\ 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST, 
Farm, Gretrden, a,nd Household.. 
"AORICULTUKE 19 THE MOST HEALTHFUL, MOST USEFUL, AND MOST JiOBLE EMPLOYMENT OF MAJSV'-W.., 
©RANGE JVDD, A.M 
EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR. 
O/lioc, 41 Park Row, (Times Building. 
:i 
ESTABLISHED IN 1842. 
Published both in English anil German. 
( $1.00 FEB ANNUM, IN ADVANCE 
■j SINGLE NTJMBEK, 10 CENTS. 
' For Contents, Terms, etc., see page 138. 
VOLUME XXII— No. 4 
NEW-YORK, APRIL, 1863. 
NEW SERIES— No. 195. 
Entered according to act of Congress in tlie year 1S63, by 
Orange Jtjdd, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of 
the [lilted States for the Southern District of New- York. 
I3T" Other Journals are invited to copy desirable articles 
freely, (r*each article be credited to American Agriculturist. 
Suggestions and Botes for the Month. 
The showers of April melt the icy fetters 
which have bound the northern streams, and 
they sing their hymn of freedom as they run 
along. The opening of an American Spring is 
a very matter of fact season. We have few of 
the flowers which have had the charm of Eng- 
lish poetry added to their own loveliness. The 
Snowdrop does not bloom through our melting 
snows, nor have we many spring flowers that 
have been widely celebrated in song. The Epi- 
gaea — the fragrant and modest May El o wer of the 
Pilgrims — did it only grow all over the country 
might well be taken as our emblematic Spring 
Flower, but this is found in comparatively few 
localities. Our most common harbinger of 
Spring bears the unseemly name of Skunk Cab- 
bage. This with its curiously shaped and mot- 
tled horns which are lifted up in the swamps, 
is the forerunner of the great floral procession 
which will soon come crowding on. Showers 
and sunshine iu fitful alternation are the char- 
acteristics of April. Under their influence the 
dull pastures brighten into a tender green, and 
the sombre hue of the woodlands is enlivened 
by the red of the maple buds, and the warm 
gray of the poplar tassels. Nature begins to 
paint the great landscape, and the former, did 
he but know it, is an artist working with nature 
to help make up the picture. In plowing the 
fields he is preparing the canvas on which the 
waving grain and ripening corn shall paint gor- 
geous and ever-changing colors. 
Lotus stop here upon the threshold of spring 
work and consider if the plans formed during 
the season of rest, have included all that maybe 
accomplished. The main work of the farm has 
been laid out and the labor for that must be 
done. Having provided for the staple crops, is 
there not some other spring work for which 
time can bo spared, and which will add much 
to the comfort and attractiveness of the home- 
stead ? In the Autumn we look upon the or- 
chard with its ripening fruit, with, great interest, 
but we are very apt to forget it in the Spring. 
In spite of neglect the generous trees still yield 
fruit, which might be increased both in quanti- 
ty and quality, by a little extra care. If the or- 
chard bears good fruit it may be made to bear 
better by a coat of thorough manuring now, and 
judicious pruning at a late season. If the trees 
are still vigorous, " natural" ones which bear 
fruit fit for cider only, now is the time to renew 
them by grafting. If they are old and have suf- 
fered from long neglect, now is the time to plant 
a new orchard to replace them. Last year es- 
tablished the value of orchards. It was one of 
unprecedented plenty, yet, in most places, good 
fruit brought remunerative prices, and orchard- 
ists are extending their plantations. An orchard 
of well selected trees will be a great comfort in 
one's declining years, will be an excellent inher- 
itance to leave children, and, if the homestead 
should have to be sold, will add to its value an 
amount that will pay well for the investment. 
