676 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Dec. 



marked that I wished it was hard soap. My hus- 

 band, who was something of a chemist, said, it 

 could easily be done, by heating it and adding 

 common salt. I did so, adding the salt a little 

 at a time, and trying it, by cooling a little of it. 

 When I found a thick scum rise to the surface, 

 it was dipped into tubs and allowed to stand un- 

 til next day. The hard crust was then taken off, 

 melted and poured into moulds, and when cold, 

 cut in bars and dried. It proved very good — 

 the older and drier, the better. Meg. 



J^ov., 1859. 



BARK BORERS. 



I think the disease in the trees of your "Still 

 River" correspondent is evidently caused by a 

 species of bark borer. 



I have, within a few years, had one tree de- 

 stroyed, and two others seriously damaged by 

 this insect. It usually attacks the tree on the 

 south side, although this is not invariably the 

 case. I know of no remedy except digging them 

 out with a knife. I have seen a description of 

 this borer in some of my agricultural periodicals 

 recently — think it was the Country Oentlemaii — 

 but cannot now refer to it. I believe, however, 

 it takes some two or more years to complete its 

 growth, which would give time to destroy it be- 

 fore serious mischief was done, if the trees were 

 closely watched. Wm. F. Bassett. 



Ashfield, Mass., J^ov., 1859. 



ARTIFICIAL GUANO. 

 I saw in the November Farmer a formula for 

 artificial guano ; would night soil be better as a 

 substitute in place of garden mould ? I see you 

 have referred to Dr. Reynolds — will he please 

 answer the question ? A. l. 



For the Nets England Farmer. 

 THE LABGE BBONZE TURKEY. 



Mr. Editor: — Having been requested to fur- 

 nish for the JV*. E. Farmer a description and his- 

 tory of these noble birds, with my method of 

 raising, I would say, as to their history, the first 

 I heard of them was at Point Judith some years 

 since ; from there they were brought into this 

 county, and by judicious crossing with other 

 families of the same breed, their size has been 

 increased until I was able to show a male bird 

 last April, which weighed 39 pounds. The hens 

 are much smaller, yet I have one weighing over 

 20 pounds, and a friend of mine has one weigh- 

 ing 22 pounds. I knew a one-year-old cock, after 

 it was dressed, weigh 32 pounds, and have known 

 10 young ones dressed in winter, to weigh 200 

 weight. These were, of course, extra birds, but 

 a cock well cared for seldom weighs less than 

 from 25 to 27 pounds, when dressed, at one year 

 old. For tame and quiet habits, beautiful plum- 

 age, and fine, delicate, juicy flesh, I think they 

 have no equal among domestic turkeys. The 

 plumage of the cocks is thick and glossy, with 

 metallic reflections, rendering them exceedingly 

 beautiful ; that of the hens has less bronze, yet 

 is strongly marked with it. I will give you my 

 method of raising them in another article. 



H. S. Ramsdell. 



West Thompson, Conn., Nov, 1, 1859. 



For the New England Fartnei. 

 OPINIONS OF THE AMERICAN GUANO. 



[Letter from Dr. Holmes, Editor of the Maine Farmer.'] 



Winthrop, Me., Oct. 19, 1859. 



John Means, Esa., Augusta, Me. 



Dear Sir : — I have made use of the Ameri- 

 can Guano that I purchased of you last spring, 

 and am well pleased with it as a fertilizer. 1 

 tried a comparative experiment with it in the 

 following manner. A portion of a cornfield was 

 marked off. The American guano was used in 

 the hill, say a gill to each hill ; beside this I ap- 

 plied the Peruvan guano in the same way and 

 quantity, and beside this the fish guano in the 

 same manner and quantity. All the rows of corn 

 did well, and I could perceive no particular dif- 

 ference between them. This proves your Amer- 

 ican guano to be equally as good as other kinds, 

 or, in other words, equally as good as what has 

 hitherto been considered the best. 



I have not had opportunity to give it a fair 

 trial as a top-dressing to grass land, but intend 

 to do it next spring. There does not appear to 

 be so much free ammonia escaping from the 

 American guano as from the Peruvian, but it 

 seems to contain enough of it, and as far as I 

 can judge from its action on crops, and not by 

 actual chemical analysis, it contains as much of 

 the other fertilizing ingredients, such as phos- 

 phates and other salts, if not more than the Pe- 

 ruvian. With much respect, yours truly, 



E. Holmes. 



Remarks, — In confirmation of the opinion 

 which Dr. Holmes has formed of the value of the 

 American guano, we will state that we have used 

 it for two seasons with the happiest results. The 

 first trial of it was on corn where its effects were 

 distinct through the season ; the corn coming on 

 earlier in the spring, growing faster, with a dark 

 green color, and producing abundantly in the 

 ear. This last season we tried it through the 

 centre of a field of corn with similar results. It 

 also produced carrots and potatoes, without oth- 

 er manure, of most excellent quality, and liberal 

 in quantity. On beets and parsnips the result 

 was equally marked. But the point to which we 

 attach the most importance is. that it may be 

 used on any crops as a stimulant and fertilizer 

 in the hill, without endangering the germination 

 of the seed, and thus give corn, or other plants 

 requiring a long season, an early start, and se- 

 cure their perfection before the time of frosts. 

 In our short, cold and wet springs, it is essential 

 to give the corn crop an early growth, and this 

 we have secured by the use of the American 

 guano, better than in any other way. 



We hope our farmers will generaUy try it, and 

 that the price will be kept within moderate 

 limits, so that all may avail themselves of its ad- 

 vantages. We shall continue to use it freely, if 

 the price does not exceed $40,00 per ton. 



