34 



THE N E \V GENESEE FAR M E R, 



Vol. 



SCRAPS—CTLTl RE OF FRIIT, &C. 



In the catalogue of the London Horticultural Socie- 

 ty of 1830, are cmimeraled, aa growing in it^ garden, 

 three tliousund four hundred zarietics of hardy edible 

 fruits, and fifty-eight varieties of nuts, exclusive of 

 eighty-nine Tarictics of the fig, one hundred and eigh 

 ty-two of the grape, fifty six of the pine-apple, and one 

 hundred and thirty-one of the melon. 



A correspondent of the N. Y. Farmer inl831,eayB 

 "One of my friends has had plentiful crops of plums 

 for eighteen years in succession, by keeping hogs in 

 his fruit garden, yet trees within fifteen rode of that 

 garden, have annually lost all their fruit by the Cur- 

 culio." 



A writer in the Port Carbon Gazette, some years 

 ago, speaking of the importance of cultivating table 

 grapes, observes, " It will be perceived that I admit of 

 no excuse for not poeseesing a vine; those who have 

 no room for a single garden bed, may have their clean 

 brick walk under the shade of one of luxurious growth 



the expense is trifling, compared with its permanent 



advantages. I have known a single vine, cultivated in 

 this way, to produce in one single season, fruit which 

 Bold for more than one hundred and fifty dollars — and 

 a neighbor of mine, who keeps a shoe store, could 

 ahow on a vine, seven years old, nearly seven hundred 

 bunches of sweet water grapes, well ripened — yet he 

 had no room for a single garden bed, and trained his 

 vine over a brick pavement. Some of his leisure hours 

 were thus innocently and delightfully occupied, with- 

 out any interference with his business." 



The following fact in relation to a fine foreign pear, 

 and which appears to be the case with some other va- 

 rieties, should not only be well known to nurserymen, 

 but to purchasers and cultivators. "One of our best 

 new European Pears, the 'Duchess of Angouleme,' 

 when grown as a dwarf [upon quince stock] produ- 

 ces a fine large fruit, but small and greatly inferior 

 when grown upon a standard [or pear stock.]" — Man- 

 ning's Book of Fruits. 



Good Crops. 

 The following statement is from a report of the Cu- 

 yahoga County Agricultural Society, which held its 

 meeting last autumn at Cleveland, Ohio. The ac- 

 count of the crops of corn, shows most cleorly, that 

 the cheapest woy to farm is to raise large crops, and 

 obtain os much as practicable from a given quantity of 

 land. "Who can furnish a single instance of as great a 

 clear profit from a crop of twenty or thirty bushels to 

 the acre, however cheaply it may have been raised ? 



"The following is the account of the field of corn 

 raised by Mr. Sherman, of Mayfield, and which re 

 ceivcd the first premium. Two acres were offered. — 

 The land was a black ash swale, without manure- 

 planted (oar feet each way, labor performed as fol- 

 lows: — " 



Ploughing two acres 2 days with team,.. ..f 4,00 



Planting do.... 2 days, 1,50 



Hoeing first lime,. ..4 days, 3,00 



do second time, 3 days ...2,25 



do third time, 3 days 2,25 



Harvesting, 4 doys, 3,00 



Cutting & Bhocking,2 days 1 ,50 



CR. 



.fl7,.50 



By 182 bush. 22 qts. corn, at 50 cents,.. .$91,00 



" Corn fodder, 8,00 



" 16 loads of pumpkins 8,00 



$107,00 

 17,50 



Netl Profit $80,50 



Of other crops that received premiums, was one of 

 potatoes, 432 bushels per acre; of carrots, one at 

 the rate of 853 bushels per acre; ruta baga, 972 bush- 



els per acre; sugar beet, 928 biuihels per acre; wheat, 

 two crops of two acres each, at 52 and 56 bushels per 

 acre. 



Sugar Beets for Cows. 



In a late number of the American Farmer, is a let- 

 ter from Homer Eachus, dated "Eclgmonl, Nov. 28, 

 1839," from which the following is an extract. The 

 writer docs not state the extent of his crop of beets, 

 but givCB forty tons to the acre, as the rate of product 

 of a part of his crop. The whole product was 900 

 bufhele. 



"The lops of my beets lasted my cows about three 

 weeks, feeding them well once a day. The first week 

 of our feeding them increased the quantity of butter 

 nine pounds, and continued the same quantity for the 

 two succeeding weeks, which, at the decline of the 

 season, is a great consideration, when we take into 

 account that a stock of 25 cows, decline in the fall 

 of the year from 8 to 10 pounds a week. 



"Before they had the tops of the beets, they were 

 down to 55 pounds, at the lost churning; the week 

 following, when they had the tops they were up to G4 

 pounds, and the butter was of a superior quality, both 

 for color and flavor. The week after they got no tops, 

 their produce was 51 pounds; ond the week following 

 it was 41 pounds; and this week it is 28 pounds." 



Bad Water in our Wells. 



We recently met with a case where the water in a 

 newly dug well was excellent, until a few days after 

 stoning it, when it became oflensive in odor, and unfit 

 for use, and continued to become worse, until no do- 

 mestic animal, however thirsty, would touch it. It 

 was suggested that this was caused by the water dis- 

 solving certain impurities in the stone, and that there- 

 fore cleaning the well after these had become dissolved 

 would remove the evil. Accordingly, in a few weeks, 

 the water was all drawn from the well; the next which 

 ran in was consequently much better; a further im- 

 provement followed the second cleaning; and after the 

 third the water was quite sweet and good. 



