398 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



JUNE SI, 1835> 



SrJlW 53S2?'<Sl£.^SF32i' SJ^SiSSHma 



BOSTON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, JUNE 24, 1835. 



LAIGHTON'S THRESHING MACHINE. 



Among the adverlisemcnts in this day's paper may 

 be Beei^ one of the above named machine, of which 

 after attentive examination, and seeing it in operation 

 we enter'.ain a favorable opinion. A particular descrip- 

 tion of this implement is given page 290 of the current 

 volume of the N E. Farmer, by Mr William Claggett, 

 a gentleman well qualified to appreciate and describe 

 an improvement of this sort. We do not believe that 

 inventive ingenuity could be better employed than in 

 rendering more easy, effeclua!,and expeditious the de- 

 partment of rural labor to which this invention is ap- 

 plied. 



The specific advantages resulting from the use of the 

 threshing machine are thus stated by Sir John Sinclair, 

 in The Code of .Agriculture. 1. From the superiority 

 of this mode one-twentieth part more corn is gained 

 from the same quantity of straw, than by the old fash- 

 ioned mode. 2. The work is done more expeditiously. 

 3. Pilfering is avoided. 4. The grain is less subject to 

 injury. 5. Seed can be procured without difficulty from 

 the new crops for those to be sown. 6. The market 

 may be supplied with grain more quickly in times of 

 scarcity. 7. The straw softened by the mill is more use- 

 ful for feeding cattle. 8. If a stack of corn be heated 

 it may be threshed in a day, and the grain if kiln dried 

 will be preseived and rendered fit for u§e. 9. The 

 threshing mill lessens the injury from smutty grain, 

 the balls of smut not being broken, as when beaten by 

 the flail ; and 10. By the same machine, the grain may 

 be separated from the chaff and small seeds as well as 

 from the straw. Before the invention of threshing 

 mills, farm laborers endured much drudgery ; the large 

 corn farmer sustained much damage fiom bad threshing; 

 and had much trouble, vexation and loss, from careless 

 and wicked servants, but now since the introduction of 

 this valuable machine, all his difficulties in this respect 

 are obviated. 



If a machine of this description is valuable in Great 

 Britain where labor is cheap, it should be held in 

 much higher estimation in this country where the want 

 of " help" is the greatest obstacle to agricultural im- 

 provement. A good threshing machine such as we be- 

 lieve Mr l.aighlim's to be, would very mucli increase, 

 probably double the grain products of those parts of the 

 country in which its use may be common. 



dressing; and for this purpose it would answer better 

 near the third hoeing ; for then the plants want the 

 greatest degree of nourishment, as they begin to grow 

 very rapidly. Two dressings with ashes to answer the 

 two purposes would not be amiss. The Genesee Farmer 

 says "when unleached ashes is applied it should be placed 

 on the surface round each so as not to touch the plants, 

 as it might otherwise injure them by its causticity.'' 



Cot Worms. — Every cultivator knows to his cost too 

 much about these ash colored worms almost black on 

 the back ; when fully grown, about the size of a goose 

 quill, and half as long as your forefinger. They are 

 very apt to cm^ o^ young cabbages, cauliflowers, beets^ 

 Indian corn, &c. The Hon. Mr Fiske of Worcester, 

 Mass., in speaking of this insect says, "To search 

 out the spoiler and kill him is the very best course ; but 

 as his existence is not known except by his ravages, I 

 make a fortress for my plants, with paper, winding it 

 conically and firmly above the root, and securing it by a 

 low embarkment of earth."* Others have recommend- 

 ed to manure a soil infested with cut worms, with sea 

 mud, salt, sea water, quick lime or ashes, as antidotes 

 to these marauders. 



F.\RMER'S AVORK. 



Indian Corn. — As soon as the plants are three or 

 four inches high pass a plough, harrow, or what is 

 better than either, a cultivator, twice between each row, 

 going close to the corn, each lime, cut up the weeds 

 with a hoe, but draw no earth to the stems of the plants. 



Some writers recommend a top dressing of ashes to 

 corn, and we have known it practised to advantage. J. 

 Spicer in Goouell's Genesee Farmer, stated that he 

 mixed plaster of Paris with one half leached ashes as 

 they are leached for common family use, put it in a cart 

 and shovelled and mixed it well. He then applied one 

 gill to the hill, ijnmediately after the first hoeing. He 

 has tried the same quantity of clear plaster side by side 

 twice, and found the mixlures to jjroduce the greatest 

 effects. Dr Deane recommended the application of 

 Qshes, and observed that " some lay it on just before tl e 

 first or second hoeing. It will have a better effect in 

 preventing worms, if laid on before the corn is up. But 

 it is cummonly designed to answer chiefly as a top 



Loose Allegation. — The Albany Cultivator for 

 June, page 53, contains the following paragraph. 



" Hardly Fair- — The Genesee Farmer has credited 

 the Ohio Farmer, and the Faimer and Gardener has 

 credited the Genesee Farmer, for articles which first 

 appeared as editorial in^the Cultivator ; and the New 

 England Farmer has inserted an article, upon which 

 we bestowed some labor without giving credit to any 

 one. When old editors show such a want of circum- 

 spection and justice, the i/o«7!^ ones are apt to imitate 

 their example." 



" In Adam's Fall, we sinned all," but as to any par- 

 ticular trangression of the kind above alluded to, the 

 New England Farmer knows no more than one of the 

 inhabitants of Jupiter's Satellites; and presumes he is 

 as innocent as the child to be born 100 years hence. 

