NEW ENGIiANB FARMER. 



Published t>y John B. Rdssell, at JVo. 52 .Yorth Market Street, (over the AgricuUural If'arehouse). — Tbomas U. Fe.ssesdf.n, Editor. 



VOL. VI. 



BOSTOrS, FUIDAV, JUNJ: r>, 1828. 



No. 46. 



AG R I C U L T U RE. 



FOB THE NEW ENOLAND KARHER. 



DRAINING. 



Mr Fesskndkn — 1 have observed in New Eng- 1 

 !nnd and else.vhere, an abundance of land render-! 

 ed of little va!ue by being constantly saturated ; 

 witli water, iasuing from springs from the sides or 

 bi)ttoms of hills. These hnils being susceptible' 

 of great improvement by effectual draining, I have j 

 thought it miglit be useful to say a few words on 

 the subject. ; 



Open ditches are useful in carryinsf off surface' 

 water from low and flat lands, but fail when ap- ! 

 plied to lands impregnated with springs, and of au 1 

 uneven or inclining surface. Besides, open ditch- 

 es are liable to be tilled up, und if of unusual | 

 depth, are in several respects an impediment to 1 

 cultivation. 



Having successfully adopted the mode of drnin- 

 ing treated sf under the article " Agriculture" in 

 the Edinburgh Kncyclopedia, and denominated, it 

 my memory is correct, Trench drains, I would 

 strongly recommend it as effectual in the end, the 

 cheapest, and in various ways advantageous. 



Lands- constantly wet by spring water cannot 

 be cultivated, and only produce inferior grasses. 

 When reclaimed they will be found rich and pro- 

 ductive. 



Economy being essential in husbandry, it is de- 

 sirable to combine various iinprorementa in one 

 operation. 



The advantages of Trench drains are three. — 

 First, they operate effectually as a drain — relieve 

 the surface of small stones, and by collecting the 

 water at one point, afford permanent resources for 

 animal and other purposes — while this sort of ditch 

 is out of sight and neither occupies land, or im- 

 pedes the plough or carriages. In determining 

 the route of the drain, attention should be paid to 

 the indication of springs ; and in order to inter 

 cept them, it will be found best to cut rather be- 

 low than above those e.xternal indications, the ap- 

 pearance of water and the character of vegeta- 

 tion are the critetions to be noticed — a gradual 

 descent must of course be maintained, in all drain- 

 ing. 



After examining my grounds carefully in wet 

 and dry seasons, I stake out the route of the drain, 

 then cause two or three furrows to be ploughed as 

 the width miy require, the sods and loose earth 

 being shovelled out, the plough may be again em- 

 ployed which forwards the work, after which the 

 shovel, spade and pick axe must finish the excava- 

 tion. The depth generally makes from thirty to 

 forty inches, according to circumstances ; the 

 width twenty-four to thirty at top, sloping to about 

 two-thirds the width at bottom. 



The ditch b?ing made ready to fill and the 

 stones brought to it-i marsin, let one man, being 

 in the aitch, rnrefidhj place the bottom stones (of 

 the size of six or eight inches through if round,) 

 in the manner of an arch, leaning two against 

 each other at top, the bottoms extending to open 

 a free passage for water beneath, let these bottom 

 •stones be firmly kept in place by key stones, after 

 which the stones may bo thrown in somewhat pro- 



miscuously to within ploughing dist uce of the | ed several years with the Indians on the river 

 surfai-e. The larger stones should be at bottom | Ousconsin. That they had beans growing spon- 

 taneously in the woods, of a superior quality. It 

 was in the early part of the month of June, and he 



to give a free passage to the under water, the 

 smallest stones at top to prevent the earth and 

 surfsce water getting in. The stones in, and lev- 

 elled, spread a Tittle swingle tow, shavings or 

 straw, over them, for the reason named above, 

 after which the plough will replace thi earth ex- 

 peditiously, and the top of the ditch sliould pre- 

 sent a ridge higher than the general surface, as it 

 will settle ; and a heavy roller b -iug passed sev- 

 eral times lengthwise the ridge, will give the 

 whole a handsome and fine finish. If it be a 

 meadow, or pasture, grass seeds may be sown and 

 harrowed in, which will soon leave no trace ot 

 a ditch, except it he from its beneficial effects. 



I have been more minute than may be deemed 

 necessary in describing so simple an operation, 

 but ;is the improvement contemplated, if >vell 

 raade, will endure for centuries, and carelessly at 

 tempted, may fail in one year, this particularity 

 may be allowahlp. H. W. D. 



Batlston, (JV. Y.) May 26, 18-28. 



I OR THE NSW EKGLAHD FARiVIER. 



G-\RDENI]VG. 



