i>04 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER 



SOWINC CLOVER SEED. 



We are gratified to lenrn llmt the sales of clo- 

 ver seed in this rnarl;rt have i;reat!y ii: reaaed 

 williin the Insl three or four years — and "e trust 

 lhey have done so elsoivhere — because »c are 

 taught to believe from this singfle fact, that the 

 spirit (jf njricliltural improvement has taken the 

 prnper direction. With the aid of clover, plaisler 

 and lime, if these friictifyinj agents iverc properly 

 used, "c arc conlident that all the old worn out 

 fields of the old Slates may be brought up to a 

 atate. (if profitable fertility, whilst those of the new 

 ones may be prcservid from deterioration. Where 

 grounds have become so far c.\hausted as to be in- 

 adequate to tl>e production and sustenance of a 

 ^ood crop of clover, they may be very readily so 

 faf restored, by turning in two successive crops of 

 buckwlieiit or outs, which may be raised in one 

 season, as to enable them to do so, provided a 

 bushel of plaister to the acre bo sown thereon at 

 the time of sowing the buckwheat or oats. The 

 proper time fur plowing in either of these grains, 

 j« when they are just in flower, and before the for- 

 mation of the kernels. At the time of being plow- 

 ed in, a roller should precrd' the plow, to compress 

 the herbage, and lliiis enable tiie' plowman to turn 

 the whole well in. After tlie plowman shall have 

 done his work, a careful hand or two should go 

 over the field with a wooden spado or some other 

 Euit.ible instrument in hand, to shove in and cover 

 whatever of the vegetable matter that may have 

 escaped being turned under by the plow. This 

 done, a roller must be passed over the field, in the 

 same dir<^ction that it may have been plowed, to 

 consolidate the earth, and thus promote the decom- 

 position of the vegetable coating turned under. In 

 two weeks aRer the second crop shall have been 

 plowed under, it will be found that the putrefactive 

 pruccss will have been sufficionlly carried on to 

 justify the solving of the grain. As soon ns the 

 grain is sowed, let about from ^5 to ^40 bushels of 

 lime to the acre be sown tiiereon. adid finish by 

 rolling. In the spring, as sot a aa^the frost is out 

 of the ground, and the earth sufficiently dry to al- 

 low of the operation, clover seed, al the rate of 12 

 to 10 lis. to the acre, should be sown thereon and 

 harrowed in with a light harrow ; and that opera- 

 tion should bo followed by the roller. No fears 

 need be entertained of iiiji\ring the crop of grain 

 by drawing the roots out with the harrow to perish ; 

 fur nearly all will be restored by the roller, and 

 the impetus fur tillering that will be imparted by 

 the working which tho grain will thus receive, will 

 more than make up lor any loss which may be sus- 

 tained by the dragging up of the plants ; so that 

 "ivliile the grain itself will derive a positive advan- 

 tage from the cultivation, certainty is ensured, by 

 jli e coveiing of the clover seed, to its vegetation. 



\Vc have always thought, and all our experience 

 goes .V> cvmfirm our opinion, that many of the fail- 

 ures in Uic setting of clover, arises from the circum- 

 stance of casting ilie seed upon the earth without 

 covcin", 11'' relying upon the cracks and crannies 

 left by the frost to perform the rest of the work. 

 It stands Lo reason, that if seeds, so delicate as 

 are clover, be sown upon a hard baked surface, ns 

 is most generally the case, a very large percentage 

 of iheinliiust perish, for want of an earthy covering 

 to protect them from tho influence of sun and air. 

 Moisture, heat and air, we all know nrn essential 

 in the germination of all kinds of seeds, and though 

 these may sometimes he found on a surface par- 

 tially bare, yet the surest way to succeed, is by 



placing such as w&jnay commit to the earth, in 

 such a position as will secure to them the full bene- 

 fit of these advantages. By harrowing winter grain 

 in the spring, the pores of tho earth are opened 

 favorably to the admission of sun and air, and we 

 thus place it in a condition to derive the greatest 

 amount of good from the genial inlluence of the 

 spring rains. Let us view the subject as we may — 

 and we have thought often upon it, and had some 

 little experience — we have come to this conclusion, 

 tint, whether it be the intention ot a farmer to sow 

 clover seed or not, all autumn sown grain would 

 derive very material benefit from spring harrowing 

 and rolling. — .^marican Far. 



[a book, of their ingoings and outgoing.';, .in 

 I are the persons who often complain of " a .. 

 'the purse," and yet they are not curelul to hay* 

 repaired in due season. 



From the Farmers Cabinet. 



CASH BOOK. 

 .1 little care prevents much trouble and cost. 

