NEW ENGE.AND FAMM EM. 



PUBLISHtlD BY GEO. 



C. BAKRETT, NO. 52, NORTH MARKET STREET, (at the Agricultural Warkhouse.)— T. G. FESSENDEK, EDITOR. 



VOL. xiir. 



BOSTON, WEONESBAY. EVENING, AUGUST 20, 1834. 



NO. 6. 



COMMUNICATION. 



For the AV((j England Parmer. 

 TOP-ORKSSING MOWIKG LANDS. 



Mr. Editor — Sir, In your pajier of Jiily 25tli, 



I iiotired an arlicle (Voiii llie C{iltiv:Uo|- ii|ioi! 



tlie sul'ji'ct of piisturos, wliicli contiiins some rc- 



itnik.s which judging fmiii iriy own experience 



I lliink are incorrect. I iilhiile pariinnlarly to tlie 



writer's preference of the bre.ilung np systi:in over 



top-(h-essing as a|)plied to mowing hinij.s. The 



!)reaking-n|i system in relation to pasture lands, 



i.'s proh.-ddy the liest, and perhaps the ordy nictlioci 



by wliicli they can he recruited. A year ago last 



«priug, I top-dressiKl a small piece of mowinj^ 



land as an e.vperiment, the result of which lias 



fully satisfied nie that tlii.s is the most expi.'ditiou.s 



as Well as the least e.vpensive method of improving 



mowing lauds. I will give you the ex|)erimeni 



more in detail. Upon niy farm was a ridge of 



land wliich had lieeu mowed for a long perio<i (how 



long I do not know as 1 had hut recently come 



into tbe possession of it), but it had become quite 



bound out as it is sometimes termed. The grass 



was quite light, and tliiu, yieldii% the summer 



previous, at the rate of about one ton |)er acre. 



In the spring of 1833, after the grass had got 



something of a start I spread upon tliree-fom-tlis 



of an acre of this land, ten cart loads of .stable 



niaiiiire <d' an excellent quality. The grass soon 



concealed the manure, forming a shade for it, 



and thus keeping it nitdsf. 



I obtained from this piece of land last summer 

 about two tons of hay, and tins season at one mow- 

 ing three tons, making an increase of fom- fold in 

 consequence of the top-dressing. The grass this 

 season was about lialf clover, and the other half 

 timothy, grew very high and thick, being as 

 heavy a burden as I have ever seen upon any new- 

 ly laid down land. I have no doubt but that land 

 may be profitably kept in grass for any length of 

 time, by top-dressing as often as once in five or 

 six years. 



The reason why the same course may not be pnr- 

 stieil with pastures with the same success, is this: 

 The grass being constantly fed close, leaves the 

 manure exposed to the influence of the sun and 

 wind, the inevitable consequence of wliich is, the 

 mauure becomes dry and hard, and loses most 

 of its fertilizing qualities. Perhaps some kinds of 

 manure, such as gypsum or ashes, might be used 

 upon dry pastures to advantage. 



I am daily becoming more and more convinced 

 of the value of manure U|)on our farms. V/e can- 

 not attach too much inifiortance to it. Like the 

 vital principle in the human system, it diffuses 

 life and energy through our otherwise baircn and 

 nnproduetive soils, imparting value and richness 

 to poverty and sterility, converting the barren 

 waste into a fruitful field. 



The old motto is never more true than when 

 applied to agriculture ; " what is worth doing is 

 worth doing zoell." Call that only done ^vliich is 

 ■well done, and by no class of men is this motto 

 more neglected than by our farmers. Let it be 

 observed however, that the exceptions to this re- 

 mark are becoming somewhat numerous. 



Herein may be discovered tbe grand secret, why 



upon the same farm one man wid prosp(fr, live 

 well, and become indepemlent ; while another 

 will Kul hard, live miserably, and daily sink lowci- 

 iu poverty and wrel(diedncss. 



Your ob't servant, 



Caledonia. 



From the Fanner's Re^ster. 

 R¥E IN THE GRAIN AS FOOD FOR HORSES. 

 A FiuENB, in whom I have every confidence, 

 who is !• gentleman of scientific acquiremenis, and 

 a practical agriunlturist, has just given me tiie fol- 

 lowing information, relative to horses' feed. 



