam, in 1821 

 was planted with potatoes and nianured with a- 

 l)oat 30 ox carl loads of manure to the acre, the 

 ninnure was principally marsh mud, put in the, 

 drill, and something like 2(10 bushels were ob- 

 tained. In 1825, ,^pril 23d, it was ploughed, 

 and 2J bushels of Barley were sowed on the 

 same, 4 loads of diit or diist drawn from under; 

 the barn were spread on one half of the piece, 

 on the other part one half load of leached ashes 

 were sinaad, which half load, thin as the dress- 

 ing was, we think was as good as the dressing 

 on the other i)an — it svas harvested on the 27lh 

 of July, threshed as soon as convenient ; and the 

 aggregate was 51 J- bushels." 



To Joscpii Little, Esq. of Newbury, the pre- 

 mium of g20 for having raised the greatest quan- 

 tity of common English Turnips on one acre, 

 DsiDg 811 bushels; " the soil, says Mr Little, is 



what would be g^enerally clayey loam ; it hadiWIicat was cradled ihc 2Tlh of July; on the 

 been 7 years to grass, and so long without anyi28lh and 29lh it \v;is bound up — the number of 

 manure that it produced short of one half a ton: sheaves being about 800, and carted to the barn 

 of Hay when it was taken off the last of June ; — Sept. Gth the ihresbing was finished, the ciop 

 the lirst of July it was ploughed and harrowed j being 37 bushels & -1 quarts of excellent Wheat 

 well, after ivhich it was furrowed at a distance j so pure from the mixture of other grain, tliat I 

 of nearly 3 feet, and 25 ox cart loads of compost I think I may hazard the assertion that not 100 

 manure strewed along ihe furrows, the compost j kernels of any other grain can he found in the 

 was made of 13 loads of slrongearlh, taken from whole product. I weigheil one bushel and found 

 pond holes and sunken places, and C loads from I it to be 65 pounds ; Ihe superfine flour from the 

 under Ihe beds of the cattle m the barn ; and the iSame being 47 pounds, with several pounds of 

 same number of loads from tb.e vaults of privy i middlings. The straw when housed being re- 

 houses; which was twice or Ihrice thrown over ; markably light, I cor.sider equal to one Ion of 

 for the purpose of equalizing the whole as to ' goud hay. Yuu will perceive, Gentlemen, that 

 strength; Ihe manure was then covered with a j ni y expenses on crops are generally much be- 

 double mould-board plough, the seed was so>vn'yf'ud my brethren of the sod ; yet I do affirm 

 with a machine made for the pur|iose, one rowi tliat a wheat crop can be [inlilaldy grown in oKl 

 on each ridg(! ; Ihe quantity of seed was nearly j Massachusetts, if our lands be properly prepared. 

 4 pounds, perhaps half that quantity would have Tlie value of the crop g65.50 — entire expense 

 been suflicieni; Ihe ridges were rolled over with 1 of raising the same ;^32.92. 



a hand roller; when Ihe Turnips wt^reofsomel Mr Williams is also entitled to the Societ»'s 

 bigness they were thinned by haml at a distance ; primium of ;J20 for having raised the greatest 



quantity of Potatoes, being 609^ bushels on one 

 ajtrc : '• the field is near Ihe top of a gentle 

 sivcll or hill inclining to the South and East, 

 the soil a deep yellow loam, bedded on a 



of about 8 inches, and afterwards were hoed 

 once only; but Ihe weeds were pulled out by 

 hand ; the crop was harvested the 1st of Novem- 

 ber, by myself and boy, and my hired man by the 



name of Kiunison, whose certificate is enclosed; >^(ratum of blue gravel, Ihe hardness of a well 

 there were by accuriite measurement 811 bush- j beaten road, the field 7 years ago produced an 

 els. The entire exjiense of ploughing, harrow-| amount sufficient lo draw the Society's premium 

 ing, getting the seed into Ihe ground, incUxiingj h)r the greatest crop of Potatoes, — the year fol- 

 lowing ihe Society's premium lor the greatest 

 quanlily ofSpring.Giluiiin Wheat; since ihalpt- 

 ,rioJ I have taken trom it from one to two tons of 

 Uy annually. In the fall of 1824, the sward was 

 urnud under; the following Spring at"lerspread- 

 ng on 13 loads of aniermenteil manure from sheep 

 nd neat cattle, it was cross ploughed, harrowed 

 ou 11, and furrowed 3 feet distant, and one large 

 otatoe placed at two feet distance Ihe oliicr way, 

 itod lightly covered ; the planting was finished 



1^25 for the manure, was tilty-three dollars.' 



