3.98 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER 



JUNE J , 1 ■i* fl. 



got np a heavy steam, and both boats were appa,- 

 rently put to their utmost speed. Tlie Dolphin was 

 just ahead, and the boats dashed through the water 

 like two generous steeds, snortin.' and gallopin'^ 

 furiously as they bear their gallant riders proudly 

 over the battle Held. For about an hour the ex- 

 citement was great, — every person appeared to be 

 interested. At length the Maine got up abreast 

 and was gaining upon her rival, when having reach- 

 ed iMaysville, we hauled in to leave passengers and 

 freight, and the Dolphin went on her way and was 

 soon out of sight. 



{Continued on page 404.) 



For the Nesv England Farmer. 

 ON THE CURCULIO. 

 Mr Ediior — Sir — It is less than one year since 

 I have been a reader ofyonr valuable agricultural 

 paper: I consider it valuable as a farmer's pa|)er, 

 because I consider the agricultural iutere.-^t the most 

 important interest of our country, and in fact ahuost 

 the only means whereby the country is to be en- 

 riched and made prosperous. Clog this great 

 wlieel, and every other wheel is retarded. And I 

 consider that every particle of useful "knav.kdge or 

 information that is given, adds S(nr>ethii!g to the 

 general prosperity. I have been told that your pa- 

 per was a valuable one for the farmer : so it is, and 

 I think valuable to every member of the communi- 

 ty also ; for there are thousands in the country who 

 are not farmers, but might contribute their mite to 

 the diffusion of useful agricultural knowledge. 



I have read several communications on insects, 

 viz: the borer, the yellow cucumber bug, the cur- 

 culio, and their genealogy, their ravages, and ex- 

 perimental remedies, though many of them do not 

 prove to be sucressl'ul. The curculio \a the insect 

 on which I shall attempt to write wliat my own ob- 

 servation teaches me, in plain homespun English, 

 and hardly that, for I never received an education, 

 and cannot grace my story with terms from borrow- 

 ed language — nor would I do it if I could, fori 

 have not a very exalted idea of a master's pretend- 

 ing to teach a pupil in language he cannot under- 

 stand himself. 



Of this curculio, or beetle, as it is termed, I have 

 some eight or ten at this tine, in the chrysalis state. 

 I would here observe that I consider them to have 

 three stages of existence : the first 1 shall call the 

 worm in the fruit. In this state they remain trom 

 the time the egg is deposited in the fruit in July, 

 up to this time, and something later. I have them 

 in the chrysalis at this time, but they do not get 

 into the ground, and I think Dr Tliatchcr putting 

 them in the ground in his cellar, to be the reason 

 they did nut arrive to the perfect stage. 



The second stage takes place between this time 

 and the middle of June: in this state they are en- 

 veloped in a case of shelly covering: this state I 

 term a stale of embryo, in which they remain but a 

 short time. 



The third and next is the perfect stale, in which 

 they appear in the shape of a moth or miller; when 

 they are ready in July again to commit their depre» 

 dations. 



Now how shall we get rid of them, is the ques- 

 tion, and I cannot answer it. But sure I am they 

 do not go to the ground — they do not leave the tree, 

 other than those that leave in the fruit ; but you 

 will find them concealed under bark cracks, ivhere 

 limbs have been cut ofl^, and in decayed spots in 

 the trunks, if there be any ; and they can be found 



there in the spring, exactly the same insect as 

 when it inhabited the apple, and can travel off as 

 sprightly, get again in some crevice, and wind a 

 web around itself again. I do not know how whol- 

 ly to destroy them, as they can fly from tree to tree 

 or from orchard to orchard. I have experimented 

 on them for two or three years, and am satisfied 

 what they are. If any one .should wish to test 

 what has been said with regard to the curciilio, as 

 it is called, they may obtain thousands of them by 

 winding round or hanging any old cloth in the crotch 

 of the trees, from the time they begin to leave the 

 apple till the time the fruit is gathered. I think 

 iit present the best remedy would be this : In the 

 fall, when the insect has crept into the cloth for 

 winter quarters, take the cloth from the trees and 

 put it into an oven hot enough to destroy them. 



Mr Editor, if what I have said can be wrought 

 into any thing beneficial to our agricultural com- 

 munity, it will be a satisfaction to 

 Your most ob't serv't, 



lOSEI'H BUKRELLE. 



Qiiinn/, &h Jlpnl, 1840. 



CONNECTICUT RIVER FARMING. 



We arc very happy in presenting to our readers 

 the subjoined account of his farming from one of 

 the most practical and successful cultivators in the 

 highly improved part t\ the State in which he re- 

 sides. The extracts from his communication, which 

 are subjoned, follow a part of the same letter rela- 

 ting to tlie cultivation of wheat which is given in 

 the appendix under the head C. in the Third Re- 

 port of the Agriculture of Massachusetts. We 

 beg leave to say, that we shall hold our friend to 

 his promise and shall be happy to hear from him 

 as often as his convenience permits him to commu- 

 nicate to us the valuable and interesting results of 

 his observation and experience. H. C. 



