1835.] 



FARMERS' REGISTER 



283 



from the impossibility ol saving liie seed firsi ri- 

 pened, generally the bss^on account ol' its being 

 so easily shattered off. 'We would recommend, 

 as the most eligible time for culling, the period 

 when about two-thirds of (he heads have become 

 ripe and assumed a black color, many of the 

 others, at this time of a brown color, will ripen 

 after cutting. 



Mode of culling. 



Where the clover lias not lodged, and is high 

 enough to admit of it, by far the mosl expeditious, 

 ami in every point of view the most eligible mode 

 of cutting, is to cradle it as we do grain, only 

 throwing it into double swarths, that is laying the 

 clover cut from two lands in one swarth. If the 

 grass be so short as to require it, a strip of linen 

 ma) be fastened on the lingers of the cradle so as 

 to prevent the heads falling through them. 



Mode of curing. 



If ihe crop be not heavy and the weather be 

 good, the swarths may lie undisturbed for several 

 days, until Ihe hay be perfectly cured, it should 

 then, in the morning or evening while sufficiently 

 moist from the dew, to prevent its shattering oil' 

 too easily, lie gently raked into small bunches, 

 such as can be conveniently raised with a link and 

 laid on the wagon. When not too damp, these 

 bunches should be hauled to the barn, and either 

 stowed away in mows, or, which is best, thrashed 

 off, and either immediately cleaned, or else the 

 heads slowed away in a room prepared for the pur- 

 pose until winter, to be then thrashed or trodden 

 out. But should there be rain on them, or should 

 they be suffered to remain in the field any consid- 

 erable length of time after being raked up, these 

 bunches must with a fork be gently turned bottom 

 upwards, and laid in a new place, after every rain 

 to which they may be exposed, and after every 

 two or three days they may have lain in the field 

 in fair weather. This is necessary to prevent the 

 seed from being injured by the heat and moisture to 

 which they will have been exposed, from the sun, 

 the rain, and the moisture of the earth. After 

 being sufficiently cured, while dry, let the seed be 

 gently laid on the wagon or sled, and hauled to the 

 barn, using every necessary precaution to ensure, 

 that as little of it as possible be left in the field or 

 scattered along the road. 



Mode of cleaning. 



Various methods are praclised, for cleaning the 

 seed from the chaff. The only two as far as we 

 know, used in this country, are treading it out with 

 horses, or cleaning it in a thrashing machine: The 

 first is tedious, laborious, filthy and unwholesome 

 both to man and beast, the latter is far preferable 

 in every respect, but as all are not provided with 

 thrashing machines and as therefore many must 

 •;lill continue to tread out their seed we will sub- 

 mit a lew observations on the mod;- of performing 

 this operation. Having covered the barn lloorwith 

 seed in Ihe chaff to the depth of from 12 to 18 

 inches, put on the horses and tread one day, the 

 next morning run the chafl through a fan, much 

 of ii will have been beaten to dusl and will be 

 blown away, as will also the lighf chad) having 



no seed, and that from which the seed has been 

 separated, but much the larger portion of' the. 

 seed, still enveloped in the chafl) will be found in the 

 rear of the fan, this, having been separated from 

 the empty chafi' adjoining it, must be again spread 

 on the Moor and having added another portion of 

 untrodden chaff, the horses must be again put on 

 and made to tread it another day when it should 

 he again run through the fan as before, the pro 

 dace (if this, will far exceed (hat of the first day's 

 treading, but still, much good seed will he found 

 immediately in the rear of the Ian not yet separa- 

 ted from the chafl— this must be again spread on 

 Ihe floor, and a new addition be made ol' untrodden 

 chall, and this process must be repeated until the 

 whole crop is trodden out. The seed, after pass- 

 ing through the Ian, should first be run through a 

 sieve, sufficiently coarse to permit the clover seed 

 to pass through, but retaining all larger seeds and 

 trash. It should then be again run through a fi 

 ner sieve, retaining the clover seed, hut permit- 

 ting tlii- passage through oi' all smaller substances, 

 by these two processes, the clover seed will be 

 thoroughly cleansed from all kinds of filth and pre- 

 pared lor market. The only advantages derived 

 from cleaning the seed rather than sowing it in the, 

 chaff, are the ascertaining with grealer certainty the 

 quantity sown and the ensuring a. more equal dis- 

 tribution of Ihe seed — where therefore, a sufficient 

 quantity can he afforded to insure Ihe desired 

 thickness in every part of the ground, sowing in 

 the chaff, will not only do as well, but is to be pre- 

 ferred, as it is believed more likely to come up and 

 to stand. 



From the Silk Cultuiist. 

 SEED TI-1UE FOR THE M IT.TiERRY. 



South Coventry, (Conn.) June '2-ilh, 1835. 

 Sir — The scarcity of mulberry seed the present 

 season having prevented many persons from sow- 

 ing nurseries in the spring, I take the liberty of in- 

 forming them through the medium of your 

 paper, that from experiment, I am satisfied that 

 the month of August is a suitable season for 

 sowing the seed. If sown any time during the. 

 month of August the seed will vegetate quickly, 

 and by the time of the early autumnal frosts, the 

 plants will have grown to the height ol' three or 

 four inches. They may then be easily covered 

 with straw and horse manure, which will suffi- 

 ciently protect them through the winter. In co- 

 vering them but little straw should be used, other- 

 wise, the rats and mice may be induced to burrow 

 in it, in which case they will mosl assuredly de- 

 stroy the plants. If the seed is sown at this sea- 

 son and protected in this manner, they start early 

 the following spring, grow vigorously through Ihe 

 summer, and by autumn attain aboul Ihe same 

 height as though sown the preceding spring. An- 

 other advantage from sowing in Augusl is thai 

 seed of Ihe same year's growth ma\ he obtained, 

 which is more sure to vegetale. 



j. w. UOYNTOIV. 



SELECTION OF KEEP. 



The important topic, of the 



selection of seeds, opens this number, [of the 



New York Farmer] exam] oted to show 



;essive selection of seed from choice 



