1847. 



GENESEE FARMER. 



59 



is most unfortunately extirpated from some plant- 

 ations. It is truly worthless as a bearer^ but in- 

 valuable as ^.fertilizer, in the economy of nature. 

 The letter b represents a female blossom, or 



W'^yy 



pistillate llovver, which is the part gathered for 

 market. In Kent, (England,) where attention 

 was first called to the dioecious character of the 

 hop, Mr. Rham says : "A bushel of hops col- 

 lected the fourth year from the seed, male plants 

 being near, weighed 36 pounds. Those grown 

 from cuttings under similar circumstances weigh- 

 ed 35 pounds ; while a bushel grown in a gar- 

 den where the male plants were carefully extir- 

 pated, weighed only '22 pounds." Other exper- 

 iments show that while the loss in weight exceeds 

 50 per cent., the loss in quantity is still larger 

 by neglecting to provide staminate plants. One 

 male to forty or fifty female plants is a fair pro- 

 portion. The absence of staminate hops prevents 

 the blossoms gathered for use from bearing seed; 

 one of which should grow at the base of each 

 petal, or flower leaf. A blasted clover blossom 

 is very light, and nearly worthless without seed. 

 So, too, is a hop blossom, and poor in bitter lu- 

 pulin. In Flanders, great use is made of night 

 soil in the culture of this crop, and it is said with 

 signal success, owing to the large amount of ni- 

 trogen it consumes, under the most favorable cir- 

 cumstances. 



The chemical properties of the yellow dust 

 {lupullii) of the pistillate blossoms [stroholi) de- 

 serve to be studied. But we will let that pass, 

 and amuse the general reader, contrary to our 

 sober, working habit, with a few historical ref- 

 erences apropos to our subject. 



Speaking of the dicecious, date-bearing palm 

 tree, Pliny says : "If the male tree be cut down, 

 his wives will afterwards become barren, and 

 bear no more dates, as if they were widows.''' — 



Another author remarks : " It is the practice ofj and make it coufprehend the laws of nature which 

 the orientals in war, to cut down the male dale j control the results of rural industry, 

 trees of their enemies, which often produces 



blossoms of the male tree which was flowering at 

 Leipsic sent them by post, they obtained fruit 

 by these means ; and some dates, the offspring of 

 this impregnation, being planted in my garden, 

 sprang up, and to this day continue to grow vig- 

 orously.' M. GeolTrey cites a story from Jovi- 

 cus Pontanus, who relates that in his time there 

 were two palm trees, the one a male, the other 

 a female, in the woods of Otranto, fifteen leagues 

 apart; that this latter was several years without 

 bearing any fruit, till at length rising above the 

 other trees of the forest, 'so as it might see' (says 

 tlie poet) 'the male palm tree at Brindisi, it then 

 began to bear fruit in abundance.' M. Geofli-ey 

 makes no doubt but that the tree then only began 

 to bear fruit, because it was in a condition to 

 catch on its branches the farina of the male, 

 brought thither by the wind." 



According to the census of 1840, there was 

 grown in the United States the year previous 

 1,238,502 pounds of hops, of which more than 

 one third was raised in this State. The yield 

 per acre is exceedingly variable, and, crop of 

 course quite uncertain. In looking over Eng- 

 lish journals we find that 44,485 acres of hops in 

 1844 gave an average of 6 cwt. 2 qrs. 3 lbs. per 

 acre. The excise duty on tliis crop exceeded 

 £140,322. In 1845, 48,0.58 acres gave an av- 

 erage of 6 cwt. 3 qrs. 6 lbs. per acre; yielding 

 £158,008 revenue. In New York, crops vary 

 from nothing up to 2000 lbs. per acre. 



We shall take another time to describe the best 

 method of drying hops, and prepai'ing them for 

 market. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN AGRICUL- 

 TURAL ASSOCLVTION. Tart L 



We find a copy of this quarto publication on 

 our table, for which we suspect we are indebted 

 to Andreav H. Green, Esq., of New York, 

 Corresponding Secretary of the Association. 



The Transactions contain several valuable pa- 

 pers : one from Dr. Gardner, author of the 

 Farmer's Dictionary, "on the Chemical Princi- 

 ples of the Rotation of Crops" ; another on the 

 "Culture of Hops," by the Corresponding Sec- 

 retary ; others from Messrs. Pell and Clark, 

 on Manures and the Preservation of Timber. — 

 This Association numbers many gentlemen of 

 science and distinction among its members. — 

 Hon. Luther Bradish is President. They are 

 doing good service to th°ir country and their 

 ace, in laboring to enlighten the popular mind, 



famine, for the female trees yield no fruit after 



the death of the other sex." — "Linnreus, in his 



Dissertation on the Sexes of Plants,' speaking 



The Farmer's life is shunned by many be- 

 cause it seems one of mindless drudgery. If our 

 farmers would studv and reflect more, they might 



of the date tree, says: 'A female date-bearing do less hard labor, and yet accomplish more in 

 palm flowered many years at Berlin, without | the course of a year. Ten hours work in sum- 

 producing any seeds ; but in the year 1749 the j mer, and eight in winter, ouj^ht, with good man- 

 Berlin people, taking care to have some of the i agement, to give any man a good living. 



