56 



THE GEJTESEE FARMER. 



CHINESE SUGAE CANE m IOWA. 



Ed8. Gexesee Faemer : — According to promise, 

 I will give you some account of our Sorgho opera- 

 tions, though so many have raised, experimented and 

 written upon it that I fear I shall have nothing new 

 to add. The 18th of May my husband planted two- 

 thirds of an acre, but owing to tlie coldness of the 

 season, many of the seeds failed to come up, so that 

 when cut it was estimated at about one-third of an 

 acre, which yielded 10,560 canes; only 500 of these 

 were fully ripe, which were reserved to test the dif- 

 ference between ripe and unripe cane for yield and 

 quality of syrup. My husband being a mechanic 

 as well as farmer, built himself a mill, somewhat 

 after the fashion of a cider press, only with three 

 upright rollers instead of two, going by horse power. 

 He also made a sheet iron pan with wooden sides 

 and a heater, with a brick arch to boil upon ; he 

 boiled in the pans till it was about half reduced, ad- 

 ding cream of lime, and white of eggs to clarify, 

 when it was taken off and strained. It was then 

 brought into the house for the women folks to fin- 

 ish off in a large brass kettle, adding a little skim- 

 med milk. We found the yield of unripe cane to 

 be one gallon of syrup to ten of juice ; the 500 

 reserved canes were then pressed and yielded forty- 

 five gallons, which, when boUed, made seven gallons 

 of syrup, of a much finer quality than the first, 

 showing conclusively that the canes must be ripe to 

 make the most and best molasses. The 10,560 

 canes made eighty-six gallons of syrup, all of which 

 was better than any common molasses, and the best 

 as nice as Belchers syrup. Owing to the rollers 

 being of wood instead of iron, we did not get the 

 whole of the saccharine matter — probably not much 

 more tlum two-thirds — as wooden rollers give so 

 much more than iron, and the last of the juice is 

 riclier than the first. I find the syrup, when half 

 boiled to the consistency of molasses, to be an ex- 

 cellent substitute for cider in making pumpkin and 

 I apple butter ; but to make wild plum and tomato 

 butter, or marmalade, (which articles are very pop- 

 alar here at the west,) it requires the whole strength. 

 Pumpkin butter is much improved by adding a little 

 vinegar while cooking, which gives it a tart taste, 

 much resembling apple. I think, after this, farmers 

 may snap their lingers at hard times as far as sweet- 

 ening is concerned, for they may be perfectly inde- 

 pendent. VIOLA. 



Clay, WasMnqton Co., lotoa, liov. 24, 1S57. 



OxEX VS. HoESES. — Oxen cost far less and can l»e 

 kejit cheaper than horses ; the wear and tear of the 

 yoke and chain is less than that of a set of harness ; 

 and if an accident, such as breaking a leg, should 

 ha;)pen to one, he is not a dead loss — for, if kept 

 as he should be, and as any farmer will find it to 

 his intei-est to keep his cattle, he will make beef, 

 while a horse in like circumstances would be a dead 

 loss. Mtkon E. Takser. — Clarkstown, Roehland 

 Co., N. Y. 



m I ■! 



Buckwheat foe a Sod Crop on the Peairie. — 

 Hitherto it has been thought that only corn could 

 be grown on prairie sod the same year it is broken 

 up ; but, upon trial, buckwheat proves more certain 

 nnd valuable. It keeps down the weeds which 

 Tfivu^g up on land not thoroughly shaded, and proves 

 In more remunerating crop. G. — Plain Fa/rm, III. 



SOW A VAKTEry OF GRASS SEEDS. 



Editors Ge^t:see Farmer: — I am satisfied that 

 every farmer should cultivate some of the different 

 kinds of grasses best adapted to his soil, not only as 

 a reclaimer of worn out and exhausted lands, but 

 because it is cheaper food than grain, for all kinds 

 of stock except hogs. Some of our best farmers 

 who have their farms well stocked with grass, have 

 a supply for their stock eight or nine months in the 

 year ; whereas, some of us who have less grass are 

 under the necessity of feeding six or seven months 

 in the year. Now tMs is quite a difference in favor 

 of those who cultivate a greater proportion of gi-ass. 

 In the first place, they are enabled to manage their 

 lands with much less labor, and at the same time 

 greatly improve their quality, which should be the 

 great object of every one who is the owner of the 

 soil he cultivates. I frequently talk with iiu'mers 

 who admit that their land would be as profitable if 

 well set in grass as when cultivated in grain crops, 

 yet they do not adopt the practice. And why? 

 Simply because it requires a little "ready money" 

 paid out for grass seed, on whicli they can not im- 

 mediately realize a profit. 



Every farmer should endeavor to raise his own 

 grass seed, if possible ; or enough and to spare of 

 some particular kind, to buy such as he does not 

 make. 



I am in favor of sowing different kinds of grass 

 seed on tlie same land, and at some future time may 

 give you my method of seeding to grass. 



OWiam Co., Ky. W. B. 



iii» ■ «■ 



NOTES FROM MINNESOTA. 



Eds. Gexesee Fajimek : — We are upon the verge 

 of winter, and I will tell you briefly of our harvest, 

 our fall weather, kc 



Everything that wo cultivated was good, except* 

 corn, whicli was lated and injured by the frost, which 

 came earlier than usual this season. We had a slight 

 frost on tlie niglit of Sept. 19. My Dutton corn was- 

 in the shock a week befijre that. But little injury 

 was done by it. Our first severe frost came oil the 

 night of October 15th. It injured much of the Dent 

 corn. We soon after had frosts which injured the 

 undug potatoes. On the 8th November, snow fell 

 about one foot in depth. Sleighing came unexpec- 

 tedly, and found us unprepared for it, — our stables 

 were not in readiness, our small grains were un- 

 garnered and our corn unharvested. Since the- §th 

 we have had severe cold weather and good sleigh- 

 ing until within a day or so, and now the ground is 

 nearly bare. 



The hard times are keenly felt here. Money is 

 scarce. Produce brings but a small price, and al- 

 most every one has debts to pay. We have plenty 

 of wheat to supply the demand. Corn, oats, and 

 hay will probably be scarce nest spring. Pork is 

 scare* and dear ; beef plenty and cheap. 



Farmers looked some\s'hat discouraged at the 

 early advent of cold weather, but they have since 

 gathered their corn and made the necessaiy prepa- 

 rations for a Minnesota winter. e. hodges. 



Jfarimi, Olnuted Co., M. T., jVo<!. SO, 1857. 



Since the above was put in type, we have received 

 another letter from Mr. H., stating that the weather 

 has been exceedingly mild in Minnesota — more so 

 than he ever remembers in Western N, Y. eds. 