'i o Henry Colivia\, &c. &c. — Sir — Did I not 

 fear I Iiad already intruded on your patience, I 

 would say a few words more about my experience 

 in farming. The farm I occupy is a part of a farm 

 my father formerly occupied. He used to practice 

 the old-fashioned way of planting one year and 

 sowing oats the next ; then planting again. My 

 practice is diftercnt. The above course has a ten- 

 dency to exhaust land. My method is, to plant 

 corn and potatoes, then scjw wheat or oats, and 

 seed with grass. In this way I have green crops 

 to turn under every year, and under this course my 

 land is constantly growing better. I think that in 

 the last fifteen years I have tripled the product of 

 my farm. I did not think a few years since I 

 could raise more than two hundred bushels of corn ; 

 the last year I have raised six hundred, bu. 000 

 Formerly but little or no wheat ; the last 



year 346 3-4 



And about two hundred and fifty of rye 250 



Making (of grain) 11963-4 



One hundred and ninety of poiatoes 190 



and all from about forty acres of land. ' I do not 

 speak of this as a great yield — still it is a great yield 

 to what we formerly got from the same number of 

 acres. The same land is capable of still greater 

 improvement aud of producing one-third more thr.n 

 it now produces. 



I keep over the summer from six to eight hogs 

 and eight to ten pigs ; from these I make one hun- 



dred loads of good manure annually ; this I think 

 will pay all the expenses of their keeping until I 

 put them up for fatting. Farmers generally might 

 make double the manure with their hogs by only 

 supplying them with muck, turf and leaves. In 

 fact, hogs will convert almost anything into ma- 

 nure which you will give them. 



One word about corn, as this is our greatest crop 

 on the Connecticut River. We ought to search 

 for that kind which is best adapted to our soil. I 

 have tried many kinds since 1830 ; previous to that 

 time I used the old large meadow corn, but that 

 wants a long season ; and for the two last years 

 I have had as good success with the Dutton corn 

 as any I have tried. The way I manage my corn 

 is, I never plough my greensward until I get ready 

 to plant ; for two reasons, the grass, by not plough- 

 ing until May, will get up and be almost as good 

 as a coat of manure ; and another is, the worms will 

 live on the grass, and thereby prevent a great deal 

 of damage which they frequently do. I have entire- 

 ly done ploughing sward land in the fall. I am satis- 

 fied it is a bad practice. When I get ready to plant 

 I turn under my green sward and roll it down with 

 a good roller; this I tliirdi indispensable. Had I 

 not extended these remarks to a great length, I 

 would relate my experience in the roller the last 

 year. I planted a field of fourteen acres ; we had 

 ploughed and planted about two-fifths of the field 

 when my brotlier began ; and he owned a roller with 

 me and he sent for it when we had planted as 

 above stated ; his field lying about one mile from 

 mine we concluded to dispense with the roller 

 and use the harrow on the remainder of the field, 

 and, sir, it is a fiict that the part of the field that was 

 rolled was not as good land as tlie part harrowed, 

 and the manure as near alike as could be. The 

 part rolled, after weeding-, got the start of the part 

 harrowed, and many will testify that the first of 

 July the corn where the land was rolled was one 

 quarter heavier, and continued to be so through the 

 season, than the part harrowed. I want my land 

 turned over as flat as can be. 



In the application of manure, I always overhaul 

 my manure early in the spring, and mix with it 

 some lime, gypsum and sometimes wood ashes, and 

 by the time I want to plant it is nearly all rotten. 

 I plough under my long or green manure, and my 

 compost sometimes put in the hill and sometimes 

 spread on after ploughing and harrow it in. The 

 latter mode I think is generally tlie best, as there 

 will not be as many suckers to corn where you put 

 in the hill. In hoeing I never put a plough in my 

 corn, believing it to be injurious to the roots. I 

 harrow my corn the two first hoeings and the last 

 time generally hoe plain — making no hills — leav- 

 ing the ground as level as I conveniently can. 



Finally, I believe if farmers would attend more 

 to making manure and also improving the condi- 

 tion of their land by turning under green crops, we 

 .should see as great crops as they raise in the Wes- 

 tern States on our hard New England soil. 



Now, sir, you are at liberty to set aside such 

 portions of these remarks as you please, and make 

 such use of the remainder as you pleiise ; — coming 

 from a Connecticut River farmer's pen, you cannot 

 expect anything great. 



Respectfully yours, 



ZEBINA STEBBINS. 



Employment is one of the best remedies for the 

 disappointments of life. 



