172 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



July 



(!:L)itor'0 ulablc. 



t 



Gtpsi'm a'd Dew.— a correspondent who writes over the gifina- 

 ture of '-Green Farmer," had a few remarks in our last number on 

 the supposed power of gypgum to condense vapor diffused through 

 the atmosphere into dew. which deserve a word or two of com- 

 ment. He says, '• In my opinion this property of retaining mois- 

 ture is the main cause of the astonishing effect gypsum has on 

 plants. 1 have seen on a dry sunny day, when the dew on unplas- 

 tered clover has been evaporated for hours, where gypsum has been 

 sown the dew on the leaves collected in globular balls ; and hence 

 the thought struck me that gypsum had an agen y in forming 

 these balls of water, and in doing so. it might have formed a thin 

 transparent shell, not perceptible to the naked eye, to preserve 

 them from speedy evaporation by solar heat."' 



This conjecture about a '• thin transparent shell" ot gypsum, or 

 any other substance, is not well-founded. It is one of the natural 

 effects of luxuriant vegetation, which gypsum promotes, to cool 

 the surrounding atmosphere and thereby couJen.se an uncom- 

 monly large amount of water in dew. which when collected in good 

 sired drops, is slow in evaporating. These drops evaporate only in 

 proportion to their surface ; and if one was spread over ton times 

 the area the liquid would disappear, or be taken up by the atmos- 

 phere, in one-tenth of the time. If a globule of dew vvas as large 

 as a hen's egg, it would often last from morning till night. It is 

 the clover that causes the excess ol dew, and the gypsum the ex- 

 cess of clover. 



Graziso in Tennessee.— a gentleman writes us from Tennessee, 

 who is settled in one ol the beautiful valleys in the eastern part of 

 the State, that he makes a business of rearing three year old steers 

 and heifers at six dollars a head, and finds it profitable. A friend 

 who is engaged in stock-growing in the Cherokee country, tipper 

 Georgia, has engaged all the Devon calves from the celebrated 

 herd of Gcorce Patterson, Esq., Maryland, for two years, at jjlOO 

 a head when' six months old. A half dozen young men (married 

 of course) might, by uniting their means, talent and industry, re- 

 alize fortunes by stock-growing and the dairy business, in the ele- 

 vated 1 ortions of A'irginia, or in any of the States south of it. 

 Good butter is worth, this Olh day of June, 30 cts. a pound in the 

 city of Washington, and fine Iambs sell at $2.00 and $.2 50 a head. 

 Mules and horses are too high to name. By taking ten mules in 

 a lot, a friend was able to get Ihcm for $1S00. The dams which 

 bore and nursed these mules, more than paid their way in farm 

 work. We venture to suggest a company to carry on the busi- 

 ness indioated, because it needs considerable capital to start with, 

 and the benefit of good society in the families of persons reared 

 from childhood in the same section, and with congenial view.-, and 

 feelings, is an object of great importance. There are richer mines 

 in the Atlantic States than any in California. 



New Ar.nicfLTrRAL JouRNALf — Several new monthly agricultu- 

 ral journals have entered the field the present year, showing a de- 

 mand for reading on this subject. 



The Ohio^lgricvUuHii, published at Tiffin, O., by Dr. Sprague. 

 Price $1.00 per annum. 



The Pennsylvania Farm Journal, edited by S. S. Haldeman, 

 Lancaster, I'a. Price $1.00. 



The Soil oj i\t South, published at Columbus, Ga. Price $1.00. 



The U'e<:tern Jlgi-iciilturist, edited by W. W. Mather, Colum- 

 bus. Ohio. Price $100. 



These Jourusils "l bid fair to be useful, and we hope they will be 

 Well sustained, as they certainly deserve to be. 



A Hint toMeat-Makefs.— Bring all young animals intended for 

 the butcher rapidly forward in flesh, and sell them early. Far- 

 mers in Gloucestsbire. England, rear lambs that weigh from 

 twenty to thirty pounils per quarter, when from thirteen to 

 fifteen months old. and, of course, they fetch a high price The 

 same rule holds good in pigs, steers, and heifers. Calculate what 

 they consume every week and what they gain in fle»h and value. 

 The Cotswold and improved Leicester sheep above alluded to. 

 which grow so rapidly, are in great dvmand in all parts of England 

 and Ireland for crossing with other breeds. 



Correction.— On page 1.30. in the first column, the important 

 word not is omitted in the June number of this joiimal in the fol- 

 lowing sentence : ' Every observing farmer knows that any givec 

 quantity of manure doej produce equal results on all fields." 

 Kc&d, '■ does not produce equal results." 



Improvement in Maryland. — A gentlemen writing from Cecil co., 

 Md , gives us the following gratifying intelligence : 'I have just 

 returned from a visit on the lower part of the eastern shore of this 

 St.ate, some fifty to seventy miles south of this place, and find there 

 is quite a spirit of improvement getting among the farmers there. 

