vol.. XIV. \"0. 3B. 



AND GARDEN KR'S JOURNAL, 



285 



(F-urlhe New Engliiml Karmer.) 

 mVLiBERRV TRBES. 



Mr Ff.sse.ndf..'* : — By answering tlic followinij 

 eiies thi-oiigli the New Englnnd Farmer, you 

 II ol)ii^e a subscriber. 



First. — Can the common White Mulberry be 

 i-ccssfully cultivated by the slip? 

 The renson for this inquiry is, that among my 

 ilberry trees there is n grs'at (iifferencc in the 

 ality of the leaves; while some are lar^e and 

 luable, others are small, and of very little value ; 

 those proiliicing the best leaves, produce very 

 e, if any fruit. And I have thouglit, that if 

 could propagate from the good trees by the 

 ), we might get a variety inuch more valuable 

 n those raised from the seed. 

 Second. — Is the foliage of trees increased by 

 ng propagated by the s!ip, or by grafting ? If 

 s not increased. 



Third. — Why are the leaves of those varietie.s 

 apples which have long been propagated in 

 t way, larger than those of the natural tree ? 

 Fourth. — Do fruits, whether apples, pears, 

 nces, or grapes, lose their seeds in any degree 

 being propagated by the slip, or by grafting ? 

 : often see raisins destitute of seeds, and 

 <"iilh. — How is that (piality obtained ? 

 There are many reasons which have led to the 

 .geslion of these intpiiries, but I will not pre- 

 ne to offer them at present. A. H. 



Sterling, Feb. 23, 1836. 



By the Editor. — With regard to the first qiies- 

 , 1 would reply that the mulberry is propaga- 

 by seeds, by layers, by cuttings, or by engraft- 

 By the first method the sccJ should be sown 

 ■y in May in a rich, fresli, and well prepared 

 , in drills, or rows, two feet asunder, and at an 

 rage distance of about an inch in the rows. 

 er the seed half an inch deep, and stamp or 

 the ground immediately. Keep the young 

 Hts free from weeds during summer, and before 

 ter commences protect them with a slight 

 ;ring of straw, evergreens, light manure, or 

 hay, or take them up, and secure them from 

 t in a cellar. 



>'i/ layers. — Bend tlie side shoots down, and 

 n-e them by hooks, and partly cover them with 

 h, leaving out only their extreme ends. Jf 

 is done in spring, or^ie fire part of sunmier, 

 parts in the ground take root, and are cut from 

 main [)lants in the fall. 



'utlings. — 1 he twigs or branches of the young 

 id, or part young and part eld, are cut in 

 ths of about six inches, and close below an 

 ; these are set more than two thirds of their 

 ;tli beneath the soil, and the ground trodden 

 It the scions. 



Irajtin^ or xnoculaling. — Writers have recom- 

 ided to graft the common sorts of muberry 

 1 the larger and finer varieties, which produce 

 er, better and more numerous leaves. Per- 

 s tlie ChiueoC nmlberry might be successfully 

 >agated by grafting it on the coMirnon white 

 berry, and the scion partake of the hardihood 

 he stock. T his, however, is doubted, and 

 ;riments on that subject are desirable. It is 

 , in a periodical devoted to silk culture, pub- 

 'd at Albany, that " in this country, the culti- 

 on [of the nmlberry] is so easy, and the growth 

 lapid, there seems to be little necessity for any 

 Vx mode than raising from the seed." 

 Vith regard to increasing the foliage of trees 



by propagating from s!ij s or grafting ; oiiiaiuing 

 apples, pears, quinces, grapes, &e. without seeds, 

 we believe that great discoveries and iutprove- 

 tncnts may be. made. Darwin's I'lcytologia has 

 nuicli on the subject of so managing frui' trees as 

 to induce the production of fruits instead of leaves, 

 converting leaf binls into flower buds, &.c. which 

 may lead not only to curious, but to useful specu- 

 lation. We should be glad to hear fm'ther from 

 ''.'V. 11." on these and other topics connected with 

 the objects of our ))ublication. 



KouSF.HOLD Affairs. — Every housewife knows 

 how to make herh tea. The herbs are put into a 

 cup or dish, hot water turned upon them, and they 

 arc suffered to sleep — why not to boW? Because 

 a large portion of their medicinal virtues, an(| par- 

 ticularly the principle of flavoi%' the most volatile 

 property they contain, is dissipated by boiling, 

 and the virtues of the tea lost, in the processes 

 of boiling and fertrientation, the natural flavor and 

 aroma of the choicest vegetable production are 

 dissipated and changed. Yet though every wo- 

 man knows how to make herb tea, few seem to 

 to know how to make green or black tea, orcoffee ; 

 or knowing, do not reduce their knowledge to 

 practice. A mistaken economy, to get all the 

 strength, induces them generally to boil the latter 

 well, and often the. former; and the consequence 

 is, that ins^?ad of a grateful refreshing beverage, 

 th^y give us a dull, acrid, or insi|iid substitute, 

 retaining nothing pleasant but the color and heat. 

