mmm< 



VOLUME I. 



ROCHESTER, Al GUST 27, 1831. 



MMBU' 34. 



FCBLISHED BY L,. Tl'CKEK & CO. 

 At ine Office of the Daily Advertiser. 



Terms— §0.50 per annum, pr 



$0,00 if paid in advance. 



N. GOODSEI.L. EDITOR. 



WHITE OAK TIMBER. 



If we were to judge from Uie waste of this arti- 

 cle at this time, in the district of Old Genesee, we 

 should conclude that the worth of it was not well 

 understood. Amongst all our timber trees none 

 ire more extensively useful than the white oak. 

 From the vast forests of it, which once covered 

 much of the country on the south side of Lake On- 

 tario, the early settlers, previous to completion of 

 roads and canals, learned to consider a large oak 

 tree rather as a drawback upon the worth of their 

 land than otherwise. After the close of the war, 

 .some speculations were entered into by the citi- 

 zens of the United States, for sending oak timber 

 to Montreal and Quebec markets. But the fluctu- 

 ations attending foreign markets were felt in this 

 case, and in many instances serious losses were 

 sustained. The merchants from Montreal and 

 Quebec, as they became more acquainted 

 with the business, learned the costs of getting the 

 timber from the states to these markets anu° regu- 

 lated the prices accordingly. As the business be- 

 came better understood on both sides, the prices 

 liar e continued such as to keep up a trade without 

 creating a great competition and of course we 

 hear little said about it. At the first opening of 

 •die canal, a rush was also made for the New- 

 York market ; the consequence was, more oak 

 timber was sent than the market required ; litis 

 had the effect to reduce the prices below their pro- 

 per level. The same thing took place in regard 

 to staves and many of the fierce speculators had 

 their zeal abated by the loss of a few thousands 

 of dollars. 



The first excitement in these speculations hav- 

 ing passed, the subject has been almost forgotten ■ 

 prices have been gaining moderately until they 

 have reached that height that warrants a fair com- 

 pensation for labor, after paying something hand- 

 some for the timber standing. The probability 

 is that there will be sent to the New-York mar- 

 ket, from this village, the present season, oak 

 plank to the amount of $50,000 and the average 

 price may be calculated at about $35 per thou- 

 sand board measure. The cost of transporting it 

 to that market may be put down at $12 per thou- 

 sand ; the cost of getting the logs to the mdl and 

 sawing $8 leaving $15 per M. for the timber 

 standing. Now every farmer knows that it does not 

 require a very large tree to make a thousand feet 

 of boards, consequently such an oak tree is worth 

 $15. This we consider a fair calculation, and 

 that every oak tree is worth that either in ready 

 cash, or the prospects are such for the increase in 

 value that they may be considered epual to so 

 much atinterest. Now we think this is sufficient to 

 induce our good farmers is be more carefid of their 

 oak trees and they should bear in mind that sev- 

 eral hundred years would be required to raise 

 trees from acorns as large as some now to be 

 found in our forests. 



England wants and must have oak timber for 

 '.lie support of her navy, and at tins time there is 



not perhaps any^section of country from which 

 timber of the same quality can be sent to the Eng- 

 lish market so cheap as from the south side of 

 lake Ontario. They have a limited quantity up- 

 on the Ottowa, and more at the head of the lake 

 on the north side of lake Erie, but these countries 

 will soon be drained, and they are the only ones 

 to compete with Old Genesee, for the northern 

 market. 



Our own ship yards at New- York, and along 

 the sea board must also be supplied with oak 

 plank, and at present we believe they are furnish- 

 ed principally from the Erie canal. Our flouring 

 mills, many of which are located along the ca- 

 nal and the contiguous waters, require a constant 

 supply of staves for flour barrels, and oak is pref- 

 erable to any other timber for them. The slaugh 

 tering houses in the western part of the state, 

 which are located similar to the flouring mills, 

 will require yearly an amount of staves corres- 

 ponding with the surplus produce of the country 

 which appears to be increasing ; these several re- 

 quisitions, when added to the quantity necessary for 

 domestic use, will readily be acknowledged to be 

 far beyond the yearly growth of the same timber 

 in our country. Allowing this position to be 

 correct then it follows that the worth of oak tim 

 ber will be constantly increasing until it shall 

 reach a level with the same article in other coun- 

 tries. 



But a few years since, 100 oak trees were sold 

 from one estate in England at 2100 each or $444 

 44. We are aware that many of our readers will 

 think this a great price, but if they will be at a 

 little trouble to ascertain the worth of oak timber 

 in that country, they will readdy perceive that 

 trees of far less size than ours would command 

 that price. If such is the price of oak timber a- 

 broad, common frugality would recommend that 

 we should be more careful of our trees, and not al- 

 low them to be wasted because we have more 

 than is wanted for the present use. 



INCISIONS IN FRUIT TREES. 

