FARMERS' REGISTER. 



[No. 5 



ficient to enable us to determine the itlenlity o( a 

 nlant I have no doubt of Ihcir havinj:; been pre- 

 pared with f.'reat labor ; but Ironi the circumslance 

 that most of them were drawn from garden speci- 

 mens subject to variation, 1 do not value them 



very hio'lily." 



Had The correspondent of the Farmers' Regis- 

 ter stated in his dcscri|)tion, to what extent the 

 plant was smooth or pubescent, the identica spe- 

 cies mi"ht perhaps have been accurately deter- 

 mined. ° Clavton. 



SUPERIORITY OF BLUE MARL. 



To the Editor of the farmers' Register. 



Lowndes, Alabama. 

 I see in your last No. a suggestion that blue 

 marl contains an enriching substance, beyond the 

 lime which is lound in it. Of this, I have lor 

 years been convinced. I have known it to give 

 more support to crops for four successive years, 

 than even stable manure. The best row of cot- 

 ton I ever saw, was on a ridge ol blue marl dug 

 out of a ditch lour feet deep, and when thrown out 

 of the ditch looked like poor blue clay nuxed with 

 lime. By exposure to the sun and air, it became 

 black, and richer in appearance, and is now the 

 most productive spot in a body of as rich land as 

 there is in the state. Its superiority is probably 

 increased by its elevation over the adjoining land, 

 particularly for cotton. I should certainly like to 

 see an analysis of blue marl by Prof. Rogers or 

 Ducatel. With great respect, I am, 



My dear sir, your Iriend, 

 And obedient servant, 

 Dixon H. Lewis. 



OBSERVATIONS MADE IN ITALY ON THE USE 

 OF LEAVES IN FEEDING CATTLE. 



By John Symonds, L. L. D. Professor of Modern 

 History in the University of Cambrdge. 



From the Annals of Agriculture. 



Among the various kinds of winler-food provi- 

 ded for cattle in Italy, the use oi' leaves is not the 

 least considerable. This branch of husbandry 

 was introduced a few years ago in the Fcrrarese; 

 and is adopted universally in Italy, except in the 

 dutchy of Mantua, which of all countries seems to 

 stand most in need of it; for, as the landlords have 

 suffered most of the pastures to be broken up, and 

 as the culture of artificial grasses is liiile under- 

 stood, the cattle subsist more precariously duri^ng 

 the winter, than in any other part of luily. The 

 city of Rome is furnished chieliy wiih oxen from 

 the territory of Perugia ; and the Roman markets 

 are known to be plentifully supplied with beef of a 

 very good quality ; yet, so scarce is hay in the ter- 

 ritory'above-mentioned, that the oxen have no 

 other sustenance in the winier than turnips and 

 leaves; but the turnip husbandry is so ill execuleAl, 

 that I did not wonder lite peasants assured me, 

 that they placed no small dependence u|)on leaves. 

 Indeed it is esteemed so important an object in 

 Italian agriculture, that substantial advantages 

 are often sacrificed to it ; for, instead of supporting 

 their vines by stakes, and keeping them very low, 



in order that the grapes might receive more heat, 

 and attain to lull perlection, they supi)ort them 

 for the most part with trees, not more with a view 

 of providio''- themselves with ILiel, than of reeer- 

 vin"- the leaves fbr their cattle. Kims and pop- 

 lars'' are most commonly planted for this purpose 

 in Lombardy; but the latter are more frequent in 

 the kingdom of Naples, where they are sutlered 

 to grovv to an astonishing height. The common 

 ash is sometimes used as a stay fbr vines ; though 

 the flowering ash* is generally preferred to it : 

 the manna-treet, as it is vulgarly called, is never 

 applied to this use, being confined lor the most 

 part to lofty hills, or rocky precipices]: ; but the 

 leaves of it are as carefully preserved, as those of 

 the other sorts of ash. They hold in great es- 

 teem the m.aple,§ which is well adapted to prop 

 the vines; and is not more remarkable for the 

 quickness ol its growth, and rapid increase of its 

 bulk, than for the uncommon size of its leaves. 

 In short, there are very liiw deciduous trees, which 

 do not administer Ibod to cattle, and evergreens 

 are not ne<rlecled ; lor, not to mention other sorts, 

 I have oftni seen the peasants in the neighbor- 

 hood of Naples takeoff all the leaves Irom the 

 ilex. It is observable, that the leaves of the oak 

 are less grateful to cattle in Italy, than those of any 

 other trees whatsoever, upon account of their hit- 

 ler taste and aslringency; but when they are mix- 

 ed with others, they are very well relished. 



To preserve the freshness and verdure ot the 

 leaves, requires a jxreat deal of attention. To ef- 

 lect this, thev gather ihem about the end of Sep- 

 tember, or the'^bcginning of October, at the time 

 of the day when the heals are most piercing; and 

 spread them very thin upon a pavement abroad, 

 where they suffer them to lie three or lour hours ; 

 after which they pat them into wooden calks, and 

 press them down as closely as possible ; and cover 

 them intirely with sand. The very moment alier 

 they have taken out the quantity which is wanted, 

 they stop up the casks, lest the leaves should be 

 exposed to the air ; by which method they are en- 

 abled to keep them both fresh and louder during 

 the whole winter. It is customary lor the peasanis 

 in some narls of Italy to bury them m a pit, tuid 

 to cover them with straw, upon which they lay ei- 

 ther clay or sand; and both are eijually calculated 

 to answer the purpose. But there is a pracuce in 

 the Veronese, which is deserving of particular no- 

 tice. The luisband-ncn sink a very broad deep pit, 

 and fill half of it with leaves; then they throw 

 over them l.nnclies of unripe grapes, about two 

 leet thick : alter which they put a layer of leaves 

 of the same thickness ; ami then another layer ot 

 grapes allernalcly, till ilie pit is quite lijll, when 

 They carelully protect it from the air. This not 

 only prevents the leaves fi-om heating, but iiu- 

 preo-nates them with a kind of sjjirit, which \no- 

 duc'es extranrdinary effects ; for the horned cattle 

 eat them with a greediness which can hardly be 

 conceived ; and tlie sheep are as eager to devour 



* Fraxinus Florifera botryoides. Moris, 

 t Fraxinus Orims Linn. Sp. plant. The common 

 name in Italy is Onio, or Ornello. ■ 



t Virgil lias characterized the Orni with his usual 



pronriety : ■ /~i 



J ; Steriles saxosis montibus Oini.— oeor^- 



n. V. III. , ■ • , 'PI, 



iS Acre majus folio roUuidiorc minus lacimalo. ii" 



1 vulgar name is Oppio. 



