1855. 



NEW ENGLAND FAEMER. 



405 



of siiitable practical and scientific attainments, as [ grass that came, there tvas such a crop of mullems, 

 well as make whatever arrangements the nature of: scattered over the pasture, as we never saw before. 

 the Institute may reqmre. The State Agricultural j jj^^, ^ ^,^^ ^j^^ ^^^^ remained there, inert, in 

 bocietv IS authonzed to appropriate anv sum, not' , -, ^ . , , , ,i . i ii i 



exceeciing ten thousand dollars, whenever the school : *<^ ^^^^ ■ ^^^ how long would it, probably, have 

 may require it ; and also to make aimual appropri- i continued, had the pasture remained unplowed ? 

 ations, according to the extent of its resources. A1-! Experienced nurserj-men, however, tell us that 

 ready liberal donations of land have been proffered | apple seed caimot safely be relied on after the first 

 by gentlemen hi ditferent parts of the State, and} ^^ -^^ ^.^ ^^ ^^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^ experiment 



other lands onered at reduced prices. — ft^^^r^^rtn,, j o r 



Jlgiiculturist. 



American 



EXTKACTS AND REPLIES. 



cock's-foot thorx. 

 Enclosed you will find the leaf, floA\'er and a spine 

 of a species of thom, which I think would make a 

 valuable hedge plant, as it grows spontaneously on 

 a variety of soils, makes a thick growth, and is cov- 

 ered with an abundance of formidable spines. Eith- 

 er this species of thom is not described in Mrs. Lin- 

 coln's Botanv, or mv limited knowledge of the sub- 



has ever been fairly tried, of keeping the seed with 

 particular care for the purpose of planting. 



Apple seed may be obtained, at the proper sea- 

 son, at most of our seed stores, and are worth about 

 twenty dollars per bushel. 



A CHEAP FENCE. 



I have a 14 acre lot to fence, and would like to 

 know what kind of a fence would be the cheapest 

 and most durable. I should like to have a hedge 

 fence, if thev did not cost too much. Please send 



ject prevents me from identifying it; and you will! me word what kind of hedging would be the best, 

 much oblige several of yom- readers by giving itsLnd what it will cost per rod at the nursery. Please 

 botanical name, if you receive the flowers in a con- Lnswer the above questions through vour valuable 

 dition to ascertain it. And if you are already ac-| paper, the reading of which has mduced me to buy 

 quainted with it, will you inform us whether it has; the above little form. A Begixisee. 



ever been tried as a hedge plant 



The fruit is about half an inch in diameter, very 

 much resembling a small red apple, and is borne in 

 such profusion as to give a red color to the whole 

 ti-ee at a distance. In its natural state, the tree 

 grows from ten to fifteen feet high. 



Ashjield, 1855. Wm. F. Bassett. 



REM.\r>.KS. — The plant spoken of is the Cratagus 

 Crus-galli, or Cock's-foot thorn. Thorny, leaves 

 wedge obovate, subsessile, sinning, leathery, co- 

 rymbs compound ; leaflets of the calyx lanceolate 

 sub-serrate. ^Ve have never luiown it used as a 

 hedge plant, but tliink it would answer the purpose 

 weU. — 



APPLE SEEDS. 



How long do ajiple seeds retain their .%-itality? 

 Where can a bushel of them be purchased, and 

 what is the cost per bushel ? M. M. J. 



Hillsboro' Bridge, A*. H. 



Remarks. — We presume there is no limit to the 

 duration of vitahty in seeds of all kinds, if they are 

 always preserved in proper condition. It is com- 

 monly said that parsnip seed will not come if more 

 than one year old ; yet we have so^^^l when three 

 years old, and it came well. It has been satisfacto- 

 rily proved that wheat taken fi-om the body of an 

 Egj-ptian mummy, where it had been deposited for 

 three thousand years, germinated, and grew as read- 

 ily as though it had been there but one year. It 

 was in a condition to keep it m a perfect state — 

 neither so dry as to shrivel it too much, nor so 

 moist and warm as to excite it to germination. If 

 tliis be so, the vitality of seeds depends upon the 

 condition in which they are kept 



A year or two since, we plowed a portion of a 

 jxisture which had been fed continuously for twcn 



Ameshury Mills, Mass., 1855. 



Remarks. — In a location as long settled as 

 Amesbury, and where timber is probably scarce 

 and high, we believe a wire fence may be consti-uct- 

 ed at a less cost than any other, and will last a Ufe- 

 time. Use No. 6 yrire of the best kind. Set a post 

 6 or 8 inches square, 5 feet into the ground, at 

 each corner, and brace well ; then bore the holes 

 for the wires to pass through so close together as 

 to bring the wires near enough to keep out what- 

 ever is to come against it. 



barren quince trees. 



I have a number of quince trees, seven or eight 

 years old, and they have blossomed every year for 

 four years, and I have no fruit. They are of good 

 size and growth. Now I Mish to know the cause 

 of this ; and how they may be made to fruit. 



Holliston, July, 1855. C G. w, 



Rejlvrks. — Cannot tell you — we have some in 

 the same condition. Does any one know ? If so, 

 we trust he will reply. 



THE DUTY OF BEING CLEAN. 



The care of the person is the begiiiiiiiig of good 

 manners. Every one not only consults his ovm 

 well being, his dignity, and employnu'iit, by his 

 care of himself, but he also fulfills a social duty. — 

 Every one should do the l)cst he can for himself, 

 for his own sake, and to avoid giving pain to, or to 

 promote the happiness of otlicrs. 



We enter here u\)c>n delicate ground; but the 

 reader will see its necessity, and excuse our plain- 

 ness of speech. We must run the risk of exciting 

 a feeling of disgust in some readers, that we may 

 give to others the instruction they need. 



The first moral and [ihysical duty of human be- 



ty-five years, and upon and around which there hadling 75 to be clean. Cleanliness, tlie apostle says, 

 been scarcely a mullein to be seen. Yet with the I is akin to godliness. We would not give much for 



