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THE ILLINOIS FARMER. 



249 



Sbade Trees. 

 Every spring we see large trees, brouglxt 

 from the timber, lor planting out is sliade 

 trees, with roots cut off within a foot of their 



bodieS; and without any fibrous roots. Peo- 

 ple buy them, pay large prices for them, 

 and thirty-nine out of forty die ; as every 

 sensible man knew they would, and as they 

 ought to die. Every spring this same scene 

 is re-enacted, and we suppose it will continue 

 while the world stands. Men learn little 

 from experience. 



The same has been the practice with ever- 

 greens. What is there now to show for the 

 laods of evergreens which have been brought 

 to Springfield from the forests and sold here ? 

 If any exist, they have a hard time in 

 doing so. And yet if another load of ever- 

 greens were to be brought here, with the 

 huckleberry roots about them, they would 

 still be bought. Men would make another 

 trial. They would take these trees, grown 

 in J sand, and plant them out in black prairie 

 soil, where the water will stand about the 

 roots, and have the folly to expect them to 

 live. 



If our people want beautiful deciduous 

 shade trees, they must grow them from the 

 seed, or purchase them from nurseries where 

 they have been grown from seed. Then 

 they will have trees that will grow rapidly, 

 and make shade and beauty. 



If they wish evergreens, there must come 

 from nurseries where they have been trans- 

 planted twice, and have many fibrous roots • 

 and then taken up carefully. 



A Word in Time. 



Next August and September our farmers 

 will want corn to feed their horses, and to 

 fatten their hogs early for market. Our 

 ordinary corn will not be ripe in those 

 months. Now, what is to be done ? Just 

 this : Get seed of the King Philip corn, or 

 some other early variety, and plant it when 

 you plant your general crop. You can then 

 have ripe corn to feed out in August and 

 September. 



But you say, probably, "This is small corn 

 and won't produce well." Now, there have 

 been as many bushels of shelled corn raised 

 to an acre of this King Philip corn in New 

 Hampshire, as have ever been raised of the 

 large corn in this country. It requires dif- 

 ferent cultivation. The rows should be three 

 feet apart, and the hills eighteen inches, with 

 four stalks in a hill. 



That farmer who provides himself ^ith an 

 early corn crop— that he can feed out in 

 August and September— will find it a source 

 of profit and pleasure. He can do this, if 

 he chooses to do it. TVe know some farmers 

 who have been in this practice for several 

 years, and will not be likely to abandon it 



County Agricultural Societies. 



The 8th annual fair of the Fulton County 

 Agricultural Society will be held on its fair 

 grounds, near Lewiston, on the 5th and 6th 

 days of October next. Our premium list is 

 greatly enlarged, particularly in cattle and 

 sheep. The citizens of the State are invited 

 to compete for the premiums. 



Leonard L. Koss, Sec'y. 



Bureau County Soeiety will hold their 

 next fair on the 20th, 21st, 22d and 23d 

 September next. The Officers are — H. C. 

 Fields, President; J. M. Dexter, I. P. Ev- 

 ans, Vice-Presidents ; E. S. Phelps, Corre- 

 sponding Secretary; R.T. Templeton, Treas- 

 urer. 



Clark County Agricultural Society — offi- 

 cers for 1859 — Wm. G. Stephens, President; 

 John L. Purcells, Vice-President; 0. G. 

 Stephens, Secretary. 



Sangamon County Agricultural Society 

 fair will coa^mence on the 12th day of Sep- 

 tember and continue five days. Its ofllicers 

 for 1859 are — J. N. Brown, President ; J. 

 Cook and A. B. McConnell, Vice-Presidents; 

 S. M. Parsons, Treasurer, and S. Francis, 

 Secretary. 



Officers of Chamgaign County Agricnltu- 

 ral Society — A. C. Cande, President ; F. L. 

 Scott, Vice-President ; H. C. Stewart, Treas- 

 urer, and Wm. Webber, Jr., Secretary. 

 «•• 



Upland Rice. — Mr. A. Conner, of 

 Carbondale, has sent us a package of 

 Upland Rice, raised bj himself the last 

 season. It is not hulled, and resembles 

 barley. The kernels are of good size 

 and doubtless would cook as well f.s the 

 rice of South Carolina. It can be grown 

 in this latitude. Prof. Russell, of BluflT- 

 dale, having succeeded in raising a good 

 article last year. In regard to its cul- 

 ture, Mr. Conner, says: "Prepare 

 your ground well before planting. Any 

 rich or new ground will do, if you make 

 it loose and mellow. Then throw up 

 small ridges, say three or four inches 

 high, about eighteen inches broad ; then 

 make two drills on the ridge one foot 

 apart and one or two inches in depth. — 

 Sow the seed in the drills about the last 

 of it put in the first of May — the seed to 

 be three or four inches apart in the drills 

 — cover up one inch deep. AVhen it first 

 comes up, it will be very tender and will 

 grow slow for some time and until it be- 

 gins to branch out. You must keep it 

 clean from weeds or grass. This you can 

 do by hoeing between the drills, and as 

 it grows draw a little fine earth to the 

 plants — every time you work the ground. 



If the ground should bake, loosen it up, 



and when the heads begin to shoot up the 



rice plants needs no more cultivation.'' 



Should the seed of the Upland Rice, 



fall into the hands of any one of our 



readers, the above process of cultivation 



may be found useful. 



»•• 



The prospect seems to be at this writing 



that we shall have a pkasant spring. Garden- 

 ers should now lose no time in planting the 

 seed of peas, potatoes, beets, carrots, parsnips, 

 spinach, radishes, lettuce, and salsify. Asj 

 paragus and rhubarb roots should be set 

 out. No garden should be without beds of 

 these. The Hlghbrld Scotch Rhubard is 

 one of the most reliable varieties — hardy, 

 fine flavor, and produces well. About the 

 middle of this month celery may be sown. 

 Those desiring to obtain spring turnips 

 should sow them on rich ground and very 

 early, so that the bottoms may swell before 

 hot weather. 



Ladies save themselves much labor by 

 planting out perennial herbaceous flowering 

 plants. The peonies, lillies, phloxes, lark- 

 spurs, penstemons, are all hardy, and 

 all that is necessary for their cultivation is 

 to divide the plants every three or four years, 

 as the handsomest flowers come from new 

 plants. It is now time to sow hardy annuals 

 — larkspurs, phlox, coreopsis, scarlet cacalia, 

 escholtzia, candy tuft, and some others. The 

 seeds of tender annuals should not be sown 

 until May. 



The Agricultural Society of 

 Union county, has invited the Horticul- 

 tural Society of Southern Illinois, to 

 hold their first fair and exhibition in the 

 city of Jonesboro' on the last Tuesday, 

 in the month of May next. If this in- 

 vitation should be accepted, we have no 

 doubt that there will be a mos^ interest- 

 ing exhibition at Jonesborough. 



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ES^'Strawberry cultivators are aiming 



to obtain a fine perpetual Strawberry. 

 The Alpine Strawberries are perpetual, 

 but they yield little fruit. It is believ- 

 ed that by hybridizing properly the 

 great object will be obtained. The 

 French have already obtained varieties 

 that will produce for four months. 



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lg^=Box Edgings, for borders of 

 walks, will not stand in our prairie soils. 

 They die offby degrees until all are gone. 

 We apprehend, however, if the soil is 

 mixed with two thirds sand the plants 

 might be made to live, especially if they 

 aere covered with straw through the win- 

 ter. ■ . 



