274, 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[August, 
Contents for August, 1867. 
Achilleas 293 
Barn of David Lyman 4 Illustrations . . 286 
Beans— Pickling 296 
Bees— Apiary for August 276 
Blackberries— Pruning 292 
Black Cap Berries— Propagating 2 Illustrations. .292 
Boys' and Girls' Department — An Eventful Life — 
Small Piece of Work— Our Artists' Game— Valuable 
Nest— Sincere Mourner— Troublesome Sliver— Fair 
Division — Puzzles and Problems— "More About 
Breath— Experiments— The Home Guards— Aston- 
ished Preedman— Newsboy Correspondent— Great 
Family Meeting 4 Illustrations. .297-298 
Buckwheat as a Green Crop 2S5 
Cattle— Belgian Bulls Illustrated. . 273 
Clover— When to Turn in 285 
Cotton— Future Prospects at South 284 
Crop Reports and Prospects 277 
Editorial Jottings in Europe 27S 
Fairs— Times and Places of Holding 277 
Farm Work in August 275 
Feeding Green Fodder 287 
Fence— Fixed and Movable 3 Illustrations. .2S5 
Fields— Larger Wanted 284 
Flower Garden and Lawn in August 276 
Flowers— Deer Grass Illustrated. . 294 
Flowers— Dwarf Iris Illustrated.. 294 
Flowers— Wild 293 
Fruit Garden in August 275 
Garden— Kitchen in August 275 
Georgia Fruit Lands 2S2 
Grain Cutting and Curing 4 Illustrations. .282 
Grapes— Cold Grapery in August 276 
Grass Lands— Top Dressing 281 
Green and Hot-Houses in August 276 
Household Department — Dashes at Housekeeping with 
a Free Pencil— Canning Fruit— Milk-Back— Learn- 
ing from Everybody — Leaves from Housekeeper's 
Journal — Flowers — Leisure Wanted — Pumpkin 
Pies — Leaves from Diary of Young Housekeeper — 
Drying Corn — Cheeses — Canning Peaches — Visiting 
—Basement Lean-to 4 Illustrations.. 296-297 
Iusect Enemies 282 
Liming Land 2S5 
Machinery upon the Farm 284 
Market Reports 276 
Mnck Mines— Work them 2S5 
Orchard and Nursery in August 275 
Ox-Yokes— How to Make them 5 Must rat ions . . 284 
Oyster Shells— Money in 282 
Picnic and How to go to it 2S1 
Poultry — American Poultry Society 278 
Premiums— Special for August 276 
Beading for Boys and Girls 296 
Botation of Crops in Eastern Pennsylvania 2S8 
Seeds— Care of. 293 
Sheep— Imported Cotswold Illustrated. . 290 
Shrews or Shrew Mice Illustrated.. 2S3 
Snakes — Rattlesnake and Copperhead Illustrated.. SSS 
Squares in,Cities — Neglected 293 
Strawberry Show— American Institute 281 
Strawberries — Notes on — 10 Illustrations. .291 
Varieties Mixing— Where Shown 292 
Walks and Talks on the Farm — No. 44 — Criticisms — 
Petroleum Paint — Potato Growing — Clover the Sec- 
ond Year — Fowls in the Garden — Corn for Manure 
—Summer Fallowing— Price of Wheat - -.-. . .28S-289 
Weeds— Destroying, 293 
INDEX TO "BASKET," OR SHORTER ARTICLES. 
Ag. Societ's, Proposals, .2S0 
American Naturalist 2S0 
Animals, Exhibiting 279 
Ashes, Leached, etc 2S0 
Barley,. Early Sowed 279 
Chemistry of the Farm. .27S 
Death, Jno. A. King 2S0 
Death, Thomas Brown. .280 
Deutzia, Double 280 
Draining, Ag'l, etc 279 
Fairs, Announcing 279 
Fail's, Officers 278 
Harvest, Eesnlts of. 280 
Humbugs, Sundry 278 
Information Wanted 2S0 
Invention, Lady's 280 
Manure Frauds 279 
Mass. Ag'l. College 279 
Music Store 2S0 
Naturalist, American 2S0 
Pork Raising 279 
Poultry Breeding 2S0 
Pump, Portable 280 
Remittances 278 
Robins, Plea for 280 
Sehneder's Bromus 280 
Strawberries, Notes on. .280 
Things by Mail 280 
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AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
NEW-YORK, AUGUST, 1S67. 
