AND HORTICJLTURAL REGISTER. 



^ 



PUBLISHED BY JOSEPH BRECK & CO, NO. 52 NORTH MARKET STREET, (Ao».culti7ral Wabehouss.) 



XXII.] 



BOSTON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 14, 1844. 



[NO. 33. 



N. E. FARMER, 



For the New England Farmer. 



APPLICATFON OF MANURES. 

 Breck — Dear Sir — I noticed in the Now 

 nd FarniPr, of the present week, a discussion 

 Stale House on the upplicuion of inRniircs. 

 If Imd some cxpanence and made some obser- 

 s, I alfeo would express my opinjon. 

 las been frequently stated in agricultural pa- 

 hat plowing in manure is "the new method." 

 3 a mistake ; it was practiced when I was a 

 lore than sixty years ago ; and for the same 



that is now urged in Us favor. And the 

 e niust be spread no faster than the plow 

 turn It under, because it would dry. This, 

 poor opinion, is incorrect ; because green 

 e (which [ would be understood to mean,) 

 J under when wet and cold, will not deconi- 

 nd incorporate with the soil near so soon, as 

 if it is first warmed by the sun. If it lias 



two d.iys sun after it is spread, and then 



in, it will soon become moist, and imniedi- 

 )c decomposing^, to the benefit of the grow- 

 op. The philosophy and tlieory of putting- 

 e denp in the soil, is, that its properties 

 are fuod for plants, ascend, and do not de- 

 so as to lose any valuable properties : — a 

 ational, plausible Meony ; but does it agree 

 xperience — with fads/ I think not. I will 

 ane fact from many I have known. Some 

 ago, I saiv a man spreading manure on grass 

 n the sprinj, and soon after, plowing the 

 land quite deep, and the manure went to the 

 1 of the furrows. I watched that tield at 

 and observed that the corn was backward 

 iiall, and at harvest tune was not ripe, and 

 are tlian half a crop, if the same (piantity 

 :iure )iad been put on after plowing, I have 

 ibt there would have been double the quan- 

 corii and of a much better quality ; for the 

 'as good, and had a good supply of manure, 

 practice in late years has generally been to 

 spread the manure, and then harrow ; and 

 iniformly had larger crops of corn and pota- 

 han when the manure has been plowed in. 

 !re was so much said and published some 

 Jars ago, in favor of sprrading manure on 

 land and turning it under the sod, that I ina- 

 a strip forty rods long and one rod wide on 

 as.':, and in the middle of the field; then 

 i it under from five to six inches deep ; the 

 [lans of the field had the manure spread on 

 ilo.ving, and all harrowed. The result was, 

 Kpecied, that the strip where the manure was 

 der the sod, was much smaller the whole 

 1; and at harvesting did not produce but a 

 nore than one-half as much corn as the other 

 if the field. The next year oats were sown 

 ■same field; and they did not find the manure 

 it was plowed in ; and it has never been 

 •r heard of since. It is admitted that when 

 e is spread on the surface, some of il does 



not get covered, and of course in part lost, but not 

 half as much lost as when buried deep in tlie soil. 

 LOVETT PETERS. 

 fVtstboro', Feb. St.', 1844. 



05^ We arc much obliged to our respected cor- 

 respondent for his c(mimunication. We coincide 

 with his views gi'uerally, but must beg leave to 

 ditfer on tho point of spre.iding green manure on, 

 the surface, to be exposed " one or two ii:iys to the 

 sun," before plowed 111. We believe that much of 

 the aniinoiiiacal gases would escape to " manure 

 the air," by such miin:igemeiit. Prom what little 

 experience »e have had in the matter, we are of 

 opinion that manure should never be applied in a 

 green stale, but first made into a compost, and 

 spread and harrowed, or lightly plowed in ; but if 

 green maniiro is used, it should be, we think, im- 

 mediately covered, but not plowed in deep, and 

 thus protected from the wasting influences of the 

 sun and air. In this point alone wo difl^er. 



Plowing manure in deep, as in the case alluded 

 to by our correspondent, we think equally objec- 

 tionable to exposing it on the surface — and he who 

 adopts either mode and rejects the other, we think 

 may be said to avoid Scylla only to strike on Char- 

 hydis. But the opinions of so expiTienced a far- 

 mer as our venerable correspondent, carry with 

 them great weight, whatever mode they may favor ; 

 and it would illy become us to pronounce his prac- 

 tice a poor one, when his long experience has con- 

 vinced him it is good, liut the matter in question 

 has two sides — and our little experience and more 

 redaction, leads us to support the one vhich is sup- 

 ported by science ^ and which, we cannot but 

 think, will prove the best in practice. — Ed. 



