1859. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



51 



underdraining and subsoil plowing, as among the 

 best means of bringing the soil to that condition 

 necessary to a high state of fertility. Would it 

 be advisable on such lands as the above ? 



Hon. H. F. French, in one of his articles on 

 vrire fences, speaks of the necessity of some one 

 inventing a spring to hold the wires that would 

 relieve them of the continual strain upon them. 

 Would not India rubber be just the thing? It 

 seems to answer every purpose in summer and 

 winter when used as car springs. Would it not 

 do as well for the above purpose ? 



In regard to a corner-post to strain and fasten 

 the wires to, I would ask, where there are no trees 

 that Can be used for that purpose, and there are 

 large rocks near the spot, could not the wires 

 composing the fence be gathered to one point and 

 fastened to an iron staple driven in the rock ? 

 Would the frost heave the rock so as to slacken 

 the wires ? B. F. M. 



Lowell, Nov. 29, 1858. 



Remarks. — It is difficult, if not impossible, to 

 give valuable advice about draining land, with- 

 out a personal inspection of it. There are some 

 evidences, however, in the vegetation itself, of 

 the necessity of draining, where too much cold 

 water is near the surface. In most instances of 

 this kind, such grasses will appear as naturally 

 grow in low, wet places, and they will gradual- 

 ly assume the whole ground, by pushing out the 

 grasses which we usually cultivate. Where these 

 evidences are found, the land, as a general thing, 

 needs draining. It is difficult to plow or other- 

 wise work such lands in season to get in the 

 crops. 



Perhaps your suggestion about the India rub- 

 ber springs may induce some to try them. There 

 can be no question, wc think, but that attaching 

 wires to a rock would be effectual. 



TO PREVENT FLOWING SAP IN TREES. 



Friend Brown : — In your paper of Nov. 13, 

 I noticed an article by T. Ellis, of Ptochester, in 

 which he inquires if any one can tell him how he 

 can save his trees ? I would saj' that I have an 

 infallible remedy for stopping the flowing of sap, 

 or bleeding, as we term it. It is simply to dip 

 the end of the limb, twig, or grape vine, into 

 boiling pitch or rosin, and let it remain two or 

 three minutes. But this remedy probably cannot 

 be applied in his case, and I will give another : 

 Take a flat bar of iron and apply it red-hot to 

 the end of the stump until the bark and wood 

 are well seasoned downward, say half an inch ; 

 then apply a good coat of pitch or rosin, and 

 melt it in with the same iron, moderately hot ; 

 this will form a cap that will keep all sap in, and 

 all weather out, until friend Ellis is too old or 

 too wise to trim his valuable trees in May. 



Peterhoru\ N. II., 185S. S. Maynard. 



THE season. 

 After a beautiful season for ripening and gath- 

 ering, winter appears to have taken a permanent 

 hold. The 13th gave us an easterly snow-storm, 

 and the rough, March like north-west winds of 



the following week kept the snow in perpetual 

 motion. The atmosphere, through the week, felt 

 like winter and the young drifts looked like win- 

 ter. 



Sunday evening, the 21st, we had another fall 

 of about three inches of snow, which settled one- 

 half under the mild sunshine cf the following 

 day. 



On Wednesday morning, the 23d, another 

 snow storm commenced at about two o'clock 

 from the north east, and continued for twelve 

 hours, giving a full of about four inches, very 

 damp snow, lying nearly level which gives a pros- 

 pect of sleighing for Thanksgiving. w. B, 



Richmand, Nov., 1858. 



barley and oats. 

 Will barley turn to oats if cut down by frost, 

 or eaten ofi' by cattle ? E. B. 



Chester, N H. 



Remarks. — We have never heard of such a case, 

 and find nothing like it recorded in the books. 

 Barley is a grain, however, that rapidly deterio- 

 rates on soils unsuitable for it — or under careless 

 cultivation. It is a tender plant, and easily hurt in 

 any stage of its growth ; and as it is so easily af- 

 fected by soil and cultivation, we should not be 

 surprised that if it were cut down by frost, or 

 eaten off by cattle, it might be so far affected as 

 to resemble oats when it had headed out. 



For the New England Farmer. 



MAREOW SQUASH— SCOTCH DRUM- 

 HEAD. 



Mr. Editor: — The question regarding the 

 first introduction of the autumnal marrow squash, 

 called Boston marrow, into the city, I have 

 thought might be interesting to some of your 

 readers ; I herewith send you the following con- 

 densed account, so far as I have ascertained, of 

 its origin. A specimen of this vegetable was 

 brought to my place in North Salem by a friend 

 from Northampton, in this State, in 1831. In 

 the spring of 1833 I distributed seeds to many 

 members of our Mass. Horticultural Society, 

 they never having seen it previously. At the 

 Annual Exhibition of this Society at Fancuil Hall, 

 Sept., 1834,lexhibited a specimen, merely marked 

 "New Squash." This was previous to the de- 

 scription or cut being made. One month from 

 this (in Oct., 1834,) I forwarded the name, au- 

 tumnal marrow, together with a wood cut, to the 

 N. E. Farmer ; it soon after appeared in the Iior- 

 ticuUural Register of Teschemacher, and also in 

 Tlovei/s Magazine. Some years after this the 

 Mass. Horticultural Society presented me with 

 a testimonial for the introduction of this vegeta- 

 ble. Regarding its origin, I can only say that 

 it was received from Buffalo, N. Y., and that it 

 was brought there by some Indians who visited 

 that city. This I ascertained from my North- 

 ampton friend. This vegetable hybridized with 

 all the tribe of pumpkins, hence it is a true, sweet 

 pumpkin; the Valparaiso or Lima, and all those 

 we call true pumpkins, will mix ; but not so with 

 the Winter or Canada crookneck, which I consider 



