THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



[ January, 



entrance to his lair. Tliis was questioned 

 by Mr. W. B., who states that he had explor- 

 ed the burrows of one of these animals, and 

 that he did not recognize anything in the 

 form of a plug, by which its burrow was 

 closed. This statement, to our mind, did not 

 involve a question of veracity between these 

 two men, both of whom were intelligent and 

 also reliable. The fact is, they were both 

 right. We subsequently learned that Mr. B. 

 meant the hole at the outer end of the burrow, 

 and doubtless Dr. Godman meant the hole at 

 the inner end, and there the matter since has 

 rested. Of course it would be folly to at- 

 tempt to set an arljitrarj^ limit to the knowl- 

 edge that is every day being developed on all 

 subjects relating to natural and physical sci- 

 ence, and therefore many cases must provis- 

 ionally remain open subjects. 



SPARROWS. 



A man — or a simpleton — named Henry 

 Euth, in Reading, Pa., professes to have dis- 

 covered that the highly useful little bird — the 

 English sparrow — whose almost incessant 

 vocal strains impart life in our gardens, 

 groves and forests, summer and winter alike, 

 destroys the buds of the trees and the embryo 

 fruit. He says that he has noticed the birds 

 pecking the blossoms on peach trees, and that 

 they have pecked the buds off other trees, so 

 that they did not bear any fruit. Last year 

 he had no currants, and he charges the spar- 

 rows with pecking out the eyes of the bushes. 

 He has no doubt they destroy the buds of 

 grape vines, and he is convinced that the 

 little sparrows do a great deal of harm and 

 very little good, and he thinks it was a great 

 mistake to import them. Having put up 

 boxes for them to house in, he has torn them 

 down, and now stones the sparrows whenever 

 they come upon his premises. Mr. Ruth is 

 entirely mistaken in his theory. He must 

 have seen them pecking about the buds for 

 the larvaj secreted there, and the bird may 

 have injured a few buds in its efforts, but 

 they do not thus subsist in winter, as he as- 

 serts, on buds, but upon the larvse and insects 

 secreted on the bark of trees, and feed on the 

 seeds of plants and such food as may be given 

 them, because they seek the haunts of civiliza- 

 tion, and are great lovers of good society. In 

 summer their principal fijod is insects, of 

 which one will devour avast number in a day. 

 One of these useful birds may be heard any 

 day along the hillside in Saltsburg, uttering 

 the most lively notes, the coldest morning 

 never being cold enough to check the utterance 

 of his ever-changing song. — Salisbury Press. 



There appear to be much " fuss and feath- 

 ers" developed throughout the country in re- 

 lation to the "English sparrows," but we 

 opine that the people would have a more 

 practical and powerful illustration of their 

 benefits to the vegetable kingdom by their ab- 

 sence, than by their presence. More things in 

 this world are M?idfir-estimated than are over- 

 estimated, and one of the former are the 

 English sparrows. We distinctly remember 

 the time when the small "woodpecker," 

 known under the name of "sap-sucker," was 

 universally and unquestionably voted a great 

 enemy to the apple tree, because everybody 

 professed to have seen them peck holes into 

 the trunk or branshes and suck out the sap, 

 and it must be confessed that there were ajj- 

 pearauces which seemed to corroborate this 

 opinion. But it transpired, in the course of 

 time, that these little birds were in pursuit of 

 insect grubs that were boring under the bark 

 of the trees, to their great injury. This, we 

 believe, will also become manifest in relation 

 to the sparrows. Whatever the adult birds 

 themselves — under a stress of circumstances — 

 may be compelled to eat, still sparrows, and 

 many other graniferousand frugivorous birds, 

 almost invariably feed their young on slugs, 

 grubs, worms, larvae, and the softer-bodied 

 insects, and during a season, too, when no 

 other food is accessible, and when tlie founda- 

 tions of the future colonies of destructive in- 

 sects are laid. In this field of use, the benefits 



of insectivorous birds are inestimable, and, if 

 there never had been a bird of this character 

 at all, there would not have long remained 

 either fruit or vegetation. Insects are almost 

 infinitely more prolific than the estimate of 

 qiiails, as exhibited in another article in this 



paper. 



