286 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



obtained, yet the safe and sure method is to have 

 a deep rich soil, the deeper the better. Therefore no 

 farmer need fear turnintj under, with a deep fur- 

 row, long manure, provided he vvill prevent excess 

 of moisture, have the surface soil rich, or put some- 

 thing in the hills to give the coin a start, for he 

 will certainly find the advantage of it. Hence, too, 

 the advantage of the sub-soil plough. The editor 

 of the Massachusetts Ploughman published several 

 articles, last spring, on the cultivation of Indian 

 corn, and in all of them he based his management 

 on the assumption that corn roots do not run deep, 

 but are near the surface; should he see this article, 

 I hope he will take his spade in hand, and examine, 

 as I have; I think he will then see a reason for 

 changing his operations, and will undeceive his 

 readers in relation to the roots of corn. 

 Yours respectfully, 



S. M. Stanley. 

 West Attleborough, Aug. 4, 1851. 



Remarks. — We are much obliged to Mr. Stan- 

 ley for giving to the public this ocular demonstra- 

 tion of the importance of not only deep, but fine 

 tillage ; for the numerous fine lateral roots on the 

 main root he has sent us show the great impor- 

 tance of fine tilth, that is permeable to these rootlets. 

 Many persons finding a large number of corn roots 

 near the surface, making a long and rapid growth, 

 take a shallow view of the subject, and with this are 

 content without ever making that deep examination 

 which is necessary in order to have a profound and 

 thorough knowledge of the subject. — Ed. 



For the New England Farmer. 



GRAFTING IMPOSITION. 



There are many persons in the various portions 

 of New England who have devoted a portion of 

 each year to grafting apple trees, for such individ- 

 uals as may favor them with a call for service. 

 The chief recommendation that such men need, in 

 order to secure favor with many of those who have 

 orchards to graft, is, that they are "successful 

 grafters;" which means, that a good share of their 

 scions live. 



Most of firmers, if they hire a man to graft for 

 them, require him to furnish his own scions. They 

 take his word for it, that all his kinds are "first 

 rate" They admit the grafter to be a man of 

 knowledge and judgment — that he knows the pecu- 

 liarities of his various kinds of apples, and that his 

 judgment of fruits and trees is every thing needed. 



Some men have spent a handsome sum of money 

 in this way; but when theii trees had come to bear- 

 ing, they were sadly disappointed. Much of their 

 fruit was neither very good for eating nor at all fit 

 for cooking. Then again, some kinds were very 

 poor growers and perhaps poor bearers also. Some 

 kinds would break and rot on the tree before time 

 for harvesting. Another kind is a sickly kind of 

 tree, and never hardy. 



If our country farmers do not wish to he imposed 

 upon in this way by the ill judgment, the igno- 

 rance or dishonesty of grafters, they must pursue 

 a different course of action. Never trust such an 

 important matter as selecting your kinds of fruit to 

 any man who has not studied into all the peculiar- 



ities of fruits and fruit trees, and one who is pos- 

 sessed of a capacity to discriminate. 



I know of trees which have been grafted, (for 

 the purpose,! suppose, of getting "grafted fruit,") 

 which are large enough to pay an average amount 

 of several dollars clear profit yearly; while the av- 

 erage worth of what they produce yearly is not 

 more that twenty-five cents. They may be manured, 

 they may be dug around; but it is all to no profit. 

 "Grafted fruit" is not the thing desired; but good 

 fruit, and enough of it. 



Grafters will, many of them, be seen going here 

 and there gathering scions, preparatory to the 

 grafting season. Pick up here and pick up there, 

 wherever they can pick up a few; and what do they 

 know about them all ? It is sometimes the case 

 that men who do not want their trees cut will send 

 such men on to worthless trees to cut scions. The 

 evil falls upon the man who employs them to graft 

 for him. 



Now if any of the readers of the Farmer have 

 been "taken in" in this way, my advice is to them 

 not to conclude that "all the world's a cheat;" but 

 correct their own errors, and having learned wis- 

 dom by what they suffer, next year make an effort 

 to get such fruit as will be most profitable and most 

 satisfactory to their purse and palate. 



He who rests on the judgment of an ignorant 

 man will suffer evil. 



Mason, N. H., Avg., 1851. c- 



For the New England Fanner. 



GREEN CROPS— FLOWING GRASS 

 LANDS IN WINTER. 



Mr. Cole: — It is with a great deal of pleasure 

 that I have perused the few last numbers of your 

 paper, and find that in subscribing to it I have sub- 

 scribed to a valuable paper. It is three years since 

 I have been confined to tlie house by sickness, and 

 now that I begin to exercise on my farm, 1 need an 

 agricultural paper. I have chosen yours, and I 

 would like your advice on several points on farm- 

 ing. Firstly, then, I have a good field of level land 

 some distance from home, too good in my opinion 

 to give up tor a pasture, and too far to cultivate by 

 manuring. I thought of your idea of turning un- 

 der a green crop of manure. Will you inform me of 

 the best and cheapest article to sow to produce the 

 green crop, also the best way to manage the same? 

 Is winter rye ever used ? and with what results. — 

 I have a piece of low land which I might reclaim, 

 and produce an abundance of English grass, if 

 waters did not flow it every winter. Will that in- 

 jure the grass ? And I would like to know if ap- 

 ple trees may be budded as late as the first of Sep- 

 tember. 



I remain yours, with respect, 



<S. Wa/pole. John N. Smith. 



Remarks. — By beginning early in the season, 

 two crops of buckwheat may be raised in one sum- 

 mer to plough in for manure, but it is now too late 

 to raise one crop this season. Sow winter rye the 

 latter part of this month, or tire first of September, 

 and it would form a good crop to plough in early in 

 June, in season to raise a crop of corn, potatoes, 

 beans, beets, rutabagas, &c., if the land is suf- 

 ficiently fertile — or let tlie crop grow till about the 

 middle of June, then plough in, and sow buck- 



