THE GENESEE FAPwMER. 



81. 



AGSICULTUKE IN WESTERN VIRGINIA. 



Editors Genesee Faemeb : — T am aware that 

 yoii take much interest in everything relative to an 

 improved system of agriculture, and my particular 

 object in addressing you is to give you an idea of 

 what can be done in Western Virginia, by a judi- 

 dous system of tUlage. But it may not be amiss to 

 state that while the eastern portion of our State 

 has been worn out and impoverished by the plan 

 of farming a large area and reaping a light crop, 

 barely sufficient to support its tenantry, this region 

 of the State has been overlooked until within a few 

 years past. Since the completion of our railroads 

 and tui'upikes, the development of its agricultural 

 resources lias been very rapid. It has aroused an 

 energy and a spirit of emulation in our farmers, that 

 has produced a marked improvement; and we need 

 but two things to make this section of Virginia one 

 of the most desirable and pleasant portions of our 

 Union, which are these : a general circulation of the 

 Genesee Farmer^ and a colony of scientific and prac- 

 tical Yankee farmers. We have already had a few 

 enterprising nurserymen, who have brought us some 

 very choice fruit. In this locality, the "peculiar 

 institution " need not be an objection to a residence 

 in our midst, even with those most opposed to it. 

 'This county lies in the Valley of the Monongahela 

 river, the soil of which is rich and productive, rather 

 uneven, but its hills are underlaid with heavy strata 

 of very fine bituminous coal, and lime-stone in great 

 abundance, of superior quality. But my communi- 

 cation is becoming too much in extenso^ and I will 

 proceed to give you the result obtained by Mr. 

 CuAPMAX Jonx of this vicinity, a gentleman of 

 much respectability, and a practical farmer. He 

 raised, the past season, ou twenty-eight acres of 

 land, the following: 



400 bushels Cnrn, forty cents per bushel $1 60.00 



86 " Wheat one dollar per bushel SG.OO 



21 tons of Ilay, six dollars per ton 126.00 



100 busliols Apples, twenty-live cents per bushel.. '2.5.00 



50 bushels Oats, twenty-flve cents per bushel 12.50 



Corn, FofUler, &c 50.00 



One lot of Hogs 50.00 



P;isturag:e for three cows and one horse .30.00 



One lot calves 20.00 



Butter, and Vegetable garden 40.00 



.$599.50 



He has been in possession of this "patch" but 

 one year, previous to which it had not been very 

 skillfully managed by its former proprietors. 



I am just informed that another tanner in this 

 county, (Mr. SnuLxz,) who has ati'orded some of the 

 "old fogies" some amusement by his disposition to 

 save and apply fertilizers, has raised, the past season, 

 368 bushels of very fine white wheat on a field con- 

 taining eight acres — averaging 46 bushels per acre. 

 The cro]) of jjotatoes in this region was very abund- 

 ant and free from rot, and indeed our garners are 

 full to overflowing. ir. m. g. 



Morgautowyi, Jfonongalia Co., Va., Dec. Isi, 1S57. 



Fob Sod Crop — or first after breaking — try 

 millet. It is equal to many varieties of grass for 

 fodder, and grows luxuriantly sowed as late as 

 July. G.— Oat_ West, Jan'y, 1858. 



A RECENT traveler in China says, the Chinese farm- 

 ers, instead of applying manure to the soil, scatter 

 dry pulverized poucli-ette ou the leaves of the plants. 



CALIFORNIA QUAIL. 



Since the settlement of California by our country- 

 men, quite a large number of these bh-ds, of which 

 our figure at the head of this article is a fair repre- 

 sentation, have been brought east. Last Jime I re- 

 ceived from my son, who resides in San Francisco, 

 a pair of these beautiful little birds, the only ones 

 out of eight, that survived the passage. The female 

 died about six weeks after they arrived here. In 

 November last I received another pair, out of twelve 

 that were sent from San Francisco. As the last pair 

 were reared in confinement, I am in hopes of being 

 enabled to raise a brood or two the coming season. 



The manners and habits of the California quail are 

 similar to our birds, which formerly were quite plenty 

 in this State; but now very scarce, and nearly 

 extinct. 



Description. — The general color of the upper part 

 of the body and wing^ in the California quail is of a 

 du.sky brown, assummg a leaden or slatey tinge ou 

 the tail and on the fore part of the breast, upon 

 which it advances in the form of a broad band. 

 The fore part of the head is of a mixed ashy grey, 

 and the hinder part blackish brown. The head of 

 the male is adorned with two small black plume-like 

 feathers bending gracefully forward. The throat is 

 black with a small streak of white running down the 

 sides of the neck and encircling the same. The 

 feathers at the back of the neck are small and trian- 

 gular, of a. slatey hue,with a narrow black margin and 

 Avhite tip. The female has but a little crest, and the 

 general tone of the coloring is browner and more 

 obscure. The figure is plump and stout; length 

 about nine inches. Their fiight is heavy and strong, 

 with tlie same buzzing sound of our quail, when 

 ri.-^ing on the wing. They are hardy and stand our 

 elimate the coldest of winters — even the last severe 

 winter. There is not the least doubt but they would 

 breed in this climate in a wild state. 



Their food consists of wheat, oats, buckwheat, 

 grass, and canary seeds. o. x. bement. 



Springside, Poughkeepsie, FeVy, 1858. 



The best remedy for scours in Sheep, is milk 

 thickened with wheaten flour. 



