H.-.6 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST, 
[December, 
Balnt Hie Trees.— S. D. Ball, of 
Clinton Co., Pa., writes that a neighbor of his had two 
fine sugar maple trees near his house, between which a 
bench was fixed for a rustic seat. In the Summer of 1860 
he painted the seat, and to make the whole correspond, 
the trees received two good coats of white paint, at a 
time when they were healthy and in full foliage. The 
trees put forth feebly last Spring, and have since died— 
no doubt from the effects of the paint. 
Barren Pear Trees. — J. W. Butcher, 
Northumberland Co., Pa. As your thrifty pear grafts are 
obstinate under bending the branches, compressing the 
sap vessels with strings, etc., we advise cutting back 
half of next season’s growth, say early in July. Perhaps 
you may find fruit buds on the grafts next Spring. 
Wliat Pears to Blant?— A Subscriber 
In Tioga Co., N. Y., asks what varieties of pears to plant 
for market, on 3 acres—standards to be set 20 feet apart, 
and dwarfs to fill up the spaces. Many others ask ques¬ 
tions of like character. The above query we handed an 
old nurseryman, who gave an assortment of 12 varieties of 
standards, and 22 dwarfs. We should say, choose only 
about half a dozen of the best kinds that have proved to do 
well in your own locality, and plant these mainly. You 
can then establish a market for these varieties ; whereas, 
if you have 30 or more kinds, you will have a large as¬ 
sortment, with no reputation and no established market 
for any kind. Are we, or the nurseryman right ? What 
say practical pear growers ? 
Bidtnell Pears—Large Yield..— Mr. 
T. M. Brewer, (of the firm of Swan, Brewer & Tileslon, 
Boston,) writes to the Agriculturist , that Mr. George 
Cushing, of Hingham, gathered the past season 23 bushels 
of Bicknell pears from a single tree. “ This variety, 
though but little known to the pomological world, or any 
where but in the Boston market, is an old and long ap¬ 
proved cooking pear. It is hardy, prolific, and for pre¬ 
serves, unequalled. It is supposed to have originated in 
Weymouth, and is largely cultivated in a few towns in 
that immediate neighborhood. It well deserves a more 
extended fame.” 
Slug's on Pear Trees.— J. W. Rugh, Pa., 
sends specimens of small slugs or insects which he says 
destroyed the foliage of his pear trees Jast Summer, con¬ 
tinuing their depredations even after frost. The speci¬ 
mens received were too much decayed to be recognized. 
He writes that he used ashes, quick-lime in powder, and 
toap suds on them without effect. He wants aid. 
Budding the Quince.— R. R. Pierson, 
New London Co., Conn. Certainly the Orange quince 
can be budded upon the pear quince stock. It is best to 
bud the small trees of % inch in diameter, putting in the 
buds close to the ground, say in August when the bark 
peels readily. Large trees may be grafted in early Spring, 
the same as apple trees. 
Keeping 1 Pears. — AV. S. Carpenter of West¬ 
chester Co., N.Y., kept his Bartlett pears in an ice house 
until Oct. 14th, when they sold for $6 per 100, or about $30 
per bbl. to dealers who doubtless retailed them at a profit. 
Cauliflowers. —Those who wrote so anx¬ 
iously about their plants not heading out in September, 
•re, we hope, gratified with fine heads. This plant does 
best in the cooler weather of October. 
Lentils .—(Ervum sativum.) A subscriber asks 
If any body in this country is growing lentils successfully. 
He thinks they ought to be raised among us in large 
quantities, as they afford a fine cheap food for men as 
well as for animals. Esau sold his birthright for a pot of 
them. They resemble beans, but are better to the taste. 
“Self Drying Beans.”— John Musser, 
Lancaster Co., Pa. The beans received under the above 
name were planted, and yielded moderately well. They 
were dried on the vines as directed, and though a good 
sort, we do not see that they differ from the Lima; 
and other pole varieties in respect to drying readily. Ah 
kinds of beans not quite ripe at frost, may be dried on the 
poles, or be shelled and dried, and they make a very good 
dish when cooked afterward, tastintr partly like cooked 
*7 beans, and partly like cooked green beans. 
Planting Potatoes in the Pall.— 
CTnarles F. Raymond, Fairfield Co., Conn., writes to the 
American Agriculturist that last year, after digging his 
notatoes, he at once replanted the ground in drills. The 
old tops were placed in the drills with the potatoes ; this 
kept the soil light, and afforded protection from freezing. 
The plot yieldod well this year, and the potatoes were 
free from rot. The subject of planting potatoes in Au¬ 
tumn was somewhat discussed in the Agriculturist a few 
years ago, and we thought the testimony pretty strong 
against the practice as a general rule. If not below the 
reach of frost, they will be frozen, and spoil. 
