336 



Change of Seed. — Indian-Corn. 



Vol. VI. 



To the Editor of the Farmers' Cabinet. 

 Change of Seed. 



I WAS lately lonking over the back volumes 

 of the "Cabinet," when my attention was ar- 

 rested by an article headed "Change of Soil 

 a Chan<fe of Seed," vol. 5, page -386, signed 

 J. M. Now, that a change of soil is a change 

 of seed, or that it is requisite to change seed in 

 order to insure a good crop, I must say, I am 

 not yet altogether prepared to admit. J. M. 

 asserts, that "the Foxite potatoe, which has 

 been grown for many years in New Jersey, 

 where the crop has for some time past suffered 

 a regular diminution in quantity, is quite reno- 

 vated by a removal to the neighbourhood of 

 Spring Mill, Montgomery county, where it 

 has uniformly yielded double the quantity of 

 the Mercers." He also suggests the pro- 

 priety of farmers changing their seed every 

 year. Now, I believe the first Foxite pota- 

 toes were introduced in the neighbourhood 

 of Philadelphia, by a gentleman near Cam- 

 den, N. J., about the year 1812 or '13, and 

 have been cultivated on the same farm every 

 year since without a change of seed, and with 

 a result very different from that stated by 

 your correspondent: their superior quality is 

 still maintained, their appearance greatly im- 

 proved, and the crop increased about one half! 

 I have cultivated both Foxites and Mercers, 

 Bide by side, for many years, the Foxites uni- 

 formly yielding the heaviest crop. In the 

 year 1838, my Foxites yielded a very large 

 crop; the Mercers were a total failure: the 

 Foxite seed was never changed ; the Mercers 

 have been changed repeatedly. One or two 

 more facts, and I have done. 



The late Joseph Cooper, of Camden, N. J., 

 more than fifty years ago, cultivated a long 

 green squash on his farm; and the same va- 

 riety, I am told, has been ever since culti- 

 vated there, without any perceptible deterio- 

 ration. The same may. also be said of the 

 "Cooper corn," which originated with him. 



Q. 



Gloucester Co., N. J., May 2, 1842. 



Relative Weight of Grain and Cob of 

 IntUan-Corn. 



Editor Kentucky Farmer, — In looking 

 over your interesting periodical, I sometimes 

 meet with notices of fine ears of corn pro- 

 duced in our country. Now, in order to ena- 

 ble your readers to understand precisely how 

 good they were, it seems to me that your cor- 

 respondents should, in describing them, give 

 us the exact weii/ht of the corn both on the 

 cob and when shelled, as this would afford a 

 very certain standard. The length or girth 

 of the ear, the number of rows or grains, are 

 too uncertain measures by which to deter- 

 mine the excellence of an ear of Indian-corn. 



A reflection of this kind led me while gather- 

 ing my corn to make the following experi- 

 ment: 



On the 17th November last, without any 

 very great care, 1 selected twelve of the most 

 remarkable ears that were convenient to hand. 

 The whole, being quite dry, weighed thirteen 

 pounds good weight on the cob. The longest 

 ear, measuring 13 inches in length, but only 

 51 inches in circumference, was the lightest 

 of the twelve, and contained 742 grains. 

 The shortest ear, measuring 8^ inches in 

 length and 8^ inches in girtli, had 22 rows 

 and about 1100 grains — the greatest number 

 of grams on any of the twelve — but the ear 

 was much lighter than many others of the 

 dozen. The heaviest and best ear of all, 

 measured only 9 inches in length and 8J 

 inches in girth, containing 18 rows and about 

 846 grains; it weighed 1 lb. 3| ozs. un- 

 shelled ; the corn when shelled weighed 15^ 

 ozs. I did not consider this a very remarka- 

 ble ear for size; but the experiment shows 

 how much the eye may deceive us as to the 

 relative value of an ear of corn. Among the 

 dozen there was one ear, selected by several 

 as being decidedly the finest and best; and 

 certainly its appearance was prepossessing, 

 being 12 inches long and 7;^ inches in cir- 

 cumference, containing only 14 rows and 

 about 700 grains, which, however, were very 

 large, wide and full. This car was the second 

 in weight — mark that — weighing 1 lb. 3 ozs.; 

 the corn it shelled weighed li^ ozs., having 

 a much heavier cob than its successful com- 

 petitor. The description of corn is the white 

 flint, and considering that the past season 

 was not the best for corn, I think mine tole- 

 rably good. The above experiment has sug- 

 gested to my mind an important improvement 

 that I think may be made in corn. I intend 

 to try it, and if I succeed, will in due time 

 inform you as to the result. 



Jno. Allen Gang. 



Animal Matter and Peat. — "There are 

 other sources of alkali, for converting peat 

 into soluble matter. Of these the chief is 

 animal matter. Mere we have ammonia pro- 

 duced. It has been actually proved by ex- 

 periment, that a d^ad horse can convert 20 

 tons (or cubic yards) of peat into a valuable 

 manure, richer and more lasting than stable 

 dune; — "a barrel of alevvives is equal to a 

 wairon load of peat." The next great and 

 prolific source of ammonia is urine. The 

 urine of one cow for a winter, mixed up as it 

 is daily collected, with peat, is sufficient to 

 manure half an acre of land with 20 loads of 

 manure of the best quality, while her solid 

 evacuations and litter, for the same period, 

 afl^ord only 17 loads, whose value is only 

 about one half that of the former." — Dana, 