 Vf e might hni one of Mr Cultivator's articles going 

 astray in the newspapers and not knowing to whom it 

 belonged might use it to adofn our columns and instruct 

 our readers ; but we have no recollection of such " a 

 want of circumspection," and think it " hardly fair" to 

 accuse us without stating wherein consists our offence. 

 We would as soon take the Cultivator's beeves from 

 his barn, as wittingly make use of his original articles 

 without giving him credit; and if we have unwittingly 

 committed an offence of the sort, we hope that he will 

 be assuied that it was not owing to our fault, but to our 

 misfortune in not knowing to whom the a tide belonged. 

 We are fully sensible that we owe much to the conduc- 

 tor of the Cultivatoi-, and always have been willing at 

 least to give him credit for the whole amount due. 



.MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL, SOCIETY. 



»LOV\'ERS EXHIBITED. 



Salurilay, June 20, 18:i5. 

 The brilliant display of flowers exhibited this day 

 justly excited the adiniration of all Amateurs, and es- 

 pecially those shown from the conservatory of that 

 prominent and distinguished Hoiticulturist, the Hon. 

 Mr Lowell, some of them were new, and never before 

 exhibiti;d at the Society's looms. The Cactus speciosis- 

 simus, was beautiful, and the interest evinced wa.s very 

 great on a<'Count of several large sized flowers being 

 produced on a branch or plant of small size. 



Messrs Wilder, Walker, Kenricks, Hoveys, Wes- 



ton, and others, made a display of very superior pro- 

 ductions, that would vie, with any former weekly exhibi- 

 tion of flowers. The following is a partial list of the 

 kinds presented. 



Mr Alder, gardener from the Hon. Mr Lowell's. — 

 Cactus speciosissimus ; Marica cffirulea; Gloxinia spe- 

 ciosa ; Astrsemcria pelegrina; Cucumea zerumbets, &c. 



M. P. Wilder Dorchester. — Bartsia coccinea ; Pffio- 

 nia whitleji ; Papaver orienlalis; Lupinus polyphyl. 

 lus, &c. 



E. Weston, Jr. Boston, — Arum tryphyllum; Vibur- 

 num davuricum ; Sarracenia purpurea ; Camus panicu- 

 lata ; Azalia nudicaulis ; Arathusa bulbosa. 



William Kenrick, Newton. — Pa;onia whitleji ; Iris 

 palida; Honeysuckles; Douglasii; Roses; Hemero- 

 callis flava, &c. 



Messrs Hovey, Cambridgeport. — Allium moUes ; Pe- 

 tunia PhiE ; Galardia aristata; Calceolaria pendula ; 

 do. hybrida ; Spanish Iris Gladiolus, &c. 



J. A. Kenrick, Newton. — Honey-uckles, early dutch, 

 Scarlet trumpet, yellow do., Douglassii, Pubescent; 

 PiEonia whitleji; Albiflora rubescens; Azalia chryso- 

 lecthra ; do. Calendulacea incarnata ; Variety roses ; 

 Delphinium sinen..iis ; Fraxinella; Robinia viscosa, &c. 



S.Walker, Roxbury. — Pinks, No. 5 and 6 ; Bow's 

 Claudius; Ranunculus var. ; Roses; Phlox; Delphin- 

 ium sinensis, and a variety of other flowers. 



Winship, Brighton Nurseries. — Many varieties of 

 flowers ; among which was the Chionanthus virginica 

 or white fringe tree. One of the most hardy and orna- 

 mental tiees of our country, stands the winter, how- 

 ever severe ; few of them have ever been Cultivated in 

 this section of our country, which is surprising, as its 

 foliage is fine, and its snowy white, and graceful pendu- 

 lous blossoms, immediately rivet th? attention of every 

 one ; fine size trees from six to ten feet high-can now 

 be procured of the different nuiserymen ; heretofor» 

 none could be had in any of the nurseries this side <f 

 Maryland. 



J. P. Davis, Esq. — Fine specimens of the beautiful 

 moss rose Pompone. 



B. Rogerson, Esq. — A fine Dahlia, 



For the Committee, Jona. Winship. 



FRniTS EXHIBITED. 



Strawberries — By Samuel Pond of Cambridge- 

 port. Scarlet Virginian, five boxes, and a box of mul- 

 berry strawberries ; all very fine. 



By Thomas Hastings of East Cambridge. Two box- 

 es of Keens' Seedling, of very exttraordinary size and 

 beauty. 



By Elijah Vose, of Dorchester. Specimens of Keens* 

 seedling and early Virginia, of the finest quality. 



For the Committee, William Kenrick. 



See p. 362. vohime iv. of the New England Fanner. 



A special meeting of the Massachusetts Horticultu- 

 ral Society, was held at their room on Saturday, June 

 20tli, 1835, Hon. E. Vose, presiding. 



The Secretary being absent, Charles M. Hovey was 

 appointed Secretary protem. 



It was voted, that the vote passed at the last meeting 

 in relation to filling the vacancies in the Society be 

 reconsidered. 



Voted, That the committee to whom was referred 

 the subject of reporting a list of candidates for offices 

 of the Society for the ngxt year, be also instructed to re- 

 port a list to fill the vacancies now existing in the 

 Society. 



Voted, That when this meeting adjourn, it adjourn to 

 Saturday the 27th inst., .at 11 o'clock in the morning, to 

 hear the report of this committee, and that notice be 



ven in the papers stating the objects of the meeting. 



