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THE ILLIISrOIS EiS.l^nMER. 



Proposed Experiments in l^lieat. 



Editor of the Farmer: — I am not a 

 farmer, but take a great interest in the 

 success of the wheat crop. I have heard 

 many farmers say that the lightness of 

 our soil is sometimes fatal to the wheat ; 

 the frost heaving the ground and making 

 it porous and light, so that the roots 

 freeze dry, and thus kill it. If this is 

 so, deep plowing cannot be of any use 

 to this plant. Indeed, the harder and 

 more compact the soil the better it is 

 for it. Is this the reason why wheat 

 succeeds on compact clay soil ? 



I would suggest two experiments. 

 The first is to clear the weeds from the 

 ground and plow it as shallow as possi- 

 ble, and then drill in the wheat with 

 Emmerts' drill. The second is, if the 

 land is clean, to drill in the wheat with 

 Emmerts' drill, without plowing. 



I am not a farmer, as I have said; 

 and perhaps in our weedy country clean 

 grounds cannot be had for these experi- 

 ments. I wish to see it tested whether 

 the lightness of our soil has not a good 

 deal to do with the winter killing of 

 wheat, and whether the soil, not disturb- 

 ed, would protect wheat from the dan- 

 ger of being winter killed. 



Emmerts' drill is a comparatively 

 new machine. The drills are opened by 

 rolling cutters ; the seed is dropped into 

 them and properly covered. It has the 

 merit of doing good work even when the 

 ground is filled with weeds. It can also 

 drill in seed into ground which has not 

 been plowed. A. 



Planting Orciiards. 



Editor of the Farmer : — I must confess 

 that in writing under this caption, that I 

 feel myself some of the discouragements 

 which beset most of our fruit growers. — 

 Within the few last years, many young or- 

 chards have been seriously injured, and many 

 old ones have been nearly destroyed by some 

 cause — probably the unfavorable seasons. — 

 We have learned some things in regard to 

 the planting of orchards, which may be use- 

 ful to us. Our orchards on the black soils of 

 our level lands are dying off. In every case 

 where they have to stand with their feet in 

 water for six or nine months in a year, tliey 

 are perishing. Lands which formerly were 

 tolerably dry, with our rainy seasons, have 

 become too wet for apple trees. If we liave 

 planted orchards on such lands, we cannot bo 

 too quick in putting out trees on higher 



lands. 



Let me then suggest, that if high grounds 

 are selected, where the soil is tolerably good, 

 which is thoroughly drained, apple trees can 

 be planted out with a fair prospect that the 

 trees will flourish and bear fruit well. I 

 would choose if I could a northern slope, and 

 even if there is timber on the South and 

 West, it will be all the better for the trees. 

 I noticed in the last Farmer a statement that 

 in precisely such a location on the North 

 side of Buffalo Heart Grrove, peach trees have 

 not been killed within the last few years, and 



tliat they regularly bear fruit, as they have 

 the present season. This fact is full of in- 

 terest to fruit growers. 



Apple trees can be set out to advantage 

 in the fall, if the land is snitable. They will 

 then be ready to push out in the spring, o.ud 

 make a good growth the next season. But 

 on no account set out your trees in the flat 

 lands in the fall, where their feet will stand 

 in the water the present season, unless you 

 design to kill them. 



There is a general feeling among our far- 

 mers at this time to purchase trees for plant- 

 ing out, from the nurserymen of our State. 

 Such are our railroad facilities, that they 

 need not be out of the ground three days, 

 before they are deposited in any locality — a 

 great advantage over trees brought from a 

 long distance; besides they are more thrifty 

 than Foreign trees and are accustomed to 

 our soils and climate. 



P. C. R. 



"Cold Winter is Coming." 



JJr. Editor : — We should not forget the 

 last fall and winter. Every man who has a 

 family — every house-keeper and even every 

 bachelor ought not to forget it. While I am 

 writing tbj':^ ^he aspects out of doors remind 

 me of the rams and mud and destruction of 

 the roads, that absolutely prevented the haul- 

 ing of wood and produce to the town from 

 the country, for some six or eight months I 

 Was it not so ? ' Who can say that the same 

 state of things is not to be repeated the com- 

 ing fall months and winter. Our seasons are 

 changing. They have changed. Every old 

 settler knows it, — and what is to come, they 

 don't know? 



