302 



THE FARMERS CABINET. 



VOL. I. 



upon it, yielding firm pork of good flavor, when 

 fed to lliem raw, equally well as upon boiled 

 potatoes, by which the fuel and labor of boil- 

 ing is saved. Col. Powel says, " My neat 

 cattle prefer mangel wurtzel Lo any other root 

 which I have oll'ered to them. 1 have found 

 its effects in producing large secretions of 

 good milk, very great. * * * Ita appli- 

 cation as food tor sheep is not the least impor- 

 tant of its uses. Ewes yean usually at the 

 season when grass cannot be supplied. The 

 health of themselves and the thrift of their 

 lambs, essentially depend upon succulent food 

 beinor had. I am inclined to think that no 

 small portion of the success which English 

 breeders have met, is to be ascribed to the 

 large stores of roots, which they always have 

 at command." 



In autumn, when the quantity of milk from 

 cows often diminishes greatly, it may be re- 

 stored by cutting tiie leaves of this plant and 

 feeding them. In some instances the quantity 

 has been doubled by this means. The leaves 

 soon grow again, and may be cut every fort- 

 night.* Cows fed twice a day in winter, 

 upon 20 lbs. of the roots at a time, together 

 with 4 or 5 pounds of hay or chopped straw, 

 will, it is asserted, give as much milk as in 

 summer. 



In some instances when fed to cattle and 

 sheep, this root is said to have produced scour- 

 ing. This may be owing either to the soil 

 adhering to the roots when eaten, or to the 

 sudden commencement of feeding on them 

 exclusively, insteadof their being mixed with 

 a proper proportion of dry food, such as hay, 

 meal, or chopped straw. 



This crop has several important advantages 

 in its cultivation. It is little affected by 

 changes of the weather ; suffers little from 

 drouth ; thrives in moist soils ; is not at- 

 tacked by any insect ; and prepares the 

 ground well for succeeding crops. The roots 

 may be kept sound and fresh for eight or ten 

 months. 



Farmers who value their land, would find 

 it greatly to their interest to direct their at- 

 tention more to the cultivation of this crop. 

 It has been found that two tons of mangel 

 wurtzel are equal to one ton of hay for feeding 

 milch cows ; and that three tons are equal to 

 one of hay for feeding cattle in general. Any 

 one may readily calculate from this, how much 

 greater a number of cattle may be supported 

 by this means, from a given quantity of land, 

 than by the usual mode of feeding them ex- 

 clusively on grass and hay. Supposing for 

 instance that thirty tons of mangel wurtzel 

 are the average product per acre, then we 



• It is probable however that this production of new 

 leaves is in a greater or le.ss degree, at the expense of 

 the root, although very large crops have been raised 

 where thl^ coune bas been pursued- 



shall have an amount from one acre alone 

 equal to from ten to fifteen tons of hay. Now 

 •if a method should be devised for raising thia 

 amount of hay Irom an acre, it would excite 

 universal attention and inquiry ; but this crop, 

 although possessing advantages not less im- 

 portant, is almost entirely neglected. 



Forcing Cuttiugs. 



As the season of setting cuttings of the 

 Morus multicaulus is approaching, the follow- 

 ing letter from Mr. John Ilopkinson, of Hop- 

 kinsville, Ohio, to Mr. David S. Porter, of 

 Cincinnati, containing directions lor forcing 

 them, cannot fail of being acceptable to the 

 cultivators of this valuable plant. Not having 

 tried the method, we cannot speak of it ex- 

 perimentally ; but have no doubt of its utility 

 in cases where it is desirable to produce a large 

 growth the first season. 



"About the 10th of March, if the weather 

 is suitable, I make what we call a hot-bed, 

 by some termed a forcing border, large enough 

 to allow 3 square inches for every cutting I 

 intended to set. The bed is made in the 

 usual manner, by filling up the bottom with 

 fresh horse manure, 18 inches or 2 feet deep. 

 I then procure good sods, (similar to those 

 used for sodding down yards,) sufficient to 

 cover the surface of my hot-bed. These sods 

 I cut into pieces three inches square, and 

 insert a cutting in the middle of each, leaving 

 barely a bud out. I then place these sods 

 completely together on the hot-bed, and 

 sprinkle over the whole a light covering of 

 finely pulverised loam. The manure should 

 be wet with hot v/ater before the sods are put 

 on ; the bed should likewise be watered with 

 warm water, every other day, and kept cov- 

 ered with a good thick covering of straw, or 

 some other matter in the night, and cold days. 



In this manner, I can have cuttings from 4 

 to 8 inches high, by the usual time of setting 

 out, say the 1st of May. I then take the cut- 

 tings, and the sod with them, and transplant 

 them into the nursery, taking care to water 

 for a few days after they are transplanted." 



Tennessee Silk, 



We have been furnishedwith several pieces 

 of silk grown and manufactured by Miss 

 Easterly, of Cocke county in this State, 

 This young lady merits no small share of ap- 

 plause for her ingenuity, perseverance and 

 industry in thus furnishing to the country 

 demonstrative proof of the superior adaptation 

 of East Tennessee to the silk culture, a branch 

 ofbusiness which, we have no doubt, is des- 

 tined, at no distant period, to be ranked 

 amongst our most profitable employments, and 

 to confer on the country, and especially on 

 the laboring class of females, incalculable 

 benefits. The specimens of silk left with us 



