68 



D. M. FERRY & GO'S 



The Russ' . White Oats are proUfic without parallel, 

 and with O' binary cultivation will yield loo bushels per 

 acre, T' jy are extremely hardy, enduring the coldest 

 climatf" n our country without injury, and are absolutely 

 rust ' oof. Each kernel planted will produce twen- 

 ty-r /e to forty heads from sixteen to twenty-two 

 inches in length. The straw is large and strong enough 

 to support the enormous heads of this variety. The 

 grain is heavy and the chaff light, so that a measured 

 bushel weighs considerably more than a bushel of ordi- 

 nary oats. All things considered, this is the most valu- 

 able variety of oats now grown, and is destined, when 

 known more widely, to become the standard sort. 



Bohemian Hulless Oats. — A comparatively new 

 variety, lately introduced into this country. Will yield 

 from fifty to sixty-five bushels per acre. Do not shell 

 out while ripening, or while being harvested. The 

 berrj^ comes from the head clean, and without chaff 

 adhering, and is larger and fuller than ordinary oats. 

 Certainly a great acquisition to the farmer. 



Rye. — The time for sowing is from the middle of 

 August to last of September. One plowing is given, and 

 the seed sown broadcast, at the rate of one and a half 

 bushels per acre, and dragged in. Harrowing and roll- 

 ing in the spring are recommended. If cut before fully 

 ripe, the grain makes better flour, and more in quantity. 

 If intended for seed, it should be fully ripe. Some sow 

 rye among standing corn, hoeing it in, leaving the ground 

 level as possible, and after the corn is removed, rolling 

 the ground. It succeeds best on sandy soils. It is fre- 

 quently sown in the spring, but the fall seems to be 

 preferable. 



Buckwheat, Common.— Buckwheat should be sown 

 about the 20th of June, broadcast, at the rate of about 

 three-quarters of a bushel per acre. The average yield 



is from twenty-five to thirty bushels per acre. It should 

 be threshed as soon as dry, on the ground or barn floor. 

 If allowed to stand in mass, it quickly gathers moisture. 



Buckwheat, Silver Hull.— This improved variety 

 is said to be much better than the old sort. It is in 

 bloom longer, matures sooner, and yields double the 

 quantity per acre. The husk is thinner, the corners less 

 prominent, and the grain of a beautiful light grey color. 

 The flour is said to be better and more nutritious. 



Field Peas— Pzs2if/i sai/7'u>n.—The varieties of field 

 peas have never been very numerous, nor are they much 

 increasing. The kinds mostly used are the Golden 

 Vine, Crown, Blue Prussian, Common White, Common 

 Blue, and Creeper. Field peas, in general, may be sown 

 broadcast or in drills, after the manner of field beans, 

 about three bushels per acre. 



Spring Vetches, or Tares — Vicia sativa. — A spe- 

 cies of the pea, grown extensively in England, and to a 

 considerable extent in Canada, for stock, but not much 

 used in the States. Culture same as field peas, two 

 bushels per acre. 



Flax — Linum usitatissiuiuni. — Sow late enough in 

 the spring to avoid frost, and early enough to secure the 

 early rains, A fair average quantity of seed to be sown 

 on an acre is one-half bushel, when cultivated for seed ; 

 if for the fibre, a larger quantity should be sown. Cut 

 before quite ripe, and, if the weather be dry, let it lie in 

 the swath a few hours, when it should be raked, bound 

 and secured from the weather ; thresh early in the fall, 

 and in dry weather. 



Hemp — Cannabis sativa. — If raised for manufactur- 

 ing, must be sown broadcast, at the rate of one-half 

 bushel to the acre ; If for seed, should be planted in hills 

 four feet apart, and the plants thinned out to three or 

 four most vigorous stems In each hill. 



iFLO^W^EIE^ SEEIDS 



BRIEF HINTS ON SOWING AND CULTIVATING FLOWER SEEDS. 



DEPTH OF SOWING. — The general rule for sowing Flower Seeds, as well as any other seeds, is to sow 

 them at the proper depth ; and the depth at -which they are sewn should in every instance be governed by the 

 size of the seed itself. As the sprouts of small seeds are naturally small. If sown as deep as large seeds they will be 

 either unusually long in starting, or more likely perish In the ground after sprouting, from want of sufficient strength 

 in the young sprouts to force a passage through the soil. Very smaH seeds., such as Portulaca, Campanula, Digi- 

 talis, &c., should be merely sprinkled on the surface of the ground, after making quite smooth with the back of a 

 spade, and barely covered with finely sifted, light, mellow soil, and afterward protected from the scorching sun and 

 heavy rains by a cloth, mat or some green branches stuck around it. 



THE SOIL. — Another great object to be considered Is the soil into which flower seeds are to be sown. The 

 soil best adapted to flowering plants generally, is a light, friable loam, containing a sufficient amount of sand to 

 render it porous. A great many varieties will live in almost any kind of soil, except it be extremely dry, calcare- 

 ous, or of a stiff, heavy character ; still, to give them a fair chance for development, some little pains should be 

 taken In adding to the soil, as much as possible, what may be wanting in it. Deep digging, and enriching with 

 thoroughly decayed manure, is the least that should be done. If the weather, after sowing, should be dry. It will 

 be necessary to water the places where the seeds are sown, with a fine rose watering pot, regularlj', but slightly, 

 every evening, as it is essential that the seeds, during their process of germination, should be kept constantly moist. 

 From a neglect or oversight of this arise most of the failures. As the process of germination is shorter or longer in 

 the different kinds of seeds, the patience of the cultivator is often sorely tried with seeds of a slowly germinating 

 character. The patience of a devoted florist, however, Is never exhausted In these manipulations, and the certainty of 

 his final success repays him fully for the trouble. 



All flowers raised from seed are usually known as Annuals, Biennials, or Perennials. 



Annuals are those plants which flower or ripen their seeds or fruits the season they are sown, and then perish. 

 This class of plants is again divided by the cultivator into two classes — the hardy, and half-hardy or tender kinds. 



HARDY ANNUALS are those which require no artificial heat at any period of their growth, every stage of 

 their development, from germination to ripening of the seed, being passed in the open ground. 



They are the most easily cultivated of all plants ; the number of their varieties Is large, and their flowers, when 

 properly grown, are frequently of most attractive beauty and elegance. It Is only to be regretted that .they are not 

 generally cultivated to that extent to which their merit justly entitles them. The seed may be so\vn from the first 