 It is a very easy and simple affair to keep a cash 

 book, and yet how few farmers do it. Any person 

 who can write, can keep a book of this description, 

 and many advantages accrue from it. On one page 

 of your cash book s-^t down every thing sold, and 

 the sum received for it. On' the other side put 

 down all your outgoings and expenditures ; and 

 when it is begun, if the amount of cash on hand is 

 put at the top of the column of receipts, at any 

 time by adding up the two pages and taking the 

 difference of them, will show the balance of cash 

 you should have in hand ; and if there is any disa- 

 greement, there must be some error of entry, or 

 there must be " a hole in the purse." A book of 

 this kind accurately kept, would show at the end 

 of the year, or any other time, the amount of wheat, 

 corn, potatoes, butter, poultry, eggs, or any other 

 articles sold, and the sum received for them. It 

 would do more: it would show your outlayings for 

 slock, seeds, implements of husbandry, repairs, 

 clothing, tea, coffee, sugar, salt, &c. &,c., and also 

 for wages, and would present a very curious docii- 

 ment for family examination at the end of a twelve- 

 month ; and if there should be found to be "a hole 

 in the purse," it would indicate the spot where re- 

 pairs would be most necessary. 



A farmer kr.'fping a book of entries of tliis de- 

 scription, would always know his latitude and lon- 

 gitude, as a captain of a ship does when on the 

 ocean, and he would he less likily to run on the 

 shoals, or get among the breakers. As it is not 

 very usual for farmers to take receipts when money 

 is paid on ordinary occasions, and not in very large 

 sums, and as the memories of many people r.re 

 very frail, such a book of entries as has been re- 

 ferred to, would be of essential service oa a record 

 of payment, when no other evidence of it existi.d, 

 and might prevent litigation and trouble in case of 

 the decease of one or both of the parties. On the 

 death of the head of a family who has kept no regu- 

 i lar record of his receipts and payments, much dilli- 

 I cully, and sometimes heavy losses have occurred, 

 besides a great deal of trouble and anxiety to thnse 

 who were obliged to grope in the dark in settling 

 his estate. 



It is well that very many worthy, intelligent far- 

 mers are careful to preserve an accurate statement 

 of all their wordly concerns, duly arranged in pro- 

 per form, and such rarely find " a hole in the purse." 

 But there are many others who wmild at once 

 plead guilty, or if they did not, could readily bo 

 convicted on responsible testimony, of totally neg- 

 lecting to keep any intelligible series of entries in 



MASS. AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. • 

 Report on Orchards. 'i 



.\l a meeting of the Board of Trustees of J 

 Massachusetts Society for Promoting .AgricultB 

 held at the Secretary's office, Dec. 1(), 1841 — • 

 Mr Welles, the Chairman of the Committee j 

 awarding the premium for the best orchard, tnif 

 report, and the premium of fifty dollars, was bj* 

 awarded to Capl. George Randall, of New Bedfc' 

 which report was accepted, with the request tl 

 the Committee would publish their report, "ith 

 much of the communication of Mr Randall e= th 

 judgment should direct. 



A copy from the record, 



BENJ. GUILD, Rec. S Vj, • 



REPORT. 



The Committee appointed by the Trusti l 

 Society for the I'romiilion of Agriculture in i^^ 

 sathusetts, C(msisting of Messrs. Welles, Pre 

 Phinney, Codmaii and Q,uincy, having, by 

 Cliairiuan, examined the orchard of Capt. G 

 Randall, report — 



'J'hat it appears said orchard was set O' 

 April, ISit/. Its extent was about 3 1-2 acres. 

 soil was good, but ralher light, and was in a 

 state of preparation for the trees. The groun 

 been since annually cultivated for a crop ; the I 

 fit of which, bolh in the thrift and production 

 orchard, seems generally agreed in. The nu 

 of trees was 212: their distance apart, 25 

 There was a doubt with the Coiniiiittcc wbl 

 the distance might not have been advantage* 

 enlarged even to 35 or 40 feel. In four years, 

 had acquired, several of them, near the roots, i 

 ihirlcen inches in circumference, and at three 

 above the ground, eleven inches by measure! 

 .Many of the trees had extended in the gIO^ 

 the limbs during the past season, from 15 to n 

 30 inches. 



Mr Randall's communication contains 

 count of a wash of oil soap, &,c. which has 

 used by him on the trees in this orchard, sinci 

 were set out. If this application should opori 

 prevent the ravages of the borer, it wili be of| 

 important utility, as this depredator, with theci 

 worm, seem to threaten the very existence oi 

 orchards. All which is well and fully set foi 

 the comiiHinicalion above alluded to, which 

 comiiiiUee recommend should bo forthwith 

 lished. And the committee further recomi 

 that the premium ef Fifty Dollars bo awardel 

 paid to Capt. George Randall, for the best ore 



All which is respectfully eubmitted by on" 

 the Comniiltee, JOHN WELLEI 



Chairm 



.Yew Bedford, I7th .'iii/r., 16 

 To Benj. Gt'ii.n, Esq., Boston : — Hir — I hd 

 young apple orchard in the town of Rochl 

 Plymouth county, M.-iss., and ten miles frod 

 place, which I wish to offer for a preiniumj 

 do, by this tetter, offer, or apply for the premiu^ 

 the best orchard in the Commonwealth, tb^ 

 been planted out Jour years from the nurserji 

 Respectfully, your ob't serv't, 



GEORGE RANDALL 



