PRACTICAL FARMER. 



91 



This remedy Ixing so simple, and as 1 firmly 

 believe so efficacious, I hope there will be many 

 farmers disposed to make trial of it, and thereby 

 fully test its correctness. If I should be nistru- 

 mental in arresting the progress of this direful en- 

 emy of the farmer, I shall be amply compensated 

 in the recollection that I have discharged my duty 

 to the community. 



An Agriculturist of Maryland. 



(From the Genesee Fanner.) 

 RAISING AND FLOURING AVHEAT. 



Mr Holmes :— I find your correspondents are 

 reviewing the wheat raising topic, and I am pleas- 

 ed to find them awake to the subject. 



1 should he glad if I could make any observa- 

 tions which would be beneficial to the public as 

 it respects the culture of this grain, possibly I can. 

 In regard to grinding or flouring I have no doubt 

 my remarks, though perhaps not new to all, will 

 be useful to every one, who will adoj't the prac- 

 tice which I shall recommend. First as to the 

 raising. In regard to clover or sward land for a 

 crop, I find tha\ it ought to have some manure 

 turned in as well as a small top dr<3ssingt0 ensure 

 a good crop, such as ashes or plaster. The slow 

 o-rowth of wheat on such land owing to the grad- 

 ual rotting of the sod, prevents much danger from 

 bli<^ht or blast. The same may be said of the 

 cro^p after peas. Pasture land will produce an 

 excellent crop, if turned over with a top dressing 

 of ashes, say five or six bushels to the acre, even 

 ifno manure is turned in, and perhaps may be 

 the most sure method of raising wheat in this part 

 of the country. I find by my own experience, 

 strengthened by the observations of Dr. Bates, 

 that on all sandy soils with gravel as a subsoil, or 

 clay if it is five deep; steeped or leached ashes 

 and clay as a manure, will ensure the crop of 



wheat. _ ^ I » 



Second, as to the flouring m- grinding of wlieat. 

 When we have raised the wheat, we ought to be 

 able to make the best of the article it is capable of, 

 and I hope your readers will pardon me if I relate 

 a few facts and give some reasons why this busi- 

 ness should be better attended to, if we wish to 

 compete with other wheat growing countries, [t 

 seems to be necessary to keep the mill-stones apart 

 by the hardest corn, in order to get either fine 

 flour or the greatest quantity, i once carried to 

 the mill in Winthrop, one and a half bushels, an<l 

 paid the miller, Mr Stanley, for grinding it, instead 

 of giving him the toll as usual. 



After the wheat had passed through the cleans- 

 er, I scattered in three quarts of corn as evenly as 

 1 could, and weiehed the flour it made. It was 

 allowed by all to" be finer and lighter than that 

 made from the same wheat without the corn. 

 It yielded 40 1-3 Ihs., to the bushel.— Four 



bushels would have made 196 Ihs. of flour and a 

 fraction over, which would of course make a frac- 

 tion over a barrel. 



V r Sanborn of Wales stood by. He had brought 

 some very good wheat to mill, and he put m two 

 quarts of corn to the bushel which he raise< year 

 before kist. He afterwards told me that he chtain- 

 ed 54 lbs. to the bOshel. 



Try it brother Farmers, and my word for it, 

 you will never grind, or rather Jlat out wheat, as 

 vou have done, and give the residue to the hogs, 

 calling it wheat bran, when there is at least ten 

 pounds of flour in it. I am told that at the South, 

 it is always done, and may we not expect that one 

 fourth at least of corn is put in, and then is really 

 better than when none at all is put m. 



1 had in my bushel and a half, nine pounds and 

 three fourths of coarse or second sort, so that in 

 fact I had more than fifty pounds of eatable flour. 

 My wheat was very dry, if it had for a short time 

 been placed over some steam, so as to moisten it 

 a little, the hull would have been less cut by 

 the mill, and the flour would have been better. 



This I am told is sometimes practised at some ^ 

 flour mills. \Vill any farmer longer neglect to 

 raise wheat and grind it in the best manner, and 

 pav away all his money for flour and be in con- 

 sequence as poor as a church mouse? Or wid 

 you take care of yourselves? Jt remains with 

 YOU to say. Without economy no one can exi.ec^t 

 to have much, but with it, and a little industry, 

 everything. 



If vou neglect to raise your bread, or if you do 

 raise a little; and give on. lifth to the hogs under 

 the name of wheat bran, at the same time extol 

 Southern flour and prefer it to your own, merely 

 because it is ground better and finer, you must 

 expect yourselves and the State to lag behind the 

 others in wealth and improvements. Our mi.ls 

 I believe are good, and I have ever found the 

 ,„illers accommodating. Look to yourselves,, 



brother Farmers. 



Elijah Wood. 



Sugar PROM Indian Corn.-M. Pallis lately 

 presented to the Academic des Sciences of Paris, 

 a sample of this snbst, nee, extracted from the 

 stem of' the plant, which has been found to contain 

 nearly six per cent, of syrup boiledlo forty de- 

 crees, apart of which will not crystahze before 

 fructification ; but it condenses and acquires more 

 consistency from that period to the state of com- 

 plete maturity. The most favorable tune to ob- 

 tain the greatest quantity of sugar is immediately 

 after the maturity and gathering of the fruit. The 

 matter left after the extraction of sugar is capital 

 to feed cattle or to make packing paper. 



