218 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



summer, and yet enough be left for the wants 

 of winter. 



The only enquiry of importance, now, about 

 the use of Indian corn, in its green state, is whe- 

 ther it is profitable— All allow it to be pleasant. 

 And in regard to the profit, I have no hesitan- 

 cy, after much trial and investigation to say that 

 there is no time, when the same corn will fur- 

 nish more actual support and nourishment lo the 

 human frame than when in the proper state for 

 boiling— That at no other time is it prepared 

 for the table at so little expense, and that in its 

 proper season it is never more healthy, than 

 when it is green at whatever part of the day it 

 is used— That it may, with perfect safety be 

 served up at each meal, make the entire diet of 

 grown persons or children, without, in ordinary 

 cases the least unhappy result, but on the con- 

 trary wilh good hope that it will preserve against 

 these complaints, which are most apt to prevail 

 at the season, when this is in its greatest perlec- 

 tion — That at the time when corn is fit for boil- 

 ing, and at that time only, every part is valua- 

 ble for food, and will by swme or cattle be en- 

 tirely consumed. And further, when there are 

 two ears upon the same stalk, by taking off the 

 first and fullest, the second will arrive at much 

 greater perfection than it otherwise would ; and 

 that in the aggregate their is a larger yield than 

 would otherwise be — And that upon the whole 

 there is health, pleasure and profit in making a 

 free use of green corn, in its season, and that 

 there is not, as some have, with a kind of pious 

 error supposed, a sort of wickedness in the so- 

 ber and temperate use of it. 



The corn most suitable for this purpose is the 

 sweet corn, which is easily raised, and may wilh 

 proper management be had about two months 

 in the year, in quite a state of perfection. This 

 is to be done by using early and later seed, 

 planting at different times, and on different soils, 

 and the use of different manures. If persons are 

 desirous of getting it earlier than this will give, 

 they must take a different kind, but none, I be- 

 lieve, can be had later. Late in the fall, it adds 

 much to its sweetness to boil it in the husks, 

 which are to be left on till it is used ; and in 

 this way it may be used a considerable time later 

 than it can by a different process. 



(To be conlinutd.) 

 -from the Old Colony Memorial, 



AGRICULTURAL STATEMENT. 



To the Trustees of the Pli/mouth County Agricul- 

 tural Siicicly. 



Gentlemen, — The writer has been at an ex- 

 pense of about §100, on an acre in reclaiming 

 a quantity of watery and boggy land, situated a 

 few rods from his house ; — and he has not yet 

 repented. 



His experiment has been particularly calcu- 

 lated to show, independently of a large use of 

 manures, the strength of swamp-soil, vvhen 

 subdued by draining, and repeated ridge-plough- 

 ings. 



In the following paper he gives a statement 

 of the condition of the land, when he commenc- 

 ed improvements, of the methods used in re- 

 claiming it, and of the products from year to 

 yeir. If the Gentlemen Tnistees, should think 

 this paper, or any extract from it worthy of 

 publication, they have liberty to publish it. If 

 ibey judge the communication to be undeserv 



ing of the public eye, it is hoped they will have 

 the goodness entirely to suppress it. 

 Gentlemen, very respectfully. Yours, 



Charles Macomber. 

 The swamp was formrerly wet, miry and re- 

 duced to a rough state by the treading of cattle; 

 was covered with blue flag, yellow moss a few 

 bushes and a yellowish wiry kind of swamp-grass. 

 White clover appeared on the higher hillocks 

 made by the treading of cattle in the drier parts 

 of the swamp; which induced me to think, that 

 the soil in itself might be good. The greater 

 crops however have not been on the drier parts 

 of the swamp, since it was drained ; but on the 

 more wet ; and the greatest crops of all have 

 been on a part of it, which was a quagmire, 

 and where formerly cattle were mired, and 

 assistance from neighbors was necessary to drag 

 them out. 



On examination, the soil of the swamp ap- 

 peared to be a dark mould, a part of which 

 had undoubtedly been washed down by rains 

 from the neighboring hills during the lapse of 

 centuries, mixed with vegetable matter, as gras- 

 ses, moss, flags, bushes, shrubs and trees, in all 

 the various stages of decay. In running the 

 ditches through the more wet parts of the swamp, 

 the workmen cut through logs, and roots of 

 trees, most of which were so much decayed, 

 though they retained some of their former ap- 

 pearance ; that the shovel passed through them 

 with as much ease, as through places, where 

 there was merely a blackish mould. 



I had conceived the design of making Eng- 

 lish meadow of the swamp in the year 1818, 

 and commenced digging the ditch at the outlet; 

 but it was not, till the year 1819, that I did the 

 chief of the ditching. To ascertain the best 

 method of ditching, I sounded the swamp with a 

 long crow, and found the soil above the pari, 

 which was a hard stratum, composed of gravel 

 and clay, to he from 1 to 6 or 7 feet in depth, 

 and near the middle of the swamp to be a bog, 

 shaking beneath the feet. 



