THE GENESEE FARMER. 



Eds. Gen. Farmer : — I have rend the Farnier f r some time 

 past, and have been both pleased and instructed. In an es- 

 pecial manner have 1 felt a deep inioresl in what liMlc 

 has been said on the subject of Sorrel. I l:ave a fit-Id the 

 soil of which is composed of a gravelly :ind siutdy lo:im, 

 abounding in that pernicious perrenial, sorrel, which too of- 

 ten is the index to a poor, sour, and diseased stale of the 

 soil. Doubtless all land abounding in sorrel is more or less 

 sour. To remedy this evil it is necessary to apply such 

 manure or mineral as will neutralize the acid and destroy, 

 or prevent, its formation in the soil. Some of your corres- 

 pondents tell us that "caustic lime" will have this elfect. — 

 If so, will you please inform me what is the probable small- 

 est quantity per acre that will destroy this troubler, and 

 hav^ a decidedly good efiect upon the crop and soil ; and 

 what is the best method of applying it. Your opinion thro' 

 the Farmer, will be gratefully received, and much oblige 

 myself, and, doubtless, others interested. Chas. B. Hal- 

 STKAD. — West Tvirn. N. Y., Aug., 1851. 



The quantity of recently slaked lime which can be profit- 

 ably applied to an acre of land that lacks calcareous matter, 

 depends entirely on the cost of the article. In some places, 

 a bushel of fVesh lime from the kiln may be had for eight or 

 ten cents, which is near the field where the mineral is to be 

 used. In other cases no lime can be had short of hauling it 

 many miles, while it costs fifteen or tw^enty cents a busliel 

 where burnt. An article that varies from six up to sixty 

 cents a bushel, must be used as a fertilizer in all quantities, 

 according to circumstances. Mr. Patterson, the celebrated 

 breeder of Devon cattle near Baltimore, has applied 200 bu. 

 per acre on 1000 acres, at a cost of 20 cts. a bushel, making 

 the investment of §40,000 for lime alone. Before this appli- 

 cation was made, the old tobartoo-impovcrished plantation 

 bore little beside sorrel and sassafras ; now it yields from 20 

 to 30 bushels of wheat per acre and clover in proportion. — 

 On sour soils we should not think of using less than fifty 

 bushels per acre, and should much prefer one hundred. — 

 All lands which are inclined to be wet, should be well 

 drained before limeing. The lime should be spread broad- 

 cast and either harrowed or plowed in at the time of seeding. 

 The oil of vitriol, or sulphate of iron, (copperas) with an 

 excess of acid, is the most abundant source of sourness in 

 soils, where there is not an excess of vegetable matter. — 

 Lime takes up all the excess of acid, whether mineral or or- 

 ganic, and the salt formed with this alkaline earth is a vain- 

 able food of plants. There is a vast area of improved lands 

 in this country that lack calcareous matter, which sooner or 

 later will be supplied. In a soil that contains no lime, ten 

 tons of carbonate, or five and a half of caustic lime added to 

 an acre, will give but one per cent, ten inches in depth. — 

 This quantity at least ought to exist in all arable soils. 



Messrs. Editors : — I shall be greatly obliged if you will in- 

 form me, through the columns of the Farmer, some method 

 of destroying iMay weed in wheat, Oscar F. Haley. — 

 Bprmgport, Mich., July, 1851. 



May weed, like many others, is not easily eradicated. — 

 Pains must be taken never to let a plant shed its seed on the 

 ground ; and then so soon as all in the soil have germinated, 

 no more will grow. The seeds of weeds should be kept off 

 the land — out of the earth — to prevent their injury to crops. 

 It is n serious loss of labor, and waste of mojioy, to permit 

 weeds of any kind to go to seed, and allow their ripe seeds 

 to be scattered by winds, birds, the plow and harrow and in 

 dung spread over fields, until the whole farm is as foul as it 

 well can be. Cut all weeds when they first come into blos- 

 som, and never allow one to mature its seeds. This, with 

 clean tillage, will soon eradicate them. 



Messrs. Editors ; — Will you, or some of your correspond- 

 ents, furnish to the readers of the Farmer, through its col- 

 umns, a plan of a rat-proof granary of suitable size for an 

 ordinary farm, with dimensions, capacity, &:c. You will 

 thereby greatly oblige at least one of them. 

 Waukeslia, Wis., Aug., 1851. 



