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THE NEW GENESEE FARMER, 



Vol. 2. 



For the New Genesee Farmer. 

 Rust on Wheat. 



Messrs. Editors— If there is one eubject more 

 than another in which the farmer is deeply interested, 

 and which needs thoroughly investigating, it is the 

 one at the head of this article. It is not an evil con- 

 sequent upon poor farming, for it attacks, indiscrimi- 

 nately, the grain of the best, as well as the poorer 

 class of farmers. The ground is thoroughly prepa- 

 red, the seed committed to the bosom of the earth; its 

 progress is watched with anxiety, and it promises a 

 plentiful harvest. The farmer's expectations are a- 

 bout to be realized, when he discovers the ravages of a 

 disease, which is either to deprive him of a part of his 

 earnings, or entirely to destroy the " golden prospect" 

 and rob him of the whole. 



The writer of this article is well aware that he has 

 entered upon a difficult subject. Difficult, because 

 there are difficulties constantly arising, or, in other 

 words, discordant suggestions are continually present- 

 ing themselves to one's mind while investigating it. 

 He does not flatter himself with the expectation of arri- 

 ving at the right conclusion. His only aim is to add 

 his liille, and to solicit others more competent than 

 himself, to come forward and investigate the subject. 

 We want all the facts connected with the subject, that 

 any one, and every one, may be in the possession of, 

 for in this way we may arrive at the truth. 



Well, what is to be done ? In the first place, let us 

 ascertain, if possible, what this evil, rust, is; and in 

 the second place, the cause of its attacking and the 

 manner of its affecting, the plant. 



It is believed by most who have written upon the 

 subject, that rust is a parasitical plant of the fungus 

 kind. Some, however, contend that it is " nothing 

 more than the thickening juices of the plant, escaping 

 through the ruptured envelope, and dried and blacken- 

 end in the sun." That the rust is a plant of the fun- 

 gus kind, is a fact established perhaps beyond a doubt. 

 There are two distinct kinds, commonly called the 

 yellow and black rust, both of which attack wheat, 

 though the latter is much more injurious. They are 

 described by Professor Eaton, in his North American 

 Botany, as follows: — " Urcdo linearis, (yellow grain 

 rust,) linear, very long, stained yellow, at length but 

 obscurely colored. On the culms and leaves of bar- 

 ley, oats, rye, wheat, &c." and" Pucciniu graminis, 

 tnfts dense, oblong, often confluent, forming long par- 

 allel lines in the direction of grasy fibres; color, yel- 

 lowish brown, becoming black; seeds elongated with 

 the upper shell shortest, containing dust; stripes fili- 

 form. On wheat and other grasses. Called rust or 

 blight." 



The cause of either of these fungi affecting grain 

 in the manner it does, or rather the preparatory cause 

 for its reception and germination on the stem and leaf 

 of the plant, is what is yet to be learned. The fellow- 

 ing passage is found in an article on the rust or mildew 

 of wheat, in the Edinburg Quarterly Journal of Ag- 

 riculture: — 



" The dust-like substances of the rnst originates 

 beneath the outer bark or epidermisof the plant, which 

 it raises and renders thin, and at length cracks and 

 bursts through, When examined by the microscope, 

 it presents a congeries of egg-oblong bodies, some of 

 which have projections almost like tad poles, or pow 

 heads, though they are not animated." 



The question then arises, supposing the dust-like 

 Bubstance of the rust to originate beneath the epider- 

 mis, where do the sporules or seeds of the fungi lodge, 

 or become deposited, and what is the state of the leaf 

 and stem most favorable for this reception ? Some 

 suppose the sporules fall upon the ground, and are ab- 

 sorbed by the roots of the plants and carried by 

 the sap through the pores of the stem, where they 

 germinate and produce the disease, called rust. Oth- 

 er* (ontes<i that tbe sporal«« er« Mown by the winds 



and lodge upon the leaf and outer bark of the plant. 

 The time most favorable for their propagation, is damp 

 warm weather. The epidermis of the plant is then 

 damp, consequently the seeds of the fungi are easily 

 attached to it. Again it is contended, that wheat, the 

 most likely to be affected, is that which has been kept 

 back in the spring, from some cause, either by being 

 raised out by the frost, or late sowing, when, particu- 

 larly if the soil is rich, it grows too rapidly, and the 

 consequence i8,lhe juices or sap of the plant accumulates 

 sufficiently to check or split the stem. The exudation 

 of the juices through these openings makes suitable 

 lodgements for the sporules, and the the damp sultry 

 weather, hastens the germination and perfection of the 

 fungus. Its growth is very rapid, arriving to maturi- 

 ty in the short space of twenty-four hours; and produ- 

 cing probably many millions ol seeds. Hence the 

 cause of its spreading with such rapidity. 



J. B BOWEN. 

 ( To he continued. ) 



For the New Genesee Farmer. 



Lime and its Application. 



Messrs. Editors — Having read some paragraphs 

 n both the old and New Genesee Farmer on the sub- 

 ject of applying lime to the soil, but having seen none 

 which agrees with the manner in which I was, in ear- 

 ly life, used to seeing it applied, — I will give you a 

 brief statement, should any of your numerous readers 

 think it worth a trial. 



For wheat, we used to consider it best to have it 

 drawn and prepared some two or three months before 

 its application. The manner of preparing, thus: — 

 Plough round your inclosure intended for wheat, say 

 six or eight furrows, (it will be better drawn out in 

 the field than left for brush and briers to grow in.) 

