AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
sea 
Roses—Make cuttings ff. ; pot for forcing 
f. to m. 
Seedlings and other Plants well rooted— 
Transplant f. to m. 
Sow Mignonette, Clarkia, and a few others 
ff., to bloom during the winter. 
Stocks and Wall Flowers—Lift and re¬ 
move to the house IT., if wanted to bloom 
during the winter ; pot them in light loamy 
soil, and keep shaded for a season, sprink¬ 
ling them with water often. 
Succulents—Remove to the houses ff,, 
and place those requiring the greatest heat, 
under glasses. 
Syringe less frequently, and only during 
dry weather, unless it be with whale oil 
soap to destroy insects. 
Tender Plants—Watch closely, and re¬ 
move to the houses early, before they are 
checked by the cool weather. 
Tuberous Plants—Keep dry. 
Verbenas—Make cuttings and layers for 
winter blooming ; pot and take in f. to m. 
Water less frequently this month, in the 
morning rather than evening, Large plants 
in tubs will not require water more than 
once or twice a week, but they should then 
have enough to wet them thoroughly. 
OUR experiments' with new varieties 
OE PEAS. 
Four new varieties of these (from Ger¬ 
many), received through the Patent Office, 
were planted May 12. They were drilled in 
parallel rows, side by side, on a light sandy 
loam, with a small quantity of fine bone-dust 
put into the drills, and watered occasionally 
with sink slops. 
1. Daniel O'Rourke. —Peas rather under 
the medium size ; vines dwarfish, or 20 to 
25 inches high at maturity. These were 
ready for the table June 26, or in forty-five 
days from planting. Eating quality fair, but 
nothing extra. They were harvested and 
re-sown on the same ground July 15, and 
now (August 15) are in bloom again. With 
early planting two crops can easily be raised 
on the same ground. A medium bearer: 
chief merit: great rapidity of growth, and 
very early maturity. 
2. Dwarf Hamburg. —This is true to the 
name dwarf, as at maturity the vines stood 
upright, and were not above six inches high. 
The vines were well loaded with pods, but 
owing to their smallness, this variety can¬ 
not be considered very productive. These 
were full medium size, and ready for table 
June 29, or in forty-eight days from plant¬ 
ing. Eating quality fair: early maturity 
their chief recommendation. Harvested and 
replanted on same ground July 15, and now 
in second bloom. 
3. Dwarf Mammoth. —This is a slower 
grower than the above, as it was not ready 
for the table until July 25, or in seventy-four 
days from planting. But with this excep¬ 
tion, it is the finest garden pea we have ever 
raised or seen. It is very large, literally a 
mammoth pea, with a rich sweet flavor. 
The vines average about two feet in bight, 
and bear pretty well. 
4. Capucine. —A tall and slow growing 
pea, of large size and purple color, when 
cooked green or ripe. Ready for table July 
31, eighty days from planting. They cook 
mealy when green, but the dark purple color 
is against them, and the flavor is not equal 
to the Marrowfat, we think. 
For family use we shall next season plant 
the Daniel O’Rourke in succession, and a 
few Dwarf Hamburg for use up to the time 
of ripening of the Dwarf Mammoth, and 
make the Mammoth our chief reliance. Its 
superior size and flavor, little bushing re¬ 
quired, and successive ripening of pods on 
different parts of the same vines, are all de¬ 
cidedly in its favor. We trust somebody 
will import a large quantity from Germany, 
that, the seed may be generally distributed. 
—[En. ‘ 
IMPROVING SANDY SOILS. 
AN ILLUSTRATION SHOWING THE PROFITABLE¬ 
NESS OF APPLYING SKILL AND CAPITAL TO THE 
RENOVATION OF POOR LAND. 
