1853. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



455 



I presume about as much more is used in the ad- 

 joining tanneries of Salem. This spent bark, is 

 now dried and housed, and used in the Steam Mills, 

 for the grinding ot bark. For this purpose, when 

 dry, it is valued at about one dollar a cord. "S'ery 

 truly yours, r- 



Danvers, Aug. 20th, 1853. 



Note. — Almost every farmer I meet, speaks of 

 the decay of his potatoes. The fond hopes in- 

 dulged the last year, that the disorder had passed 

 its climax, I fear, rest on a slippery foundation. 

 Let us have the foots; from these alone, can the 

 true cause be learned. 



Remarks. — We should be glad to say something 

 in relation to the use of tan, the potato crop, &c., 

 but the pressure of other duties, at present, pre- 

 vents. From personal observation, we can speak 

 of the beautifully cultivated fields of Gen. Sctton, 

 and say that a visit to his workshop, and the room 

 for the storage of his Farm Implements, the sheds 

 for his carts, wagons, &c., will richly repay any 

 farmer for a travel of twenty miles. This part of 

 his farm husbandry excels anything of the kind we 

 have ever seen, in any State. We received sever- 

 al lessons there which have already had an influ- 

 ence on our own premises. 



For the New England Farmer. 



LIME FROM GAS WORKS AND MUCK. 



Mr. Brown : — I see inquiries from your corres- 

 pondents concerning the value of gas lime, and 

 its efficiency in decomposing peat muck, &c. I 

 send you herewi'^.h an analysis of the gas lime from 

 it. It was made for E. B. Brown, Esq. , of Stoning- 

 ton, Ct., by Dr. Chilton, of New York. 



Caustic lime 43.34 



Carbonate of lime 30.15 



Water 16.03 



Phosphate of lime 1.00 



Sulphate of lime 1.12 



llviho Sulphate of lime 2.14 



Stilphatc and Hydro Sulphate of lime 3.94 



Trace of iron and oily matter 2.11 



Loss 20 



100.00 



It will be seen by this analysis that 43 per cent. 

 of this lime is in a caustic state, and must act as 



f)0werfully upon vegetable fibre as any fresh burnt 

 ime. The thirty per cent, of carbonate of lime 

 is as good as any other slacked lime. It is what 

 all our granite soils, that have a fair proportion of 

 organic matter in them, need. The one per cent, 

 of phosphate of lime and the 1.12 per cent, of 

 sulphate, or plaster of paris, are well known to be 

 valuable on almost all soils. The next three con- 

 stituents are probably of some value. The iron 

 enters in small quantities into most vegetable 

 products. The precise nature of this oily matter 

 is not revealed by the analysis. But if the coal 

 contains ammonia, it is probably to be looked for 

 in this constituent of the gas lime. 



Twenty-five cents a barrel is much higher than 

 the market price of the article in New York. There 

 it is put on board the vessel at one and a half cents 

 per bushel. It was sold last year at two cents a 

 bushel. The accumulation of the article upon the 

 hands of the Gas Company has probably caused 



this fall in the price. Mr. Brown procured a 

 thousand bushels for decomposing muck, and it 

 succeeds so well that he is enlarging his opera- 

 tions. For this purpose, or for spreading upon the 

 surface of reclaimed swamps, it is perhaps the 

 cheapest source of lime at the New York price. 

 At 25 cents a barrel, it is a question if it is not 

 dearer than oyster shell lime, fresh burnt, which 

 can be procured in the neighborhood of most of 

 our cities at from five to seven cents per bushel. 

 Your correspondents can safely go ahead with the 

 gas lime and muck. 



As muck and marsh mud are coming into fashion, 

 your readers will be interested in the following 

 analysis : — 



Analysis of Peat Muck on E. B. Brown's farm, 

 by Prof. JVorton. 



Lime 4.5 



Magnesia 17 



Alkaline salts 31 , 



Alumina, iron and phosphoric acid 2.06 



Soluble Silica 13 



Insoluble matter, sand, &,c .58.71 



Organic matter 37.48 



Loss 69 



100.00 



Analysis of Marsh Mud made for Col. E. TV. Sea- 

 brook, of Edisto Island, S. Carolina, by 

 Prof. C. U. Shepard. 



Water 1966 



Organic matter 3.50 



Silica 67.50 



Carbonate of iron 4.75 



Alumina 1-50 



Carbonate of lime and magnesia 1.64 



Phosphate of lime and do trace. 



Chloride of Sodium 0.45 



Chloiide of potassium O.Ol 



Chloride of magnesium f'.OS 



Sulphate oflime and magnesia 0.05 



Loss 99 



100.00 



W. Clift. 

 Sionington, Ct., Aug. 14, 1853. 



TURNIPS. 



Turnips may remain in the field till late. They 

 ar*far less injured by frost than many are inclined 

 to believe. It is very often the case that turnips 

 are frozen into the ground, and on the frosts break- 

 ing up again in the course of a few days, are re- 

 moved as hard and cri^p as before. The action of 

 the soil neutralizes its efiects, and sometimes a 

 succession of several weeks of warm weather, after 

 a freezing night, adds as much to the weight and 

 value of the crop as they gained in twice the time 

 before the advent of severe cold. A low tempera- 

 ture is favorable rather than adverse to the devel- 

 opment of all the species of the turnip tribe. Cabba- 

 ges grow rapidly in cold weather ; hence the prac- 

 tice so prevalent at present of allowing them to re- 

 main out till snow falls. In packing turnips of all 

 kinds, care should be taken to secure them effect- 

 ually against the light and air. The more per- 

 fectly this is accomplished, the greater will be the 

 certainty of their keeping well, and the more whole- 

 some and nutritive will they be found, both for 

 stock and for table use. 



