362 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Jime 9, 1826. 



culture contain a paper on grassee.byDrS. Rick- 1 seed arc exported from Pennsylvania to Great 

 etson, of Dutchess county. He says " Timothy is ' Britain. The introduction of gypsum (plaister of 

 generally, in this country [where he was writing] Paris) into that state, subsequent to the Revolu- 

 called herd's grass, but erroneously." But the er- ' tion, enabled her farmers generally, to commence 

 ror, probably, lies with the doctor. If the tradi- ! and e.-vtcnJ the cultivation of clover, beyond any 

 tion before recited from Dr Eliot's Essays be cor- \ otlier part of the union. 



rect and the universality of the name of the 



grass in Now England, and in the adjoining ter- 

 ritory of New York, filled with New England 



irrants and their descendants, renders it high- 

 ly probable — we ojght still, in these Northern 



emi. 



.May 90, 18'>ij. 



EXAMINER. 



FIELD MICE. 



Sir — In your 43d No. Mr Cranston has very 



laudably called the attention of farmers, to tlie 



- - „ • Ti J, /^ ; „„„-„ If ;fo ' preservation of their fruit trees from ^eW mice; 



States to call it Herd's Grass, in memory ot its - f u„ f !„., i a 



I and recommends a bandage or tea chest lead. As 



this material cannot be obtained for a general si(p- 



I yard. Such a material was long sought for in this 

 country, without success. It lias been considered 

 tlie principal or only thing necessary to enable us 

 to make ware as fine as that of Europe and China. 

 We understand that Eben. Seccomb, Esq. of Sa- 

 lem, has been appointed agent for the sale of the 

 above mentioned clay, to whom all a!)[)licatious 

 concerning it may be addressed. 



first finder and cultivator. If the first cultivator 



of Herd's Grass in what are now the Middle 



States, had the surname of Timolhy (and it has 



been understood there was a ftmily of that name) 



from him it would be likely to receive a new name, 



given to it by those who received the seed from 



him. Clover appeared from Dr Eliot's Essays, to 



be an article of common or frequent culture in . , , .. , u i i 



^ ■ . .1 . p „ „...„„„„. or,,i lured vv'here this has been applied 

 Connecticut, three quarters of a century ago ; and J , , ,, .-. '^^ 



ply, you will permit me to propose a substitute, 

 equally ett'ectual, both cheap and abundant. I 

 have long been in the practice of guarding my 

 trees from mice, with strong, coarse wrapping pa- 

 per, secured with twine. If made from oakum it 

 is more durable. I have never known a trc; in- 



subsequent to the Revolution clover seed was im- 

 ported into Philadelphia from New England ; al- 



1 fully accord with Mr Cra.nbto.w in tha uiility 

 of applying ivood ashes to peach trees ; but not in 



, .. ., , „„.„.,„„.;.;„, „f ,i,„, ' the (/«(()i(i<i/ he recommends, unless with a view 



though now It seems that great quantities ot that! i J ' 



to the sate oj trees Jroni my .yarscry. 1 wo quarts, 

 applied in Mr Cranston's mamier, is as much as 

 I dare to use. In a wet season more may after- 

 wards be added. They may perhaps bear a '■ bush- 

 el repeated every year," if applied gradually — but 

 if put round at once, I should suppose it v.'ould 

 destroy a sturdy white oak. Several of my neigh- 

 bors have lost trees by the application of asliss. — 

 Upon enquiry of one, he stated his belief from 

 his own experience, that three quarts of crude 

 ashes would destroy the largest sized peacL tree. 



