TO AGHICOLTJRE AND ALL lib hiim Kl 



ART3 A.^D [JClENiJES 



Honor waits, o'er all the earth, The art that calls her harvests forth. — Bryant. 



VOL. I. 



SATURDAY, JANUARY 6, 1849, 



NO. 2, 



S. W. COLE, Editor. 



QUINCY HALL, BOSTON. 



J. NOUIISE, Pkopeietor. 



RECEPTION OF THE NEW ENGLAND 

 FARMER. 



We have the satisfaction of finding that the New 

 England Farmer is meeting with a most cordial 

 reception. Our numerous friends whom we see, and 

 many others at a distance, from whom we have the 

 pleasure of hearing, express their hearty approval 

 of the work in its form, matter, and neatness of exe- 

 cution, and we are obUgcd to many, not only for 

 their kind wishes and patronage, but for their liberal 

 aid in its circulation. 



Wo copy the following remarks from the president 

 of the Essex Agricultural Society, particularly for the 

 valuable hints they contain in regard to communi- 

 cations, though thus far our correspondents have 

 been brief. As to the small size of our page, the 

 deficiency is made up bj" the greater number. 



To the Editor and Picblislter of the New England Farnier. 



Gentlemen- : I am happy in the receipt of a paper 

 under this name. The well-earned reputation of a 

 paper so ably conducted as was your predecessor 

 under the stimo name, by Fcssonden and others, can- 

 not fail to be a favorable introduction. The form 

 you have chosen is much better calculated to give 

 it permanency than a larger page, and makes it more 

 easily read. If it is objected that it will not contain 

 »o much matter as the other forms, let those who 

 oiTer sucli objections, take care to divest their com- 

 munications of all superfluous words, and you will 

 have no difficulty in finding space for them. It has 

 become too common among writers on agricultural 

 •ubjects, to forward to the press their productions as 

 soon as they are threshed, before they are toinnotoed. 

 With my best wLshes for the success of your enter- 

 prise, 



I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 



J. W. PROCTOR. 



Danveiis, Dec. 14, 1848. 



PRUNING GRAPE-VINES. 



The best time for pruning grape-vines is late in 

 autumn, after the fall of the leaf. If neglected then, 

 the sooner it is done the better ; for if done late in 

 -winter, or in spring before the leaves put out, the 

 vines are liable to bleed. Sometimes, when they 

 are pruned early in winter, and there is steady cold 

 weather till spring, so that the ends of the vines do 



not become dry, they will bleed as warm weather 

 comes on in spring, the same as vines cut at that 

 season. 



If vines are rather tender, — as is the case with the 

 best kinds cultivated in New England, — it is best 

 to prune partially in fall, leaving twice as much 

 new wood as is needed, and finish the operation in 

 spring, when the leaves have started, as then the life 

 of the vine may be seen, and the vines will not 

 bleed after the plant is in foliage. 



CARE OF CATTLE. 



Cattle should be kept warm and comfortable in 

 wintei', else far more food will be necessary ; and then 

 they will be less profitable, than when kept in a 

 comfortable condition. The whole barn should be 

 made tight and warm, and there should be no parti- 

 tion between the cattle and the large, open space 

 called the barn floor ; or there should bo no obstruc- 

 tion directly before the heads of the cattle, whether 

 staading or lying, that they may breathe the pure 

 air. Rails, or bars, in front, will be sufficient. 



Many of the best managers of stock have barns so 

 warm that water will not freeze in them in the cold- 

 est weather. The open space in front of the cattle 

 gives a good chance for pure air. In warm, dull 

 weather, in winter, it is necessai'y to open doors, at 

 some distance from the animals, that a draft of air 

 may pass through the barn floor, yet not blow di- 

 rectl}- on the cattle. 



If a cattle house be made close, with a partition in 

 front, the steam and gases arising from the manure, 

 and the breath of the animals, will produce foul air, 

 and create disorders. 



Maple Sugar. — A good man wiU make six or 

 seven hundred pounds in three weeks. The man that 

 took the premium at Auburn in 1843, kept all vesseU 

 clean. He run the hot sugar into conical vessels, 

 having a half inch hole, plugged at bottom, until the 

 sugar was thoroughly hard; then put three layers of 

 woollen cloth on top, and poured on a pint of water 

 every morning for three weeks in succession. The 

 water looked like brown molasses, and the sugar, 



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