246 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



Feb. 15, 1832. 



flower I shade them, with a tliin coarse tow cloth, 

 from the sun, froiii uhoiit 10 A. M. till 4 P. IVt. 



The above is a just aud correct staleinciit of my 

 management of the plants I have mentioned, and 

 nuist convince every candid mind, whether con- 

 versant with the culture of plants or not, how much 

 •iiore ditBcult and expensive is the one case from 

 (he other. There is another thing which Rusti- 

 cus seems either to have overloolied or to be to- i 

 tally unacquainted with — the merits of the two 

 flowers. When in bloom, the Tulip must be 

 allowed to be a rich and beautiful flower, varying 

 almost without parallel from o»e si)lcndi<l color 

 to another; but it it is of very short duration, 

 seldom remaining \vith us in perfection for three 

 weeks. Tulips also flower at a time when we 

 have an abundance of Ifoses, in every respect a 

 fair cojiipetitor for beauty, with the advantage of 

 fragrance. Our gardens are likewise full of beau- 

 tiful perennial herbaceous plants. — This is not the 

 case with Chrysanthemums — they flower at a 

 time when there is no other lo be seen, and con- 

 tinue iu perfection for six or seven weeks, with, 

 in my opinion, equal beauty to the Tulip. I woidd 

 ask your correspondent if he ever attentively ex- 

 amined a Golden Lotus Chrysanthemum, and 

 found in any other flower the same surpassing 

 beauty of color aud delicacy of texture. 



I think from wiiat I have said, that the ' gross 

 inequalities' of which Rusticus complains, will be 

 found to have existed only in his on-n imagination, 

 and that a further acquatntauce with the subject 

 will induce him to acknowledge his mistake. 



I sJioidd like to see the time when Horticultu- 

 ral Premiums will be ' ten times thtir present 

 value ;' but that we can hardly expect for some 

 years, and for my own part I have as much pleas- 

 ure in competing for two, three, or five dollars, as 

 I would have for a larger amount ; still ' I make 

 a business of raising these elegant plants.' If 

 your correspondent can be patient for a year or 

 two, I am confident that he will not resort to his 

 imagination for a display of fifty glasses of differ- 

 ent flowers, but that, even under the system of 

 which be complains, we may be enabled to pre- 

 sent him the reality. 



The system of numbering the glasses or pots 

 containing the different flowers for premiuins, is 

 universally practised at horticultural and flori- 

 cultural exhibitions in England, and I think it an 

 excellent jilan, ])drticularly where conqietilors are 

 numerous ; but I regret that your friend Rusticus 

 should be deceived in the idea that this is the cause 

 why the 'humble cottager' is so frequently the 

 successful claimant. We will be charitable 

 enough to believe hat the judges chosen 'by the 

 members, are skilful and honorable men, and not 

 likely to be biassed by a silver cu]) or a copper tea- 

 kettle, or whatever bajjpens to be the premium 

 on the occasion. The reason why the ' humble 

 cottager ' of England is so frequently successful, 

 generally proceeds from the unwearied care aud 

 attention he bestows upon whatever flowei' his 

 fancy leads him to cultivate. Many of them are 

 weavers, tailors or shoemakers, who have their 

 little gardens, immediately under the windows of 

 their workshops, aud when any favorite flower is 

 about to burst its bud, it is tended with incessant 

 care and anxiety, aiJd defended from the storm or 

 any other accidental misfortune, as if the welfare 

 of the family depended on its safety. And where 

 the occupation of the men has led them from 



home, I have often known the same interest and 

 anxiety manifested by the wives and children. 

 This, and this alone, has given the cottager the 

 advantage of the jiractical gardener in England. 

 The various departments assigned to a gardener, 

 in a large establishment, prevent him from de- 

 voting such particular attention to indivi<!ual 

 ]dants, and it consequently follows that the com- 

 petition does not generally result in his favor. 



In concluding, let me hope that nothing I have 

 said may be mistaken for an intention or wish to 

 oflTend. Your intelligent correspondent has said 

 so nuich to please, that I could not possibly allow 

 a few trifling inaccuracies to betray me into any 

 feeling of which I should hereafter be ashamed. 

 A Practical Horticulturist. 



Chmiestoivn, Feb. 13, 1832. 



Boston, Wednesday Evening, Feb. 15, 1832. 



filth, even when they escape cold and hunger. 

 ' Cleanliness,' says a celebrated agricultural writer, 

 'is a principal requisite iu the feeding of cattle; 

 hence not only the mangers, but also the stalls 

 ought to be kept as clean as i)Ossible ; and the 

 former should be cleared from dirt aud dust, with 

 a blunt pointed trowel, every morning. After 

 cleansing their stalls, a sufficient quantity of fresh 

 litter shoidd be strewed over, which \vill invite 

 them to lie down. Rest greatly contributes to 

 fatten cattle ; and combing and carding their hides 

 every day, promotes their thriving more thaii 

 equal to the small portion of time thus consumed. 