From the Albany Cultivator. 



DEMAND FOR LONG WOOL. 

 We have great pleasure in laying hefore our 

 readers the following letter from Samuel Laivrence, 

 Esq., of Lowell, in answer to one we addressed 

 him, enclosing samples of wool from some Leices- 

 ter sheep, owned by Mr Howard, associate editor 

 of the Cultivator. It will be seen from this letter 

 that rapid advances are making in this country in 

 the manufacture of such goods as require Ion" 

 wool, such as is produced by the breeds of sheep 

 known as Cotswulds, Ijcicesters, Lincolnshires, &c. 

 and that the increasing demand for this kind of 

 wool alVords encouragement to the breeders of 

 these sheep, which they have not heretofore enjoy- 

 ed. It will be seen, also, that Mr S. exprcfses 

 great confidence in the belief that the prospects of 

 the wool-grower are fully equal to those of any 

 other branch of husbandry. 



Lowell, Jan. JO, 1844. 



Editors of the CuUivntor — .My numerous engage- 

 ments at the opening of the year, have prevented 

 ail earlier reply to your respected favor of the '28tli 

 ult. 



I have examined the two samples of wool, and 

 am of opinion that they are admirably adapted to 

 combing purposes for the manufacture of Moustin 



ik Lames. Tho staple is long, strong and lustrous, 

 qmilities not desirable for felting purposes, espe. 

 cially the two latter. I judge these samples to be 

 from Cotswold sheep, a breed which it is very desi- 

 rable to propagate in this country, as the worsted 

 business Is just corning into existence. Tho secret 

 of F.nghind's advance of all the world in the man- 

 iifacture of worsted goods, lays in the fact of her 

 liossc^smg better breeds of sheep for tho produc- 

 tion of combing wools, and not from her superior 

 skill in working them. 



The Worsted business in its various shapes, is to 

 be of immcMise importance in this country, and it 

 .'ifTords me sincere pleasure to be able In say to 

 you that It has already been commenced in tins 

 Slate upon a liberal scale, by parties whoso means 

 and intelligence are a guaranty of its succes.'f. A 

 great deal of talent and skill have been brought to 

 bear upon this branch of industry, and if I am not 

 greatly deceived, the time is near when old Eng- 

 land herself will be astonished at our success. .\ 

 number of hundred looms .on mouslines are already 

 in operation, and more in progress. In addition to 

 the works already projected, a company is now be- 

 ing formed in Boston, with a capital of a million 

 of dollars, for works on Mouslin de Lnines, &c. 



In reply to your inquiry about the kinds and 

 quantity of wool used in the .Vliddlosex mills, I 

 have to say that we use about a million pounds 

 yearly, of such kinds as are considered in this 

 country the choicest produced — say full blood 

 Saxony, and Saxony mixed with Merino. We are 

 very fastidious in the selection of our wools, both 

 as regards the blood and condition; and in conse- 

 quence, we are in the habit of paying prices which 

 many manufacturers think absurd. 



I am clearly of the opinion that no branch of ag- 

 riculture promises better than the culture of wool, 

 and I sincerely hope more attention will bo given 

 to it than has been paid for the last few years. 

 Yours, SA.M'L LAWRENCE. 



Cabbage Heads from Slumps James Bates, of 



Norridgewock, Me., writing to the Farmers' Jour- 

 nal, soys : " I do not know all your Boston garden- 

 ers are up to, but I do know that, if cabbage stumps 

 of any variety arc set out in the sprin;:, in good or- 

 der, one, two, three, or even four good sound heads 

 will grow on them ; and this they will do year af- 

 ter year, until they die by acch ent. They are 

 managed in the following manner: The upper, 

 narrow- leafed sprouts, which would bear seed, are 

 carefully rubbed off, and likewise all the lower, 

 round leafed ones, which latter will form heads, 

 le.Tving only so many of these as the strength of 

 the stump and iho soil are capable of bringing to 

 perfection. At our cattle show, Mr John Drew 

 presented several such slumps, with one tn four 

 heads of low Dutch cabbage on each, which have 

 borne for three years. He sets them out in earth 

 in the cellar in autumn, cuts off the heads when 

 required for use, and places the stumps pretty thick 

 in the garden in spring. The labor is trifling, the 

 cut worm gives no trouble, and ihe crop sure and 

 abundant." 



