THE GENESEE FARMER. 



81 



when they first shoot up are not so much affected 

 by little insects as the turnip, the beet, etc. Nor 

 are they affected as much as many other plants b7 

 the extremes of weather— cold and heat, wet and 

 dry. When corn and potatoes are wholly des- 

 troyed in the spring by protracted culd and wet 

 weather, or in the fall by early frosts, these still 

 flourish and yield abundantly. I do not mean that 

 they are not at all affected by these causes, and 

 that they always yield equally abundantly in cold 

 or warm, wet or dry seasons. No ; I only say that 

 they are less affected than most farm products, and 

 hence can be relied upon as yielding a remunera- 

 tive crop, if the seed be sown at the proper sea- 

 son and the growing plants are suitably cared for. 



TIME OF SOWING SEED. 



I would recommend that the seed be sown as 

 early in the spring as the state of the weather and 

 ground will permit. They may be sown with safe- 

 ty, however, as late as the 15th of May in this lat- 

 itude ; and if the extreme cold weather should 

 hold off late in the fall, they will attain a good 

 size. 



SOIL BEST ADAPTED. 



The carrot will grow in almost any soil, as well 

 as in almost any climate. And this is one of its 

 recommendations, and not among the least, of its 

 value to man. It will grow on the hills and in the 

 valleys— on the woodland and on the prairies— in 

 the broad field and in the garden. The Boil, how- 

 ever, lest adapted, is a rich sandy loam. A natu- 

 rally cold and wet soil is obviously unsuitable, un- 

 less it be first thoroughly underdrained. Stiff clay 

 with a hard subsoil is also unfit, unless it be deeply 

 trenched, thoroughly pulverized, mixed with a lib- 

 eral quantity of well rotted manure, and the re- 

 dundant water retained in the subsoil be drained 

 off. This pulverization and manuring are requisite 

 on all soils to insure a full crop, as the roots under 

 favorable circumstances will attain to great length. 

 I grew some last year that measured nearly thirty 

 inches in length. 



There is probably no better soil or climate in the 

 world for the production of this inestimable escu • 

 lent than are found in Illinois. Over all these 

 broad and fertile prairies. Nature seems especially 

 to have lavished her blessings in such rich profu- 

 sion, that it may be produced in enormous quanti- 

 ties, at comparatively little cost. But there are 

 suitable soils ana" locations on almost every farm in 

 every State and Territory in the North American 

 continent. 



METHOD OF SOWING. 



If for field culture, the seed should be sown in 

 drills, a suitable distance apart to admit of the free 

 passage of a horse-cultivator. If you wish to use 

 hand-labor alone, the rows may be nearer (18 inches 

 being a suitable distance), and the plants may be 

 left to grow from 5 to 10 inches apart in the rows. 

 The seed may be sown with the hand or seed-drill, 

 making a liberal allowance for poor seed, the des- 

 truction by worms and other casualties. Some 

 prefer to sprout the seed before sowing. In this 

 case, it will have to be sown by hand, as this pro- 

 cess unfits it for a free distribution by the drill. 

 In soaking the seed, great care should be taken not 

 to sprout them too much before sowing. As soon 

 or before the tender germ is visible, it should be 



sown. Previous to sowing, it should be mixed as 

 wanted with a sufficient quantity of dry sand to 

 enable it to escape freely from the fingers. The 

 process of sprouting has one advantage; it pushes 

 the growth of tke plant ahead of the weeds, so 

 that it is not so much work to weed them. 

 Whether sown wet or dry, the seed should be put 

 in immediately after the ground is prepared for it, 

 being careful to sow the rows perfectly straight 

 and equi-distant from each other. If the seed be 

 sown dry, it may be sown with a hand-drill, with 

 great accuracy and rapidity. With a good drill 

 and clean seed a man will sow from one to two 

 acres per day. 



METHOD OF HOEING. 



As soon as the young plants are up, and the line 

 of the rows can be distinguished, the stirring of 

 the ground and the killing of the weeds should be 

 commenced. This work should not be delayed a 

 single day, as a great saving of time and labor is 

 thereby effected. 



By the help of labor-saving implements, of which 

 there are many, thiswork (the most dreaded and dis- 

 couraging of all in the raising of this crop) is made 

 comparatively easy and light. Thus the labor of 

 raising carrots is reduced more than one-half. Let 

 no one, therefore, be deterred from raising them 

 through fear of the fancied cost in cultivating, since 

 the labor can be so much reduced. Let every man 

 use all the helps that science and invention have 

 placed within his reach, to increase the product of 

 this valuable esculent. What golden treasures may 

 yet be dug out of the earth in these yellow roots! 

 What immense. wealth may yet be added to the 

 nation by their more general use among stock 

 growers in every part of this vast agricultural do- 

 main ! Let each individual who has it in his power 

 contribute his mite to swell the aggregate of that 

 wealth ; for he who shall do it will be deserving ot 

 rich enconiums and prove himself a benefactor. 



McHenry, 111. O. R. 



HORSES AND THE WAR. 



The Secretary of the Vermont State Agricultu- 

 ral Society, in his Annual Report, remarks : 



The number of horses in Vermont before the 

 breaking out of the rebellion, was about fifty-five 

 thousand, since which time, it is calculated that 

 nearly ten thousand have been carried from the 

 State for army purposes. This immense levy for 

 horses has been made throughout the entire coun- 

 try. When it is considered that comparatively i'ew 

 of these horses will find their way back : that the 

 number that will die of disease or become unfit for 

 service is twenty times as great as it would be were 

 they used in other kinds of business: that to meet 

 this great want of the government, a large propor- 

 tion of the business horses in our large cities, which 

 have been thrown out of service by general pros- 

 tration, have been bought up : it readily appears 

 that, even during the war, horses must advance in 

 price; and at its close, when business shall revive 

 and trade resume its former channels, the demand 

 for good horses must exceed the supply. Reason- 

 ing from these premises, no more profitable labor 

 can be engaged in than the production of good 

 business horses." 



