296 



THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



Carolina, wire-grass, and others joint-grass. It 

 is however easily known by de.scripiion. It is 

 a perennial, growini; from the root or jonii as well 

 as seed, the siem or vine however, ahove ground, 

 is killed by the freezes every winter. Ii branches 

 out Irom the central root two or three-leet in the 

 summer, and hugs the earth with roois I'rom every 

 joint, which are not over 2 or 3 inches apart. 

 And now I'or the facts, as relates to iis value and 

 plan of desiruciion. It had so taken possession 

 o( some bottom land which I cultivated, that I 

 concluded it was vain to attempt to make cotton 

 longer upon it. ' Knowing that hogs were Ibnd 

 of It, I concluded to fasten the hogs up in the 

 field without any other food, to see if they could 

 live upon It, and in some degree destroy it, or at 

 least thin it, so as to render the land fit lor cultiva- 

 tion. The hogs v/ere put in, in Feb. 1S40, when 

 very pour. Result, in 4 weeks : they were in 

 order, fit for pork, and had rooted the field where 

 the grass grew, like a potato patch where hogs 

 had run. In 1839, part, of this field was planted 

 in corn and the other part in cotton. Thai which 

 was in corn I manured in the hill, planted early, 

 and planted thick with peas the first ploughing. 

 The corn was rank and the peas nearly covered 

 the ground, so as. with the corn, to exclude the 

 sun pretiy well from the grass. I observed where 

 the grass was shaded, that its vines, instead of 

 hugging the earth, run up perpendicularly, and 

 most of it so perished, that il either died or brought 

 no seed. Since ihen, I have noticed where corn, 

 peas and pumpkins have been planted three 

 years in succession, where this grass grew, il is 

 preity well extirpated. I have ILirlher observed 

 that it perishes wherever the ground is completely 

 shaded by trees or weeds. This year I have 50 

 or 60 hogs liislened up in the same field, since 

 (ny peas were eaten oH. They have not been fed 

 with one bushel of grain, or other lood but what 

 they gather in the field, now about eight weeks. 

 Although the grass was much thinned out last 

 year, so as not to injure the corn or cotion crop 

 upon it, my hogs look as fat as I ever saw hogs 

 upon peas or potatoes. If any doubt it, come 

 and see. Be it remembered that it is the stalk or 

 vine which is covered by the plough, and not the 

 top or fibrous roots, thai is eaten by hogs! the 

 stalk being covered, it becomes pulpy and t-accha- 

 rine ; if exposed to Irosis, ii dies. J. D. 



AN ACT TO PROMOTE AGRICULTURE IN 

 NEW YORK. 



From tlie Journal of Commprce. 



This act became a law on the 5ih inst. It 

 Rppropriates ^8000 per annum, for the term of five 

 years, for the promotion of agriculture and house- 

 hold manufactures in this state. The sum of ^650, 

 for New York county, is given to the American 

 Institute. 



When the New York State Agricultural Socie- 

 ty, or any county agricultural society which i§ 

 now, or may hereafter be formed, or the American 

 Institute, shall by voluntary subscription raise any 

 sum of money, then the comptroller, on an 

 Hffidavit of the facts, shall draw his warrant on 

 the treasurer for an equal sum, which is not, how- 

 ever, to exceed the amount apportioned to the 

 county. 



it is the duty of the officers of the slate and 

 county societies to reirulate and award premiums 

 on such articles as are best calculated to promote 

 the agricultural and household manufacturing in- 

 terests of itie slate, giving the reward for the 

 most economical or profitable mode of competi- 

 tion. An accurate wriiten description of the 

 wtiole process in raising the crop, or feeding the 

 animal, as may be, is to be given by the person 

 claiminij (he reward. 



EXPERIMENT ON THE PROPER DISTANCES 

 FOR COTTON. 



From tlie Soutliern Agriculturist. 



Mr. Editor : — When I had the pleasure of 

 seeing you at my hout^e last spring, you requested 

 me to make an experiment on ihinnins cotton to 

 difilerent distances, with the view of ascertaining, 

 if possible, what is the best distance to give be- 

 tween the iiiils. I made the experiment accord- 

 ingly, and fiand you an account of it. 



The rows were three feet apart, and five hun- 

 dred and eighty-five yards long. 



IncliPS Produced 



1st row thinned to 6 100 lbs. seed cotion. 



2d " " to 8 90 " " " 



3d " " to 10 106 " " " 



4ih " " to 12 82 " " " 



5lh " " to 14 92 " " " 



6ih " " to 16 100 " " " 



7ih " " to 18 107 " " 



8th " " 10 20 105 " " " 



9th " '> to 22 118 " " " 



lOih " " to 24 91 " " " 



11th " " to 7 122 " " " 



The difference in the product of the different 

 rows, I suspect, is owing to' the manure not hav- 

 ing been equally distributed, for it is .lifficuU to get 

 precisely the same quantity put under each bed. 

 If any thing is proven by ihis experiment, it is, 

 that between six inches and twenty-four, there is 

 but little difference in the product ; but the same 

 experiment must be repeated lor several years be- 

 fore the question, whether one distance is better 

 than another, can be settled. Last year was very 

 wet, and the weeds grew unusually large ; this 

 may acc;Dunt for the rows having the greatest 

 distance producing as much as the others ; but in 

 a dry year the result might be very different. To 

 make a sati.-^liactorv experiment, I would suggest 

 that it be made ujion cotion to which no manure 

 is applied, on account of the difficulty of spread- 

 ing the manure equally on the different rows. 



J. A. Gillespie. 

 Marlboro', So. Ca. 



P. S. — The land on which tliis experiment waa 

 made is upland, sometimes called oak and hicko- 

 ry land. 



ROHAN POTATOES. 



To the Editor of the Farmers' Renister. 



As my experience in cultivating the Rohan 

 potato does not agree exactly with that of your 

 correspondent, as stated in the last number of the 