^ 



PARSNIP. 



Pastlnfica Stltivfl* 



According to Johnson, the botanic name 

 Pastinaca, is derived from the Latin word for 

 a dibble, pastinum, in allusion to the long, 

 tapering shape of the root. This is a very 

 hardy biennial, of which the original is prob- 

 ably the common wild parsnip of southern 

 Europe. In its natural state, it is of small 

 size, woody and poisonous. It has been 

 greatly improved by cultivation, and is at the 

 present time much esteemed for culinary pur- 

 poses, being found nutritious as well as whole- 

 some. It is particularly valuable on account 

 of its power of standing severe frost without 

 injury, and continuing good for use until the 

 latter part of spring. The varieties are not 

 niunerous, and the IloUowed-crowned is un- 

 doubtedly the best adapted to the wants of the 

 family gardener. 



Culture. In regard to soil, the parsnip 

 has a preference for one that is dry and 

 mellow, rich and of considerable depth. A 

 good sandy loam seems to be most suitable ; 

 while only poor crops can be expected from a 

 gravel or tenacious clay. Depth and fertility 

 are particularly necessary, because thereon 

 depend the length and size of the roots. In the 

 latter part of autumn, or the very commenc- 

 ment of spring, the ground selected for the 

 bed should be spaded or trenched two spits 

 deep, and if it be not sufficiently rich, some 

 well decomposed manure ought to be dug in 

 with the lower spit. Sea-weed, decayed forest 

 leaves and bird's-dung have been highly re- 

 commended as fertilizers, as being less liable 

 to affect the quality of the roots, than common 

 stable dung. In spading, care is to be taken 

 to break up all the clods or large lumps of 

 dirt, and to remove the largest stones. 



Sow in drills, twelve inches apart, in April 

 or May, according to the forwardness of the 

 season. One ounce of seed is sufficient for 

 rather more than a rod of ground. Drop the 

 seed thinly, and cover it nearly an inch deep. 

 In dry weather vegetation will be hastened 

 by rolling the surface of the bed, or by tread- 

 ing down the drills with the feet. When the 

 plants have taken a good start, they are to be 

 weeded and thinned out in the drills ; but, it 

 is not until they become firmly established, 

 tliat they should receive their final thinning. 

 To ensure the formation of large roots, they 

 ought to have plenty of room, and stand not 

 nearer together than six inches. It is a bad 

 plan to crowd vegetables like the carrot and 

 parsnip. Make frequent use of the hoe, as 

 well to keep the ground free from weeds, as 

 to prevent its becoming hard or baked. 



Parsnips do not attain maturity until cold 

 weather is near at hand. They will be found 

 fit for use as soon as the leaves decay, in the 

 month of October, but their sweetness and 

 agreeable flavor are much improved by frost. 

 This fact is so well understood, that many 

 cultivators are accustomed to let the roots re- 

 main in bed through the winter ; or, at least, 

 to take up only a number sufficient for the 

 wants of the family while the ground is 

 closed, and to harvest the balance of the crop 

 in the spring. They ought to be dug very 

 carefully, without being cut or bruised by the 

 spade any more than is unavoidable ; and, 

 for preservation, must be packed in layers of 

 sand, in a shed or cool cellar. 



For seed. Some of the best plants should 

 be left in the bed where grown ; or else set out 

 in a border, some time during the earlj' part 

 of spring. They ought to be in rows, about 

 two feet apart each way. In continued dry 

 weather, it will be found of advantage to 

 apply water every three or four days. Lay 

 the tlower-heads upon a cloth, and suffer them 

 to get fully dry, before you attempt to thresh 

 out the seed. 