In some regions of country, as in the neighborhood 

 of fetid limestone, it is necessary to select the stone 

 used in walling the well, choosing those which con- 

 tain no soluble parts, as, for inslance, granite and 

 sandstone. It is probable that stones containing iron 

 pyrites, by decomposing the water ond causing the ev- 

 olution of sulphuretted hydrogen, may add verj' 

 much to the oflensive qualities of water. 



A knowledge of the experiment related above, may 

 render the water of many wells good, which are now 

 considered of no value and are abandoned. 



The Culture of Mangel Wurtzel and Sugar 

 Beet, for Stock. 



BY WJI. CAKBOTT, OF WHEATLAND. 



( Continued from page 20. ) 



After Culture-Hoeing, Thinning, Transplant- 

 ing, &c. 



The seed does not vegetate very quickly, and if the 

 weather is cold, it will be several weeks after sowing, 

 before the plants are oil fairly visible. In most cases, 

 two or three plants will come up from one seed or cap- 

 sule; and as soon as they are all plainly visible, 1 go 

 over them and pull out the extra plants, leaving only 

 one in a place, about two inches aji^rt. If this is not 

 done early, and they arc allowed to grow together un- 

 til they are of any considerable size, they retard each 

 other's growth, and cannot be sepatatcd without inju- 

 ry. If young weeds have sprung up, they should be 

 destroyed by a liglii hoeing at the time of the first thin- 

 ning. In about two weeks, or os soon as the plants 

 begin to acquire some strength, ond weeds begin to ap- 

 pear, I go over them again with the hoe, and at this 

 time pull out about half of the plants, leaving them 

 four inches apart. I also go through between the 

 rows with a horse ond shovel-plough, (a common 

 small plough or a norrow cultivator will answer,) in 

 order to stir the earth and keep it loose, as well as to 

 assist in hoeing and killing weeds. 



It any vacancies occur in the rows, they may be fil- 

 led by transplanting; obecning to take the plants up 

 without injuring the roots, and set them straight and 

 firmly in the ground. I have sometimes transplanted 

 large numbers,but they seldom do as well as those which 

 grow where sown. The young plants are not very 

 liable to be destroyed by insects. ftLne are never in- 

 jured by the fly or any insect, except the black gmb, 

 or cul worm, which sometimes thins them ont for me 

 not quite to my liking, and I have to fill up the vacan- 

 cies by transplanting. 



-As soon as the plants acquire sufficient size, we be- 

 gin to use them as greens for the table, thinning them 

 out of the rows as desired. They are much esteemed 

 for this purpose by my family and hired men, and du- 

 harvest we use large quantities of them with great ad- 

 vantage and satisfaction. The roots are very good for 

 the table when young, but they become rather coarse 

 as they grow old. 



Reserving a sufficient quantity for table use, the re- 

 mainder of the plants should bo thinned out at the 

 third time hoeing, to the distance of ten or twelve 

 inches apart. Care should be taken to keep the 

 ground free from weeds; and if the soil is heavy and 

 inclined to become hard, it should be frequently stirred 

 by going through with a hove and plough, or cultiva- 

 tor. This is particularly necessary after roins, before 

 the ground becomes dry. I consider frequent hoeing 

 and stirring the soil, with liberal manuring, the great 

 re<iuisites of successfid beet culture. Some persons 

 may suppose, from reading these directions, that the 

 culture of this crop is laborious and difficult; but such 

 is not the cose; at any rate I do not know of any crop 

 which better repays for the labor bestowed on it 

 than this. The quantity and value of the produce 

 is so great, in comparison with the amount of land and 

 labor required, that he who neglects, or only half cul- 

 tivates this crop, in my opinion, practices very poor 

 economy. 



Harvesting and Preserving the Crop. 



Slight early frosts do not injure this rtop, ihe har- 

 vesting may therefore be deferred until severe frosts are 

 expected, which is usually about the middle or latter 

 part of October. Some persons have recommended 

 stripping off" the leaves and feeding them to cows, &c. 

 befoiie the time of harvesting. But I consider this 

 practice decidedly injurious, as it not only stops the 

 growth of the roots, but exposes them to injury from 

 frost If any are wanted for feeding before they have 

 done growing, the best way is to pull them out where 

 they stond too thick; or, if their growth is completed, 

 they moy be pulled up clean where most convenient. 



My manner of harvesting is as follows: — I pull up 

 four or five rows and throw them together in one row; 

 then go between with a wagon and load them on to it, 

 and draw them to the barn, where the tops are cut ofl", 

 and the roots put into the cellar under the batn. I 

 consider the tops of great value for feeding caws and 

 other cnttle; and if thrown into a shed or barn they will 

 keep good for feeding sevcrol weeks. Those who have 

 no proper cellars; may preserve the roots in pits in the 

 field. They ore not as liable to injure by heating as 

 turnips or carrots, and if too large a quantity are not 

 put in one heap, they will be in no donger from this 

 source. The besfwoyto bury all such roots, is to 

 make the pit long and narrow, and pile the roots up 

 pretty high. Beets are ^ot so easily injured by free- 

 zing as potatoes, and need not be covered more thon 

 about half as deeply "''li eorth. The end of the pit may 

 be closed with a few bundles of straw, so as to have 

 easy access to the roots vlcn difiicil. 



Amount of Produce, Feeding, &c. 



Not having taken particular pains to weigh or mea- 

 sure my crops, I cannot say exactly what the amount 

 of produce is per acre. But judging from the number 

 and weight of the loads, and the space which the roots 



