412 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



up ; but -with cultivated lands the case is very differ- 

 ent ; the crops are removed from the soil, and unless 

 8ome equivalent is returned, it will fail to produce a 

 full amount, and in a few years will cease to repay 

 the labor of cultivation. 



Our first object should be to ascertain what kind 

 of food is requiicd for each variety we have under 

 cultivation ; secondly, the proper amount to be 

 applied ; and thirdly, to furnish that amount in 

 gome form or other. 



Plants, as well as animals, sometimes die of star- 

 vation, as well as of surfeit. Instances are of com- 

 mon occurrence, where a large supply of highly con- 

 centrated manure has been applied with disastrous 

 results ; and who has not observed the effects which 

 the want of the proper quantity produces ? Fruit- 

 trees frequently remain stationary for years, for the 

 simple reason that they have consumed nearly all 

 the food within tlieir reach. 



Many will condemn some of the substances used 

 as fertilizers. It may be gypsum, for instance : hav- 

 ing applied it, they see no good results. The reason 

 is obvious : the soil contained enough of that sub- 

 stance before. It is so with potash, or phosphate of 

 lime, or any other substance of which a sufficient 

 quantity already exists in the soil. The best way to 

 proceed is, to employ all the important substances 

 essential to the growth of plants ; and these are few : 

 by so doing we can scarcely fail to reap a harvest 

 worthy of our labors. Farm-yard manure is said to 

 contain all these substances, and it seldom fails to 

 produce a good crop when applied in the proper 

 quantity. Chemistry has shed much light on the 

 subject of manures within a few years, and every 

 cultivator of the soil should make himself familiar 

 with the different fertilizers, their effect on various 

 kinds of land, and the proper amount to be applied. 

 The subject presents a wide field for research and in- 

 vestigation, and upon it mainly depends the success 

 of the husbandman in obtaining profitable returns 

 for his labor. O. V. HILLS. 



Leominster, Dec. 1860. 



IMPORTANT DISCOVERY -LARD REN- 

 DERED FLUID BY MIXING WITH ROSIN. 



Professor Olmsted, of New Haven, has latclj' made 

 the important discovery, that, by adding one pound 

 of powdered rosin to three pounds of lard, well 

 stirred together, the mass becomes semi-fluid at 72° 

 ¥., and on beinjr melted, which it does at 90°, not- 

 witli-standiiig if melted alone the rosin requires 300° 

 and the lard 97 of heat, the compound will remain 

 transparent and limpid at that temperature. As it 

 cools, a pellicle begins to form on the surface at 87°, 

 and at 76° it remains a dense semi-fluid. 



The discovery of the above-named fact wiU be of 

 great importance to those who use lard lamps, as the 

 lard is rendered more fluid by the rosin, and the 

 [MSTver of ilhimination increased two fifths ; yet, after 

 two hours' burning, it loses its brilUancy on account 

 of the wick bccommg clogged. This will not be an 

 important objection in families, while in point of 

 economy the gain will be considerable ; for lard is 

 worth three or four times as much as rosin. 



To machinists, the discovery is very important, as 

 't enables them to make use of lard instead of oil, 

 which is not only a saving in cost, but, what is of far 

 more importance, the addition of the rosin completely 

 neutralizes the quality of acidity in the lard, which 

 corrodes metals, particularly brass and copper, to 

 uuch a degree it is unfit to apply to any thing not in 

 constant use. I'rofessor Olmsted says, a thin coating 

 of the compound laid upon a grate or sheet-iron 

 htovo with a brush, as thin as possible, will keep it 



free from rust all summer, although stored in a damp 

 place. 



To soap-makers, the discovery is also important. 

 If one pound of the compound is added to two 

 pounds of common Windsor soap, the quality is 

 greatly improved, and the tendency that soap has to 

 grow rancid, when in use or kept moist, is thus en- 

 tirely prevented. A shaving cream, of an excellent 

 quality, may be made by taking a cake of good shav- 

 ing soap and steaming it soft in a close cup, and 

 mixing half its weight of the compound, and work- 

 ing it well together ; adding a little oil of almonds, 

 or any other agreeable flavor. 



The same compound, applied to boots and shoes, 

 renders them nearly impervious to water, and, if ap- 

 plied to the soles, will not soil the floor. The uppers 

 will be soft and pliable, and not prevented from re- 

 ceiving a blacking polish. 



For oiling carriages, the mixture of lard and rosin 

 will be valuable ; and when wanted for heavy wheels, 

 a proper consistency may be given to it by adding 

 wheat flour, or, if greatly preferred, black lead. 



No doubt the soap paste above described would be 

 a good lubrication for carriage wheels. We hope 

 this discovery will increase the consumption of lard, 

 and thereby give an improved market to the farmer, 

 and thus enable him to turn land into lard, and lard 

 into light, and, in the mean time,. enlighten his mind 

 and improve his condition. — Am, AyricuUurist. 



CARROTS FOR HORSES. 



It is admitted by every one who is at all acquainted 

 with the great nutritive qualities of the carrot, that 

 as a winter food for horses, to use in small quantities 

 daily, — say half a peck to each horse, with their 

 dry food, and especially in the absence of green prov- 

 ender, — it is of the utmost value. It not only pos- 

 sesses fattening properties equal to oats, — taking 

 bushel for bushel, — but it secures to the horse, in the 

 winter season, fine health, a loose skin, and a glossy 

 coat of hair, which it is impossible to produce except 

 by the use of the carrot. 



To tliose keeping horses, who do not raise their 

 own carrots, we would hint that now is the time to 

 procure a supply, while they are being harvested. 

 About twelve bushels to a horse, we think, would be 

 sufficient. They should be buried in the usual way, 

 and taken out, a bushel at a time, as they may be 

 wanted. They will in this way keep plump and 

 fresh as the day they were taken from the field. — 

 Germantown Telegraph. 



FARMERS' ICE HOUSES. 



A correspondent of the Massachusetts Ploughman, 

 in a communication to the editor, says, " At the 

 first time I commenced using ice, it cost me more 

 than thirty dollars a year ; and I had not half the 

 benefit in the use of it that I now do, at the cost of 

 three or four dollars per annum. I have tried various 

 ways to keep ice, and have come to the conclusion 

 that in every neighborhood there should be an ice- 

 house of sufficient capacity to contain and keep icfe 

 for the whole neighborhood : this should be built as 

 near to where the ice is made as convenience will 

 admit, and if there be no natural f^ond in the district, 

 it will be vcr}' easy to make an artilitial one, as a 

 cake of ice four rods square, of u-iuid thicknes.'?, 

 if well secured, would supply a large neighborhood 

 of farmers ; and as soon as the ice is of sufficient 

 thickness, it should be secured, for the first made ic« 

 is of twice the value that late made is ; it kecjs bet- 

 ter, split« better, and is bettor i-i every re.;; cot." 



