Vol. 1— No. 10. 



AND 'GARDENER'S JOURNAL. 



TRKES, &C. ON THEIR ARRIVAL AT THE PLACE 

 OF DESTINATION. 



As soon as the trees arrive at the place 

 where they are to be planted, let a trench he 

 dug in cultivated ground, the bundles unpack- 

 ed, ano the loots well wet, and immediately 

 covered with earth in the trench, observing to 

 make the earth fine that is spread over tbem, 

 so a-< not to leave vacancies for the admission 

 of air to dry the roo's — it having been found 

 by experience, that the thriftiness of trees, the 

 first season after transplantation, depends 

 much on the fine fibres of the roots being kept 

 moist and not suffered to dry trom the time 

 they are taken up until they are replanted — a 

 precaution which is always attended to with 

 respect to the trees sent from the Nurseries of 

 the Proprietor, as tho roots are invariably kept 

 moist from the time they are taken np until 

 they are packed ready to be shipped. Their 

 success, therefore, must depend pricipally on 

 the subsequent management on their arrival at 

 the place of destination ; for if, when the bun- 

 dles are unpacked, the trees are carelessly 

 left exposed to drying winds, the young fibres 

 of the roots must perish, and the trees, if they 

 live at all, cannot thrive the first season, as they 

 can receive little nr no nourishment until those 

 rfbresare replaced. 



MANNER OF PLANTING. 



Let the holes be dug somewhat larger than 

 is sufficient to admit ihe roots in their natural 

 position, and of sufficient depth to allow th< 

 tree to be placed two or three inches rieepe 

 than it was before transplanting — take caru to 

 cut otf any wounded parts of Ihe rent, and to 

 reduce the top full one tliird, by shortening 

 the branches, or thinning them out. Let from 

 two to four shovel. ful of well rotted stable 

 manure, in proportion to ihe size of the tree, 

 be incorporated with the earth, and the whole 

 made fine previous to filling it in ; and during 

 the operation of filling in the earth, let the 

 tree be several times shaken, in order that the 

 soil may be admitted among the finer roots ; 

 and when completely filled in, lot the ground 

 be well trodden down, and finish by making a 

 hollow or basin round the tree to catch the 

 rain and convey it to the roots, or to receive 

 the watering which it will be necessary to give 

 it, should the season prove drv. 



TO CAUSE THE TREES TO THRIVE. 



The ground wbeie they are planted must be 

 kept cultivated — young trees will not thrive if 

 the grass is permitted to form a sod around 

 them ; and if it should be necessary to pl.int 

 them in grass ground, care must be taken to 

 keep the earth mellow and free from grass 

 fur three or four feet distant around them ; 

 and, every autumn, some w.ll rotted ma- 

 nure should be dug in around eaeh tree, and 

 every spring the bodies of the apple, pear, 

 plum, and cher'y trees, and others that it is 

 particularly desirable to promote the growth 

 of, should be brushed over with common soft 

 •oap. undiluted with water — this treatment will 

 give a thriftiness to ihctrees surpassing the ex- 

 pectation of any one who has not witnessed 

 Us effect. Should the first season after trans- 

 planting prove dry, reaular waterings will be 

 necessury ; as from a neglect of proper atten- 

 tion in this respect, many lose a large portion 

 of their trees during a drought. 



From the New Bngland Farmer. 

 Extracts from tin address delivered before the 



Middlesex society of Husbandman and Manu- 

 facturers, at their animal festival, Oct. 7. 



Action, rather than speculation, anil to ex- 

 hibit practical result's, rather than theoretical 

 schemes, are the appropriate business of Far- 

 mers, on an occasion like this. 



The importance of the subject, on which I 

 ifavc had the hooor of being invited to address 

 you, is too deeply felt, and too generally ac- 

 knowledged, to require either arguments to 

 enforce, or eloquence to emblazon its claims. 

 ft need only he said, that the first sod (hat vras 



turned, was one of the first decided steps from 

 a savage to a civilized life, and that in propor- 

 tion to his advancement in agriculture and the 

 arts of husbandry, man has, in all ages, recedftd 

 from barbarism. Compare, for a moment, the 

 miserable condition of '.he houseless, roaming 

 savage of the forest, clad it: the skins of beasts, 

 furious and ungnverned as himself, dopendina 

 for his subsistence upon the uncertain fruits of 

 the chase, or the spontaneous productions of 

 ihe earth, with Ihe substantial, permanent 

 comforts of tho industrious, intelligent, and 

 virtuous farmer; — and will not the contrast 

 reconcile the cultivator of the soil to a cheer- 

 ful obedience to the divine command, to " eat 

 his bread in the sweat of his brow?'' 



We find the opulent, the powerful and lear- 

 ned of modem, as well as ancient days, devo- 

 ting their wealth, their influence and their tal- 

 ents, to the advancement of the interests of ag- 

 riculture. 



Who, then, is so regardless of the utility, 

 the honor or the pleasure, of cultivating the 

 soil, as not to aspire to the honorable appella- 

 tion of Farmer? Who does not wish to with- 

 draw from the anxious cares and uncertain 

 pleasures of merchandise, and the perplexing 

 duties of public or professional life, to repose 

 on the tranquil bosom of rural retirement, and 

 taste the pleasures, as well as partake in the 

 labors of rustic life ? 



Books, I am aware, are the most distrustful 

 source of information, among many of my ag- 

 ricultural brethren. This ought not so to be. 

 While the professors and friends of all the o- 

 ther arts and sciences, call to their aid the light 

 and accumula'ed written wisdom of the past 

 and present ages, "why should the art of culti- 

 vating the earth, by far the most important of 

 all the arts, be allowed no other guide than 

 blind tradition ? 



