VOL XV. XO. 



AND GARDENER'S JOURNAL. 



197 



ASHES AS MANURE F>OR GRASS LANDS. 



There is scvircely any part of tlifi country where 

 leached ashes cannot be obtained in greater or 

 less quantity ; and in tlie vicinity of aslieries, abun- 

 dance may generally be had with no other ex- 

 pensa than drawing. If the following remarks by 

 Count Chai)el are applicable to soils of whatever 

 materials they may be comi)o#ed, a knowledge of j turnips yields fifteen tons, the one in hay two and 



the summer exidusive, in both cases. Suppose 

 that under the old system the three acres yielded 

 six tons of hay, this will feed a yoke of heavy 

 oxen through the winter, the profits upon which 

 may be £8. Now we shall suppose that one of 

 the three acres under the new system is in tur- 

 nips, one in hay, and one in wheat, the one in 



this property of leached ashes, would in many 

 instances be of very great value. At all events, 

 the experiment is easily performed on a moderate 

 scale. 



"The ashes, produecd by combustion of wood, 

 in our common domestic fires, give rise to some 

 very remarkable results. Without being leached, 

 these ashes are much too active ; but after having 

 been deprived, by the action of water, of nearly 

 all their salts, and employed in this state, under 

 the name of buck ashes, they still produce great 

 effect. 



'' The action of the buck ashes is most power- 

 ful upon moist laiuis and meadows, in which they 

 not only facilitate the growth of useful plants, but 

 if employed constantly for several years, they will 

 free tbe soil from weeds. By the use of them, 

 land constantly drenched with water may be freed 

 from rushes, and prepared for yielding clover and 

 other plants of good kind." 



It has been frequently supposed that ashes ap- 

 plied to wet heavy soils is injurious. This is prob- 

 ably owing to the application being too uneven, 

 and in too large quantities, and to the want of 

 mixing them intimately with the soil. Cbaptal 

 says, " Wood ashes possess the double property of 

 amending a wet and clayey soil by dividing and 

 drying it, and of promoting vegetation by the salts 

 they contain. 



It is well known, that the evenly spread and 

 intimately intermixed layer of ashes which soils 

 receive by burning the turf, produces extraordina- 

 ry effects upon grass lands." 



From the Fictmi N. J. Bee. 

 MANAGEMENT OF STOCK. 



Mr Dawson, 



Sir, — Stock is a phrase well known among 

 farmers, as meaning the bestial upon the farm. I 

 have often heard it a complaint with farmers that 

 they are slaves to their cattle in this country. As 

 the business of managing stock is now conducted 

 by many there is some truth in the assertion. As 

 I think there is a radical defect in the system, I 

 shall do my endeavorsto point out a radical cure. 



The great object in view, as yet, has been to 

 raise hay to keep or feed stock ; as beef has been 

 selling for some time past, this is not a lucrative 

 concern : if there be two thirds or three fourths 

 of the farm under hay, yielding from a ton and a 

 half to two tons per acre, which I conceive is ful- 

 ly an average upon the most of farms, there will 

 be but little profit at the year's end ; whereas by 

 adopted the system prescribed for a rotation of 

 crop, there will then be only two-fif\hs in hay ; 

 but although the extent of land is lessened, the 

 weight of hay will be increased, as from two to 

 three tons the acre will then be produced : but 

 that part of the farm which is in green crop, is 

 where the profit upon stock will chiefly arise. A 

 comparative statement of the profits arising from 

 three acres under the old system and the same 

 number under the new, may set this in a clearer 

 point of view than any other way that now occurs 

 to me ; we shall allow that there is pasture for 



a half, and the one in wheat one and a half straw 

 this will feed at least three oxen of equal weight 

 to the former, the profits upon which from the 

 superior quality of the beef may be ^IS. This 

 shows a balance in favor of the system here re- 

 commended of ^7, exclusive of the crop of wheat 

 yielded by one acre, which will meet the addi- 

 tional expense attending the management. At 

 this rate, the occupier of thirty acres of laud un- 

 der tillage, loses ^70 a year, by adhering to the 

 old system. Some may say that this looks f ne 

 upon paper ; I would answer, give it a fair trial, 

 and it will look fine upon the field, and finest of 

 all, when you count the dollars. I have just now 

 seen the estimated expense and profit attending 

 the keeping of a cow, from the "Genesee Far- > 

 mer," by which it appears that the produce of 

 three acres is required to keep the cow through 

 the year, the profits upon which are §3 50; this 

 divided by three the number of acres, quotes $2 

 83, as the profits upon each acre. I shall now 

 contrast with this, the expenses and profits upon 

 the keeping of a cow, by what I call the new sys- 

 teni. We shall allow one half acre for summer 

 pasture, one eighth do. of tares to he cut green 

 and given inthe house, one eighth in turnips yield- 

 ing say two tons, the straw produced by a quarter 

 of an acre, and the hay produced by another quar- 

 ter, say 13 cwt. The expenses and profits are thus : 



Profits. 