of East Jersey. Dv .\Iuhleubu;»h thinks it is the 

 agroslis siricia of Wildenow. It/is pailicularly adapt- 

 ed to wet, low giounds. It mat( and coiisolidatts the 

 surface, continuts maoy years, excluding every other 

 grass, aad all weeds. Many wcrthless swampy spots 

 iu the low parts of the state of Sew Jersey have been 

 rendered valuable grazing grouofs by this grass, load- 

 ed wagons hik-ing passed over jplaces, which two or 

 three years before sowing it, would scarcely admit ao 

 animal to walk through without fiiking. (t makes ex- 

 cellent hay, and cattle are said to prefer it to that made 

 of either clover or timothy, k ismore succulent than 

 limolhy though not so coarse. I The same bulk of 

 herd's grass hay will weigh ouethird more than the 

 same bulk of timothy hay. Fojir Ions is a common 

 crop, bnt affords excellent late And early pasture. It 

 ->va3 first brought lo New Jersey froru Wew Kngland by 

 the late V\'illiam Foster, who rtjfiiJeJ near Mouut Hol- 

 ly, and iutroduccd iuto i'cuusvlvania uLout ten or 

 twelve years since." 



Mr Buel, in his treatise "On the Cultivation of 

 Grasses," status that " seve-.'>l attempts to cultivate 

 <he florin in the UniteJ SfJiles, have failed, probably 

 for want of the labour an'' attention reqnisite in pre- 

 paring the ground." II: observes also that " accoid- 

 ing to Eaton's Manual the white top is the ^giotlu 



alba, and the red lop the Jlgrmtis lulgaTis.''^ 



" The xvhile top and rerf tap are natives of our country, 

 and are A'aluable fi'r bay and pasture, on giounds 

 adapted totheir growth, winch are reclaimed swamps 

 and moist swales. Seed niay be procured in almost 

 any town, by permitting the grass to come lo maturity. 

 It is sold under the name of hertfa ^raa, at Baltimore, 

 at from $i!,30 to $3,00 the bushel." 



Mr Curtis, an Errglishman, who has written on 

 grasses, in treating oi"the Agrostis says, '■^ I have expe- 

 rienced more ditFicuUy in ascertaining the several spe- 

 cies of this genus than all the others put together 



It is rather singular that the opinion of my neigh 

 bor sliould differ so materially from Mr Crans- 

 ton's, as it is to be presumed Jiey are both foind- 

 ed on erperiments and facts. 



Another correspondent on the subject of the 

 " cut worm" recommends that plants be dressed 

 in a coat of mail of tin ; and requests those who 

 know a better way of contending with tlie enemy 

 to make it public tlirougli the medium of the N. E. 

 Farmer. To "search out the spoiler, and kill 

 him," is the very best course : but as his existence 

 is not known except by his ravages, I make a 

 fortress for my plants with paper instead of tin, 

 winding it conically and firmly above the root and 

 secured by a low embankmenl of earth. Tliij is 

 impregnable to their assaults. 



Respectfully yours, 



Worcester, May 37, 1896. O. FISKE. 



REMEDY AGAINST THE APPLE TREE 



BORER. 

 Mr Editor — The Hon. Nathaniel Gilman 

 The Appendix to Davy's Agricultural Chemistry, iu who in various particulars has manifested a prac- 



', tical wisdom much above the common advance- 

 [ ment of the age, Iras been accustomed to drive 



detailing the experiments of Mr Siuclaii', nicutious uo 



less than twelve varieties of agrostis, viz. Agrostis can- 



ina, broivn-bent, agrostis canina var. mutica, awnless i „,. ■ . ^i i , i i , , . 



brown hent-fascicularis, tufted-leaved bent--lobatH, I P'"»^ mto the holes made by borers in apple trees 



lobtd bent grass— uicxicana, [introduced 1780, by M. 1 ^^^ ^ remedy against this insect. This year I saw 



G. Alexander] — nivea, snowy bent grass — palustris 

 March bent grass — repens, creeping rooted beiil — stric- 

 ta, upright htnt grass [probably our fowl meadow] — 

 stoloiiifera, fioiin, creeping bent — stoloiiifora var. au- 

 gustifolia, cifceping bent narrow leaves — vulgaris, fine 

 bent grass. How many of these can be found in this 



liis trees, and found his experiments liad, in ai: 

 encouraging degree succeeded ; and he expressed 

 it as his opinion that when this was resorted to in 

 season it w ould be of essential service. Tire prin- 

 ciple upon which this practice is founded is ex 



CO intry, and what are their properties and relative K'luding the air, and thus causing the death of this 

 value, are qurstions which we cannot decide on. [destroyer. 