Another thing that should claim attention is 
the front yard, or approach to the house. A 
home-like look can, with a little pains, be given 
to a very rude dwelling. It is not boards aud 
brick and mortar alone that make an attractive 
home ; it is the manner in which they are put 
together. Every one, no matter how poor, has 
certain materials at his disposal, and the char- 
acter of his home will depend upon the way in 
which these are used. In the first place, let the 
front-yard be neat, and if there is neither time 
nor taste for adornment with flowers and shrubs, 
have a smooth grass plot with here and there an 
elm or maple, or other forest tree. We have 
seen a climbing rose give to a log house an air 
of rural beauty which is quite wanting in the 
bleak, staring white houses that many a wealthy 
farmer builds. Were farmers' dwellings made 
more attractive both within and without, their 
sons would be much less willing to leave them. 
Work for the Farm, Household, etc. 
Accounts — In the haste to commence plowing 
and sowing, other important interests should 
not be overlooked. A successful cultivator 
must be also a man of good business habits ; 
observant of markets, and ready to improve the 
favorable moment for either buying or selling. 
Keeping accounts will add to the thrift, and 
give more certainty to all operations. 
Let every transaction of purchase and sale, 
all contracts, terms made with hired help, time 
of their commencing work, amount of outlay 
and return for each field, animal, etc., be plain- 
ly noted, for reference. A fairly kept book is 
better evidence in a court of law than a treach- 
erous memory, or an interested witness. 
Barley has proved a profitable crop in many 
localities. Sow Spring variety on rich and well 
pulverized soil, 2| to 3 bushels per acre. Smut 
will be prevented, and growth hastened, by soak- 
ing the seed 24 hours in a weak solution of blue 
vitriol and then rolling it in air-slaked lime. 
Moistening with tar water and rolling in lime, 
answers a similar purpose. It should not lie 
long after being prepared, or it will heat. 
Birds. — Prepare houses for martin s and wren s 
in the vicinity of the dwelling, and allow swal- 
lows access to the barn. They are a very effi- 
cient police against destructive insects. Tame 
pigeons feed upon grain, and are not cleanty. 
Bones.— Save all found upon, or brought upon 
the premises, and lay in a large stock, if they 
can be procured cheaply. They are better than 
any "patent" manures. Break them with a 
sledge hammer, and put them freely in the soil 
around fruit trees. For immediate use upon 
annual crops, they need to be dissolved in a 
wooden hooped barrel, in one part of sulphuric 
acid and two or three parts of water. They 
need four or five weeks time. The fluid is to 
be poured off and mixed with a large quantity 
of muck. Some recommend to moisten them 
with the acid and then bury them in a heap of 
horse manure, where they will soften. 
Buildings. — Lose no time in finishing such as 
will be needed for shelter or storing produce. 
Clean out all rubbish from barns, stables, and 
sheds, and add all suitable materials to the com- 
post heaps. Whitewash cattle stalls, poultry 
houses and roosts, and the insides of other out- 
buildings. Keep all in repair. A good coat of 
paint where needed will more than repay its 
cost in preserving woodwork. It is better ap- 
plied now than later in the season. Trellises 
for training vines to buildings are preferable to 
fastening the plants directly upon the boards. 
Callages. — Those raised in hot-beds for earliest 
marketing, may be transplanted in favorable 
weather. Early York is a favorite field cabbage 
for market. Set in rows 2 by 2i feet. 
Calves. — Raise enough of the best to keep the 
farm fully stocked. Teach them to drink when 
one or two days old. After the first week their 
food may be gradually changed from new to 
skim milk, and a few weeks later to gruel of 
shorts, rye, oat or barley meal. A little wheat 
flour boiled in milk will relieve the scours. 
Keep their pens dry and clean. 
Carrots deserve more extended culture as a 
field crop. They are of high value for feeding 
horses, cattle, and sheep, in Winter. Sow on 
highly manured, mellow, deep soil, free from 
weeds, in drills 14 inches apart. An acre re- 
quires about 2 lbs. of seed. It should be tested 
by sprouting before sowing; it is often poor. 
Cattle, both young and old, need an extra rel- 
ish of roots, if at hand, or grain, to keep them in 
condition as Spring advances. Restrain them 
from the pasture until a fair bite of grass is 