A Long Squash Vine.— Emmor Brinten, 
Delaware Co., Pa., writes to the American Agriculturist 
that a Hubbard Squash vine raised from seed distributed 
from this office, grew to the length of 207 feet, in¬ 
cluding the length of the laterals ; the main vine was 54 
feet long. Only 6 squashes, weighing in the aggregate 40 
lbs. were ripened upon it. Probably more fruit would 
have been secured if the vine had been shortened by 
pinching off the ends of the branches after the fruit had 
fairly set. 
Yield of White Sugar Beets.— A rath¬ 
er poor plot of ground which received a little bone dust 
last year, the only manure in a dozen years, was sown 
June 3d, with White Sugar Beets in drills. Bone dust 
was sown on the surface at the rate of 12 barrels per acre, 
and dug in. The crop, gathered Nov. 8, measured, after 
topping, within a fraction of 600 bushels per acre, worth 
at least 15 cents per bushel, or $70 per acre for feeding. 
Deducting $30 for bone dust, leaves $60 per acre for ex¬ 
pense of culture and profit. Sec next item. 
Yield ofMaugel Wurzel. — A plot by the 
side of the above, treated every way the same, and sown 
and harvested at the same dates, yielded 670 bushels of 
mangel wurzels. Considering the lateness of the plant¬ 
ing, and the subsequent dryness, and taking into account 
that most of the bone dust is still in the soil, we think 
the above shows profitable cultivation. The preparation, 
sowing, and hoeing, w r ere done at odd spells, and can not 
be estimated ; but $30 per acre would be a large figure. 
■Waite’s Eclipse Turnips. — On trial, 
we find this new variety to be a nice, smooth turnip, yel¬ 
low skin, white flesh, and dark red top. For some rea¬ 
son, perhaps its goodness, it is with us much injured by 
insects, so much so that on lifting the roots early in Nov. 
a good many were bored through and rotten. We hope 
this trouble has not been experienced elsewhere. We 
distributed many thousand parcels of seed among our sub¬ 
scribers the present year, and would like to hear from 
some of them. Our Long White French turnips in the 
same field were untouched. 
“ riiinese Climbing Bean.” —Speci¬ 
mens under this name, called “ Towhawk ” also, received 
from J. Webbjr., Marysville, Cal., proved on growing 
them, to be the same as the “Yard Bean” long known 
here, and said to be the kind most grown by the Aborigi¬ 
nes or American Indians. 
Blow Many Seefls in a Bushel ? —An 
uncredited newspaper item is going the rounds, which 
gives the following as the number of seeds in a bushel: 
Timothy or Herds-grass, 41,828,360 seeds ; Clover of me¬ 
dium size, 17,400,990 seeds ; Rio Grande Wheat, fair and 
plump, 559,288 kernels ; Rye 898,880 kernels. As there 
are 43.560 square feet, or 6,272,640 square inches in an 
acre, it is easy to estimate how thickly a bushel of seed 
would cover the ground. We shall be glad to receive an 
actual count of the number of different kinds of seeds in 
a bushel, from some one who has the requisite time and 
curiosity. An ounce accurately weighed and counted, 
would readily give the bushel count by multiplication. 
The bushel weight is: Wheat 60 lbs., or 960 ounces ; 
Rye 56 lbs.; Corn 56 to 58 lbs.; Barley 48 lbs.: Oats 32 
lbs.; Clover Seed 60 lbs.; Timothy Seed 42 to 45 lbs. The 
list might well be extended to several other common seeds. 
Vitality of Seeds.— S. D. Leeds, Chautauqua 
Co., N. Y.—There is great difference in the duration of 
vitality in seeds. Those which have much oil in their 
composition spoil rapidly, owing to the fatty matter be¬ 
coming rancid. Seeds of different character, particularly 
those protected by a shell, retain their germinating power 
much longer. Cucumber seeds have been kept good 
nearly 20 years, corn 30 years, and wheat for more than 
1000 years. It is said that kernels of wheat found in a 
mummy case in Egypt were sprouted and yielded in¬ 
crease. Seeds keep best in a cool, dry situation. 
Strawberries Blooming in Novem¬ 
ber. —A. M. Scriba, of Westchester Co., N. Y., brings 
to our table blooms and green strawberries of all sizes, 
taken from his bed of Wilson’s, Nov. 2d, and says many 
of the plants are in flower and fruit. We have seen and 
heard of many similar instances this year, some being 
as far north as the middle of Vermont. The absence 
of frost, with warm weather and Autumn rair s started the 
plants anew, especially those that were too weak to beat 
in June, and they are attempting to produce what they 
failed to do at the appropriate season. This late bearing 
will probably weaken the plants for next year. 
