AND H O R T I ( U L T U S{ A L REGISTER. 



PUBLISHED BY JOSEPH BRECK & CO., NO. 52 NOllTH M.4RKET STREET, (Agricultur.vl Warehoose.)-ALLEN PUTNAM, EIHTOR. 



vol.,. XIX.] 



BOSTON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, M.^RCH 3, 1841. 



[NO. 35. 



N. E . FARMER 



For the New England Farmer. 



THE POJ'ATO. 



Quere. Is the potato a root ? The dictionary 

 to whicli we were wont in our childhood to be re- 

 ferred for information, insinuates that it is; nay 

 more, gives us to understand that it may be eaten ; 

 but whether raw, after the manner of the ground- 

 nut, or seethed, or baked, or roasted, it saith not. 

 Yet as man is omnivorous — meaning, we suppose, 

 eating all things (if he can,) a most consolatory 

 doctrine to the anti-Grahamists — it is for him to 

 decide how and when this root-fruit shall enter into 

 liis viands. Botanists have heretofore supposed 

 that the potato was a species of Solanum produc- 

 nir a small tuber, and wliich, under cultivation, has 

 been improved into the varied kinds and sorts of 

 he present day. But botanists, like all other phi- 

 losophers, may he wrong at best, as has been veri- 

 fied m one kind of potato, the gilliflower, which 

 originates on the stem of a garden posy. 



Once we (who have an inkling for the curiosities 

 of nature,) did actually see with our own eyes, lit- 

 tle potatoes growing on the stems of a small trail- 

 ing plant in a greenhouse collection. After look- 

 ing all about the fine lot of geraniums and roses, 

 and such tlowers, the proprietor showed us, in a 

 deep flower-pot, filled with light, rich earth, the 

 above mentioned plant. Both he and we consider- 

 ed it not only a great curiosity, but exceedingly 

 interesting. We did not perceive any blossoms on 

 the plant; but perhaps the production of so useful 

 a. root(?) was considered by dame nature more than 

 a compensation for mere posies — a thing by no 

 means without some support, for we believe (and 

 we live in the country and near farms,) that there 

 are varieties n\' potatoes even, which never have any 

 blossoms ; and good potatoes they be too, at bottom. 



From these and similar observations, we liave 

 come to the conclusion that the dictionary-men 

 were wrong in attributing to potato the significa- 

 tiim of root ; and we here hold up our protest 

 against book fanners, while talking about the root 

 Culture, to include the potato. We think, and we 

 entertain some doubts whether it be our own discov- 

 ery, (for every one should be modest in these days 

 of Fciencp,) that the said vexed potato is not a root, 

 but a mere swelling of the stem. We know tliat 

 the sap in descending a(xumulates into the woody 

 parts of plants. Now in going down, it may accu- 

 mulate into potatoes. Why not? And perhaps 

 nature did not mean that the potato should be eat- 

 en, but only intended it as seed ; for we know that 

 farmers i.o actually call a part of the crop seed po- 

 tatoes, and cutting them into little pieces, raise 

 others from Ihein. Herein they do just as gard- 

 eners and the ladies do when they cut up a stem 

 of a rose bush or geranium to have a greater num- 

 ber. Now it dors not matter a whit, whether this 

 stem grow ui.der the ground or above it, because 

 we find that other plants sometimes have stems un- 

 der ground. And we also think that the potato is 



a swelling or knot of the returning sap on the stem, 

 as every one has seen that those potatoes which 

 grow out of the hill, are green and bitter, and taste 

 so like the stem itself that even pigs will scarcely 

 touch them. Besides, we have seen on such pota- 

 toes little green leaves growing out of the eyes, 

 which can therefore be nothing more than the buds 

 of that part of the stem. 



Things are not always called by right names. 

 Can potatoes be roots.' We opine they are not. 

 If they he warls on stems, on what stems? We 

 do not decide. Facts are stubborn things. ' Tis 

 onoufrh that we admire nature as she is: to peep 

 into her ladyship's mysterious operations, belongs 

 rather to those nature-men, who are always study- 

 ing about grasses and mosses and creeping things, 

 than to people who are contented to eat a good lo- 

 tato when they can get it, carting not whether it 

 gri>w on trees or in the cold ground. At any rate, 

 in such a case they can ask the farmer who raises 

 it and brings it to market, and our word for it, he 

 knows more about the matter than the whole of us. 



Vkrb. Sat. 



For the New England Farmer. 



ABSORPTION OF WATER. 

