AND HORTICULTURAL REGISTER. 



PUBLISHED BY JOSEPH BRECK & CO., NO. 52 N01.1TH M.\RKET STREET, (AoaicULTonAL Wabehou8e.)-ALLEN PUTNAM, EDITOR. 



BOSTON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, MARCH 8, 1843. 



[HO. 3A. 



N. E. FARMER 



PREMIUM FARMS. 

 We give this week, as far as we have space for 

 iCm, the stnlenients of tlic successful competitors 

 r the preiiiiums on Farms, oti'ered by the Massa- 

 jnselis Society for the Promulion of Atrricolture. 

 everal of the staleinents are in tlie form of eim- 

 le anJ direct answers to the questions put by tlie 

 riislces of the Society, and are unintelligible iin- 

 8S amended or read in connection with the list of 

 jcstions. To save the necessity of re-piiblishing 

 le qnesliotis in connection with tlie several an- 

 vers, we have taken the liberty to throw in ex- 

 anatorv words, which are not found in the manu- 

 ;ripts from which we print. The sentences, 

 ^ercfore, are often bungling ; but as these farmers 

 re probably free of jealousy and pride in the mat- 

 if of tileraiy rfpulation, we hope we shall be par- 

 med for preferring brevity to polish. — Ed. N. E. F. 



Franklin Morgan's Statement. 

 Answers to questions put: 

 1st. My farm contains 14.5 acres. 

 2d. The soil is loamy, except a small part, which 

 light soil. 



3d. I plow 7 or 8 inches deep. 

 4th. Etfects of deep plowing. — On three acres 

 ■ht thin soil, I have plowed deep, and in 1841 

 rned in a crop of clover about the time it com- 

 ;nced flowering. The same season I sowed it to 

 ckwheat, and seeded it at the same time with 

 rds-grass, redlop and clover. This season have 

 t at least 1 1-2 ton excellent hay to the acre. 

 5th. Best method ^of improving soils. — The 

 imy soil ismostly put to mowing and pasturing. 

 hen the land becomes bound dawn, I harrow 

 ih a heavy drag, about the 20tli April, and seed 

 th the usual quantity of grass seed. The result 

 8 been, in some instances, lour-fold the quan- 

 y of grass. In addition to harrowing, I have 

 ually plowed a strip of the lot, and heaped it up 

 th about 3 pecks of lime to the cord. This com- 

 Bt is spread at the rale of about 12 loads to the 

 re. 



6th. I till 21 acres : 12 of oats, manured with 

 loads compost to the acre, and harrowed in with 

 5 oats; (! acres to corn and 3 to potatoes. 

 7th. The manure is applied in compost. 

 8th. I spread on, and plow in, about 15 loads to 

 : acre where I plant, and at planting time put 

 nure and plaster liberally in the hill. 

 9th. Green-sward I plow flat, manure it on the 

 rface, harrow thoroughly and plant. 

 10th. I mow of upland 25 acres. Eight acres 

 is season, averaged 3 tons per acre ; the remain- 

 r, something over 2 tons per acre. Herds-grass 

 )od 4 1-2 feet'high, and some measured 5 feet 3 

 :hes. 



11th and 12th. I do not irrigate. 



13th. Thirty acres, lowland mowing. Quality, 



» irds-grass, clover and English (or fine grass.) 



verage, 2 tons per acre. Since 1839, I have very 



- uch improved this ground by ditching and manur- 



ing, — more than doubled the quantity and improv- 

 ed the quality. 



14th. In the fall of 1839, commenced with 3 

 acres low miry ground, so soft that o.\en could not 

 get over it. I first made a ditch around, and then 

 carted gravel. Employed three men and two teams 

 {one yoke o.ven each) for three weeks. It is now 

 hard. Manured and plastered two years past. 

 Mowed last year for the first time. This season 

 have cut two crops — herds-grass, clover and Eng- 

 lish grass : should judge about four tons to the 

 acre, both crops included. 



15th. Had six acres in corn. First spread on 

 ten loads compost to the acre, and plowed it in ; 

 then spread the same quantity on the surface, and 

 harrowed thoroughly. Rolled the seed in plaster, 

 and planted three feet apart. 



16th. Potato land prepared as for corn. Cut 

 large potatoes, and plant as near even with the sur- 

 face as convenient, and haul earth up to them. 

 Planted Long-red or Merinos for stock, and Carter 

 potatoes (so called) for table use. 

 17th. No other vegetables. 



18th. Twelve acres of oats, wheat and rye mix- 

 ed, were sowed 20th Sept. Land planted to pota- 

 toes last year, and prepared as for potatoes this sea- 

 son : plowed twice last spring: sowed 3 bush, per 

 acre; 2 12 oats and 1-2 bush, wheat and rye. 

 Average yield per acre, 40 bush. 



