CULTIVATION OF PLANTS. 



well and deeply pulverized by the use of pronged hoes. Earth- 

 ing up is not only unnecessary but injurious. The crop is 

 gathered the third autumn after planting, and generally in the 

 month of October. The seed may be collected in great abun- 

 dance from the plants in the September of the second and third 

 years; but it is never so propagated. In general it has few 

 diseases; but is sometimes, though rarely, blighted.* 



Madder has been more extensively cultivated in the United 

 States than any other plant of the same family. Mr. RUSSEL 

 BRONSON, formerly of Bridgewater, New York, but now of 

 Birmingham, Huron county, Ohio, has devoted considerable 

 attention, it appears, to the introduction and culture of the 

 madder. The following paragraphs are from a communication 

 published some time since on this subject by Mr. BRONSON: 



A location facing the south or south-east is to be preferred. A sandy loam 

 not over stiff and heavy, or light and sandy, or a good brown, deep, rich upland 

 loam, free from foul grass, weed?, stones or stumps of trees. Where a crop of 

 potatoes, peas, corn or wheat has been cultivated the past season, plough deep 

 twice, once in September and once in October, and if rather stiff let it lie after 

 the plough until spring. When the spring opens, and the ground has become 

 dry and warm, (say in Tennessee, 1st of April, Ohio, 15th, and New York, 

 25th to 1st of May I speak of the spring of 1836.) Plough again deep, the 

 deeper the better, then harrow well and strike it into ridges with a one horse 

 plough, three feet wide and four feet vacant, or making a ridge once in seven 

 feet, raising it if on rather moist ground, eight or ten inches, and dry land six 

 or eight from the natural level, then with a light harrow level, and shape the 

 ridges like a welK formed bed of beets, &c. 



We will. suppose you intend to plant one acre of ground, and that you have 

 purchased eight bushels of tap roots in the fall and buried them like potatoes 

 on your premises count the ridges on your acre, and take out of the ground 

 one bushel of roots and plant it on one-eighth of your ridges; you will then be 

 able to ascertain how to proportion your roots for the remainder. The follow- 

 ing is the manner of planting, cultivating, &c., when the quantities of ground 

 do not exceed three or four acres. One person on each side of the ridge to 

 make the holes, (plant four.inches below the surface of the bed, or thereabouts, 

 when covered,) one on each side to drop the roots, and one on each side to 

 cover, pressing the hill like that of planting corn, or three persons on one side, 

 as the case may be, whether you nave one or more acres to plant. Let the 

 owner be the dropper of roots, and his most thorough assistants behind him. 

 Make the holes from twelve to eighteen inches apart, and about six inches 

 from the edge of the ridge. As the plants are supposed to have been purchased 

 in the fall, the roots may have thrown out sprouts, and possibly have leaved. 

 In this case, in dropping and covering, you will leave the most prominent 

 sprout or sprouts a little out of the ground, as where a plant has leafed, it ought 

 not to be smothered. 



When the plant gets up three or four inches, weed with the hoe, and plough 

 with one horse, between the ridges or beds, but not on them; this will take 

 place two or three weeks after planting. When up twelve or fifteen inches, 

 many of the tops will fall; assist them with a ten foot pole; two persons cross 

 them each way across the bed, cover them with a shovel or garden rake, throw- 

 ing the soil from between the ridges. After loosening with the one horse 

 plough, you will with a shovel scatter the earth between the stalks rather than 

 throw it into heaps; of course we wish to keep the stalks separate, as they are 

 to form new and important roots in the centre of the beds. About the 20th of 



* Encyclopedia of Agriculture, page 919. 



