208 



THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



the relative quantity oi nitrogen it contains. Tiiere 

 docs not appear to be any manure so ricii in 

 nitrogen as liuman excren>ent (except bone ma- 

 nure, whicii contains upwards ol 30 per cent, of 

 gelatine in its iniersilices) ; so much so, that 

 accordiniT to ihe analyses of JVlacaire and Marcet 

 100 parts of human urine are f^tpjal to 1300 parts 

 of frosli dunfT of the horse, 600 parts of the cow, 

 and 450 parts ol' the urine of the horse. Hence 

 it is evident that it would be of n^iuch importance 

 W none of the human excrements were lost, espe- 

 cially when we consider that with every pound 

 of urine a pound of wheat might be produced. 

 Now I would sugiiesl to your correspondent the 

 best and most economical method I know of pre- 

 serving unimpaired the most valuable element in 

 night-soil, which is as follows : To every 100 lbs. 

 of night soil add 7 lbs. ol" sidphate of lime (gyp- 

 sum) in powder, a double decomposition will 

 ensue, and the result will be, instead of sulphate 

 of lime and carbonate of ammonia, carbonate of 

 lime and sulphate of ammonia ; the latter a sola-, 

 hie salt which cannot be volatilized. It might 

 now be mixed wiih other compost, or dried any 

 way thought proper, and applied to the roots of 

 the vegetable, to be again transformed into bread, 

 butter, cheese, &c. 



Chloride of calcium, sulphuric or muriatic acid, 

 substances of low price, would completely neu- 

 tralize the urine, converting its ammonia into 

 salts which possess no volatility. 



I would also suggest that if the floors of stables 

 be strewed li-om time to time with a little sulphate 

 of lime, they will lose all their otl'ensive smell, 

 and none ol the ammonia which forms can be 

 Inst, but retained in a condition serviceable as ma- 

 nure. In close stables the horses' health would- 

 be better preserved, and they would not be so 

 liable to get blind as now. If lbs. of sul|)hat^ 

 of lime will fix as much ammonia as is produced 

 by 100 lbs. of horse's urine. 



I am, sir, your obedient servant, 



JVanebridge, Nov. 14. Gregory Brabyn. 



ON THE WHITE OR BELGIAN CARROT. 



£y John C. Morton, Esq. 



From tlie Journal of tlie Royal Agricultural Society. 



Chester Hill Nov. 18, 1840. 



Sir : — I am desired by my friher to send you 

 the particulars of the crop of white or Belgian 

 carrots on Lord Ducie's farm at Whitfield. The 

 extent of the piece is 1 acre 36 perches, from 

 which 64 cartloads of roots were taken. The 

 average weight of a cartload was found to be 10 

 cwt. This gives 32 tons as the total weight of 

 the crop, which is at the rate of 26 tons 3 cwt. per 

 acre. The soil is a deep, sandy loam, belonging 

 to the new red sandstone formation. 



This is a heavier crop than any other on the 

 farm. The seed was sown in the second week in 

 April, on land which had been ploughed ten 

 inciies deep. It was sown on the flat, in rows 

 eighteen inches apart, by the common Suffolk 

 drill. The seed had been mingled with damp 

 sand for several days previous, as well to sprout 

 it partially as to render it capable of being drilled, 

 as carrot seed clings so much together. They 

 are singled out when a fortnight old at intervals 



of six inches in the row, and two horse-hoeings, 

 with a hand-lioeing whenever tlie weeds made 

 their appearance, was all the cultivation they 

 received. 



The result is a crop not only much more va- 

 luable per ton than any other green crop we have, 

 but also heavier per acre, and raised at an expense 

 less by at least one half than that attending the 

 culiivation of turnip. 



The crop on the land the year before was 

 Swedes, which were carried off ihe land and sold. 

 No dung of any kind was put to the carrots. 

 I am, sir, your most obedient servant, 



John C. Morton. • 



Fh. Pusey, Esq., M. P. 



Note by Mr. Pusey. 

 This carrot, though it has been long grown as 

 a field-root in Flanders, has been but very lately 

 introduced into England : it is, however, much 

 liked by those who have tried it in my own neigfi- 

 borhood. A liirmer, Mr. W. B. Harris, who 

 has grown it for two years on a good free loam, 

 gives me the iijilowing account of it : — "On 

 taking up my carrots and weighing ihem, 1 find 

 they tall short of the quantity 1 grew last year. 

 Instead ol the white carrots weighing nearl}' 82 

 tons per acre, they will only weigh 20 tons this 

 year ; and instead of the red ones weighing about 

 16 tons, they only weigh twelve tons this year. 

 1 have generally found the difl'erence between the 

 red and white carrots to be as follows (in all cases 

 where I have weighed them, and in all cases of 

 inquiry): — The white generally exceed the red 

 ones in weight from 8 to 9 tons per acre, when 

 you take the average of the field as I have done 

 now. I attribute the failure in my crop this year 

 to two or three things. In the first place the land 

 was not subsoiled ; in the second, they were 

 planted late, and the weather too dry ; and in the 

 third place, they were hoed too thin — they were 

 hoed the last time with a bean-hoe." Even the 

 diminished crop of Mr. Harris, however, is very 

 considerable, as it is equal in weight to an excel- 

 lent crop of Swedes, and is twice as valuable. 

 On some lighter land 16 tons of the while carrot 

 were grown last year, where the red field-carrot 

 gave a very poor crop. I ought to add that I 

 have not succeeded' in raising more than 8 or 9 

 tons myself ; but this new root has in its favour 

 the high practical authority of the Yoxlbrd Farm- 

 ing Ciub, who " recommend strongly the cultiva- 

 tion of the long while carrot, as it produces a 

 heavy crop of good quality, and adapted to strong 

 as well as mixed soil lands, will keep well, and is 

 excellent Ibod for cart horses." It has been stated 

 to me that there are two varieties, and that the 

 best of the two is that which makes a large por- 

 tion of its root above ground. Sir C. Burrell haa 

 grown it in Sussex, and has found it very produc- 

 tive. Colonel Le Couteur informs me " that in 

 Jersey the prize crop of parsnips this year afford- 

 ed 318 lbs. to the perch, or 23 tons to the acre ; 

 while the white carrot, a prize crop also, which he 

 had cultivated experimentally, gave him 524 lbs. to 

 the perch, or nearly 38 tons to the acre — an 

 enormous crop," he adds, "which, if equally va- 

 luable lor butter as the parsnip, will of course 

 supersede it, as his parsnip crop in the same field, 

 cultivated alike, only produced 16^ tons, which^ 

 neverthelessj was a very fair crop." 