Second Crop of Grapes.—A few day* 
since, (Nov. 5th,) Mrs. Cune, Kings Co., N.Y., sent to the 
office of the American Agriculturist a bunch of well ripen¬ 
ed Isabella grapes, as a specimen of the second crop 
grown on the vine this year. 1 he flowers of this growth 
appeared in August, and the unusually prolonged warm 
weather brought forward 16 bunches of good grapes. 
Hydrangeas not Hardy.— S. H. Kridel- 
baugh, Page Co„ Iowa. Hydrangeas will require a slight 
protection in your climate—a few evergreen boughs or 
bundles of straw set up about them and well tied, or a 
box or barrel, with holes for ventilation, may be set over 
them. They will endure considerable freezing. 
A “ Bin Cushion Cactus,” sent all 
the way from San Peto Co., Utah, by A. L. Siler, came in 
good order, and now forms a living addition to our plants. 
Prairie Flowers.— A. Hitchcock, Fillmore 
Co., Minn. Your specimens are : No. 1, Escholtzia Cali- 
fornica ; No. 2, Whitlavia grandiflora ; No. 3. Schizanthus 
pinnatus ; No. 4, Silene Armeia ; No. 5, Eutoca viscida. 
Everlasting Flower.— Geo. Gordon, Mt. 
Healy, C. W. The flowers and seeds sent are the Gom- 
phrena Globosa, or purple globe amaranth (“ everlasting 
flower.”). There are also yellow, white, and striped va¬ 
rieties, but the purple is the most desirable. We shall 
offer seed of this plant in our distribution. We have 
fine bouquets of the brilliant yellow varieties, and speci 
mens of the purple, which will be “in bloom” all Win 
ter, and for years if desired. 
Taxes on Canada Thistles. —A corres¬ 
pondent of the Rural New-Yorker proposes that a tax be 
laid upon Canada Thistles. A good idea. Dogs are tax¬ 
ed in some of the States, because of the injury done by 
them to sheep, but we doubt whether they have caused 
half the damage resulting from the spreading of Canada 
Thistles. A tax ‘ well laid on ’ would wake up some “ Rip 
Van Winkle ” farmers, who can be reached only by a di¬ 
rect application to the pocket. 
Orchard Grass.— Charles II. Rue, Mon¬ 
mouth Co., N. J. Orchard grass is generally considered 
less valuable than Herds-grass, being coarser, less nour¬ 
ishing, and apt to grow in clumps or tussocks. It is priz¬ 
ed by some cultivators because of its rapidity of growth, 
ability to endure drouth, and to grow well in the shade. 
When intended for mowing, it should be sown with clover. 
It may be sown in September, or with Spring grain. Ono 
bushel per acre with clover, or two bushels when sown 
alone, is the proper quantity. 
To Destroy Sorrel.— Subscriber, Boston, 
Mass. Try lime, or ashes, on the soil c'tntl with sor¬ 
rel. This, with thorough tillage, will usually eradicate It. 
Draining, manuring, and good tillage will generally erad¬ 
icate sorrel, which only comes in to fill up blanks on poor 
or exhausted soils where better crops will not grow. 
Remedy for Weevil.— A “ Reader ” of 
the American Agriculturist states that he entirely destroy¬ 
ed the weevils that had badly infested a grain bin for two 
or three years, by keeping it filled with plaster of Paris a 
few months. It should be understood that this insect 
(Calandria granaria ,) is a small beetle, and not that which 
infests wheat in the field, and w’hich is sometimes improp¬ 
erly called the “ weevil.” Midge, or Wheat fly is the 
correct name of the latter.—We do not see what better 
effect could be derived from plaster of Paris, than from 
the same quantity of fine sand or fine soil. Lime should 
be better than any of these, theoretically, at least. 
Mint on Whitewashing-.— David AVhite, 
Bergen Co., N. J., writes that all walls to be white washed, 
should first be washed with clear water, and dried before 
the mixture is applied. This will remove the dust, enablo 
the whitewash to adhere better, and give a whiter color 
when the work is finished.—A thorough brushing with a 
stiff blush or broom, will generally suffice, unless the 
walls be much soiled. 
Water Bipes of Cement.— 1 “ Subscriber.” 
Cement pipes for conveying water may be substituted for 
iron or lead, where they will not be exposed to the ac 
tion of frost. Full directions for making th°m were pub 
lished in the Agriculturist Vol. XIX, pace 341. (Nor N<x 
