PRACTICAL FARMER. 



53 



works should be located on this charming spot, or 

 any other which their wisdom mi^ht select. 



' Marblehead. 



CULTIVATION OF SILK. 



It is little more than fifty years ago, that an 

 American vessel was seized at Liverpool for hav- 

 ing on board eight bales of cotton, it not being 

 believed that the article could be produced in 

 this country. At present about 600,000 bales are 

 carried to the same port. To the culture of this 

 article the country owes a great part of its wealth 

 and prosperity. Where fifty years ago eight bales of 

 of cotton were produced, one million two hundred 

 thousand are now produced. If fifty years ago 

 a man had ventured to predict that the article of 

 cotton would become the grand staple of the 

 country and add millions upon millions to its 

 Avealth, he would have been laughed at as a 

 madman. It has lately been predicted that' be- 

 fore many years are passed, the production of 

 silk in this country will equal the production of 

 cotton, and we see no reason to question the jus- 

 tice of the calculation. 



The cultivation of this article has been com- 

 menced by the enterprising men of the east. 

 The soil and climate of New England are 

 admirably adapted to its cultivation. Those who 

 have thus far engaged in it, have reaped good 

 profits, and have every reason to persevere. It 

 has been commenced in a part of the country 

 where thrift and industry have never failed to 

 succeed. It has been commenced under far 

 more favorable circumstances than those which 

 attended the first cultivation of cotton. It re- 

 quires but little labor and the principal part 

 of the labor required may be performed by fe- 

 males and children. The experiment has thus 

 far proved successful and it has been attended 

 with a trifling degree of expense. 



Would it not be worth the attention of our 

 Long Island farmers? From all that we have 

 been enabled to learn, the soil of the island is 

 admirably adapted for the cultivation of the mul- 

 berry. There are certain parts of the island 

 where mulberry trees have existed for a long 

 number of years, and the luxuriance of their 

 growth has been surpassed by that of any other 

 tree. The subject is one worthy of their atten- 

 tion. We know that in certain parts of the 

 island, silk has been cultivated — more indeed for 

 the sake of amusement and curiosity than of 

 profit, but with complete success. — JVeto York 

 Times. 



lowed with discouragement and loss, if not total 

 abandonment of the object. Hence it is advisa- 

 ble to be cautious about following the directions 

 given in loose newspaper paragraphs some of 

 which are hastily written by editors unacquainted 

 with the business, and others copied or rather 

 garbled from the writings of practical culturists. 

 An instance of this kind will be sufficient to illus- 

 trate the uncertainty of this kind of information. 

 Some time since Judge Spencer of Albany, pub- 

 lished a valuable letter on the subject of the cul- 

 ture of silk, in which he stated that an ounce of 

 setid produces about 5000 plants. The editor of 

 a New Bedford paper in remarking upon it, has 

 made the judge to say 50,000, which is probably 

 multiplying in a ratio which the judge would be 

 unwilling to adopt. Should the next copyist add 

 another cyher, the product would be truly aston- 

 ishing. 



While on this subject we will say that from 

 actual computation we have found an ounce of 

 mulberry seed to contain 18000 kernels — what 

 part will vegetate depends upon the quality of the 

 seed and the manner of sowing it. — SUk Culturist. 



Soak your seed — The suggestion of a prac- 

 tical gentleman in corroboration of our own expe- 

 rience on the subject, has satisfied as that mul- 

 berry seed ought never to be sown until it has 

 been soaked in water blood warm for at least 

 thirtysix hours. It will vegetate quicker, grow 

 more vigorously and ensure a much greater 

 number of plants. — lb. 



fFrom the New England Farmer.) 

 FALL PLOUGHING. 



Last Autumn I had three lots of banked meadow 

 land, about Jive acres in each, lying side by side, sepa- 

 rated only by a six feet ditch, and to all appearance no 

 difference in any respect, that I intended to have plough- 

 ed in the fall and planted with Indian corn in the spring. 

 It so happened that only one of the lots was ploughed 

 last fall, the remaining two lots this spring. Where the 

 ground was ploughed last fall there is now growing a 

 very vigorous and healthy crop of corn. The other two 

 lots have been twice planted, and here and there are 

 growing a hill of corn, yellow and sickly in its appear- 

 ance, but almost destroyed by the cut worm. A. D. 



Look to the sources of information. The 



success of the silk enterprise in this country de- 

 pends mainly upon correct information in the 

 outset. A ^^TOBg start is almost sure to be fbl- 



During the late hurricane in Canton, 111. the wrecks 

 of houses, furniture, fences, «Src. were hurled about in 

 the air. In one instance, a fence rail was driven 

 through an ox ! Torrents of rain fell, which soon 

 turned to hail. Some of the hail stones are said to 

 have been as large as a goose egg ! ! ! The Sangamon 

 river overflowed in some places, to a width of four 

 mileB. — St. LoinsHerald. 



