194 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
vegetable garden is still the exception among 
them. With a little attention and care in the se¬ 
lection of seeds, they may have the most highly 
prized and healthful luxuries of the city, without 
money and without price. There is no occasion 
for them to sigh for the lands of the orange and 
the myrtle. They may woo their lovers, and 
live with them, beneath their own vines and fig 
trees. 
- st-t ——-OSMO.-- - 
Calendar of Operations for July 1858. 
[We note down sundry kinds of work to be done during 
he month, not so much to afford instruction to practical 
men, as to call to mind the various operations to be at¬ 
tended to A glance over a table like this will often sug¬ 
gest some piece of work that might otherwise be forgotten 
or neglected. Our remarks are more especially adapted 
to the latitudes of 38° to 45° ; but will be equally applica¬ 
ble to points further North and South by making due 
allowance for each degree of latitude, that is, later for 
the North, earlier for the South. 
ISP At this season there is comparatively little to be 
said ; in the busier months of planting and 'sowing, this 
calendar will be more extended. 
Explanations.—/ indicates th e,first; m the middle; 
and l the last of the month.—Doubling the letters thus:^; 
or mm, or IL, gives particular emphasis to the period indi¬ 
cated.—Two letters placed together, as/m or mi, signifies 
that the work may be done in either or in both periods in¬ 
dicated ; thus, work marked frn indicates that it is to be 
attended to from the first to the middle of the month.1 
Fairsaa. 
The “rolling year” has now brought us to one of the 
hottest and most laborious months. The heavy 
work of “ haying and harvest” has to be prosecuted vigor¬ 
ously under a vertical sun, requiring activity and yet pru¬ 
dence and moderation in labor, and temperance and dis¬ 
crimination in food and drink. Happily, the ingenuity of 
man has succeeded admirably in bringing brute force sub¬ 
servient lo his will, by harnessing his horse to the scythe 
and cradle (the mowing and reaping machines), thus rap¬ 
idly and economically performing the hardest work of the 
farmer. Besides cutting hay and grain, buckwheat and 
turnips are still to be sown ; and the hoes should by no 
means be idle. 
Buckwheat does best sown, ff.—but maybe put in, m. 
Read the article on a succeeding page. 
Bark of Hemlock and Oak will “run ” during most of 
July, and may be peeled for tanners, at any leisure time 
during dull weather. Pile up the former peelings. 
Bees—Late swarms coming out at this season should, in 
most cases, be returned to the hive. See “Apiary” on 
next page. 
Buildings, Yards, &c.—Keep everything about them 
clean and neat. Leave nothing to ferment and breed 
distempers. 
Butter and Cheese making are going on briskly within 
doors. See chapters elsewhere. 
Cabbages for a late crop may still be planted, ff. Choose 
damp weather for transplanting, if possible. Early ones 
will now be ready for market and the ground may pro¬ 
duce a second crop, or be sown lo turnips. 
Corn for soiling may be drilled in or sown broadcast, ff. 
It will form a good succession with the earlier plantings. 
Fences—Do not permit cattle to discover any weak 
points, if you would save yourself loss and trouble, and 
keep out of contention with your neighbors. 
Haying is the important work of July, but with a good 
mowing machine on smooth ground, a boy and team of 
horses can perform the heaviest labor. It is needless to 
say, “make hay while the sun shines,”-and get it in be¬ 
fore the evening dews begin to fall, for every good farmer 
knows that much. 
Hay Caps—Procure or make a quantity, fif, ifnot already 
on hand One hundred of them, costing but a few dollars, 
may save several tuns of hay in a single season. 
Hoeing will be a secondary operation this month, but 
the horse-hoe or cultivator, if you have them, should be 
run through the corn occasionally, and hand-hoes at least 
he used, whenever needed, or an opportunity offers—some¬ 
times in the morning before the dew is off the grass. 
Hogs—Keep them supplied with materials for making 
aianure compost, and see that they have plenty of water 
or liquid food. 
Manures will soon be wanted for the Winter wheat, and 
rye. Cart muck, turf, loam and weeds to cattle and hog 
yards during dull weather. Scrape up the cattle drop¬ 
pings each morning and throw in heaps, under cover, 
mixing with muck. Do not neglect that valuable manu¬ 
factory, the privy. Throw in every few days, a quantity 
of muck, door yard scrapings, charcoal dust, or plaster, 
&c., to absorb unpleasant odors and increase the bulk and 
»lue. See “ Sink Slops as Manure.” 
Millet—Sow, ff, m, fora succession? riling crop. 
In connection with com it will be found very valuable in 
a time of short feed. 
Oats will probably need cutting, 11. Do not allow them 
to get over ripe. 
