vol.. XX. !VI>. 49 



AND HORTICULTURAL REGISTER 



387 



jv irjioso Willi «afclr Bnil siiccos.*. Tlio walrr, ' 

 ir.- I iiM, (ir midi iiliniild be llironn upon llic 

 ii.'t » nil ciiiiKiiliTublo fiircc, anil if tlipy (re of , 

 ciMn;;!* or Icttnco kind, or oilier pIiiiiH whose 

 re.-: nrP In bo used ns lood. llii'y Kliiuild giibsc- 

 nlly in- dronrhed llioroii^lily willi pure wntcr. 

 B I'll llic oxIriMiiitios of branrlics may be killed 

 tirtiliiiff over the branches and lioldinjf (hem 

 8<'\''r.il iiiimitC!) In warm and strong soap-suds, 

 e Miiiltiply iiiiii-li fnsier, and are iiii>re inj'.irinii.'! 

 ilan!.'. Ill a dry tlinii in'a wet atmosplicrc ; lience 

 ^reiMi houses, .-ttcnlion should be paid to l;ec|> I 

 (I!, surticiently moinl, and ^lie lice are readily ] 

 I'd liy ruminations with tobacco or with sulphur, 

 dr^trny subterranean lice on the roots nf plants 

 IK- loiind tliat wateriiiij with snlt wat<T »a.< 

 lu'. It tin" plants were hardy ; but tender, her- 

 OOHS plants cannot be treated in this way, but 



' sometimes be revived, whrn sufTfring fnun ' 

 le hidden foes, by free and frequent wateringr ' 



1 Eoap-!>uds. — Harrii^s Rrpoit on the Instcta of 

 \sachu3tU). 



TURNIPS. 



ho introduction of the turnip anion;; the culli- 

 d crops constitutes an cr.i in the art of hus- 

 dry. Of the several varieties which are culli- 



d, wu may select three, as most worthy of 

 mil n — the yellow, while, and Swedish or rula 

 a ti:rnips. 



. Ruta Baga, or Swedish turnip, is the most 

 nrtanl of these varieties, and yields the largest 

 ntity of vegetable matter for the use of farm 

 k. It should be remarked, also, that there are 

 «llc.s in this rooL The best have a yellowish 

 , globular form, and have no neck or stem, 

 gr-ien and yel.ow kinds often prove abortive. 

 ■ seed should be black and full. One pound 

 sufiice for an acre of land. One half a pound 

 produce plants enough for an acre ; but as the 

 1 IS liabli! to fail, a pound is not too much to 

 ire n crop. 



'he time for sowing is from the 20tli of June to 

 5th of July. 



"he soil best adapted to turnips, is a light, dry 

 friable loam; or almost any dry soil, with the 

 eption of heavy clays. 



?he soil is best prepared by throwing it into 

 ts 6(r) feet [•! feet — Kd.] apart, filling the 

 Is with short manure or compcisl, and after cov- 

 cg it with a plow, two furrows on each side, 

 with a drill barrow. The ruta baga flourishes 

 I en a clover ley, and may bn sowed after tlie 

 . crop of clover is taken. If long manure is 

 liod. . should be covered with a plow. If rot- 

 it should be placed under the seed, so that the 

 ;3 will penetrate it. The plants generally make 

 r app'.arauco in 8 or 10 days iiftcr sowing; 

 y tliMiild then be horse hoed with the cultivator, 

 thi< soil should ho removed as near to the 

 Its as possible, in order to destroy the weeds. 

 i line should then be employed, and the plants 

 ineil to n distance of 8 or 10 inches. 

 The finality of this crop depends upon the size ; 

 what 13 rather remarkable, the laiger they are 

 mere nutriment they possess in proportion to 

 ir weight. 



The value of this crop is variously estimated by 

 "ereiit farmcrfl. The products are, upon an nve- 



e, TiOO bi.'shels per acre. Some estimate the 

 prolit rt SO dollars per acre ; but their value 



I vary in diflcrent places and seasons. There 



is no doubt but that it is imu- of llic most valunlile 

 crops rnised by the farmer, allliuugh they are much 

 Iras rsloemcd than Ihey formerly w".-ro. 



This root is excellent for all kinds of farm stork. 

 Thry are said to be useful for faltcning hogs, cat- 

 tle and sheep. 'I hey may be fed raw, sherd, and 

 II small quantity of salt sprinkled over them. 



'i. The nVii'/f turnip requires a similar soil and 

 treatment; but may be sowed «« laic as the iJ-lth 

 of July. They arc not so productive as the pre- 

 rriling. but are excrlloni for a second crop, or for 

 fL-eding cattle in the lall ; by which course light 

 soils may be improved. 



.'). Tho Yetloir varieties may be kowu about the 

 \r^ih of July, and are richer than the »liite. Sin- 

 clair estimates tho amount of nourishment in (J4 

 drachms as follows : 



White tankard, 76 gra. 



Common white loaf, 80 " 



Norfolk white, 73 " 



Store or garden, S!> " 



Rula baga, 1 10 " 



The following table gives the nutritive proper- 

 tics of several varieties — the green-top yellows be- 

 ing taken as a standard : — 



Sf cries S'lovid leciffh by Jictuitl 



and varieties. size and standard. weight. 



ll.s.oz. IlKi. nz. 



