THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 



315 



a finer straw with shorter heads, and ear- 

 lier maturity, but does not, on the whole, 

 afford a greater yield. If sown earlier 

 than the time above specified, it is liable to 

 the attack of the Hessian fly. This is 

 an insect that appears at all seasons, con- 

 niving to get its living from other sources, 

 when wheal is not to be found, but parti- 

 cularly productive and abundant when 

 this crop comes forward early in the fall. 

 The grain-worm has not yet infested the 

 fields in the western part of our State. If 

 sown later than the 15th of September, it 

 does not root as well, thereby exposing it 

 much more to winter killing, and it does 

 not tiller as well, by which it matures la- 

 ter, and is more liable to rust. The wheat 

 ripens from the 7th to the 27th of July, 

 averaging from the 15th to the 20th ; and 

 it should be cut as soon as out of the 

 milk, when the berry yields easily to the 

 pressure of the thumb and finger. As 

 good a wheat crop as was ever raised at 

 the west was produced in the uniformly 

 cold season of 1816. It is probable that 

 the superior wheat of England is owing 

 to the longer time required to ripen it, by 

 which the berry is enabled to fill up 

 more moderately, but much more effec- 

 tually. Our warm summers, on the con- 

 trary, push it forward so rapidly, that it 

 does not have time to mature so large, full 

 and complete a grain. 



Before sowing, the seed should be 

 washed in strong brine, which may soon 

 be turned off and a quart of lime to every 

 bushel is then added and intimately mix- 

 ed. After standing a few hours, say 12 

 to 24, it should be sown. When very 

 smutty, the wheat should receive three 

 thorough washings in strong brine, and 

 lime as before, and this has been found 

 effectual in securing the future crop from 

 smut. Hatch's machine is used to some ex- 

 tent in sowing wheat, and all other kinds of 

 grain broadcast, as also plaster. With 

 this a boy will sow about twenty acres a 

 day, and more evenly than can be done by 

 the most experienced sower. It costs for- 

 ty dollars, and is easily kept in repair. 

 The seed does better by changing, and 

 especially from poor lands to richer. 



American Agriculturist. 



DAIItt ING. 



Experiments are being made with glass 

 milk pans in England. It is thought by 

 some that they will be found very excel- 

 lent articles. The price, it is said, w ill 

 not be high, and it is supposed that they 

 have an advantage on account of the pu- 

 rity of the metal, and their being no risk 

 of any injurious action which may in- 

 jure the cream or prevent it from rising. 

 Cheap China has been recommended and 

 sometimes tried for milk pans. It is 

 thought by some that milk pans should be 

 shallow. This subject was discussed at 

 a late agricultural meeting in England, 

 One man stated that he believed it had 

 been demonstrated that the same measure 

 of milk poured into a vessel allowing it 

 to stand two inches deep, would cast 

 nearly twice as much cream as it would 

 do if its depth were eight inches. Now 

 does the experience of dairymen in this 

 country agree with this ? We should be 

 glad to know. 



At the meeting above alluded to, Mr. 

 Greaves stated that he had found in his 

 own dairy that a piece of saltpetre about 

 the size of a hazel-nut, dissolved in warm 

 water, and mixed with every gallon of 

 new milk as soon as it is strained, not on- 

 ly caused the milk to cast its cream bet- 

 ter, but had the effect of removing from 

 the butter every disagreeable flavor ari- 

 sing from the heibage of particular pas- 

 tures, such small addition to the milk, of 

 so well known and simple saline sub- 

 stance, imparting to it a wholesome char- 

 acter, rather than otherwise, in a dietic 

 point, of view. 



We have seen saltpetre used in this 

 way with good effect. 



Another gentleman at this meeting 

 spoke of the syphon for separating milk 

 from cream. The syphons were made of 

 block tin, with a tube about a quarter of 

 an inch bore. They are completely self- 

 acting, merely requiring to be inserted in 

 the milk and set at work, the si ream con- 

 tinuing to flow by such decantation until 

 the cream presented itself for admission 

 into the lower orifice of the tube, when its 

 greater body and less fluidity prevented 



