218 



THE GENESEE FAEMER. 



REMOVING SMALL STONES. 



"Is It injnrioiis, or beneficial, to remove all the small Stones 

 from the Land? and why?" 



We answer, it is decidedly beneficial. The ques- 

 tion, I think, fairly implies that all the large stones 

 should be removed, and by " small stones" is meant 

 such as can be tlirown out of the way conveniently 

 by the plow. In the first place, where there are a 

 great many small stones left in the ground, and the 

 ground is hard, the plow will not penetrate the 

 soil, but only skim the top. Second: when the 

 land is seeded to grass, a portion of the surface is 

 covered with rock, and of course so much grass 

 will not grow on a given area as if the surface were 

 cleared of rock. Third : the cultivation of the crops 

 can not be so conveniently, thoroughly, and expe- 

 ditiously done, where all the rock is not removed. 

 Fourth: it is considered that fencing, where the 

 stone can be taken from the fields — taking dura- 

 bility into consideration — can be more cheaply 

 made from stone than from any other material. 

 Any person who has had experience in building 

 fence of stone, knows the advantage of having 

 small stones for leveling up and filling in the wall. 



Tlie only reasons I remember to have heard for 

 Letting the small stones remain on the land, are — 

 first, that they keep it from washing ; second, that 

 by the action of the atmosphere, &c., the rocks are 

 crumbled down, and add to the fertility of the soil. 

 Tlie best method I know of, to keep rolling land 

 that has rock upon it from washing, is, to take all 

 the rock off, large and small, plow it deeply, — when 

 cultivated in corn plow it only one way — sideways 

 of the hill, — then the water will seldom break over 

 the rows, and a great deal more wUl be absorbed 

 by the land than if plowed shallow ; about the last 

 of August or first of September sow it thickly with 

 rye, which will soon come up and form a sod that 

 will prevent it fi'om washing through the succeed- 

 ing winter and spring. In the fall sow timothy, 

 and in the spring clover ; pasture two years, — the 

 clover and timothy will keep it from washing dur- 

 ing the time of pasturing ; at the end of two years 

 plow deeply for corn, and cultivate as before. If 

 prudently cultivated, sod land seldom waslies much 

 the first year. This process can be repeated any 

 length of time. Wlieat can be made to answer 

 nearly the same purpose as rye, only it does not 

 grow up so soon and form so good a sod. 



In answer to the second objection — that the dis- 

 integration or the weathering down of the rocks, 

 by the influence of the atmosphere, cold, &c., adds 

 to the fertility of the soil — I will remark that this 

 is a very slow process ; that the deep plowing be- 

 fore described — which cannot be done if the small 

 stones are not removed — the influence of the at- 

 mosphere, and the decaying of the straw, grass and 

 roots, will add to the fertility of the soil much 

 faster than the weathering down of the small stones 

 left on the land. 



I have just thought of another objection : that 

 the stone left upon the land prevents, in some de- 

 gree, evaporation, therefore moisture is retained by 

 leaving them upon the land. The best antidote 

 against drouth that I have tried, is to have the land 

 deeply plowed and well pulvei-ised ; the moisture 

 then comes up by capillary attraction, the atmos- 

 phere penetrates as deeply as the land is plowed, 

 there becomes cool, and the watery vapor is con- 



densed into a liquid in the same way that dew is 

 formed. By this method of plowing the land and 

 keeping it well pulverised in the spring, and keep- 

 ing the surface well stirred through the summer, 

 usu.'dly there is very little danger from drouth. 



Now, as removing the stones from the surface 

 greatly facilitates the well breaking of the land, — 

 gives a greater surface when the land is in grasa^ — 

 makes it much easier to cultivate when in hoed 

 crops, • — affords stones convenient for filling in and 

 levelling up stone fence, — when properly managed, 

 prevents wasldng, and promotes the fertility of the 

 soil, — furnishes a deep vegetable mold, which pre- 

 vents drouth and gives a good bed for the roots of 

 plants, — all these things being true, may we not 

 say that it is best to remove all the small stones 

 from the land ? a. g, mullins. 



BEAN STEAW AS FEED FOE SHEEP. 



It is well known that sheep thrive better with a 

 change of pastures ; it is equally true that a variety 

 of food promotes their health and thrift in winter. 

 I have found my flock to do better on different 

 kinds given each day, than on one kind, fed "right 

 along," from week to week through the winter, — 

 supplying them in each case with all they would 

 consume economically. 



As one kind of winter fodder for sheep, I would 

 by all means have bean straw, and would like 

 enough to give them one feeding a day through the 

 season. In the early part of winter, oat straw 

 might make another kind, or oat chaft', if from 

 clean, bright-strawed oats ; and I would not care to 

 give hay more than once per day till March came 

 in. I believe I could keep sheep in this way, if the 

 fodder was of first quality, without grain, in first- 

 rate order for raising lambs and wool-growing. 



Bean straw, to be good, should be harvested as 

 soon as the beans are ripe — when the pods turn 

 yellow — and cured so as to save the beans in good 

 order. If every bean is not threshed out it will be 

 no loss ; if they get into the sheep-rack they will 

 be well saved, and any refuse beans may be given 

 out at times through the winter. I do not know 

 why beans are not as good for fattening sheep, as 

 peas or corn ; they are now about as cheap, poaind 

 for pound. Who has given them a trial ? b. 



SHOULD COWS BE MILKED MORE THAN ONCE A 

 DAY IN WINTER 1 



I AM of opinion that when cows are housed and 

 properly taken care of, they may as well be milked 

 twice a day in winter as in summer; at least, I 

 have always been in the habit of having mine 

 milked twice a day, without seeing any bad effects 

 arising from it. And I find that when we stop 

 them twice a day, the cows very soon 



cease to make provision for the second milking, 

 and give but very little more each time than they 

 would were they to be milked twice. But on the 

 other hand, where cows are but poorly wintered, 

 and "running at the straw stack," I think it best 

 to milli them only in the middle of the day— in ihs 

 first place, because in general they give so little it 

 is hardly worth while to go twice for it; and an- 

 other thing, in severe frosts they are more hkely to 

 get frozen teats when they are milked both at 

 morning and night. '• M. 



