1858. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



67 



stuif, not fit for bedding. We abominate bad 

 hay, and have wished, that just for experiment, 

 some of our slovenlj' farmers were transmogrified 

 like an old fellow we read of, who was made to 

 eat grass like an ox, till he learned some good 

 horse sense. Besides the hay at regular hours, 

 and the straw they pick up between times, the colts 

 should have a feed of chopped grain, or other 

 mill stuff, or oats, every day, a bite of carrots 

 now and then, a lick of salt, with a dust of clean 

 wood ashes in it occasionally, and a regular ac- 

 cess to pure water for driivk. All this is provis- 

 ion and care well laid out, and that will pay, if 

 the colts themselves are Morth raising at all — 

 OMo Cultivator. 



For the New England Farmer. 



EXPEEIMENTS WITH THE TURNIP 

 CEOP. 



I append a few remarks for the Neiv England 

 Farmer, as I consider an unsuccessful experi- 

 ment (in detail) often of as much service to the 

 farming community, as a very successful one. 

 About tv»'o years since my attention was called 

 to a new kind of turnip (to me at least) which in 

 appearance resembled the "lluta Baga, or Yellow 

 Swede," only the bulb was Mhite instead of yel- 

 low ; the leaf a darker green, and the roots much 

 more forked, and firmer in the ground than the 

 Swedish ; but for culinary purposes far exceeded 

 it. The next spring I tried to procure some seed, 

 but without success, but I found one of my Yan- 

 kee neighbors had procured some seed, and Avas 

 retailing his plants at seventy-five cents per one 

 hundred. I was induced to purchase a fcAv, which 

 I transplanted with great success, and have now 

 a supply of seed for next year. 



But in the last spring, 1857, I was at Nourse, 

 Mason, & Co.'s establishment, and purchased a 

 small quantity of "yellow ruta baga," and also of 

 "white ruta baga," and I believe the like quan- 

 tity of "Cole's cabbage turnip seed," and shortly 

 after my return home, I found a small quantity 

 of seed from my "new favorite," which the per- 

 son of whom I had it recommended my sowing 

 early: accordingly about the 15th of June, I had 

 well prepared about one-third of an acre of 

 land. I then drilled six rows of my "new turnip,' 

 six rows of Cole's cabbage turnip, six rows of 

 the "white Swedish," and the balance of the land, 

 which M'as by far the greatest portion, with the 

 common "yellow ruta baga." The weather was 

 propitious, and the seed came up well. I horse- 

 hoed the intervals, and hand-hoed, and thinned 

 the plants in the rows : they thrived exceeding- 

 ly, and promised an abundant crop. Some few 

 weeks after, a friend applied to me for seed, and 

 I furnished him with what I had remaining of 

 each kind. About the middle of July, he planted 

 his in drills, and never weeded or hoed them un- 

 til the September following. They then appeared 

 so choked with grass and weeds, that I Avould 

 not have given Mm one dollar for the whole, and 

 I advised him to mow the crop, and cart it into 

 his cow-yard. But no, he hired a couple of Ger- 

 mans, and hand-weeded the whole. And now for 

 the result of both crops. 



Y'ou will observe mine was sown early in June, 

 his one month later ; mine was well cared for, his 

 neglected. About the middle of August, mine, 



particularly the yellow Swede, appeared shriveled 

 and stunted in the leaf, and on farther examina- 

 tion, I found the heart of the plant showed symp- 

 toms of decay, and by the middle of September 

 I had scarce one yellow Swede remaining ; next 

 to those was the white Swede, and two-thirds of 

 those shared the same fate, and the Cole's cab- 

 bage, and my new favoi'ite did not appear much 

 better, only the bulb grew much larger before 

 they commenced rotting. But I happened to 

 transplant two rows from my new turnip, which 

 grew much larger, and more sound than any of the 

 others. But my friend's crop was quite the re- 

 verse ; after he had them weeded, and sprinkled 

 a small dressing of guano on them, such a fine 

 crop of fine sound turnips could scarcely be 

 equalled, particularly the Cole's cabbage tur- 

 nips, many of which will weigh from seven to 

 nine pounds each, and for culinary purposes, ex- 

 ceed any that I have ever seen. I should think 

 the "new favorite" which I before alluded to, and 

 distinguished by that name, and the Cole's cab- 

 bage, are almost identical, only the leaf of th 

 Cole's are more dented, and the stems a darker 

 purple than the others. I find recently, several 

 other persons in this neighborhood sowed early, 

 and their crops shared the same fate, while all 

 the late sown are sound in quality, and in quan- 

 tity abundant. One reason in calling your atten- 

 tion to this, is, to inquire more particularly if the 

 cause is not in solving the seed too early. I 

 have occasionally cultivated the Swedish turnip 

 for upwards of forty years, early and late sown, 

 and never recollect losing them in this way be- 

 fore. John Moody. 



Muuntain Grore, Bridgeport, Ci., ) 

 Noe. 2, 1857. | 



Remarks. — Little can be said of value in re- 

 gard to particular cases of this kind, — but as a 

 general rule, we have no doubt that late sowing, 

 that is, after the 20th of July, results in good 

 crops much more frequently than early sowing, 

 say before the^rs^ of July. Plants of the turnip 

 kind that are sown late, escape the ravages of the 

 fly much more than early ones, and there seems 

 to be something more natural and congenial to 

 the plant at a later period, than in an earlier 

 one. But experience is the best schoolmaster, 

 after all, in these cases. 



NICOTINE. 

 This peculiar principle is a product of the 

 leaves and seeds of tobacco, by infusing them in 

 acidulous water, adding lime, and distilling, and 

 then washing the product with ether, when an 

 ethereal solution of nicotine is obtained. One 

 drop will kill a dog. It causes the pupil of 

 the eye to contract, has a bitterish acrimonious 

 taste, and a pungent smell, and on the whoie, is 

 one of the nastiest things in creation. It is com- 

 posed of 73-26 per cent of carbon, 9-25 per cent 

 of hydrogen, and 17-09 per cent of nitrogen. It 

 is related to a class of bodies called vegeto-alka- 

 lies, and is capable of uniting with an acid. On 

 the human brain it produces a soothing effect, 

 which is thought very pleasant, but can never be 

 considered otherwise than unhealthy. — ScL Am. 



