524 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



[No. 9 



The first of June last I also carted into my barn- 

 yard 20 or 25 loads of loam, and spread it evenly 

 over the surface — (this should be done immediate- 

 ly atter ground is thawed in spring, as the sun, 

 wind and rains are busy agents employed in suck- 

 ing the virtues of barn-yard manure,) — and the 

 present autumn, be it known, the loam has all be- 

 come of a dark color, insomuch that it would be 

 taken for stable dung. Every farmer has not an 

 inexhaustible supply of muck, but every one can 

 get common dirt, which I think is as good as any 

 substance whatever to place on the bottom of a 

 barn-yard. Some will say their ground is full of 

 stones — then pick them out. and haul them to some 

 waste place out of the way if you will. I have 

 carted upland loam, containing many stones, 

 into my barn-yard, and with a common break- 

 ing up hoe dug over each load and carefully 

 picked them out. An active man will hoe 

 over a load of loam and pick out the stones in a 

 very few minutes. Let no man living say he 

 has not materials for increasing his manure. Every 

 farmer can get dirt to bank up his cellar — so every 

 farmer can get dirt it he will, and make excellent 

 manure of it. Never did providence lavish on 

 mortals a richer giil than is contained in our 

 swamps — in pond holes on the margin of brooks — 

 in sunken places, &c. Why will not enterprise 

 put forth her hand and improve these golden pri- 

 vileges'? When science shall have more fully il- 

 luminated the farmers of Maine, these inestima- 

 ble treasures will be eagerly sought. When en- 

 terprise and energy shall take the place of that 

 monster, prejudice — then indeed will our farmers 

 make an abundance of manure. "The attention 

 paid to manure in any country indicates with cer- 

 tainty the state of its agriculture," said a great 

 agriculturist. What then shall we say of the ag- 

 riculture of the state ot Maine, if the atteniion 

 Eaid to manure is the criterion of good or bad 

 usbandry? Indeed, I think agriculture is very 

 much improving in our state, and many worthy 

 citizens may be found among us who well deserve 

 the name "good farmers," but. as often as we find 

 one farmer who makes exertions to increase his 

 manure by artificial means, how many may be 

 found who pay no attention at all to the making of 

 manure, if the facts could be known. Any one 

 feeling a good degree of "state pride" would be 

 unwilling to have the story told in Gath, or pub- 

 lished in the streets of Askelon. I have not time, 

 nor capacity, Mr. Editor, to do any thing like jus- 

 tice to the important subject of manure, but I 

 thought that to throw out a few hints at this time 

 might do no harm, and it might possibly be the 

 means of doing a little good — and if by writing 

 these few hints a single farmer should be prevail- 

 ed on to haul a few loads of loam, muck or turf 

 into his barn-yard, that would not have done it 

 supposing these hints had not been written, it will 

 be a sufficient remuneration for my trouble and 

 time. As soon as I can get time, if circumstan- 

 ces are favorable, I will tell another story about 

 ruta baga, and perhaps patatoes. 



J. K. R. 



Rumford, October, 1835. 



From Kenrick's New American Orchardist, 2nd ed.(1835.)ti 



ON THE DECLIKE OF OLD VARIETIES OF 

 FRUITS, AND THE PRODUCTION OF NEW. 



The decline of many of the most valuable old 

 varieties of fruit, has been noticed by several dis- 

 tinguished writers of different countries, both of 

 the present and of the former ages; and in Eng- 

 land, particularly, by the celebrated Thomas A. 

 Knight. In our country, and in the vicinity of 

 Boston, it has been more especially observed in re- 

 gard to the old pears. For our best varieties of 

 apples, and some other species, are mostly native 

 fruits, or of modern origin. 



Let no one suppose that the intelligent horticul- 

 turists here, have never been acquainted with the 

 best of the old pears, which the intelligence and 

 industry of ages had concentrated in France. 

 Who is not aware that in every good collection, a 

 proportion of the very best are ahoays sentl How 

 opposed alike to reason and to probability is the 

 supposition, that even one of the best should have 

 escaped? They must have been here received, 

 in the numerous and ever varying selections, in 

 the unnumbered importations. 



Rozier, in the original edition of his celebrated 

 Dictionary of Agriculture, which was completed 

 in 1801, has candidly informed us, that for his des- 

 cription of fruits, he is almost wholly indebted to 

 the no less celebrated Duhamel Dumonceau; and 

 from the whole list of pears which he has described, 

 he has recommended as their essence, for a mode- 

 rate collection, fifty-three trees, of nineteen varie- 

 ties, in different proportions. These are every one 

 of them known among us; and more than half of 

 them, including the very best, are decidedly of the 

 kinds long since, from their defection, proscribed 

 by those who cultivate for the markets of Boston. 

 And of the list of twelve trees, of nine varieties, 

 which he has recommended as the best of all, for 

 a very small garden, three quarters of them, at 

 least, are of the kinds which have long since 

 ceased to produce perfect fruit, with those who cul- 

 tivate lor our markets. 



We regret the circumstance, but have ceased 

 to wonder at the cause — since the same complaints 

 of defection have already reached us from other 

 quarters — even from the capital of that country, 

 for which those celebrated works were principally 

 designed. 



I shall, in the following pages, designate some 

 of those, in the class of old varieties, once the 

 finest of all old pears, whose duration we had 

 hoped, but in vain, to perpetuate. For except in 

 certain sections of the city, and some very few 

 solitary and highly favored situations in the coun- 

 try around, they have become either so uncertain 

 in their bearing — so barren — so unproductive — or 

 so miserably blighted — so mortally diseased — that 

 they are no longer to be trusted; they are no 

 longer what they were once with us, and what 

 many of them are still described to be by most 

 foreign writers. 



The gentleman who prepared the article on 

 fruits in F'cssenden^s New American Gardener, 

 has warned us to beware respectingsomeof them. 

 He is well known with us as first rate author- 

 ity. 



In the markets of the city which formerly 

 abounded with them, they are no longer, or but 

 rarely, to be seen. The cultivators who furnish 



