350 



JNJ!jW ili]NtjrL.AiNL» J!AllJ.VlJL,n, 



MAT 5, 1841. 



AND HORTICULTCRAL KEGISTER. 



Boston, Wednesday, May B, 1841. 



to learn upon llio subject, and should be gratified to re- 

 ceive communications relating to tliis crop. 



POTATOES. 



Can any one give us vnluabie information regarding 

 the cultivation of ihia root ? (we call it root fur conve- 

 nience sake.) Our own experience will) il has not 

 been attended with Buch success as to give us any con- 

 fidence that our mode of treatment has meiils enough 

 to entitle it 10 public mention. And yet in the hope of 

 drawing information from other sources, our process 

 will be given. On half the land, perhaps, used for this 

 crop, tood manure, fresh from the barn cellar, has been 

 ploughed in at the rate of three cords to ihe acre — as 

 much more has been put in the hill. Sometimes — often 

 indeed— no part of the manure is ploughed in, but all is 

 put in the hill — that is, from 3 to 5 cords are thus used 

 per acre. The ground is generally neic — i. e. neii'bj 

 broken up. 'l"he hills are 3 1-2 ftet apart each way.— 

 Nearly 20 bushels of seed is put upon the acre. The 

 lirger potatoes are cut into two, and two or three pieces 

 are put in each hill, directly upon or into the dung. The 

 varieties are the Long Red and the Richardson. These 

 are but local names, and may not be extensively under- 

 stood. The Long Red is an eld variety, once famous 

 for its productiveness, and still we find it naore prolific 

 than Kidneys, Chenangoes, Blues, Whites, or any other 

 kind (not excepting even Rohans) which we cultivate. 

 Its name is descriptive of its appearance ; the vine of it 

 grows large, and continues green until late in autumn. 

 The Richnrdson resembles the Chenango in form, and 

 is by many considered identical with it. We think it 

 differs, being in color more blue, both internally and 

 cxterniilly — being also larger and coarser — more pro- 

 ductive, but less mealy and palatable. These Iwo kinds 

 have succeeded belter with us than any others ; and yet 

 these best have not probably averaged us more than 'JiO 

 bushels per acre for the last five years. In the cultiva- 

 tion of these it has been customary to plough between 

 the hills both ways, and to hoe twice or three limes. 

 We have many doubts about the wisdom of our course; 

 any reprehension will give us no annoyance. 



We presume that it is better to cultivate in drills than 

 in hills ; better to spread at least half of the manure 

 than to put a large quantity in thd hill only. Coarse 

 manure is better than fine ; swaid land is better th.ii* 

 that which has been rendered fine and compact by re- 

 cent cultivation. Such is the comm()n opinion. 



We have some conjectures in relation to the wanls of 

 this crop, which liave never, as far as we know, been 

 publicly expressed by any one. It is our belief that the 

 sward lands and coarse manure are peculiarly servicea- 

 ble, not because they, of themselves, furnish this crop 

 with its appropriate nourishment more freely and fully 

 than finer and richer soils and maaures, but because 

 they admit a freer circulation of air. For instance, 

 should one bury in the potato hill, in a rich garden soil, 

 a peck of brush, bushes, cornstalks, straw or any other 

 BUbslanco which would furnish a sufficient ventilation, 

 we should expect a good crop both in quantity and 

 quality. This opinion has grown out of the obierva- 

 tions of seyoral eeasont, in which we have noticed, 

 while harvesting the crop, that those hills in which the 

 air had the freest pastages, gave the greatest yield. We 

 give this as an opinion merely, but hare much confi- 

 dence in its correctness. 



In relation to this crop, we do not assume to give in- 

 struction ; for our own success with it, or rather our 

 failure with it, has been such that we hare ever thing 



PUMPKINS. 

 A custom, not uncommon, of rairing these among 

 corn, is injudicious, especially so where the land is in 

 good lillh, and where the corn stands thick upon the 

 ground. Under such circumstances, the injury to the 

 corn outweighs the value of the pumpkins. But this 

 crop is worth cultivating. A good course of procedure 

 is to mark or furrow out a field with rows four (ect or 

 more apart each may. Plant each hill in every oilier 

 row with corn. Then in the remaining rows plant eve- 

 ry other hill wilh pumpkins. This will make the hills 

 of vines ei^'hl feet apart ; it will give a half crop of corn 

 and a good crop of pumpkins. We prefer for cattle the 

 variety which grows large and has a soft shell. 



Squashes may be very profitably planted in the same 

 way. 



LIGHTNING RODS. 

 We publish today a lengthy communication upon this 

 subject. The tone of the article indicates an entire con- 

 fidence on the part of Mr Strong that his rods have pow- 

 er in all cases to scatter the thunderbolt and render il 

 harmless. Itcan hardly be expected that communily 

 will possess the same confidence : — we do not. 



