THE GENESEE FARiTER. 



138 



DuuiiAM Catti.k for Califokma. — Messrs. B. & C. 

 S. 1Iaim;s, of Elizalii'lh, N. J., have just made a sliipnieiit 

 of Short-hoins to Gkorge II. IlowAiin. of Siin Fruncisco, 

 tJie first of this breed of cattle sent to that State. The 

 lot embraces one bull, two years old, and one about six 

 inontlis old ; and two hei'ers, a year and a half old. M'e 

 shall lo >k with much anxiety for the success of thii first 

 nndertaking' to introduce improved cattle into that great 

 State, so well adapted to the business of stock raising, 



A Gooi> Cow. — I began feeding a small-boned grade 

 Du.-ham cow, five years old, the fifteenth of October last, 

 with half a bushel of oat and corn meal per day, and led 

 until the second of March, when she was butchered. Her 

 live weight was 1,450 fcs. ; dressed weight, 1.075 R)S., as 

 follows : the four quarters weighed 838 Ris , tallow (rough) 

 1(55 lbs., kidneys 80 fcs., hide 72 lbs. This cow raised a 

 calf last ^ieason, and gave milk until three weeks before 

 being killed. S. N. Fkarklin. 



Ledyurd, March, 1857. 



A PitAiain Faumeu's Opinion of the Genesee Far- 

 mer. — Before closing this communication, permit me to 

 Bay that I havo been a constant reader of tlie Genesee 

 Farmer for seven years. Perhaps it would be extravagant 

 to say that it is worth its weight in gold ; but I will say 

 that its value cnnnot be estimated by dollars and cents. 1 

 have received more information from this journal, than 

 from experience, observation, and all other sources com- 

 kmed. W. H. Bentley. 



Brimfidd, III. 



"^^^ m ■ 



Jnquirujs Kn& a,nsh)M». 



(O. L. Bake, Milford, Ind.) OKcnARi> Grass. — You 

 can obtain Urciiard grass seed from E. D. Haij.ock, of 

 this city, for three dollars per bushel. The botanic al name 

 id Dactylit g nmerala. There are a great variety of opin- 

 ions in regard to its value, and we should be glad to hear 

 from our corrospondtnts on the subject. It is called Cocks- 

 foot gra.-s in England. Sinclair, who conducted the 

 celebrated Woburn experiments on grasses, says that '• if 

 one species only is thought preferable to another in the 

 alternate husbandry, that species is the Dactyt/s glomera/a, 

 from its more numerous merits." This is higher praise 

 than the experience of farmers generally will sustain. 

 LouTiON s:!js of orchard grass : " It has been found highly 

 useful as an early sheep feed. It is early, hardy, and pro- 

 productive, but is i coarspr plant than rye grass, and re- 

 quires even greater attention in regard to being cut soon or 

 fed close." American as well as English writers agree that 

 it must be eaten close, or mown when quite green, or it 

 becomes coarse, hard, and unpalatable. A writer in the 

 Ohio Cultivator tried it. and says: " It grew tolerably well, 

 at}d ceitainly is the best grass I ever had to keep, for 

 nothntg will eat it." This is owin?, probably, to neglect 

 irf close cro])ping. At all event", we have seen this grass 

 on good farms in Ohio, yielding three tons of hav per acre, 

 and those who raised it spoke of it in the highest terms. 

 It is well adapted for sowing with red clover, as it matures 

 about the same time. 



It flourishes best on deep, rich, moist soils, fnot wet.) 

 and does not objei't to a little shade. It is on this account, 

 probably, that it is termed '• orchard gra.ss." Manv appear 

 to supjioise that it \^ less injiirious to orcharrls than any 

 other grass, but of this there id, to say the least, no proof. 



(J. C. A.) " Hard Watkr" contains sulphate and car- 

 bonate of lime; seldom auy free m-'ul. When (lotiiiili or sods 

 is added to water containing sulphate of lime (plaster,) the 

 sulphuric acid leaves the lime and unites with the potash 

 or soda, and the lime falls to the bottom, and the water i» 

 rendered " soft." If soaj) is used, the »an)e chango takes 

 place, except that 'he lime unites with tie oil of the soap 

 and rises to the surface. Water wliiili is " hard" from 

 containing carbonate of lime, may be reduced foft by ad- 

 ding a little quick lime to it, and allowing it to settle be- 

 fore it is used. 



(S. S. Saroent, Girard, Penn.) Dwarf ap])le trees will 

 bear in three years from the bud. You can purchase trees 

 from the nui-sery this spring and obtain a little fruit next 

 fall, though it is not advisable to let them bear so soon. 

 The same variety is said to be larger and finer on dwarf 

 than on standard trees. You can obtain almost any vari- 

 eties you wish. 



(B. F. B.) The cut of the " properly trained hedge" in 

 the Rural Annual, is not " a fancy sketch." It is a cor- 

 rect representation of a beautiful osoge orarge hedga 

 growing in front of the grounds of Messis 11. E. Hoo&sa 

 & Co., of this c ty. 



(Charles Rockwell, lladley, N. Y.) Italian Bdck- 

 wiiKAT. — The '• Italian buckwheat" proved to be nothing 

 more nor less than Italian tnitlet. 



(J. W.) The fluke and buiscuit potato is the same. J. 

 S. Clark?,, of Greece, Monroe Co., N. Y., has them for 

 sale, we believe at $1.60 per bushel. 



(J. W". A. K.) "We cannot insert your advertisement at, 

 any price, believing your receipts to be a bun. bug. 



(T. S. T.) See advertisements of the Chinese Sugar 

 Cane Seed in this number of the Farmer. 



(B. F. Bartlet.) Vines in the Cold Grapery, that 

 were not disbudded in the fall, had be'ter now be allowed 

 to remain until they have started into growth and havo 

 m ide shoots four or six inches long, or leaiestwo or three 

 inches in diameter. Then those buds that should havo 

 been cut out in the fall may be broken out now without 

 danger of causing the vine to bleed, as the rapidly expand- 

 ing foliage will take t!'e super-abundant ssp. But where 

 there are two shoots starting fiom the same bud, as it were, 

 or double bud, then the shoot to be taken away had better 

 be cut away to half an inch of its base, as the bienking of 

 the one is liable to break the other. Josiaii Salter, 



Sowing Locust Seek. — In answer to J. L. Miller's 

 inquiry I would state from twenty years' exjierience what 

 1 concieve the best method. Put the locust sefu iii a shal- 

 low wooden vessel and pour on boiling water from a tea- 

 kettle till covered, at the same t'me stir briskly with a 

 wooden spatula until tlie water cools ; — repeat the second 

 an 1 third time. Plant in the spring, and the seed will all 

 vegetate as readily as corn. The like trtaiment destrojS 

 the csage orange. L. A. Meeker. 



Foot Corn Planter. — I want some inform.ition about 

 the " F' ot Corn Planter " Is it w hat it is represented to 

 be, and will it do the business as it onulit ti) be dfine f 

 Where can it be obtained, and :it what prce? Bv an- 

 swering the above, you will confer n. lavor "n your Canai- 

 dian subscribers. L. Lewis. — Spnrfa, C. W. 



Will some of our readers — who are not interested — an- 

 swer the above ? 



