AND HORTICULTURAL RJ-GISTER. 



Boston, WEDSEenAV, StPTEtiBER 4, I8a9. 



HARVESTING OF CORN. 

 The season for liarvestiiii; our corn crops will soon be 

 upon us. Tho i-xtremely lint weiUher which we liavo 

 had for a fortnight pasi, prior lo the hue storm, hiis pla,o- 

 ed much of the crop out ofihi- reach of frost; and the 

 yield almost universally promises to he ahunilarit. This 

 may he pronounced the great crop ofiNew EiuH^rid. If 

 we have corn enough, we shall have beef, poik, and 

 poullry enough. We do not believe there is any grain 

 which, considered ia all its aspects and uses, is so val- 

 uable. 



There are several modes of managing the crop, the 

 fodder and the grain ; but they are not equally eligible. 

 The first is to top tho stalks after the ear ha.n become 

 perfectly formed and slightly glazed. There is "real 

 danger of performing this operation too early. When 

 done before the corn is generally hardened, the exact 

 experiments of William Clark, Esq., of Northampton of 

 John Lorain, of Pennsylvania, and others, have demon- 

 strated that the loss upon the crop may amount to a 

 . quarter or a fifth of what the crop would otherwise be. 

 The topping of tho stalks is, wu believe, an unnecessa- 

 ry, useless, and often a pernicious labor, and therefore 

 not 10 be advised. 



The second method is to leave the crop untouched un- 

 til it is perfectly ripened, and then to cut it up at bot- 

 tom and carry it all into the barn and husk it. Some 

 gather it in the field and then cut the fodder. In either 

 case, the corn by being thus left, is always exposed to 

 suffer from frost before it is perfectly ripened; and the 

 fodder it is believed, loses much of its sueuulence and 

 nutriment. 



The third process is,,afler the. ear is glazed and the 

 corn has passed beyond the boiling or roasting stale, 

 to cut it up at bottom and let it dry in the shock. In 

 this way it is early taken out of the way of the frost- 

 the corn if properly managed ripens perfectly and weighs 

 more by the bushel than if perfectly dried, as by the 

 second method described, and the corn f idder is dried 

 with all its juices retained in it, and has a richness and 

 freshness which render it particularly palatable to cattle 

 and as nutritious for beef or milk .stock as any dry feed 

 which can be given lo thera. This operation should be 

 executed with care. Let a hill ocnasionally be kit 

 standing for a support of the shock against the wind. 

 Bring as many arnifuls of the corn cut up as are sufii- 

 cienl to make a good sized shock around the standino- 

 hill — set the bottoms well out and tie ihern all at the 

 top with a wisp of straw, turning the head down, Bui 

 do not first, as is often practised, tie the corn in small 

 bundles. In this way the corn and fuJder will cure 

 perfectly. When it is time lo carry it in, slip a knife 

 under and cut the standing hill; pitch the whole shock 

 on lo the carl ; and being loose and easily handled by 

 bringing the lop of the shock into your lap, it will be 

 easily husked. A great deal of trouble will b'esnved in 

 this way. Do not, as is often done, carry out yourcorn 

 and make your shocks upon the grass land, as in this 

 case the air will not circulate freely under tiie shock, 

 and therefore neither the corn nor the fodder will dry 

 perfectly. The most intelligent farmers in the Stale 

 estimate generally the value ol' the corn fodder on an 

 acre of corn yielding forty bushels to the acre, well cur- 

 ed and saved, fas equivalent for the feeding of any stock, 

 toa ton of English hay. Not a few rate it even higher j 

 than this. H. C. 



I TREE CORN. 



This corn has been planted lo a considerable extent 

 and by a great many persons in parts of the State which 

 uc have visited. We have seen fields of il containing 

 a qiiarier of an acre, ;iiid some more. It does not ap, 

 pear adapted to our climate, and there i.s a general dis- 

 appointment in respect toil. We must not judge the 

 ciise until the hearing is through ; but much of it will 

 require two seasons to ripen il, and we advise the cult 

 valors to take it up as is recommended in ihe case of 

 the MoriiS .Multicaulis, and set it out again next spring. 

 If il lives and doe.« well, we think it likely, ',r as the 

 Dorchester schonlmasler said, " we presume to venture 

 to hazard a guess" that they may get a crop next autumn. 

 VVe are sorry that our agricultural friends are so disturb- 

 ed with it. ft seems to have " roiled" (.') the most phi- 

 losophical. For his Witliington Wheat and his Tree 

 Corn, we hope our friend Thorburn will not get as many 

 ''kicks as coppers." He ha.s got the coppers — we are 

 afraid from indications which wo have seen, that he 

 would gel from some of our friends the rest of the 

 change, if he should come too ne.ir ihem. BrotJier far- 

 mers, keep cool ! We cannot believe, we will not be- 

 lieve that our friend Thorburn designed to impose a had 

 article upon any one, certainly not with anv knowledge 

 of the fact. The seed of this Tree Corn seems to have 

 multiplied in the country like the pieces of the original 

 cross in Europe, of which there is no doubt, that many, 

 many cords have been sold by the priests as genuine, 



and " no mistake. 



H. C. 



[For ihe New England Farmer.] 



AGRICULTURAL PAPERS. 

