THE GENESEE FARMER. 



379 



^cl i to ^'3 I^bie. 



Agexot in New York. — C. M. Saxton, Agricultural Boblc Pub- 

 Usher," Xo. 152 Fulton street, New York, is agent for the Genesee 

 Farmbr, and subscribers in that city wlio ajiply to him can have 

 th<;ir papers delivered regularly at their houses. 



Words of Encouragement. — Mr. James H. Arnett, 

 of "Wayne county, Indiana, writes under date of " 10th 

 month, 24th, 1854," as follows : 



'•Respected Friend: — If I had time I would like to 

 inform thee of the price that I got for my firm. I am 

 willing to say that I believe the Genesee Farmer has 

 been one thousand dollars to my advantage in the six years 

 I have read it. It caused me to drain my land, which 

 raised its value from $] j to ,$30 per acre," &c. &c. 



The above is but a fair sample of the general purport 

 a-ud tone of numerous letters received by the pr j^ rietor of 

 tJiis paper ; and he is truly grateful that so cheap an in- 

 strument for the widest possible diffusion of rural knowl- 

 edge is capable of doing so much good all over our com- 

 mon country. To nearly nineteen-twentieths of our sub- 

 scribers a volume of the Farmer is sent for 37g cents, 

 stitched and trimmed. From a very considerable advance 

 in the price of printing paper, in journeymen's v.'ages, in 

 breadstufis, provisions, house-rent and firewood, the prime 

 cost of the work can only be met by a continuance of the 

 liberal support so long extended to this pioneer and stand- 

 ard Agricultural Journal. It is ever willing to bear its 

 burden in the heat of the day, looking only to the best in- 

 terests of its readers, whom it seivcs without turning to 

 tlie right hand or to the left. It is no second table, gar- 

 nished with a rehash of the t;old victuals taken from a 

 weekly paper ; but evc!-. vvord of the Genesee Farmer 

 is set up expressly iv .is pages. Hence it interferes with 

 no other similar work, as is proved by the fact that some 

 sixty have risen, and most of them tlourished, since this 

 paper first commanded a living sup_ urt. In these times 

 when singing women are not unfrequently paid a thousand 

 doUars a niiht for their music, what is fifty cents a year 

 for a jourral which benefits some of its readers thousands 

 of dollars, as they cheerfully testify ? One needs only to 

 study the Farmer closely to learn a great many tiseful 

 lessons in rural affairs. Close reading is the sine qua iion 

 of rapid advancement in agricultural knowlelge. In this 

 way, every reader may soon become well grounded in the 

 art and science of farm economy. Now is the tini3 for him 

 to renew his subscription, and devote increased attention 

 to the Sixteenth Volume, Second Series, to commence 

 the first of January, 1355. This will be an improvement on 

 all its predecessors, although the price will remain the same. 



Timely Suggestions. — As the gathering and harvest- 

 ing of the products of the season arc now over, there is 

 now time to attend to work which could not well be done 

 heretofore. Too many when winter comes are content 

 with little labor, and put off many things which, done now, 

 will save time in a hurried season hereafter. 



And first, if you have not done it ere this, make your 

 houses and barns tight and comfortable. Guard against 

 cold currents of air coming continuously either upon your- 



self or your stock. A draught of air from a crack or 

 crevice is much more injurious in its effects upon the sys- 

 tem than a free exposure to the wind. 



In our last number we speke of the importance of keep- 

 ing stock in a thriving, healthy condition. We allude to it 

 a'.'ain; for all the profit in the feeding and fattening of 

 stock consists in the uninterrupted growth and develop- 

 ment of the animal machine. If you are feeding roots, 

 watch carefully their effect, and be cautious not to feed 

 liberally till your stock have become accustomed to them. 

 When the ground freezes hard enough to bear a man, 

 and you would like a ditch through a wet meadow, or 

 swale, as the case nia^^e, cut the top of the soil into pieces 

 and throw them one side, and at your leisure draw them to 

 your manure heap as absorbents of the liquid fertilizers. 

 Many times you can conveniently commence, and even 

 finish, a drain in v,et pieces of ground, that would cause 

 much annoyance in digging at other seasons of the yeai', 

 from its looseness of texture. 



Improve the first snows for drawing your yearly supply 

 of firewood, and taking your logs to the saw-mill ; for of 

 late years our first run of sleighing has been much the 

 best, and those who were unprepared for an early start on 

 rimners have often had to wait a twelvemonth for another 

 opportunity. 



To protect your trees against the teeth of the field-mouse, 

 heap up a small mound of earth against the base of the 

 stem, that the snow remaining about the body of the tree 

 may not be a cover for their passages. If snow falls to a 

 great depth, tramp it down hard with your feet before they 

 have had time to commence operations. A nurseryman in 

 this vicinity who had been much annoyed by the disbarking 

 of his trees by mice, effectually rid his grounds of them 

 in this way : Taking blocks of scantling, holes of about an 

 inch in diameter were bored to the depth of about an inch 

 and a half, inclining upward, and filled to the depth of 

 nearly half an inch with Indian meal mixed with a little 

 arsenic, slightly moistened, and pressed down to the bottcmi 

 of the hole. 



In some sections of the country, particularly newly- 

 settled portions, rabbits are also very destructive to nur- 

 series and orchards. As a means of prevention, wash your 

 trees, or bind strips of tarred paper about the stem, or sus- 

 pend strips of cloth dipped in melted sulpliur from stakes 

 near the trees. 



In newly-transplanted trees, a small mound of earth 

 about the roots is a great protection against injury by the 

 strong and violent winds. 



Examine carefully the forks and branches of your trees 

 for nests pf eggs of insects of various descriptions. A 

 practiced eye will detect many, which may easily be de- 

 stroyed by simple brushing or pressure of the hand. 



It has been frequently recommended to hang pieces of 

 old woolen cloth in the forks of fruit trees, to induce worms 

 and caterpillars to spin their cocoons in and under them. 

 \ few weeks since, entering a neighbor's front yard, we 

 noticed a piece of cloth in the forks of a Plum tree. On 

 examining it closely, we found eleven perforated cocoons 

 of different species of insects — showing that if all fruit- 

 growers would take pains to entrap and destroy the insects 



