VoL. IV 
AUGUSTA, GA., DECEMBER, 1846, 
No. 12 
ilX0ixtt)l« Calendar. 
Altered from the American Agriculturist 's Almanac for 
ISli, and arranged to suit the Southern States. 
CAL,E.\i5AK S05£ DECE.^IBEa. 
[The foUnwiii;; brief hints lo the farmer, planter and 
gardener, will be found to apply not only to the month 
under which they are arranged, but, owing lo diversity 
of seasons, climate and soil.s, they may frequently an- 
swer for other months This precaution ihe eoii'ider- 
ale agriculturist will not fail to notice and apply- in all 
cases where his judgment and experience may dictate.] 
Settle all your accounts, collect what is due 
you, and pay what you owe. “Short settle- 
ments make long friend'.” E.xamine your farm 
statistics and 'ee what have been the resuiis of 
your e.xperitn?nts with the diff ■•rent kinds of ma- 
nures, seeds, modes of tillage, &c. &c., and 
note them well for future use. No farmer 
ought to be without such a book, in which all 
experiiiients should be carelully recorded at the 
lime, and the results carried into a separate 
book for his own use hereafter; and if new and 
valuable discoveries arp obtained, communi- 
cate them lo some agricultural periodical lor 
the benefit of ilie world. Recollect, you have 
the experience of thousands tfj guide your ope- 
rations, and, by contributing to the general 
stock whatever may be useful, you are but re- 
turning to mankind a part of the benefits you 
have derived from them. But avoid twad 'le 
and humbuggery, and oft published siatement.s, 
and proli.x or tedious narration, and give all the 
circumstances material to the subjects, in the 
briefest, plainest, simplest language possible. 
Above ali things send in your subscription to 
one or more valuable agricultural papers, and 
gel as many of your neighbors to subscribe as 
possible, and consider in so doing, you are ben- 
efliting yourself by it ten times as much as you 
are the publishers. Summer is peculiarly the 
time for making observ.ations and e.xperimenis 
and winter the time for communicating them. 
Rzrnernber the poor, not ',nly in this month but 
every momh through the year, and especially 
during the inclemency of winter. You need 
not give so much to them outright, but endeavor 
to put them in a way ol makin.g themselves 
comfortable, by affording them employment, by 
which, you may be benefiited, v bile doingthem 
good. You thus confer on them a triple bene- 
fit, by furnishing them the means ol comforta- 
ble subsiT-ience, teaching them to help them- 
selves, and avoiding the habit of receiving cAa- 
rily. which insensibly weakens (heir sense of 
sell-dependence. 
Stock now require increased aiteniion. They 
must be well housed, or at least protected 
against win.l, with a shelter to which they can 
resort in storms, well supplied with salt, and 
abundance of water if possible in the yard, 
where they can get it when they want, and 
w'iihou' wearying themselves in looking for it, 
and wasting their manure by dropping it in the 
road, or by a running stream or pond where it 
will all be lost. Their feed should be regular, 
and gi ven to them as near stated times as pos- 
sible. They look tor their food then at certain 
hours, and are n-ot uneasy and fretful ti” the 
customary period arrives, a. a rest qui^uv, di- 
gesting their food till it is time to look for ano- 
ther supply. It brought up in regular habits 
brutes are much better time keepers than many 
are disposed to consider them, who have not 
observed closely their intelligence. Now is a 
goo ; lime to break steers and colts, while the 
roads are smooth and hard. They ought to be 
eaily accustomed to handling, and the halter, 
and be gently treated, by which they are more 
disposed to yield to the wishes of their master. 
If they have been always used to. g,ood treat- 
ment, they will acquire a confidence in their 
keepers, and the more readily submit to their 
guidance, ’Tis always betier to irain them 
with strong, w-ell broken animals. Sympathy 
has more to do with the brute creation than 
ihej have credit fur generally, and the good ha- 
bits and orderly behavior of the older animals, 
they have been accustomed to treat with defer- 
ence, will not be without its wholesome effect 
on them. 
This is the best mnn’h tor spreading out 
hemo for dew-rotiing, in the latimdes below 
40®, as it gets a whiter and better rot than if 
s, oread earlier. 
Kitchen Garden . — Every fine day uncover the 
frames in which are lettuce and cauliflower 
plants, otherwise they will become spindling 
from want ol air. Hot beds can now be made 
for forcing asparagus for the table in January. 
If the ground is open continue trenching for 
spring crops. When the ground is frozen cart 
manure, repair fences, clean seeds, prepare 
tools for spring. Provide pea sticks, bean 
poles, &c., and finish all that will be required 
in the spring, and which can be done when the 
ground is frozen. 
Fruit Garden and Orchard.— Finish those 
things which may have been omitted the pre- 
vious month. If the weather continues open 
digging and plowing may be done advanta- 
geously. Perform any woik that may tend to 
forward your business in the spring. 