 It is a very common thing to see upon the 

 trunks of fruit trees long scars of incisions which 

 have been made in the bark by the owner with a 

 knife. We have often inquired the reason for do- 

 ing it, and have been informed that trees have be- 

 come bark-bound, which was very similar to what 

 sometimes happened to cattle when they become 

 hide-bound, and by cutting through the bark in 

 the manner mentioned, the trees had room to ex- 

 pand, and the effect was they grew much faster, 

 Now we acknowledge in many things there is a 

 striking similarity between plants and animals, 

 and it is now as common to speak of the food of 

 plants as of animals although the former is sup 

 posed to be taken in by the roots while the latter 

 is received by the mouth, yet the increase or dim- 

 inution of either is supposed to affect the growth 

 of the subject. We would inquire of those peo- 

 ple who practise making incisions in the bark of 

 young trees whether they have ever tried the ex- 

 periment of making longitudinal incisions through 

 the skin of their animals, in order to make them 

 grow faster? If so, and they have found it a more 

 ready way of increasing their size than feeding 

 them, then we vtotfld reconrmTOd them to contin 



ue cutting their trees, but if on the contrary they 

 have found that increasing the quantity of food 

 given them was the proper way to increase their 

 size we would recommend the same for trees, be 

 lieving as we do that the cutting of either would 

 be detrimental. 



FLORAL CALENDAR. 



In Silliman's Journal vol. 17th, page 369, wc 

 find observations on the floweringof plants, ri- 

 pening of fruits, &c. made by Dr. S. P. Hildreth, 

 of Marietta, (Ohio) in 1829. 



As we commenced similar observations in the 

 Genesee Fanner, during the month of March, un- 

 der the head of Floral Calendar, in which there 

 has been several omissions, yet from what has 

 appeared, we are able to make comparisons of 

 the climate at the two places with more accuracy 

 than we otherwise could. We select the most im- 

 portant parts from eitherobservations and give them 

 in forms most convenient for comparisons. 



Editor's observations at 



Dr. Hild rein's observations 



ai Marietta. 



MARCH. 



25th, Blue birds seen. 



2Sth Honey bees at work 

 loaded with farina. 

 APUtfL. 



7th Hiruudo or Martin 

 Swallow 



11th, Daffodil in bloom 



I™, Peach tree nearly in 

 blow; some eurly ones open 



19, Crown imperial tiud 

 Hyacinth in bloom 



■JO, Acer Sacchariuus pnt 

 tin* forth: flowering AI 

 inond and sanguiuaria can 

 tdeusis. 



'22, Viola dens Canis and 

 wood Animone.Hirundo rus 

 tica seen 



23, Peach in full bloom. 



24 Spice bush and Lau 

 ■■us sassafras. 



28 Birthwort, Harebell 

 aud cherry 



MAY. 



1st, Pear trees in bloon 

 Oxhart cherry and Greer 

 gage plum 



2, Indian corn planting 

 generally commenced. 



3, White narcissus 

 ■1, Apple tree in full 



bloom. 



6, garden tulip opening 



7, Cornus florida. 

 21, Peony and Snow ball. 

 30, White Rose. 



JUNE. 

 1st. Liriodendron in bloom 

 3 Dyosporus virg. or Per- 

 siinoo. 



Pear tit for the table. 

 5, Wheat in head or bloom. 



6, Service berrv ripe. 



7, Yellow Celsi'a. 



8, Mulberry ripe 



9, Digitalis purpuria- 

 11, White and orange lily 

 IS, Catalpa tree. 

 19, Red cherry ripe. 

 21, Raspberry ripe 

 22 Earlv cucumbers lit for 



table- 



30. Asclcpias tubcrosa in 

 bloom. 



Rochester. 

 MARCH. 

 24th, Blue birds, robins 

 and wild pigeons made 

 their appearance. Crocus 

 and red maple in flower. 

 APItlL. 

 9, The liver leaf and 

 spring beauty are in full 

 bloom. 



The filbert and poplar in 

 flower. 



19, Dogtooth violet fvio* 

 la oens cams Leatherwood, 

 Blood root. (Sancuinariu. 

 canadensis Daffodils ond 

 Hyacinths in full flower. 



24 Martin birds made 

 their appearance. Apricots 

 begin to bloom, spice busk 

 in full flower- The obser- 

 vations under 24lh weto 

 not published but are ta- 

 kon from tho editor's meni- 

 orandas. 



MAY. 



By neglect the calendar 



wasoraitted from tho I9lh 



of April to the I Jlh of May. 



15, Tulips, Shad flower 



and crowfoot in flower. 



25, Dogwood (cornus flo- 

 r'uls) Lilacs, both while and 

 purple, mountain ash and 

 Quince iu flower. 

 JUNE. 

 1st, The common Locust 

 tree, Snow ball, Mock or- 

 ange or syringe, Black Wal- 

 nut nnd I'm term. t, with ina- 

 u;- kinds of It oses in bloom 

 7, Roses, Lilies, pinlts 

 aud Grapes are now in full 

 bloom in the Gardens, 

 and in the woods theChes- 

 uutisnow coming into flow- 

 Early strawberries be- 

 gin to ripen their fruit 



This day green peas, po. 

 tatoes of full si^e and cab- 

 bage heads were offered in 

 our market. 



24, The White woodfLi- 

 riodendron lulipifera) is 

 now in full flower The 

 common milkweeds ofdif- 

 'fereut varieties are uow 

 mostly iu flower ; the or- 

 angeeolored fAsctepias tu- 

 bcrosa) isipjilcfragant aud 

 ornanieutul. 



By the foregoing, it appears that there is. ;> 

 greater similarity in the time of flowering of ma 

 ny plants at the different places mentioned than 

 was even anticipated by us, with all our prejudi 

 ces in favor of our section of country. There i: 

 a little variation in the time of some plants which 

 may have arisen on either side from the flower;? 

 mentioned not having been seen as soon as out. 