Mr. Fessende.n, — I have been pleased to see 

 in the New England Farmer, an extensive adver- 

 tisement of garden ."ceds for sale. Prom my most 

 • arly remembrance, I have ever been fond of gar- 

 ^'' ig. The eminent Dr D.wrwin says- he had 

 been an experienced cardener forty-tive years. I 

 can now say more than that, as 1 have had more 

 less or experience in gardening for sixty yesrs or 

 upwards. According to the course of nature, at 

 this advanced period of life, little more may be 

 fcxpected from me, except a few observations on 

 my experience. 



It is now forty years since I first came to make 

 a garden at this place. I was then well provided 

 with a great variety of seeds. Water melons I 

 had from a very large one that came from the Is 

 land of Bahama, of another kind from Charleston, 

 S.C. and a parcel from my native county of Bucks 

 thirty miles north of Philadelphia. They were all 

 planted, and tended equally well ; the vines of 

 those from Bahama grew the largest I ever saw ; 

 they blossomed in abundance but never bore any 

 thing. Those from Charleston grew well, and 

 blossomed, but bore none to perfection. Those 

 from Bucks county grew well and produced abun- 

 dance of good melons ; so did my cucumbers, 

 muskmelons, squashes, &c. but they all depreciat- 

 ed in size, and quality every year. 



Sometime after, I had business at Fishkill. op 

 posite Newburgh, it being the season for gather 

 ing garden seeds, my worthy friends D. Ve'plank 

 Esq and the v.'iilow De Witt, furnished me with 

 Bin assortment ; and from several years' experi 

 ments, they apparently grew better than such as 

 I raised on the soil or obtained from Philadelphi: 

 Upwards of twenty years ago a forlorn traveller 

 came to my house end begired for victuals. He 

 vas dressed altogether in skins with the hair on. 

 He informed me in substance that he belonged to 

 Lower Canada, near the United States, had been 

 with the traders up Lake Superior, and had resid- 



trave me six bears They were a beautiful glossy 

 white bean, move than twice as large as any I had 

 ever seen I planted them — they grew and bore 



well vvere diflcrent from other beans, with long 



vines, strong steins, with pods, blossoms, &c. from 

 'le same stem until frost. These beans, depre- 

 dated in size jnlil the year 181i>, when I planted 

 and gave away all that I had ; but there were bo 

 many frosts that they were all cut off, and I be- 

 lieve are extinct. 



With regard to water melons, in the summer of 

 1813 I was in the city of Philadelphia, and in- 

 formed of a certain man living nearly opposite, in 

 New Jersey, th-it supplied the city with the best 

 water melons I sought his residence, they were 

 different in shape from any I had seen, very crook- 

 ed and small in the middle, so much so that I car- 

 ried one to luy lodgings by hanging it on my 

 shoulder. They were of a very superior flavor. — 

 I forget tho name of the Sandwich Island from 

 which he said the seed came ; but I bought two 

 for the seed, and only found a few in the hlos.som 

 ends I carefuiiy preserved and brought the seeds 

 here, but never could raise one to ripen. 



He told me one thing about raising water mel- 

 ons, and other si:uilar vines, that may be of ser- 

 vice, — that i ; th summer he gardened, and in the 

 vvinior fattc ^ : -p, -ind always kept them on his 

 water melon patch, and was never troubled with 

 any worms or yellow bugs. 



Doctor Darwin the great friend of Doctor Frank- 

 lin, in his directions for raising Brocoli, recom- 

 mends to have the seed every year imported from 

 Italy. Is not that a proof, as Italy is to the south 

 of England, that transporting seed from south to 

 north, doth not answer a stationary purpose? 



Perhaps you may think I am too late with my 

 remarks; bull am not too late for gentlemen's 

 observations and remarks for another year. One 

 in particular in your neighborhood, my worthy 

 friend, the venerable Col. Timothy Pickering; 

 I hope to see something more from him in your 

 paper. SAMUEL PRESTON. 



Stockport, May 26, 1828. 



N. B. I am feeb'e with age and bad health, yet 

 life and health permitting, I hope to write a histo- 

 ry of the Apple Tree, and show that it was a na- 

 tive of Pennsylvania long before the continent was 

 discovered by Europeans ; and if I had means of 

 lonveyance, would send your agricultural friends 

 a sciop of the original apples; they are yet worthy 

 cultivating, and I have them in abundance. 



ON BEf, KEEPING. 

 Many and great are the "dvantages to be gain- 

 ed by the inhabitants of these United Stales, if 

 bees were propagated, supported, and preserved. 

 Our soil and climate are interior to none for this 

 purpose. Not Egypt, Greece, Italy, Germany, 

 France, England, or any part whatever of the 

 whole globe, would exceed us in the quantity, 

 quality, or flavor of the honey. Canaan, of old, 

 cou'd not with more propriety be called a land 

 flowing with railk and honey, than America would 



