30 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Jan. 



litter tbat will serve to shield them from sun 

 and prevent the ground from freezing and 

 thawing rapidly ; but at the same time the 

 niuleh should not pack down on the plants to 

 smothvr them. 



EvKKGKKKN branches taken from the forest 

 and planted in the ground among the shrub- 

 bery and grouped low over the flower-beds, 

 serve to give life and cheerfulness to the 

 grounds, and at the same time are a protec- 

 tion and shade to the plants, bulbs, &c., &c. 



Cklery for winter use should be stored in 

 trenches made the exact depth of the plant, 

 and ten to twelve inches wide. Take up the 

 plants on dry days only, and pack closely in 

 the trenches. On the approach of severe 

 frosts, cover with two or three inches of straw 

 litter, increasing the quantity as the weather 

 prows colder, until the covering is at least one 

 foot in thickness. 



Plough or dig all ground intended for 

 planting next season, leaving it as light and 

 loose as possible for the action of air and frost. 

 If clay J. round, plough or dig it only when 

 comparatively dry — the drier the better; if 

 too wet, it will at once pack down and no 

 benefit arise from the labor, if dry when the 

 work is performed, the action of the winter's 

 fronts will be almost or quite equal to a coat 

 of manure. 



better still, the flower buds, as soon as they 

 appeal'. — P. J. Berkmans, Augusta, Geo., in 

 Southern Cultivator. 



UNFJRUITFULNESS OF GRAPE VINES. 

 Overboiling, at first or second producing, 

 h one of I he great causes of early exhaustion 

 of our vineyards. The land used for a vine- 

 yard is generally impoverished by previous 

 croppi'.igs. The vine tind.i in it a few remain- 

 ing constituents requisite to its growth and 

 product ion of fruit; he'inz a. rnr acinus feed- 

 er, it absorbs these readily and in a short 

 time. A year or two of heavy producin"- of 

 fruit exhausts the soil of nutritive elements; 

 and the vine, finding no suppl\ of nourishment, 

 begins to decline in vigor and fertilitv ; and, 

 once stunted in growth, it seldom recuperates, 

 even if after-treatment is such as to return a 

 new .<-upply of nourishment to the soil. The 

 tendency to overbear should be checked ; but 

 how few persons have sufHjient courage to cut 

 off a portion of the branches in early spring? 

 It is es..;ential to remove one-half of the bunches 

 as soon as they appear ; the rem lining half 

 will be more developed, the berries larger, 

 the quality improved, the weight of the fruit 

 as large in ihe end, as if all the bunches were 

 left, and the vine will not exhaust itself so 

 much, liy overstraining, nature fails ; and it is 

 easier for a vine to perf'eet a dozen bunches than 

 to aitfuipt to clo so for double that number. 

 Our finest specimens of fruits, such as pears, 

 peaches, apples, &e,. are the consecpience of 

 a moderate crop of fruit upon the trees, caused 

 either naturally or arlilicially, by the remov- 

 ing a proper proportion of the flowers, or, 



ROAD SAND AND WASH. 

 We have frequently witnessed the beneficial 

 effects of the wash of the highway when prop- 

 erly directed upon grass fields, and have .^up- 

 posed that its virtue consisted chiefly in the 

 droppings of animals that passed over it. The 

 following article by Dr. J. S. Houghton, in 

 the Gardeners'' Monthly, indicates another 

 cause of the fertility of such irrigation : — 



The sand obtained from turnpikes, or roads 

 macadamized with any sort of stones, very dif- 

 ficult to break or pulverize, has a peculiar 

 value. The grinding of such rucks or stones 

 under the iron-rimmed wheels of wagons, the 

 wear of horse-shoes, and the mixture of this 

 ground rock with the manure scattered along 

 the road, produces a compound which is found 

 to be highly accep'able to trees and plants. 

 The granite rock, we know, is rich in potash 

 and silica ; but it is not these elements alone 

 which give this road sand its peculiar value. 

 By the process of grinding and triturating inert 

 substances, such as oyster-shells, charcoal, 

 quicksilver, we develope medicinal and other 

 virtues which these substances do not possess 

 in their crude form. And so it is supposed to 

 be with road sand. By the constant grinding 

 and triturating of the iron-bound wheels and 

 horses' shoes, the comminuted granite becomes 

 prepared for the use of plants ; and when this 

 road sand is mixed with the compost heap and 

 saturated with liijuid manure, it is found to help 

 the efficacy of the compost in a remarkable 

 manner. Under the influence of road sand of 

 this kind alone, it is said that when applied to 

 lawns, white clover is sure to spring up in the 

 greatest abundance and luxuriance where it 

 had never been seen before. 



SORRY HE SOLD HIS FARM. 



The Doctor says, he "never knew a man to 



sell his farm who did not regret it." This is 



perhaps stating it a little too strong. But be- 



I ing one of the oldest pastors in Western New 



! York, he has had good opportunities for ob- 



. servation. I think men engaged in other pur- 



j suits, who buy farms, expecting to find noth- 



; ing but pleasure and profit in agriculture, are 



I generally very glad of an opportunity to dis- 



\ pose of them. Such men seldom regret selling. 



; But with a farmer the case is very different. 



lie either sells because he thinks he can buy a 



better or cheaper farm, or because he is 



tired of farming, and proposes to live in the 



city. In the latter case he is almost certain to 



wish himself back again on the farm. I heard 



of such a case thr other day. A farmer was 



offered last spring what he thought a high 