 A beet, carrot and flat turnip are growing in 

 bulb glasses on our mantel, sustained only by pure 

 water. They are nearly of equal size and weight. 

 The difference in the (piantity of water tiiey each 

 consume is, however, striking. Thus the beet, 

 whose foliage is not expanded to a sixteenth part 

 of its proper size, is a great water toper, and its 

 blood red root and fibres exhibit its intemperate 

 habits, " after the manner of men." The turnip 

 next sucks away to such a purpose as to give one a 

 tolerable mess of greens; and young turnip tops 

 are good in that way. The carrot, the prettiest by 

 far, drinks the least. Its foliage is long, rich and 

 green, and its fibres of snowy whiteness. Does 

 this experiment explain any fact in culture ? The 

 beet is a gross feeder and succeeds best in moist 

 land ; the flat turnip is generally sown and takes 

 advantage of the autuumal rains; but the carrot, 

 will it do well in comparatively dry summers ? 



Glkaner. 



For the N. E. Farmer. 



THE PROPER CONSTRUCTION OP BARNS. 

 There is no building of more importance to the 

 farmer than a good, well-constructed barn ; yet 

 many do not seem to realize the advantage they 

 would have by possessing one built on the most 

 improved and convenient plan. I did not myself, 

 until I pulled down my old barns and built anew. 

 But I am now confident that I save at least fifty 

 dollars a year by keeping the manure which is 

 made in the cellar, directly under the cattle's stall, 

 besides many other conveniences which the too 

 common mode of constructing barns does not admit 

 of. I will give you as good an idea of the con- 

 struction of my own as I can, and then leave it 



with your readers to judge whether it be worth any 

 thing for a pattern or not. The ground on which 

 I set my barn was nearly level, but with the aid of 

 a plough and scraper I sojn took out a place large 

 enough for a cellar by digging down four feet and 

 tlien setting my barn three feet above the level of 

 the ground around it, which gives me a cellar sev- 

 en feet in depth ; the bottom of the cattle yard 

 should be sunk nearly or quite as low as the bot- 

 tom of the cellar ; it is very desirable therefore to 

 have the ground, on which to set a barn, slope a 

 little, that the bottom of the yard may imt be much 

 lower than the land surrounding it ; and, where it 

 is possible, the yard and cellar should always be on 

 the south side of the barn : it is not very essential 

 to have a cellar under the whole width of a barn, 

 unless the back side of it is wanted fur carrots, &c., 

 in which case it may be walled off and made se- 

 cure from frost. My cellar is under only ti.'-i feet 

 of the width of the barn. 



My barn is 5.5 feet in length and 38 feet in width 

 and 15 feet posts. I divide the width by taking 

 off" 12 feet for the cattle stalls and 11 feet for floor 

 room, which leaves 15 feet for hay ; and having the 

 floor pass through lengthwise makes it very handy 

 unloading hay, and in winter it is likewise very 

 handy to feed out: for a very large barn it might 

 be well enough to have the floor 13 feet in width, 

 but the narrower the floor is the better, providing 

 it be wide enough for the loads you wish to draw 

 in. I would not on any consideration build a barn 

 more than 38 feet in width ; first, because it is not 

 so convenient ; second, because it requires the 

 rafters to be too long in order to give the roof a 

 riglit pitch, which should be one quarter at least, 

 even a little more is better; and third, because a 

 barn does not look so well proportioned, unless it 

 be an hundred feet long or upwards. Neither 

 would I have a barn higher on any account than 

 15 or 16 feel posts, though many are built 18 and 

 some 20; but it is strange that any one should 

 build so high, if they did but calculate how much 

 it costs to get their hay and grain up so high, and 

 then to get it down when wanted : why I have 

 seen six men employed at the same time in unload- 

 ing and stowing away one load of hay, pitching it 

 lip from (me mow to another; but it is much more 

 convenient to have the room in the length than to 

 build so high. 



It is a very great and beneficia improvement in 

 building barns to have them shingled down the 

 sides as well as the roof ; the extra expense is not 

 so much as many people are ready to imagine, as 

 there is a very considerable saving to be made m 

 the quality of boards and nails where shingling is 

 practiced: besides it keeps a barn warm and the 

 frame dry, and the boarding is not warped by the 

 sun and rain ; therefore I think there is no loss but 

 considerable gain in the end by shingling the sides. 



Another exceedingly convenient improvement 

 is, having a number of glass windows (about six 

 liirhts of G by 8 glass in each) in the side of the 

 barn directly behind the cattle, which will admit 

 ! the light without admitting the cold winds and 

 storms : there is not so much danger of their get- 



