THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 



61 



Any good carpenter can make the box in a 

 few hours, and it will be found extremely valua- 

 ble for sowing, broadcast, any small seed. 



From the New England Farmer. 



MANAGEMENT OF SWINE. 



In the first place, there must be a good piggery. 

 There is a greater failure in this respect than 

 any other. The swine are too cold in cold wea- 

 ther, and too warm in warm weather. The 

 owners of these animals do not. sufficiently con- 

 sider that they require to be comfortable, in order 

 to thrive and do Veil. It is a lamentable fact, 

 notwithstanding so much has been said and 

 written on the proper management of swine, 

 that many have hogs that are continually scold- 

 ing and crying; not so much on account of 

 being scantily fed, as for the want of a comfort- 

 able piggery. I went by one of these miserable 

 pens the other night, where the inmates were 

 whining out something like the following: 



Oh! cruel master, why do ye 

 Confine us in this piggery 1 

 Oh! here we lie, without a bed, 

 Dirty and wet, from foot to head; 

 Boreas comes in, from every crack, 

 And bites our ears, our legs and back: 

 Thus we shiver all the night; 

 We scold, we whine, and sometimes bile. 

 Hard master! shall it always be, 

 To have no better piggery? 



Who can suppose that swine will do well, 

 •when so uncomfortable and restless, and nature 

 forces them to whine out such heart-rending 

 complaints ? A moment's reflection must con- 

 vince every one that swine ought to have a dry, 

 comfortable nest. Furthermore, it is highly ne- 

 cessary that it should be so, that they can bask 

 in the sun in cold weather, and have ihe benefit 

 of the air and shade in the warm. There is no 

 doubt but a third may be saved by good accom- 

 modations. 



Jn the second place, there must be suitable food 

 and good attendance. Sows that have pigs, ought 

 to have different keeping from what hogs gen- 

 erally have. In order to have their offspring do 

 well, they not only must have meal, but a good 

 supply of milk, or whey. This is soon imparted 

 to their progeny, and, generally, (with good at- 

 tendance) produces what the owner so much 

 desires. Parturition having taken place, care 

 should be taken for a few days not to over-feed. 

 After which, the sow ought to be fed five times 

 a day, and have about what the appetite craves. 

 In other cases, roots, especially the potato, can 

 be used to great advantage. This, I think, is 

 the most natural for swine, and can be raised 

 (all things considered) with the least expense. 

 Not only roots, but meal, ought to be cooked. 

 I very well know that there is some expense 



about it — but where the accommodations are 

 good, there will be undoubtedly a great gain. — 

 Weaned pigs and swine that we are fatting, 

 ought to be fed three times a day, and about 

 such a time. Punctuality in this respect is 

 highly important. Some contend 10 feed twice 

 per day is as well, or better, than oftener. But 

 against this practice, reason and experience raise 

 a powerful voice. Nature teaches that they re- 

 quire not only a breakfast and supper, but a 

 dinner. The food, must be of good quality and 

 dealt out liberally, but not to cloy. Meal should 

 be made of a mixture of grain ; it is more pa- 

 latable, and has a better effect upon the recipi- 

 ents. By feeding swine three times a day, in a 

 proper manner, the stomach may be duly dis- 

 tended, but not so as to produce disease ; where- 

 as, if the food that they have at three times, be 

 given at two, it. will so distend the stomach as 

 to have this effect. 



SETTING GATE POSTS. 

 An experienced carpenter, who has put up a 

 great deal of fencing in his time, tells us, that 

 he has found great advantage from reversing 

 the posts, or setting them bottom upwards. He 

 asserts that this simple arrangement will cause 

 them to last doubly as long, and accounts for it 

 by supposing that the pores of the wood are 

 more closed and better protected from the mois- 

 ture of the atmosphere, when their natural po- 

 sition is reversed. 



For the Southern Planter. 

 THE APRICOT. 



Messrs. Editors, — Thisdeliciousfruit is scarce- 

 ly ever grown in the middle counties of Virgi- 

 nia, and is rarely found in the tide water coun- 

 try. It is owing to the frequent failure of the 

 tree to bear. It blooms early, and ihe young 

 fruit is blighted. This evil may generally be 

 corrected by planting the tree some five or six 

 feet from the north side of a wall. The blossom 

 is thereby retarded until the severe frosts are 

 over. By this means I have as often succeeded 

 with this excellent fruit, as with peaches in or- 

 dinary locations. Not the least recommendation 

 of the apricot is it ripens in July, when other 

 fruit is scarce. Mine are said to be the only 

 bearing trees in the county. 



I hope this communication will not be too 

 late for those who may be induced to avail 

 themselves of the present season for planting 

 this valuable fruit. 



Yours respectfully, 



Thomas Meaux. 



Amelia, Jan. 25, 1843. 



