ON ROOT CULTURE. 4S 



BENJAMIN P. WARE'S STATEMENT. 

 To the Committee on Boot Culture : 



Gentlemen, — I offer for your consideration a crop of carrots rais- 

 ed upon land of a gravelly loam, on which was raised a crop of pota- 

 toes for two vears previous, from a dressing of compost made of barn 

 and sea manure, at the rate of six cords per acre each year. 



In preparing the land for carrots last Spring, I first spread on a 

 compost made from meadow mud, dug in the August previous and 

 kelp (taken from the sea-shore during the Winter) in equal propor- 

 tions, the whole being thoroughly mixed and pulverized before spread- 

 ing, at the rate of eight cords per acre, which was well ploughed in, 

 and allowed to remain ten days, then the land was cultivated, with a 

 large ox cultivator, made upon a larger scale than those commonly 

 used with a horse, after which it was harrowed, and then dragged 

 with a common stone drag drawn sideways, which in some instances, 

 I thmk answers a better purpose than a roller; the seed was sown in 

 drills fourteen inches apart, at the rate of three quarters of a pound 

 per acre. 



The carrots were hoed and wed twice during the season thor- 

 oughly, and the third time slightly, as no weeds had gone to seed for 

 two years previous, the process of weeding was much more easily ac- 

 complished, the crop was harvested by topping the carrots with a sharp 

 shovel as they stood in the ground, and then ploughed out, which is 

 a very expeditious method. 



The weight of the crop was ascertained by digging, and throwing 

 the carrots in heaps, of six several rows, in different parts of the 

 piece without selection, and when dried, were weighed, the rows in 

 the whole piece were counted and multiplied by the mean weight of 

 one row resulting as follows ; upon 147 ici rods of land there were 

 grown, 32 tons, 965 lbs of carrots. 



Respectfully, 



BENJAMIN P. WARE. 



-Marblehead, November 12th, 1847. 



This certifies that I saw the above specified land measured, and the 

 carrots weighed, and can testify to the correctness of the statement. 



THOMAS P. BARTLETT, 



