272 
NEW YORK FARMERS CLUB. 
so as to shed rain well. If the ground where the 
cabbage is stored be of a heavy clay, it should be 
trenched round the heap so as to carry off the water, 
and a bed of straw or round logs six inches or a foot 
thick be made for it to rest upon, and as a drain for 
all moisture, it being quite important that vegetables 
of every kind be kept dry. 
Newly Budded Peach Trees. —We wish to 
know at what price we can obtain five thousand 
young peach trees, recently budded with the best vari¬ 
eties of this fruit. 
Removal. —We have now removed our office to 
the new Agricultural Warehouse, No. 187 Water 
street, where we shall be happy to see our friends at 
all hours during the day. 
NEW YORK FARMERS’ CLUB. 
At the meeting held on the 5th of August, Thos. 
Jeremiah, Esq., in the chair, the subject of Manure 
was discussed. 
Mr. Kerr thought that the farmers should rely 
more upon their own resources for making manure, 
instead of going abroad for it, and that nearly every 
farm was capable of supplying all that was neces¬ 
sary to keep up its fertility. 
The Chairman gave his practice on Staten Island 
of making composts with fish, muck, and peat. 
Dr. Underhill spoke highly of guano, but acknow¬ 
ledged, from want of knowing how to properly ap¬ 
ply it, and the unexampled drouth, its use among the 
farmers this season had not been as beneficial as was 
anticipated. The greater amount of moisture in 
England was highly beneficial to it. 
Mr. Fleet replied that nearly every kind of ma¬ 
nure failed of beneficial action in a drouth, though a 
compost of muck suited it the best. 
The Chairman said he would incorporate the muck 
with the guano. 
Insects — Col. Clark presented the root of a young 
peach tree, exhibiting the destructive effect of the in¬ 
sect ; about three inches above, and as many below 
the face of the earth, both bark and wood, were 
gnawed by that enemy. 
Mr. Kerr —The course of insects may be traced— 
Farm-yard manure undergoes a fermentation suited 
to the development of many insects, a mass of it may 
be seen teeming with them. These with the manure 
are spread upon the land, and are ready for the vege¬ 
tation to which their habits attach them. My friend, 
Judge Ball, of Hoosick, in this State, composted ma¬ 
nure with one part of lime, three of manure, and a 
fifth or sixth of the whole, loamy earth. He formed 
many heaps of this compost. In a fortnight after¬ 
wards, the change in the masses was astonishing, 
taking a dung fork and opening the tops of the heaps 
thick siqoke issued from them, fn four weeks time 
I examined them for insects and could not find one, 
even the flies would not touch the heaps. Some 
heaps that had no such treatment were moving mass¬ 
es of insects. Lime produced, instead of the putre¬ 
factive process, the Dry Rot or Eremacausis; this de¬ 
stroys not only insects, but seeds of weeds. The 
smell from the common dung heaps was offensive, 
that from the compost not at all so. Actual expe¬ 
rience lias proved, that in two fields adjacent, one 
manured with compost had few, if any insects, while 
the crop of the other with common farm-yard ma¬ 
nure, was destroyed by them. 
Dr, Underhill —To avoid the fly and the worm in 
wheat, sow early or late ; when your grain has at¬ 
tained some height, you will find the nits of the 
insects on it—then turn in sheep or young cattle, 
who wall eat off all the blades, nits and all. If you 
sow late, you avoid the nits—you may miss them ; 
besides, the manure left by your sheep is very good 
for your crop. 1 know but one remedy which is 
easily tried, and is said to be effectual. It is quick 
lime, slacked perfectly fine ; when dried take it with 
your three fingers (just as you do grass seed) all over 
your wheat field soon after the wheat is in blossom, 
and when you see the flies hovering over the field— 
! sow in this way about two pecks of lime on an 
acre. The dew will moisten the lime, and it then 
reaches the insect larvae and kills them. This pro¬ 
cess has saved a whole wheat crop on one field, 
while a neighboring one was destroyed by the worm. 
I was annoyed in my vineyard by the rose-bug. 
I first picked them off into basins with water in 
them—held them under the vines, and touched them 
and the bugs fell in. I killed many basins full in 
this way. At length I discovered whence all these 
bugs came. I observed that they issued from holes 
in the ground, like a pepper box. They first crawled 
up the trees—gradually acquired the use of their 
wings—had remained all winter in the ground, and 
the new progeny return to it in the autumn. By 
ploughing late in the fall, I turned them up to freez¬ 
ing weather, and thus got rid of them all but a few. 
What few now remain I have pinched off by my 
workmen. 
At the meeting held on the 19th of August. Dr. R'. 
T. Underhill in the chair, 
A letter from John Van Wyck , of New Hamburg, 
to A. B. Allen, on the subject of Marl, accompanied 
with various specimens of it, was read. 
Chairman —Marl is chiefly formed from decom¬ 
posed shells; lime therefore becomes the principal 
ingredient. Potash and soda are also found in it, 
and are the best parts of it. The Jersey marl is very 
valuable, principally on account of the constituents— 
soda—alkalies generally. The alkali is the most 
important part of it. In order to determine the pre¬ 
sence of these invaluable principles in the marls, or 
our soil, how indispensable a chemical analysis. 
Mr. Kerr —In shells there is a large portion of the 
phosphate of lime. Pownal, in Vermont, has large 
deposits of marl with shell, in a soft condition. I 
analysed a specimen, and found only a very slight 
trace of phosphate of lime. The marl before the 
Club resembles the Pownal marl. 
A. McDonald, Esq., of Alabama, rose, being in¬ 
troduced to the club, and said—I am told here that I 
am perfectly at home. I will therefore speak. 
Chairman and Secretary —Yes, sir, you are per¬ 
fectly at home, and we shall be happy to hear you. 
Mr. McDonald —This is the first time I ever was 
present at what is called a Farmers’ Club. I came 
here to see your Agricultural Society. Everything 
relating to agriculture interests me deeply. I am 
from Eufalla, in Alabama, in latitude 31°. There 
we have an abundance of blue marl. We find it 
everywhere in the state. I had last year 4,509 
bushels drawn upon my farm. Dr. Means, of Geor- 
