436 



NEW J: N G L A N D FARMER 



jrbY 1, 1S40 



(Continued frum pngt 430.) 



The distinguishing feulurcs of this division are 

 a deep rich soil, comparatively free from stones, 

 and very dense, hixnriant forests. '! he soil in the 

 eastern part of this section is of a reddish brown 

 color, which is imparled to it probably by the de- 

 conipo?ed de'>ris of the red sandstone, which is the 

 principal rock of the Alh'ghany ridge. 'I he color 

 grows darker until in Indiana it becomes nearly 

 black. The whole region abounds in clay which 

 is more or less incorporated with the soil. The 

 rocks are almost if not quite all, limestone. 1 do 

 not remember of having seen a stone of any size 

 in the western country, except of limestone, or 

 which did not contain lime, though perhaps there 

 may be micaceous and argillaceous rocks, which 

 do not contain lime. From these facts we should 

 be led to expect a soil well adapted to grain, par- 

 ticularly wheat, and to grass ; and such is :n fact 

 the case. In Indiana, however, Indian corn gener- 

 ally does better than the smaller grains, which I 

 apprehend is owing not so much to the character of 

 the soil as to the flatness of the surface. 



What is here said of the middle region will prob- 

 ably apply to western Virginia, to Kentucky, arid 

 perhaps to Tennessee, though as I have no person- 

 al knowledge of those States 1 may be mistaken. 



West of the Wabash we find a country of a pe- 

 culiar character. The northwest part of Indiana, 

 nearly the whole of Michigan, Illinois, the southern 

 half of Wisconsin, Iowa, iMissouri, and the territory 

 west to the Rocky mountains, is all a prairie coun- 

 try. Instead of the dense fore.^ts of the middle re- 

 gion, we find an immense extent of country without 

 timber of any kind, except here and there insulat- 

 ed groves and narrow belts along the banks of the 

 water courses. Timber is the general term applied 

 to woodland in the west: thus in travelling across 

 the prairies they speak of going from one timber to 

 another; but yet they make a distinction between 

 the wood in high and low situations. 



The wood growing along the margin of streams 

 and in low lands is similar to the forests in India- 

 na, consisting of beech, black walnut, suijar maple, 

 sycamore, white and red oak, poplar, bass, hickory, 

 &c., and is called particularly, tirnber ; that grow- 

 ing upon high rolling land is chiefly burr oak, min- 

 gled in some places with white and black oak, and 

 hickory, and such tracts are called barrens or open- 

 ings. '] he soil of the prairies is a black sandy 

 !oam ; it iias no crust of vegetable mould, but the 

 whole depth of the soil is alike, being a mechanical 

 compound of minute particles, similar to the depos- 

 ites in the estuaries of large rivers, and although a 

 large portion of the prairies, particularly in the 

 south, have clay underlying the soil, there is very 

 little of the clay incorporated in the soil. The 

 banks of the rivers and creeks are generally clay, 

 and as far as the timber extends tbc soil contains 

 a good deal of clay: this is the case also in the 

 barrens, and it is a common remark that wherever 

 there is timber the soil contains more or less clay. 

 In the northern parts of Illinois and in Wisconsin, 

 the subsoil is generally gravel, yet the character of 

 the top soil is very nearly the some as in the south, 

 though as might bo expected, it is rather drier, both 

 because the gravel absorbs more water, and the sur- 

 face is more rolling. 



The prairies in the southern counties arc in gene- 

 ral called level, but they are not strictly so : there 

 are slight undulations, but the diflierence of levels 

 does not amount to many feet. The water drains 

 off from the higher portions into the hollows, where 



it remains until it is evaporated, and these places 

 are the famous sloughs, of which we hear so much, 

 and in the wet seasons thsy are very ugly places 

 to pass, as I have reason to know. As we travel 

 northward the suvfafe becomes more undulating or 

 rolling, and the sloughs are more narrow. 



On the margins of rivers there are in many pla- 

 ces considerable tracts of natural meadow: these 

 tracts are called bottoms: the soil is similar to the 

 high prairie, but lying low and being overflowed at 

 every freshet, it is moist, but not marshy. These 

 bottoms are too low to admit of cultivation, but are 

 valuable for grass : there are other tracts of small 

 extent which are marshy. 



We often hear extravagant stories about the 

 grass upon the prairies ; it has been represented as 

 growing as tall as a man upon horseback, and the 

 idea is prevalent that the prairies produce enormous 

 burthens of excellent grass, and many writers have 

 taken much pains to establish such an idea — but it 

 is not so. Upon the little patches of low bottoms, 

 particularly about the Illinois river, there is indeed 

 some tall grass resembling a little the common 

 blue-joint of New England meadows, but coarser 

 and much inferior for fodder. The grass of the 

 bottom land generally and of the sloughs, is some- 

 thing like the common grass of our wet meadows, 

 though I think generally of better quality for hay. 

 It rarely grows more than one and a half or two 

 feet high, and the average quantity to an acre can- 

 not exceed a ton of cured hay, and the extreme is 

 not more than two tons. The high prairie is not 

 Hell adapted to grass. That which dues grow, 

 when yoimg is very tender and aflx)rds excellent 

 pasture : it comes to maturity early and is then a 

 coarse harsh grass and of little value : its height 

 is from eight to ten inches when iully grown, and 

 an extreme crop will not exceed half a ton to the 

 acre. I have seen many fields of cultivated gra-:s, 

 both timothy and red top, and when highly manur- 

 ed the yield is for two or three years Oii the best 

 prairie a ton to the acre : without manure the yield 

 does not exceed half a ton. This surprised me ex- 

 ceedingly, for the same soil often yields forty bush- 

 els of wheat, and in the east w« expect a large 

 crop of hay where we obtain a large crop of grain. 