After the rush and weariness of harvest is over, 
together with the auxieties attendant on the press 
of summer work, when the crops are growing well, 
when corn is beyond hoeing, and buckwheat and 
turnips all sowed, formers and their families ought 
to enjoy a few holidays. The Fourth of July finds 
us in the midst of hoeing, and haying, and cutting 
grain. We need an August festival, and as there is 
none in our national or popular calendar, we 
ought to take each his independent little play spell 
for a visit to a friend ; or in neighborhood parties, to 
go into the mountains, or to the sea-side, and bake 
clams, catch fish, aud make chowder. 
Farmers ought to visit one another, and the agri- 
cultural clubs and societies of adjoining towns or 
counties can do few wiser things than appoint com-' 
mittees to visit and report upon the forming prac- 
tices of their neighbors in the districts which lie 
just beyond the circuit of ordinary communication. 
The relaxation will be conducive to happiness and 
health, and to the enlargement of ideas. The crop 
of new thoughts which will be sown or garnered in 
new fields, will be worth more to any wide awake 
man, or woman, than months of plodding at home. 
The long coutinuauce of rains and prevailingly 
wet weather has in some measure disturbed the reg- 
ularity of the harvest. Grain, as usual, has been 
deemed of more importance than grass, and so the 
hitler has suffered, if either. In many cases, both 
have been caught ; cutting at the proper time has 
been delayed, and injury has occurred to crops that 
grew and matured finely. Too ripe grass makes 
poor hay. The remedy is one which very few farm- 
ers will apply. It is to cook or steam the hay. If 
this is done, the hardest aud ripest hay becomes 
digestible aud is readily eaten, and seeds of sorrel, 
dock, and daisies are killed. Those who steam 
their fodder express the view that even very poor 
feed is thus made equal to the best uncooked. Cer- 
tain it is, that with a slight flavoring of oil-cake or 
com meal, all is eateu up, aud the stock thrive. 
If we have any dry weather this summer, it will 
probably come iu August, aud afford opportunity 
to do the usual drought work. The muck swamps 
will call for a good deal of labor from all who value 
swamp muck as they should, in their barn-yards and 
compost heaps. In draining swamps, the outlet is 
first determined upon and, if the ditch is to be an 
open one, as is usually the case, the trench is begun 
at that place. This is different from the way of 
laying tile-drains, because, if the tiles were laid first 
at the outlet, they would be filled up with silt from 
the muddy water which would flow through them 
as long as any work was done at the drains above, 
and longer too. Swamps covered with alders aud 
other shrubs aud small trees, are best cut over iu 
winter, and then the next summer, when dry, they 
may be drained, the stumps and roots pulled out 
by oxen, and laid in heaps to dry, while the rest 
of the land is grubbed over or plowed, if dry euough. 
A man of a little contrivance will devise several 
ways of using the power Of oxen or horses to great 
advantage in this work. Chains aud strong levers, 
and perhaps a pair of blocks and tackle, singly or 
in combination, will tear out any of the stumps and 
roots of common peaty swamps. The peat or 
muck should be thrown out in heaps to dry, and it 
is best to top the heaps with that which is most 
earthy aud crumbly, as this prevents the'more dense 
or "fat" portions from baking into hard lumps. 
Thus treated, after a few weeks it may become dry 
euough to compost with lime, and be made fit to 
use iu the stables as au absorbent of liquid manure. 
If, however, it bakes very hard and lumpy, though 
composted, it will hardly be made fine and dry 
euough, but will have to be exposed to freezing 
through the cold season. After that, it will proba- 
bly ueed no other treatment to be made fit for use. ■ 
Iu regard to the draining of lands iu general, the 
American former can have no safer or better guide 
than the work of Col. Waring just published, which 
is especially full in regard to the prelitninary ex- 
amination aud surveys needed. Much land besides 
the swamps proper, is best drained in August. 
