No. 2. Seed Wheat. — Phila. Ag. Society. — Reaping Machine. 



65 



paper. Indeed, a chemist alone could con- 

 duct it; while the two former modes may 

 be easily performed by any person of com- 

 mon observation. — Agriculturist. 



Seed Wheat. 



Whatever difference of opinion may ex- 

 ist as regards the wisdom of the recent al- 

 terations in the laws respecting grain, there 

 can be none as to the necessity of adapting 

 ourselves to our present circumstances, and 

 endeavouring to make the best of them. It 

 is a known fact that in high latitudes ihe 

 growth of plants is very rapid. The burst 

 of spring, the splendor of summer, and the 

 maturity and incipient decay of autumn, fol- 

 low each other with a switlness scarcely 

 credible. The grain sown to-day, is, in a 

 very few weeks, ready for the sickle; and 

 the higher the latitude where it can be 

 made to grow, the shorter is the period it 

 requires for its growth and ripening. Grain 

 which has been grown in the extreme north, 

 when used as seed in a southern country, 

 gives its first produce more speedily, ripening 

 in a much shorter time, although at a second 

 sowing it loses this quality. The fact has 

 been recognized, and is acted upon pretty 

 extensively in this country, it being com- 

 monly recommended to obtain seed from 

 colder situations than those in which it is 

 intended to be sown. In Sweden grain is 

 I annually brought for seed from Torneo, in 

 the north of the gulf of Bothnia, and almost 

 within the arctic circle — and sown in lands 

 so much exposed that the sowing time is 

 thrown so late that corn, excepting from 

 seed llius obtained, has no time to ripen. 

 Districts formerly on this account utterly 

 barren, are thus rendered fruitful. Is it not 

 then worthy of the consideration of some of 

 our enterprising agriculturists, especially of 

 those who occupy high cold districts, whe- 

 ther they might not profitably import their 

 seed corn from the northern European nations, 

 and thus, perhaps, obtain a harvest in Sep 

 tember, where now it is commonly thrown 

 into October or November ] With this re- 

 source it might be found that wheat could 

 be grown more extensively and more profit- 

 ably than it is to the west of Sir Robert 

 PeeFs line drawn from Southampton to In- 

 verness. — Gardener'' s Chronicle. 



Mr. S. C. Ford gave an account of the 

 progress of the potatoe disease. In some 

 parts of Connecticut this season, he stated 

 that some of the potatoes had become hard 

 and tasteless at the time the vines were 

 fresh and thrifty ; and in other instances the 

 vines and potatoes both decayed in a very 

 few days. In some parts of this county the 

 disease had made its appearance, suddenly 

 destroying the crop. In some instances a 

 portion of the crop remained good, whilst 

 the other had rotted, and had entirely disap- 

 peared. 



Some remarks were made by Mr. Gowen 

 on the subject, sustaining his opinion as 

 formerly given, attributing the cause of the 

 disease to a particular state of the weather, 

 inducing a second growth. He recommend- 

 ed deep planting on dry soils, as the best 

 and most likely means of avoiding the rot. 



Statements were given by Messrs. K. 

 Smith, Eyre, Roberts, and others, on the 

 subject, many of which were of a quite 

 contradictory nature, causing much embar- 

 rassment in forming an opinion as to the true 

 cause of difficulty. 



Mr. Ford had applied two bushels of air 

 slaked lime to each of his Newtown pippin 

 apple trees, with great success; the quality 

 of the fruit being greatly improved. Mr. 

 Blackburn had noticed the same improve- 

 ment in his fruit, but had applied no lime. 

 Extract from the minutes. 



A. Clement, Rec. SecWy. 



Philadelphia, Sept. 4th, 1846. 



Philadelphia Agricultural Society. 



A STATED meeting of the Philadelphia 

 Society for promoting Agriculture was held 

 on the 2nd inst, — K. Smith, Vice-president, 

 in the chair. 



Hussey's Wheat Reaping Machine. 



To the Editor of the American Farmer : 



Sir, — I have this year for the first time, 

 purchased one of Hussey's Reaping Ma- 

 chines — the smaller size, at $100. I have 

 so oflen been disappointed in the too early 

 purchase of new labour-saving and economi- 

 cal inventions, that in this instance I waited 

 patiently, until it might have received the 

 best impresB of the inventor's skill, and I 

 am now gratified, afler a fair and full expe- 

 riment at my late harvest, to make the fol- 

 lowing report of its performance, in common 

 justice to the inventor, and for the encou- 

 ragement of those who have not yet availed 

 themselves of its advantages. 



I have used the machine throughout my 

 late harvest, and under very unfavourable 

 weather, I have witnessed its expedition and 

 general economy. The harvest was pro- 

 longed by continued rains, and the machine 

 was not worked any entire day, from that 

 cause alone; but being desirous to know the 

 extent of its daily operations I noted the 



