1862. 



THE ILLINOIS FARMEE. 



35 



SPRING WHEAT, ETC. 



Extensive preparations have been made 

 in the north part of the State to sow this 

 grain, and as it has become the cheap food 

 for the million, there is no danger of the 

 price going below the cost of culture, pro- 

 vided always that it is sown early • remem- 

 ber that spring wheat is but the forcing of 

 the biennial winter wheat to become an an- 

 nual, and as it must have a period of rest, 

 however short, it must feel the effects of 

 the sharp frost of early spring, therefore, 

 sow early, if you sow in the mud, never 

 wait to have the ground settle, but go to 

 work as soon as the frost begins to yield up 

 the surface for the action of the harrow. 

 Oats, corn potatoes and flax will do well to 

 fill up the time left vacant after the other 

 farm work. Corn, rye and barley must cease 

 to attract so much attention as formerly. 

 Though ale and lager beer have become na- 

 tional drinks, yet we have more than a sus- 

 picion that the chemist has lessened the dis- 

 tinction between the good and poor barley, 

 and between barley, Indian corn, and other 

 grains for malt. This being the case, bar- 

 ley, as the market now proves, is attracting 

 less and less attention, while from the de- 

 mand for malt liquors it should be the re- 

 verse. In this connection we do not charge 

 the brewers with drugging their products, so 

 as to dispense with the use of malt, but by 

 new processes, substitute other grains and 

 inferior barley for malt. 



THE DAIRY. 



During the past year the products of the 

 dairy have been much depressed, with the 

 exception of a small portion of our cheese 

 daires which have tried the experiment of 

 making Hamburg and Western Reserve 

 cheese. Out of several samples that we 

 have seen in the Chicago market, and sent 

 south with these brands, none of them have 

 fallen below the eastern standard, even in 

 the county of Champaign, which is supposed 

 not to be so well adapted to cheese piaking 



as the more northern counties. The sam- 

 ples of Western Reserve that have fallen 

 under our notice have come up to the stand- 

 ard, and we see no reason why the counties 

 in Central Illinois having the dark colored 

 clay loams will not prove good cheese-ma- 

 king districts. A large portion of the silt 

 that forms the soil is evidently from granite 

 regions producing nearly soft water. Cer- 

 tainly experiments thus far go to establish 

 this point, and if found certain in its re- 

 sults will add to the value of that part of 

 the State, and the cows now used to run 

 with their calves, with: only the view of 

 growing stock can be at once put into the 

 dairy. 



TOBACCO. 



The growing of Connecticut seed leaf to- 

 bacco should arrest the attention of farmers, 

 both in the north and south part of the 

 State. The present and prospective high 

 price of the weed should be sufficient to 

 stimulate inquiry. Hundreds of hogsheads 

 of tobacco are grown in the timber lands of 

 the river counties, and sold at a large profit, 

 and we see no reason why the deep, loamy 

 soil of the prairie would not prove desirable 

 for certain kinds. It is probable that there 

 is no crop that so rapidly deteriorates the 

 soil as that of tobacco, it is, therefore, best 

 if we grow it at all, to do so while it com- 

 mands a high price. It will be some years 

 before Virginia, Kentucky and Missouri 

 can resume their full crops of tobacco ; in 

 the meantime, let our farmers take a hand 

 in it. 



CORN. 



This grain will always continue a favorite 

 crop in this State, as millions of bushels are 

 required annually for domestic use. Out- 

 side of this, no email amount will be requir- 

 ed for starch, as it makes a starch supe- 

 rior to that of the potato, and cheaper than 

 from wheat. Nearly all of the potatoe 

 starch factories at the east have been given 

 up, and the .lousiness ruined. The best po- 