Flower Go.rden and Pleasure Grounds. — Con- 
tinue to protect your beds of bulbs and also 
flower beds and shrubs as directed in last monh. 
Should the weather continu-* open in the early 
part of this month, bulbs may still be planted. 
They should not be left as late as this, but if 
such has been the case they had better be plant- 
ed nowihan left until spring. Now carefully 
protect seedling bulbs. The more tender kinds 
ot trees can have their roots protected from 
frost by laying manure or long litier about them. 
Planlalion . — The closing month ot the year 
is one in which every agriculturist should take 
an interest, and for many useful hints we will 
refer the reader to the Calendar for the previous 
inunihs 
Colton picking will probably occupy this 
month until Christmas, when this business will 
have been completed, il the culture has been 
well managed and the season favorable. It 
would be well to start your plows and break up 
ground for corn; let nothing but cotton prevent 
— not even cleaning; lor plowing is only one 
job; yet, if done soon ii is generally advanta- 
geous, and if bad weaiher should set in, when it 
must be done, lime will be lost and a drawback 
ensue, whereas by plowing in time cleaning 
can be done later. 
la weather not employed about other labor 
mo.i'e important, rnanu.'-e and trim all kinds of 
vir°s and fruit trees except the orange tribe. 
Transplant evergreens and other trees, sweet 
briers, honey-suckles, jasmines, &c. ; .sow late 
peas and beans, and set out onions for seed; set 
all hands at work in cleaning up lor other crops, 
picking up limbs, grubbing, cleaning up hol- 
lows, sides of bayous, cutting down corn stalks 
i 
with hoes, gathering materi._.> for making ma- 
nure, &c. &c. 
If you do not live in the immediate vicinity, 
say five or six miles, from a sugar plantation, 
by all means keep bees. This can be rendered 
one of the most productive branches of busi- 
ness of the day. Procure a few swarms at first 
and they will soon multiply to any extent re- 
q’lired. Use sections of hollow logs four or 
five leet long for hives, il you have no other 
more convenient materials to make them of, 
and allow the bees to work over the honey a se- 
cond time, that you may avoid the injurious ef- 
fects of eating honey which maj^ have been ga- 
thered from poisonous flowers. If the above 
named class of hives be used, there will be no 
necessity for killing the bees; for when the 
hives are filled with honey they can be remo- 
ved wiihoui harm from the end opposite to that 
in which the bees are at work, and they will 
immediately go to work and till the vacancy. 
In most parts of the Southern States bees may 
be kept at work during the winter. If there are 
no flowers for them they can be made to work 
over the bad honey collected d s season before. 
This is also a busy month for the sugar-plant- 
er. He will be active in cutting and carting 
his cane with all possible dispatch, and he 
should employ one or more practical and intel- 
ligent men to conduct the operations of the mill. 
In the manufacture of sugar, we know of no 
belter method than that given by Professor 
Mayes in a letter to Hon. H. L. Ellsworth, from 
which we make the follow'ing extract : 
1st. To cut the cane as ripe as possible, but 
before any aceiic acid is formed ; litmus paper, 
touched to the fresh cut cane will turn red if 
acid. 
2Qd. Express the juice without loss of time, 
as every moment after cutting will deteriorate 
its quaiiiy. 
3d. A small quantity of clear lime-water, say 
one quart to a hundred gallons of juice, should 
be added the moment it is expressed, unless the 
juice shows acidity with litmus paper; in that 
case, no lime should be used, but a solution of 
sal soda or soda ash should be added until it is 
precisely’ neutral. 
4th, When the juice is neutral, free from ex- 
cess of acid or alkali, it should be evaporated 
in such an apparatus as would finish its charge 
in 30 minutes; it the boiling power is too small 
good crystal zation cannot possibly be obtained. 
The whole time occupied from the cutting ol 
the cane to finishing its boiling should not ex- 
ceed one hour. 
5tb. To know when the boiling is finished 
place a ihermometer in the kettle, and continue 
to evaporate until it stands at 239® Fahrenheit. 
If, when placed lo run off after cooling it should 
be found too freely boiled, the next time boil to 
240® or, if too light lo run off, to 238® and so. 
on. 
6;h. The kettle or boiler should be so arrang- 
ed that the moment it is done its charge should 
be thrown into a cooler capable of holding a 
number of charges. The first charge should be 
left in the cooler without stirring, until the second 
charge is thrown in, then with an oar scrape th« 
crystals found on the side and bottom of the 
cooler loose, and gently stir the -whole mass to- 
gether: the less stirred the baiter; so continue 
at the letting in of each charge to stir gently; 
and when all is in the cooler let the whole stand 
until it cools down to then fill out into su- 