 I account for a difl^erent result in the west in this 

 way : the soil as before stated is sandy, and the 

 long droughts in summer parch up the surface ex- 

 ceedingly, and grasses which do not root deep suf- 

 fer from the drought; but grain comes forward 

 early, and the thick growth protects the earth long- 

 er than the common grasses, and when it does dry 

 the straw has come to maturity. Corn and other 

 plants which root deep are not injured by the sum- 

 mer droughts, and hence I think that red clover 

 would succeed well; but I never saw a field of it 

 upon prairie, nor have I seen any one who has tried 

 it. The bottoms may be converted into valuable 

 meadows by simply burning oflT the wild grass in 

 the spring and sowing grass seed. 



From these facts it is evident that Illinois will 

 not be a good grazing country, but is admirably a- 

 dapted to the production of grain. The scarcity 

 of springs and rivulets is another obstacle to the 

 raising of stock. The southern part of the State is 

 generally admitted to be rather destitute of water, 

 but the northern part of the State is said to be well 

 watered, but it is so only in comparison with the 

 south. At present while the wliole country almost 

 lies common, there is no difficulty in keeping large 

 stocks of cattle, but when the country becomes fill- 

 ed up and thij farms fenced, the case will be dif- 



ferent. There are very few farms which have a 

 permanent supply of water for stock. 

 (Concluded in our next.) 



Virtue. — There is but one pursuit in life which 

 it is ill the power of all to follow and all to attain 

 the object. It is subject to no disappointments, 

 since he that perseveres makes every difficulty a 

 cause of advancement, and every contest a victory. 

 This is the pursuit of virtue. 



Alteration and decay are written on every thing 

 human. Nature is built of changes ; but her bright 

 scenes are withdrawn only to be replaced by oth- 

 ers slill brighter. Life is a flower garden, in which 

 new blossoms are ever opening as fast as others 

 fade. 



BOXE diakiire:. 



The subscriber informs his friends and the put ji',, that 

 after ten years experience, he is fully convinced thJii ground 

 houes torm the most powerful sliniulant that can he applied 

 lo llie earth as a manure. 



Orders for Bone JVlanure or Oyster Shell Lime, left at the 

 Bone Mill, near Tremoiit road, in lloiliuvj, at the New 

 England Agricultural Warehouse and Seed Store, Ne. 52 

 North Market Street, or through the i'o.sl Office will meet 

 with proinjit attention, 



March 4, 1840 NAHUM WARD, 



Week's Treatise on Bees 



For sale by JOSEPH BRECK & CO, 



April 1ft, 



NBW AHIERICAN UARDSINBR. 



FOURTEENTH EniTIGN. 



The New American Gardener, containing practical direc- 

 tions on the euUiire of Fruits and v,.geiablts, including 

 Landscape and Ornamental Gardening, Grape Vines, 

 Silk Strawberries, &.c., by Thomas G. Fessenden, late 

 editor of the New England Farmer. For sale by JOSEPH 

 BRECK &. Co., 61 and 52 North Market Street. . 



May 13. 



CABKATH.N SEED. 



The Subscribers have received from Rotterdam, a small 

 quantity of extra fine Carnation Seed, saved from one hun- 

 dred choice varieties, which they oSer at 25 cents per paper. 

 We have tried it, and find that it vegetates freely. It cost 

 us 30 guilders per ounce, and from the reprssentation made, 

 no doubt will give satisfaction to ihose who may be disposed 

 to try it We have also very fine carnation seed at laj cents 

 per paper. The seed may be sown with good success any 

 lime in May or June. JOSEPH BRECK & CO, 



May 20. 



DISUbBY SHEEP. 



For sale, twenty full blood Disbley or New Leicester 

 Ewes, and one Ram. Price SlO each. Apply at the Far- 

 mer OiTice, 



June 24, * 



HORTICl/LTURAI- TOOL. CHESTS. 



Containing a complete setof Garden tools of superior finish 

 and style, recently received fiom Liverpool and for sale at the 

 New England Agricultural Warehouse and Seed Store, 



May e: JOSEPH BRECK & CO, 



QARD<.<^NERS KJVIVES. 



JOSEPH BRECK &. CO. have thi.5 season imported and 

 now offer for sale a few very superior Garden Knives, for 

 pruning, &c. manufactured expressly for Gardeners, and 

 warranted superior to any article of the kind before import- 

 ed. 



Also— a large assortment of Budding Knives, Grape 

 Scissors, &c, &c, 



April 22 



SUPERB ROCKET LARKSPUR SEED. 



The sabscrihers oflJer for sale a quantity of Superb Double 

 Rocket Larkspur Seed, of their own raising, saved from dou- 

 ble flowering plants only, embracing all the different colors. 

 For fine, strong and early plants, the seed should be sown in 

 August JOSEPH BRECK & CO. 



THE NEW KaiGt.A.SD EAKBIER 



Is published every Wednesday Evening, at S3 per annum 

 payable at the end of the year— but those who pay wilhm 

 sixty days from the time of subscribing are entitled to a cSe- 

 duclionof 50 cents. 



TUTTIE, DENNETT AND CHISHOLM, PRINTERS 



17 SCHOOL STR!5£T ....BUSTO.V 



