460 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



[No. 8 



pairos of the "Aninricrtn Farmer" and olherstc'in- 

 ckird American agricultural workf. 



Many Frenchmen, and we. presume plcilllil in 

 their own country at ihe vine culture, have totally 

 failed on trial here, or in ours. Indeed, we may 

 Bay that out ofnumerons trials made hy foreiirnera 

 in America at vine culiivalion, none ha\e suc- 

 ceeded at all, except that hy a co!ony of Swiss at 

 Vevay, Indiana. And they ton, I helieve, saved 

 themselves from failure hy deviatinix from loreig-n 

 pystems. I have lately understood from an intel- 

 ligent gentleman residing in Alabama, that the le- 

 gislature ofl'ered land to foreigners on condition of 

 their cultivating; one vine, at least, for every acre 

 granted. And that in the nei<rhhorhood, or part of 

 the country where he resided (asio other places he 

 was not inl()rm(>d) a number of Frenchmen were 

 on l)0unty lantls, but had had no success in culti- 

 vating vines. And, as I understood, the reason 

 was, that they rioidly litllovved ihe system of cul- 

 ture established in their own country. 



I beg leav-e heie to introduce a circumstance 

 that occurred vviihin my own knowledge, serving 

 to illustrate this part of my suliject. 



Some few months since, there travelled (hroun-h 

 this neifrhhorliood a mendicant Frenchman, ask- 

 ing chariiips for sonie relative? left at one of the 

 Cape de Verd Islands — backed hy a certificate, 

 purporting to be from the captain of the ship that 

 hroufrht him over the Atlantic. Wfdle at a near 

 rieitrhhor's of mine he spied some vines, 1 had 

 lurnished, of luxuriant and extended irrowlh. He 

 immediately drew forth his kni^e, and cut ofi'some 

 near the ground, and was about thus destroying 

 the rest, stating that their growth was contrary to 

 all correct rules of vine cultivation. 



Some men, especially those of narrow, ignorant 

 minds, and tocclded to old established systems, are 

 incapable of abstracliiig rules from applications, 

 and ditierences of times, places and circumstances 

 in any nuitters. And hence self-esteemed infalli- 

 bles, with all their annoyances in politics, in reli- 

 gion, and even in afjriculiiire. 



One error, as well as difTicnlfy, in succeedin": 

 with the grape culture in our country has been 

 that of m«n of capital (men best calculated to suc- 

 ceed if right in the method) employino; fbreiixn 

 vine dressers to attend exchisivelv to ihe vine cul- 

 ture for them. The result has always been what 

 mitrhf be. expected by those truly eiilighlened on 

 tlie suliject. 



llavino; trealed negatively on the American 

 pystem of vine culture, I propose in a future nunt- 

 ber, (forthcoming as soon as time and press of 

 business permit) to treat directly on the subject in 

 hand, and the advantages of the plan recommend- 

 ed, 



SVnNEY WELLER. 



Brinkhyville, Ball/ax en., IV. C. 



Sept. 23, 1836. 



From tlie London Gardennr's IVTagazine. 

 ON THE CULTIVATIOX OF THE PINE APPLE. 



The fbllovvinjr account of the mananfement of a 

 crop of 76 plants, none of which produced fruit 

 weighin-r less than from two to three pounds, 

 many much more, obtained the Banksian medal: 



"In October, 1830, the suckers were taken from 

 the parent plants, potted in small pots, and pluu"-- 



ed in the tan at Ihe front of the older succession 

 plants. In February, 1831, wishing to grow them 

 as large as possilile, Mr. Warren had his succes- 

 sion pit, which is 21 ft. long by 9 fr. wide, filled 

 with Iresh oak leaves vvhich he had collected the 

 |)receding winter; on the top of which he [tut a 

 compost of two-thirds liiiht hazel loam from a 

 turfy pasture, and one third rotten hot-bed manure 

 and leaf-mould, to the thickness of 14 iriidies. In 

 this the pines were planted 14 inches apart : they 

 iirew and flourished in such a manner, that in 

 October, 1831, Mv. Warren's usual [jottinir time, 

 finding the plants doing so well, he resolved to try 

 and liiiit tiiem as they then stood, instead of [;ot- 

 iin<r them, as was his usual p.ractice. He then 

 began to withhold the watering from the two back 

 rows till the latter part of Janiuiry ; afterwards 

 water wa^ given as usual ; and in February sev- 

 eral fiuit began to appear: the watering was then 

 withheld fiom the other rows for a lime, in order 

 to bring them on in succession. In order lo obtain 

 bottom heat lo swell the Iruit off, the two front 

 rows of pliints were lakeu out and potted, taking 

 out the oak leaves to the bottom of" the pit ; the 

 space thus nuule was filled with well-lermented 

 horse-dung; and, covering the later with Ian, the 

 potted plants were ay'ain plimged. The liorse- 

 duug gave sufficient heat lo swell ofl'the (i-uit to a 

 great size. The surlltce of" ihe soil was covered 

 with moss, which was found to be a ctreni help in 

 keep.inii: 'he soil in a humid state, without the aid 

 of much water." 



From the London Gardener's Magazine. 



OJV THE EMPLOYMENT OF CATS IN THE PRE- 

 SEUVATIOjV of FUriT FROM BIRDS. 



"Robert Brook, Esq., of Melton Lodge, near 

 Woodbridge, in Suffolk, has four or five cats, 

 each with a collar, and light chain and swivel, 

 about a yard long, with the large iron ring at the 

 end. As soon as Ihe gooseberries, currants, and 

 ras[ibernes bejrin to ri[;en, a small slake is driven 

 into the ground, or bed, near ihe trees to be pro- 

 tected, leaving about a yard and a half of tin 

 stake above ground ; the ring is slipped over the 

 head of the stake, and the cat, thus tethered in 

 sioht of the trees, no birds will approach them. 

 Cherry trees and wall-fi-uit trees are protected in 

 the same mamier as they successively ripen. 

 Each cat, by way of a shed, has one of the larg- 

 est .sized flower-pots laid on its side, wiihin reach 

 of its cha'ri, with a little hay or siraw in bad wea- 

 ther, and her fI)od and water placed near her. 



"In confirmation of Mr. Kendall's statement, it 

 may be added, that a wall of vines lielween 200 

 and 300 ytuds lonir, in the nursery of Mr. Kirke, 

 at Brompton, the fruit of which in all previous 

 seasons had been very much injured by biids, was 

 last year completely protecied in consequence of 

 a cat having voluntarily posted himself sentry 

 upon it." 



From the United States Gazette. 

 BEET SUGAR. 



To J. R. Chandler, Esq. — Sir: Perceiving by 

 the many ap[)lications made to me lor informa- 

 tion respectuig beet sugar, that not only a very 