 They are reducing the size of their farms from 500 to LOO and 300 

 acres, and are also employing fewer slaves and more white laborers. 

 The change is principally brought about by the labors of-Ur. Hio- 

 f)i.N5, the ytate Agricultural Chemist, who has been analysing the 

 soils and lecturing through the different counties of this shore." 



The next State Fair. — The President and Executive Commit- 

 tee of the State Society, aided by the citizens of Rochester, are 

 consummating their arrangements for the next State Fair, as 

 speedily as possible. We have an idea that Western New York 

 will do herself credit ; and we wish our friends, in making their 

 arrangements for the season, always to bear in mind the Great 

 State Fair to be held at llcchcster, Sept. 16. 17, IS, and 19. 



To Correspondents. — We are often renties ted to return commu- 

 nications if not accepted, and sometimes to return the manuscript 

 after copying. This we cannot do. If correspondents wish to 

 preserve manuscript copies of their articles, they must make their 

 own copies 



Advertisements to secure insertion in the Farmer, must be re- 

 ceived as early as the 10th of the previous month, and be of such 

 a character as to be of interest to the f^-mers. We publish no 

 other. Terms— $2.00 for every hundred words, each insertion, 

 paid in advance. 



Subscribers from Jult. — Quite a goodly number have accepted 

 of our offer to take subscribers for the last half of the present year, 

 commencing with our July number, at one-half our usual ralis 

 for the volume. We can supply many more. 



Hints for Jult.— Hoe and plaster corn, set cabbages, and get 

 everything out of the way preparatory to the great battle with the 

 grass and grain. See that forks, scythes, &c., are in order. Cut 

 wheat before it is quite ripe, better a little too early than too late. 

 The following is Prof. Norton's opinion : 



'• The time of cutting grain very sensibly affects the proportion 

 of fine flour and bran yielded by samples of it. Careful experi- 

 ments have shown, with regard to wheat, that when cut fiora lu to 

 14 days before it is fully ripe, the grain net only weighs heavier, 

 but measures more ; it is positively better in quality, producing a 

 larger proportion of fine flour to the bushel. When the grain is 

 in the milk, there is but little woody fibre ; nearly everything is 

 starch, gluten, sugar, etc , with a large per centage of water. If 

 cut 10 or 12 days before full ripeness, the stock of woody fibre is 

 still small ; but as the grain ripens, the thickness of the skin rap- 

 idly increases, woody fibre being formed at the cxpensi^ of the 

 starch and sugar ; these mu.-;t obviously diminish in a correspon- 

 ding degree the quality of the grain being of course injured. '1 ho 

 samo thing is true as to all of the other grains." 



Buckvtheat shou'd be sown early this month, say three pecks 

 to the acre ; and round turnips the last of this mouth. 



A 



PROUTV & MF,ARS' CELEBRATED PREMIUM CENT'iR 

 DR.\UGHT PLOWS. A large assortment can be found at 

 the State Agricultural Warehouse, No. 25 Cliff street. New York. 

 r5-3t] <;. H. B.ARR 



Pronty & Mears' Cpater Draft riov.-.q. 



L.VRGE assortment can be found at the State Agricultural 

 Warehouse, No. 25 Cliff street, New York. 

 [G-4t] G. H. BA RB. 



Manures. 



PERUVIAN Guano, at 2!i cts per lb.; Bone Dust- sawings 

 shavings, and crushed— at $2.25 cts. per barrel ; Bone Black, 

 or Burnt bones, at J.O per hogshead ; Bone Waste, or Bone Ma- 

 nure, at IV4 eta. per lb ; Sugar House Scum, or Bullocks Blood, at 

 $2.50 p r hogshead ; Sulphate of Soda, at 1 cent per lb. 



Packages iiicluiled at above prices. For sale at the State Agri- 

 cuRural Warehouse. No. 25 Cliff .'treet. New York. 



[(5-4t] ^ G. H. BARR 



lanportttd C'onstcrnndon. 



THIS celebrated thorough bred Horse will stand the present 

 sr'a.son. as hcrctof,/r«, at the farm of the subscriber, (wo miles 

 west of Syr.'.euse. 



In order that farmers, of the most limited means even, may be 

 enabled to breed from this valuable horse, the subscriber has con- 

 !<en "d to offer his services at the extraordinary low price of $7.(iO 

 — payable in advance in all cases — resi-rving the right to reject 

 mares that are deemed unsuitable. Pasturage, well fenced 11 nd 

 well watered, at three sbillingg per week. Mares to be entirely 

 at the risk of their owners. J.B. BUUNEIT. 



Syracuse, May, 1851. [5-Gt) 



