238 



THE ILLINOIS FAEMER 



August 



Berry Ctjltuke. — The "West Jersey Fruit Asso- 

 ciation reports that in 1863, there were 200 acres 

 under strawberry culture in Burlington, 47 in 

 Chester, aud 25 in Cinnaininson — total 272 acres, 

 yielding 12,596 bushels of fruit, and sold for $45,- 

 845 60, an avera^ja of 46 bushels to the acre. One 

 crop is reported from Chester of Hovey's Seedling 

 and Lady Finger, 8000 quarts on a fraction less 

 than 1^ acres, or at the rate of 166 bushels per 

 acre. Of the Raspberry, there were 40 acres in 

 the same townships producing crops, yielding an 

 average of 33 bushels per acre, and sold for $4 64 

 per bushel ; and of the Blackberry, 99 acres in 

 bearing, yielding 53 bushels per acre, sold for $3 

 30c per bushel. The three towns sold these three 

 kinds of berries to the amount of $70,000 last 

 year. — Boston Cullivaior. 



It will be seen from the above that the small 

 fruits will pay. Another point we would call at" 

 teiition to, is the yield being an average of forty- 

 six bushels to the acre of strawberries. We hear 

 some wonderful stories in regard to yield, but 

 these may be put down as rather fishy, and, at 

 present advices, the average yield under good cul- 

 ture, may be put down at fifty bushels, and those 

 planting may as well take this as a base of their 

 expectations. — Ed. 



Mantirinr. — Mr. Patten, of Hightstown, N. J., 

 informs the Country Gent, that one-third of a field 

 in strips, received an autumn dressing of manure 

 at the rate of about 12 or 15 loads to the acre, A 

 second portion was manured in the spring with .^n 

 equal quantity, and a third was dressed with gimno, 

 at the rate of 300 pounds to the acre. The crop 

 on the fall manured part was about three times as 

 good as on that manured in the spring. The gua- 

 no gave an intermediate result. JUie second year 

 guano was applied over the whole, and the third 

 year the land was left in grass. During both the 

 second and third year the growth on the autumn- 

 manured portion was decidedly the best ; the 2d 

 best was on that which was guanoed the first year; 

 and the poorest of all was on the spring-manured 

 portion. 



We are obtaining proof upon proof of the value 

 of top dressing our lands, instead of plowing in the 

 manure. Look to it that you top dress every acre 

 of meadow as soon after mowing as is possible ; 

 that is the place to put your spare manure. In 

 this way a crop of grass is always reliable, drouth 

 or no drouth. Try it, you who have light mead- 

 ows. — Ed. 



Seventeen Year Locusts. — The Locusts contin- 

 ue to charm us by their mdody. They are also 

 making industrious preparations to perpetuate or 

 reproduce their kind in due time, by the deposit 

 of millions of eggs, in the limbs of forest or fruit 

 trees. This they do by making an incision in the 

 wood, with a horn which they carry underneath, 

 them, and which they thrust deep into the 

 timber, selecting limbs from one-fourth to one- 

 half inch in diameter. The incision is made ob. 



liquely, raising portions of fibre, underneath which 

 the eggs are deposited, when the operation is re- 

 peated. If the mearest fraction of these dcposites 

 developes into locusts, there is no danger that the 

 race will become extinct. 



Where these incisions are too thickly distribu- 

 ted, the tree withers and dies, but these cases 

 however, are rare in this loc^ility. 



There is a diversity of opinion in relation to 

 these pests, whicn many aver are wrongly termed, 

 locusts. Some believe them to be liarmK ss, while 

 others have Jiea'd that their bite or sting, it is not 

 very clear which, is a deadly poison. We have 

 heard no well authenticuted cases of their having 

 bitten or stung any one this year, and from the ex- 

 amination we havo been able to subject them to, ^ 

 are satisfied that they are harmless in this direc- 

 tion. — Berlin {Wis.) Cowant. 



jr^ 



Drouth in Wisconsin. — "Our drouth" is becom- 

 ing a serious matter. The thoughts already reach 

 ahead and grasp the question of "bread for the 

 million." We liear of showers in localities, but 

 there has been no general rain. At tlie present 

 time of writing — 23d — the morning opens cloud- 

 less, and the sky ha>* that peculiar appearance 

 which reads of a day of "furnace heat." We have 

 frequent tableaux of clouds, but they mock the v 

 weary, watcliing gaze, and disappear. 



Widespread damage to crops is already the re- 

 sult. A vast breadth of wheat, barley and oats, is 

 beyond tbe reach of rnin. Mo-^t nieadoivs are ruin- 

 ed. The prospect is gloomy for large masses of 

 our people, — Wis. Chief, June 15. 



Curtis' Prairie Mower. — This is a new machine 

 in this section. It has been introduced at the 

 West and is a very popular machine there. We 

 saw it operate upon a field of clover, and it per- 

 formed its work well with a very light draught. 

 It is manufactured by E. A. & G. R. Meneely, 

 West Troy. — Jour. N. Y. Agricultural Society. 



Origin of Mules in thr United States. — Up to 

 the year 1773 there was scarcely aiiy mules to be 

 found in the United States — those few had been 

 imported from the West Indies, and were of a very 

 inferior order. 



When Washington returned to private life at 

 Mount Vernon, he became convinced that mules 

 would bo better adapted for use in the agriculture 

 of the Southern States, as they lived longer, vvere 

 less liable to disease, require less food, and were 

 more economical than horses. 



On his views becoming known to the King of 

 Spain, he sent him a jack and two jennies. Thfli 

 jack was sixteen hands high, of a grey color, heav- ,, 

 ily made, and of a sluggish disposition. About the 

 same time he also received a jack and some jennies 

 from Lafavette, which were procured on the island 

 of Malta. These proved more ferocious and active. 

 By crossing the breed, Washington availed himself 

 of the best qualities of the two, and thus introduc- 

 ed excellent mules for farming labor into this 

 country. 



Such was their superiority, that at the sale of 

 the General's effects, one wagon team of four mules 

 sold for $800. At this day these animals are ex- 

 tensively used in the Southern States. — Ex. 



