140 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER 



KOV. a, 18 ! 4. 



LIME, AND THE MODE OF APPLYING IT. 



Tiie practice inculcated in the followinnf, which 

 'we clip from the American Farmer, has novelty at 

 least, to recommend it: we trust our friends will 

 give it the attention it deserves. That lime is ono 

 of the most valuiible farm manures, has been long 

 settled : the best mode of applying it, is not so 

 well understood. — Farmer^s Cab. 



" Mr Raymond Haker communicated to the Roy- 

 al Agricultural Society some observations on the 

 use and abuse of lime as a dressing for land, by 

 Mr Wm. Ilcnry Fisher, at 18 Conduit street, Lon- 

 don. The author's great object is to impress upon 

 farmers the importance of using quick lime, and 

 not lime whicli once had been quick, but by decay 

 in use and exposure to the atmosphere has become 

 effete, and has absorbed from the air the carbonic 

 ncid, which changes it again to the carbonate of 

 lime it was before burning. He considers that 

 many thousands of pounds are annually thrown 

 away by agriculturists, from want of a proper 

 knowledge of this simple fact ; and he recommends 

 them to use their lime in the fresh burnt state, by 

 carting it direct from the kiln upon their land, 

 spreading it in the lump, and in that state plowing 

 it in directly, the sooner it being got from the kiln 

 into the land the better. The author concludes 

 his communication with the following remarks: 

 " The liine will be found, if properly burnt, on a 

 second plowing, to be crumbled to ])ieces or pow- 

 der, and on harrowing will be intimately mixed 

 with the soil. From the heat evolved during the 

 slacking of the lime underground, and its caustici- 

 ty, which diffuses itself by the agency of the mois- 

 ture it meets with through the soil, it will bo found 

 to destroy, or at any rate to be extremely obnox- 

 ious to wire-worms, slugs, grubs, and oilier ene- 

 mies which the farmer has to contend with, and 

 which are frequently the cause of failure in his 

 crops, as well as to render most vegetable matter 

 in the soil soluble, and food for future crops. 

 These are the properties that lime has in contradis- 

 tinction to chalk : the latter, no doubt, is a very 

 useful addition to make soils ; but do not go to the 

 great expense of buying or burning lime, and then 

 allow it to be converted again into chalk, or car- 

 boiiate of lime, before you plovv it into your land. 

 If the turnip-fly is generated in the soil, lime ap- 

 plied in the manner I have directed, would, no 

 doubt, do much towards its extermination : and the 

 same effect and result would hold good in respect 

 to the black caterpillar. In conclusion, the good 

 effects of applying lime in the manner recommend- 

 ed, I have myself experienced, and have received 

 ample testimony to the like purport, from exten- 

 sive agriculturists, who, at my suggestion, have 

 adopted the plan-" 



CULTURE OF WHEAT. 



Plow deep, if for no other reason than to bring 

 the lime to the surface. Lime must he had to 

 produce a good croji of wheat ; and if it exist in 

 the subsoil, as is generally the case in the West, 

 deep plowing will bring it up. 



Time of Sowing. — For at least two good and 

 sufficient reason?:, early sowing is best on the prai- 

 ries. The greater growth will afford protection to 

 the roots, so that the soil will not be blown from 

 around them, as is frequently the case, and then 

 left to freeze uncovered. The snow will also be 

 kept from blowing away, thereby preventing early 



thawing in the spring. The early starting of vege- 

 tation in the spring, and subsequent freezing, as 

 appears to us, is what is usually called winler-kill- 

 jn.fT — spring killing we think more proper. 



Again, our wheat being so peculiarly liable to 

 rust, it is desirable to have it mature as early in 

 the summer as possible, so as to be out of danger 

 from the hot, damp, murky days so common in 

 mid-summer, and which unquestionably are the 

 cause of rust. For this reason it should be sown 

 as early as possible, and not have the heads so far 

 advanced as to be injured by the frosts of winter. 

 The proper season of sowing will of course vary 

 with the latitude. 



Cover ivith the Plow. — We have never seen a 

 farmer who plowed in his wheat, who did not say 

 it was much better than harrowing. The chief ad- 

 vantage seems to be, it roots so much deeper, that 

 it is not thrown out by the early spring thaws, and 

 then frozen. 



Roll it with a heavy roller immediately after 

 sowing; again late in the fall ; and again as soon 

 in the spring as the ground is dry enough so as not 

 to adhere to the roller, and pull up the wheat. — 

 Union Jisricult. 



PRESERVATION OF PEACH TREES. 

 To the Editor of the Farmer's Cabinet : 



Having to a certain extent, succeeded in the 

 cultivation of the peach in a limestone soil, gene- 

 rally considered uncongenial to its growth, I for- 

 ward by your request, a short account of the method 

 of cultivation and mode of nursing adopted. 