The hospitalities of the country are extended to 
the city in the heat of summer. If bestowed and 
accepted with that consideration which husbands 
should exercise for their wives, and friends for 
friends, these visits of city cousins, of sons with 
their families, aud of old friends with wives and 
babies, will bring great enjoyment and good to all. 
The man or woman who overworks and breaks 
down iu the hot weather, has much less chance to 
build up again, and become strong aud well, than 
if the prostration occurred in the more bracing 
weather of other seasons. Farmers, beware of over- 
workiug your sous, allow no excuse for laziness, 
but impose only light work, not straining to back 
or muscles. The small stature aud crooked forms 
of many once promising and handsome boys tell 
too plainly against their fathers, who willingly 
accepted all the hard farm work which the energy 
aud pride of their sons prompted them to perform. 
Hints Afeont Work. 
Animals at Pasture. — Look to the water supply, 
aud see that no animals suffer for it. Nothing but 
absolute starvation pulls them down in condition 
faster than thirst. In the very hottest aud dryest 
weather, horses get little good in the field, unless 
they have thickets aud woods to stand iu, and get 
away from flies. It is best to stable horses during 
the heat of the day, if oue has no use for them, and 
turn them out towards night. Flies are exceedingly 
annoying on damp days, when storms are approach- 
ing, and at such times horses should be taken iu. 
Give salt regularly, or keep it in sheltered troughs, 
always accessible to cattle and sheep at pasture, 
away from the sea shore, where, from 10 to 20 miles 
inland, it is regarded as unnecessary. 
Sheep should have their noses tarred ; rams should 
be separated from the ewes, and lambs of suitable 
age aud vigor, weaned. In weauing lambs, put 
the ewes ou the dryest pastures, but leave the 
lambs where they are accustomed to be, with a 
few large wethers for flock-leaders. They should 
be out of hearing of one auother's calls. The ewes 
should be driven several evenings into pens aud 
examiucd, and if their bags are tender, caking, or 
hot, they should be milked. 
Milch Cows need regular feeding with some green 
fodder as the pastures get dry ; yarded, and thus fed 
iu the evening, the gain in manure, to say nothing 
of the milk, pays well for the trouble. 
Hioine. — Give plenty of green food. If there are, 
no weeds to pull or mow for them, then cut clover 
or grass. The trimmiugs along fences, and sods 
cut wherever the ordinary field culture caunoi ex- 
tend, are excellent. Some fresh earth, either upon 
the roots of weeds or iu sods is essential to 
health. Charcoal is very beneficial, and pleuty 
of fresh water desirable. At all events, the hogs 
should have daily a good drink of pure water, no 
matter how liquid their usual food, and last,not least, 
they should have a dry, clean, bed at all seasons. 
Wounds upon animals, at this season of flies aud 
Quick putrefaction, need the most prompt atten- 
tion. We know of no better application than hot 
pine tar, (not hot enough to burn.) It may be put 
on alone, or as a plaster upou a piece of cotton 
cloth. Look especially to the heads of rams. 
Poult)'!/. — It is desirable to shorteu the moulting 
season as much as possible. To this end feed well 
and give range, or greeu food, daily. Make the most 
liberal provision for their dust-baths ; a box 
with mixture of coal and wood ashes, sifted, aud 
kept where it will never get wet is best. Give 
them the rauge of stubble fields, if possible. 
Corti. — Little good will be done by plowing or 
hoeiug after the first of August. Weeds should be 
pulled by hand if they grow large. Let the suckers 
alone ; they are often needed for fertilizing the tips 
of the ears. If corn is blown down, it is usually 
best to let it get up as it best can, yet if the field be 
entered at once, certainly within 12 hours, it may 
be helped a good deal. Take care not to crack the 
stalk, bend it, or injure the roots as is often done. 
