516 



THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



but it may be doubted whether any, or even all 

 the other species of the vegetable kingdom, can 

 rival this single grass, in the production of sugar, 

 — either in the quality, the quantity, or the cheap- 

 ness of the supply. That the history of the 

 plant and its products is closely interwoven with 

 a melancholy tale of oppression, and human 

 misery, is unhappily as true, as it is reproachful 

 to our race ; and it is no less true that the choice 

 product of the cane— like that of its grain-bearing 

 kindred — is often prostituted to the vilest and most 

 mischievous uses : yet we must recollect, that 

 these evils are the results of man's own folly and 

 wickedness, — and are no more chargeable upon 

 the blessings thus perverted, than they are im- 

 putable to the design of a bounteous Providence. 

 From the sketch now presented, — which I fear 

 has been tedious, though extremely superficial 

 and imperfect, I think it may be perceived, that 

 the simple tribe of plants, technically called 

 grasses, is not only one of the most abundant, 

 but decidedly the most valuable, and important 

 to man, of all the many natural families in the 

 vegetable creation. That while its peculiar cha- 

 racters cannot fail to interest the lover of natural 

 science, its uses, abuses, and manifold relations 

 to the welfare of society, must ever give it a 

 strong claim to the attention of the agriculturist, 

 the philanthropist, and the political economist. 



REMARKS ON DIFFERENT GRASSES FOR HAY 

 AND PASTURE. 



To the Editor of the Farmers' Register. 



My crop of hay this year was composed of red 

 clover, orchard grass, and green grass, separately 

 grown. I have, lor some time past, held red clo- 

 ver, lor hay, in small estimation, and the experi- 

 ence of this year has increased its disfavor. 



I finished cutting hay before the heavy rains in 

 June, and had my hay cocked according to the 

 method recommended in the first volume of the 

 Farmers' Register, by raising the cocks on stakes. 

 After the rains, I found that much of my clover 

 hay had taken wet, and though I dried and 

 housed it, as soon as I could, I sustained much 

 loss. No injury was incurred by my orchard or 

 green grass, though some of it remained out in 

 cock lor a month. 



I am much pleased with my crop of green 

 grass; it is the first I have seen cut, on the East- 

 ern Shore, for hay ; the season was not propitious, 

 and the hay crop was not a full one. it is my 

 purpose to improve the grounds on which it grew, 

 to ascertain the product when compared with 

 other grasses. I think there has been some sug- 

 gestion in the Register about sowing and setting 

 green grass, and perhaps it will be acceptable to 

 your readers to know something of the production 

 of green grass in my grounds. Some years ago 

 I sowed a lot of seven acres in orchard grass, 

 from which I cut crops regularly, and as the or- 

 chard grass has declined, the green grass has suc- 

 ceeded, and this year the green grass greatly pre- 

 dominated. The lot, preparatory to sowing it in 

 orchard grass, was highly marled and manured, 

 and has been since once top-dressed with barn- 

 yard manure. Mr. Stevenson informs us, that 

 green grass (which he calls blue grass) delights 



in the naturally calcareous soils of Kentucky. 

 Dr. Darlington, that it grows in the lands of 

 Chester county, on which lime has been freely 

 used, and I think it is not assuming too much 

 when I say that, by the same means, green grass 

 may be produced on the Eastern Shore of Mary- 

 land. Indigenous grasses of equal production 

 and quality are always to be preferred to exotic; 

 there is no cost in seed or sowing, and, above all, 

 we avoid the pernicious weeds which come in 

 foreign grass seeds. 



I was induced to cut red clover this year to ob- 

 tain seed iiom the second crop. When judicious- 

 ly used as pasture, it is certainly a great improver 

 of the soil ; whether white clover would not an- 

 swer as a substitute is still a subject for experi- 

 ment. Last year I cut wheat from a field which 

 for the most part had been marled ; I permitted 

 no stock to run on it till the middle of October; it 

 was then rich in white clover, and some red, from 

 former sowing. The field was pastured till the 

 month of December. The stock was then ex- 

 cluded till the middle of May, and it was a fine 

 pasture till late in July, when it was greatly in- 

 jured by a drought, uncommon here at that sea- 

 son of the year. I entertain no doubt that for 

 pasture white clover is greatly superior to red ; in 

 confirmation of my own experience 1 rely on the 

 opinions ol" some Chester county farmers, and I 

 am inclined to think that if the same attention 

 was paid to our native grasses and our native 

 stock, we should find them as valuable as the re- 

 cently imported. One of my friends sent me last 

 fall two Berkshire pigs ; I put them in a sty, and 

 had them well attended to, and turned them out 

 when the grass was in fLiil growth ; since, they 

 have been led with my other hogs, and are now 

 fat. A gentleman, who professes to be a judge, 

 saw them a few days since, and he thought some 

 of my other hogs, the common breed of the coun- 

 try, both in size and condition quite equal to them. 

 If our breeding cattle were well selected, and well 

 reared, from tfie stock of the country, perhaps we 

 should have but little need of imported stock. 



I entertain no hope that Maryland can at pre- 

 sent do any thing by way of agricultural experi- 

 ments. The internal improvers and projectors 

 have laid upon her a debt of ,$15,000,000. Some 

 of the schemes have proved abortive, and [ ap- 

 prehend time will develope more. The local au- 

 thorities, by an act of the last legislature, are pre- 

 paring to impose heavy taxes ; whether there will 

 be hereaftermuch alleviation, from the profits of 

 rail-roads and canals, is a matter of doubt. Ma- 

 ny of the improving companies are now issuing 

 scrip to a large amount; and, upon their insol- 

 vency, it is probable Maryland will be called on 

 to redeem it ; and I suppose the meritorious con- 

 sideration will be, that the money was expended 

 on projects in which the state held a deep interest. 

 Wm. Carmichael. 



Wye, Queen yf nil's county, Md., 

 August Uth, 1841. 



ON TURNIPS. 



From Johnston's Lectures. 



The raising of turnips is of such vast import- 

 ance in the prevailing system of husbandry, that 



