No. 2. 



Salt a Miiniire and Worm. Destroyer, S^-c. 



63 



plant an acre, and a celebrated planter of 

 Louisiana informed the writer that he uses 

 from fifteen to twenty thousand bushels of 

 seed annually in plantinjj his crop, all of which 

 is selected by hand as above stated, from im- 

 mense masses. 



It is of immense importance to give grain, 

 and indeed plants of every kind, a healthy, 

 vigorous start when they first come into ex- 

 istence, by sowing perfect seed ; their future 

 devclopemeut and prosperty much depending 

 UDon it. It is therefore hoped tliat those who 

 have heretofore been negligent in this partic- 

 ular will gain wisdom by what they have suf- 

 fered, and not hereafter expect to "gather 

 grapes of thorns, or figs from thistles." 



" For what thou sovvest, such shalt thou reap." 

 AuUlCOLA. 



Fit tlie Farini-rs' Cabinet. 

 Salt a Manure and Worm Destroyer* 



" Salt is good." 



Salt is much used in England and other parts 

 of Europe as a manure with great effect, of 

 which there are numerous well attested in- 

 stances. It is put on as a top-dressing late 

 in the autumn or early in the spring at the 

 rate of from five to twenty bushels per acre. 

 It is very destructive to grubs, slugs, worms, 

 and insects which increase with alarming ra- 

 pidity in all grounds where vegetable manure 

 is abundantly applied ; for insects deposit 

 their eggs in dun<r-hills and other deposits of 

 decaying vegetable matter, as best adapted 

 to the future nourishment and developement 

 of the infant grub or worm. Cabbages, rad- 

 ishes, carrots, and many other garden vege- 

 tables have of late years been destroyed in 

 large quantities by worms attacking the roots 

 and wounding and injuring them so as to pre^ 

 vent the growth of the plant ; many garden- 

 ers have suffered great loss in this way dur- 

 ing the present and past seasons. The appli 

 cation of salt or brine to the soil a month or 

 two before the time of planting, it is supposed, 

 would prevent this great mischief by destroy- 

 in tr the authors of it. Salt in moderate quan- 

 tities is well known to be congenial to all 

 plants of the cabbage and onion tribe, inde- 

 pendent of its worm-destroying powers. No- 

 thing is more beneficial to an asparagus bed, 

 and increases its productiveness more than 

 brine or pickle sprinkled copiously over it 

 early in the spring. The most successful 

 cultivators of this valuable vegetable have 

 long been in the practice of applying it in 

 larsre quantities annually. 



Every man of intelligence knows the ad- 

 vantages which result from giving plenty of 

 salt to horses, cattle, and sheep; it promotes 

 their health and causes them to thrive and 

 fatten, and tends to protect them from vari- 

 ous diseases. Horses are protected by it from 



worms, botts, and colic, and when they are 

 fed with .new oats, new corn, or fresh hay 

 give them salt bountifully to correct the ill 

 cfl'ects of such food ; and if they have that 

 troublesome disease called lampas, don't be 

 guilty of putting a hot iron in the mouth to 

 torture them, but give them salt to lick to al- 

 lay the inflammation and alleviate the disease. 

 It is said that cattle, regularly furnished with 

 salt, not only during the summer months, but 

 during the winter, and particularly the latter 

 part of that season and the early part of spring, 

 have never been known to be afflicted with 

 that terrible scourge commonly cnlled hollow 

 horn, particularly if they have been well fed, 

 and that with a portion of succulent tood, to 

 keep their bowels in proper order, and care- 

 fully protected from the inclemency of the 

 weath(>r during the great and sudden transi- 

 tions of the winter and spring months. 



A valuable plum tree, that stood in a cor- 

 ner of an asparagus bed, had exhibited evi- 

 dent symptoms of disease and decay for some 

 years, when the asparagus bed being dressed 

 copiously with pickle the tree revived, be- 

 come healthy and vigorous, and has this sea- 

 son brought to perfection and ripened a very 

 large crop of fruit of the finest quality. This 

 is believed to have been caused by the salt, 

 and it is suggested to those who consult their 

 interests by rearing the most valuable kinds 

 of fruits, for pleasure or profit, to try the ex- 

 periment, cautiously, of applying salt or brine 

 in moderate quantities, under and about some 

 of their fruit trees, and detail the result for 

 public good, hit or miss, for it is of great im- 

 portance to record misses as well as hits. 



It is a well known fact that peach trees 

 thrive and do well, and live to a great age, 

 within the range of the salt atmosphere and 

 influence on the seashore, and perhaps the 

 artificial application of salt in small quanti- 

 ties may produce the same effect in other 

 situations. Try it and let us hear from you 

 how it works; perchance we may discover 

 the grand panacea, but keep in mind the wise 

 saying of the old woman, 



"That a little of a good thing, is good 

 But a great deal of it is good for rjothing." 



A BR AM. 



For the Farmers' Cabinet. 



The Farmers' Frock or Blense. 



Sir, — Your correspondent, at page 340, 

 who has introduced to the notice of your rea- 

 ders the French frock, or " bleuse," has de- 

 served well of his country, (as the old French 

 Directory used to have it,) and should be 

 called to the honors of a s^itting^ in the Cabi- 

 net. I have worn dresses of that description 

 for the last two years, and can join in recom- 

 mending them as most convenient and eco- 

 nomical. They are very generally v.orn by 



