1880] 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



483 



competent judges failed to see that it was any 

 better than the part not hoed. 



One fact in connection with tlie first and 

 third of the forcj^oin;^ cxiieriiuents is wortliy 

 of notice. Tlie wlieat in each of tliese cases 

 was worse rusted than tlie adjoining wheat. 

 A ranlc growth and broad dark green leaves 

 seem to invite rust and mildew. I tliink an 

 excess of nitrogenous matter in the soil will 

 induce rust by forcing an excessive growlli in 

 very hot weatlier. Perliaps the stirring of the 

 soil liberated aiuniunia and cau.sed the mis- 

 chief. 



I will forestall criticism on this article by 

 saying that these experiments were not con- 

 ducted with that precision which sliould have 

 been used. Of course the lots ought to have 

 been surveyed and their products compared 

 with corresponding lots not cultivated. Tiiese 

 details cost time and money, and the increase 

 of crop in eitlier case w.as so small, if any, that 

 I was not encouraged to carry it further. It 

 is quite probable that hoeing wheat on a 

 different soil, (u- on the same soil under differ- 

 ent circumstances, might give better results. 

 .It is a sore trial to have one's cherished 

 convictions and (iue-spun theories rudely de- 

 molished by actual experiment, but if we 

 would be lionest in our reports, we must make 

 public our failures as well as our successi:s. 



I conclude by saying tliat I did not drill any 

 wheat for cultivation tliis fall. My cultiva- 

 tor, gotten up at considerable expense, is con- 

 signed to that limbo of discarded patent 

 churns, washing machines, bee hives and 

 other worthless and impracticable machinery 

 found on the premises of every "progressive " 

 farmer. 



Selections. 



GREEN MANURING. 



Many and varied are the attempts, in this 

 intelligent age, at restoring fertility to the 

 soil. Among the successful methods green 

 manuring stands out prominently, though it 

 is by no means anew device, since the system 

 was practised by the Romans over two thou- 

 sand years ago. While not proposing to dis- 

 cuss the whole subject, which would require 

 a volume, yet a few points deduced from 

 practical experience may be presented with 

 benefit to the farmer. The benetits of clover 

 for this purpose are fully recognized. Occas- 

 sionally rye is grown for green manuring, 

 sowin" it late in August, or more commonly 

 from September 1 to the middle of Ma)', thus 

 growing a large bulk of valual)le fertilizing 

 material during a period when most of the 

 farm lands are lying idle. 



Without discouraging the practice, yet we 

 think rye possesses a value above that of 

 ploughing under simply as a fertilizer. If 

 sown in August or September, sheep might be 

 turned upon it in Kovember, feeding down 

 the growth, though care should be exercised 

 not to feed it too low. If the farmer has a 

 few slicep which he desires to lini.sh off before 

 winter, rye would make an excellent pasture 

 for such a pm-pose. In April the rye would 

 start, so that in a very short time the ewes 

 and lambs could be turned upon it and fed till 

 the time for ploughing in the rye for another 

 crop. True, there would not be so large a 

 growth to turn under, but there would be a 

 greater weight of roots and a thicker herbage, 

 because the rye would tiller out more wlieu 

 fed in this manner than if it was allowed a 

 continuous growth from the time of sowing. 

 Again, the droppings of the sheep would aid 

 greatly in fertilizing the .soil. The rye would 

 also start an abundance of milk with ewes, 

 while the lambs would fatten rapidly. By the 

 time the rye was eaten olf the grass iii tlie 

 pastures would have obtained a good start, 

 so that the lamlis, if they sliould not be 

 wanted for the butcher, would make good 

 size for future stock. Finally, the wool 

 would make excellent growth from such feed 

 and the size of the fleece would be increased, 

 the staple being long r and stronger in conse- 

 quence thereof. 



