W* .%m UUBUN^ 1UU^P£KU 



42 



®l)c farmer's iilontl)li) btsxtor. 



"So niiicli iin|)i-e.-:?cil am I willi llie advaiKtijro.s 

 of this inotlioil, tliiit 1 woiilil Ijaiil hark a ilisl- 

 tanre of five miles lalhej' ihuii use tliit." — Truth 



Teller. 



OI.NTJIF.NT rOR RI.-«GIiO.NE. 



Corrosive suhliiriate, Spanish flies, hoji's lanl, 

 aud Venice tm-|)eiiliiie. INIix. This oinlmeiit it 

 ia said will dissolve u iiii;;hone. 



DIAMCND CKillF.NT. 



TIlia article, so miK^li esteemed fur niiiliiit; 

 pieces of lirokeii jilass, for repairing' pruciciiis 

 Slopes, and for cementing ihejii to wali-h rases 

 and other ornairKMils, is made liy soakin^^ isin- 

 filass in water nntil it becomes iimle soti, and 

 then njixing it uilh spirit in which a lillle f;um 

 mastic and ainmoiiiaciim have been dissolved. — 

 Scicnlific American. 



TO MAKE JOHNNY CAKE. 



Take two large cups of meal, one cup of Hour, 

 and one cnp of soin- milk, one cgi;, one lable- 

 spoont'nl of molasses, and a tea-spoonlid of sale- 

 ralus, dissolved ; nii.x tlioronjihlv, and add suffi- 

 cient sweet milk to cause ihe l)atier to spread in 

 the pans ; then bake in the usual way. 



From the Nortli Rritisli Keview. 

 Rotation of Crops. 

 It is better lo prevent the special exhaustion of 

 the soil than to cure it. It is often dillicidl to 

 discover what the laud really rerpiires, aud, 

 thereliue, to cure the evil when it exists. The 

 onlv method of preveulins it with which we are 

 yet acrjuainted, is by the introduction of a skilful 

 rotation or allcrnatioii of unlike crops. In adopt- 

 iiii; such a rotation, we only copy from uatnri'. 

 In the wide fon'st, many };ener:itious of broad- 

 leaveil trees live aud dii'. ami succeed eai'h other ; 

 but the lime comes at last when a jreneral pesti- 

 lence .«eems to assail them all ; their tops droop 

 and wither, their branches fill off, their trunks 

 rot. They die out, ami a narrow-leaved race 

 Buccecds lliem. This race af,'aiu has its life, of 

 centuries perhaps ; but death seizes it too, aud 

 the expanded leaf of the Beech, the Ash, and 

 the Oak, again cheer the eye — playing with the 

 passing zephyrs aud gliltering in the sun. So in 

 the broad meadow, the ohi pasture changes, aud 

 new races of hiindile Grasses succeed each 

 oiler as the fields increase in aire. The alicrua- 

 tion of crops, therefore, asserts to itself some- 

 thing of the dignity of a nalnral law, and man is 

 evideiuly in the right course when he imiiates 

 nature in a procerlure like this. But upon what 

 do its good effects depiuid ? Why do the broad 

 leaves alternate with the luirrow in the ancient 

 forest? Why do the Grasses change in the (dd 

 meadow? Why does the farmer obtain a larger 

 produce, and for a greater number of \ears, by 

 ' growing iiidike crops alternately, lliaii hyciujlin- 

 iiing year after year lo grow the sami; ? The 

 reason is not merely that one crop carries off 

 more, and another crop less, of all those things 

 which all ouri'rops <lerive from Ihe soil, but thai 

 one crop carries off more of one thing, tmolher 

 crop more of another. The grain carries off 

 phosphorus, the siraw silica, the bidb :dk:dine 

 mailer. After, perhaps, 1.5 or S2() successive crops 

 of the same kind, the surface soil through which 

 the roots are spread becomes so poor in thosi; 

 subsiaiices which the <'idp especially ri'ipiires, 

 that ihe pl.iul cannot ohiaiu from it a sulHciiuil 

 supply lo nourish aud biijig lo maturity llie lidl 

 grown plant, within the; lime allolled lo it in our 

 climate \w its nalnral ;irowili. The roots do 

 their lie»f, they collect as dilligently as thi;y can, 

 but winter comes on, and the growth ends be- 

 fon; the plant is fully luiiinred. In the case of 

 corn, the lirist illiet of a scarcity, say of plios- 

 pliorii; acid, is lo make the ear smaller and the 

 luimber of grains less; the ne.xt lo coutiim<; \\\v 

 growth in ibc winter, ami only whc'u a very line 

 Heasiui occurs lo ripen the carat ;ill. lint suppose 

 we ahiuiiate the cmn crop, which in its grain car- 

 ries olV ph<isphojic acid, with ;i hay crop whiidi 

 retpiiics much s'lici, or a root crop to whiidi 

 niucb alkaliiu; luattei' is necessary — Ihen the one 

 crop would live upon aud lernnie what lh(' olhi-r 

 hail left in greater abundance. Instead of rob- 

 bing the soil (!very year of the same snhslaiices, 

 we sliould be exhausting it more eipiably of all. 