While travelling recently on cue of the public 

 roads, he fell in com|iany with a farmer, from one 

 of the iioriheru counties of Virginia, and in the 

 course of conversation the sidpject of feeding liorses 

 was mentioned ; when the farmer observed, that 

 for four years past he liad pursued a new plan, 

 greatly to his advantage, as well as to that of his 

 liorses. The new plan was that of feeding rye, in 

 the grain, without grinding. He said, that after 

 four years experience, he had become perfectly 

 satislieil tliat less rye produced a better eftect tliaii 

 if it were chopped or ground. After much difli- 

 culiy, he had [irevaileii on some of his neigldiors 

 to try it; and ttius, gradually, all the hoise owners 

 in his neighborhood bad become converts, uiiil 

 now all fed rye in the grain ; all agreeing that a 

 large proportion of grain was saved by it, .besides 

 a marked difterence in the condilion of tbe horses 

 for the better. He said, he could not give the 

 " why and because ;" it was different from the 

 universal prescription of science, and the almost 

 universal pjactice of intelligent husbandmen ; but 

 ihat llie fact was liefore him, and challenged his 

 belief in such a way, that to have continued iu- 

 crediilons, would have been to shut his eyes 

 against the most paljjable demonstration. The 

 best of this is, that an experiment is easily maile, 

 and, even if successful, cannot result in material 

 loss. But should it prove to be true, that rye in 

 tbe grain is better, or even as good as when 

 ground, a considerable saving would result to the 

 farmer, in avoiding the trouble and expense of go- 

 ing to mill. The farmer stated, that he had ob- 

 served grains of rye passed ofl" in the dung, but 

 that they seemed to have left their substance in 

 the liody of the horse. In this he is doulitless 

 mistaken ; but may not the modus operandi of this 

 new diet be explained thus: The grain that es- 

 capes crushing by the teeth prevents the mass in 

 the stomuch from concreting into lum|)s, and thus 

 [icrmils the free action of the juices of the stomach 

 upon the whole. Persons afHicted with dyspepsia 

 swallow white mustard seed, with great advantage; 

 but I believe it is not pretended that the mustard- 

 seed has any other action than a mechanical one 

 — ^that of kee))ing the contents of the stomach from 

 forming a dense muss ; keeping the food light and 

 penetrable by the gastric jinces, &c. 



The anecdote was given to me in so earnest a 

 manner, and by so respectable a gentleman, that 1 

 thought, as I was about writing to you, I would 

 give it to you for insertion in the Farmers' Regis- 

 ter. 



Very respecffdly, 



Gideon B. Smith. 



Frani the VuUirator. 

 RIBBON GRASS. 



The ribbon gra.ss of our gardens, (Phalaris 

 Americana.) is likely to become of great value in 

 our husbandry : it has been found to be better 

 a<lapted to v\et boggy gromids than any other spe- 

 cies of grass ; to propagate ra[iidly either by its 

 seeds, or by its roots ; to yield a very large prod- 

 uct in hay or pasture, and to be well adapted to 

 farm stock. The first suggestion of this fact came 

 to us in a letter from Aeednego Robinson of 

 Portsmouth, N. U. who .says the discovery was ac- 

 cidental. 



" A neighbor, he says, wisliing to get riil of 

 some of the roots which encnnibered his garden, 

 threw them into a hog, where they took root and 

 spread over a large space of ground, excluding 

 every other plant. The water flows through the 

 roots at all seasons. The turf has become so 

 solid as to bear a cart and o.\en. I walked through 

 ihi^ grass when in bloom, and never beheld a more 

 handsome anil luxuriant growth. It stood per- 

 fectly erect, full of large leaves, even, and from 

 four to five feet high. It will produce two good 

 cro|)s in a season, and springs up immediately 

 after ihe scythe. It produces excellent food ; rat- 

 tle fecil it close and appear to- be more fond of it 

 when, made iiito hay llian any other grass. I have 

 ^lioken \ .r one-half of the roois of ihe patch, and 

 have ground in my meadow into which I intend 

 to transplant them at about the distance of ccru- 

 hills." 



On a recent visit from the Hon. E. Goodrich 

 of Hartford, we were happy to leceive from that 

 gentleman a confirmation of the good opinion of 

 the phalaris which had been induced by Mr. Piob- 

 inson's letter. It has been found as beneficial in 

 Connecticut as in New Hampshire. Not recol- 

 lecting the particulars narrated, we would beg of 

 Air. Goodricli when lie sees this, to forward thein 

 to us, in order that we may furnish them correct- 

 ly. The siibject merits further attention ; and if 

 our anti('i|)ali(ms are not irrationally founded, th* 

 Phalaris Americana will yet become the gama 

 grass of ihe north. It is truly perennial, sfireads 

 rapidly, ami 'nay be inoculated in tile manner 

 suggested by Mr. Robinson, especially in a soil 

 saturated with water, with great liiciliiy and at tri- 

 fling expense. 



UNDERGROUND TURNIP. 



The seed of this turnip, (says the Baltimore 

 Farmer,) has been sent us for sale by n judicious 

 and careful agriculturist of Maryland, who des- 

 cribes it as follows. We have no other knowl- 

 edge of this article. 



"The underground turnip, the seed of which 

 is offered for sale, has the property of resisting 

 frost ; the bulb will remain nearly invisible, and if 

 sown on a level, or dipping to the south, the crop 

 uill be in good preservation when winter is pass- 

 .!(!. This turnip is recommended to persons witU 

 large stocks, as it has all the good qualities of tur- 

 nips generally, and besides has the exclusive prop- 

 erty of resisting frost. It is advisable that the experi- 

 ment be made by farmers generally, if even limi- 

 ted to a bed in the garden. It is best to be sown 

 iji drills on the level — that is, to not raise the 



