548 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



applied after the rain,) the effect is not as ohvious 

 in any other part of the crop as the lot referred 

 to. Part of the lot on which my experiments 

 were tried, has been cleared six years — cultivated 

 the first three in tobacco — the fourth in wheat, 

 seeded in clover — rested the fifth (except a small 

 part mowed for hay) and ploughed last fall, with 

 a heavy coat of clover and broom-straw mixed. 

 The other part has been cleared much longer; 

 cultivated repeatedly in tobacco, seeded in wheat 

 and herdsgrass, and had remained five or six 

 years in turf — though for several years past, cover- 

 ed with a light coat of litter. 



On communicating the above facts to the so- 

 ciety, I was requested to test the effect of the plas- 

 ter by weighing the plants, both in the green and 

 cured state, and report the results. Accordingly, 

 I submit the following, as ascertained by the most 

 careful personal investigation I could make. 



The first experiment, was made on two rows, 

 side by side, running nearly east and west on a 

 gentle declivity of a southern exposure, with a 

 soil of gray sandy loam, based on yellow clay — 

 containing each forty-two plants. A man preceded 

 one with a knife, passing on between the plastered 

 and un plastered rows, with instructions to cut eve- 

 ry plant thoroughly ripe. In the plastered row 

 he cut sixteen plants — in the unplastered ten; 

 showing a gain in favor of the plastered row a 

 difference of four plants. As soon as the plants 

 had completely "fallen," (or withered,) I weighed 

 the ten cut from the plastered row, which weighed 



The 1st experiment — unplastered, 

 2d do do 



3d do do 



Total gain in the 30 plants, 



Estimated gain in a crop of 10,000 lbs., lbs. 2215 oz. 3 

 That sold at $8 per hundred will be 



$800. Gain in ths sale, 

 Off for 4 barrels plaster at $3 per barrel, 



Nett gain, 



20 lbs. I then weighed ten from the unplastered 

 row, which weighed 19 lbs. — showing a gain in 

 favor of the plastered row of only 1 lb. 



The second experiment was tried on two rows 

 extending across a hollow, or drain, through the 

 clovered part of the. lot, containing two distinct 

 soils, one which is the theatre of this experiment 

 precisely similar to that on which the first was 

 tried; the other beyond the hollow, of a chocolate 

 color, based on fine red clay. The plants were 

 cut and weighed, as in the first experiment, with 

 a view to make the test as accurate as possible, 

 and resulted thus : the ten unplastered plants 

 weighed 15Jlbs. — the plastered, 23^ lbs. — making 

 a difference in favor of the plastered plants of 

 7| lbs- 



The third experiment was made in the same 

 rows on the other side of the hollow, in the choco- 

 late colored soil, with the red clay base, with the 

 same care as the others, and resulted as follows: 

 The ten unplastered plants weighed 15| lbs. — 

 the ten plastered plants 20^ lbs. — leaving a differ- 

 ence in favor of the plastered plants of 4| lbs. 



I then hung these several parcels on separate 

 sticks, in the usual manner, (except that they were 

 numbered, to avoid mistakes,) and placed them 

 side by side in the centre of the barn, on the first 

 firing tier, (so that they might be equally cured,) 

 and after curing them in the usual way, stripped 

 and lied them up in bundles as for pressing. 

 They were then separately weighed, and the re- 

 sults follow: 



$177 20 

 12 



$165 20 



ANDERSON C. MORTON. 



EXPLANATION AND CORRECTION. 



To the Editor of the Farmers' Register. 



Orange, I8ih Nov., 1835. 



In my communication published in the 7th No. 

 of the Farmers' Register, at page 444, on the im- 

 provement of worn land by clover and plaster, 1 

 observe in a note a query by the editor, viz: "Is 

 this great improvement of the poorest forty acres 

 known from experience?" In answer to this 

 query, I must remark, that I did not intend to say 

 this would be the result if there was a very great 

 difference in the quality of the land, but I can 

 safely say that I have experienced this to be case 

 when the difference was not very great, and all 

 of the land capable of producing a good crop of 

 clover, with the use of plaster — and provided the 

 greatest proportion of the clover was suffered to 



remain on the land and rot, and the last crop of 

 clover ploughed under in the fall or winter before 

 the land is put in corn. You will perceive that 

 the forty acres will have had, in three years, only 

 one grain crop, and two ameliorating or clover 

 crops; whereas, the eighty acres will have had 

 two grain crops, and only one ameliorating crop. 



CATLETT CONWAY. 



P. S. There is a mistake in the table at- 

 tached to the piece above alluded to, viz: — the ro- 

 tation of the second field commences with "80 acres 

 in wheat after clover, 40 in wheat after clover." 

 It should be "80 acres in wheat after corn, and 

 40 acres in wheat after clover" — else it would ap- 

 pear as if the whole field of 120 acres was clover 

 tallow. 