 Mr Editor — What is an agricultural paper worih to 

 a fanner .' is a question that often has been asked : these 

 '^ book farmers" whoarethey.' says the enquirer. Now 

 Mr Editor, I may as well out with it. To conceal con- 

 flicts with that desire to benefit my neighbor, which 

 sometimes I think I have, perhaps arising from the fact 

 that my neighbor has benefited me, and not from that 



disinterested benevolence which should govern all But 



how have I been benefited by my neighbor.' why sir, one 

 of these " book farmers" who subscribed for an agricul- 

 tural paper, was willing to loan me the use of his, and 

 after robbing the printer fur some time, 1 fi.und lo be 

 such a " book farmer" as I was liable to become by the 

 reading of a weekly paper, would not add s« much dis- 

 grace as profit ; so I concluded to enter the ranks of 

 what some call " book farmers," and subscribed for your 

 paper, which has afforded me much profit and amuse- 

 ment. I was much gratified to find by your coi respon- 

 dent ' T.' and your remarks appended, in a late paper, 

 thai this obnoxious term, "book farmers," after all i.s 

 not so bad a thing. Now when this is I'airly understood, 

 I anticipate the subscription lists of publishers of a"ri-' 

 cultura! papers will greatly increase, and the rising gen- 

 eration grow up feeling that a weekly paper for the farm- 

 er is as necessary as a plough or a hoe. I have felt 

 Ihat by persuading my neighbor lo become the lawful 

 proprietor of a weekly agrioullural journal, would be 

 doing him good, and in pari atone for my own past un- 

 beliu/ and neglect. 



Some say they cannot afford money to pay for a paper ; 

 one single idea obtained through a paper, vvill often save 

 or put the larmer in the way of making enough to pay a 

 ten years' subscription. 1 have thoughtthat when such 

 an excuse was made, you might say, "send us three 

 bus-hels of barley', or six pounds of rutabaga seed." — 

 Excuse II. e for the suggestion. I would suggest almost 

 any thing lawful, although not appropriate, to induce 

 my brother farmer to place before himself weekly in(i)r- 

 mation which will do him good and thereby benefit the 

 profession. 



Do we love our country .' then lei us feel that she can 

 be sustained only by an improvement in her agricultural 

 branches. How can we improve without knowledge ? 

 How can we obtain knowledge without reading.' How 

 can we read unless provided with a paper or books.' 

 Yours, very respectfully, 



ACOSTA SEVERANCE. 

 Westboro', August, 1839. I 



The influence of agricultural papers has already pro- 

 duced a great change in the mode of operations pursued 

 by our farmers ; not that these papers have been very 

 generally circulated, but through the influence of the 

 examiile of those who have taken them. For instance, 

 where an individual has taken an agricultural paper, the 

 ideas he has acquired by in perusal are carried out in 

 his farming operations ; his neighbors see the effects of 

 his reading in his improvements, and are excited to fol- 

 low in his wake. In all our towns there are a few who 

 shine in their profession as stars of the first magnitude, 

 and » hose light sheds a mild influence upon all around : 

 make the enquiry and you will find out tho reason why 

 they excel their neighbors : they read, they reflect, they 

 compare. , They know what progress is making in their 

 piofession in distant parts of our own and in other lands 

 and the experience and wisdomof others widely scatter- 

 ed, is brought home for their own improvement and ad. 

 vantage. 



. It has often been a matter of surprise to us that while 

 so large a number of papers are ciroulaled in the coun- 

 try, many of which are productive of so little good, and 

 others of a decidedly bad influence, that agricultural 

 papers should be so little patronised. Every farmer 

 should take a paper relating to his own profession ; yet 

 we venture to siy that hardly one in ten does it. We 

 should be very glad to effect this object, not for our own 

 intere.-.! merely, but for the benefit of ihe country. We 

 are willing to accommodate any who are short for mon- 

 ey, and take our pay for the Farmer in almost any thing 

 the farm produces, if by this means they can be persuad- 

 ed to take it. 



We thank Acosta Severance for iho suggestion, and 

 hope his desire for the diffusion of agricultural knowl- 

 edge will be realized, as il most assuredly will when his 

 neighbors can be prevailed upon to read. J. B. 



[U'We are happy to present in this number of the 

 Farmer, the promised account of Mr Pliinney's Pigs and 

 Piggery, which MO doubt will he perused with satisfac- 

 tion and profit by all our readers. We have before 

 spoken of them in terms of high commendation. He 

 has been eminently successful in breeding and fallenin" 

 swine, and we think his experience as communicated, 

 will be of much importance to every firmer, whether he 

 raises orfattens hogs on a large or small scale. J. B. 



DIassachuaeits Horticultural Society. 



EXHIBITION OF FRUITS. 



Saturday, .ilug.2i,\8W. 



Sam'l Pond, Esq. exhibited very superior specimensof 

 the following Plums, viz: Pond's Seedling, Italian 

 Damask, and Royal of Tours. 



Mr Jacob Dean, of Mansfield, exhibited four sorts of 

 Peaches, three sorts of Pears, and several of Apples and 

 Plums. 



Mr IVlanning exhibited the following Plums, viz : Drap 

 d'or, Early Orleans, Old Orleans, Nectarine, and the 

 English Wheat Plum, very distinct from the Plum of 

 the same name commonly cultivated in New England. 

 Also, the long stalk Blonquelte, Skinless, and the Ap- 

 ple Pear (so called,) believed lo be a native of New 

 England, and a ditferent fruit from the "Poire Pomme," 

 described by French authors. 



Mr Vandine, of Charlestown, exhibited a basket of 

 large and beautiful Plums, name unknown. 



Otis Johnson, Esq.. of Lynn, exhibited the Beurre 

 Van Marum, a beautiful and good Pear, received some 

 years since from the Messrs Bauinaiis, of Bolwiller, in 

 France. 



Benjamin V. French, Esq , exhibited tho Garden 

 Royal, an apple of fine flavor and decidedly a first-rate 

 fruit — origin unknown to the commillee. Also, an ap- 

 ple of very large size, erroneously cultivated in many 

 nurseries under the name of Alexander. In its exter- 

 nal appearance it resembles the Dutch codlin of Ronald. 

 If it be not the very same, it is a very distinct fruit from 