Pastures—See that the grass is sufficient for the grazing 
stock. A scant feed now willsoon be seen in adiminished 
supply of milk, and slow growth of young stock. 
Poultry require little care now, save keeping from the 
small fruits and grain fields. Hens may still be set for 
late chickens, although earlier ones are preferable. 
Potatoes—Early crops will be ready for harvesting and 
marketing during the month, and the ground may now be 
appropriated to late cabbages or turnips. 
Rye—Cut, ff, m, as it ripens. 
Seed Wheat and Rye—Let them ripen fully before cut¬ 
ting. Allow no foul stuff to be gathered with them. 
Thresh with a flail, rather than machine, which bruises 
many of the kernels. 
Sheep are apt to be worried, and killed even, by dogs, at 
this season. A few small bells placed upon the necks of 
several of the flock will usually help protect them. Give 
salt each week. 
Sugar Cane—Sow or drill 'in, ff, m, for cattle, and espe¬ 
cially for hogs. 
Timber cut in July and August will last much longer 
for fencing, and other uses, than when cut in Winter and 
Spring. 
Tobacco—Keep ground light and free from weeds. 
Pinchthe upper growth to induce side leaves. 
Tools—Have them at all times in the best working order. 
Fifteen minutes spent in grinding a scythe in the morning 
will often save double the time during the day, to say 
nothing of the saving of strength. 
Turnips—Sow for full crop, f, mm, and even. 1. Newly 
plowed rich soil is best. See article elsewhere. 
Wheat—Cut before it is fully ripe, or when passing from 
the dough state. 
Young Stock—Give them especial care at this season. 
A calf or colt whose growth is checked now, seldom does 
as well afterwards. 
©rclaard. and Niavsei’y. 
Pruning both old and young trees, thinning late and har¬ 
vesting early fruits, budding, plowing and hoeing nur¬ 
sery stock, are now the chief labors of the orehardist and 
tree grower. The most important operation is pruning, 
which is discussed on a subsequent page. Early fruit is 
now ripened and giving the cultivator a foretaste of what 
is coming. He already feels repaid for his vigilant care 
of the fruit orchard. 
Budding will commence, m, or perhaps, f, on plums. 
Examine stocks often to ascertain the earliest period at 
which the bark will start. The order in which trees are 
usually ready to bud is: plum, cherry, pear, apple, quince 
and peach. A full description was given in last volume, 
page 161. Pear stocks often complete their growth early 
in the season, and on this account should be budded at the 
first favorable opportunity. 
Caterpillars—Destroy late broods, ff, with the brush fig¬ 
ured on page 186 of the June Agriculturist , or pinch them 
off by hand. 
Cherries are fast ripening and many of the varieties 
need picking and marketing at once. Others may re¬ 
main for a time on the trees without injury. Guard against 
barking the limbs with heavy boots and breaking them in 
the operation. Dry a portion of the fruit in a moderately 
heated oven, or put it away in cans and jars for Winter 
use. 
Fallen Fruit—Gather and steam or boil the stnal 1 worm- 
eaten fruit of all kinds as fast as it falls, to destroy the in¬ 
closed insects. Pigs, when allowed the range of the or¬ 
chard, eat much of the wormy fruit, and effectually kill 
the germs of a future crop of pests. 
Fences—Keep in good repair. Cattle are fond of nip¬ 
ping the young growth in both orchard and nursery. On 
low branching trees they destroy much of the fruit also, 
when permitted access to it. Fence the orchard as se¬ 
curely as the garden. 
Grafts—Loosen any bandages cutting into the stock, 
replace wax or cement that has fallen off, and rub super¬ 
fluous shoots from the stock. 
Hoeing—Continue this in nursery rows, and around 
trees. The horse-hoe or cultivator will be good aids. 
Loosen the ground and keep down weeds about newly 
planted and older standards. Allow neither grass nor 
weeds within six feet of the body of orchard trees. 
Insects—Keep lanterns burning, open bottles suspend¬ 
ed, and use other methods to destroy curculios, codling 
moths, caterpillars, slugs, <5cc., as heretofore recommend¬ 
ed. See article on “ Enemies of the Pear Tree.” 
Layer and Inarch shrubs, trees and vines intended for 
propagation, ff, m. Full descriptions with illustrations 
were given on page 184, volume XVI. 
Manure, ff, trees bearing heavy crops. Procure a good 
supply of muck during dry weather, for use another sea¬ 
son. Lime and ashes are also very valuable for trees. 