 The aroraa, which gives the liquor its value, and 

 which should be recognized by the nose as well 

 as the palate, is gone — with the steam, and with 

 it nmeh of the flavor. They not only boil out the 

 strength, but they waste it. Now, without intend- 

 ing to infringe upon the prerogative of the good 

 wife, we do advise, that she will innke her green 

 and black, as she does her herb tree, without boil- 

 ing; and that she will only leach her coffee, by 

 putting it, when recently burnt and fresh ground, 

 into a strainer, fitted to the top of the coffee pot, 

 and turning upon it as much boiling water as 

 would sufiice in the old mode. We <;an assure 

 our fair readers, from reason as well as experi- 

 ence, that this is the best way, not only to gratify 

 the taste, but to promote economy. Less tea and 

 coffee are required in the steeping and leaching, 

 than in the boiling process, and the beverage 

 obtained by the mode recommrnded is more tonic, 

 exhilarating and pleasant. — Cultivator. 



itteution to these directions, and a little practice, 

 every workman will have it in his power to give 

 a [M-oper temper to the tools he may use. If a 

 saw is too hard, it may be tempered by the same 

 means; if you are near a |dumber's shop, you 

 may repeat the process conveniently, and without 

 expense, when they are melting a pot of lead. lu 

 other cutting tools you must wait till the steel just 

 begins to turn blue, which is a temper that will 

 give it more elasticity, and at the same time snfii- 

 cient hardness. 



Carf, and management ok Tools. — The good- 

 ness of sail's, chisels, and other eilge tools, depends 

 u|)on the quality of the steel, which should be 

 uniform without, and it is always better to have 

 them tempered too hard than too soft, for use will 

 reduce the temper. If you wish to restore the 

 tenq)er, and to perform the operation yourself, the 

 best niethod is to melt a suflicient quantity of lead 

 to immerse the cutting part cf the tool. Having 

 previously brightened its surface, then jilunge it 

 into the melted lead for a few minutes, till it gets 

 sufiiciently hot to melt a candle, with which rub 

 its surface, then jdung-T it in again, and keep it 

 there nirtil the steel assumes a straw color, (but 

 be careful not to let it turn blue,) when that is the 

 case take it out, rub it again with the tallow, and 

 let it cool ; if it should be too soft, wipe the grease 

 off, and repeat the process without the tallow, and 

 when sufticiently hot plunge it into cold spring 

 water, or water and vinegar mixed. By a proper 



Palm Leaf Hats. — It is astonishing to witness 

 the new branches of industry that are constantly 

 spiMuging up in industrious New England. For 

 instance, in the small hill town of Ban-e, Worces- 

 ter county, where, a few years ago, the product of 

 a few barren acres was all it could boast, there are 

 now establishments for the manufaetiu'e and taking 

 in of palm leaf hats which yield an iueome of 

 SoOO,000 per annum. Many other towns in that 

 vicinity are extensively engaged in the same busi- 

 ness. 



The straw braid manufacture, also, is a great 

 business in some of the Eastern towns. It baa 

 not been much thought of in this region, yet there 

 is an establishment in Ware which pays $30,000 

 a year for straw alone. When we come to add to 

 our cotton, woollen, and leather manufactures, to 

 our button and palm leaf manufactures, and to the 

 various other branches of industry already in suc- 

 cessful operation, the culture and manufacture of 

 siiU, the \v est will in vain glory in her agricultu- 

 ral resonrcf's. New England industry is a surer 

 guarantee of general and individual prosperity than 

 the most fertile soils, or mines of coal and gold. — 

 JVorthampton Gaz. 



Great Corn Crop. — Mr Philip Raybold, of 

 Red Lion Himdred, has sent us the following 

 statement of the crop of corn produced last sea- 

 son, in three of his fields. Mr Raybold is proba- 

 bly the largest fariiier in New Castle county, Del. 

 and the following results will show that be may 

 fairly claim a rivalry with the best in the country: 

 One field of 22 acres, 2216 bushels, 



" 30 " 2249 bushels and 3 pecks, 



" 27 " 1819 bushels. 



79 acres, 6284 bushels and 3 peck.--. 



It will tljus b-? secji, that in a field of 22 acres, 



the yield exceeded 100 bushels of corn per acre I 



The whole crop on 79 acres, averages nearly 80" 



bushels. — Del. Jour. 



Chinese Mulberry. — A remarkable instance 

 of this plant's tenacity of life was mentioned to 

 us the other day by Dr Stebbins, of this town. — 

 Dr S. last autimin sent several boxes of the cut- 

 tings of this [ilant to Illinois. One of them was. 

 69 days on its passage, and when received the 

 earth in which the cuttings had been deposited 

 was as dry as piwder, yet the buds had started 

 and were shooting forth as luxuriantly as if enjoy- 

 ing the choicest advantages of sun, sky, and soil. 

 No doubt the cuttings of the multicaulis can be^ 

 sent the world over v/itliout killing them. — Hamp.. 

 Gaz. 



A vihWe since, a great number of Roman coin;. 

 were fovnd on Fairhead, a lofty headland near, 

 the Giant's Causeway. — Seientijic Tracts. 



