1866.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
433 
manure upon our farm this fall and Tvinter — one 
man and team hauling and spreadin,^ from six to 
eight tons per daj-. The best way we can seed 
to Timothy, is to sow on well plowed potato 
ground in the fall or early spring. The yield of 
hay is much larger than after any other crop we 
have yet tried. If the clover is allowed to stand 
more than three years, a good dressing of ma- 
nure will greatly increase the crop. Before that 
time, however, manure will make the grass so 
heavy as to be apt to fall down before it is fully 
in blossom. To raise the best potatoes with the 
greatest yield, we first raise a crop of small 
grain on well manured land ; after harvest, plow 
the ground shallow, but deep enough to turn 
under all the stubble; then plow very deep in 
the spring, and plant in rows two and a half 
feet apart e.ach way. Corn will respond for ma- 
nure applied to it in any shape. The farmere in 
this section used to rake and turn their corn 
stalks on the ground, where they intended to 
plant corn again, the corn being almost always 
husked in the field and the stalks left standing. 
But of late years they have been using rollers 
■with knifes, to cut the stalks in short pieces so 
that they can be plowed under, out of the way 
of their corn plows. They say they got a great 
deal better crops for it. Now, if this kind of 
manure pays, why not any other. In raising 
com, we plow the well manured ground dee p 
and plant as soon after as possible. Then, when 
the corn is nearly up, if the land is not too wet, 
we take a two-horse cultivator, (or one-horse 
plow), and set the shovels to throw the dirt up 
to the corn, and plow it out bj- the marks, cov- 
ering the corn deeplj'. Then follow the plow, 
immediately with a good heavy roller, length- 
wise of the ridges, rolling the ground down 
nearly flat again. The corn will be up in a day 
or two, and thus get two or three weeks start of 
the weeds. The corn is then large enough to 
run a cultivator crosswise of the ridges, close 
enough to the corn to cover up all the fine weeds 
in the hill. And this advantage, if well follow- 
ed, obviates the necessity of hoeing. But if 
something of the kind is not done to give the 
corn a start of the weeds, hoeing is necessary. 
The same rule holds for potatoes, sorghum, etc." 
A Hint on Improving^ an Old Place. 
Once or twice a year wo make a visit to a 
friend who came into iiossession of an old farm, 
and who has already made great progress in 
improving and beautifying it. Like many places 
of this kind, it was enclosed in a solid, but not 
very sightly stone wall. The matter of a boun- 
dary fence was considered by him in all points 
of view, and he finally fixed upon and carried 
out successfully the following : The old wall 
was allowed to remain, and close to it, upon the 
outside, a hedge of Norway spruce was planted. 
The trees, from a nursery close at hand, were 
set a j-ear ago, in August. All weeds liave been 
kept closely mowed, the grass has taken a 
foot-hold, and the result is, that from the road- 
way proper, there is a belt of grass to the hedge, 
and this has, although set in August, lost scarce- 
ly a tree, and has become so dense as to already 
nearly conceal the wall from view. The whole 
presents an aspect of finish and elegance, in 
marked contrast with the slovenly appearance 
of the opposite side of the road. The spruce 
hedge is protected from injury by cattle and 
other causes, by means of a few lengths of 
galvanized wire stretched to temporary posts. 
Another year will probably show the complete 
success of this treatment of a boundary wall. 
Colored Foliage Plants Last Summer. 
To meet the demand for plants with foliage 
other than green, some verj' fine things have 
been introduced, and among them, others more 
odd than elegant. The old annual, Pcrilla Kan- 
kinensis, is one of the best known of those. Its 
blackish purple foliage is not so common in our 
gardens as formerly, it having been superseded 
by others. The best of these plants with col- 
ored leaves, to our notion, is Coleus Vcrschaffdtii, 
— we wish it had a more comely name. When 
grown in the green-house, its leaves are green 
with purple markings, but when planted out 
with the sun fall upon it, they are all purple, 
and with a tinge of bronze. Nothing can bo 
richer. UoUus atropurpurens, has a sprawling 
habit; leaves of a dark liver color, and not 
worth growing. There arc some other varieties 
of Coleu.i, but none of them equal to the first 
named. A great deal was predicted of the 
Iresine Ilerbstii or AcUyrantheii Vcrscliaffeltii, 
which we figured in February last. AVe hardly 
open an Euglisli horticultural journal but we 
find a discussion upon its merits. "We consider 
it quite inferior to the Coleus, as its color is too 
dull for anj' brilliant effect. 
Some of l\\a Amaranths are very fine. Ama- 
ranthus melancholicus, var. ruber, is a brilliant 
annual, but A. paniculatus, var. sanguineus, is 
much finer, and is one of the showiest of all the 
colored leaved plants, both these Amaranths 
are annuals, as is the tri-colored variety of A. 
melancholicus, an old plant known as "Joseph's 
Coat," but very showy when well grown. 
About Covering Things from Frost. 