Messrs. Editors : — I have a boy 14 years old that wishes 

 to become a complete, practical, and scientific gardener, nur- 

 seryman, and farmer. Doubtful of my own ability properly 

 to direc t his course, i take the liberty to nsk you for infoi- 

 ination on the subject. Will you advise inc whether to put 

 him vvitli some good nurseryman, or send him tirst to an ag- 

 ricnltiir;il school, and if ilio latter, where can i lind one that 

 will be within the reach of a moderate purse : or, in other 

 words, what course of study and practice do you ad\i.se lor 

 the purpose mentioned, and where can ihe eduftition be got ? 



The crops in the northern part of Illinois are about as fol- 

 lows : Wheat, spring, about half a crop — a better yield than 

 for the last two years, Tho Hedgerow wheat has generally 

 suffered from the blight. The lifo Grande, and other sorts, 

 but little. Winter wheat, where sown, has generally turned 

 out a fair crop, though but little of it sown — not oue farmer 

 in fifty sowing any winter wheat in this country. Oats have 

 produced enormously — there never was a better crop. In- 

 dian corn will do well where the land has been well culti- 

 vated. From the constant rains much of the corn land has 

 been suflered to be overrun with weeds, Karley has proved 

 a good crop, tho' but little of it grown. Potatoes early plant- 

 ed, and late planted, are almost entirely struck wiih liie rot. 

 Of fruits, apples are about the only crop that have done well, 

 and there are so few orchards that they do not amount to 

 much. Pumpkins, and kindred vines, have done nothing. 

 Hay abundant. 



N. B. — Twice as much corn and oats ground planted here 

 this year than usual ; a much less quantity of wheat sown. 

 A decided improvement. C — Junction, III., Sejt. 2. 18.51, 



We have many letters asking advice about the professional 

 education of sons and wards ; and few men have labored 

 more earnestly, or longer, to promote the establishment of 

 good agricultural schools in different States. Why cannot 

 the intelligent and enterprising farmers of Illinois get up such 

 an institution ? The nursery business pays well in the 

 hands of men who really understand it, and are good finan- 

 ciers ; and for many years to come, forest-culture will be a 

 profitable pursuit, for the present generation is death on 

 American forests. Science will have to repair at some fu- 

 ture day, the damage done by ignorance at this lime, and in 

 preceding years. 



Messrs. Editors. — In looking over some books &-c. one 

 day, I found apiece in the Genesee Farmer, vol. 8, page 275, 

 which has interested me considerable, iicadcd " IV'orthern 

 Rice." I have a piece of land at the foot of a swamp, which 

 is overflowed by the water from it, the swamp has ditches in 

 it, which convey the water through the piece of land ; but 

 tiiere being liigh ground around this lot it leaves no chance 

 for it to drain, and in the spring it looks like a lake. How- 

 ever, I have dug a ditch nearly six feet deep, from it through 

 the high ground, (it being of the hardest gravel,) which 

 drained it last spring in time to sow oats on all but two acres, 

 which is very low in the center of the lot, it will however 

 get dry in August, F'rom what I can learn, I should think 

 the wild rice would grow there well. Can you or some of 

 your correspondents inform me, and others in the same pre- 

 dicament, wiiether the land is suitable for it or not, the mode 

 cultivation, where the seed can be obtained, how much per 

 acre, what the grain would be worth in market, and oblige 

 a subscriber. Henry C, Aiigate. — Eaut Betluiny, Gen. 

 Co., N. Y., July, 1851, 



Eds, Gen, Farmer : — Will you, or some of your numerous 

 correspondents, publish in the Farmer the proper time for 

 suckering corn, vviiii regard to growth and not date, as it ri- 

 pens earlier in some sections than others. 



Again : Notwithstanding much has been said in regard to 

 swamp muck, still I um in doubt as regards its utility as a 

 manure. I have several acres by the side of a pond, which 

 has been for several ages accumulating, and is from one to 

 twenty feet deep, I have dug and put in piles, hut it does 

 not rot. Will some one who understands its nature please 

 inform me how I can make it useful as a manure. Is there 

 anything that I can mix with it to cause decomposition ? 

 S. Wheelock. — Calais, O., July, 1851. 



Messrs, Editors : — I wish to gain some knowledge with 

 regard to Mustard raising. I am a young farmer and there- 

 fore require the whole proceeding, from planting until ready 

 for market. Wilmam P. Schenck. — Naa Washmgton, 

 Crawford Co., O., 1851. 