To Pavson Williams, Esq. of Filchburgh, for 

 having raised the greatest quantity of Spring 

 Wheat on one acre, being 37 bushels, the pie- 

 mium ofj'j20; the culture of his crop as !ollo^vs: 

 " after taking of]' a crop of Potatoes (500 bush- 

 els) raised in 1824, ami about the setting in of 

 winter, the field was llirown into ridges by al- 

 ternate back furrows ; 1 had two ends to answer 



by Ibis furrowing: the field being a slightly in- the middle of May ; weeding finished Ihe 1st of 

 clined plane, pitching to Ihe east, would drain June; the 2d and last hoeiug Ilia last of June: 



after which the weeds were pulled as occasion 

 required, 'till Ihe to|is of Ihe potatoes covered 

 Ihe ground. The excessive drought Ihe past 



sooner the I'cillowing spring wilhoiit danger of 

 washing; and, secondly, lo learn if the family 

 of grubs would stand our hard winters in the 



open air. About the middle of April 1 split the j Summer was undoubtedly an injury lo Ihe cro| ^ 

 ridges, and when sufliciently warm and dry, j Imi not to so great a ilegree as to other fields 

 ploughed Ihe other way deep and fine — sowed i planted in ihe old fashion way 4 feet asunder, 

 3 bushels of Oilman wheal, well limed, 1 bushel j as at the most critical lime my vines covered 

 of Herds Grass and Red Tcf), and 4 pounds of [ the ground, thereby interposing a [>;irtial shield 

 Red Clover seed — harrowed this in across Ihe ^ io the scorching r:iys of an almost killing sun. 

 furrow ; at this time the soil was warm and fine-. From repealed experiments I am conliimed in 

 ly pulverized, ejicept sever.il rods at the south i (he belief that in our mode of culture 3 feet by 

 end of the lot, which was rather moist ; the rol- i 2 feel is as good, and (uobably Ihe best distance 



ler was now passed over Ihe held. The l-4lh 

 jiart of the field, the most moist, was again 

 ploughed and harrowed ; this part of the field, 

 at harvest, showed large straw, but less amount 

 of ear or head than that left under the roller. 1 

 menlion the result of this experiment (he more 

 readily, as 1 had previously been much averse 

 to Ihe use of the roller at the time ol sowing, 

 but am now of the opinion, that if Ihe earth be 

 light and warm at sowing,lhe roller may be used 

 lo advantage, il the land be not too rocky, inas- 

 much as all small stones may be put out of the 

 way of Ihe scythe; Ihe crop of wheal probably 

 enduring the drought better. When ihe Wheal 

 plants were about 4 inches high, 1 sowed on them 

 4 barrels of strong wood ashes; whether Ihe 

 ashes had any effect lo check the worm or mag- 

 got which h;id usually attacked my wheat at the 

 root, 1 know not; but will sl;ilc that no such at 



for Potatoes. 'I'he kind of seed used Ihe pres- 

 ent season were in part the Rio de la Plata or 

 Reds, and part Pennsylvania Blues; Iheir pro- 

 duce side by side was nearly equal. The quan- 

 tity of seed used was 30 bushels of the finest 

 Potatoes of the preceding Crop; small unripe 

 seed never should be planted ; the Crop was 

 harvested between Ihe 23d and 29lh of October, 

 the amount C09i bushels, many of which weigh- 

 ed 2lbs. each. Before closing this statement I 

 will give it as my opinion that had 1 placed Ihe 

 manure in Ihe hills, instead of spreading it on 

 :ind ploughrng in the same, I should not have 

 hid 500 bushels; and as n)y further belief ihal 

 hid ibere been no drought 1 should have had 

 o>er 700 bushels from ibe acre: The value of 

 the Crop j;5l52 33, the entire expense of break- 

 ing up the field, of the manure, and spreadino- 

 on Ihe samn, hoeing, harrowing, and liarvesring 



lack was suffered the present season. The I ihe Crop, 5554 33, leaving a profit of ^97 55." 