 nnd vvu should be abh', for double the lime at 

 least, to crop it without the risk of iis ceasing 

 eullrely to give us a priditab.le retiiru. Wi; 

 should gradually work iij) also every available 



substance in the soil, whether such as are natu- 

 rally present ill it, 'or such as we have ourselves 

 ailded in the form of manure. Wh.ct is true of 

 the simple; alternation of a coin with a green 

 crop, is more true still of a longer and more 

 complicated rotation. The greater the varieiy of 

 crops vv<; grow, and the longer the interval be- 

 tween the successive crops of the .same kind, the 

 more peifectly do we avail ourselves of the ben- 

 efits which an obedience to the suggestions of 

 this principle is fitted lo confer upon us. No 

 rotation, it is true, hovyever skilful, will alone 

 prevent ihe land tiom "becoming ullimately ex- 

 hausted. Nothing but regular and generous tn.a- 

 nmingwilldo this unless there be, in springs 

 from beueatli, or in the decaying fragments of 

 rock mixed with the soil, or in substances 

 broughl down lioiii higher grounds, or in the na- 

 ture of the rains that lull upon the land, some 

 perennial source of those substances which the 

 crops always carry off from ihe soil. But in a 

 skilful rotation there is lliia virtue, that land 

 which is subjected lo it cannot be ruined in so 

 sliorl a time. 



The Answer. 



Aa old man toiled one genial day. 



To plant some forest trees: 

 Ills scauty locks of silver grey 



Were lloaling ia the breeze: 



" Why toil'st thou thus, my aged friend .' 



Why labor with such zest? 

 Before those plants their arms extend, 



Tliou'It surely be at rest." 



The old man gently raised his head, 



My features he surveyed, 

 And thus in smiling accents said, 



\Miile leaning on his spade — 



*' Unto the world this debt I owe, 



And now repay with glee. 

 For those who sleep in peace below, 



Have planted trees for me." 



Preventive of the Potato Rot. 



Mr. Editor :— It appears lo nie that the atten- 

 tion of your correspoudenls has been flirected 

 more to the cnusc or nature of the potato disease, 

 than lo any specific remedy. Some have ascrib- 

 ed the cause lo unusual dews, li-igs, heat of the 

 siiii, small insects, or parasite iiiushrooni.=. We 

 may, 1 think, safely coiiidnde that the disease is 

 entir(;ly almospliei leal, Mini as inexjjliaihk as epi- 

 demics thai alfect the human or animal .Msleiu. 

 If so, then the only object would be lo place the 

 vines in a slate iu which they would not receive 

 Ihe disease. Thus the ravages of the wheat 

 fiy are avoided by sowing earlier than usual, 

 and also riisl iu wiieat by sow iiig t/arly on elevat- 

 ed laiid.s. 



As it respects the numerous preventives that 

 have been suggested, none of tli(;m appear to 

 be of any general utility. The siiewing on ashes, 

 lime, or plaster; the cutting off of the tops; the 

 drying them in the sun, before putting them into 

 the cellar, are only laburions, and at best, p.ntial 

 iciiiitdies. The suggestions of a gentlem.iu from 

 Virginia to plant early, aud at a certain ilr/ith, on 

 lighl, elevated soil, and lo cover the \ ines Iwo or 

 three inches with leaves, would be, I think, of no 

 giiueral uliliiy, except the early planting. For I 

 lind bv observaiioii and extensive iuipiiri(;s among 

 hiriuers, that potatoes are affected in every varie- 

 ty of soil, and that every kiiul of potato is subject 

 to the disease ; that is, the same kind will Ik; af- 

 fected one year and not another, and on all va- 

 rieties of soil. From these tiicls, 1 have C(Miclnil- 

 ed ihal it is not in the kind of potato, or stale of 

 soil, hut in the time, of |ilautiug, lU- rather, slide uf 

 the vines when the epid(;iuic appears. 



Therefore, dssiimiiig ibal the disease is iu llie 

 air, and ihal vegetables derive by fir the greater 

 part (d' their nourislimeut aud snbsi.-mce li-oiii 

 this elemeiil, I conclude that the disease is ab- 

 sriilii;il by the vines, »7iP)l I hey are \\\ n .ilate lo 

 receive it, and by them conveyed to the potato 

 among nutritious properties. 



As to the time the disease appears, iiiucdi will 

 depend upon the temfieralure of the climate 

 where llio potato is planted, and the /Jfyi'orf of ilie 

 maturity of the vines. In Vermont, 1 conclude 

 that the disease appears lioiii the middle of .Vii- 

 gusl to ihe middle of SeplLinber, or irlirn we 

 bi;gin to buve heavy do ws, and damp, chilly nights. 



