842 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



MAY 3. lOrjr. 



^mw mwt<^i£>^-^^ 2S'<a.msffiSiEa 



BOSTON, WEDNESDAY, MAY 3, 1837. 



FAKMEK'S WORK. 



Manure. — Stable and barn-yard manure is rendered 

 of little value by long exposure to the air, sun and wet 

 weather. Indeed, every moment of such exposure lakes 

 away from such manure some part of its fertilizing prin- 

 ciples. The following remarks on the waste of manure 

 by exposure, have been given in the N. E. Farmer, vol. 

 T. page 342, but may be new to some of our more recent 

 subscribers. 



" He who is within the sphere of the scent of a dung- 

 hill," says the celebrated Arthur Young, " smells tliat 

 I which his crop woald have eaten, if he would have per- 

 mitted it. Instead of manuring tlie land, lie mant!;es 

 the atmosphere ; and before his Jungh II is finished he 

 has manured another ])arish, periiaps another county.' 

 Stable and barn-yard manure should be kept as careful ■ 

 ly from the sun and rain as grass, which has been cut 

 fur hay. When cattle have been yarded over night, it 

 will be well to throw their manure into heaps, and cov- 

 er them with a litllo loam oi' marsh mud, previously 

 prepared for that purpose. 



" Earth is a powerful absorber of all the gasses which 

 arise from putrefaction. But a layer of common soil 

 along the top of a ferraenling dunghill from 12 to 18 

 inches thick, and allow it to remain there while the 

 process is carrying on with acti-vity, and aferwards sep- 

 arate it carefully from the heap, and it will have been 

 impregnated with the rnusl fertilizing virtues. The 

 composts, which of late have attracted so univer.sal at- 

 tention, and occupied so large a space in all agricultural 

 publications, originated in the discovery of this absorb- 

 ing power of the earth, and in the application of it to the 

 most beneficial purposes. A skilfu' agriculturist would 

 no more tliink of allowing a violent fermen'ation to be 

 going on in his dung-hill, unmixed with earth, or other 

 matter to fix and S'.'cure the gaseous alinienis, than the 

 distiller would suffer his apparatus to be set at work, 

 wiihout surmounting his still with the worm to cool and 

 condense the rarified spirits, which ascend in evapora- 

 tion. In both the most precious matter is that wliich 

 assumes the aeriform stale; and to behold it escaping 

 with inditference, is a demonstration of the most pro- 

 found ignorance." — [Letters of Agricola. 



Infosion or VValndt Leaves to oestkov Insects. - 

 It appears by a communication to the London Horticul- 

 tural Society, by Sir Charles M. L. Monck, Bart, that 

 worms which infested plants in pots, were destroyed by 

 a pint of an infusion of walnut leaves given to each poi. 

 The worms quickly emerged from the mould to the sur- 

 face, and were removed. This treatment was repeated 

 the following week, when a few more worms were ex. 

 tracted ; th<! plants, which had been sickly, alter this 

 application resumed their heahii and blossomed strong- 

 ly. This success induced Sir Charles to try the expeii- 

 nient on orange trees, and other plants in pots, and it 

 was attended with equil success. He thinks that the 

 infusion is beneficial, not only in destroying vrorins, but 

 that it acts also as a manure. Tlie infusion is made by 

 pouring boiling water on fiesh walnut leaves; which 

 having stood till cold is ready (or use. 



Forsyth recommends a decoction of walnut leaves as 

 an antidote to insects, and a decoction of elder leaves is 

 also said to answer the same purpose. 



Bosi Bugs.— The best antidote against the rose bu". 



and the small yellow bug, that has yet come under my 

 in«pectir,n, is slacLed lime a|iplied with a dredging box, 

 while the fruits or plants are wet with dew. If the 

 fruits or plants be wet with a weak solution of gum ara 

 bic previously to the application of the lime, it will re- 

 main on them much longer, and no injury will be sus- 

 tained by it. If applied to young cucumber plants, the 

 seed leaves must be catefully turned up, wet, and the 

 lime applied as aforesaid. The lime used has been nice- 

 ly slacked with a little water, one year, for the purpo- 

 ses of the garden. Perhaps it would be equally as well 

 if slacked immediately before its application. 



It was found that if rose bugs while on plants bo thor- 

 oughly wet with very strong scjap suds, (one gill of 

 strong tfoap to one quart of water) they soon die This 

 strength did not injure the plants on which it was tried. 

 This experiment was made when the bugs were on the 

 decline, and whether the mixture would have tho same 

 effec*. in the beginning of their race, while in their ut- 

 most vigor, or prevent from preying on the plants wet 

 with it, further experiments may determme. It is need- 

 less to say any thing in this paper, as to the fertilizing 

 power of this application or that of lime.— [Dr R. Green, 

 Mansfield, Mass. 



Engrafti.so Grape Vises. — A fiicnd of the editor 

 says that he has succeeded in grafting foreign grapes on 

 native stocks, and thinks that notices on that subject 

 may be useful. In the N. E. Farmer, vol. vii. p. 329, 

 are some directions relative to this improvement, which 

 were, originally, communieatod to John Prince, E.-^q. by 

 Brig. Geu. Armistead, from which the following are 

 extracted. 



