PRACTICAL FARMER. 



51 



eggs to hatch as soon as the mulberry trees begin 

 to bud. The tree here spoken of is the Italian 

 ivhite mulberry,* (the proper food of silk worms) 

 which should be every where extensively planted. 

 It buds generally about the 11th of May. Ten 

 days afterwards, say about the 20th, they put forth 

 rheir leaves. These ten days in France are em- 

 ployed in hatching the eggs, by exposing them to 

 a heat which is graduated by means of stoves and 

 thermometers. But in this country nature has 

 done everything, and I can see as yet no need of 

 recurring to art. The worms' eggs may then 

 here be put to hatch when the leaves begin, or are 

 ready to appear. I think in this country this hap- 

 pens about the 21st of May, when the sun passes 

 from Taurus to Gemini. If, however, by some 

 change in the temperature, the mulberry trees 

 should put forth their leaves later than usual, the 

 time of hatching should be delayed proportional- 

 ly. But I am inclined to think that that but seldom 

 happens in this country. 



The manner of putting the eggs to hatch is as 

 follows. They should be put in a pasteboard or 

 wooden box, not covered at the top, and the sides 

 not more than half an inch high, so that the 

 worms, when hatched, may easily crawl out as 

 will be presently mentioned. The size of the box 

 should be suited to the quantity of eggs to be 

 hatched, so that they be not on the top of one 

 another. The box should then be covered with 

 paper, perforated with holes of the size of a 

 large pin's head, so that the worms when hatched 

 may easily pass through them. I have found that 

 the worms in this country, as far as my experience 

 goes, are generally hatched in three days after 

 being put into the box. When they are 

 near coming out, young mulberry leaves should 

 be put OH the top of the box, leaving spaces. 

 The worms, as soon as 'hatched will smell these 

 leaves, crawl up to them through the holes in the 

 paper cover, and begin feeding. Then the leaves 

 covered with worms, are gently taken up, and laid 

 on a table or hurdle that has been prepared to re- 

 ceive them. 



The eggs should be put to hatch in a warm 



* At the time when this was pubhsbed the Chinese 

 Mulberry had not been introduced into this country. — 

 Editor. 



place. The heat should be at least 80 degrees 

 Fahrenheit. When I arrived in this city [Wash- 

 ington] on the 18th of May the thermometer was 

 82^ degrees within doors. It, is therefore, probable 

 that about the same period it does not often faU 

 below 80 degrees, particularly in the south. The 

 European writers have taken great pains to grad- 

 uate the heat during the ten days which are em- 

 ployed in those countries for hatching" worms' 

 eggs. AH these pi-ecautions do not appear neces- 

 sary in this country. 



[To be concluded in our next.] 



Management of Pigs. — The following experiment 

 was made by a gentleman of Norfolk. Six pigs of the 

 Norfolk breed, and of nearly equal weight were put to 

 keeping at the same time, and treated the same as to 

 food and litter for about seven weeks. Three of them 

 were left to shift for themselves as to cleanliness ; the 

 other three were kept as clean as possible by a man em- 

 ployed for the purpose with a currycomb and brush. 

 The last consumed in seven weeks fewer peas by jive 

 lushels, than the other three : yet they weighed more 

 when killed by two stone and four pounds (thirtysix 

 pounds) upon an average, or six stone twelve pounds 

 upon the whole. — The Bee, Pictou, JV. Scotia. 



DESTRUCTION OP IKSECTS. 



Mr Fessenden — Some three or four years since, I 

 was induced to make an experiment on the effect of ani- 

 mal oil applied to the destruction of worms on trees, 

 knowing the fact that oils are fatal to those insects, 

 when applied directly, but the difficulty of giving to each 

 a portion in due season was to be surmounted. I ac- 

 cordingly tried the vapor by heating about a quart in an 

 iron vessel, holding the vessel under the tree that the 

 fumes might arise into every part. This had the effect, 

 but the oil soon ceased to evaporate in consequence of 

 the loss of heat, I then heated it again and in this state 

 inflamed it. While it was still burning, by moving 

 round under each tree, staying five or six minutes at each, 

 every worm was destroyed. I communicated this to 

 several gentlemen, who were induced to try it, and they 

 were much gratified with the result. Since my first, or 

 rather second attempt it has been tried in the same way 

 in Salem, New Bedford, and other places with perfect 

 success. If you think it worth a place in your paper 

 you are at liberty to place it there. 



Taunton, August 3, 1835. 



Joseph Dixon. 



White Mulberries of a large size set out in tiie fall 

 are more likely to take well and thrive the ensuing sum- 

 mer than if set out in the spring, but on no account 

 should the Morus Multicaulis be set out in the fall. 



