1858. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



156 



pensive — to avoid them, visit the mowing-fields 

 and gather the broken twigs from trees, stones 

 and rubbish of every kind. If the cattle ran in 

 them last autumn, scatter their droppings now 

 ■with a light beetle. 



Plowing. — If drying winds and warm suns 

 have carried off the excessive moisture, so that 

 upon turning up a spadeful of soil it will crum- 

 ble to pieces, it is pretty good evidence that the 

 King of agricultural implements, the Plow, may 

 now be put in use. But for the benefit of inex- 

 perienced operators, we say that they will do well 

 not to he in a hurnj. If the soil, upon being 

 turned uj), remains fiat and compact, it will be 

 difficult to remove it from that condition during 

 the summer. It will be likely to remain in lumps, 

 be uncomfortable to work upon, and will not ac- 

 commodate the roots of your plants. But when 

 the land is right, "plow deep while sluggards 

 sleep ;" go half an inch deeper than last year ; 

 then you will have a loose, porous, inviting bed 

 for young roots to travel and feed in. Such a 

 soil will admit heat and moisture, and those are 

 just what the seeds and young germs want, — and 

 when the May showers come they will descend 

 freely among the new roots, carrying warmth with 

 them, and leaving a portion of moisture and am- 

 monia as they pass down into a lower stratum. 

 Then the young rootlets will open their mouths 

 and feed like a young child, and grow and send 

 up their stems to find nev\' joy in the light and 

 air ! Under such a condition of things the 



Spring Wheat, Oats and Barley ought to be 

 in the ground ; but the barley ought to be on a 

 gravelly loam, rather than a black loam ; it loves 

 a warm, dryish soil. Wheat and oats do better 

 on a soil not excessively manured. If land is laid 

 to grass M-ith them, it is probably better to ap- 

 ply only a light dressing at the time of sowing, 

 and add a portion to the young grass in the au- 

 tumn following. 



Early Potatoes. — After all that has been said 

 in favor of early peas, lettuces,*ou,\umbers, &c., 

 we doubt whether there is any vegetable more 

 grateful to the palate, or more healthful to the 

 system, than a good mealy potato in July. "Well, 

 you can have them on your table "on the glori- 

 ous Fourth," if you set about it on the first of 

 April. How ? Bring as many potatoes as you 

 wish to plant into the kitchen, or any other warm. 

 place, in a box or barrel, and sprinkle a little fine 

 loam, or old, fine compost among them, and keep 

 the light out. In a short time they will sprout, 

 then plant them in a warm, sheltered jAaee, and 

 on Hcw ground if possible. Or, spread the po- 

 tatoes on the grass in a warm nook, and cover 

 them with horse-manure deep enough to keep 

 them warm, and when sprouted plant them. The 

 soil for them should be pretty rich, and when 



they are up, hoe often and keep all the weeds 

 down. 



A little Garden, Avell tilled, will afford a world 

 of convenient things. Just think of it ! Early 

 asparagus, beans, beets, brussels-sprouts, cab- 

 bage, carrots, celery, cucumbers, chives, egg- 

 plant, horse-radish, corn, lettuce, melons, mustard, 

 onions, parsley. parsnips, peppers, peas, potatoes, 

 pumpkins, radishes, rhul)arb, spinage, squashes, 

 tomatoes, turnips, sage, sweet-marjoram, sweet- 

 potatoes, strawberries, blackberries, currants, 

 gooseberries, raspberries, potatoes, &c. The fam- 

 ily may find -well nigh half its support from the 

 garden during the summer and autumn months. 



Get field crops in early. — Spring wheat, oats, 

 barley and corn, are better for being in as soon 

 as the soil is in a fit condition to receice them. 

 The middle of June is early enough for millet, 

 winter squashes, and ruta bagas. Some delay 

 sowing carrot-seed until the last of May — our 

 crops succeed better when earlier sown. 



For tJie Ncip E)igland Form'iT. 

 COAIi TAR FOB. CHOWS. 



Mn. Editor : — In the Farmer of the 26th ult., 

 appears an article on "The Crow," by "Ycung 

 Farmer ;" he seems to have been tormented by 

 this colored gentleman. It may be acceptable 

 to him, and perhaps to others, to know how to 

 prepare their seed corn so that neither crows nor 

 blackbirds, nor any other bird, will pull more 

 than one or two grains. 



Have your corn all ready, take about a pailful 

 of boiling hot water, and add to it about a pint of 

 coal tar ; sth", and let stand for two or three min- 

 utes, and turn in your seed corn ; stir it round three 

 or four times, then turn out into a sieve so as to 

 hold the corn together and let the Avater go ; now 

 roll your corn in ashes or plaster. All this must 

 be done in the shortest time possible ; when the 

 corn is taken out of the water each grain will 

 have a light coating of tar, and by rolling in 

 ashes or plaster it keeps it from sticking to the 

 hands. Crows will not pull up much corn plant- 

 ed in this way. 



Some may say that corn will not grow after 

 such a hot water process ; but to such I would 

 say try and see. ^Iumfokd. 



irhiiiiisriUe, JP'orcester Co., Mti.ix., Dec. 20, 1SJ7. 



Remarks. — We are obliged to correspondents 

 for several articles on "The Crows," which we 

 cannot publish at present. They arc well writ- 

 ten, and amusing, but contain no special facts 

 that could be brought into practical use. The 

 article above distinctly specifies how some of the 

 ravages of the crow may be prevented, and is, 

 therefore, laid before the reader. 



CF° The Cincinnati (Ohio) Gazette states that a 

 bill has passed the Senate of that State prohibiting 

 the intermarriage of first cousins. That paper says 

 that public sentiment i'^ in favor of that r.icasure. 



