VOI,. XV. NO. 43. 



AND GARDENER'S JOURNAL 



333 



HESSIAN FLY. 



The fly itself ia a stjiall insect with long blr.ish 

 wings, and may be seen hovering about over n 

 wheat field in a warm day in the fall, after the 

 wheat is up and has got into stooling — it then de- 

 [)0sites its egirs, from one to five or six, on the 

 lower loaf, where it joins the stalk. The eggs 

 when first laid, are about the size of the point of 

 a pin and white ; they grow until they become of 

 the size of a flax seed, when they change the col- 

 or to a brown, atul appear in the shape and color 

 o( a flax seed. While in the white state they 

 appear to extract nourishment from the stalk of 

 wheat, from their wounding it, the eggs continue 

 in tlie flaxed state in the stalk at the junction of 

 the lower leaf, until the next spring, and every 

 stalk that has an egg in it, turns to a dark green 

 ami perishes before the next spring. In the spring 

 after the wheat begins to grow, no eggs can be 

 found in the live wheat, but on examining, there 

 can be found dead stools of wheat, and on taking 

 these up you will find the egg at the root of the 

 stool where it was deposited, ai)[)earing like a 

 flax seed. When the weather becomes warm, 

 these eggs hatch, and the little creature crawls 

 out of the ground, and begins to l:\y eggs on the 

 surviving wheat, close to the stalk on the lower 

 leaf", where the egg remains, going through its 

 changes until fdl, when it comes out a fly again, 

 and commences on the new sown wheat. 



The fly will lay its egg in Rye, but the rye- 

 stalk grows strong and fast, and bursts open the 

 husk leaf where the egg is laid and the egg falls 

 out and perishes. It will lay its eggs in oats and 

 timothy, but not do much injury. This fly is a 

 very difterent insect from the fly that has lately 

 made its appearance in New England and New 

 York state, or the Maryland fly — in both of these 

 last cases, the fly lays its egg in the grain while 

 in a milky state, and the worm eats, the milk and 

 lueal out of the grain, but in no case has the grain 

 been eaten by the Hessian fly, or found in it — 

 hut all these flies may dejircdate in the same field 

 in their own way. What is the remedy ? It can- 

 not be in applying any thing to the seed before 

 .sowing, as the fly lives on the root or near if, in- 

 stead of the ear or grain. Even good tillage has 

 failed this last season, as well as late sowing. — 

 Will not lime do it if properly applied, as a very 

 tmall portion of lime is a quick and certain death 

 lo many insects ? One ])int of lime mixed with 

 100 bushels of wheat will destroy every weevil in 

 it, and if blown from a fan into a barn it will des- 

 troy or drive ihcm all out. 



Lime is a certain and quick death to fleas, &c. 

 and it is said that by sowing over the grain, it 

 will destroy the egg in the grain. Su[)posing a 

 farmer when he found the fly was in his wheat 

 depositing its eggs, should sow half a bushel of 

 lime while warm after slacking, upon an acre in 

 a still morning while the dew is on — the lime be- 

 in"- light and fine will spread and settle down on 

 die leaves of wheat,and reach the egg wliilein the 

 soft and white state and most likely to destroy it. 

 Ahere the stubble is full of the egg, by ploughing 

 dee]) in the fall or early in the spring, the egg 

 will be buried so deep that it will perish. In the 

 lall, one or two frosts will destroy most of the fly, 

 and late sowifig in some cases. — Pennsylvania Re- 

 jnihlican. 



The MANnrACTORiNG Advantages of Ameri- 

 ca. — Since the publication of England, Ireland, 



and America, the author has had an opportunity 

 of visiting the United States, ami of taking a has- 

 ty glance of the American people ; aiul this ocu- 

 lar experience of the country has c(mfirn\ed him 

 in the views he put forth in that pamphlet. Look- 

 ing to the natural endowments of the North Amer- 

 ican continent — as far superior to Europe as the 

 latter is to Africa — with an almost immeasurable 

 extent of river navigation — its boundless expanse 

 of the most fertile soil in the world, and its inex- 

 haustible mines of coal, iron, lead, &:e. — looking 

 at these, and remembering the quantity and posi- 

 tion of a |)eople imiversally instructed and per- 

 fectly free, and possessing as a consequence of 

 these, a new horn energy and vitality very far 

 surpassing the character of any nation of the old 

 W(uld — the writer reiterates the moral of his for- 

 mer work by declaring his conriclion that it is 

 from the west, rather than the east, that danger to 

 the supremacy of Great Hritain is to be apprehcn 

 ded ; — that it is from the peaceful and silent ri- 

 valry of American commerce, the growth in its 

 manufactures, its rapid progress in internal im- 

 provements, the superior education of its people, 

 and their economical and [lacific government, — 

 that it is from these, and not from the barbarous 

 policy or the impoverishing armaments of Russia, 

 that tlio grandeur of our conmiercial and national 

 prosperity is endangered. And the writer stakes 

 his reputation upon the prediction, that in less 

 than twenty years, tlvis will he the sentiment of 

 the people of Englaml generally ; and that the 

 same conviction will be forced upon the home 

 government of the country. The writer has been 

 surprised at the little knowledge that exists here 

 with respect to the mineral resources of America. 

