308 



FARMERS' REGISTER— MANURE— ICE HOUSES. 



fell to pieces at the touch. Oak and pine imbibe 

 about an equal quantity of the solution. A cube 

 containing; 216 cubical inches, takes in about tive 

 ounces of the liquid. Fir deals take in their quan- 

 tity in about 48 hours ; while a beam of oak is not 

 saturated under a month. 



It will readily be perceived, that if this discove- 

 ry proves to be, what it promises, a means of ren- 

 dering wood in a measure indestructible, its ad- 

 vantages will not be confined to naval architec- 

 ture, — wliere, however, its importance will be in- 

 calculably great, — but will be highly beneficial to 

 most of the arts of life. We deem the suliject of 

 so much importance as to warrant our giving to it 

 this brief notice. Those who wish to examine it 

 more in detail are referred to the 9th No. of the 

 London Quarterly, p. p. 12.5 — 133, and to the works 

 there referred to. B. 



From the New England Farmer. 

 TURNING IN GREEN CROPS FOR MANURE. 



To the Trustees of the JMassachusMs jigricultaral 

 Society. 



I have been induced, partly by the premium 

 you offer, and partly for my own satisfaction, to 

 make some exjjeriments as to the value of green 

 crops ploughed in for manure, and I send you the 

 result. 



In the middle of May, 1828, 1 ploughed up three 

 and a half acres of pasture that had, for many years, 

 been tilled by the former owner, until the crops 

 would not repay the labor. It was a light loam, 

 but not sandy. It had been so reduced, that ten 

 acres did not afford sufiicient pasturage for one cow 

 through the season. We sowed immediately after 

 this ploughing, a bushel of buckwheat to the acre, 

 and in six weeks rolled down the buckwheat in the 

 direction we intended to plough, and then plough- 

 ed and sowed as before. In the latter part of Au- 

 gust we turned in a second crop of buckwheat — 

 having rolled it down flat as at first, and then seed- 

 ed it with clover, herd's-grass and red-top, one 

 peck and a half to the acre. Most of the clover 

 was winter killed, and a great part of the herd's- 

 grass and red-top. Early in the spring of 1829, 

 we sowed 10 lbs. of clover-seed to the acre ; and 

 with a light harrow, went slowly over the whole. 

 The seed took well, but the clover was not high 

 enough for the scythe, when the other grass was fit 

 to cut. We mowed.what had not been winter kill- 

 ed ; and where it yielded best, we obtained one ton 

 of herd's grass to the acre. Immediately after mow- 

 ing, we turned in our cattle, and fed the grass 

 close. Last spring, (1830,) the grass was so for- 

 ward we turned in our cattle on the 19th of April. 

 There were eight acres in the whole field, but there 

 were only five acres that bore any grass worth 50 

 cents : these five acres were the three and a half 

 managed as I have stated above, and one and a half 

 on which grass-seed was sowed in April, 1830; 

 and fifty bushels of leached ashes mixed with loam, 

 spread on the surface. On these five acres, (and 

 the three which bore nothing,) I pastured four 

 cows constantly for four months, wanting two days, 

 and they had an abundance of feed. I never had 

 any pasture ground yield so well before. I think 

 these green crops improved the land as much as a 

 good dressing of manure, and the comparative ex- 

 pense I estimate as follows on one acre, viz. 



With Manure. 



20 ox cart loads of manure, $24 00 



Hauling ^ mile and spreading, 5 00 



Ploughing once, green sward, 2 00 



Harrowing and sowing 1 00 



$32 00 



With Green Crops. 

 First ploughing, green sward, $2 00 



2d ploughing, and rolling with man and horse, 

 3d ploughing, and rolling, do. do. 



Three iiarrowings, do. do. 



Two bushels buckwheat, 

 Sowinsr, do. 



00 

 00 

 00 

 55 

 25 



$6 80 

 Thus you will see, that it has cost me less than 

 one-fourth as much to enrich my land with green 

 crops, as it would with manure, [f my grass had 

 not been winter killed the first year, I intended to 

 have shown you the precise weight of hay cut on 

 an acre. The above estimate of the cost of ma- 

 nure is less by twelve cents per load, than it can be 

 purchased for in this place. I have given more 

 within two years. 



Farmers ought, in duty, to make the trial for 

 themselves. They generally have much land, 

 (miscalled under improvement) ten acres of which 

 will not pasture a cow Such land usually lies 

 distant from the house. They say tiiey cannot make 

 manure enougii for the whole tarm, and they find 

 it more profitable to lay their manure on lands 

 nearer home. They do not seem to conceive it 

 possible to enrich them otiierwise than with stable 

 manure. If they would plough and sow properly 

 they could make the whole rich. 



They further object to growing crops to be 

 ploughed in ; for, say they, " the growing crop will 

 exhaust the land as much as it will enrich the same 

 when ploughed in, so that we end where we be- 

 gan." This would be correct reasoning, undoubt- 

 edly, if the growing crop obtained its Avhole suste- 

 nance from the ground. It j)robably does not one- 

 sixth ynivt. It was the knowledge of this princi- 

 ple that gave me confidence of success in the ex- 

 periment. The advantages of green crops tor ma- 

 nure are greater where the lands are distant from 

 the barn, than in other cases. 

 Respectfiilly yours, 



W3I. BUCKMINSTER. 



Framingham, Nov. 10, 1830. 



ICE HOUSES. 



The New York American contains directions 

 from one of its subscribers, " as to the best mode 

 of constructing an ice house that will keep its ice 

 through the season." The method suggested is 

 the one most in use in the neighborhood of Bos- 

 ton, where it has been made a subject of scientific 

 inquiry. 



Directions. — It must be a tight frame building, 

 and above ground, the four sides of which should 

 have an inside lining, fifteen inches apart, the in- 

 termediate space filled with tan ; the floor, which 

 should be dry ground, covered with the same mate- 

 rial to the depth of about 15 inches ; the attic should 

 have a board flooring, with a scuttle door for en- 

 trance, also covered with tan, say about five to six 

 inches ; over the whole, a good tight roof, with an 

 entrance to the attic through the gable end. 



