136 



NEW ENGLAND FAEMER. 



Sept. 



for if we make the most accurate analysis that 

 is possible of a soil, and find in what elements 

 it appears to be deficient, and supply them lib- 

 erally, we are by no means certain that we shall 

 secure a good crop of wheat. There is still some- 

 thing beyond the skill of the chemist, but some- 

 thing, happily, within the reach of the farmer to 

 supply, that will usually bring a good crop, — and 

 that is plenty of barnyard manure ! 



EXTRACTS AND BBPLIBS. 



HOW SHALL I RESTORE MY RUN-OUT GRASS 

 LAND ? 



I have a piece of English mowing land, situat- 

 ed between the upland and meadow, which sev- 

 en years ago bore bushes, brakes, and the like ; 

 since then it has been plowed and planted one 

 year, plowed again and sowed to grass seed. 

 Four crops of hay have been taken off' since, the 

 first very heavy, the last very light. 



Can anything be done to this piece of mowing 

 land the present month, without plowing, (as it 

 is v/ell and evenly laid down with the land 

 around it,) so that 1 may secure a good crop of 

 hay for three years, or more ? If so, what ? 



Hamilton, Mass., Aug., 1859. x. 



Remarks. — Plowing and re-seeding, in our 

 opinion, will be the quickest and most economi- 

 cal mode of reclaiming the piece of land you 

 speak of. In common with most of us, you have 

 probably made two mistakes with it. First in 

 not topdressing a little annually, or at least 

 every other year, and secondly, in not allowing 

 the herdsgrass to ripen one year so as to re-seed 

 itself. The herdsgrass and red-top roots are 

 gone, and top-dressing will not restore them. 

 Plow, manure and re-seed, and then keep up 

 the crop by a fair course of manuring. 



REAPERS — SLAKING LIME. 



Is Ketchum's machine a good reaper as well as 

 mower? 



In composting lime with muck, should the lime 

 be slaked with water or by the air? Maple. 



Caledonia Co., 17. 



Remarks. — Ketchum's machine is intended 

 for reaping as well as mowing — but may not be 

 as good as a machine with a reel. 



There is no difi'erence, we believe, between 

 lime slaked with water or air slaked. The lat- 

 ter is as much slaked with water as the first, but 

 the process is slower. 



PEARS. 

 Among the varieties of this fine fruit which 

 have been raised, there are comparatively few 

 that are equally good in Massachusetts ; from 

 these, if requested to name six of the best, ripen- 

 ing in succession, I should name the Bloodgood, 

 Bartlett, Belle Lucrative, Beurre Bosc, Winter 

 Nelis and Lawrence. These will generally do 

 well in all good soils; the Belle Lucrative is. 



however, of a higher flavor when grown upon a 

 warm, loamy soil, than upon one of a heavy, re- 

 tentive nature. j. m. I. 

 Salem, Mass., 1859. 



HOW TO MAKE GOOD BUTTER. 



I have noticed in several numbers of your ex- 

 cellent paper an article treating on specks in 

 butter. The mystery I think I can solve at once. 

 I have lived on this earth half a century and 

 always been in the habit of making butter since 

 I was fifteen years of age. And from experience 

 I found a preventive a great many years ago. I 

 can take the cream from curdled milk and put 

 in a trifle of salt and stir it around the jar with 

 a paddle that I keep for the purpose, and repeat 

 it every time that I add cream, and I will never 

 be troubled with white specks in butter. As to 

 straining cream it seems to me to be entirely 

 useless, if it is properly cared for. In order to 

 have butter sweet and nice, cream ought not to 

 be kept more than three days in hot weather, 

 nor more than six in cold weather. 



M M. Spaulding. 



Cornish, J^. II,, Aug., 1859. 



BUTTER MAKING. 



White specks in butter are sour milk turned 

 to a hard curd ; and are caused by the milk or 

 cream being kept in too warm a place. 



Cream that remains in the churn after the but- 

 ter has come, should be put into the cream-pot 

 ■ again ; if put back into the churn, it will enrich 

 the buttermilk, but will not form the white 

 speck ; if the churn is made as it should be, there 

 will be no cream remaining in the churn, unless 

 the cream is very thick. Put sweet cream into 

 the churn with that that is sour, and you will 

 lose the sweet cream, as it does not come to but- 

 ter so soon as the sour, but does not injure the 

 butter ; cream should be taken from the miik as 

 soon as it is sour enough to be removed wiihout 

 milk, and in warm weather should immediately 

 be put in the cellar, or where it can be kept as 

 cool as possible ; churn once a week, but the 

 oftener the sweeter the butter. After removing 

 the cream, you may skim off" as much more that 

 will be rich enough for biscuit, making a saving 

 of all your cream for butter. L. C. Potter. 



Leyden, Mass., 1859. 



N. B. Lettuce makes excellent greens — boil 

 half an hour. 



ACTION OF PHOSPHATES. 



I am much pleased with the remarks of Judge 

 French about phosphates, analyses of soils, and 

 the like. It is high time that we back out from 

 scientific nonsense, such as is taught by many a 

 would-be professor, and take up the lessons of 

 practical common sense. If it he true, as averred 

 by Mr. F., and admitted by Prof. Mapes, that 

 there are some phosphates that nourish plants, 

 and others that do not, all of which are com- 

 posed of the same chemical ingredients, then 

 what reliance can be placed on chemical laws, 

 for the advance of vegetation ? None at all, un- 

 til demonstrated and illustrated by experiment. 



Aug. 1, 1859. P. 



