1854. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



335 



stances, the other crop upon another ; and thus 

 much h^rger crops of each will be reaped from the 

 same soil, and for a much longer period of time. 



On this principle the benefit of a rotation of 

 crops in an important degree depends. 



[>'' . What is meant by exhaustion. — Thus, ex- 

 haustion may either be general, arising from the 

 gradual carrying off of all the kinds of food on 

 which plants live — or special, arising from the 

 want of one or more of those substances whicli the 

 crops that have been long grown upon it have 

 specially required. 



To repair the former kind of exhaustion , an ad- 

 dition of many things to thesoilmay be necessary; 

 — to repair the latter, it may be sufficient to add a 

 needful supply of one or more things only. In 

 showing how this may be most efficiently and 

 most economically done, chemistry will be of the 

 most essential service to the practical man. Be- 

 fore entering further upon this point, however, it 

 will be necessiry to study also the nature of the 

 soil in which plants grow. 



CATERPILLARS. 



These are a great pest to farmers, though com 

 paratively harmless in a city. Tlie eggs from 

 which tiiey are hatched are placed around the 

 ends of tlie branches, forming a wide ring consist- 

 ing of three or four hundred eggs in the form of 

 short cylinders, standing on their ends close togeth- 

 er, and covered with a thick coast of brownish 

 water-proof varnish. The caterpillars come forth 

 with tlie unfolding the leaves of the apple and 

 cherry trees in the latter part of April or the be- 

 ginning of May. The first signs of their activity 

 appear in the formation of little angular webs be- 

 tween the fork of the branches a little below the 

 cluster of eggs. 



Under the shelter of these tents the caterpillars 

 remain concealed at all times when not engaged 

 in eating. In crawling from twig to twig, they 

 spin, from their mouths, a slender silken thread, 

 which is a clue to conduct them back to their tents. 

 They gradually enlarge their nests until they ac- 

 quire a diameter of eight or tea inches. They 

 come out together about 9 A. M. to eat, and all 

 retire at once when their regular meals are fin- 

 ished. During bad weather, however, they fast, 

 and do not venture from their shelter. 



From the first to the middle of Juno they begin 

 to leave the trovs, wander about a while, and final- 

 ly get into some cuvier or other place of shelter, 

 and make their cocoons. From fourteen to seven- 

 teen days tlicreafter, the insect bursts its chrysalis 

 skin, forces its way into the softened end of the 

 cocoon and appears in the miller form. It is then 

 of nasty or reddish brown color ,and expands from 

 an inch and a quarter to an inch and a half. 

 Tlicse millers appear in great numbers in July, 

 flying about and often entering houses by night. 

 At tliis time they lay their eggs, preferring the 

 wild cherry, and next tiie apple. 



Where proper attention is not paid to the de- 

 struction of them, they almost entirely strip the 

 apple and cherry trees of their foliage during the 

 seven weeks of their life in their caterpillar form. 

 The trees, wliere they arc suflFercd to lireed for a 

 succession of years, become prematurely old, in 

 consequence of their efforts to repair, at an un- 

 ftcasonable time, the loss of their foliage, and are 

 rendered unfruitful and worse than useless. 



How are they to be destroyed ? 



1st, During the winter and spring collect and 

 destroy the eggs. They are tlien reacUly discov- 

 ered, and may all be removed with littli^rouble. 



2d. When the destruction of the eggs has been 

 neglected or overlooked, and the caterpillars are 

 building their nests, prejiare some whale or train 

 oil, the stronger and more rancid tlie better... Then 

 take a light pole of ccmvenient length, with a swab 

 upon the end, and rub the oil into the nests. It is 

 well to rub it also upon the limbs just al)ove and 

 below the nests. This operation is best performed 

 some misty or foggy morning before the worms 

 leave their nests. 1 know by al.uindant experience 

 that it will entirely destroy every nest upon 

 which it is performed, and every caterpillar in the 

 nest. 



3d. When the time for this process is past, and 

 the millers begin to appear in July, hang upon the 

 trees wide-mouthed bottles one-third filled with 

 two parts of vinegar and one of molasses. In this 

 way myriads may be caught. 



In my small garden I made this experiment last 

 season Avith twenty-four bottles hung upon the 

 fence. In seven days from June IGth I caught 

 forty-two quarts of millers and Hies, but tlie 

 amount gradually decreased to about half a pint 

 a day. I then placed the bottles in my large pear 

 trees, and the number taken was greatly increased. 

 The whole amount thus cauglit during the season 

 was four bushels and twelve quarts. 



May 29, 185'4. Charles Rojjinson. 



New Haven Palladium. 



For the New England Farmer. 



THE FARMER'S HOME. 



Mr. Editor :— Having during the past year 

 ti-avelled thi-ough a portion of this, and some of 

 the adjoining New England States, I have liad an» 

 opportunity to observe many New England far- 

 mers' homeSs 



While there are some wliich present a pleasing 

 and inviting aspect, there are many so cheerless 

 and uninviting, tliat they seem to send a chill 

 through one's whole frame. Buildings are loca- 

 ted without any regard to appearance, "^nd every 

 ornamental tree and shrub in their vicinity has 

 fallen before the woodman's axe withouta thought 

 except how many potatoes could be grown on the 

 land ; in front of the dwelling, where sliould be 

 gravelled Avalks, graceful sliade trees, beautiful 

 shrubs, carefully trained elimbingvines and pretty 

 flowers, are geese and pigs, or bleating calves and 

 noisy ducks whose utility seems to consist in giv- 

 ing the inmates of the house timely notice of the 

 approach of a stranger, who easily judges of the 

 number of acres the i'armer possesses, by the size 

 of the wood-pile and the number of broken wheels, 

 carts, sleds, plows, and other worn-out farming 

 implements which flank the yard on either side. 

 Should the stranger, before entering the house, 

 desire to learn more of the character of the per- 

 son he is about to visit, he has but to cast his ej'e 

 into the adjoining shed, one end of which is used 

 as a tool house ; if plows, harrows, and other im- 

 plements are in one confused mass, and tlicir ap- 

 pearance indicates that tlie iien-roost is above, lie 

 may safely conclude tliat if the boys have not al- 

 ready gone to the city with the idea that farming 

 is pretty dirty business, it isonly l)eeause they arc 

 not yet old enougli to ciirry out their own desires 