The soil of the peaeh orchard is underlaid with 

 primitive limestone, but is not of the yellow cast 

 and tenacious texture, so general in limestone re- 

 gi(ms ; which, however adapted to the growth of 

 wheat, has but little affinity with any description 

 of fruit. It is, on the contrary, a rich loam, and 

 constitutes a part of the garden enclosure, the trees 

 occupying about half an acre, and bordering on the 

 Wissahickon creek. This location in the immedi- 

 ate vicinity of the water, may p<;ssibly have a bene- 

 ficial effect. 



The orchard, consisting of about fifty trees, was 

 planted in the spring of 183G. At the time of 

 planting, the ground was in grass, but was then 

 subjected to the action of the plow, and has since 

 been thoroughly tilled every year, yielding alter- 

 nately heavy crops of sugar beets, potatoes and ruta 

 baga. The trees have also been examined once, 

 and sometimes twice a year, for worms, but have 

 not generally been much infested by them. 



This comparative exemption is, no doubt, incon- 

 sequence of the various alkaline substances which 

 have been successfully used. The most remarka- 

 ble and immediate effect has followed the use of 

 what is termed "fallen lime," fresh from the kiln ; 

 which, when applied in the proportion of about half 

 a [)eck to the roots of unhealthy trees, and covered 

 with earth, has restored a healthy color to the 

 leaves; and trees which did not look worth a 

 week's purchase, have produced fair crops of good 

 fruit in after years. Ashes from anthracite coal, 

 liave also iieen applied with very good effect. 



These applications have usually been made in 

 the spring, but occasionally later in the season. 

 'J'his year, wood ashes were used in June, with a 

 a marked benefit. Soap suds also have been ap- 

 plied to advantage. In fact, any substance which 

 by its caustic quality is destructive of insect life, 

 must be beneficial, provided it be nut applied in 



quantities sufficient to injure vegetation. It is : 

 interesting and encouraging circumstance, tliii 

 several substances combine the properties of de- 

 structiveness to insectivorous life, with a direct and 

 positive stimulating effect upon vegetation. In il- 

 lustration of this fact, my friend, Dr Noble, has ap. 

 plied oil soap to a portion of his extensive peach 

 orchard, in the State of Delaware, to manifest ad- 

 vantage. 



The mild weather of January and February, will 

 sometimes bring forward vegetation so that peach 

 trees are liable to blossom prematurely. An at- 

 tempt has been made to obviate this difficulty, by 

 covering the roots about the body of the trees with 

 wheat straw, when the ground is deeply frozen in 

 winter. This process, by retarding vegetation, has 

 secured them from the danger of the late frosts. 



M'hen, however, an intensely severe frost occurs 

 late in winter, so as to freeze the genn or' the fruit, 

 which is developed very early, all expectation of a 

 crop must be abandoned. This inisfoi tune is easily 

 verified, by an examination of the germ, when the 

 embryo peach will be found black and Masted. 



These observations are not set forth under the 

 impression that they are new, fur doubtless they 

 are familiar to those enterprising f.ir.ners, who, by 

 their successful cultivation, supply our city mar- 

 kets with this most healthy and delicious fruit, — 

 such an universal favorite, that it would be an era 

 in a lifetime, to find a man who did not like a 

 peach. It is to-be hoped that larger aud more suc- 

 cessful producers may be induced to favor you with 

 a detail of their mode of operations, to f'u- advan- 

 tage of the agricultural community r-rid iiie public 

 at large, whose interests indeed ■ i c ii 'iilinal. 



The writer had the pleasure oi examining the 

 extensive peach orchard of Major Heboid, near 

 Delaware City, in the month of May, at which that 

 enterprising farmer had a prospect, as ho .stated, of 

 about half a crop. It covered 120 acres of land, 

 and contained 12,900 trees. His half a crop has 

 produced 6000 baskets, which Jiave been chiefly 

 sent to the New York market. A remarkable fact 

 in connection with the produce of this and the 

 neighboring orchards, was mentioned by him, and 

 confirmed by several other gentlemen of that vicin- 

 ity. A cold north-west breeze had prevailed during 

 an afternoon while the trees were in bloom, which 

 was accompanied in the evening by so severe a 

 frost, that the total failure of the peach crop was 

 anticipated. About II 1-2 o'clock at night the 

 wind changed to south-east, which, blowing over 

 Delaware bay, so far modified by its mildness and 

 moisture the air of that portion of the orchard which 

 was nearest the water, that the blossom was saved. 

 The other portion of the same orc'urd, which in- 

 clined inland, and had received the full force of the 

 cold blast, was almost a total failure. 



From the healthy appearance and vigorous 

 growth of many of my trees, I have a hope of se- 

 curing a degree of longevity for them, so desirable, 

 considering the care and expense inevitable in their 

 cultivation. Several of _ them are now about six 

 inches in diameter, a foot from the ground, and the 

 produce this year, is estimated at from 30 to 40 

 bushels. 



That peach trees are capable of attaining to con- 

 siderable longevity, can be attested by many of 

 your readers, who may remember them struggling 

 for years in the hedge-rows of bushes, which were 

 wont to adorn the fences of old-fashionciMariners. 

 There is now a tree in the garden of a lady in 

 Arch street, Philadelphia, planted 2.5 years ago, 