200 lbs. of butter at 9d 

 per lb. £1 10 



40 lbs. of cheese, at 4d 

 per lb. 13 4 



A calf, 10 



^5 11 



£8 



3 4 



The balance standing to the credit of the cow, 

 will then be £2 12 4, and this upon the yield of 

 one acre and a quaiter — 'the wheat produced 

 upon a quarter of an acre to meet the extra trouble 

 of attendance. 



I might go on in this way making calculations 

 with respect to every description of stocks upon 

 the farm ; but as the result would be much the 

 same, I, think it needless. 



Yours truly, 



OLD RUSTICUS. 



troying its power of growth ; if, however, any 

 change is produced, it is rather beneficial tlmn 

 otherwise, somewhat iiii]>roving the appearance 

 and flavor of inferior pot.itoes, and giving them a 

 mealiness they did not possess. The exportation 

 of potatoes to foreign (dimates chiefly within the 

 tropics, is an object of importance ; and for the 

 comfort of sailors there is nothing in the way of 

 diet greater than the luxiu'y of a (jotatoe with 

 their salt food. As the means of prolonging their 

 enjoyments, and adding to the heallliful diet of a 

 sea life, this mod'j may be adopted with advan- 

 tage. The expense of immersion it; very trifling, 

 and they subsequently require to be spread in an 

 airy situation to dry. Potatoes so treated, have 

 been used after ten months' keeping in a warm 

 kitchen closet, and were found to be perfectly 

 good. The same effect may be produced by im- 

 mersing potatoes in a strong solution bf salt and 

 water, taking care to remove by subsequent ablu- 

 tion the whole of the salt, but this requires some 

 time, and repeated changes of water." 



The Bread Basket is worth care and atten- 

 tion. We know how it is here, but in New York 

 a person can buy as much bread of one baker for 

 eight cents, as he can of another for ninepence. 

 An examination of the weight of loaves was re- 

 cently made there by authority, when it ai)peared 

 that there two bakers whose ninepenny loaves 

 weighed 21b 7oz, one do. 2lb 6oz, two do 2lb 4oz, 

 one do. 21b 3oz, two do. 2lb loz, four do. 2lb, one 

 do. lib 1.5oz, three do. lib 14oz, one do, lib 13oz, 

 one do. Ub 12oz, one do. lib lOoz. — Dos. Trant- 

 cripf. 



Coffee: improved. — Cut chestnut meats into 

 pieces abo«ti the size of coffee grains, roast and 

 grind them with the coffee in equal .proportions, 

 and the drink will altogether is better than ordi- 

 nary coffee. A black |)owder in now sold in Pa- 

 ris, under the name of " Coff'ee Flowers, impor- 

 ted from America," a pinch of which imparts to 

 the cofl^ee a very agreeable flavor. This is found 

 to be sugar almost entirely charred. Caromel 

 produces the same effects. 



Carbot Pies. — Perhaps it is not known to all 

 your readers, that carrots are so excellent sub- 

 stitutes for pumpkins or squash in making pits. 

 As the latter articles are rather scarce this season, 

 I have used the former, which I find answers very 

 well. The carrots should be stewed (or boiled) 

 and prepared in every respect as squash is, and 

 the pies will be equally as good, and many think 

 preferable. — Bangor Far. 



How TO Preserve Potatoes. — We find in 

 an English paper, the following article on the 

 above subject, which we think may be useful. — 

 Mr Webster, who communicated to the Society 

 of Arts, this mode of preserving this excellent 

 vegetable by immersion in ammouiacal water, or 

 brine, received the thanks of the Society : 



" If potatoes are immersed four or five days in 

 ammoniated water, containing an ounce of the 

 common liquor ammonia, to a pint of water, they 

 will, on removal, be found to have their vegetable 

 principle greatly checked, or altogether destroyed 

 so that they may be preserved throughout the year 

 without the least deterioration of their general 

 qualities. The temporary action of the ammoniie 

 in no way effects the potato beyond that of des- 



HnoE Pumpkins. — A single Pumpkin Vine, 

 raised on the farm of Mr Wetheril, near Frank- 

 fort, Pa., produced pumpkins to the amount of 

 seven hundred pounds! One of them measured 

 seven feet four inches in circumference and weigh- 

 ed upwards of two hundred pounds ! It will puz- 

 zle our Yankee farmers to beat this. 



Freezing. — A young man in this town froze 

 his foot, which was perfectly cured in less than 

 24 hours, by the application of a poultice made of 

 yeast and Indian meal — it is equally beneficial 

 when applied to a burn. 



If you rise from the table with an appetite, you 

 will not oflen set down without one. 



