420 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Sept. 



with the same results. I then made up my mind 

 that buckwheat is not only an exhausting crop, 

 but that it leaves the soil unfit for a good crop af- 

 ter it, until it can recover from the deleterious ef- 

 fects of the buckwheat. It seemed to create an 

 acidity in the soil, for I noticed before plowing 

 the next spring, that sorrel started up plentifully. 

 I abandoned the growth of buckwheat from that 

 time, and have never found any other crop that 

 left the soil unfit for a good crop of corn, with 

 proper preparation and culture. 



In my case I lost more on the corn crops than 

 the whole value of the buckwheat. A crop that 

 will create a cold acidity in the soil, so as to sen- 

 sibly afl'ect the one following, is unfit to be grown 

 upon a good soil. Buckwheat will thrive fairly on 

 rather poor, sandy and gravelly soils, if the sea- 

 son is not too dry. If I had such land, and was 

 desirous of cultivating this crop, I would put it 

 upon this kind of soil once in two years, letting it 

 rest the alternate year, but never upon good soil 

 designed for corn the following year. No crop 

 that can exhaust more than the value of a crop 

 can be a paying one in the long run on good pro- 

 ductive lands." 



For the Neic England Farmer. 

 CANKER V70BMS— ORCHARDS. 



Mr. Editor: — Your correspondent, "W. N. 

 Shaw, Esq.," has told us a terrible tale of the can- 

 ker worm upon his premises. If anything would 

 make a farmer shrug his shoulders and forget to 

 skip a few hard words, it would be his promising 

 orchard, well invested with the canker worm. 



This would seem to be the proper time for sci- 

 entific study, and to apply the remedy. Now, we 

 know exactly where the enemy lies, that by its 

 silken cord, it lets itself down to the ground with- 

 in the limits of the branches of the tree from which 

 it had foraged. How can we destroy this grub 

 now so near the surface, among the grass roots, 

 waiting to be transformed to do its wicked work 

 the next spring ? Placing heavy paper around the 

 tree and taring, stops a great many grubs, but it 

 must be watched, and the tar often applied. Some 

 apply directly upon the bark, but this endangers 

 the health of the tree, while others have tired 

 themselves and ended their labors in disgust. 



It has occurred to me to sow salt or alkalis free- 

 ly under the trees, particularly in mowing orchards, 

 then use the Michigan or double Eagle plow as 

 soon as it is the proper time to sow grass seed, 

 and at once stock it down to grass again, which 

 will largely increase the crop for the next year, 

 even without manure. By tliis process, the grub 

 will be Avell salted and the sward furrow will be 

 deeply and perfectly buried. No other plow could 

 do it so well, in my judgment. It is about time to 

 sow grass seed. 



It is said this grub begins to move for the tree 

 a long time before the frost is out of the ground. 

 If so, it is nigh the surface ; a deep burial and a 

 reverse position might effectually destroy it. 



These suggestions may be nothing new, and 

 perhaps have been put in practice by many, but I 

 cannot conceive of a more eff'ectual process. Too 

 many orchards become prematurely old by neglect- 

 ing to cultivate among the troes, and manuring 

 well, as you would for a field of corn or a crop of 

 oats. Beside, when the old sward is turned un- 



der, how many thousand of the pestiferous insect 

 creatures, such as apple curculio, etc., may be 

 destroyed ? Not like the tree in the forest, that is 

 enriched by the dropping of its own leaves, and 

 grows luxuriantly, the old orchard apple trees, 

 for a half century, have stood like the monuments 

 of a grave-yard, only to gather moss and bear no 

 fruit ; vigor, life and fruitage come from the plow, 

 the manure heap and the labor of man. 

 Brooklyn, L. I. H. Poor. 



A NOR-WEGIAN HOME. 



The houses in which these country people 

 reside are not altogether unlike the small log- 

 cabins of the early settlers on our western frontier. 

 I have seen many such on the borders of Missouri 

 and Kansas. Built in the most primitive style of 

 pine logs, they stand upon stumps or columns of 

 stone, elevated some two or three feet from the 

 ground, in order to allow a draft of air underneath, 

 which in this humid climate is considered neces- 

 sary for health. They seldom consist of more than 

 two or three rooms, but make up in number what 

 they lack in size. Thus a single farming establish- 

 ment often comprises some ten or a dozen little 

 cabins, beside the large barn, which is the nucleus 

 around which they all centre ; with smaller cribs 

 for pigs, chickens, etc., and here and there a shed 

 for the cows and sheep, all huddled together 

 among the rocks or open hill- side, without the 

 least apparent regard to direction or architectural 

 effect. The roofs are covered with sod, upon 

 which it is not uncommon to see patches of oats, 

 weeds, moss, flowers, or whatever comes most con- 

 venient to form roots and give consistency and 

 strength to this singular overtopping. The ob- 

 ject, I suppose, is to prevent the transmission of 

 heat during the severe season of winter. 



Appi'oaching some of these hamlets or farming 

 establishments during the summer months, the 

 traveller is frequently at a loss to distinguish their 

 green-sodded roofs from the natural sod of the hill- 

 sides, so that one is liable at any time to plunge' 

 into the midst of a settlement before he is aware 

 of its existence. Something of a damp earthy 

 look about them, the weedy or grass covered tops, 

 the logs green and moss-grown, the dripping eaves, 

 the veins of water oozing out of the rocks, give 

 them a peculiarly northern and chilling effect, and 

 fill the mind with visions of long and dreary win- 

 ters, rheumatisms, colds, coughs and consumptions, 

 to which it is said these people are subject. Noth- 

 ing so wild and primitive is to be seen in any oth- 

 er part of the day, when the inhabitants are out in 

 the hills attending their flocks or cultivating their 

 small patches of ground. I passed many groups 

 of cabins without seeing the first sign of life, save 

 now and then a few chickens or pigs rooting about 

 the barn-yard. The constant impression was that 

 it was Sunday, or at least a holiday, and that the 

 people were either at church or asleep. For one 

 who seeks retirement from the busy haunts of life, 

 where he can indulge in uninterrupted reflection, 

 I know of no country that can equal Norway. 

 There are places in the interior where I am sure 

 he would be astonished at the sound of his own 

 voice. The deserts of Africa can scarcely present 

 a scene of such utter isolation. — Harper's Maga- 

 zine. 



