SOUTH EKN CULTIVATOR. 
121 
“ The Carolina Cultivator,” is the title of a new 
monthly of3“3 pages, published at Ruljeigh, N. C., at per 
annum, in advance. It is published and edited by V/m. 
D. C('OKE, Esq,, aided by several gentlemen of talent and 
experience. VVe wish it abundant success in its efforts to 
improve the agriculture of the Old “North State.” 
Randall’s Cotton Planter. — See advertisement and 
notice of this machine in present number. The recom- 
mendations are strong and to the point. 
-PLART-nrS SWEET POTATOES IN LEVEL GROUND. 
For the benefit of our correspondent, “ Lincoln , and 
others, we republish the following, which was contributed 
to one of the earlier volumes of this journal by Col. Wm. 
.McKinley, of Lexington, Ga.: 
Sir — The old method of planting sweet potatoes in hills 
and ridges, in this dry climate, and on our hard upper 
country lands, is all wrong. Potatoes must have moisture 
and soft earth to do well. But they lack both in the com- 
mon culture. Hills and ridges are the driest forms in 
which you can put the soil. Flat culture is the only 
right kind for potatoes, or anything else, in our burning 
climate and on our clay uplands. Potatoes should be 
planted as flat, and may, in that way, be planted as 
easily, as corn. 
First, break up the land well ; then lay off rov/s 4 feet 
wide with a shovel plow ; run deep in the same track with 
a rooter, and then, if you want it perfect, deeper still in 
the same furrow with a common new-ground coulter. 
Next, list upon both sides of this in the same Avay; that 
is, with shovel, rooter and coulter — one right in the track 
of the other. This makes deep work, and the deeper the 
better. It is soon done. Your ground is now ready — 
deep, loose and moist, and will keep so all summer. 
Now for planting and culture. With a rooter draw a 
shallow furrow on the top of the list, just over the first 
shovel track, to guide you in dropping. In this drop the 
seed, cut roots, sprouts or vine-cuttings, twelve or fifteen 
inches apart, and cover lightly. Plow them a few times, 
just like corn, running close to the potatoes with a rooter, 
and finish off each working with a cultivator, or some 
other plow to keep the middles flat. 
This mode of culture is not one-fourth as troublesome 
as hills ; the crop is wonderful. This is not theory, but 
is my constant practice. By this mode the vines never 
turn yellov/ ; the crop comes forward early in August, 
and the owner has no chance to talk about “small pota- 
toes.^’ 
COTTON AND ITS CULTUEE. 
OtiR old friend and correspondent, ^^Broomsedgefl 
writes to the Farmer Planter as follows : 
We never could see the sense of throwing up, with 
great care, a high bed for cotton, and immediately set all 
hands to work to tear it down. We have tried various ex- 
pedients, but never found out how to plant cotton until 
List spring. For this we acknowledge our indebtedness 
to Capt, Thomas Byrd, of Greenwood, from whom we re- 
•eived an implement for smoothing and opening the cot- 
ton bed, which does its work to perfection, a cover adapt- 
precisely to follow in the wake of the opening, leaving 
your beds nicely smoothed over and ready for the recep- 
tion of the seed, and a scraper to do the first working — 
decidedly the best implements we have ever seen. This 
forms a complete set of implements, adapted to cotton cul- 
t ire, simple and cheap, which any good blacksmith and 
plow Blocker can make easily. If Novice will try Capt. 
Byrd’s implements, and not agree with us, we will ac- 
knowledge the corn, and pay for them. Lei us be under- 
stood, we are not puffing an implement manufacturer, but 
offering an acknowledgement due to a public spirited 
planter who took the' pains to set us tight. By the way, 
while talking we may as well say that the best variety of 
cotton we have ever planted, is called the “Calhoun Cot- 
ton.” Where it originated, we are not able to say. Capt. 
Byrd kindly sent us half a bushel of seed, from ivhich we-' 
have picked 511 lbs. of very beautiful cotton. The over- 
seer counted 70 bolls upon one stalk not over knee high. 
It is no humbug — for we have selected our seed for years 
from fancy stalks, and being side by side, we have been 
compelled reluctantly to give it up. We trust that even 
Broomsedge may be allowed to puff a home-made article. 
Before closing we must dissent, however, from Novice’s 
declaration. Twelve hunddred lbs. cotton per acre on 
common land — stand or no stand — it is no common land 
that will average 70 bolls of matured cotton per stalk. 
Corn Fodder. — My cows have eaten, this winter, with- 
out 20 lbs. waste, what came from an acre and one- fourth, 
excepting what was cut and fed out green before Novem- 
ber, I have bright clover, and English hay, red-top, &c., 
but nothing that is liked as well by cows giving milk, as 
cow-corn. They eat it “all up clean,” and give more and 
better milk than when fed on hay. My cow- corn, when 
sowed, is the best white flat I can get, and from as far 
south as Delaware, the farther South the better. Rows, 
3 1-2 feet apart, from 40 to 60 kernels to a foot in the drill, 
sowed with a machine of my own construction. The 
fodder from one rod square, weighed 225 lbs. when taken 
to the barn — a more perfect drying of the stalks would 
have reduced the number of pounds some, how much I 
know not. — Cor. Granite Fa'>mcr. 
Plants Poisoned. — Dr. Salisbury, of Albany, recentlr 
communicated to the American Scientific Association, 
some experiments on plants, which illustrate the analogy 
existing between animal and vegetable physiology. Dr. 
S. extracted the poison of a dead rattle-snake, a small por- 
tion of which he inserted in the plants by moistening it 
with the blade of a knife, with which he wounded a lilac, 
a horse chestnut, a corn plant, and a sun flower. In sixty 
hours after the infliction of the wound, they began to 
manifest symptoms of poisoning, and in a few days all 
the leaves above the wound were dead. In about fifteen 
days, they manifested convalescence, and nearly all re- 
covered from the injury. 
Acorns and Cattle. — The Pennsylvanimi Farm Jowr- 
nal gives an instance of cattle being killed by excessive 
eating of acorns. The fatality occurred on the farm of 
Richard Lamborn, near Westchester, Pa., who lost four- 
teen head in the course of a few days. The cattle at firet 
showed symptoms of illness by watery eyes, drooping 
head and spiritless w'alk. ' The cows failed of their 
milk, their carcasses were almost bloodless, and tb« 
stomach and intestines exhibited every appearance of 
suffering from powerful astringents. As acorns are 
known to possess astringent properties to a considerable 
degree, there can hardly be a doubt that they were the 
cause of the difficulty. Some varieties of acorns are mucL 
more astringent than others. The nuts in this case were 
of White, Black and Chestnut Oak. — Am. AgricuUurisi, 
Deadening Timber. — When the bark slips freely im 
June, July, or August, is the best time to girdle trees. 
the small growth three feet above the ground ; the root# 
not sprout, and the stumps arc more easily removed 