Green-top yellow, Ki.OO l.'i.OO 



Swedish or ruta baga, 11.2 13.12 



Red-top yellow, U.OO 12.10 



Dalis hybrid, 13.12 12.00 



White globe, 20.8 l.^.S 



Red-top white, 16 8 13.(10 



Green-top white, 8.7 8.8 



White tankard, IG. 14. 



Purple do. 12.10 11.8 



This table shows the superiority of the rula 

 baga over all the other varieties. It yields about 

 (J or 7 per cent, of its whole weight of nutritive 

 matter, while tho white varieties afford 4 per cent., 

 and in the largest roots only 3 1-2 per cent., of 

 their whole weight ; hence, one acre nf the Swe- 

 dish variety is equal to one and n half acres of the 

 white. "No person," says Lord Kaimes, "ever de- 

 served better of his country, than he who first cul- 

 tivated turnips in a field. No plant contributes 

 more to fertility." 



It appears from the investigations thus far made, 

 that roots are by far the most profitable crops cul- 

 tivated by the farmert and that their more general 

 introduction would both increase the value of the 

 soil, and the quantity of productions from the farm, 



from the daiiy and from farm stock Cray's Sci- 



tnlijic and Practical Jigricullure. 



;NAT10NAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



A press of inatter tho present month, will pro- 

 vent our giving as full an account of our "impres- 

 sions" during our recent visit to Washington, and 

 of the proceedings of the National Agricultural 

 Society, the meeting of which we had tho pleasure 

 of attending, as we had contemplated. Railroad 

 travelling, our readers are aware, is not the kind 

 of travelling where a country is to be surveyed or 

 the condition of its agriculture noted ; but the 

 glimpses caught, were sntficient to show that the 

 prospects for the farmer were flattering ; and that 

 many fine farms and beautiful examples of im- 

 proved husbandry were passed, which would doubt- 

 less have well repaid delay (could it have been 

 permitted;) for their examination. 



Tho meeliiii: of llie Soi:ieiy wns opei.ed on 

 WelueBihy, the .llli nil., at Iho I'alrnt Office. 

 Commillees «rro nppniiilcd to rrpurt on various 

 snbjeclH — to iiominato officers — and to report on 

 the propriclv' of eHlablmliiiig an agricultural journal 

 at Wafhinjtloii ; niiil then the nierling ailjourncJ 

 iiiilil tho next liny at 10 n'cliick. On Thursday, at 

 llic hour named, the Society again cdiivenod. 

 There were present eight delegates from llie New 

 Vork .Slate Ag. Society; two from the American 

 Institute nf New Vork city ; two from New Haven, 

 ("t. ; one from New Jersey ; one from Maryland ; 

 two from Virginia, including the I'residenl of the 

 Society ; niid (luito a number of genllemen of 

 Wushington, ninoni; whom were the Hon. .Mr Wood- 

 bury, .\nw» Kendall, J. S. Skinner, Hon. II. L. 

 Kllsworlh, O. U. Brown, Klisha \\ hittlency, &.c. 



Mr Garnet, who wa.s re-elected President, de- 

 livered un able uiid interesting address. 



The proceedings of Ihe Society were conducted 

 very harmoniously ; but to us, the enthusiasm, the 

 esprit du corps, which seems so necessary to the 

 accomplishment of all great undertakings depen- 

 dant on voluntary action, seemed to be wanting. 

 It must be remarked, however, that this is but the 

 beginning ; and that the interest which the suc- 

 cess of the Society should certainly create, will be 

 more deep, in proportion as its existence and acta 

 ore more extensively known. — Jllbany Cultivator. 



RUTA BAGA FOR COWS. 



One of the most serious objections to the culture 

 of the turnip, especially in dairy districts, is the 

 unpleasant flavor which this root communicates to 

 milk and butter ; and vt)rio:is means have been 

 proposed to prevent these disagreeable results. 

 One of the most successful that we have Iried, has 

 been feeding the roots immediately after milking, 

 so as to have as long a lime as possible intervene 

 between the feeding and the milking. In a late 

 number of tlie Cabinet, wo find a letter from Sam- 

 uel West, of Chester, Penn., describing his mode 

 of feeding, which, while it is soniewhat similar to 

 ours, is said to totally obviate all taste of the tur- 

 nip. He states also that the same method is appli- 

 cable to garlic, so common and disagreeable in 

 some parts of the United Stales : 



" After a sufficiency of first rate upland hay, I 

 allow to each cow about half a bushel of ruta baga 

 turnips finely cut up — always remembering to 

 strip the cows clear of milk he/ore feeiiint; with the 

 turnips, and in the morning, feeding with a different 

 kind of food, viz: cut hay, with a little Indian 

 meal, or other mill feed. liy this process there 

 will he no taste of the turnip, either in the milk or 

 butter, so objectionable to many ; and by it you 

 will have a full flow of milk from your cows, and 

 butter of a fine, rich, spring-like quality, seldom 

 obtained in the winter season." — Ibid. 



To Wash ff'oolten Goods. — The art of wa.=hing 

 woollen good.^ so as to prevent them from shrink- 

 ing, is one of the desiderata in domestic economy 

 worthy of being recorded, and it is therefore with 

 a satisfaction we explain this simple process to our 

 readers. All descriptions of wo<dlen goods should 

 be washed in very hot water with soap, and as soon 

 as Ihe article is cleansed, immerse it in cold water : 

 let it then be wrung and hung up to dry. — Southern 

 Planter. 



The GOOD alone are great. 