 In nothing does that country surpass Europe so 

 much as in its rich beds oi coal. By a govern- 

 ment survey of the state of Pennsylvania, it ap- 

 pears that it contains twenty thousand square 

 miles of coal, with iron in proportion. This is 

 one state only ! while the whole of the Mississip- 

 pi valley is more or less enriched with this inval- 

 uable cond)Ustible. Several of his neighbors have 

 been astonished by the inspection of a specimen 

 of bitumii.ons coal which the writer procured 

 from a pit at Brownsville, on the Monongahela 

 river above Pittsburg, and which is pronounced 

 equal to the very best qualities produced from the 

 mines in Yorkshire. The mode of working the 

 pits, is to drive an adit into the sloping banks of 

 the navigable rivers, and at a few yards distance 

 the coal stratuiii is usually found 6 feet in thick- 

 ness ; and as the miner is always able to work in 

 an upright posture, one man frequently produces 

 as much as 100 loads a day. 



The steandjoat in which the author went from 

 Brownsville to Pittsburg, stopped at one of these 

 pit's mouths, and took in a supply of fuel, which 

 was charged at the rate of three farthings a bush- 

 el. These are facts which bear more directly 

 u|)on the future destinies of this country, than the 

 marriages of the crowned heads in Portugal, the 

 movements of savage forces in Russia, and simi- 

 lar proceedings, to which we attach so much im- 

 p'ortance. — Russia, by a Manchester Manvfa:turer. 



Coffee. — The annual talde of exports from the 

 ports of Havana and IMantanzas, exhibit tho cu- 

 rious fact, that in the last 3 years, the quantity of 

 coffee shipped to the U. S., exceeded the whole 

 quantity shipped to Europe, by 4,070,000 lbs. — 

 I The export to the U. S. was 40,900,000. 



Hollow Wooden Rollers may be constructed 

 by most farmers, at a very moderate expense for 

 iron work. Take tluee cast off fore wagon or 

 other small wheels ; place two of them si.x feet 

 apart, and the other in the centre ; fi.x an iron 

 axle through the naves of each, so as to connect 

 them together, and serve to draw by; upon ttiese, 

 strong planks, cut very narrow, and bevelled at 

 the edges, are to be firndy nailed lengthwise, un- 

 til the roller is completely covered, ft may then 

 be mounted in the usual manner. If additional 

 weight is required, as will generally be the ease, 

 it should be hung on the ax'o within the hollow. 

 The draft of a roller is lessened by increasing its 

 diameter: for it has been proved that the same 

 strength which is re(piired to draw a roller of 

 half a ton weight, over a height of two inches, 

 when the diameter of the (ylinder is one foot, 

 will suffice to draw rollers of 15 and 18 1-2 cwt., 

 when their diameters are respectively 2 and 3 ft. 

 — Cultivator. 



Indiaw CoBm. — I would advise farmers not to 

 be afraid to plant corn the enduing season, if the 

 spring at planting time slioidd apfiear favorable 

 for that crop. Although for sever.il years past, it 

 has been an uncertain crop, yet I would have the 

 farmers of .Maine remember the series of cold sea- 

 sons from A. D. 1812, to 1816, when the general 

 cry prevailed, that it was unsafe to plant corn. — 

 There was very little corn [)lanted in 1817, but 

 what corn was planted did well ; and for about 

 10 or 12 years after that period we had a series of 

 good corn seasons ; and if there is any thing in 

 cycles, I would have my brother farmers not des- 

 pond, but plant a suitable iu-oporti(Ui of Indian 

 Corn, notwithstanding I am a great friend to the 

 increase of the wheat culture. — Maine Far. 



The Co.ntrast. — Massachusetts gives nothing 

 from her public treasury to sustain her common 

 schools, hut she gives bountifully from her (jublic 

 treasury to sustain and encourage her agricultural 

 societies, and is now about makingan ngriculhiral 

 survey of her territory. Her schools are surpas- 

 sed by none in the Union. New York has given 

 millions to her colleges, and millions to her com-, 

 nion schools ; but she clenches her purse with a 

 convulsive gripe when she is asked to aid and 

 encourage agricultural societies. If it is true that 

 wisdom lies between two exti^mes, these states 

 might learn from each other. 



The bounty of three cents a jjoimd for all the 

 sugar made m Mass. from beets, will doubtless in- 

 duce the ])lanting of beets to a large extent in that 

 state. In many other states they are going large- 

 ly into the business. 



There is no difliculty in cultivating the sugar 

 beet in Maine. We raised some very fine last 

 year, in our garden. They are good also for the 

 table. 



If New England can prodiice silk and sugar, it 

 will be a great aci|uisition. — Kennebec Jour. 



A late traveller records, that during a voyage 

 from Marseilles toward Palestine, when the first 

 night watch was ordereil, the sailors came, one 

 after the other, to say to the Captain of the ves- 

 sel, " God be with us !" Reader I You are left to 

 form your own reflections and resolutions from 

 this interesting fact. God, indeed, be with us, for 

 without him what would we be ? 



