iO 



Z[)t /amev's iUontl)lij llisitor. 



tlie,iis il, thai Ihtlhrmtram never be iooxnelbgen ■ 

 Mr. ll.Li. (.Hliu.r of ti.e Vi.ilor) saK , tlu.l wli le 

 naWi.ia iliio.mlJ li.e toun uf Ntnv l|.sw,cli lie 

 Lannticed li.e lann of Mr. I'iesioi., represen- 

 tal.vH Iroiii lliat tou-.i, wimin lio .«aw iMCSCit. 

 Mr P. at till! liiiM^ (le.sciil.ia lo liim lii.-^ l)ioCCfc!> 

 ofoillivalion, ul.irh liiul pn.viMl reinaiUal.ly ^m- 

 ce«sf(il in Vciiovaliu- trac.is cl' inlcnor land. Jli- 

 Hill uomI.I I.o ala.l lo Ik'ui- Ins exi-uiience rcca- 

 D.tiilaleil a'jain al lliis li'i"-'- , , , , , „ 



Mr Prkston s^ai'l ll'at lie f^lioiild bo very tiap- 

 ,,y u."relaie ii so far a. it .ni^lil 1« woriliy ol Uie 

 ittenlion of ibe fjeiitle.nen ^vlm, I.erlia,.s 1 . ul 

 as^Pinlileil liere to listen to soiii.llnoi; ot rno e 

 int.-resi. AUIio.igli feeble in boaltli ami, recently, 

 l,r ,nuo.l. of .be%iine pliysically . isabloiJ Ironi 

 doinf: the liar.l work of a ,.rac.,<-al ';'n>,'er, ..^1 

 also bein-e.n;a-,ed in anotlier pursuit (J... I. l^ 

 a lawyer) be ha.l of lale years engaged be.nt 

 and band, as bis bealtb uonl. perniit, ni t be 

 i.ractice of agricuUni-e, bavmg been brougb ip 

 o tbat pnrs,ii( in bis youth. The hekl wineli be 

 had sliown to Mr. Hill comprised 45 acres ul 

 what n.igbl be called poor or worn-ont land. 

 TrfK be purcliased lor $333, and comnieiiced Ins 

 oneratioas uilli a viesv to reclaim it-opennijjan 

 account, cbargin- bis expenditures and crediting 

 tbe crops, &c; At first be bad no team ot bis 

 own, but bired one and took nianine from a 

 stable, wbicb, mixed mil. "slies, wa. m'^^f '^ 

 a part of ibe laud at tbe rale ot 20 loads to t k, 

 .„■'(• l'"roiii Ibis (we nn.lerstood bnn to say) be 

 ;.„l I'liree tmis of bay to tbe acre, tbehrst year, 

 ul.icli bron-bl $45, or $15 per ton. On alio bu 

 part be applied, l.y spreading, unleacbed asbe. 

 45bnsl.elsto tbe acre; ibis liUew.se i>roduce,l 

 llnee tons lo tbe acre. 



Mr P bad anollun- field o( eigbt acres, pre ty 

 full of i;ranitP, on a side-bill witli tbe land slo- 

 ,,i„„. to tbe west andsoulb-west. Jn order to snlj- 

 Jbie'it be plongbedfonr acres Willi a side-bill 

 nIo.K'b, and sowed witb oats after pimnig on two 

 ,„sl,el.s .,f plaster to tbe acre. Prom tins be 

 P.i^ed 113 bnsbels to Ihe acre. Alter getting out 

 J .atones, be again plougbed tbe same lonr 

 aces, munured i^ willi 400 loads of compost, and 

 a'„i„ .owed oats witb grass seed. Tbe crop 

 was 200 bnsbels of oats, and six tons ot bav% al- 

 ,h,„„b tbe season was dry. Last year Ib4., 

 lV„„;tbe otber four acres be raised 93 bushels ot 

 o.H-havii.g applied no manure. Ibis year be 

 ,,hl on 100 loails of manure, and passed a roller 

 '.ver the land. The crop from lour acres was 

 212 bnsbels. , 



Mr Preston coiiiinucd, and gave a dcscriplion 

 of'bii mode of sowing wheat and gfass. Alter 

 plou-bing in Ilic fall, be was accustomed to roll 

 Ii,,; Uiid down n.t. Tbefolbnving spring be 

 nut on compost manure, ploughed and rolled 

 .'.ain -raisini.'25 bushels from tbree-lourths ol 

 an acre. He was in tbe habit ol plonghmg the 

 fir-l lime to the depth of about or 7 mches; 

