396 



THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



that we need a grazing graes that will stand our 

 long hot summers, that will ihrough the year 

 imparl the greatest nutriment to the animal, that 

 the tooih or the hoof will not destroy, and re- 

 appear the next sprmg without culiivatioo, with 

 renewed vigor, and continue to do it lor all time ; 

 Then you have it in the Bermvjda grass ; though 

 the tooth ot" the animal may lake otl the foliage, 

 and the hool" press ihe remaining stubble, it is 

 not hurt ; it puts Ibrlh with renewed vigor, and 

 the hotter the sun the more luxuriant it is. 



I am assured by a gentlenictn who was raised 

 in the state ol' Mew- York, and'tlu-it part most 

 iamous lor grazmg, that the liermuda grass by 

 Jar surpasses any grass lor grazing that he ever 

 saw in New YorK, 1 am also inlbrmed by a 

 Keniuckian that it by far surj/asses any ol the 

 grasses ol' that state lor ciurabiiiiy ol grazing and 

 ability to stand the length and heat ol summer. 

 \ do know that hortes, cows, sheep and hogs will 

 get fat on this grass ; that it will atiord good 

 grazing Irom the middle of April until the first 

 of December, in this section ol' country ; that it 

 will grow well on poor land, and eventually make 

 it rich. If it were necessary, I could name par- 

 ticular instances which have proved the value of 

 this grass beyond dispute ; but 1 deem it unne- 

 cessary, as tlie whole ground of objeciion to it is, 

 the danger of its getting scattered over the farm, 

 and the impossibility to eradicate it when so scat- 

 tered. Now, knowing that the Bermuda grass 

 bears no seed,, that it can only be scattered by a 

 sprig or the root, that it will not grow in the 

 shade, consequently will not pass a, Georgia 

 lence, the corners of which are usually choked 

 with bushes and briers — these tacts, I say, have 

 stripped it of all its imaginary horrors, and placed it 

 in a position that justice may be done it ; and 

 lor the benefit of the over-scrupulous 1 will as- 

 sert, that 1 have known it in a yard lor the last 

 twenty-five years— lived on the place — the cows 

 and horses were turned in daily through the suKi- 

 merlo keep the gra.-s down, and there never was 

 a sprig seen any where on the plantation but in 

 the yard. Another case : some fifteen years 

 since, I knew a farmer to plant a lot of some five 

 acres, it was separated from the cultivated land 

 on two sides by a Georgia lence through which 

 it has not passed to this day. It is admiiied on 

 all hands, notwithstanding our staple is cotton, 

 that if we could raise the grasses as well as they 

 can in the northern and western states, that we 

 might raise our own horses, mules and pork; 

 but while we have to resort wholly to the corn- 

 crib, the thing is impracticable : we can make 

 more money, and make it faster, to purchase 

 those articles from the Kentuckians with a part 

 of the proceeds of our cotton. This ruinoiiB 

 policy 1 will not slop here to controvert, even 

 under the present uncultivated state of the grass- 

 es, but merely remark, if we had Ihe money back 

 from Kentucky— to say nothing of the interest- 

 that we have paid for horses, mules and hogs, it 

 would pay the whole indebtedness of Georgia, 

 educate all its poor children, and there would 

 then be a remaining surplus sufficiently large to 

 establish a sinking fund, the interest of which 

 would losler agricultural societies in every coun- 

 ty in the stale. In addition to tiiis, but "for the 

 murderous policy of making cotion to purchase 

 every other thingvvith, Georgia might have been 



the garden spot of the world, and her inhabiiants 

 the most independent of any other people. 



In this apparent digression I have hot lost 

 sight of my subject ; in lact it is intimately con- 

 nected wuh it; lor i look to Bermuda grass as 

 best adapted to our climate of any other lur graz- 

 ing, that by its culiivaiion we will be able to 

 compete with KeniucUy in raising stock. As 

 soon as I his fact is believed — and believed it will 

 be, if no oiher way, ti'om sheer necessity — we 

 shall begin to lookup ; for then every farmer will 

 have to sell a little corn, a little pork, a lew bush- 

 els of wheat, fodder and oats, every j«ar, and 

 occasionally a horse or mule. No argument 

 need be used or prools adduced to show the abi- 

 lity of the Bermuda grass to bear grazing or im- 

 parl nutriment to animals ; and having shown 

 that ihe objection loitis ideal, that it will not 

 spread witliout design or bad management, and 

 that It can be eradicated at pleasure, 1 can, with 

 some hope of success, recommend to every farm- 

 er the selection of some suitable exhausted field, 

 in quantity sutncient lur the stock that he neces- 

 sarily has to keep, wiih running water in it, hav- 

 ing .<^uch location as will be most convenient lor 

 the turning in and out of slock. This done, and 

 in lliree years it will be worth more to him per 

 arre than the best land Mie cullivates in cotton, 

 afid that at fifteen cents per pound. If anyone 

 doubts the latter assertion, I have the prools at 

 hand. Clodhopper. 



Ilancnck, JuneS, 1841. 



MANCRINGS — IMPRO VEM EKT. 



To tiio Editor of tlie Farmers' Register. 



Thinking it likely that some fellow agriculturist 

 may gather a valuable hint by ihe promulgation 

 of my manuring operations, I send the lollowing. 

 1 count my manurings from July till July, and 

 although the operative year has not closed, 3'et 

 having at this time nothing else to attend to, (it 

 being a rainy day,) I will copy from o'y memoran- 

 dum book so far as it goes, and guess at the ba- 

 lance. 



Ox cart loads. 



iVlovcd and spread rich mould, - - 1500 

 " from hog yards, - - - - 

 " from horse yards, . - - 

 " from cattle yard, 

 " damaged straw, hay and chafi", - 



Actually carted out to 4th May, - 

 On sheep yard suppose, - - - - 

 Tobacco trash and ashes in houses, - 

 300 bushels ashes equal to, - - 



Compost, dead animafs, ashes and mould. 

 Yet to come from horse yard, , - 



2830 



Ploughed down 50 acres of millet, rye and 



peas since Juh', equal to - - 1000 



Cut down 25 acres heavy limber to rot, 600 



Drift mould and waterings on millet, - 250 



Out feedings of sheep and cows, - 250 



4930 



As to Ihe tobacco trash, ar,hr.e, and yet to come 