 Along the centre of these furrows put your lime, and 

 cover it with earth six or eight inches thick. If the 

 weather is moist, two or three days will dissolve it to 

 powder, when it should be thoroughly mixed with the 

 soil, that is around it, by means of a hoe, and drawn 

 up in a conical shape, when, if it is thoroughly dis- 

 solved, (which it should be before mixing,) it will re- 

 ceive no injury from the weather. It is not likely that 

 there would be enough to go over the whole. Then the 

 centre of the field might be ploughed, say two fur- 

 rows each way, and heaps thrown up at suitable dis 

 lances for spreading, prepared in the same waj. The 

 writer has seen swamp muck, road soil, &c., prppared 

 in this way, and attended with very beneficial results. 



For spring crops, the lime was drawn in the early 

 part of the spring, and the heaps made at suitable dis- 

 tances for spreading, by throwing two or more fur- 

 rows against each other and the lime allowed to dis- 

 solve in the same manner; but in no case spreading it 

 before it was well mixed with the soil with which it 

 was covered. This was the manner of aplying lime 

 to the soil in the west of England twenty years since. 

 Yours respectfully, 



A SUBSCRIBER. 



Erie County, Jany. 1841; 



For the New Genesece Farmer. 



Sprouting Garden Seeds"Raising Onions. 



Messrs. Editors — The approaching season will 

 soon resume the interest in the field and garden; and 

 it may notbe unprofitable at this time to consider what 

 will be the best course to pursue. The following 

 statements are advanced as proof of the very great ad- 

 vantage derived from the simple process of sproBting 

 garden seeds before planting. The positive know- 

 ledge of its benefits, is derived from six years' prac- 

 tice. There is no difficulty to be apprehended if the 

 same judgment be exercised that is required in thg 

 common operations of the garden. 



First, soak the seeds in water from six to twenty- 

 four hows— «om« Be«d« being slower to udmit mois- 



turethan others, is the difference in the time required. 

 After soaking, drain off the water, and mix the seeds 

 with a sufficient quantity of earth to absorb the mois- 

 ture remaining on the seeds; stir them often that they 

 may vegetate freely, and keep them in a moderate de- 

 gree of warmth and moisture until they are sproutedi 

 when they are ready to be put into the ground. If 

 the weather should be unfavorable, put the seeds in a 

 cool place, which will check their growth. 



The advantages of this practice cannot be better 

 shown, than by relating the management and improve- 

 ment of the onion crop in our own garden. The cul. 

 lure of the crop in 1840 was as follows: — Just before 

 the approach of the preceding winter, there was a light 

 dropping of fine manure put on a piece of land de- 

 signed for onions, containing 2J acres, and the same 

 ploughed. It remained until a thaw in the winter; it 

 was then ploughed again — the frost was not all out of 

 the ground — it was consequently lefi very rough; 

 more of the soil was exposed to the frost, which was 

 beneficial. It was left in that situation until the time 

 of sowing. In April, as soon as the soil was suffi- 

 ciently dry, the ploughing was commenced, and the 

 second day, at night, the sowing was finished, with 

 seed prepared as before staled. In one week the onions 

 icere up, rows were soon visible nearly twenty rods 

 and no weeds yet appeared. The operation of stirring 

 the soil with rakes and hoes was then commenced, and 

 the weeds were not suflfered to grow during the sum- 

 mer. (It is a mistaken notion that it is not time to 

 hoe a garden until it is green with weeds.) The first 

 of September the onions were harvested, and the pro- 

 duct was over tico thousand bushels of fine onions from 

 two and a half acres. 



The management of the crop six years before, (in 

 1834,) was as follows: — Early in the spring there was 

 a light dressing of fine manure put on the piece of 

 land intended for onions, containing 2J acres (the 

 same piece before mentioned.) The necessary travel 

 across the ground for the purpose of manuring, and 

 the natural state of the soil, as it had remained from 

 the time the crop was taken off the preceding fall, pro- 

 duced a great quantity of lumps after ploughing, and 

 although the work with teams, bushing and harrow- 

 ing, was four times as great as in 1840, it was not in 

 good condition; tlie seed was soicn dry ; a season of 

 dry weather followed, consequently the onions did 

 not come up until the weeds were started, which made 

 it a great task to till the crop. By referring to the 

 memorandum kept for that year, (as the practice has 

 imfariably-^en to register daily proceedings or occur- 

 rences connected with the garden,) the onions were 

 sown the 15th of April, and the weeding commenced 

 the 21 at of May, which was as soon as the onions 

 were fairly up, making 26 days more for the weeds to 

 grow than in 1 840. The onions did not all bolom, on 

 account of the late start in the spring, which is gene- 

 rally the cause for what it is termed skuUions, (a diffi- 

 culty which more or less prevails; but by the impro- 

 ved practice it is not in the least to be feared.) The 

 produce was eleven hundred and forty bushels from 

 2J acres, and the quantity of labor very nearly double 

 the amount required in 1840. 



The practice of 1834, had been followed succes- 

 sively on the same piece of land for twenty-five years. 

 The former proprietor had been engaged the most of 

 his life in raising onions, and it was supposed had gain- 

 ed the point of perfection in that business, especially 

 as, previous to his settlement in this country, he came 

 from that well known town in the land of Yankee na- 

 tivity, where originated the large stories about raising 

 onions, that amused and astonished the children in 

 other parts of the country fifty years ago. 



W. RISLEY, 



Hortmltural Garden, Fredonia, N. Y. 1841i 