 afierwards .leeper. In sowing grass speeds, he 

 ,„„ on balfa bushel of herds grass.Oor 8 pounds 

 ,1- clover and a bushel of re.l-top to the acre, 

 i-rom l.md on which be lormerly cut but a ton 

 ,ud a half, he now cms 10 tons. The wheat 

 vvhlcb 1 e sowed was called, in Ins yicinity, the 

 '^Jlack Sea"-a bald wheat; bo believed, how- 

 ever, that there are dia'ercui varieties ol the same 



""f'nie reporier being but litilo experienced m 

 prarlical farming, it vtill not be snr|,nsing it be 

 has made mistakes in skelchin' Mr. Ps remarks 

 -parlicularly lis ihcy were giv mv somewhat in 

 detail, and comi.rised a variety of estimates,. oiiie 

 of which we may have iii part n isunder,.|ood.] 



Mr. Mt-rcAi.K, (a member o( the Legislature 

 from Newport,)remarked tluU he was iiol a sci- 

 entific" farmer, allbungh one by practice u re- 

 gard to the laisinir of wIimI, be had always 

 VbonMillhal New Hampshire paid too IMoUWn- 

 ,i„n U. it. Too much money is .»ent out ot the 

 State to purchase this article, when we may as 

 well cultivate it at home. Most every (arm in 

 this .State has good land enough on it, to rai»e at 

 st^Miiddlin^crop. Mr. M. lives uearthebu- 

 .,ar river, in Sullivan county. The larmeis m 

 his vicin IV geuerallv think, be said, that t lieir 

 ::i:,ls ^oU good place liirwlicM. He uul 



raWed, for a few yars past, from 1.) to 2o Ix'sh- 

 • Islo the acre. In .lescribing his mmner ol 

 wheat cultivation. Mr. M. said that this year 

 (1814) be washed bis seed, and threw plastei into 

 ihpw^ater. He (.Innted late, and, from experionce. 



was satisfied that the ifeavil never touches wheal 

 w hen sou n late. On little over an acre ol land, 

 he raised 22 bushels and 3 pecks. Tbis,.allhougli 

 it may not, in otlic places, be considered a gieal 

 crop, was a large crop for the ground on uhicli 

 it was planted-^full twice as large as heexpecleU 

 Was the plaster the cause of ibe yield.-' He 

 sowed on this land a little over one and u bait 

 bushels of what is called the "Black Sea" wheat 

 -a bearded variety. Abbough the name is a 

 htnck one, be lia.l found that the flour grew 

 whiter tbe longer it was sown. The best crops, 

 he bad found, are raised in tbe coldest seasons; 

 for this reason he alwavs procured his "sea 

 wheat" from the South. Where this variety or- 

 i.-inallv came from, be was nnmtormed. 



l\L-."HiLL remarked tbat the Black Sea NVheat 

 was hroiigbt Ironi Odessa, a port on ihe Black 

 Seu in linssia ; it was named Irom the place 

 whence it came. A gentleman m Boston bad 

 imported it for this vicinity. Somfe oi it is beard- 

 ed, and some bald. In regard to the use ot plas- 

 ter, Mr. IL said tiiat it was difficult to tell bow it 

 operates. It seems lo do well in some places, 

 and not so in others. He believed it to be good 

 ill a dry season. In some cases where plaster 

 has been ap|)lied, and seed sown, it has been 

 found, that in the m.irniug after a dew, the dew 

 will remain longer upon the grass than vvbere 

 ilie land is otherwise treated. Piaster, Mr. 11. 

 believed, is but little used on the seaboard, al- 

 thou'di it is to a considerable exieni in tbe Coii- 

 MPeii^-nt river vallev. It is used but little in this 

 (Merrimack) couniv. He himself, however, bad 

 tried it; and on an acre of potato ground, where 

 be had applied 3 or 400 iionnds, be thought the 

 crop was improved a', least 25'per cent. 



