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OLUME f. 



ROCHESTER, APRIL 9, 1831. 



NCMBEH 14. 



THE GENESEE FAKMEK. 



AND GARDENER'S JOURNAL. 

 Devoted to Agriculturo, Horticulture, Domestic Econo- 

 my, &C.&C. 

 N. GOODSKLL. EDITOR. 

 Published on Saturdays, at $2 50 per annum, 

 payable in six montlis, or at $2 00, il paid at the 

 time of subscribing, by Luther Tucker, at 

 the office of the Rochester Daily Advertiser. 



COMMUNICATIONS. 



FOR THE GENESEK FARMER. 

 CULTIVATION OP HEMP. 



Mr. Editor— A Groveland Farmer, through 

 the medium of your twelfth number, has ex 

 pressed i wish to be informed " of the actual 

 produce of of Hemp per acre, both in quanti- 

 ty and price, and also the expense." 



1 have seen eight hundred pounds, and even 

 more, produced from each acre of a ten acre 

 lot ; bat this is more than the average crop. — 

 Six hundred pounds may fairly bo se' down as 

 the usual product of an acre of good ground, 

 if faithfully cultivated. *.ny strong land 

 which has a slight natural intermixture oi 

 lime combined, is suitable for this crop, if clear 

 of stones. The ground should b eplowed as 

 soon in the spring fls it is dry enough, or even 

 in the fall previous if it be sward. If plowed 

 in the spring, after it has laid in furrow two or 

 three days, harrow it thoroughly, and again 

 introduce the plow 



tf the soil is then completely meUowed.ha.r- 

 row it with a light harrow, and on the ground 

 thus prepared, sow not less than two bushels of 

 seed which cover with yonr light harrows by 

 going once over it, and then close 111* process 

 bv lightly smoothing lh« ground with a brush, 

 or if a silicious principle predominates in the 

 soil, with a light roller. The whole of this 

 process shoald be done as early as the season 

 will judiciously permit. 



When th» crop is fit to harvest, it should be 

 cut with an instrument (hemp hook) made ex 

 pressly for the purpose It is shaped like a 

 new moon, but not pointed, about two and a 

 half feet long, an eighth of an ineh thick, and 

 aa inch and a quarter wide, with a handle si- 

 milar to that of a sickle. Some growers pull 

 the crop, but the root yields no valuable lint, 

 and by this method it is difficult to keep the 

 hemp even. Others have cradled it, but the 

 cradle does not cut close enough to the ground, 

 and all that is left above ground is lost. The 

 best mode is with the hook, and to strike the 

 stalks at the surface of the ground, and gather 

 the gravel under and beiiind the left arm. The 

 best mode of curing is in water — in a tank for- 

 med similarly to the dry docks on the Erie Ca 

 rial in which the hemp, after it is sufficiently 

 wilted should be submerged ; and when rot- 

 ted, the water must lie drawn off, and the hemp 

 placed in a situation to dry. 

 Cost per acre. 

 1st plowing and harrowing $2,00 



2ud do do • 1,75 



Seeding, brushing, and harrowing 1,00 



2 bushels seed, at $2 - 4,00 

 Cutting and shocking 1 50 

 Transportation to, and placing in tank 4.00 

 Taking out and drying - 4,00 

 Breaking,dressing & fitting for market 4,50 

 Use of land 2 50 

 Use, wear, and tear of tank 1,50 



T»tal $26,75 



The price of hemp i do not know ; — but will 



hazard it at seven cents per pound — being a 



price much lower tha» I ever knew it, whe» I 



was more conversant with the article. Then 



00(1 lbs, at 7 cents is $42.00 



Labor as per aceount 26 75 



Amount of gain pr acre $15.36 



The seed is easily producad— -Take about a 



peck for an acre of strong light land — till the 

 ground well, and you may expect about as 

 much soed as is usually produced of wheat 

 from an acre, say 18 or 20 bushels. The hemp 

 cultivated for 6eed will not produce lint enough 

 to make it worth working for that purpose — 

 neither will year lint crop produce seed in any 

 valuable quantity. 



I do not know of any machines, or machine- 

 ry, in this state, which are used for breaking 

 and dressing hemp previously to its being rot- 

 ted. There are such in existence; but they 

 are said to be of little use Hemp, in its raw 

 state.contains a large quantity ofgluten.which 

 must be destroyed before the fibre is fit for use. 

 The process of rotting destroys this substance, 

 and leaves the fibre soft and pliable. If it be 

 dressed withont rotting, this substanee is re- 

 tained, and the fibre continues harsh, and diffi- 

 cult to manufacture, and the article manufac- 

 tured is said to be less durable. Yours, 



Monroe co. March 26, 1831 B. C N 



FOR THE GENESEE jARMER. 

 BAALEY, 

 Barley, from the prevalence of Temperance 

 Societies, and consequent decreased consump- 

 tion of ardent spirits, is becoming quite a 

 staple of tho country, for the manufacture of 

 malt liquors. 



This crop may be managed so as to be one of 

 the most profitable the farmer can produce, and 

 for which he always has a ready cash market : 

 and yet nothing is more common among far- 

 mers than the idea that there is no profit in 

 raising this crop. Of all crops, perhaps it re- 

 quires the best treatment, but is of all most 

 neglected, or least understood, by the great 

 mass of our farmers. From some years' ex- 

 perience, and a pretty extensive trade in the 

 article, I have never found more than three oi 

 four farmers who had a thorough knowledge 

 of it, and these uniformly get a yield of from 

 forty to sixty bushels per acre. This fact a- 

 lone should be enough to induce our farmers to 

 peruse with attention every thing which will 

 throw any light up.n so important a branch of 

 agriculture. I propose, therefore, in as con- 

 cise a manner as possible, to give publicity to 

 such information as I possess upon this sub- 

 ject, for the benefit of all concerned ; and I 

 may perhaps be allowed to add, without ego 

 tism, that it is founded upon a pretty accurate 

 knowledge of the whole process of barley rai 

 sing, and nature of the material itself. 



