558 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Mr. Rice is so well satisfied with the improve- 

 ment he has effected upon these knolls, that he in- 

 tends to raise young locust trees enough to set 

 over several acres of poor land adjoining. He sets 

 his trees about two rods apart, and finds that 

 sprouts enough spring up between them to cover 

 the land sufficiently. Cattle being very fond of 

 the foliage of the locust, he finds it necessary to 

 keep them off the land for four or five years, or un- 

 til the young trees have grown tall enough to be 

 out of danger. But calves and sheep may run 

 where the young trees are, without danger. 



Walking about in these groves, my attention 

 was particularly attracted by the soft velvety feel 

 ing of the sward under foot ; it was like stepping 

 upon down ; and upon examination, I found a mat 

 of locust leaves covering the ground, beneath the 

 tall grass and all about its roots, convincing me 

 that the grass could never become bound out.— 

 The foliage of the locust does not injure the qual 

 ity, nor does its shade diminish the quantity of 

 grass, like most other trees ; but on the contrary, 

 the grass is of a deep green color and luxuriant 

 growth in the shadiest places in these groves, and 

 is greedily eaten by the cattle. 



A great excellence of this method of improve- 

 ment is, its adaptation to rough, stony, ledgy 

 lands, covering them with a valuable and abund- 

 ant herbage, besides providing the very best of 

 fencing timber. Why grass grows so luxuriantly 

 beneath the shade of the locust, is so well rel- 

 ished by cattle, and why the trees endow the 

 land so remarkably with fertility, is more than I 

 know. The facts are unquestionably so. The 

 roots of the locust run deep, and perhaps draw con- 

 siderable support for the tree from below the sur- 

 face soil ; then the leaf is very small, and heavy 

 of its size, lying still where it falls, settling down 

 about the roots of the grass and enriching the 

 whole surface, while the leaves of most other 

 trees are blown about by the winds, collecting in 

 hollows or other sheltered places. There are but 

 few forest trees whose leaves could stay on Mr. 

 Rice's knolls ; the raking winds to which they 

 would be exposed would sweep them off. 



Mr. Rice has also a young chestnut grove cov- 

 ering a hill-side of four acres. The land was in 

 low condition at the time of planting the grove. 

 Twelve years ago, in the month of October, it was 

 plowed and sowed with winter rye, and at the 

 same time chestnuts were picked from trees and 

 planted amongthe rye, one nut in a place, in rows 

 i >ur feet apart each way. A scanty crop of rye was 

 harvested the next year, and then the land was 

 given up to the young trees, and cattle were ever 

 after kept out. If to do again, Mr. Rice would 

 omit sowing rye, it being too exhausting to such 

 poor land, and hardly worth harvesting. It was 

 very rare to find a young tree missing where a nut 

 had been planted. The original sprout from the 

 nut being invariably crooked and dwarfish, it was 

 after four or five years' growth, cut s down, and 

 straight, handsome sprouts shot up from the 

 stump, which, having the advantage of the origi- 

 nal root to support them, grew rapidly. But even 

 where the original tree did not happen to get cut 

 down, it ultimately gave place to a straight thrifty 

 sprout. In a very few years more, this young 

 grove will afford valuable timber for fencing and 

 building purposes. The land is worth much more 

 than it would be, had it lain till this time in old 

 pasture. 



Where wood and timber are scarce, and there 

 are rough pastures, so exhausted as to yield little 

 feed of much value, and so rough and stony as to 

 preclude cultivation, they may unquestionably be 

 planted with trees and eventually made produc- 

 tive as forests, thus ultimately enhancing the in- 

 come of the farm as well as the value of the home- 

 stead, whether to sell or hand down to children. 

 But I am now opening a branch of my subject 

 which alone requires a long article for its proper 

 discussion ; and as my present communication is 

 already too long, I will stop with the bare sugges- 

 tion of it. I am persuaded the time has come 

 here in New England for the profitable expendi- 

 ture of capital and labor iu the improvement of 

 old worn-out pastures. In quite a number of lo- 

 calities, the farmer is narrowed down to the ques- 

 tion, whether he will improve his pastures or aban- 

 don the keeping of milch cows and the making of 

 butter and cheese. Probably some mode or modes 

 of improvement may be adopted that will prove 

 efficient and profitable. f. h. 



Brattleboro\ Oct. 4, 1852. 



A NEW WHETSTONE. 



We would call the attention of the public to the 

 advertisement in another column of this paper, of 

 Messrs. Webster & Co., respecting the celebrated 

 Talacre Burr Scythe and Grind Stones, the popu- 

 larity of which seems to be gaining ground very 

 fast in this country. These stones, especially the 

 scythe stones, seem to be particularly adapted to 

 the use for which they were made. The sharp- 

 ness of their grit is valuable, as it cuts the gum 

 from the scythe, and from the stone which always 

 collects on them when the dew is off the grass, 

 thus leaving both entirely free and clean. The 

 shape being oblong, or larger in the middle than 

 at the ends, remedies in great degree the liability 

 to whet the scythe across the edge, which in all 

 beginners is a prevailing fault. The size being 

 larger than the common stones, does its work more 

 thoroughly, and does not require to be used so 

 often, which will pay for the trouble of carrying. 

 These properties combined, will fully compensate 

 for the greater cost, besides the fact that they will 

 last much longer than the old kind. They are 

 particularly adapted to those fields, where the 

 grass is heavy, and where large scythes are used. 



It will be borne in mind that these are a Welsh 

 article, and in order to have a supply on hand for 

 the coming season, orders for them should be 

 sent to the agents at once, that a supply may be 

 imported to meet the demand at home and abroad. 



These stones took the first premium at the late 

 World's Fair in London, by the side of twelve com- 

 petitors, which is a pretty good guarantee that 

 they are valuable. Any further information respect- 

 ing them, will be given by the agents upon appli- 

 cation by letter, and samples forwarded in all ca- 

 ses where it is practicable. Those who intend to 

 keep a stock, should look into this, and be pre- 

 pared for the coming season. 