Mr. CooKE. of Keene, said that Payson Wil- 

 liums, Esri. ot' Filcliburg, Mass., some years ago 

 brongiit home a quantity of the Pjlack Sea Ubeai 

 from Odessa, which was sown in ibat town.— 

 The first and second year it yielded poorly; the 

 third year, over 30 bushels were raised upon an 

 acre. Mr. C. sahl lliat this wheat, when hrst 

 introduced, took much like tbe famous " Brown 

 eorii." It had been successfiillv raised by the 

 jarmers of Cheshire county in this State— al- 

 tbougli be knew of none who had raised so large 

 a crop as Mr. Williams. 



Mr. Hill remarked that crops of this wheat 

 equallv as large had been raised in Merrimack 

 coniitv. He stated an instance, in the case ol 

 Mr Tallaut, of Caiiterbnrv. It is a sure cro|>, be 

 thou'rht, on high laiuls. Black Sea Wheat, im- 

 ported within Ihree years, can be obtained in 

 Lowell or Concord. 



Mr. Spaulding, of Piermont, made a sugges- 

 tion in relation to the superiority of this wheat 

 ill o-rbidlnff. Mr. Cookf. said that he had re- 

 nnnke.l this fact. He knew of instances where 

 the miller ran the bran through alter thehrst 

 ■rrindiuir, and obtained 8 or K) pounds ot flour. 

 Fie did not think tbe flour ii-oui tins wheat was 

 so white as sonie.bi.t consiilered the kernel more 

 solid than any otber wheat.. He remarked that 

 (here are four kinds of tbe " Black Sea, viz:— 

 while and red headed bearded, and white an. 

 red headed bald, ll is sometimes, al.-o, calleil 

 "Sinyrua Wheal." * . , 



William Low, Esq., of Concord, ex|.resse,l 

 bis preference for seeds grown smith ot the 

 ,v..i,'n in which they are planted In March 

 1843 he bad purchased bis seeds in Boslon. He 

 sowed that season :. bushel of oats, raised on 

 Cape Cod, which did not mihlew al all; w iile 

 Irom Ihe other oais be was miahle to raise ball 

 ,, croii. 'J'be Cape Cm! oats he again sowed last 

 spriu", and they did well, wbicb inclmed bnn to 

 I'link llial there was no risk from their imldew- 



'" Mr L. sj'oke of his mod-e of growing Corn. 

 In Sullivan county, il bad been statvd thai the 

 .loohle-mould-hoard plough was uscd--tbe dirl 

 being ihiowu up into a ridge, au.l then the rulge 

 nloo^hed on lop. Ho had irie.l this mode, and 

 found it wonhl not succeed here, 111 iMcrimack 

 eounlv. He nowpmMiedlbeoldcomse.plough- 

 i,,.. beiwecii Ihe furrows, and ihougbl he ha.l 

 succeed ill raising as good a crop ot com, with 

 half Ihe maimrc, as others in the siinc neighbor- 

 hood He first used the cmninon plough— then 

 pot in the manme and phmtrd-and alterWards 

 used ihe double-monld-hoard between the liir- 

 rows. Mr. L. thought there was a great saving 

 in expense resulting from tbe use ol ^oodtools. 



With the improved plough he now only wanted 

 a yoke of oxen and a good horse, where he for- 

 merly used' three yokes and a hors.i. The same 

 advalitage be had derived in making his hay by 

 the use of the horse-rake. 



Mr. Low, in speaking of manures, remarked 

 that lie hud foiuid sail gooil in preventing the rust 

 in potato crops. His experience with salt, how- 

 ever, had not been great; but he thought that it 

 was good to mix with manure. Dr. Johnson, of 

 Walpole, hud related to him his experience in 

 turning in ^''ecTi crops lo reclaim worn-ont laud, 

 whicb^e bad found to lie highly beneficial. 



Professou HADDUCKsaid ibal he owneil gome 

 GO acres of pasture land which iiad never been 

 ploughed, although it was arable. He would 

 ask some gentleman to advise htm as to the best 

 method of improving it? 



