1861] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
47 
this application in the hill. I doubt if any of 
the concentrated manures, at equal cost, would 
have done so well. Cultivators living near cities ■ 
and villages, have their cheapest source of fertil¬ 
izers, off of the farm, in this article. With 
suitable apparatus for carting, it is readily han¬ 
dled, and the great objection to its use is avoid¬ 
ed. If the dry ashes are not conveniently ob¬ 
tained, dry muck, if worked over and made fine, 
is quite as good an absorbent, and has in itself 
more elements of fertility than the ashes. In 
the absence of muck, any dry earth, saw dust, 
or spent tan can be used, though they are not 
so good as muck. The poudrette, tafeu, etc., sold 
to cultivators, are mainly dried mixtures of 
black muck with night soil gathered in the city. 
We see, from the experiment, that it is not 
necessary to wait a year, or more, for the nox¬ 
ious effluvia to be dissipated, before apply¬ 
ing night soil to crops. Prepared in this way, 
it is inoffensive as any fertilizer, and does not 
burn the seed, or make it rot. It acts at once 
upon the germinating seed, gives it a fine vigor¬ 
ous start, and pushes it along rapidly, until it is 
out of the way of the worms, and reaches the 
main body of manure plowed in. It is readily 
prepared at this season of the year, when other 
work is not pressing, and no better use can be 
made of the time. Connecticut. 
-- i «a» --» -- 
Experiment in Grass Culture. 
An old agriculturist gives in the “ Mark Lane 
Express,” (England), the following accidental 
experiment in grass culture. In laying down 
land to permanent grass, he found the first 
year’s growth invariably the best; and that 
afterward the coarser grasses choked out the 
finer sorts. Many years ago his hired man mis¬ 
took orders, and accidentally plowed nearly 
half an acre in the wrong field. This was in 
the Fall, and the land remained with the roots 
of the grasses thoroughly exposed to the atmos¬ 
phere throughout the Winter. In the Spring it 
was carefully turned back and rolled. By this 
means the quality and quantity of the grass 
were so greatly improved, that the exact line, 
where the plow had gone, might be easily seen 
for years afterward. 
- - -—--- 
Deep Plowing—Testimony of the 
Corn Crib. 
In the July Agriculturist , last year, page 206, 
was published a statement from a Texas sub¬ 
scriber, to the effect that corn planted by him on 
ground plowed 15 to 20 inches deep, was look¬ 
ing badly, while that on land merely scratch¬ 
ed over, appeared thrifty, and an opinion was 
asked as to whether the surface work were not 
better for that section. We replied, that though 
the plow might have been put in too deep at 
one time, yet, should a drouth occur, the benefit 
of thorough working would be seen; and re¬ 
quested to hear the testimony of the corn crib 
in the Fall. We have just received a letter 
from the same gentleman, stating that he is a 
thorough convert to deep plowing. A severe 
drouth came on, shriveling and destroying his 
corn and that of his neighbors, on land which 
nad only shallow culture, while that on the 
deeply plowed field stood up bravely, came to 
maturity, and gave a fine yield. It is well here 
to repeat the caution that the soil should gener¬ 
ally be deepened gradually , say an inch or so at 
each plowing, particularly where the subsoil is 
unfit for growing plants; in time it will be ame¬ 
liorated by the atmosphere. 
Ohio Crops in 1859-60. 
According to the late Census Betums from 
Ohio, as published in the State Journal, the 
yield of the agricultural staples was less than 
was expected from the reputation for fertility 
enjoyed by that State. The farmers or the 
figures must be at fault. Judging from what 
has passed under our own observation, the value 
of such statistics has been greatly impaired by 
the carelessness of some of the marshals. But 
here are the statements. 
Acres. Bushels. Average. 
Wheat.1,790,677 13,345,844 IX 
Com.2,339,204 69,372.343 ' 39 
Rye. 98,011 662,065 5% 
Barley. 102,792 1,639,388 16 
Oats. 644,954 15,055,059 23K 
Buckwheat. 149,645 2,222,083 15 
Meadow.1,340,566 tuns 1,365,888 tun 1 
The largest average of Wheat was 17 bushels 
per acre, in Ottawa Co.—Erie, Sandusky, and 
Lucas gave 16 bushels each, while Trumbull 
yielded but $ bushel per acre, and Mahoning k 
bushel. [There must be some mistake here. -Ed.] 
The Corn crop averaged 42 bushels per acre in 
Lucas Co.; 38 in Preble; and 37 in Lake, 
Butler, Boss, Pickaway, and Warren. The 
smallest average was 15$ bushels, in Carroll Co. 
Poisonous Mushrooms. 
At a recent coroner’s inquest at Ipswich, 
England, the j ury gave verdict: “ Death caused 
by eating poisonous Mushrooms;” and recom¬ 
mended that great caution be exercised by per¬ 
sons eating this article. Dr. A. S. Taylor, in 
his work on Medical Jurisprudence says “ there 
does not appear to be any satisfactory rules for 
distinguishing the wholesome mushrooms from 
those which are poisonous, and in some persons 
even edible mushrooms will produce disorder 
of the stomach and bowels. The English Gar¬ 
dener’s Chronicle alluding to the above case, 
remarks that not only is it difficult to distinguish 
the wholesome from the poisonous mushrooms, 
but that there are other families of plants, a 
portion of which may be eaten with impunity, 
while others are injurious, as for instance the 
Brazilian Cherry ( Physalis Peruviana), and the 
Deadly Nightshade, both of which belong to 
the solinacea or potato family. 
