1858. 



NEW ENGLAND FAET^IEE. 



215 



So much for Lincolnshire. Nearly two months 

 after this my wanderings led me to Dublin, in 

 Ireland, and to the Government Model Farm at 

 Glasneven, close by. I shall some day, perhaps, 

 have a long story to tell of this school and farm, 

 but now mangold is the word. I never saw bet- 

 ter crops in my life than on the model farm, and 

 the mangold I found in high favor there too. 

 Dr. Kirkpatrick, the Superintendent, was absent, 

 but Mr. Boyle, the farmer, a man of great intel- 

 ligence, showed me the farm. I was so much 

 struck with the mangolds, and had become so 

 much impressed with the importance of the crop 

 to us at home, that I requested Mr. Boyle to 

 .furnish me with an account of its cultivation for 

 publication in America. 



Mindful of his partial promise, !^L•. Boyle has 

 written me the following letter, which I know will 

 interest our readers. The article referred to in it 

 has not yet been received, but will be in some 

 form given to the public when it comes. 



We have here an opportunity to compare the 

 views of persons quite remote from each other, 

 and it is worthy of notice how well they are 

 agreed, especially as to the points that the man- 

 gold is very valuable, and that it must not be fed 



early in the season. 



Alceet Model Farm, ) 

 Glasrwfin, Dublin, Vith Feb., 1858. ( 



Sir : — At your visit to this farm last autumn I 

 promised to forward you a report on the cultiva- 

 tion, &:c., of the mangold wurtzel ; and on speak- 

 ing to Dr. Kirpatrick (the Superintendent) on the 

 subject, he thought better to allow the advanced 

 pupils here to compete for prizes, offered by him- 

 self, for the best essay on that crop, with the un- 

 derstanding that it should be forwarded to you. 

 This I agreed to, and I therefore, for the present, 

 forego the pleasure I should have derived from 

 sending you a paper of my own on the subject. 

 The essay is at press, and it shall be forwarded to 

 your address immediately after issue. 



I hope it will reach you in time for the purpose 

 originally intended. A portion of the essay has 

 just appeared in the Chemico-Agricultural Socie- 

 tifs Journal, which you may expect along with 

 the essay in a complete form. Every succeeding 

 year we are more convinced of the superiority 

 of mangold over Swedes for general purposes. 

 The only reason, perhaps, why this crop should 

 not altogether take the jjlace of Swedes, on deep, 

 rich land, is that it is not fit for use until it has 

 been stored for about two months. Hence tur- 

 nips, or some other crop, must be supplied for 

 this period. The crop of mangold which you 

 saw growing here in August, produced 31 tons, 

 per statute acre, of hidhs, and 12 tons of leaves. 

 Swedes 19 tons per acre ; wheat 20 to 2o cwt. ; 

 oats 30 cwt. ; potatoes 8 tons. Our potatoes are 

 keeping well in store, and the crop pays us bet- 

 ter than any other we grow. 



Returning to the mangold ; it requires to be 

 largely manured, the land on Avhich it is to be 

 grown deeply tilled. On no account should the 

 young plant be hied by any of the implements in 

 the after culture. Should be securely stored pre- 



vious to the setting in oi frost ; the long varie- 

 ties are more susceptible of injury than the glohe 

 varieties — the former should be first used. If 

 stored in cellars, it must be well ventilated, oth- 

 erwise the heap will heat and decay. Even over 

 ground, in large piles, the crop will require ven- 

 tilation. It occurs to me that it will take great 

 care and good management to keep the mangold 

 secure from the frost of an American winter, and 

 at the same time to provide proper ventilation. 



In taking off" the leaves at the time of storing, 

 care should be taken that the croivn of the plant 

 is not cut into. Some persons advocate the 

 breaking off the leaves by the hand. I prefer 

 cutting them off carefully. The bulbs will keep 

 all the better in store by allowing some of the 

 earth to remain on them when taking them out of 

 the land. As to feeding qualities, the mangold 

 will produce more milk than the same weight of 

 Swedes, and the milk from both will produce as 

 nearly as possible the same per centage of cream; 

 but the butter produced from the former will be 

 paler in color than from the latter. Swedes, 

 however, give an unpleasant taste to milk, which 

 may be obviated by the use of a little nitre in the 

 miKc when fresh. 



Some of these points may not be touched upon 

 in the essay, hence I have taken the liberty of 

 saying a little on the subject here. I shall be 

 happy at any time to give you my views on any 

 farming subject you may select. 



I have to thank you for the Patent OfEce lie • 

 port, the value of which is enhanced by your own 

 article. I have a great many near relatives in 

 the United States, most of whom are engaged in 

 farming pursuits — some in Ohio and others in 

 Wisconsin, &c. — and I have an opportunity of 

 knowing a good deal about the country, and I 

 am always glad to sea the official reports. 



I have the honor to be, sir, your obt. servt., 

 William Boyle. 



If we consider the above statement, as to all 

 the crops named, we shall find them very heavy. 

 The ton should be reckoned 2240 lbs., and the 

 cwt. 112 lbs. The wheat crop, then, was 40 

 to 50 bushels to the acre, reckoning 56 lbs. to the 

 bushel; the oats 112 bushels to the acre, reckon- 

 ing 30 lbs. to the bushel. The potatoes 320 

 bushels of 56 lbs. 



When shall we have Model Farms in our coun- 

 try? 



For the New England Farmer. 



MOSES irarWELL., OF WEST WEWBUEY. 

 ^. 63. 



On Saturday, 13th inst., at noon, it was my 

 privilege to be present in West Newbury, v.hen 

 the mortal remains of (his highly esteemed citi- 

 zen of the county of Essex, Mass., were deposited 

 in the silent tomb. I have rarely known a better 

 man. An intimate acquaintance of more than 

 forty years has confirmed the belief that he was 

 worthy of entire confidence. Inheriting, as he 

 did, a vigorous body and an ample farm, from 

 his much respected sire, he was content to remain 

 a genuine specimen of the New England farmer, 

 without deviating into tlie quagmires of official 

 life. True, at the earnest solicitations of fricu' 