The florin we should believe cannot have much re- 

 sr'mblance to our fowl meadow ; for one is a creejiiug, 

 and the other ^n U])ri;,'ht pUrit. Kiorin, moreover, if 

 we are righlly^fnrineil 15 nsually propagated by slips, 

 strings or short pieces of the plant ; but I'owl meadow 

 i)y seeds lii;'.- o'.her grasses. — EniTOK.l 



Essex county, June 18"2(1. 



WHITE CLAY. 

 A large bed of pure wliitc clay has boon discol'- 

 ercd on the farm of Capt. Luce, at Martha's Vine- 



CHEESE. 

 [by the editor.] 



When cheeses are made from unskimmed milk 

 they are called new milk cheeses, although a part 



of the milk has been kept over night, or longer 



These are the richest and most valuable. Two 

 meal cheeses are made of the evening's milk skim- 

 med, mixed with the morning's milk unskimmed. 

 Two-meal cheeses, when well made, without any 

 mixture of sour milk are almost as valuable as new 

 milk. A third sort is made of milk, the whole of 

 which has been skimmed. These are of course of 

 the least value. If your milk be not just come 

 from the cows, make it blood warm, and put in 

 your rennet, but no more than will just make the 

 curd come. Add an ounce of fine salt to as much 

 curd as will make a cheese of fifteen pounds, and 

 in proportion for a greater or less. Stir the curd 

 till it is gatliered ; put it in a strainer, and with 

 your hands work out all the whey ; then lay it in 

 a clean linen clo'.h, put it in the press, and lot ii 

 stand there two hours ; then take it out, rub it 

 over with fi:;e salt, put it in another dry cloth, and 

 put it in the press eight hours ; then take it out 

 again, put it in another I'ry cloth, and put it in 

 tlie press again, where it is to remain till the next 

 clieose is ready. When taken .out of the press, 

 put it in brine twenty-four hours, and add to the 

 brine about a tea spoonful of saltpetre. Some 

 little additions of salt and salt pelre must be oc- 

 casionally made to the brine ; and lot it he cleans- 

 ed as soon as necessary by heating it and taking 

 I off the scum. When you take the cheese out, dry 

 it with a cloth ; bind it round with a long string 

 lo make it keep its shape, whicji must be kept 

 round it for some days, and let it be d:;i!y turned 

 on the slielf, for two months. 



J Various receipts for making runnct have been 

 given by different writers. The following is sim- 

 ple, and, perhaps, as good as any. Empty the 

 inaw of its curd ; wasli it slightly, soak it. with 

 strong brine till it is well salted ; dry it on 

 boughs made for tire purjiose ; then take two 

 quarts of strong brine that will bear an egg. blood 

 warm, and let the maw steep in tliis twenty-four 

 ' hours, when tire liquor will be fit for use ; bottle 

 I it up, and cork it tight, and it will keep for a 

 I twelve month,, .\bout a tea cup full will be sufE- 

 I cient for the milk of ten cows. Some direct spices, 

 I and a lemon sliced to be put into this liquor. The 

 [ rennet bag may also be salted and dried, as before 

 directed, and pieces of it occasionally used, by 

 being previously soaked in warm water, and a 

 quantity of this water used in proportion to the 

 quantity of milk to be turned. 



The acid contained in the maw- is very apt to 

 become rancid, and to putrefy, if a sufficiency of 

 salt be not applied ; care muit therefore be taken 

 to prevent this, by as much salt of the strongest 

 kind as the rennet will receive. 



In Holland it is said, that the cheesemakers use 

 no rennet : but, instead of this, tliey use a small 

 portion of sea-salt (muriatic acid) for forming the 

 curd. Tljis is said to give the cheese a taste some- 



