180 



NEW ENGLA>'D FARMER. 



April 



HOUSE ASHES. 



The value of house ivshes as a stimulant of vege- 

 table life, is now iiappily too well understood to 

 need any illustration. On corn, wheat, garden 

 vegeta))le8 and root crops in general, the highly 

 beneficial ell'ects of wood ashes, have probably 

 lx)en witnessed by every one. In compost, tlicy 

 arc also of great value; and as a to2>dressing for 

 gross land — especially where the land is cold and 

 inclines to the production of moss, or has become 

 "bound out," ashes are of thegreatest service. In 

 the cultivation of fruit trees, no application is of 

 greater efficiency, or productive of more immetliatc 

 or obvious results. 



The eflfcct of leached ashes upon the crop may 

 l>e as good, perliaps, for one or two years as that 

 of the unleaclied, but it cannot be as permanent, 

 as most of the potash is washed out by the process 

 of leaching. "Wood ashes may be used to advan- 

 tage to almost every class of crops, but especially 

 as a dressing for grass, grain, millet, and Indian 

 corn ; but they are the most perceptible upon leg- 

 uminous plants, such as clover, peas, beans, &c. 

 Aa a top-dressing to grass lands, they root out the 

 moss, and promote the growth of white clover. 

 Upon red clover, their effects will be more certain 

 if previously mixed with one-fourth of their weight 

 of plaster." 



But there is a remarkable difference in the 

 quantity of potash produced by equal weights of 

 different trees and plants. In Sir Humpurey Da- 

 vy's Lectures on Agricultual Chemistry, Ave find 

 a table showing this difference in several kinds of 

 trees and plants, whicli we give below as a matter 

 of interest to the curious. Potash was once called 

 "salts of wormwood," and the reader will perceive 

 that the name was not inappropriate when he no- 

 tices that wliile the oak has only 15 parts in 10,000 

 oif potash, wormwood has 730! 



PARTS OF POTASHES. 



10,000 parts of the poplar iiroduced 7 



" " beech 12 



• " " oak 15 



" " elm 39 



" " vine 55 



" " thistle 5:5 



" " fern > oz 



" " cow thistle 106 



" " bean -JOO 



" " wormwood 7aO 



There is no doubt, now, among any agricul- 

 tural people, of the great value of aslies as a fer- 

 t lizer. It was held in as higli estimation among 

 the Rfjmans, and the ancient Britons, as it is at 

 this day. A German counseller, IlERESUAcnius, 

 in his Treatise on Husbandry, published in 1570, 

 tells us that "in Lombardy, they like so well the 

 use of ashes, as they esteem it* farre aboue any 

 doung, thinking doung not meete to be used for 

 the unholsomnesso thereof." Their use a,) a ma- 

 nure is also very general in England at this day. 



AV'ith this concurrent testimony, therefore, of 

 tlic value of ashes, we hope to see less of it in the 

 gutters and higliAvays, and more upon the gardens 

 and fields. 



Tor the New England Farmer. 



EXPERIMENTAL FARMS. 



The suggestion in the last number of the Farmer, 

 as to the establishment of experimental farms in 

 the several Counties of the Commonwealth, and 

 the appropriation of some portion of the funds of 

 the County Societies to the management of these 

 farms, are wortliy of delil)erate attention. It is 

 ertainly true, that very little benefit accrues 

 from the awarding of premiums, when they are 

 sought merely for the money obtained. Unless the 

 claimant is moved by the desire to improve him- 

 self and his neighbors, by his experiments, but 

 little benefit will be derived from them. If he is 

 moved by such a desire, how can it be carried out 

 better, than on farms established for the purpose, 

 where all the operations will be carefully observed 

 and reported. 



If I do not mistake, something of this kind Ib 

 contemplated by the Legislature, in placing the 

 farm at Westboro' under the care of the Board of 

 Agriculture. By so doing, two o])jects will be 

 gained at the same time. 1. The Board will have 

 an opportunity to display their skill in farming. 

 '2. The boys will be instructed in useful labor. 

 Allow me to congratulate the community, that 

 this Jirsc step in the way of improvement has been 

 taken. If judiciously pursued, it cannot fiiil to be 

 beneficial. If farming is what it is cracked up to 

 be, it cannot fail to sustain itself under such man- 

 agement. ^ 



How would it answer, for the Legislature to re- 

 quire of County Societies, to invest a part of their 

 funds in expcrimcTital farmsjnstcad oi' paying stock, 

 as now required 1 Certainly such a requisition 

 might be made of all societies to be incorporated ; 

 for which several applications are now pending. 



I am heartily glad to see the remarks of the 

 gentleman from Plymouth. He never speaks with- 

 out luiving something to say. p. 



Feb. 27, 1854. 



SOAKED CORN EOR HORSES. 



One of the most successful and judicious far- 

 mers in the vicinity of Baltimore, effects a saving 

 of from one-third to one-half of his corn, by soak- 

 ing it thoroughly before feeding. His method is 

 this: — two empty vessels, hogsheads, or something 

 similar, are jilaced in his cellar where there is no 

 danger from frost, and filled to the chime with 

 ears of corn. He then pours in water, till the re- 

 ceptacles are filled. When well soaked, the com 

 is fed to the horses, and when the contents of one 

 cask is consumed, it is again filled, and the ani- 

 mals fed from the other. Even cobs, soaked in a 

 similar manner, but in pickle instead of pure wa- 

 ter, are eagerly devoured by cows, especially if the 

 usual allowance of salt is withheld. The corn 

 cob contains a large quantity ofi nutriment, and 

 is by far too valuable to be thrown aAvay. r. f. 



Chester, Kent Co., Md., Jan. 2, 1854. 



Remarks. — This has become a general practice 

 among judicious farmers, who feed their horses 

 upon corn. Our estimable friend, David Lan- 

 dreth, Esq., who keeps a number of fine horses 

 upon his great seed form, near the town of Bris- 

 tol on the DelaAvare, always feeds them upon 

 soaked corn, and has done so for several years, 

 He considers it a decided advantage. — German' 

 town Telegraph. 



