1850. 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



87 



;2ln0mi:r0 to InqoirUs. 



APPLICATION OF BONES AS A MANUKE. 



Db. Lee : — As 1 have been a constant reader of various 

 agricultural journals, for seven or eight years, my attention 

 has been attracted by frequent notices of the great utility of 

 bones, in difl'erent conditions, as fertilizers , and being now 

 in a situation to procure them, I \\isb to inquire of you, 

 what is the most economical and effective manner of apply- 

 ing them, it seems that the method of reducing them now 

 generally used, is by means of sulphuric acid ; and a I*rof. 

 Way, of England, I believe, recommends the addition of 

 equal weights of acid ond common salt. On this I should 

 like to have your opinion, as well as on the following 

 points, viz : 



1. For corn, on a clay loam, would leached ashes, char- 

 coal waste, or both, be best to dry the bones with, after so- 

 lution ? 2. What is the best mode of application for corn 

 or root crops, to drop it with the seed, or to cover the seed 

 and apply immediately over it, or wait until the corn, car- 

 rots, &c.. appear above ground? 3. Will the mixture be 

 injured by lying in a heap a month or more ? And lastly, 

 how much is required per acre for corn ? 



An answer to the above questions, in season for the com- 

 ing spring, will be very thankfully recci\ed. 



Aly father purchased the farm that we occupy, in the 

 spring of 1848. It consists mostly of n clay loam, on a slifl' 

 clay subsoil, and is underlaid by a species of limestone. 

 Some boulders, of the same kind, also lie on the surface. 

 The farm has been " skinned," pretty thoroughly; but we, 

 being " book farmers," expect to increase its fertility some- 

 what before long, by means of deep plowing, turning under 

 clover and buckwheat, by raising spring crops and manur- 

 ing them well, to be followed by wheat : and, lastly, by 

 keeping the ground always covered, as far as possible. The 

 good effects of which mode of culture are apparent already. 

 We are also trying to get up a " Farmers' Club," and to ob- 

 tain some subscribers to your paper, which we get through 

 your agent, Mr Reeo, at Lockpnrt. 



But as your lime is precious, I will not tax you further 

 at present. J. Breading Trevor. — Lorkpoi-t, Feb'y, 1850. 



"Leached ashes and coal waste" will be useful on 

 cla)' loam, for corn or any other crop. These fertili- 

 zers being mild in character, they should be applied 

 to corn land in quantities sufficient to spread over 

 the whole ground, and be incorporated with the soil 

 by the plow, harrow and hoe. This should be done, 

 i. p., the ashes should be applied before planting. 

 Unleachod ashes are most economically used by add- 

 ing one bushel of salt, one half do. plaster, with two 

 of ashes, and adding the mi.xture to the soil as a top 

 dressing for each hill, after the first hoeing or weed- 

 ing; taking care not to have the salt and a.shes come 

 in contact with the young plants. One or two oun- 

 ces, or such a matter, spread over the roots of each 

 hill will be of essential service to the crop. 



Leached ashes and rotting manure, mixed in a 

 compost heap, improve each other — the carbonic 

 acid eliminated from the dung, or decaying organic 

 matter, will render the potiish, soda and lime salts 

 (silicates) in the ashes soluble, while the alkalies 

 named will aid in forming salt-petre. (See account 

 of artificial nitre beds, in Johnston's Chemistry.) 



The only objection to the use of sulphuric acid fir 

 dissolving bones is the expense of the article. To 

 avoid this, we have preferred to break up bones with 

 an old a.xe, pretty fine, and boil them to a powder in 

 strong ley. To this compound we add a little salt 

 and gypsum. It may then be mixed with a little 

 fine dry loam and distributed with a drilling machine 

 over seeds of corn, carrots, be.ets, or other plants. 

 The compound is too caustic to be placed in contact 

 with tender germs. It is a powerful fertilizer. As 

 to quantity per aero, every man's judgment, means, 

 quantity of land, Sic., must decide that question. 



HEMLOCK LANDS. 



Although not a farmer myself at present, (a physician,) I 

 was brought up on a farm, and now feel a deep interest in 

 the scientific cultivation of the soil. I have been in contact 

 with your paper for the last year, and I must say I am en- 

 tirely satisfied with the general and practical principles 

 therein inculcated. One thing, I hope you will as far and 

 as often as possible observe, to give all the instruction you 

 may obtain in relation to the cultivation of the soil of hem- 

 lock land. This is too much neglected in our agrimltvral 

 papers. And as our soil in this section of Steuben is mostly 

 "^hemlock," I hope that your own remarks, as well as those 

 of your practical correspondents, may be directed occasion- 

 ally for our benefit. Yours, &<:., Thos. Shannon. — Or- 

 ange, N. Y., Feb., 18.50. 



As a general thing, soils on which hemlock grows 

 lack lime. Draining, liming and turning in clover, 

 (the growth of which is greatly promoted by gypsum,) 

 will improve all lands of the character which usually 

 produce much hemlock. They are sometimes fair 

 wheat soils, but commonly better adapted to grazing 

 'than to grain culture. By seeding liberally, and 

 manuring, a good return in dairy products, wool, and 

 neat stock, may be realized from soils not naturally 

 fertile. In some countries and districts hemlock 

 grows on very superior land, which will bear fine 

 crops of all kinds adapted to the climate. No land 

 that produces large forest trees can be very poor. 

 With good management it will bring great crops of 

 grass that can readily be transformed into gold. 



WHEAT FLY OR WEEVIL. 



A correspondent, of Crawford co., Ohio, commu- 

 nicates the following intelligence : 



The wheat w eevil has commenced its ravages in thi.'; sec- 

 tion of the country. The first that I saw of them was in 

 184f). The)' have been increasing steaddy every year since. 

 Last harvest they destroyed the greater part of the late sown 

 wheat. Will they continue to increase as they did in St. 

 Lawrence co. and that part of Canada opposite there, until 

 they take nil the winter wlwnt ? I believe they will. What 

 is your opinion on this subject? S. P. Jaquith. 



Is the insect spoken af a littlf bug, like that in 

 peas, or a fly with wings, when it comes out of the 

 seeds f We suppose it to be the jvhcat Jiy, and not 

 a weevil at all. This insect deposits its eggs when 

 the seed is forming, which hatches out after harvest 

 in Western New-York, and is often seen in thou- 

 sands when cleaning wheat, and sometimes later. 

 The Hessian fly is a different insect. The only rem- 

 edy for this pest, known to us, is to seed out of season 

 — either quite early or very late in autumn. It is 

 impossible to predict what will be the abundance or 

 scarcity of this class of animals, at any future period. 



INSECTS ON THE ROOTS OF CORN. 



A correspondent writes at the close of a business 

 letter as follows : 



I have been hoping to see .something said in the Farmer, 

 relative to the louse that is .so destructive to corn, in Ken- 

 tucky. The roots of the young plants are attacked by them 

 and its growth paralyzed. They attach themselves to the 

 roots in great quantities and the plant becomes hard, and 

 the growth stationary, and many farms do not yield half 

 crops, when infested by them. 



Any thing that would remedy this evil will be of immense 

 value in Kentucky, if it is attainable. I would like very 

 much to hear from some of your nnmerotig readers on this 

 subject. Your.^, with due respect. Z. K. Huggins. 



We suspect that the depredator is an aphis — perhaps 

 the same that sometimes attacks the cotton plant. If 

 any reader has any knowledge on this subject he will 

 serve the cause of agriculture by communicating his 

 information to the public through this journal. 



