96 



Included under the enumeration of English grass land is 

 one acre laid down this year with wheat, and one acre with 

 barley. 



The live stock consists of five horses, 32 cows, one bull, 

 one yoke of oxen, and from six to ten swine. With milch 

 cows I have not been particular in regard to purity of blood, 

 but have endeavored to obtain and keep the best grade and 

 native stock. 



Have generally found it most expedient to keep good, fair 

 sized horses, weighing from eleven to twelve hundred. The 

 amount of manure used annually upon the farm has ordinarily 

 been about 150 cords. This has included that made by the 

 live stock and considerable night manure hauled from the city, 

 all composted with meadow mud from the salt marsh. 



It may not be improper to mention, that my experience in 

 the matter of top-dressing has led me to use, contrary to the 

 general practice, green cow manure for this purpose. 



To obviate the objection that such manure is apt to be so 

 coarse as to be in the way of the scythe and rake, I have 

 found it well to spread it in the month of March, and then, 

 after the frost is fairly out of the ground, run over it with a 

 brush harrow, which reduces it into such small particles as to 

 render it in no way troublesome afterwards. I have generally 

 drawn from the city thirty or forty cords of night manure. 

 This I have mixed with the meadow mud and barn yard 

 manure, all in one mass, in about equal portions of each, and 

 forked it over twice at least, and in some years three times. 



As to rotation of crops, I would say that I have found it 

 inexpedient to attempt to raise either cabbages, beets or tur- 

 nips successive years upon the same piece of land. But as to 

 most other farm products, I have never been convinced that 

 there was any necessity for alternating the crops — as, for in- 

 stance, onions and carrots do not only as well, but much bet- 

 ter when continued successively on the same land. Potatoes 

 do well for four or five years, and, for aught I know, for a 

 much longer time. The same can be said of corn and toma- 



