1846. 



GENESEE FARMER. 



137 



Experiments on So .Ijj Corn for Fodder. 



It is not often, in these advancing days of 

 knowledge in farming, that we find a series of 

 experiments conducted with more accuracy than 

 were those wliich follow. I have procured them 

 from the son of the farmer who conducted them, 

 and the notes are the original ones, in the hand 

 writing of tiie farmer himielf. 1 \vh\\ it were 

 more common for our farmers to make accurate 

 memoranda of every thing they do. ]nit to the 

 experiments. They are as follows. 



1. On the 1st of June, 1828, S B. sowed in a 

 drill hird corn, very thick, on account of its 

 smallness. The kernels were sown about one 

 inch apart, or, in other words, one kernel to one 

 inch square. The size of the bed sown, was 9h 

 feet by 3 feet. The produce was cut on the 25th 

 of August, and weighed fifty pounds in the green 

 state. The proportionate produce per acre 

 would be 34j-p''g- tons, green fodder. 



One month after, say about the twentieth of 

 September, the product weighed, when perfectly 

 dry, 11 h pounds, which would give per acre 

 about 12 tons dry fodder. This kind of Indian 

 corn is called bird corn, and half a pint contains 

 2400 kernels, or 307,200 to the bushel. One 

 (juart will sow 66 square feet, and it contains 

 9600 kernels. 



Rhode Island corn is next best, and contains 

 566 kernels to the half pint- One quart con- 

 tains 2264, and will sow sixteen square feet. 



Eight rowed corn is next, half a pint contain- 

 ing 580 kernels ; quart, 2320 kernels, and will 

 sow 16 square feet. 



Next is flour corn, half a pint containing 360 

 kernels; one quart, 1440 kernels, and will sow 

 ten square feeL Southern or gourd seed corn 

 ranks the same as this exactly. 



2. Friday, May 29th, 1829. Sowed 19 quarts 

 of flour corn on 150 square feet of ground. It 

 3'ielded 14 bundles of corn fodder, which weighed 

 58 pounds. It was cut on the 8th of September, 

 and secured on the 4th of October. Yield per 

 acre, 7 tons, 10 cwt., 1 qr., 15 lbs. 



3. Friday, May 29th, 1829. Sowed 8 quarts 

 of southern or gourd seed corn on 150 square 

 feet of ground. It yielded 9 bundles, -which 

 weighed 38 pounds. It was cut on the 8th of 

 September, and secured on the 4th of October. 

 The yield per acre was 4 tons, 18 cwt, 2 qrs., 

 3 lbs. 



4. May 30th, 1829. Sowed eight rowed white 

 corn on 130 square feet of ground. Gathered 

 12 bundles, which weighed 51 pounds. It was 

 cut on the 8th of September, and secured Oct. 4th. 

 Yield per acre, 7 tons, 12 cwt., 2 qrs., 8 lbs. 



In this experiment the quantity .sown is not 

 mentioned, but was probably the same as in the 

 2d experiment. 



5. June 12th, 1830. Sowed 3 bushels of tall 

 corn for fodder, on a piece of land 92 by 32 feet. 

 Cut on the 1st of September. . Gross weight, 1 



ton, 10 cwt., qr., 16 lbs. Neat weight, 579 lbs. 



The weather was very dry from the 12th of 

 June to the 1st of September, which is two 

 months, eighteen days. I am confident it was 

 not near half a crop. If it had been sown earli- 

 er it would have been better. 



I will here add one thing more from the note 

 book of this farmer, for he seems to have been 

 rather a curious man. 



May 3, 1832. Counted the grains or kernels 

 in half a j)int of broom corn. The}' are 4850, 

 or 1,241,600 in a bushel. 



Now how easy it would be for every farmer 

 to keep a little note book, in which he could put 

 down any thing he does, and preserve it for the 

 benefit of others. It would produce habits of 

 confidence in himself, and encon.tage such hab- 

 its in others. Every boy and girl brought up on 

 a farm, should be obliged every day to note down 

 every thing they do, and at night to make up a 

 full journal of the whole day's operations. By 

 this course they would soon become intelligent 

 and observing. — Am. Quar. Journal. 



Kindness better than Force. — If you want 

 your horse to work well, you must endeavor to 

 make it happy ; happiness increases its strength 

 and energies, and unhappiness diminishes them. 

 When you find it is weak in any particular point, 

 do not press and harrass the weakness, but show 

 it indulgence. Do not urge it to do more than 

 it is well able, as the more it is compelled to do 

 to-day the less it will do to-morrow. When you 

 find your horse begins to slacken his speed, do 

 not recklessly compel him to maintain it, but 

 think how you yourself would like to be thus 

 urged on beyond your strength. Do not worry 

 your horse by repeated whip strokes ; as every 

 blow robs the animal of sonie of his strength, 

 and continual blows rob it also of the motives to 

 exertion by the violence of the strokes on the 

 skin, and also aftect the muscles underneath on 

 which the motions depend. If any person doubts 

 this, a slight blow on his arm or leg will soon 

 convince hin> of the truth. U you have two hor- 

 ses working together, and one horse is slower or 

 weaker than the other, do not force it to do as 

 much as the other, but rather slacken the speed, 

 if even it is done by keeping the other horse 

 back ; and never use hearing reins ; they are 

 useless to the driver, vexatious to the horse, and 

 are the cause of many falls; but above all, be 

 not too fond of showing them that you are their 

 master and they your slaves ; they know it well 

 enough to their sorrow and without this trouble. 



It is important to all invalids to know that 

 castor oil may easily be taken mingled with 

 orange juice — a little sugar being added to the 

 juice, if the orange be not ripe and sweet. The 

 difference between this and other modesof taking 

 this valuable medicine is surprising. 