Our eastern farmers have been trying many 

 devices for procuring additional supplies for 

 food for our dairy herds and beef cattle. Is 

 not some available method for adding to the 

 feeding material for our Hocks t)f sheep worthy 

 of careful consideration V Is tliere any other 

 way in wliich the fertility of many of our hill- 

 side farms can be restored at so low a cost as 

 by increasing the number of sheep ? Raising 

 mutton and wool in larger quantities than at 

 lircsent will .seciu'e the financial prosperity of 

 the farmers of this section. It is (piite com- 

 mon in England to turn sheep upon wheat 

 in the fall; they eat it down causing i'^ to 

 tiller nuire, while their trampling upon the 

 ground tends to press the earth more closely 

 against the roots, preventing tlnni from being 

 thrown out by tlie frosts in winter and spring. 

 Their droppings enrich the soil, and a heavier 

 crop of wheat is tht! conseipience. If rye wen- 

 allowed to ripi'U its seed a heavier crop would 

 be the consequence of its liaving been eaten 

 down ill the fall by sheep. .Sometimes wheat 

 is eaten olf in tlie spring, and so might tlie 

 rye; yet whether this should be done or not 

 would be a matter for the farmer to decide, 

 according to his individual surroundings. 

 But one thing is very certain — rye would 

 make an excellent crop to turn under after 

 having beeu eaten olf by the sheep both in 

 fall and spring. Let eveiy fanner whose cir- 

 cumstances will permit determine to add a 

 dock of sheep, large or small, to his farm 

 stock, investiiiating tlie question of cheap and 

 available feeding material, profiting by the 

 experience of thousands of British farmers 

 who have added to the fertility of their acres, 

 as well as to the length of their purse, 

 through intelligent sheep husbandry. 



ABOUT TOBACCO. 



The following facts respecting tobacco will 

 be of interest to our readers : 



The coiisunii)tion of tobacco is increasing 

 very rai)idly at home and abroad. The same 

 lioi)ulatioii recpiires a larger amount year by 

 year. Foreign coiuitries do much to encourage 

 the production of most farm crops. But the 

 reverse is true in relation to tobacco. As 

 most of them derive much of their revenue 

 from a tax on tobacco, tiiey restrict or en- 

 tirely prohibit its i)roduction. This circum- 

 stance does much to encourage the growing 

 of tobacco in this country, 'fere there is a 

 tax on the manufacture and sales, but no re- 

 striction on the production. This tax often 

 amounts to more than one-fourth of a revenue 

 derived from all internal sources, and is 

 greater than that derived from any one arti- 

 cle, except distilled spirits. 



Tobacco has been a source of immense 

 wealth since the first settlement of the 

 country. The colonists of Maryland, Vir- 

 ginia, and the Carolinas became wealthy by 

 the cultivation of this crop. Land in Connec- 

 ticut and Wisconsin that is adapted to the 

 production of tobacco sells higher than any 

 in the vicinity of it. When a locality estab- 

 lishes a reputiition for its tobacco, land im- 

 mediately becomes very valuable. Tobacco 

 culture demands a large amount of labor, 

 much of which may be performed by persons 

 who can not do heavy work. It is accordingly 

 a good crop for persons to cultivate that have 

 much help but a small amount of land. The 

 l)roduction of tobacco on a large scale in any 

 vicinity generally furnishes a demand for a 

 large amount of labor. 



Tobacco has been raised with a greater or 

 less degree of profit in every State in the 

 Union and in every Territory except Alaska. 

 The quantity of product depends almost en- 

 tirely on the natural richness of the soil and 

 the manure tliat is applied to it. Its price 

 depends on the quality and variety all the way 

 from two to three cents to as many dollars 

 per pound. Tlie quality of tobacco depends 

 partly on the soil and partly on the climate of 

 the region where it is jn'oduced. Tobacco of 

 very high or rank flavor is, with very few ex- 

 ceptions, produced in tlie Southern States, 

 where tlie weatlier is warm and the growing 

 season long. Perique tobacco, the strongest 



variety cultivated, is grown only in a single 

 parish in the .State f)f Louisiana. 