A few days since we received a call from 
a Pennsylvania farmer who occupies a very 
sandy soil in one of the pine regions of that 
State. He referred to the great advantages 
he had derived from hints thrown out. from 
time to time in the Agriculturist, and as an 
illustration recalled an article we wrote 
several years ago, in reference to the 
treatment of sandy soil with clay. He, and 
afterwards several of his neighbors, had fol¬ 
lowed our suggestions, and sundry barren 
sandy fields are already as fruitful as a gar¬ 
den. He described particularly one field of 
five acres, which, prior to 1849, would 
scarcely yield twenty bushels of corn to the 
acre, no matter how well manured, but 
which in 1855 produced 388 bushels of nice, 
sound shelled corn, that is, over 77£ bushels 
to the acre, ivitliout any manure. The treat¬ 
ment was as follows : 
In the Fall of 1849 men were set to work 
upon a bed of clay, situated in a deep valley 
upon one side of the farm. The ground was 
laid out into alternate strips, or beds of six 
and thirteen feet wide. The narrow strips 
were then dug out to the depth of four feet, 
the clay removed being thrown out upon 
either side, and piled upon the edges of the 
wide strips. An outlet at the lower end 
of the several ditches thus made, drew 
off any water that settled into them. In 
the middle of the wider strip a smooth space 
remained between the masses of clay piled 
upon either side, for the passage of a double 
team with a cart or sled. 
When the ground was covered with snow 
in winter, the clay was taken upon ox-sleds 
and drawn about one-third of a mile to the 
sandy field above referred to. The surface 
of the heaped clay was frozen from six to 
twelve inches in depth, but being pretty 
thoroughly drained of water, it was easily 
broken into lumps with the aid of axes and 
crow-bars, and tumbled upon the low-built 
sleds. One hundred loads were applied to 
the acre during the first winter. In the 
spring the masses of clay crumbled down 
quite finely, and they were then spread 
more uniformly over the surface than could 
be done in the winter. A roller, followed 
by a harrow, was then passed over the field 
to break up and distribute the lumps of clay 
evenly over the surface. As soon as dry 
enough, the field was plowed five to six 
inches in depth, and a very heavy, long- 
tooth harrow passed over it. It was again 
plowed deeply, say eight to ten inches, har¬ 
rowed deeply and thoroughly, and the corn 
planted. The yield that year (1850) was 
287J bushels, or 57^ bushels per acre. An 
adjoining field, having a similar soil and lo¬ 
cation, and planted at the same time, ave¬ 
raged twenty-one bushels per acre. Another ♦ 
similar field, at a little distance, which had 
received twenty loads per acre of yard ma¬ 
nure, yielded 37 bushels to the acre. In the 
Fall of 1850, the clayed field was sown to 
wheat, and produced 97f bushels, or 19f 
bushels per acre. In the winter of 1851-2, 
it was again treated to fifty loads per acre 
of clay, worked in as before, and corn plant¬ 
ed in 1852. The crop was estimated at 65 
bushels per acre, but not accurately mea¬ 
sured. In autumn, wheat was again sowed, 
and clover seed added in the spring, which 
furnished considerable feed in the fall of 
1853. It was mowed in 1854, and pastured 
in autumn. 
In the spring of 1855, the field was plow¬ 
ed and planted to corn, and yielded as above 
— 11\ bushels of shell corn per acre. A 
heavy crop of wheat has just been removed. 
The cost of claying the land is estimated 
at $20 per acre, where one hundred loads 
were drawn one-third of a mile ; the actual 
cost was less than this, as the work was 
chiefly performed at a time when little else 
could be done by the teams, or by the work¬ 
men, who were employed by the year. 
It will readily be seen by an arithmetical 
calculation, that one hundred loads to the 
acre gives about one load to each plot of 
twenty feet square. Our informant esti¬ 
mates the loads of clay to have averaged H 
to 2 tuns each. He says that where he 
added sixteen loads to the acre, or one to 
every square rod, the soil, which was before 
almost entirely sand, is changed to a com¬ 
paratively rich loam, to the depth of nine to 
twelve inches—the last three plowings hav¬ 
ing been made to that depth. His land is 
now permanently improved, and will, without 
doubt, pay back annually a ver.v large inter¬ 
est upon the capital invested in claying it. 
To show how this is, we may make the fol¬ 
lowing estimate, say for the last year’s 
crop, allowing that, owing to a favorable 
season, the field in its original condition 
might have yielded 30 bushels of corn to the 
acre, or 150 bushels in all. 
BEFORE CLAYING. 
Cost of plowing, &c., 5 acres, say—$10 00 
Cost of seed and planting. 7 00 
Cost of hoeing and cultivating. 12 50 
Cost of haryesting & husking 150 bu. 12 00 
Interest, on land, at $10 per acre. 3 50 
Total cost.$45 00 
150 bushels of corn at 40c. 60 00 
Net profit on 5 acres.$15 00 
Net profit per acre. .. 3 00 