Laborers, mechanics, house-keepers, far- 

 mers — be prepared for the coming winter. — 

 Within three months the asking price for 

 coal may be twenty cents a bushel, and wood 

 eight dollars a cord. Farmers may be in 

 want of the comforts to be found in our stores 



and can't have theiu because they cannot 

 bring them to market. 



I say then to the town people, lay in your 

 supplies — and to the country people bring 

 your produce to market soon as you can and 

 when it bears fair prices. If you owe debts 

 recollect that the time will come for paying 

 sure as death I The merchant cannot wait 

 forever. You had better sell your produce 

 and pay your debts while you can; for if the 

 coming winter should be like the last, you 

 cannot in the rainy months get your produce 

 to market. The little rain we have already 

 had is making the roads almost impassable. 

 I close as I began, with the caution : "cold 

 winter is coming. J. C. F. 



The Potatoe Crop. 

 Our correspondot below is right in saying 

 that the potatoe crop in the North, is well 

 nigh a failure. The crop is better in the 

 Central and Southern counties, than in the 

 North. Indeed it is abundant in Southern 

 Illinois, and of the best quality — an unusual 

 state of things. 



Mr. Editor : — You have said a good deal 

 in you paper about the neglect of our farmers 

 to raise a sufficient supply of potatoes to meet 

 our home wants. In past years they could 

 probably do better than they did, but the 



failure, to a great extent, must be charged to 

 the season. They had then good crops in the 

 North; and they supplied us, and took from 

 US a good deal of money. There has been a 

 change about this year. We have good po- 

 tatoes and the North have miserable ones. 

 We must now harvest our potatoes and save 

 all we can. It was my object in writing this 

 little piece to caution our farmers not to let 

 their potatoes remain too long in the ground. 

 If they are ripe, dig them at once. Two 

 years ago and I believe last year thousands 

 of bushels were frozen in the ground, which 

 if they had been dug in time would have 

 brought a dollar a bushel in Springfield. — 

 Very often we have a wet time in October and 

 November, when it is not possible to dig 

 them. See to it then. Take time by the 

 forelock, you that have potatoes. Take them 

 to town and sell them, a.«i long as you can 

 get a good price for them, and put the rest 

 up where floods and frosts will not hurt 

 them, 



I love a potatoe, Mr. Editor. There is 

 something very honest and rich in the coun- 

 tenance of a good sized potatoe, when he lies 

 on a plate, well boiled, with his natural coat 

 upon him, with some cracks in his skin, 

 which opens to your excited sight the rich, 

 white, mealy substance within. Sometimes 

 I have thought that there might be some 

 mistake in the account of Grandmother Eve 

 tempting the first man with an apple — and 

 that it might have been a well cooked Boston 

 Blue Potatoe. But I don't pretend to be 

 certain about it. The French, it is said, 

 think so, and to carry out the idea they call 

 the potatoe "Pomme Terre," But farmers, 

 I close by saying to you : Learn wisdom 

 from the past, and save your potatoes. 



SoLANUM 'Tuberosum. 



-«•• 



The Corn Crop. 



Editor of the Farmer: — I was up at 

 Fairport last week and regretted to see 

 that nine-tenths of the corn crop had 

 been killed by the frost. The wheat in 

 that part of the State had n)ade a toler- 

 able crop, and the oats did very well; 

 but the grass was light and now the 

 whole crop of corn fodder with the corn 

 is very nigh cut off. These are sad 

 times for farmers. Every where in the 

 north should the farmers make efibrts to 

 save all sorts of forage for their stock. 

 They should go into the prairies before 

 the frosts have dried up the grasses and 

 before the fire gets in before them, and 

 cut and save all the grass they can — for 

 it will be wanted before spring. 



The short stnck of forage is manifest 

 on the southero shore of Lake Erie and 

 even down to Buffalo. Prairie hay is 

 now being shipped to Buffalo and other 

 places on the lakes and the demand ex- 

 ceeds the supply. Thousands and thou- 

 sands of tons of grass which will be 

 worth gold in Chicago, now wasting 

 on the lines of the central railroads. So 

 long as it can be saved the mower should 

 be kept at work and the horse rake fol- 

 low the mower. With a day's sun it 

 will be dry enough to stack. 



There will be corn in central Illinois, 



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