432 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



[No. 7 



able lo do it. Rtsolved to serve a thorough appren- 

 ticeship, I superiiitetuied tlie cultivation of the 

 mulberry, and devoted all my time to the wormg, 

 guided entirely by the directions in your valuable 

 paper, and Mr. Cubb'c: Manual, having never seen 

 any thing of the business. Tlie woms were as 

 !ar<Te as are described, and perfectly heahhrul, of 

 which I had 2000, a-ui between 200 and 300; not 

 more than 10 or 12 died, and those during the last 

 mr>ulling. Tlie silk is strong and of a fine lustre. 

 The wo"rms commenced their labors on the 28th 

 day, and on the 31st, ten cocoons were formed. The 

 thermometer during the time of their existence, 

 except two nights, was between 70 and 80" hans- 

 int' in the house. — St. Thomas is in Lat. 42^° 

 and 8." 



Apprehending I had too great a number of 

 worms for the Ibliage, 1 did not very closely exam- 

 ine the litter, and had it thrown upon the hedge ; 

 between 20 and 30 worms were discovered there, 

 which grew even faster than those in the house, 

 until they had attained half their size, when they, 

 one after another, disrippeared, till they were all 

 o-one except two, which grew larger than those in 

 the house, and had begun to form a cocoon, but 

 the next morning both were gone; they were car- 

 ried ort, I suppose, by birds, as no dead ones 

 were ever (bund. I have been thus circumstan- 

 tial, that if any one else should be induced to at- 

 tempt the culture of silk in this province, and ap- 

 ply to you, sir, for your opinion of success, to fur- 

 nish you with information of one successful 

 instance. At present, the public mind is too much 

 occupied with warlike turmoils, to take any interest 

 in this new branch of rural economy, but I think 

 there are some individuals, whose skepticism is 

 removed and who will undertake it. 



I have already given you a longer communica- 

 tion than I intended, yet I am desirous of inform- 

 ing you of the management of a part of my hedge, 

 the exact manner o!' which, I have not seen in the 

 Culturist, and may possibly be of use. Two years 

 ago, I employed an English gardener, to transplant 

 some seedlings to complete the hedge around the 

 premises ; he suggested to me that setting them 

 in the same way they practised in England with 

 the thorn, would be the best way to cultivate the 

 mulberry ; and 1 directed him to seta part of the 

 plants in that manner, which so far exceeded the 

 others, in rapid growth and luxuriance, I regret 

 the whole had not been done in the same way 

 He says, they ought to have been cut off last 

 spring wi'hin about 3 or 4 inches of the roots 

 which I have had done this. He first threw the 

 earth up with a spade, as the beds are for garden 

 vegetables, about six inches, and laid the plants 

 horzontally six inches apart, and covered them 

 with 7 or 8 inches of mould,* and then put down 

 another layer between the f^rst plants, and cover- 

 ed them about 8 or 9 inches deep. 



I am happy to hear of the progress of the silk 

 culture in the U. S., and li^el a peculiar interest in 

 the success of my own native state, Massachusetts, 

 and should be much pleased to spe the Canadians 

 engaged in the same business, and imitating the 

 zeal and enterprise of their translake neighbors. 

 Most respectfully, Sir, 



Your most obedient, 



Betsy M. Bostwjck. 



THE NE3WESX AND GREATEST HL'MBUG YET 

 AWNOUNCEH, 



From tlie Maine Farmer. 



Gigantic Clover, — A late number of the Lon- 

 don Globe, contains the fullowing account of a 

 new species of clover, the seed of which has just 

 been brought into that country from Asia: 



"A gentleman has just arrived from Georgia, 

 who has brought with him a new collo.«sal and 

 prolific clover seed from Buckhara, which he is 

 going to submit to Mr. Loudon. According to 

 the accounts of the most celebrated travellers, 

 who have visited that distant and important coun- 

 try, which is equal in climate to Great Briian, all 

 grains, herbs and vegetables distinguish tliemselvce 

 by their gigantic growth. The clover seed just 

 imported, grows to the enormous height of twelve 

 or filteen liiet, and can be cut every month: But 

 this is not the only valuable property of this most 

 extraordinary production of the vegetable king- 

 dom. Out of the stem a hemp is prepared, which 

 is so highly esteemed in the distant region of 

 of which it is a native, that preference is given to 

 it over all other sorts. 



Sliould the plan succeed in England, and of 

 which there can be but little doubt, it will form 

 a new era, by rendering this country independent 

 of foreign supplies of clover seed. It is fortunate 

 that it has arrived in time to be tried this year. It 

 must be sown in April. It is said that each grain 

 will produce 300,000 seeds." 



We advise the humbug dealers of this coun- 

 try, such as have originated the selling of "Chi- 

 nese tree corn," for charity, and are selling mul- 

 ticaulis seed; &c. &c., to hasten by all means 

 to possess themselves some of these wonderful 

 clover seeds ; or, if that cannot be done, to call 

 some other seeds by the same name, which will 

 perhaps serve as well — especially if they should 

 be careliilly baked, or otherwise sufficiently healed, 

 before being sold, to prevent the purchasers being 

 disappointed in the character of the product. But 

 whether baked or raw, they should of course be 

 sold without any guaranty of the character or vi- 

 tality — and for at least as high a price as t\oo-crop 

 mammoth silk-ivorms egp:s — or otherwise we doubt 

 much whether the greatest demand will be se- 

 cured. 



Leaving one bud on the edge uncovered. 



ADVAKTAGE OF LATE SOWING OF BEARDED 

 WHEAT. 



To the Editor of the Farmers' Register. 



Madison, June 1\H, 1839. 



Having uniformly lailed in the culture of beard- 

 ed wheat, without knowing at the time the cause, 

 and knowing that many others have been as un- 

 successful as mysellj I have determined to assign 

 what is said (and what I believe) to be the cause. 

 It is early seeding. 



When I commenced farming some six or seven 

 years auo, I was induced to sow twenty bushels 

 of this wheat, which in consequence of being on 

 wet land, was sown as early as the lOtli or 12th 



