1836] 



FARMERS' REGiStER. 



541 



alihough ! sliail not cease, on ihat account, lo con- 

 tinue my coii/paraiive experinieuls vviili every va- 

 riety that comes hitriiiy recommended by compe- 

 tent judges; (or however fantastical and hobhy- 

 horsical some ol" my afzi'lcuhural notions may be 

 thought, I confidently hope never lo mount an ear 

 of cum as a hobby ; at least during my president- 

 ship of your society. Deem it not, I i)eg you, an 

 extravagant supposition ; ibr [ myself have seen 

 several redoul)table riders thus mounted, as I 

 could prove, if necessary, by a host of witnesses. 



Every year, Ibr many past, has contrdiuted to 

 convince me, that we shall have to rely more and 

 more on the corn crop, as our chief staple, in all 

 the tide water portion of Virginia. The impor- 

 tance therelbre, of ascertaining which kind is most 

 valuable, in every respect, is so greatly enhanced, 

 as to require, on the part of every corn-planter, 

 much increased care and attention in prosecuting 

 his etforls to ascertain the fact. In tlie three j'eara' 

 trials made by myself, I have established beyond 

 a doubt, that there is a difference of not less than 

 15 or 20 per cent, in favor of the twin corn, over 

 two or three of the most popular kinds cultivated in 

 those parts ot Virginia with which I am best ac- 

 quainted ; but I would thank any gentleman, 

 (whether hobby horsical or not,) if he believes 

 that he has a preierable kind, lo send me a lew 

 grains, and I will promise him a lailhful and a liiir 

 trial, so far as I can possibly make it so. Permit 

 me to invite all corn-planters to co-operate in ma- 

 king this trial next year, and so long as our society 

 holds together. The labor and expense will be a 

 tritle not worth estimating,. while the gain may 

 exceed all ordinary calculation: for none, I think, 

 can now doubt, that Indian corn must be our 

 chief source of revenue, in all the tide-water por- 

 tion of Virginia, unless some other crop, yet to be 

 tried, should prove its superiority. But, strange 

 to say, although the fact is well known to most, 

 perhaps to all of us corn planters — the majority 

 seem content to go on, in the same humdrum way 

 pursued by our great-great-grand-Rithers — con- 

 tent, as it would seem,) to act as if we had arrived 

 at the "ne plus ultra," of perfection in our parti- 

 cular calling. To address those who have adopt- 

 ed this creed would be quite as great a proof of 

 hallucination in the preachers as in their audi- 

 ence ; it would truly be preachinij to deaf adders ; 

 but I have persuaded myself to believe, that there 

 are a goodly number still among us, who have 

 " eyes to see, ears to hear, and understanding to 

 comprehend,'^ all that most conduces to their own, 

 and the general good, and therelbre I earnestly re- 

 peat the vital invitation, " hasten to rescue ;" for 

 our dearest interests are in jeopardy. 



Another of my experiments was with a variety 

 of Indian pea sent to me by that very zealous 

 and intelligent friend to agriculture and all its in- 

 terests, Mr. llerbemont, of South Carolina. It is 

 the same kind which he has so highly recom- 

 mended in the Farmers' Register, 3d vol. page, 93 

 under the name of the Chickasaw pea; and as 

 far as I can judge by my single (rial, well deserves 

 the reconmiendation there given of it. My peas 

 wfjre planted in hills, about three feet apart each 

 way ; fl-om 2 to 4 in a hill, and nearly or quite 3 

 weeks after our first planting of other vaiieties. 

 This I found to be too late to escape early frost. 

 The ground was a spot of poor land marled last 

 summer twelve months, for turnips. The pea- 



vines grew erect to the full height of 4 leet in the 

 best gound, having uiicommoiiiy large and succu- 

 lent stalks and leaves. The first and only gath- 

 ering from oidy half a pint of seed produced so 

 laroe a gathering us to jusiily the conclusion that 

 they are very productive — Ibr a lar greater quan- 

 tity was left on the vines. Tliesc were given 

 to milch cows and hogs, which eat them veVy 

 greedily. As a green dressing for land they 

 must be liir preierable to other varieties, Ibr this is 

 the only kind known to me which does not run. al- 

 thoufrh growing very luxuriantly. This quality 

 renders tliem best also, as long Ibrage for larmmg 

 stock, to which use Mr. Herbemont has applied 

 them, and says that his "liorses preferred them to 

 all other loddcr." 



My experiment with the Guinea grass is still 

 contincd, although with less sanguine iiopes of 

 acclimating it, tlian I had at first. This is my 

 third year of trial. The last unparallelled winter 

 killed a large portion of the roots ; but 1 collected 

 the hardy survivors, and set them in rows 2 feet 

 a[)art, near my stable. These have been worked 

 three times vvi'h the hand-hoe, and cut five times, 

 at an average height of fully three leet. My con- 

 clusion from this 3 years experiment is, that the 

 Guinea grass, if planted where it is convenient 

 to give It a slight covering, before hard fi-ost. with 

 straw or coarse litter, will prove a valuable auxil- 

 iary to lucerne, clover and other green Ibod ; and 

 therelbre is still worthy of cultivation in a country 

 where natural grasses are so scarce as to render 

 artificial ones necessary. 



I have now given \ou the sum and substance of 

 my experiments since we last met ; and they are 

 of so little ostensible value, that I should not have 

 detailed them, but to comply with a determination 

 made last year, to set the example ol such a prac- 

 tice, in the hope of tempting others to pursue it, 

 who would prove more capable than myself of 

 thereby benefiting our societ}' and the vital cause to 

 which it is devoted. My failures, (by the way,) 

 should have been stated, and I will now give 

 them ; for a fair detail of an unsuccessful experi- 

 ment IS often as instructive as that of the most for- 

 tunate a man can make. The trial of the skinless 

 oat was continued — but produced little more than 

 the seed. This, however, was not adulterated, as 

 Mr. Prince has reported of his, in the Fainiers' 

 Register, but was quite as pure as the quart I 

 f)urchased of one his agents, at the rate of sixteen 

 dollars a bushel : of course, profit and loss must 

 be charged with this ffiilure. The reputation of 

 the experiment of the drilled-wheat, in regard to 

 which I reported so favorably, at our last meeting, 

 proved to be nearly a total failure, as it fell some- 

 what short of two for one. Eight other bushels, 

 which I sowed broad-cast, produced about the 

 same meager increase of seed, and that utterly 

 unfit either to grind or to sow. I have therefore 

 bid farewell to wheat, as a staple crop, until some 

 more adventurous liumer shall prove, that it may, 

 once more, be made to advantage, in our part of 

 Virginia. 



Let me now endeavor to present those views of 

 the prospect lielbre us Virffinian agriculturists, 

 1 from which I confidently believe, that all true 

 linends of our good old state may rationally con- 

 clude that they ought not yet to desert her, as ihej' 

 Vk'ould a ship stranded upon a desert shore. 



There are yet means vast in power, if not in va- 