The discrimination of wholesome from un¬ 
wholesome productions of this class is a matter 
of experience, and no one is safe in the use of 
any vegetable substance whatever without such 
a degree of information as shall preclude all 
reasonable chance of error.— Am. Agriculturist. 
-->»<——»•»—-- 
Grape-Growing on Kelley’s Island. 
The Ohio Cultivator contains an account of 
the grape culture among the inhabitants of Kel¬ 
ley’s Island, in Lake Erie, near Sandusky. It 
appears that the number of acres planted pre¬ 
vious to 1859 was 62 ; in 1859, 691 acres; and 
991 acres in 1860, making in all 230i acres. 
The largest amount owned by any one man 
is that of Addison Kelley, 231 acres. Mr. Car¬ 
penter has 111 acres, nearly all in bearing. He 
is devoting much attention to the manufacture 
of wine, and is experimenting with the new va¬ 
rieties of grapes as the Delaware, Diana, Con¬ 
cord, etc., some of which he believes will super¬ 
sede the Catawba and Isabella, both for wine 
and table use. 
The first cultivated grape vines planted on 
the Island 17 years ago, are still vigorous, and 
for fifteen years have not failed of a crop of fruit. 
The value of the, grape crop in favorable sea¬ 
sons is found to average about $600 per acre. 
The cost of fitting and preparing the ground, 
including under-draining, deep-plowing, plant¬ 
ing, cultivating for three years, and trellising, 
is set down at $300 per acre. The vines are 
planted in rows six by eight feet apart and train¬ 
ed to trellises made of strong wire stretched 
upon cedar posts. More wood and leaf is al¬ 
lowed to the vines than is commonly done around 
Cincinnati. 
--*■ --—> m 
For the American Agriculturist. 
Green-Houses for Invalids, 
Many years ago, an article appeared in the 
Horticulturist, written by Dr. Stevens, of N. Y., 
on the benefits of Green-Houses to pulmonary 
invalids. He claimed that the air of these glass 
structures tended to abate one’s cough, rendered 
expectoration loose and easy, softened the skin, 
and induced a comfortable state of feeling, ap¬ 
proaching to exhilaration. He even grew elo¬ 
quent over his theme. During the sunny hours 
of a Winter’s day, the good doctor could imag¬ 
ine himself in Cuba, the air was so warm and 
genial, and so full of the aroma of flowers. He 
recommended such places to pulmonary inva¬ 
lids as preferable, under most circumstances, to 
the expensive plan of removal to the South, in¬ 
volving, as that does, much discomfort, inter¬ 
ruption of business, hazardous exposure, and 
entire separation from friends. 
Now, this is all very pleasant to read and 
think about, and if it were true, would furnish 
a new recommendation of the higher forms of 
horticultural employments. But the trouble is, 
it is not true. The atmosphere of a well-appoint¬ 
ed green-house is loaded with moisture, caused 
by evaporation from the foliage, and by the 
frequent sprinkling and syringing of the plants, 
the stagings, and floors. Of course, an air so 
charged with vapor, and with more or less ef¬ 
fluvia from decaying vegetation, and with aroma 
from flowers, is not wholesome for a consump¬ 
tive patient. And if, as is sometimes the case, 
the temperature is raised to a high point, the 
system becomes relaxed by it, the body is pene¬ 
trated at every pore by the excessive moisture, 
and a severe cold is sure to be contracted. 
The writer speaks from the experience and 
observation of several years. Green-houses are 
very attractive places to the lovers of flowers, 
and may be safely visited by invalids for a short 
period at a time; but as for their being desirable 
places of prolonged resort for the sake of the 
salubrity of their atmosphere—a substitute for 
the climate of Florida or Cuba—it is a grand 
mistake to suppose it. No: the pure, bracing 
air out-of-doors is vastly better. Guard against 
cold-catching by being warmly clad and shod. 
Then sally forth in all weathers. Mount your 
horse : the saddle is better for pulmonary folks 
than a rocking-chair. The air of the hills is bet¬ 
ter medicine than the confined, artificial air of 
a green-house. Experience. 
-- 1 o p --—- 
Yield op Berries per Acre. —A writer in 
the Ohio Cultivator says that two thousand 
quarts per acre is not an uncommon yield for 
the first crop of the American Black Cap Basp- 
berry, and that an average yield of three thou¬ 
sand quarts per acre can be obtained by a care¬ 
ful selection of plants and good culture. This, 
however, does not equal the strawberry crop of 
a farmer hi North Eastern Ohio, whose average 
product this season from about thirty varieties 
was at the rate of 2,240 quarts per acre, whilst 
Monroe Scarlet, Moyamensing Pine, and WL- 
aon’s Albany, gave 5 000 quarts per acre. 
