NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



351 



I put in the mow ; but what shattered off it in pitch- 

 ing on to the mow, was threshed and pushed upon 

 the floor, and covered with the straw. It lay there 

 for some two months, when, on preparing to thresh 

 off my crop, I overhauled it, and found it literally 

 alive with weevils. We put it through the fan, 

 and gathered them out the screen box, and swept 

 them otf the floor by the quart, and destroyed them. 

 Now for the mow : To the be^t of mj' knowledge, 

 there was not one handful destroyed by them ; .indeed, 

 I do not know that it was touched. We threshed 

 it, cleansed it through the fan, and garnered it, I 

 think, without seeing a single weevil, or weevil-eaten 

 grain. For further proof of the matter, this year I 

 did nearly the same thing, only putting the shattered 

 wheat in a cask, and letting it stand on the floor. 

 Last week, on examining it, I found a few weevils in 

 it ; but it was very little injured. I set it away, and 

 proceeded to thresh a part of the other, about one 

 hundred dozens, amongst which I have to find the 

 first weevil ; and further, the garner in which there 

 had been a number of them is now entirely clear, 

 after having the wheat thus salted in it. The quan- 

 tity of salt used was about a peck to one hundred 

 dozen, sprinkled over each cart-load of about ten to 

 twelve dozens. C. L. 



Upper Chichester, Delaware Co., Pa., 1849. 



MILK-HOUSES. 



Friend Solon Robinson, Crown Point, Pa., well 

 known as an agricultural tourist, and a gentle- 

 man of extensive observation, from whom we 

 have occasionally had friendly calls this season, 

 gives the following plan for a milk-house, which we 

 think far preferable to sinking them deep in the 

 earth, which prevents the admission of pure air, and 

 a free circulation : — 



Seeing your article in No. 19, reminds me to tell 

 you how I built my milk-house. 



It is of brick, ten feet by eighteen, two stories high, 

 built upon the same level as the dwelling, and near 

 b)'. The two sides and one end are banked up with 

 earth, and sodded from the top of the first story back 

 on a gradual slope. 



A small entry is made at one end, so as to give 

 double doors, and a double glass window is arranged 

 at the other end, so as to open and give ventilation. 



A ventilator, about one foot square, should go from 

 the centre of the ceiling out through the roof. 



The joists are plastered, and support a false floor, 

 composed of boards, and four inches of clay between 

 that and the floor of the room above, which room is 

 used for a smoke-houise, the smoke being conducted 

 from the outside. 



The floor of the milk-room is of brick — stone 

 would be better. This room is cool in summer, and 

 warm enough for a cellar in latitude 41^° in winter. 



This is a very cheap and very good plan to make 

 a milk-house in any country. 



SHOEING HORSES. 



At a meeting of the Royal Agricultural Society 

 of England, some time since, Professor Sewal re- 

 marked that he frequently found old horses shod 

 with a layer of leather, forming an artificial sole, 

 between the hoof and the shoe, recovering from 

 severe affections of the hoof, — such, for instance, as 

 contraction, brittleness, and cracks, or even diseases 

 of the foot itself, as thrushes, corns, cankers, etc., — 

 a« 1 permanently regain their original rla^ticity and 

 finniio->s. — Sel-ruul. 



ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 



From Colonel Charles Hannaford, Cape Elizabeth, 

 Me., a box of apjjles, called the Pearmain. It is of 

 medial size ; roundish-flat, very full in the eye and 

 cavity ; stem rather short, and very slender ; rich 

 yellow ground, striped and blended with brilliant 

 red, which nearly covers the surface, full in the sun ; 

 flesh Avhite, very tender, crisp, juicy, mild, pleasant, 

 and of a fine pearmain flavor, resembling the Mag- 

 nolia in flavor. Colonel H. remarks that these ap- 

 ples are from the native tree on his place, which is 

 about eighty years old ; that formerly the fruit was 

 larger and finer ; and that this variety is the more 

 valuable for bearing in odd years, when fruit is 

 scarce, according to our theory, which he regards as 

 correct. As this variety is a good grower and bearer, 

 the fruit of good size on vigorous trees, very fair and 

 handsome, of fine quality for eating or cooking, it is 

 worthy of experiment, as it promises to be an excel- 

 lent kind. Ripe during September ; in this climate, 

 about from the middle of August to the middle of 

 September. 



Of John Washburn, Pljnriouth, a seedling quince, 

 which he raised from the Apple quince. It is very 

 large, remarkably fair and smooth, similar in texture 

 and appearance to the Apple quince, but rather 

 firmer flesh ; and it ripens about a fortnight later, 

 but earlier than the Pear quince. It is a very prom- 

 ising variety ; and as it is nameless, we would propose 

 to call it the Washburn Apjile quince. Jalousie Fon- 

 tenay de Vendee pears, very fair, and good quality, 

 a new and promising foreign variety. SieuUe pears, 

 large and fair, but too hard for present use. Charter 

 Oak grape. We heard that this grape was cultivated 

 about Hartford, Ct., and that it was a valuable kind. 

 We requested Egbert Cowles, of Farmington, Ct., 

 president of Hartford County Horticultural Society, 

 to give us information on it, supposing that it was 

 within his jurisdiction. He writes that Dr. Grant, a 

 leading horticulturist of Hartford, states that it was 

 a wild vine, transplanted into the Wyley estate, 

 (Charter Oak place,) where it bore large fruit of infe- 

 rior quality, which he regards as not worth culti- 

 vating. The qualit}^ of the fruit from Mr. W^ con- 

 firms the opinion of Dr. G. It is one of the poorest 

 of wild grapes, and about the same as the famous 

 Mammoth grape, cultivated about Lowell. We have 

 also had the same from Springfield. In our last, 

 under the head of acknowledgments, for Monmouth 

 read Ma7nmoth. 



Of John Cummings, Woburn, several seedling 

 peaches ; one a large white peach with a red blush, 

 and white flush, freestone, of excellent quality, 

 ripens October 1. Two varieties of clingstone, ex- 

 cellent for preserving ; one of medial size, the last 

 of September ; the other qiiite large, and ripening the 

 first of October. 



Of Amos Tilton, East Kingston, N. H., a large, 

 beautiful seedling peach, clingstone, fine for pre- 

 serves. This peach is about half nectarine, which is 

 a variety of the peach, as the nectarine is raided from 

 peach stones, and the reverse. Fine pears of the 