19th. 12 acres laid down to grass 20th April. 

 12 Ihs. clover and 1-2 bush, herds-grass sowed 

 with spring grain. 



20th. Means of manure making — Last year 

 fatted 28 hogs. I furnished them with muck from 

 the banks of ditches, turf from the road-side, weeds 

 and every thing of the kind I could collect. Fat- 

 ted G6 wethers, which I sold for .$58,5. Also fat- 

 ted 57 oxen and wintered 51 head cows, steers, 

 and young cattle, and one span of horses. My 

 entire stock was kept on cut feed. The whole la- 

 bor performed by two men. I am fully persuaded 

 this process is a great saving of fodder — 1 think 

 at least 20 per cent. Carted from my barn 767 

 loads manure last spring. 



21st. Have now 103 head cattle: 24 horses fit- 

 ting for market, and have 97 sheep. One barn is 

 123 feet long by 36. One shed 48 feet by 20 ; 

 one55by20; and one 36 by 19: all the sheds 

 are 16 ft. posts. They are all filled with hay : 

 have sold 7 tons besides, and stacked out 32 ox- 

 wagon loads. Oats all put in stables. Have a 

 cellar under the whole barn: can drive in with 

 cart and oxen. Nearly all my manure is covered. 

 22d. Cows part native and part high bred Dur- 

 hams. I must give the Durham cows very much 

 the preference for the dairy or for fattening. They 

 are quick to take on flesh as soon as we leave off 

 milking them. 



23d. When raising calves, I put two with one 

 cow, and let them run in the pasture. 



24th. Have only made butter and cheese for my 



family'? use; and rented the remainder of my cows 



for .S20 each, and keep them through the season. 



25th. I have 97 sheep— mixture of Soulhdowns 



and Bakewells: 30 fat wethers produced 174 lbs. 



clean wool : ewes average about 4 lbs. each. In 

 winter, give them privilege of sheds, with plenty 

 of water in the yard. Feed them on cut feed 

 through the winter. Lambs dropped in February 

 and March : — did not lose a single one. 



26th. Kept 28 hogs. Average weight, 329 Ibn. 

 Cro.'ss of Berkshire and Yorkshire. 



27th and 28th. Through the summer and fore 

 part of fall, fed them <m raw potatoes and apples, 

 with one bushel of corn once in two days, buried 

 in holes in the muck, for them to root over. Cart- 

 ed from iny hog-pen last spring, 443 loads manure. 

 See answer to question 20, for materials for mak- 

 ing manure. 



29th. Hired help. — Four men employed for nine 

 months each, at $13 per month; and six in addi- 

 tion through haying, at $\ per day. 



30th. Have about 100 apple trees. Part en- 

 grafted. Feed all, except choice fruit, to hogs. 



31st. Have no other fruit trees worth describing. 



33d. Have neither canker-worms nor borers. 



33d. Allow no ardent spirits on the farm. 



This farm I purchased in the fall of 18.39, for 

 ,$2140, with the crops included, which then amount- 

 ed to only 35 bush, corn, 40 of oats, 120 of pota- 

 toes, and not exceeding 25 tons hay. It had been 

 worn out and run down by bad management; fen- 

 ces and buildings decayed. Had but one small 

 barn, which had been sufficient to receive the crops. 

 I have used this season, six tons plaster and ten 

 casks lime. I have not less than 150 tons hay and 

 20 of rowen — and could have cut 50. 



FRANKLIN MORGAN. 



Palmer, 1842. 



Elins J. ff'erden's Statement. 

 Ans. i. Farm consists of about 72 acres, exclu- 

 sive of woodland. 



2. Nature of the soil — part loam, gravel and 

 clay, and part clay and loam. 



3. Depth of plowing. — On the soils that are 

 more gravelly, I plow from 5 to 7 inches ; on lliose 

 more clayey, from 4 to 6 inches. 



4. As to the efliect of deep plowing on thin 

 soils, I do not know that I could give information 

 on that subject. 



5. I consider the best method of improving lands 

 that are gravelly, to be by plaster and manure ; 

 that more clayey, altogether by manure. 



6. I generally till about 12 acres, putting from 

 10 to 12 loads of manure to the acre. 



7. For corn, our manure is taken from under 

 sheds in the fall, and put in heaps on our planting 

 ground ; and for potatoes, carried out in the spring 

 in its long stale. 



8. For corn, we have put manure in the hill ; 

 for potatoes, we have tried both ways, and find that 

 plowing in, in dry seasons, to have done best; in 

 wel seasons, not much difference. 



9. I prepare green-sward for corn, by plowing in 

 the fall and a thorough harrowing in the spring 

 with plowing ; and for oats, the same process. 



10. I mow about 24 acres; cut, say, 40 tons in 

 all of upland hay: perhaps a little less than 1 3-4 

 ton per acre. 