The first thing to be attended to by the far- 

 mer is the soil, upon which barley is sown.— 

 Tnis should always be plowed in autumn, and 

 if green sward, much pains should be taken to 

 turn the grass side down in plowing, so that 

 Hie 6od-! may become completely decayed be- 

 fore the ensuing spring. 



The winter frosts operate very favorably up- 

 on finds plowed in the autumn, by way of fer- 

 tilizing and rendering it mellow. This is all- 

 important, as the more the soil is wrought be 

 fore seeding, a good yield may with the more 

 certainty be relied on. 



The reason of this is, that the vital princi- 

 ple in barley may be destroyed in two ways, 

 before the crop gets matured — to wit : By be- 

 ing over wet by rains, or over heated by 

 druught. Now it is plain, if land be proper- 

 ly wrought, the water would leach through, and 

 tlie soil would not hold so maeb water as to 

 become baked and hard by a long drought.— 

 This principle holds good in preparing the soil 

 for the reception of all seeds, though not so 

 indispensable to some as to barley. There is 

 not so much to be really dreaded in a very wet 

 or a very dry season, as some have imagined' 

 f the ground be properly prepared. 



Ground plowed last autumn, wilt probably 

 require no more than another plowing nnd 

 once harrowing to fit it for the seed this spring 

 — bat rn respect to this no general rule can be 



given, save that tiie soil is require-! to be mel- 

 low and light. " Wayne " 



FOR THE GENESEE FARMER. 



To kill two birds with one stone was consid- 

 ered no small atehievement in the days of 

 yore ; and to induce such domestic animals as 

 only grow up for food, to assist in. our labours, 

 is a case strictly analogous. The hog and'the 

 eoosc war unconsciously on the curculio which 

 is eneased in the fallen fruit; but the turkey, 

 the duck, and the hen, take their pills with- 

 out gilding, and destroy [thousands of insect:: 

 round our dwellings, of which we take no nc- 

 ount. 



About six years ago, 1 enclosed my garden, 

 and the poultry were entirely excluded. Tire 

 increase ef insects was soon very perceptible. 

 The lurnep-fly.(called the ground flee from its 

 jumping)became so numerous that the wall flo- 

 wer and the stock gillyflower were disfigured; 

 turnips were generally attacked and destroyed 

 as soon as the young plants appeared ; and it 

 was only by daily attention that transplanted 

 cabbages were preserved from destruction. — 

 Towards the close of caoli summer, grasshop- 

 pers appeared in formidable numbers ; the 

 rays of the China Astet were literally shorn ; 

 and oilier flowering plants were deprived of 

 their beauty. Even the wood louse took pos- 

 session of the covered borders ; and to their 

 repeated irritations, I ascribe the loss of seve- 

 ral rare plant*. 



I was advised to turn in my poultry ; but I 

 found that turkeys ate the grapes ; and the 

 hens were too fond of scratching to be trust- 

 ed. At length W. H. A. of Lyons, gave me a 

 plan which has proved eminently successful. 

 As soon as the chickens had left the nest, the 

 hen was confined under a coop in the garden, 

 while her brood spread themselves in every 

 direction, in search of insects. Their light 

 tread injured nothing, and their activity sur- 

 prised and delighted me. Every plant within 

 several rods of the ooop,was examined and re- 

 examined ; and not a bug, nor a fly, nor a worm, 

 nor a caterpillar could show itself with impu- 

 nity. 



1 amused myself with calculating the amount 

 of their services ; exactness was not expect- 

 ed, but supposing each little bill to strike a 

 thousand times in a day, though sometimes 

 missing, the destruction must have been great 

 —at least the result was great. The cab- 

 bages stood nearly undisturbed; and for the 

 first time in the garden, I raised turnips enough 

 for family use. The grasshoppers were cha- 

 sed, and greatly diminished in number; the 

 wood lice were cleared from the borders. 



Should this happen to meet the eye of W. 

 H. A. by whose advice I h-ve been so success- 

 ful, he may judge with how much cordiality I 

 thank bun. D. T. 



FOR THE OENESEE FARMER. 



While perusing the last number of the New 

 York Farmer, my attention was attracted to an 

 article by a scientific farmer upon fattening 

 hogs on boiled food. The writer states that 

 he has practised cooking or boiling the food 

 for his hogs, while fattening, for thirty years, 

 and thinks thai ho has produced at least as 

 much pork, with one half the quantity of corn 

 used by his neighbors, who feed raw and in the 

 ear. Mr. Buel, in his report to the Albany 

 County Agricultural Society, for 1880, [see N. 

 Y. F. for Dec] makes same remarks upon this 

 subject. He says that two bushels of corn, 

 "round and boiled, will make more pork than 

 three bushels fed in the ordinary way ; and 

 adds— Who has not observed that an animal, 

 whether hog, ox, or horse, fed high with dry 

 cnrii or other grain, voids a portion of it in a 

 half digested, and often in a sound undecoin 

 posed state. These hints (if they may be so 

 ailed) are well woith tho attention of some 

 of our western farmers. 