To what are we attributing the recent rapid 

 advances in agricultural knowledge 1 What 

 has enabled the farmer to discover new sour- 

 ces of wealth and pleasure ? What has 

 staid the wasting mania fur emigration, and 

 taught our young men, that from a New England 

 soil, and a Now-Englttnd fireside, more sub- 

 stantial comforts maybe derived, than can be 

 found '■ beyond the mountains ?" What,I say. 

 lias done all this, but books, and the scientific 

 communications of literary men, who have de- 

 voted their wealth and their talents to lighten 

 the burdens and increase the stores of the far- 

 mer ? 



Allow me, while on this subject, to advert 

 to one source of information, which has been, 

 in no small degree, instrumental in producing 

 these favorable results. I mean the various 

 periodical publications of the day. At the 

 head of ihese stands the New England Far- 

 mer. This has done much to arrest the with- 

 ering power of ancient custom — has not only 

 taught us the theory, but has enabled us to re- 

 alize the pleasure of fruitful gardens, of smi- 

 ling fields and luxuriant harvests. I am con- 

 fident the sincerity of my motives will not be 

 questioned, when I rec >minend the sound prac- 

 tical lessons of its enlightened Editor, to the 

 constant perusal, not only of farmers, but to 

 every friend of rural economy. 



From the 3d vol. Plough Boy. 



ERGOT IN SPEARGRASS. 



For the following extract from a letter, we 

 are indebted to Dan Bradley, Esq. of Marcel- 

 lus, to whom we fender our thanks for the fa- 

 vor. By this it will be seen, that our farmers 

 ought to be extremely cautions as to the state 

 of speargrass, when cut for fodder, as themost 

 deleterious consequences to their stock will 

 fellow, if it should be iefected by the ergot. 

 Genoa, Agust 9, 1821. 



I have lived more than half a century, and 

 never heard of the scant in grass, until 1 learn- 

 ed it from the Plough Boy, and woeful expe- 

 rience. Soon after my son returned from your 

 house, I found all my neat stock, except two, 

 disordered, and from what cause 1 knew not. 



The first 1 discovered, was my oxen beginning 

 to be drowsy, with the loss of appetite, and 

 soon followed with swelling in their limbs, and 

 n great pain ; and in in a few days, all the rest 

 of my stock, as I observed before, except two, 

 were in the same condition. 1 now began to 

 find out, or rather to search for, a cause, that 1 

 might better apply a remedy. After observ- 

 ing the symptoms, and studying into the nature, 

 of the complaint, I remarked to my family and 

 neighbors, that I should think my cattle were 

 poisoned, if there were any poison in my hay ; 

 hut knowing it to be clear of any poisonous 

 plants, and that there was nothing but pure 

 speargrass, or as some call it, June grass, I 

 was at a loss still for the cause. 



After some time had elapsed, and manv ex- 

 periments were tried to no purpose, Miles 

 Bradley came to my house, and told me he had 

 read in the Plough Boy, that there was a cer- 

 tain smut in hay, that occasioned what is call- 

 ed the hoof-ail; it being of a poisonous quali 

 ty. We then went to the barns, and on exa- 

 mination found my hay very full of it. I then 

 removed as many of my cattle from the bam 

 into the field, as I could, and fed them at a 

 stack of another kind of hay ; the most of 

 which soon began to recover. 



I am fully convinced, sir, of your remarks, 

 when last at my house, that a systematic mode 

 of farming is the best, and that land ought not 

 to lie too long to grass. As this field from 

 which I cut my diseased hay, was small, and 

 produced well, it has been mowed for five and 

 twenty years successively ; and it being an 

 early kind, I always put it in the bottom of my 

 mow. I came toil, just when our last great 

 snow came on, and my cattle could get nothing, 

 else. 



I have other reasons, however, to convince 

 me that this was the cause of my calamity, 

 which I have not time to mention. I shall 

 leave you to make your own comments to the 

 above. My loss of stock amounted to more 

 than 100 dollars, besides the injury done to 

 many that survived. I remain, with esteem, 

 dear sir, yours, ALSONUAH T1LLOTSON. 



LIME NECESSARY FOR RAISING PEAS. 



It is observed that the common pea, wheth- 

 er white or arey, cannot he reared to perfec- 

 tion in anv field which has not been, either na- 

 turally or artificially impregnated with some 

 calcareous matter. And hence it is supposed 

 to happen that peas are only cultivated univer- 

 sally as a field crop, unless ,in those parts of the 

 country where either lime, mar! or chalk a # 

 bounds, or upon strong clays ; except indeed 

 on the sea coast, where shell fish are often 

 caught in abundance, and where ihe fields are 

 manured with their shells in a state of mixture 

 with dung. But it is remarkable, that a soil 

 that could scarcely have brought one pea to 

 perfection, although richly manured with dung, 

 from their running too mucin to haulm, and af- 

 ter blossoming, dying away without becoming 

 ripe, if it has once had lime applied upon it, 

 is capable, when properly prepared in other re- 

 spects, of producing plentiful crops of peas 

 ever afterwards. — Farmer's Companion. 



"PATENT PORTABLE SPIRIT GAS LIGHT." 



Tins is the name, given by Ihe invenlor, iu 

 Albany, to a combination of spirils of turpen- 

 tine and alcohol, to be used instead of oil for 

 lamps. It is said fo be equal.and much cheaper 

 than oil. Sun-light, the ©eueva Gazette 

 remarks, is both cheaper and better than any 

 artificial light whatever, and its more general 

 use would not only save many dollars, and pre- 

 serve many eyes, but it has the additional re- 

 commendation of conducing to the health oi 

 the whole system, particularly when used ear- 

 ly in the morning .' 



Who is the best man ? Not he who makes 

 the gretest show, or the most noise. But he 

 who does the most good at the feast expense. 