In the year 1818, I dug the ditch at the outlet, 

 using the crow, and plough to break up the hard 

 pan, which lay at bottom, a distance of eleven 

 j rods and a half; so as to drain off the greater 

 I part of the water from the bog leaving only 6 

 feet 7 inches of watery mud in the deepest place. 

 I declined digging the ditch at the outlet deeper, 

 so as completely to drain the bog, fearing the 

 soil might become too dry. My apprehension 

 was not without reason ; lor I found on the sub- 

 d\iing of the bog, that there was formed at the 

 surface a hardened soil of 2 feet .3 inciies, suffi- 

 ciently firm to bear a plough vvith a yoke of ox- 

 en, which hardened soil seemed to rest, or 

 rather to float, upon a soft mud beneath, which 

 as I said before, was 2 feet 7 inches in the deep- 

 est place. 



In 1819, I had the main ditch run up through 

 the swamp, nearly straight through the deepest 

 part of the bog. From the side of this ditch ! 

 dug another main ditch, crooking so, as to pass 

 through the lowest parts of the swamp with a 

 view of carrying off the water from a multitude 

 of springs as well, as water descending from 

 higher grounds. The only instrument, which 

 could be used to digging through the deeper 

 parts, was the shovel. Where there were not 

 more than 18 inches of soil, the plough was 

 used to loosen the soil in the ditch, and the in- 

 strument, called a scraper, was used to remove 



the earth. In this mode of ditching there ij 

 great saving in time and expense, and this m( 

 od is undoubtedly preferable, where the de 

 of swamp soil is not so great, as to prevent 

 use of oxen. 



On each side of the straight ditch first nan; , 

 and nearly at right angles with it, 1 dug lat< 

 ditches at such a distance from each other, 

 to admit of the mower's taking four swaths 

 tween ditch and ditch. More than two third 

 the swamp I ditched in the manner named ; 

 remainder, as the soil was not deep, and seen 

 pretty dry, 1 did not ditch at all. 



The main ditches 1 designed to have 5 I 

 wide at top, and narrower at bottom. To h; 

 them of this width, when the soil became i 

 tied, I was obliged to dig them much wic 

 where the soil was deep, and yielding ; an( 

 one place, if I had dug the ditch 10 feet w 

 at first, I think the soil would haye fallen in 

 much in settling, that it would not have b< 

 too wide. The lateral ditches I dug proporti 

 ally narrower, as the depth of soil happened 

 decrease; throwing the ditch earth into 

 middle spaces between ditch and ditch. 



In this state the swamp remained gradu; 

 settling and becoming harder, till I ploughe 

 without difficulty during a drowth in the aulc 

 of 1820; and after |iloughing had the ditc 

 carefully cleared out, to promote the drying 

 the soil. 



In the spring of 1821, a most unfortunate ti 

 for cultivating a swamp, for it rained almost 

 ery day, or every other day, I began my opt 

 tions for planting it with Indian corn and pi 

 toes. 



That part of the swamp, which on accoun 

 its having been drier, and the soil not so de 

 I had not ditched, I found so wet and sprir 

 that it seemed impracticable to plant it. Un 

 ling to be baffled in my attempt I went in v 

 a light plough, 2 yokes of oxen and a ho 

 and ridge-ploughed it, wallowing in mire fi 

 12 to 18 inches deep. By repeated ric 

 plonghings I threw up this part of the sw! 

 into ridges of such a breadth, as to admit o 

 swaths on a ridge in mowing, and of sue 

 height, as to throw the water into the spr i 

 between ridges; where it ran the length of i 

 ridges, and emptied into a lateral ditch, n 

 one side of the field extending across to 

 main ditch. 



Some of the spaces also between the laf« 

 ditches were su wet, as to be unfit for planti 

 Those spaces, which had been made of a brea 

 to be mowed at four swaths, 1 divideil by rid 

 ploughings into two ridges, each of a brea 

 to be mowed at two swaths. Thus by rcpea 

 ridge-ploughings I saved much expense in dil 

 ing, and at the same time pulverized the s 

 and reduced it to a fine tilth. There is no c 

 er farming tool, half equal to the plough 

 ridging wet land. There is no other instriim 

 that leaves the soil in half so good a sti, 

 "Venerate the plough" therefore, and use, 

 where it can be used. | 



The spaces also between the lateral ditcli 

 which on account of wetness required not to 

 divided into two ridges by ridge-ploughingj 

 nevertheless ridge-plougbed, making of each] 

 these sjiaces one wide ridge ; and this I did > 

 merely to make the soil drier, but to reduc* 

 to a desirable fineness. 



(ro BE CONTINUED.) 