KiciiAnn BuADLEY, Esq. of Concord, thought 

 tbat .Mr. H. coiihl iiut do heller than to put on 

 soM:e 10 cords ol good manure to the acre— then 

 plou'di— afterwards 10 cords more— harrow— 

 and finally spread upon each acre, say 400 bush- 

 els of leached ashes 1 (Laughter.) 



Mr. Nes.mith, of Fraukbn, described his me- 

 thod of cultivating a piece of land situated in the 

 town of Hill, eight miles from his residence.— • 

 This land is out of the way for obtaining manure, 

 and comprises 30 acres. Lust year he cut upon 

 it Irom ]0 to 15 tons of good clover and herds 

 ■rrass, where he formerly obtained only two tons. 

 His n'lodeof treating it was first lo get a crop of 

 ,.ye— then the grass commences. Subsequently 

 he ploughed it nine inches deei), turning under 

 the tori'' It was bis intention, ut.'Xt season, to 

 pasture this land. Mr. N. said that he could not 

 recommend this practice where manure is to be 

 obtained ; it had succeeded well, however, in the 

 case which he described. 



Mr Cooke remarked, in reverting to the sub- 

 isct of flaster, that he bad found the use ot Jt to 

 be unsuccessful when applied lo low lands. Such 

 was the result where he liad used it m a valley ; 

 whereas, on land situated 150 feet higher, the 

 eflect bad been excellent. Dr. Jackson had in- 

 formed bim, in relation to a piece of low laud 

 which Mr.(". owned, that there was |)laster enough 

 in it already; bat not enough in apiece^ which 

 he owneil upon a /«■(( a mile distant. We want 

 information from Dr. J.'s survey as lo where lime 

 and plaster are needed ; and if that gentleman bad 

 u-one farther into the analysis of soils, he (.Mr. 

 C.) thought more benefit would result tlian from 

 the analysis of minerals. ^ 



.Mr. C. believed tbat too few are eriucateil tor 

 farmers. No nude requires so much lo learn. 

 Beiu" u |n-iuter, as well as a firmer, he would 

 prefe" lo learn two boys the former trade than one 

 the latter. There is not enough farming taught. 

 People too commonly think tbat any one who 

 can hoe potatoes can farm— a great mistake. Mr. 

 C. Iboiigbttbe principles of agricnhnre should bo 

 iiilnidnced into school books. 



Mr. Hill thonght there might be danger, pcr- 

 haps,"(d' being (00 scientific; this is what di.<gusts 

 iiraclical agriculiiiralists with " book Ihrmiiig." 

 Great benefit, however, may be derived frmii the 

 use of ■■eolosiical surveys, in obiaining inlorma- 

 liou aslo the analysis of soilj, &:c. In connex- 

 ion with ilie.se, Mr. H. adverted to the experi- 



meiils of E. Knlliii, Esq. of Virginia.w ilb iminures. 

 This gentleman has brought to the nolice ol tbe 

 Virginia farmers, inexbanslible beds of marl, 

 whi'ch, at this time, is producing an entire revo- 

 lution in the worn-out lands of that State. .V 

 .reologicid survey is worth ten times the cost. It 

 has especially proveil so in New Jersey, the land 

 ii'ilbe" lower" part of which, in particular, was 

 formerly barren, and considered almost worth- 

 less. 'I'be survey of that Stale Inis developeil m 

 mie'section gri'iit quantities uf green inarl ; niul 

 in anoiher valuable rnneslone fiirmations. 



Mr. BitiULEY, in remarking upon the ej/)f/)sc 

 of Dr. Jackson's survey, (with which some limit 

 has been liumd,) was of the opinion that it will 

 prove invaluable in reclaiming ;)cu/ Jirn»i/)S alone. 

 Almost every town in the State will realizi? the 

 b.mefit in th'is respect, ami can well atford to pay 

 Dr J. tbe whole expen.-e of Ins hdior. Mr. B. 

 said that bis father was accuslomed toollen re- 

 mark, that a mixuire of ditferent kinds ot soil 

 never fails lo produce a crop. Nothim; can be 

 raised from cl.iy aUme, nor Irom sand alone--but 

 the two, when mi.xed proiicrly logether, makean 

 excellcnl soil. His falher never explained iiA.v 