" I picked out four native vines, [in the month of 

 March] and headed them down as low as tho turf, and 

 after going through the common process of inserling the 

 graft, I bound them with woolen yarn, and covered 

 them with common gr;ifting clay, and to make the pro- 

 cess doubly sure, I cut large sods and enclosed the grafts 

 completely, and covered them in this w.iy about four 

 inches, leaving two eyes exposed. The experiment 

 proved the utility of thus preserving them fiom sun and 

 r.ir, for three out of four look, and on the head of the 

 largest vine, I put two grafts, both of which survived, 

 which made it equal as if all had taken. The result of 

 the first year was, that the grafts averaged a growth of 

 from nine to twelve feet. The second year tbey bore 

 many bunches of grapes. The third year my mother 

 wrote me that they had gathered upwards of two bar- 

 rels from my four vines. The succeeding year the 

 neighborhood was in part supplied, and from others fol- 

 lowing the exam[ile, no failure of fine fruit has, 1 be- 

 lieve, existed in that neighb'irhood." 



We believe it is not yet too late to graft grapa vines, 

 and wild stocks to engraft on m.iy be found in woods, 

 &c., in many parts of the country. 



Fat Oxen. — Messrs Hillman and Thayer, of this 

 town, slaughtered a pair of oxen last week, from the 

 stall of Mr George Cook, which presented as fine spec- 

 imens of beef as we ever witnessed. We saw a hind 

 quarter as it lay in the butchers' cart, and it appeared 

 to be almost a complete mass of fat. The fat on the 

 rounds was apparently two or three inches thick. Our 

 stomach yearned, as may well be supposed, for a good 

 cut from the tender-loin, but we were compelled to 

 turned disappointed away, fiir the price was fouiteen 

 cents a pound. These oxen weighed 4,3SD on the hoof, 

 and after they were dressed, 3,190 pounds. Tiie butch- 

 erss paid ten dollars the hundred pounds. — [Hampshire 

 Gazette. 



MASSACHUSETTS HOUTICUl-TlRAIi SOCIETY. 



EXHIBITION OF FRUITS. 



Saturday, March 25, 1837. 

 Appi.es.— From Mr B. V. French, Brainlree — Bald- 

 win, Yellow Newton Pippin, Nonsuch, Templeton win- 

 ter sweet. 



From S. W. Cole, Esq. Editor of the Yankee Far- 

 mer — specimens of a beautiful variety called the golden 

 Ball, with scions of the same, which were distributed 

 among the members. 



Pears. — From James Leonard, Esq. of Taunton, — 

 Hardenpont de Printems. 

 From E. Vose— Easter Beurre. 

 Fur the Committee. 



S. DOWNER. 



Saturday, April 15, 1837. 



A meeting of the Society was held— the President in 

 the Chair — he announced a donation of seeds from Ben- 

 jamin Gardener, Esq. of Palermo, Sicily, — forwarded 

 by Messrs Robert G. Shaw & Co. On motion of Mr 

 Lee, the thanks of the Society were voted to Mr Gard- 

 ener, for his large and valuable donation. . 



A donation of Melon Seeds from Mi^ John M. Ives, 

 received by him from London ; and also some valuable 

 kinds collected by Mr Picrpont, in Slalta and Paris, 

 were announced and distributed. The following votes 

 were passed : 



Voted, That the thanks of the Society be presented 

 to Mr John M. Ives, for a donation of various kinds of 

 Melon Seeds, received by him from the London Ilorli- 

 cullural Society, and for Seeds of a new variety of the 

 Hollyhock. 



looted, That the thanks of the Society be presented to 

 Mr Pierponl, for a donation of melon seeds procured by 

 him in Malta and in Paris. 



Adjourned to May Gth. 



E. WESTON, Jr. Rec. Sec. 



To PREVENT THE SjiUT IN Wheat. — Prepare your 

 wheat for sowing by washing, skimming out all the oats 

 and other foul seed, tuining off the water until it be- 

 comes perfectly clean, then put in as much water as 

 will cover the wheat, and add two quarts of salt to the 

 bushel, stirring it well and let it stand from twentyfour 

 to thirtysix hours. Wlien you are ready to sow it, turn 

 it into a drainer or basket, draining it as dry as possi- 

 ble, then spread it on a floor in the barn, or some suita- 

 ble place, and spread over it dry slacked lime, at the 

 rate of o«e peck to a bushel of wheat, stir it well, and 

 it is ready for sowing. The above 1 have tried with 

 complete success for thirty years. If you think the 

 above worth a place in your paper, you are at liberty to 

 in.sert it. J. CONANT. 



J-fl-rey, N. II. April 6, 1837. [Silk Grower. 



Sota for Washing.— We have been requested by a 

 correspondent, to publish the recipe for washing with 

 Sub carbonate of Soda. 



To five gallons of water, add a pint and a half of soft 

 soap and two ounces soda. Put the clothes (alter soak- 

 ing over night) into the mixture when at boiling heat, 

 rubbing the parts most soiled with soap. Boil them one 

 hour — drain — rub, and rinse them in warm water, after 

 being put into indigo water, they are fit for drying — 

 Half the soap and more than half the labor is saved by 

 washing in this manner. — [Silk Culturist. 



Flour is down to $G,50, at Zanesville, Ohio. Wheat 

 at the same place, has fallen to $1 per bushel. 



