Vol. 6— No. 29. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



cnricliiog the soil, rold manures are to be used. ' (plaster of Paris) maybe found in tlie towns 

 In the southern .Stales, I should consider the best 1 where the coal formation exists — viz. Springfield, 

 situations tor this plant to be the north sides of West Springfield, South Iladley, Granby, Sunder- 

 hills, or the sliady borders on the north side of a land, &c. He says all liglit colored and soft 

 "arden fence or a hedge. Tlie plantations in the rocks found in these towns should be examined 

 vicinity ot New York, an. I which furnish that city with care. If they do not effervosce by pouring 

 with this fruit, are generally made by plain farm- on oil of vitriol or aquafortis, they will probably 

 crs, on good loamy soils, v hich are light and mel- prove to be gypsum. If they do effervesce, they 

 low, occupy open and unsheltered fields. The ] are limestone. — Hampshire Gazette. 

 yield from them is immense, and they are consid-| 



cred among the most advantageous appropriations 

 of the soil. 



FORMING I;EDS. 



The most favorable season to form beds, is in 

 September or October, wliii h gives the plants suf- 

 ficient time to establish tlinmselves, and become 



THOROUGH WORT. 



There are numerous species of this plant, which 

 are natives of our soil. This species has long 

 been familiarly known throughout the U. States, 

 by the various names of tlioroughwort, boneset, 

 Indian sage, crosswort, vegetable antimony, &c 



„ I, _ „ , [,„, ,. I 4- ' J .u It jrrows abundantly in low meadows and marshy 



well rooted betore the ground freezes, and there- . " . _,, •' , , • .. -^ 



... „.,„.,, ,u , I, .■ . 1, .1 ■ . situations. The stem is erect, and rises from two 



by prevents thei.' being thrown out by the winter ^ ,. .. ,. ■ , , 



A.„„t. I,. I-., . .1 K 1 til 1 . to four or five leet, perforating the leaves at each 



trosts. Ill loniiiug these beds, you should select . . , ■ , ■ ,, . , , ^"^-i 



strong and vigorous runners, or offsets, in prefer- J°""' and is hairy or woolly, and brunches only at 



dice to taking old plants: these maybe placed '^'^ ^°P- The leaves are horuontal, serrated and 



in beds from three or four fe.t wide, and from ten 

 to twelve inches apart each « ay, according- to the 

 extent to which the variety usually expands in its 



rough, from three to four inches long, and about 

 an inch broad at tticir base, gradually lessening 

 to a very acute point, of a dark green, and cover 



growth. Most varieties do best when allowed to ^'' '^"'^ ^^°'"' ^'''''''- ^he flowers are .vhite, and 



appear in July an ; August. The medicinal pro- 

 perties of this vcr^- valuable plant have been thor- 

 oughly investigated by numerous persons, one of 

 the first and most accurate of whom is Dr. Ander- 



run together, so as to form n -omplfete matt — as 

 in this case one forms a shi Uer for the other 

 from e.xce3sive heat — bui where the fruit is de- 

 sired of tiie largest possible si e, the plants must , ., ,, ,, , 

 be kept di tiuct, an.l at the distance of one foot ^""' f^.^ew York He deems it warrantable, to 



asunder, and the runners shonM be cut off as they 

 appear. By some persons it is recommended to 

 make plantations in the autumn as before stated, 

 and to keep them dives'ed of all ■ unnors till after 

 the maturity of the truit the ensuiun- season. 



As beds of strawberries generally want renew- 

 ing every two or ttiree years, it will be necessary, 

 in forming the new beds, to select the plants in ^"'"^ 

 the proportion of nine bearing plants to one bar- "" " 



ren; and, in order to do this with certainty, it '"'•"' P'"°^ ^P'"'^- ^'>° '''^'- *"'''" '""^ better be 

 will be best to mark them when in fruit. If, how- e-xpunged. It is said without hesitation, that the 



conclude, that it possesses many properties similar 

 to those which characterize Peruvian bark, cam- 

 omile, and other valuable articles used in modi- 

 cine, but that these virtues reside in the greatest 

 degree in the leaves. As medicinal preparations 

 of this plant, the author recommends the decoc- 

 tion of the flowers and leaves ; infusions of the 



229 



lent to 5!),(»(I0 over the whole length of the road, 

 at $1 each — th(! transportation in wagons equi»- 

 alent to that of b,450 tons through the route, 4025 

 tons at an averayc piicc of $4,7.5 per ton, and 

 3825 tons (7 1 2 cents per mile per ton) at $3,15 

 giving the gross receipts of 84,000 ; deducting 

 from which 6,750 for expense of horses, carriagas 

 and drivers for conveying passengers ; 2,50(} for 

 expenses of the heavy transportation; also ten per 

 cent, on these amounts to cover any error by un- 

 der estimates of these expenses, and allowing 

 $400(1 per annum for superintendance and repairs, 

 making nearly 1.5,400, leaves a nett income of a 

 little over $68,000."— Bojiioii Patriot. 



NEW^JN GLAND FARMErT" 



BOSTON, FRIDAY, FEB. 8, U 



same partb ; the leaves in substance powdered — 

 the proportion of nine bearing plants to one bar- ^"'^ " tincture of the flowers and leaves, prepared 



FREQUENT PLOUGHING, AND PLOUGH- 

 ING IN RIDGE,S. 