Use. The parsnip has many valuable 

 qualities, which commend it to Ijoth the 

 farmer and gardener. It is thought highly of 

 for feeding to domestic animals. Hogs and 

 bullocks are fattened upon it in a very short 

 space of time, and the flesh is considered of 

 superior flavor ; while in cows it produces an 

 extraordinary yield of milk, having a rich 

 color, and affording butter of an excellent 

 quality. Its cliaracter in the kitchen is well 

 established. Although disliked by some per- 

 sons on account of its peculiar sweetish taste, 

 it is certainly wholesome, and proves very ac- 

 ceptable at that season of the year when in 

 perfection, and when other vegetables are so 

 few in number. It excites appetite, and 

 physicians think it wholesome for convales- 

 cents. It is sometimes manufactiu'ed into 

 ardent spirits, wine and marmalade ; while in 

 Ireland, it is used with hops for brewing a 

 kind of beer much liked by the peasantry. 

 The seeds are occasionally employed in in- 

 termittent fevers. 



To BOIL. Wash and split the roots, lay 

 them in a stew-pan with the flat sides down, 

 and just cover them with boiling water, into 

 which a little salt has been thrown. When 

 they are quite tender, pare and butter them, 

 and carry immediately to the table. Cold 

 boiled parsnips are good when cut into thin 

 slices, dipped into butter, and fried brown. — 

 ScheiicVs Oardener's Text-Book. 



For The Lancaster Farmer. 

 GREEN MANURING. 



This is a term that is now applied to the 

 plowing under of any green vegetable sub- 

 stance for the .pm-pose of adding fertility to 

 the soil. 



The common red clover is considered tlie 

 best of all farm crops for this purpose, and it 

 is so undoubtedly from two very different 

 causes. In the first place it must be borne in 

 mind that clover is very rich in nitrogen, 

 which it is said to appropriate not only from 

 the soil, but also from the air to a very great 

 extent, while all other plants available for 

 this purpose derive very little, if any, from 

 that source. In the second place, clover has 

 very long tap-roots, which penetrate through 

 the soil directly into the sub-soil and drawing 

 on whatever fertilizing materials such sub-soil 

 may contain, carries them up into the stems 

 and leaves, and the upper part of the root 

 itself, the latter becoming very thick near the 

 surface and containing a large amount of 

 vegetable substance to the acre. I do not 

 believe, however, that the amount thus drawn 

 from tlie sub-soil is as gr^t as some would 

 make it appear, as the root is not very thick 

 at eight or ten inches below the surface, what- 

 ever its length may be. It must still be given 

 its proper credit in this case, for all, or mostly 

 all other crops used for green manures, have 

 only surface-roots, and draw very little of the 

 materials requisite for plant-growth from the 

 sub-soil. 



Clover, however, is a very unhandy crop 

 for this purpose, as it must be sowed one 

 spring and cannot be plowed under before the 

 next spring, and, as in common rotation, this 

 would not work very well, some other, easily- 

 raised crop must be looked for, and among 

 the handiest are rye, oats, buckwheat and 

 corn. 



Eye is for some purposes the handiest of all 

 crops for this purpose, as it- can be used 

 where no other kind could be, except wheat, 

 and in this the price of the seed is much great- 

 er, and no better result obtained. The rye 

 can be sowed on corn stubbles, where it is in- 

 tended to plant some crop that is put out late 

 like tobacco, or perhaps a second time in corn, 

 as is done in some places. For the two crops 

 mentioned, the rye need not be put out very 

 early if other work is pressing, as it has time 

 to grow in the spring until the middle of May 

 or the beginning of June, but when it is sow- 

 ed very late a larger quantity of seed is need- 

 ed to the acre. I have seen lye that was 

 sowed in the beginning of December do very 

 fair, but it would not do good every year 

 sowed so late as this. The late J. B. Root, a 



