262 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



[No. 5. 



and the- Hessian fly, there is a striking resem- 

 blance. 



EXPERIMENTS WITH LIME AS MANURE. 



To the Editor of the Farmers' Register. 



Norfolk Co., July 6lh, 1835. 



In my first acquaintance with the use of lime, 

 I was almost driven from a further trial ot it, by 

 its contrary effects; but I candidly admit that my 

 expectations were founded upon gross ignorance 

 of the proper manner of using it, tor I ought not, 

 upon neither rational nor scientific principles, to 

 have expected a different effect after the manner ol 

 use. 



I will give you a history of my mode of appli- 

 cation and its eflects, if you can have patience 

 enough to follow me, for I really expect you to be, 

 tired reading such crude unpolished stuff' as I am 

 truly ashamed ot myself: but the experiment is 

 correct. If my pen has a poor faculty of relating it, 

 your repeated assurances that doctrines when found- 

 ed upon correct observation,was the greater object of 

 your solicitude even if clad in homespun lan- 

 guage, have spurred me onward to give you this 

 desultory statement. In the spring of 1834, a 

 very poor lot of land containing 15 acres, rather 

 on the sandy order, what is termed by your Es- 

 say a sandy loam, was divided in two equal lots 

 of 1\ acres each, both to be seeded in red clover 

 to experiment from, with lime and plaster sepa- 

 rately. As my knowledge of the effect of either, 

 was rather vague and visionary, I determined to 

 improve it if I had to pay rather dear for my 

 whistle. Consequently 500 bushels of well burned 

 shells was set apart tor the lot for liming, and 

 from 20 to 25 bushels of ground plaster was set 

 asiA for the lot for plastering. After the lot for 

 lime received its first fallowing, it was checked off 

 carefully at different distances so as to vary the 

 quantity when spread from 40 to 120 bushels per 

 acre, a bushel of the shells was put down in each 

 check, and carefully covered over with earth until 

 they had perfectly slaked, and then spread as 

 regularly over the surface as possible. The 

 other lot received a light broad cast of rich dung- 

 hill earth, and seeded both lots about the middle 

 of February in red clover, prepared as neatly as 

 a harrow and roller could do it. In March follow- 

 ing, the lot destined for plaster, received its first 

 due 1 \ bushels to the acre sowed on a damp day, 

 and the next plastering after the first cutting of 

 clover was taken from it: the two lots were left to 

 time and seasons to unfold their wonders. The 

 limed lot with a good grass season did manage to 

 admonish the passer-by that red clover seed had 

 been sown there. The other yielded in the month of 

 July, a very fine cutting of hay. So much lor 

 my first attempt. The difference was so very 

 striking that it awakened in me an anxious inquiry. 

 I commenced to read — for until then I looked upon 

 a book on agriculture, like fhe laymen did the 

 Bible in the darkest days of popery, to be touched 

 at the risk of ruin. I had embraced the ruinous 

 idea so common, and yet so fatal to my country- 

 men, that book knowledge was prejudicial to pro- 

 fitable husbandry: but I soon detected my error, 

 and determined to carry my experiment with 

 lime still farther. So, last October I carted on 

 the lot 500 loads of good farm pen litter, and 



spread it broad cast, then .seeded it again with 

 wheat and red clover at the rate of 1^ bushels of 

 wheat and 5 quarts of red clover seed to the acre. 

 Now comes the bright side of the picture. The 

 wheat (on land before almost too poor to produce 

 any thing) stood on an average, from 5 to 6 feet 

 high (though a very bad season lor wheat;) and 

 I verily believe, could it have been prevented from 

 falling down, the yield would have been from 175 

 to 200 bushels. I know not the exact quantity I 

 have saved, not having yet thrashed it all out, but 

 it. will not fall much short of 175 bushels, and the 

 waste was considerable. The clover bids lair to ex- 

 cel the other lot, though the yield from the plas- 

 tered lot was not inconsiderable, as the first cutting 

 this season averaged from three to four feet in 

 height, and is now fit for the scythe again. So 

 much lor lime and plaster. Many of my neigh- 

 bors when passing these lots look puzzled. The 

 cloud of ignorance which basso long obscured 

 Eastern Virginia is gradually disappearing before 

 the effulgent rays of your agricultural pioneer the 

 Farmers' Register, for such I hail it in this sec- 

 tion of the country. 



Whilst my hand is in I will give you some ac- 

 count of a small crop of corn which I have grow 

 ing, and for a more appropriate name will call 

 it the experiment crop. I do not expect this to 

 excel or even to compete with overgrown crops 

 that have been made at the north; because the 

 number of stalks to the acre is not great enough 

 to afford the requisite number of ears: but I am 

 not so certain but what corn might be planted 

 thick enough to afford to the acre as great a pro- 

 duct as lias been raised at any other place. The 

 land the crop is now growing on, was originally 

 very poor, but was made rich for a crop of the 

 skinless oat: being disappointed in obtaining them, 

 I determined to plant it in the extra prolific or 

 twin corn, which is said to produce from five to 

 eight ears to the stalk. The corn was planted on a 

 deep trench filled with rich dunghill earth three 

 feet by eighteen inches, and the corn covered with 

 an equal combination of leeched and unleeched 

 ashes: it was with great difficulty that the com 

 was made to stand from the caustic effects of the 

 ashes, but the whole is growing finely and bids 

 fair to produce well. If it does not suffer from be- 

 ing too thick, the yield must be considerable: the 

 result, if deserving of public notice, you shall hear 

 as soon as ascertained. 



A. S. F. 



From communications to the Board of Agriculture. 



OBSERVATIONS ON THE UNITED STATES OF 

 AMERICA. 



By William Strickland, Esq. of Yorkshire. Re- 

 ceived 8th March, 1796. 



[Concluded from p. 211 Vol. 3.] 



VIRGINIA 



Is the southern limits of my information in 

 America; beyond it inquiries were unnecessary, 

 because it appears as if agriculture had there al- 

 ready arrived at its lowest state of degrada- 

 tion. 



The usual crops, in this state, are maize and 

 wheat alternately, as long as the land will produce 

 them tolerably well; then in future afier the two 

 crops, three or four years rubbish pasture; and in 