 Every farmer had better visit his barn in per- 

 son, and su])erintend, himself, the feeding aud 

 management of his stock, without trusting to do- 

 mestics or hired lul[), who have little interest and 

 responsibility attached to their employments. 



ON THE IMPORTANCE OF CULTIA'ATING 

 GOOD FRUIT. 



Farmers in general are too apt to consider fruit 

 as a 7nere luxury, and therefore pay but little at- 

 tention to its cultivation. But, though fruit is not 

 absolutely indispensable to the support of human 

 existence, it is a very useful article, and may be 

 ranked among the best gifts of Providence. Mr 

 Knight, in one of his publications, has observed 

 that, ' The palate which relishes fruit is seldom 

 pleased with strong fermented li(]uors, aud as 

 feeble causes, continually acting, ullimately pro- 

 duce extensive effects, the supplying the jiublic 

 with fruit, at a cheap rate, would have a tendency 

 to operate favorably, both on the physical and 

 moral health of the people.' This view of the 

 subject gives an importance to the pursuits of the 

 orchardist, and elevates him to the rank of a pub- 

 lic benefactor. 



It is as easy to cultivate the best kinds of fruits 

 as those which are of an inferior quality, and the 

 former me no doubt more wholesome, as well as 

 more i)alatable, than the latter. Besides, by in- 

 troducing fruits of different kinds into our markets 

 and furnishing them in plenty for the domestic 

 boards, we render their consumptiun more com- 

 mon, and cause the most [ileasant and most 

 wholesome articles of aliment to be those of most 

 general use. The i)hilanthropist, therefore, can 

 in no way better make known bis good will to the 

 human species than by using his best efforts to 

 cause the fiuit to be cheap, plentiful, and of an 

 excellent quality. 



Attend to your Cattle, and see that your barn- 

 hold economy goes on like clock work ; and even 

 be more regular as respects real time, than the 

 sun, which is sometimes fast and sometimes slow 

 of the clock. You will, however, do well to be 

 punctual to a punctilio in- feeding those animals, 

 which depend on you for their daily food. If they 

 miss their accustomed meals, they will fret off' 

 more flesh in half an hour, than you can lay on in 

 a week. 



Good shelter is also necessary as well as good 

 and regular feeding. If a cow, a sheep, or a pig 

 is uncomfortable, from cold, wet, or any other 

 cause, you cannot make it thrive on the richest 

 diet. Yet, some permit their cattle to lie down in 

 heaps of their own manure ; and they suffer from 



Lambs. — The Farmer's Maimal says, it will 

 be needless to give any directions for the preser- 

 vation and management of weak aud feeble lambs ; 

 the best nursing for such lambs is, by keeping the 

 ewes well, either upon your best English liav, 

 particularly roweu, with potatoes, carrots, or 

 white beans ; these will insure you strong lambs, 

 with a plenty of milk, and save all the trouble of 

 nursing. Should any one be so unfortunate as to 

 want the proper means of insuring strong lambs, 

 as al'OAc, or neglect a proper use of such as he 

 may have, (for even barley, oats and corn will 

 answer as substitutes for the potatoes, carrots, or 

 white bcsuis, if given in small quantities, so as not 

 to excite fever, and thereby cau.se ticks and the 

 shedding of the wool,) let him remember that such 

 weak lambs should be treated, in all rei§i)ects, as 

 if they had been drowned, and you would restore 

 them to life. Apply gentle aud regular warmth ; 

 giv<^ warm milk frequently, in small quantities, 

 (the milk of the sheep is best,) and if the ewe has 

 luilk sufiicicut f(U- its support, you may generally 

 raise them; but if not, they generally die. It is 

 more work to save one such lamb lor twentyfour 

 hours, than to feed regularly 100 sheep for the 

 same time — take your choice. 



The great amount of our capital and labor em- 

 ployed in the tanning business in this town, and its 

 consequent value in many respects, are generally 

 under.-'tood ; but we doubt whether its utility in af- 

 fording a very large and cheap supply of good fuel 

 is as highly appreciated as it deserves. Thousands 

 of loads of the ground bark which has been used in 

 tanning, are procured every year from the yards, at 

 no other cost we believe, than tiie expense of cart- 

 ing, and furnishing a species of fuel scarcely inferi- 

 or, for some purposes, lo the best wood. We do not 

 know whether the tan can be procured as plentiful- 

 ly and cheaply now as in the summer ; if it can, much 

 comfort may be dispensed at small cosl.— Salem 

 '■Mass.) Gazette. 



A case has been decided at Mcadville, Pa. involv- 

 ing the value of a sow and eight pigs, in which $10 

 damages were recovered, while the costs amounted 

 lo over ifilOO. 



To CoRHEsPONDENTs. — Several coinniuiiitations are 

 defened this week, among which are fine from Porls- 

 ninuth, N. H. on the culture of Ruta Baga, &c. — one 

 troni Tbcoiloie Sejgewick, Esq. comprising a horticul- 

 tural diary for Ibe pa.st season — and one from Albany, 

 on the cultivation of the Hop; we shall be glad lo 

 receive the remainder of this latter article. 