In some things it is well to recollect the old 
proverb, "Make haste slowly." Many persons, 
as soon as the first frosts have hinted that win- 
ter is coming, hasten to put eveiything into win- 
ter quarters. Apples are hurried into warm 
cellars, half hardy plants are shut up in close 
frames, or those that remain out of doors are 
smothered with a covering of straw or manure, 
and various other examples of "killing with 
kindness" are to be seen. Living plants, that are 
to be covered, need to be quite at rest, and they 
should first have all the cold they can bear with- 
out injur)'. JIuch of our covering is not so 
much to protect from cold as from the sudden 
changes of freezing and thawing, and such 
plants may be left until the ground is crusted. 
Cabbages, celerj', and such things, need to have 
the covering put on graduall)', and thus avoid 
heating. Indeed, some prefer to allow their 
cabbages to freeze first and then cover them 
with straw and earth to keep them frozen all 
winter. "Winter fruit should never go into the 
cellar until there is danger of its freezing, and 
then the cellar should be kept open as long as 
the state of the weather will safely permit. 
Water often does more harm than frost, and all 
crops left in or on the rjround,or stored in pits, 
should have provision for draining off the water. 
Where half hardy plants arc put into pits or 
cellars, or cabbages, cauliflowers, etc., are win- 
tered in cold frames, give air every mild day. 
The transition from the open air toconfinemeut, 
should be gradual. In removing pot plants to 
the dwelling, this should be borne in mind ; it 
will be found much better to place the plants 
in a room without a fire until really cold weath- 
er, than to remove them at once to a heated 
sitting room. When plants of any kind have 
been frozen, the thawing should be very gradu- 
al. A tolerably hardy plant will be injured if 
brought into a warm room to thaw, while a 
tender one may often bo saved if set in a dark 
cool place to thaw out gradually. When 
plants are put in a cold pit, green-house or cel- 
lar for winter protection merely, it is desirable 
to keep them perfectly dormant. Such plants 
should have no more water than is actually 
necessary to keep them from injury by drying. 
The functions of vegetation now go on very 
sluggishly, and but little water is needed. If the 
earth in the pots is neai-ly dry, it may bo frozen 
through without much injury to the plants. 
Holidays and Evergreens. 
[see next page. I 
Christmas without its evergreens, would lose 
half its holiday charms. The custom of deco- 
rating churches and private dwellings is a pleas- 
ant one, and, in cities at least, well nigh univer- 
sal. Most children know, and those of us who 
arc no longer children recollect, the pleasures 
of anticipation, as well as the realized enjoy- 
ment of which the Christmas tree is the center. 
We might say much of the genial influences of 
the Christmas tree — for no other tree bears fruit 
so fragrant with the best affections of our na- 
tures — but we set out to write upon its business 
aspects. Unsentimental as it may seem, all this 
holiday decoration results in putting money into 
some one's pocket. We never fail to make sev- 
eral visits to the markets in the week that pre- 
cedes Christmas. The sight is one which would 
astonish a stranger. Not only do the woods and 
swamps of New Jersey repeat the wonder of 
"Burman's Wood" coming to " Dunsinaue," 
but our nurserymen send in their over-grown 
evergreen stock by the load, and turn all the 
streets near the markets into green avenues, 
where the city odors are for the time replaced 
by the balsamic scent of the fir and cedar. The 
trafiic in these green commodities is very large, 
but so irregular and divided up that it is diffi- 
cult to get any statistics. The articles bring 
good prices, for in holiday times the purse is as 
open as the heart, and the venders know it, and 
profit by their knowledge. Our artist has given 
a sketch from the evergreen market, and sur- 
rounded it by leaves of some of the principal 
kinds used for decoration. Spruces and Firs, 
are always in demand for Christmas trees, and 
bring better prices than they would as living 
trees for planting. Holly, especially with ber- 
ries. Laurel, Inkberry and Hemlock, are all 
sold in great quantities. The smaller evergreens 
are made up into wreaths or " roping," as the 
dealers call it, of various lengths ; there are usu- 
ally of one of two or three species of Club- 
moss and sell at about five cents a yard. Anoth- 
er class of decorations is made with a frame 
work of lath or twigs, and covered with some 
kind of green. These are formed into crosses, 
stars, and other devices. Some of the wreaths, 
etc., are prettily decorated with bright berries, 
while others, to meet a cruder taste, are made 
gaudy with flowers cut from brightly colored 
paper. The huge piles gathered around the 
markets are soon scattered; every express wag- 
on takes a share, men and women ride in omni- 
buses and cars with their hands filled with them, 
and the poor woman who takes home her own 
market basket, bears a bit of holly or other green 
with it. These evergreens now cease to be ar- 
ticles of trafiic, as soon as they are taken to the 
house of rich or poor they become consecrated 
by entering the sanctuary of home, and con- 
tribute to the enjoyment of that holiday that 
celebrates the announcement: "Peace on 
earth; good will toward man." 
