THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 



245 



to have been first grown in Europe about 

 the time of the Crusaders, and the French 

 cabled it ble Sarrazin. In China, Japan 

 and Russia, it forms a large portion of the 

 food of the inhabitants, and in Switzer- 

 land, the South of France, and Flanders, 

 it is cultivated to a considerable extent. 

 It has been grown in England for upwards 

 of three hundred years, but the cool cli- 

 mate of England is not well adapted to its 

 perfect elaboration, and hence it is not 

 very extensively cultivated. In no coun- 

 try does it flourish better than in the Uni- 

 ted StateJfc-no where else do we find the 

 luxury of hot buckwheat cakes so fre- 

 quently upon the breakfast table. 



Buckwheat will grow on the poorest of 

 sandy soils, and it has been extensively 

 cultivated for the purpose of plowing in as 

 a manure. Nevertheless, we are inclined 

 to consider buckwheat as an exhausting 

 crop. Emerson, in the Farmers' Ency- 

 clopedia says : " It is generally thought to 

 be a severe crop upon land, and for this 

 reason it is seldom sown upon highly im- 

 proved ground. Rough and hilly districts 

 are considered peculiarly favorable to the 

 culture of buckwheat, which is admirably 

 adapted to subdue new or wild lands." 



Mr. Balligal, in the Transactions of 

 the Highland Society, has given an account 

 of his experiment with it upon a clay loam 

 recently limed ; from the results of which 

 he warned his brother farmers that it is 

 " needless to attempt to grow it upon damp 

 soils, or to expect full crops upon lands 

 exhausted by over cropping." We cer- 

 tainly cannot recommend the cultivation 

 of buckwheat for plowing under as a fer- 

 tilizer. Clover is by far a better crop for 

 this purpose. If the soil is too poor to 

 grow clover, we should expect better, re- 

 sults (in the Middle States, at least.) from 

 the white lupine, or some other legumi- 

 nous plant. 



The mode of culture," says an expe- 

 rienced writer, " has varied considerably 

 since my recollection. It was formerly 

 the custom to reserve the poorest land for 

 buckwheat. It was considered a great re- 

 proactf to land to say it would produce 

 only buckwheat. The practice was to 

 break up sward land early in the spring, 

 and let it lie until about seeding time, and 

 then cross plow and seed. The practice 

 now among good farmers generally, is to 

 sheep the fields intended for the crop as' 



long as can be done before sowing, and 

 plow but once." The time of sowing va- 

 ries in this State from the 20th of June to 

 the 4th of July. It is sometimes sown as 

 early as the 10th of June, and as late as 

 the 15th of July. If sown too early it is 

 liable to blast, and if too late it is frequent- 

 ly injured by the frost. 



When grown for the grain, a bushel of 

 seed to the acre is usually sufficient, and 

 if the ground is rich, it is not safe to sow 

 much, or it will run too much to straw. It 

 flourishes best in a mellow, dry, loose 

 sandy soil. " No crop," says G. W. Du- 

 rant, in the Albany Cultivator, "will feel 

 manure of any kind, or in any state so 

 quick as buckwheat. Barn-yard manure, 

 whether green or rotted, ashes, lime, plas- 

 ter, all seem to produce a wonderful effect 

 when applied to this crop. Guano, as far 

 as my knowledge extends, has not been 

 tried, but I have no doubt the effect would 

 be a considerable per cent, above any. 

 other manure, barn-yard manure not ex- 

 cepted." We have seen Peruvian guano 

 applied to buckwheat, with the most as- 

 tonishing effect. One hundred pounds 

 per acre doubling the crop. 



The flowers of buckwheat are particu- 

 larly attractive to bees, and where bees- 

 are kept in considerable numbers, at least 

 a small patch of buckwheat should always 

 be sown. 



Buckwheat is an excellent food for poul- 

 try. Pigs thrive upon and are fond of it, 

 and when bruised it is good food for hor- 

 ses, two bushels being equal (for this pur- 

 pose, it is said,) to three of oats. Cows, 

 when fed with it, yield a large increase 

 of milk. Sheep, when fed upon the plant 

 when in blossom, stagger and tumble 

 about as if drunk. 



We throw out these hints with the hope 

 of eliciting the experience of some of our 

 practical readers. — Genesee Farmer. 



MANGEL WURZEL. 



A correspondent says : "I never drop 

 but one Mangel Wurzel seed in a place. 

 This one seed brings two or three plants 

 which I transplant — the transplanted grow 

 as large as the others.' Is not our friend 

 mistaken in regard to getting two or three 

 more plants from one seed ? 



He adds: ''I dont believe superphos* 

 phate of lime would help my beets, o 1 * 