Therj the leaves Ijccome slightly struck with 

 rust or blight. This kind of weather [irodiices 

 rust in wheat. But the coinmon (lotato nisi, 

 which comes in .Tnly or .August, luiist noi be taken 

 for the disease, for rust of potato tops is not a new 

 thing. 



Now, in tliis region, the lojis of earh/ plnnted 

 potatoes generally become .so far nialurcd in the 

 iVue part of September, that they cease lo absorb 

 the almospberical pro:ierties. Ileuce, if this 

 Inmsition takes place belbrc the disease has been 

 conveyed lo the roots, the potato is safe. I have 

 been led to thus fix ihe time of the appearance 

 of the disease from practical observation. I 

 planted six kinds of poialoes on separate plats in 

 1844, all on good warm soil. Three of ihe kimls 

 were phmled about the last of April, and the 

 others about the last of May. 'I'be tn/is of the 

 fust three plats were parli.illy (//•;/ by the first of 

 September — the others, not until llii; first of Oc- 

 tober. The first planliiigs were lieo from Ihe 

 disease; the last were greatly affected by it. I 

 tried the same cxperimenl on six kinils last year, 

 aud the result was preci.»ely as llie preceding 

 year. A neighbor planted the early kidneys in 

 April last; the tops were dead in August. Some 

 of the potatoes remained iu the ground uulil No- 

 vember. They were perfectly healthy, lie plant- 

 ed, from Ihe same lot of seed, aboiil the first of 

 June, a small patcli near his barn, the lops of 

 which grew rank, and were green until killed by 

 the frost in October. The potatoes were greatly 

 diseased. Since then, I have ascertained that ihe 

 tops of those pot;itoes thai have proved lo be dis- 

 eased were generally green in September, or at 

 lea<t at the time of digging. It does not, bow- 

 ever, f()llow that every field will be affected where 

 the lops are thus imuialurc. i have found two 

 exceplions in fifty cases. In one case, the pota- 

 toes were planted in July, and were so tbrily in 

 September that the disease did not affect them. 

 Ill like manner, hiiinau coiisliliitions are not 

 equnlhj iu a condition to take at one time \\iv same 

 disease. Iu the other case, llie potatoes, being 

 planted in a high frosty region, were killed by a 

 ii'ost in the ii;re part of September, beliire the 

 disease reached the roots. Hence very early or 

 very late planting will escape ibe disease. But 

 early planted potatoes are decidedly better for 

 the lalile or fiir stock than late pl.inted iimipe 

 ones. Therefore, let (til kimls of potatoes, except 

 those that are very long in coming lo uialurity, 

 be pl.anled early, (for tin; clinnite where lliey are 

 planted.) that the vines may partially ripen betiire 

 ihe lime of the appear.iuce of tin; disease. It is 

 no matter what the kind of soil is, or the kind of 

 potato, if neither will greatly prolong the ina- 

 tiirily of the vines. But avoid planting near barns, 

 w here the soil is exceeding rich, or in low, wet 

 places. Observe these rules, ami we think that 

 ill usual seasons, from '.iOO to 300 bushels of good 

 healthy potatoes per acre will be obtained. 



'I'his process iiuiy save the potato crop in Ire- 

 land. I am assured by eiuigraiits lliat potatoes 

 for the summer market are planted early, aud 

 are ripened in n pleasant, genial season, while 

 those for winter {>:-ii are not planted uiilil .M.iyor 

 June, for the sake ol" a long growth, and a larger 

 yield, which exposes ihem to the disease. 



KlTlKFnOF. Havkn. 

 V. S. To have large ihriliy vines in June, 

 ihrougb the influenceof spring or summer show- 

 ers, spread in iMaich or .Xpril your entire seed on 

 grass plats, the south side of buildings, and cover 

 them with straw, or blankets, during frosty niglils. 

 The sprouts thus obtained w ill accelerate vege- 

 tation, while ci liar sprouts retard it. K. II. 

 —Ml: Cult. 



Moi.ASSF.s FOR Cai.vfs — TiiE Skim Milk 

 Qi'FSTio.N. — We received the lidlowing from a 

 very intelligent gentleman from Scotland. Its 

 snirgesiions are no doubt valuable. I>0(* not 

 ih's :iffiird almiber imiucement Cm- farmers lo 

 turn more ol' their iitlenlion to ilie subject of 

 making molasses li-oin cornstalks ? Now is the 

 time for this : 

 To llir Kilili.is of till' I.iiuisvilli' Jouriiul ini.l D.iU.ir t'arimr : 



(ii-..NTi.F..MK.N. — Yon having lately piiblisheil an 

 111 tide on the advniila:.'e of using sacchaiine mat- 

 ter as tciod I'm- cattle, lironght to my recollection 

 a of liicl which 1 was co;;iiizaiil. -V liirmer in 

 Lanarkshire, Scotland, bad seen somelhing sim- 

 ilar in a paper be read, and delcmined on ma- 

 king the experimenl. lie had eight heifer calves 