The tobacco produced in the States lyin<» 

 about midway between the great lakes and 

 the fiulf of Mexico lias a rank growth and 

 high flavor. It is used chiefly for chewing 

 and the manufacture of inferior, strong 

 cigars. It does not command a very high 

 I)rice, but as the product is unusually large, it 

 is a profitable crop. Tobacco grown some 

 three hundred miles further north is of milder 

 flavor and is better achipted to tlie manufac- 

 ture of cigars. Tiiat jiroduced in the valley 

 of the Connecticut river lias quite large and 

 very thin leaves, and is admirably fitted for 

 coverings of cigars. It commands a high 

 price and is in great demand both at home 

 and in foreign countries. 



It is likely tliat there are hundreds of locali- 

 ties in the territory embodied within the 

 United .States in which a |ionnd of tobacco 

 was never produced, but that were capable 

 of piodiarng a better article than was ever 

 produced anywhere in the entire country. The 

 di.scoveiy that tobacco could be grown in the 

 valley of the Connecticut river was purely ac- 

 cidental. So was the discovery that very 

 good tobacco could be produced in several 

 counties in southern Wisconsin. So was the 

 di.scovery that the I'ei'iipie tobacco could be 

 raised in a peculiar spot in Louisiana. Iq 

 each of these places some one happened to 

 plant some seed, set out a few plants and was 

 astonished at the result. The knowledge be- 

 coming known, hundreds hastened to avail 

 themselves of the profits of an imiiortant agri- 

 cultural indu.stry. The di.scovery in each case 

 cost the maker only a few cents in money and 

 the expenditure of a few hours' time. The 

 value of it can scarcely be estimated by 

 figures, as its full benefits can only be realized 

 in the distant future. 



Wliat is demanded by the tobacco interest 

 is a systematic series of tests conducted by ex- 

 perts in every portion of the country. The 

 experiment should continue during several 

 years, because a trial during a single season 

 will determine very little. It may show that 

 the soil is capable of producing the plant, that 

 the seasons are long enough to mature it, that 

 the inevailing winds are not of sufficient 

 violence to tear the leaves, and that the 

 quality of tobacco is very fair. It may show, 

 in short, that the crop of tobacco is equal, 

 both in quality and quantity, to that from 

 which the .seed was obtained, no matter where 

 it was grown. These things, however, are 

 not suflicient to determine the value of the 

 locality for the production of tobacco. 



There are many varieties of tobacco, but 

 their characteristics do not remain unchanged 

 when the plants are raised in localities differ- 

 ent from those in which the varieties were first 

 grown and establislied. Attempts have beeu 

 inade to produce the famous Cuba tobacco in 

 other portions or the world that seemed to 

 resemble it closely in soil and climate. But 

 in every instance they have jiroved unsuccess- 

 ful. The seed of Cuba tobacco jilanted in the 

 most favored regions of Kentucky produces 

 the first season a plant with quite a small 

 leaf and a very pleasant flavor. It iiroduces 

 an agreeable odor when burned in a pipe or 

 in the form of a cigar. Its seed, howevor 

 Iiroduces tobacco very closely resembling that 

 which has been grown for generations in the 

 localities wliere it was planted. In a few 

 years no diflerence can be seen between the 

 jilants produced from seed im]>orted from 

 Cuba and those raised from the seed of plants 

 that have long been grown in the vicinity. 



The like is true of what is known as "Con- 

 necticut seed leaf," which appeal's to be a 

 term ilestitnte of meaning outside of the com- 

 mercial world. It does not retain its char- 

 acteristics when planted in localities very far 

 remote from the valley where it was origi- 

 nally developed. The "Connecticut seed 

 leaf tobacco does not owe its characteristics 

 to the .seed from which it was produced, but 

 derives them from the soil, climate, and at- 

 mospheric agencies where it grew. It is pos- 

 sible that a much better tobacco in some re- 