It is generally known, we suppose, that the electric 

 fluid can be taken from a body highly charged with it, 

 xoi:houl any explosion, previdud sharp points are used as 

 conductors. This well established fact is kept in view 

 by Mr S., and his rods are doubtless more etfectual for 

 protection against lightning, than any others known 

 among us. Of the prudence of using conductors of 

 electricity upon our dwellings, there can be lillle doubt 

 The laws which govern the lighlning'scourse are proba^ 

 biy as fixed and unvarying as those whieh compel wa- 

 ter to run along the surface of the lowest ground. And 

 if the laws of the movements of the electric fluid are 

 known, it is as much in the power of man to make for 

 the lightning a path which it will fiillow, as it is to dig 

 out a channel in which the water will flow. But there 

 is not the same confidence in community that the laws 

 which direct the lightning's course are well understood, 

 as ihere is that we know how water will move. We 

 cannot have the same confidence that one can make a 

 path in which the lightning will run invisibly down or 

 away from the sides of our dwellings, as we have that 

 the water falling upon the roof will go down the water- 

 spouts. And yet the electric fluid has been so fre(|Uent- 

 ly eiperimented with and used from the days of Frank- 

 lin to the present hour, and its laws are so well learned, 

 that the probability is great that rods may be so con- 

 structed and so fixed upon our buildings that the light- 

 ning will almost certainly be led away from us. 



Undoubtedly Mr Slrcmg's rods will serve as a desira- 

 ble and important protection in most instances. As far 

 as our advice may hare influence, wo would use it in 

 favor of the use of conductors ; but at the same time we 

 repeat our doubt whether any ordinary apparatus for the 

 purpose will be found adequate to full protection in 

 some rare instances in which a cloud or tho earth is 

 charged most highly with the electric fluid. 



A model of the rods in question has been examined 

 in our own oSice, and ihe principles of their construc- 

 tion are obviously sound. i( our information is correct, 

 the expense of the iron rods is 10, and that of the copper 

 15 cents per fool, when fixed upoo the building. 



(Ij"The following remarks of B. are much lo the point 

 on a debatable question ; and it will give us pleasure to 

 hear from him upon other topics. 



COMPARATlVi: WORTH OF NORTHERN AND 

 SOUTHERN CLOVER. 

 Mr Editor — Having lately seen some discussion in 

 the papers respecting the comparative merits of North- 

 ern and Southern clover, I lack the liberty o( sending 

 you the result of my own experience on the subject. 

 Eight years since, necessity obliged me to use Southern 

 seed. Since that time I have sowed more or less of it 

 every year, and though contrary to ihe common opinion 

 in this vicinity, give it the preference for the reasons 

 that follow. It starls earlier and thug gets better rooted 

 the first year; it is much less liable lo ledge, consequent- 

 ly gives the other grasses sown wilh it a better chance ; 

 it will also stay in the ground longer than the Northern 

 clover ; and lastly, the quality of tho hay is very supe- 

 rior. If it is an object for farmers to crowd their barns 

 with clover hay an coarse as raspberry bushes, or if bulk 

 makes amends for every thing else, then sow Northern 

 seed; but if fine, sweet and heavy hay that cattle wilt 

 eat clean, is desired, then get seed from the south. It 

 is impossible to make very coarse clover without losing 

 many of lh» heads and leaves, but the smaller sialks of 

 the Southern present no such difficulty. If any one 

 will take the trouble of stripping the heads and leaves 

 from n given number of stalks of each kind, the South- 

 ern will be found the heavier of the two, leaving all the 

 extra weight and bulk of the Northern in stalks that no 

 animal will eat. Southern clover is somelhiiig earlier 

 than Northern, and will in common seasons head out a 

 second time, llius presenting a good afler-crop f')r the 

 scythe ; but as the second mowing kills many of the 

 roots, 1 prefer letting it stand til! ripe, when the heads 

 can be gathered for seed with a rake or comb, and leave 

 the crop to be slightly fed afterwards. 



Let any one who doubts the correctness of the above 

 statements, try the experiment for himself, and I doubt 

 not but his prejudices would vanish. My soil is a rich 

 clay loam of two feet, on u hard gravel pan. This is 

 mentioned, as perhaps iliflrerent soils would give different 

 results. With Northern seed, my first year's mowing 

 has not been worth half price per ton, having invariably 

 lodged — consequently the lower leaves were tuned yel- 

 low and fell off' in making, while the mould adhered to 

 the stalks, making the hay smoky when fed out in the 

 winter ; — in fact, I could never make any creature do 

 more ihan pick ofl' the heads, rejecting all the rest. 

 Kennebec Co., Me. B. 



LINDLEY'S HORTICULTURE. 



We have just received a copy of " Tho Theory ofHor- 

 ticulture, by John Lindley," first American edition, 

 with notes. New York, Wiley & Putnam; Boston, 

 C. C. Little & Co. 



The Western Farmer and Gardener states that tansey 

 and wormwood planted nearly in contact with peach 

 trees, will protect them from the moth-like worm. 



THAT CUCUMBER. 



Mr Breck — Sir— The credit of raising " the first Co- 

 cumber in the market" this year, belongs lo Thomcis 

 Crawfiird, a very ingenious and industrious Irishman la 

 my employ. Having servrd an appreniiceship of ten 

 years in the business of gardening, in the father-land, h« 

 has attained a skill in horliculuiral pursuits seldom 

 equalled. This statement is due Mr Ciawford, who 

 promises to send you, very soon, somi! of his seeds,, 

 which are of the first quality, as well as a second cucum- 

 ber measuring not less than 20 inches, when you shaU 

 have succeeded, in warmer weather, and wilh a better 

 appelite, in diminishing the '*=ng'''_°'^.'!"^. /"".f.-. 

 Yours, with esteem, ■" "" 



Bedford, May \st, 1841. 



F. W.R. EMERY. 



New potatoes have appeared at Richmond, Va. The 

 Star, of that place, says it takes six for a mouthful! 