Pinching or Shortening-in should now be practiced. 
both in the nursery and orchard. A weak spindling growth 
may be made more stocky, and side branches induced to 
grow by heading back the leader, ff. See illustrations 
page 116 of the April number; also notice the beneficial 
effects of shortening-in standard trees, on the same page 
Plums —Gather all the punctured ones which fall pre. 
maturely, and cook them to destroy worms. Continue 
the curculio preventives recommended last month, ana 
keep all warty excrescences pared off. 
Pruning—Now is the proper time for pruning, as recom 
mended in an article further on. 
Seedlings of tender varieties in the nursery, or planted 
in pots and boxes need a shade during the hot days O; 
July. Holly, magnolias, and many of the evergreeni 
would burn up the first season from seed, if not partiall, 
shaded. 
Stones or Pits—Collect cherry pits for planting, and pu 
in boxes of moist, not wet earth, befdre they become dry 
Thin Fruit, especially on young trees. Those set ou 
this season should not be allowed to ripen fruit. Man) 
trees are seriously injured by permitting them to ripen aL. 
overcrop. By removing a portion of the fiuit on olde: 
t'ees, the remainder will be much finer. 
Weeds are as much out of place in the nursery, any 
about orchard trees, as in the garden. Let all the ground 
be kept free from them. 
Kitclien and Fruit Gardesi. 
One of the first things requiring attention now is to seo 
that all vacant spots are planted with late vegetables 
Some of the early crops are ready for use or for market 
and after clearing the ground, giving a coat ofmanure am 
a deep plowing, it is all ready for a second crop. Hoeing 
will come in for a large share ofthe work of July, and a' 
a general thing those vegetables do best which receive j 
most frequently and most thoroughly. 
Asparagus—Omit cutting, ff, if it has been practiced tr 
this time. Let the stalks grow the rest of the season, feu 
keep the ground loose and free from weeds. Give a coat 
ing of packing salt, which will be carried into the soil bj 
rains and dews. 
Beans—A few of the quick growing kinds, as early Val 
entine, Refugee and China may still be planted, ff. 
Beets for Winter use do well sown, ff. Stir the ground 
among former plantings. Some of the early beds will now 
yield a supply for the table. 
Blackberries vvere doubtless staked up last month, or 
earlier. Some of the heavily loaded branches of the New- 
Rochelle variety may need an additional tying, 1, to pre¬ 
vent their splitting down. 
Cabbages and Cauliflowers—Set out the remaining 
plants, ff, m. Water the beds before taking them up, and 
the plants after setting—always retaining as much earth 
about the roots as possible when transplanting them. Set 
in the afternoon unless a cloudy or damp day be chosen. 
The crop of early cabbages is now ready for market. 
Carrots, Parsneps and Salsa’y—Stir the ground often 
between the rows, and allow no weeds to rob them ol 
moisture and nourishment. 
Celery—Plant out the late crop in recently prepared 
trenches, ff, watering and shading with a board shelving 
over them, unless set in cloudy weather. Iloe often. 
Corn—Plant sweet varieties, ff, for final crop, which 
with that planted the middle of June will give a good and 
prolonged succession for table use, and for drying or pre¬ 
serving otherwise. 
Cucumbers for pickles may be planted, ff. Keep the 
ground well cultivated, and drive off bugs by the protec¬ 
tors illustrated on page 182 of the June number. 
Egg Plants—A few may still be put out, ff. If on good 
soil and well tended they will yield a fair crop. 
Endive—Set out, ff, for late use, and sow seed at the 
same time for Winter crop. 
Espalieror Wall Trees—Prune and shorten in as re¬ 
quired, spreading and training the branches. 
Frail—Thin and prop or tie up overladen branches and 
vines. 
Gooseberries—Keep the ground well mulched, and dust 
the bushes with sulphur if mildew shows itself. 
Grapes—Rub off unnecessary shoots and nip fruit bear¬ 
ing branches, retaining 4 or 5 leaves beyond the bunch¬ 
es Shoots for cutting out in the renewal system should 
be allowed to grow'unmolested this season. Keep the 
soil light and free from weeds. 
Herbs are mostly In flower, ff, and should be cut for 
drying or distilling. Gather them in the eaily stages ol 
bloom, dry in the shade and rub off the flowers, putting in 
cans or bottles so as to keep from the air. Rose leaves 
may be preserved in like manner, or immediately distilled 
Hoeing—Follow up closely, ff, mm, 11. The soil needs 
to be often stirred and kept free from weeds, in order to 
grow vegetables successfully. 
Insects—Apply a sprinkling of salt to the surface ol 
ground ready for planting with a late crop, to destroy oi 
drive away grubs. Hand pick the spotted squash bug fig 
ured on page 143 of the May Agriculturist. See, also arti 
cle on the “ Pea Weevil,” in thi* number. Don’t shoot 
