302 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



Now these rotes areas healthy loohing wheat as any 

 man can wish to see, while the other is worthless. If 

 fanners will take heed to what I have written, it 

 will ilo many more good than the loss of 13 acres 

 of wheat will harm me, although I fully expected 

 500 bushels when I sowed it. It is folly sow- 

 ing so early. 1 never knew one day difference 

 in°coining in ear, or of ripening, /ront that sowed 

 en the 12th or 25th of September, if the condition 

 of the land wasegiMl;&n<i I have no doubt if 

 farmers generally will make notes of their sowing, 

 and the ripening of the different fields, they will 

 find what I say is correct. 



Mr. Johnson adds " those who sow the end of 

 September, and in October, should sow more seed to 

 the acre than those sowing earlier." 



So far as the Hessian fly is concerned, there can 

 b« no doubt that early sowing greatly increases the 

 risk of injury. The fly deposits its eggs on tho 

 young leaves early in the autumn, and if the wheat 

 is sown late, it does not make its appearance till 

 the season of the fly is passed. But of late years 

 the midge has proved so much more injurious than 

 the Hessian fly, that farmers, in their laudable ef- 

 forts to get the wheat into flower before the ap- 

 pearance of the midge flies in the summer, have 

 forgotten the Hessian fly, and sown too early. 



The subject is one of great importance, and we 

 should be glad to hear from our experienced cor- 

 respondents. 



Since writing the above we have been examin- 

 ing, in the Natural History of New TorTc-, the re- 

 cords of an extended observation on the tempera- 

 ture of the soil, by Prof. Emmons and others in 

 this State. Tlie temperature of the soil was ascer- 

 tained three times a day, at 4 inches and 9 inches 

 below the surface, on grass land and on bare 

 ground, each day for several months. We have 

 taken the trouble to ascertain from the observations, 

 the mean temperature of the soil for diff"erent 

 months, at five o'clock in the morning, at 4 inches 

 and 9 inches below the surface, and present there- 

 suit in tlie following table: 



TitbU shoifiiHf th4 Temperature of the Soil at 4. and ^ 

 inchetdeep, in different month* of the year 



last week 58 ° . The first week in October it wa 

 55 ® ; the second week 53 ° ; the third week 52 ° 

 and the fourth week 48 ® . 



The rule laid down by Mr. Spbabing, that whea 

 should not be sown until the temperature of th-< 

 soil is reduced to 50 ® , would require that w 

 should not sow wheat till the last week of Octobei 

 This may answer in England (and we have seen ther 

 excellent wheat that was not sown till tlie middle o 

 Noveinber), but such a practice would not answe 

 in this country. It is, however, very important t 

 ascertain at what temperature of the soil it is bes 

 to sow wheat. If any of our readers have mad 

 any observations on this point, we should b© gla 

 to hear from them. * 



WHEBE SHALL THE FAIR BE HELD! 



The mean temperature of the soil at 5 o'clock 

 in the morning, on naked land, 9 inches below the 

 surface, X\\^ first week in September, was 67i ' ; the 

 aeoond week 63 = ; the third week 58 ® ; and the 



EvEBT year in this State, and doubtless in othi 

 States, there is considerable discussion at tlie annu 

 meeting of the Agricultural Society as to whei 

 the State Fair shall be held. The Managers of tl 

 Society, naturally enough, desire to hold the Fa 

 in a populous neighborhood, where there will be 

 large local attendance, and where the receipts fro 

 visitors, other things being equal, will be tl 

 highest. There are comparatively few such plao 

 in this State, and if the Society decides to exclw 

 less populous places, the Fair will return to tl 

 larger cities at very short intervals. 



There lias been an effort in this State tor sor 

 years to induce our Agricultural Society to ho 

 its Annual Fairs successively at three or four ■ 

 the principal cities along the Central Railroaii 

 and there are some good reasons in favor of sucl 

 course. On the other hand, it is claimed that tl, 

 object of the Society should not be to hold tl 

 Fairs in places where it can secure the largest il 

 ceipts, but rather where it can be of most benei 

 to the agricultural interests of the State; and it i 

 urged that in sections where the Fairs are nevi 

 held, the majority of farmers and their familes a 

 deprived of the opportunity of witnessing one 

 our great agricultural gatherings. The Fairs, it 

 thought, should therefore be occasionally tak 

 into such neighborhoods. The Society, howev(| 

 is not rich, and is seldom in a position to run ; 

 risk of loss from holding the Fair in such plat- 

 We believe the Society is sincerely desirous 

 holding the Fairs where they will do the in< 

 good ; byt niany things have to be taken into oo 

 sideration, and it is not surprising that the decisio 

 do not always please the friends of the Society 

 all sections of the State. 



