252 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Aug. 



fully confirming the position which I have taken. 

 He is speaking of the radication, that is, the root- 

 ing of plants, and says : 



"Clover, grass seeds, and small-sized seeds in 

 general, put forth at first feeble roots of small ex- 

 tent, and require so much the greater care in pre- 

 paring the soil, in order to ensure their healthy 

 growth. * * * It is, therefore, found advan- 

 tageous to soio clover together with grain of some 

 land ; for, as the grain is earlier and quicker in 

 groiiih, its leaves shade the young clover plant, and 

 protect it from the too iiitense action of the sun^s 

 rays ; thus affording more time for the extension 

 and development of the roots." 



This is precisely the ground I assumed in the 

 discussion, and my theory has grown into fact by 

 this high authority, and by the observations I 

 have since made. 



Harrington's Sower and "Weeder. 



Some time since, I spoke of a new Seed Sower, 

 the invention of Mr. S. E. Harrington, of Green- 

 field, Mass. I spoke of it merely as a Seed Sow- 

 er, but have now been using it for two or three 

 weeks as a weeder, and find it entirely superior to 

 any and all other implements of the kind, for 

 weeding and stirring the ground to a depth uf 

 even four to six inches ! It is light, easily hand- 

 led, and beautiful to look at. It is fun to ivoi'k 

 hard with such a machine. Mr. Harrington has 

 conferred a great service upon the world by tie- 

 vising and introducing so excellent a labor-saving 

 machine. I wish some of our extensive onion 

 growers and gardeners would come here and try 



it. 



Late Hoeing of Com and Other Crops. 



Silent assent seems to be given to an old rule, 

 that the crops must be heed three times, whether 

 they are weedy or not, and no more, though the 

 ground be covered with weeds. Three times is 

 enough, and the soil ought to know better than to 

 throw up weeds after such a scarification, say 

 some ; we cannot afford to hoe any more, and so 

 the crop is left to try its powers^ with the weeds, 

 and generally comes out second best. 



A part of the object of hoeing, certainly, is to 

 eradicate the weeds, but there is a principle involv- 

 ed in it far beyond this surface work. Still, the 

 weeding is very important in the following results : 



1. It removes the weeds and prevents their tak- 

 ing properties from the soil that the plants need. 



2. It prevents their seeding and extending their 

 kind through an indefinite number of years. 



'6. The succeeding labor upon the crop will only 

 be about half as much after the weeds are taken 

 away. 



There may be other advantages derived in tak- 

 ing away weeds, but these three are enough to 

 move every judicious farmer to exterminate them 

 as fast as they appear. 



There are other, however, important reasons 

 why crops should be hoed once or twice more than 

 they usually are. In hoeing, we mean to include 

 what generally precedes it, working the soil to 

 some depth either with plough or cultivator. 

 These operations give some valuable results. 



1. If the soil is too wet, they loosen it and let 

 in the sun and air to dry it and make it more 

 light and porous. 



2. If too dry, loosening the soil admits the most 

 air, and renders it capable of receiving and retain- 

 ing any drop of dew that falls upon it. When a 

 slight rain-fall comes, being light and open, it 

 catches and holds every drop that falls, while on a 

 hard surface it rapidly flows off. 



3. Every drop of water that goes into the soil 

 carries a certain amount of lieat with it ; this is 

 left in the soil, warms the tender roots and gives 

 them a rapid growth. 



4. Rain water is charged with ammonia and 

 other properties, which the plant greatly needs. 

 When the surface is in suitable condition to re- 

 ceive what falls, and pass it along down the sub- 

 soil, every rain is equal to a slight manuring of 

 the plant, so that the farmer who cultivates and 

 hoes thoroughly finds his crops dressed from the 

 bounties of the skies, while neglected fields of 

 hard surfaces find few blessings in the shower. 



Two rules should always be observed in regard 

 to hoeing, viz : — 



1. Hoe whenever there are weeds, whether in 

 June or October. 



2. Hoe whenever the surface is compact and 

 dry, whether in June or September. 



Very truly yours, Simon Brown. 



Messrs. Noukse, Eaton & Tolman. 



Cows IN Honduras. — A lady correspondent of 

 the Working Fanner, who had been nursing an 

 invalid husband in Honduras, gives the following 

 description of the management of cows in that 

 part of the world: 



"We were much disappointed in the quantity 

 of milk given by our cow, but the quality w;i3 

 most excellent. The cows are managed here in a 

 most miserable way, and never domesticated. 

 The calf is tied near the house, and the cow al- 

 lowed to wander at will, and often it is her will to 

 go quite a way from home. When she returns to 

 her calf, it is untied and allowed to commence 

 sucking ; then it is pulled away, tied to the cow's 

 leg and the milking begins. Sometimes a ]nnt, 

 often less, but seldom more, is obtained; and they 

 never milk the cows in Honduras but once a day. 

 Often the cow would take a very unmotherly turn, 

 and leave her calf from one day until the next. 

 Our feelings on such occasions cannot be appreci- 

 ated except by those who have drank their tea 

 and coffee for months without this luxury, and 

 who have seen those dear to them. unable to ob- 

 tain what, at the North, is almost as abundant as 

 water." 