A writer in Loudon's Gcirdeyier's Magaziyie says 

 •'when a soil is to:iacio*is, or abounding in stub- 

 born vegetable matters, as in heath lands, it can- 

 not be too completely exposed to the action of the 

 air ; but to light soils, which are in general defi- 

 cient in organic decomposing matters, chemistry 

 would say that ridging is accompanied by evils 

 more injurious than can be compensated by the 

 benefits obtained ; for such light soils are easily- 

 pulverized whenever occasion requires, are so po- 

 rous as at all times I'recly to admit the pervasion 

 of the atmosphere ; and, therefore, by this extra- 

 exposure, the vegetable and animal remains are 

 hastened in decomposing, and much of their fer- 

 tile constituents evolved in the state of gas, or 

 c irriei! away by the rains, iSic. witliout there be- 

 jing any crop upon them to benefit by them. Thus 

 theory argues, and practice certainly seems to 

 suppori, in this instance, her doctrines." Switzer. 

 one of our horticultural classics, says, -'rich heavy 

 ground cannot well be ploughed too often, to 



ever, your beds are not encumbered with a sii-, 5^^""=''' properties of tlioroughwort, as 'ied-ced ! ^,^|.^ i^ ,i ,^ _^,^j ^,_^ better manure by killing 

 perfluous number of barren plants, this precaution f^'" ''•^P^'ment, are in many respects exactly L,^^ ^^.^^^^ . ^^ ^/^^^^ ^| 



v.-ill not bo indispensably necessary ; thougl, it is m^'^^' \° t''« P""vian bark ; and that for its ac- | ,^ ,,_^j ^^^ ^^1^^^^^^ ^.^^. fear of impoverishing it." 



generally requisite with the varieties of liautbois, 

 the red Chili, pine apple, and some others, wliicii 

 are apt to produce a great proportion of barren 

 plants — and even, without proper attention, beds 

 of these, and of some other kinds, will become 

 almost totally unproductive. 



With respect to the varieties of the Ajpiui;, or 

 monthly, it is preferable to forin new beds every 

 autumn, as the runners of the previous year pro 



plougi'.cd too seldom, ior tear ot impo 

 ROOTS OF PLANTS, 

 "A root is annual, biennial, or perennial. lii 

 the two former instances, if the individuals to 



e medicinal virtue?, particularly as a sudorific 

 S^ as a tonic, it will not suffer by a comparison 

 viKlfi any of the articles found in the vegetable 

 kingdom. Among others, Dr. Barton, and Dr. 



Hosnck have observed its eflicacy as a remedy in I which they belong be allowed to perfect their 

 the treatment of most febrile diseases, p.irticularly [seed, no care can protract their existence beyond 

 intermitting and remitting fevers, yellow fever, i tbe ensuing winter, however genial the tempera- 

 and various other disorders; eutancoiis affections, i ture, &c., in which they are made to vegetate ; — 

 and diseases of general debility. If exhibited c.s ' l^tit, if tiic ripening of seed be prevented, it is uu- 

 duce a much greater quantity of fruit than the old ^ ^^'"■°' decoction, it often proves an emetic, and I determined how long they may in most instances 

 „]3[jjg_ ■ .acts especially on the skin, producing copious per- 1 "0 sustained m life. I have known mignonette, 



spiration; if in form of cold infusion or decoction, | continued in healthy vegetation for four years 

 or substance, it acts as a powerful tonic. An in- with this precaution. In all roots, and under arty 

 fusi(m of thoroughwort has long been esteemed jmode of management, the fibrous parts (radiculse) 

 as an efficacious remedy in bilious colic accoinpa- i are strictly annual; they decay as winter ap- 

 ied by obstinate costiveness. It is directed in the 'proaches, and are produced with the returnin. 



LIMESTONE. 



Professor Hitchcock, in his Agricultural Ad 



dress, states that limestone capable of forming thi 



water proof cement hag been found in Southing 



ton. West Springfield, and at Mount Tom, and lie quantity of a tea-cup full every half hour, until iti^'^or of their parent in the spring. Hence the 

 roiiirks that we may expect to find it in other (operate downwards. In .i similar manner, it has ! reason that plants are transplanted with most suc- 

 placcs in the valley of the Connecticut. I been successfully prescribed in dysentery, with ! ee.»s during the season of tiicir decay ; for as the 



■ It has been known for many years that a coarse j the view of both its cathartic and diaphoretic ef- I rpnt almost exclusively imbibes noiirishnieut by 

 kind of limestone existed in Williamsburgh, i fects. About two quarts of a strong infusion of l-the mouths of these fibres, in proportion as they 

 Whatcly, Conway, Goshen, Chesterfield, Deer- 1 thoroughwort, with the addition of an ounce of i are injured by the removal, so is the plant depriv- 

 field, Ashfield, Buckland, &c. Professor II. has | aloes, form an excellent purgative for horses and ed of the means of support; tiiat sap which is 



recently burnt some pieces of this stone and con- cattle. jVational Philanthropist. employed in the formation of new fibres, would 



verted It into quick lime On being slacked, and ' have served to increase the size of other parts. — 



mi.xed with a quantity of sand, it formed a dp.rk ' Boston and Providence flail Road In their re- The size of the root, I have always observed to 



colored mortar, which hardened as soon, and to port, which makes ninety-four pages of letter press inciease with the poverty of the soil in which it 



as great a degree, as lime mortar in general. the commissioners say — " according to lite es- is growing. Duhamel found the roots of some 



Professor H. is not without hope that gypsum > timates, the passages of persons will bo equiva- young oats ir. a poor soil to be nearly four feet 



