lU 



THE GENESEE FAKMEll. 



mciit. and are compelloJ to abaniloii tlicir liopes of a 

 fortune in a Jay. They soon discover that our moun- 

 tains are not all gold, and look around them for other 

 means of obtaining a livelihood. 



Agriculture is beginning to receive attention, and 

 already are we realizing Agricultural Fairs, and we 

 have a paper devoted to the interests of the farmer. 

 Vie are ni)\v in the midst of pIo^ving and sowing, 

 which will continue until the dry vreather of sunnner 

 commences. December and January are the best 

 months for sowing wheat, but February will do well, 

 and even when sown in INtarch a fair crop may be 

 expected, though more teed is required. Barley and 

 oats will bear later sowing than wheat. Cora and 

 vegetables need to be planted in March and April. 



Seed time hero varies with the weather, and must 

 be governed entirely by it. As soon as sulKcient rain 

 has fallen to soften the ground, plowing and sowing 

 commence, which usually occur about the first of 

 December. Sometimes the rainy season closes in 

 February, and again it continues till May. The no- 

 tion pre\ails here that every third winter we may look 

 for an excess of rain, followed by one of a medium 

 quantity, and then with a dry winter ; and such has 

 been our experience thus far. The past winter was 

 the one of excessive rains, and we confidently expect 

 a medium amount tliis winter. We have had unu- 

 sually cold weather this season. The thermometer 

 has been sufficiently below " freezing point " to make 

 ice an inch or more in thickness in the valleys, while 

 in some of the mountain towns it ha^ been down to 

 16 degrees, with sufficient snow for good sleighing. 

 The coast range of mountains have been covered with 

 snow, but we have had none here. The " oldest in- 

 habitant" has not seen it so cold here before, and 

 the " natives " blame the Yankees for it. 



That vegetables grow very large he)-e, and that 

 yields of grain are gi-eat, caa not be doubted ; but I 

 will refrain from giving figures, for fear I should be 

 accused of exaggeration. Suffice it to say, that I 

 have never seen the like in the "Geno;ee Yalley." 



The high prices of teams, labor and tools, operate 

 hard agaijist persons commencing a new farm here. 

 Another item of great magnitude here is fencing. 

 Ditches are resorted to, and soine wire fences are 

 made. Often several farms are embraced in one en- 

 closure. There are many persoijs tui'ning their atten- 

 tion to cultivating Osage Orange, and I hope they 

 may succeed. There is no scarcity of timber here, 

 but it is generally at too great a distance from the 

 best farming regions to be ma^le available, at present 

 prices of lumber and transportation. In many of our 

 best fanning regions but little attention is paid to 

 fruit, on account of the uncertainty that yet exists 

 concerning land titles. No action is regarded as final 

 until dei-ided by the United States Supreme Court. 

 More anon. Yours, &c., * 



Bkxi(;ia, Cal, Jan. 28, 1854 



The writer of the above letter will please acce])t 

 our thanks, and continue his communications for the 

 pages of the Farmkr. California is destined to be 

 more famous for its agriculture and horticulture in a 

 few years than for its gold mines. To commence 

 farming in a country where labor is high, fencing tim- 

 ber scarce, and irrigation often necessary, requires 



considerable capital ; but the soil, climate and mar- 

 kets of the Pacific State offer such ad\antages as 

 will soon conmiand the funds necessary to render 

 Cali^oi-nia the best cultivated district in America. 

 Its natural ran<';es for stock have no equals on the 

 Atlantic si<le of the liocky Moimtains ; but like all 

 new countries on this coiitinent, its border population 

 and Indians, its numerous privations and perils, are 

 great drawiia-^.ks to be oifset against its many inviting 

 benefits. California, Oregon and Washiimton arc 

 full of intci-est to the enterprizing citizens of all other 

 I^arts of the reputtlic ; and our subscribers on the 

 Pacific (of whom we have a goodly number) will 

 render a favor l)y giving to this, the first fifty cent 

 agricuhnral paper in 1 lie world, and its readers, relia- 

 ble information concerning their farming operations. 

 — Ei). 



IXDIANA FAllMIxVG. 



Mr. Eoii'or: — The time has at length anived when 

 our fanners (or a portion of them) begin to appre- 

 ciate the value of good farining — they begin to see 

 the value of si/steni in couflucting the affairs of hus- 

 bandry — and they have learned that tliere is some- 

 tliing more to do than to scratch the ground, and 

 plant or sow the seed. 



The great secret of successful farming is a thorough 

 preparation. No judicious farmer will undertake to 

 plant or sow an acre of ground, without a previous 

 and well-conductc'l preparation of the soil, knowing 

 thit he can not reahze a sufficient profit without 

 such care. I want to say that I behove theie is 

 nothing so injurious to farming lands as the trampihg 

 system (I speak of clay soils) ; letting stock of any 

 kind run on the fields when they are wet, in the fall, 

 winter and spring, is not to be allowed by the scien- 

 tlfto farmer. I knon- there are some farmers who do 

 not like to 1)0 thus restricted; perhaps they may never 

 know of these nsii' iileis (they are not book farmers). 

 Stock should never be allowed to remain on clover 

 pastures afler the wet weather and frost come on in 

 the fall. If they are, I will venture the opinion that 

 they «ill destroy more clover, and injure the land 

 more, than they will be benefitted. In vain may the 

 farmer try to prepare his fields in the spring, after 

 they are tramped into mortar. I would rather let 

 one of my fields be planted or sowed in any kind of 

 grain, rent free, than to have them thus treated. If 

 this system is not attended to in a just and proper 

 manner, in vain may the farmer look for any good re- 

 sults from his labors. 



If the fields have become exhausteil, which they 

 will under the tramping and ski7mi7ig system, they 

 should he fatted; and I think we will meet v\-ith veiy 

 poor success, so long as we continue to tramp and 

 I'cmove from the fields Nature's great restorative. I 

 believe that a preparation is just as necessary as any- 

 thing else in farm economy. If the fields are treated 

 right, when the spring comes on the farmer can go to 

 his plowing in good spirits, with a fair prospect of suc- 

 cess, lie can do more plowing in a given time, and 

 do it better, than those who have plowed their ground 

 to death. lie can with an ordinary team and a, good 

 plow (this farming implement is indispensable), turn 

 his ground full eight inches deep, throwing the loose 



