1865.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
149 
der, sow five to ten bushels of quick lime, 
and harrow it in; then drill in another four bush¬ 
els of corn per acre to plow under just before 
frost. By this means two coats of green manure 
will be plowed under, which will furnish more 
humus, or vegetable mold, than any other plants 
will supply in one season. The spring follow¬ 
ing, plow with narrow furrow slices, as soon as 
the soil is dry, but no deeper than usual, sow 
five or eight bushels of quick lime per acre, 
harrow it in, and drill in one bushel of spring 
rve per acre. Then sow eight pounds of Early 
Red Clover seed and half a bushel, or seven 
pounds, of Orchard Grass seed per acre. If the 
ground be at all lumpy, roll it before sowing 
the grass seed. As soon as the rye has come 
np, sow two or three bushels of gypsum per 
acre. The chief object of the rye is to shade 
the young grass, should there be much hot 
weather. As soon as the rye begins to head, 
mow it all off with grass scythes, a foot or more 
high, letting it remain wdiere it falls. If the 
rye be allowed to go to seed it will exhaust the 
fertility of the soil. Keep all stock olF the grass 
that it may become well rooted. Should it at¬ 
tain a large growth by autumn, it may be fed 
off in part; but in general it is best not to do so. 
The next spring sow three or four bushels of 
gypsum per acre, and all the wood ashes leached 
or unleached that can be obtained, unless pre¬ 
viously applied. If the grass be grazed off, it 
should not be fed very close to the ground. It 
is better to mow it, make hay, feed it to sheep 
or neat cattle, and return the manure as a top¬ 
dressing for two years. Then plow the usual 
depth with a common plow, following with the 
subsoil plow, and plant Indian corn one season, 
sow peas the next, and feed out most or all the 
crops to swine, sheep, or neat cattle, and make 
as much manure as practicable to return to the 
soil. The next season, if the soil be adapted to 
w'heat, -winter wheat may be sowed after peas, 
and the ground stocked down in autumn with 
Timothy and the late kind of Red Clover; the 
next spring, there will be a sufficient quantity 
of mold in the soil to commence a system of 
rotation of crops. The best soil should be kept 
near the surface. It would be bad manage¬ 
ment to plow such soil deep with a common 
plow, though the subsoil plow may in very 
many instances be used to advantage. 
Adams’ Patent Weeding Hoe. 
In the Agriculturist for February we gave 
illustrations of several unpatented weeding im¬ 
plements, and we now give one which is patent¬ 
ed and therefore likely to get into the market. 
Some of our correspondents were disposed to 
blame those who patent simple contrivances, 
but it is to be considered that one who patents 
an article, usually takes pains to introduce it, 
to manufacture it cheaply on a large scale, and to 
inform the public where it may be had. When 
an unpatented contrivance is published in the 
papers, but few persons are willing to go to the 
trouble of having a single implement made, and 
the thing does not become generally introduced. 
It is with these views that we notice a simple 
■weeder made by Wm, C. Street, of Norwalk, 
Conn., of which the essential parts are shown 
in the engraving. It consists of a straight bladed 
hoe, fastened to a shaft, to one end of which 
a wheel is attached, and at the other end is a 
handle, not shown in the engraving, for push¬ 
ing it. The shank of the hoe is adjustable by 
means of screws to allow it to be set at a proper 
hight. It is used by a pushing motion and will 
be found very useful in weeding onions, carrots, 
and similar crops. A stouter pattern is made 
for use upon garden walks, and carriage roads. 
How to Pitch Manure. 
As pitching manure is laborious work, it is 
important to render the labor as easy as possi¬ 
ble by the exercise of skill in handling the fork, 
or shovel. The accompanying illustration of a 
laborer pitching manure with a long-handled 
fork, will illustrate the manner of performing 
easily with skill Avhat is usually done by 
main strength. To pitch easily, thrust the fork 
into the manure, and make a fulcrum of one 
knee for the handle to rest on. Then a thrust 
downw'ard with the right arm will detach the 
forkful from the mass of manure and elevate it 
from one to two feet high, by the expenditure of 
little muscular force. By using a fork like 
a lever, as here represented, a man can pitch 
larger forkfuls, and more of them with far less 
fatigue, than he can -ndthout resting the handle 
across his knee. When manure is pitched with 
a short-handled fork, the force required to sep¬ 
arate the forkfuls from the mass, as well as for 
lifting it on the cart, must be applied by the 
muscles alone. This often renders it fatiguing 
and back-aching labor. Moreover, when a man 
pitches with a short-handled fork, he applies his 
force at a very great disadvantage, as he is re¬ 
quired not only to lift the entire forkful with 
one hand, but to thrust downward with the 
other one sufficiently hard to balance the force 
expended in detaching and elevating the forkful 
of manure. Consequently the arm nearest the 
manure must expend muscular force sufficient 
to raise the weight, say, of two forkfuls. This 
principle is quite as applicable in using the 
shovel as the fork. By resting the long-handle 
across one knee when shoveling, keeping the 
arms stiff, the body erect and straight, a slight 
thrust of the body and knee will force the shov¬ 
el into the earth with the expenditure of little 
force. These suggestions, and the illustration, 
will enable any one to expend his muscular 
force to the best possible advantage in using 
both manure-forks and shovels. 
It is better to suffer the worst that may hap¬ 
pen at once, than to live in perpetual fear of it. 
In childhood always be modest, in youth 
temperate, in manhood just, in old age prudent 
The Best Corn-marker Yet. 
Corn, potatoes, sorghum, etc., in straight rows, 
not only look well and show careful work, but 
are much more easily hoed and cultivated. A 
good marker therefore is a very desirable im¬ 
plement The one figured below is of an ex¬ 
cellent form. It consists of three runners, R, 
four feet long, two inches thiek, and eight inch¬ 
es wide. The three runners are held together 
by two hard wood bars, a, a, eight feet long, 
four inches wide, and one inch thick. Mortises 
are made in all the runners, two inches from the 
top edges, through which the bars run. They 
are pinned fast in the middle runner; but the 
side runners are fixstened with loose pins, so as 
to be shifted and make marks at any desired 
distance, from two to four feet apart. B, B, re¬ 
present two strips of hard tough wood an 
inch and a half thick, and three inches wide, 
bolted firmly to the bars passing through the 
runners. These strips receive the coupling irons 
of a light carriage pole. A seat, S, is fastened on 
these strips, bolted to which are stout ash 
handles connected by two “ rounds” near the 
upper ends. A gauge pole (G) is hinged by a 
staple to the middle runner in front of the .seat, 
so that it may be turned on either side, and a 
chain attached to it at the proper distance drags 
in the last made drill. This marker may be 
drawn by one stout horse if desired; it is easy 
to make, and has points of superiority to many 
other forms. The marking may begin at the 
side of the field or in the middle, following 
a row of stakes; and after the first marking, 
the driver should keep an eye on the gauge 
chain, to see that it is drawn directly in the last 
mark. At the same time he should cast his 
eyes forward to see that his team is moving in 
the right direction. It is important to keep a 
steady rein on the team, and not guide them ab¬ 
ruptly, to the right and left. A good driver lets 
the horses move along with a slack rein, instead 
of driving them with a taut line; and one 
who is accustomed to hold a slack, and appa¬ 
rently careless rein, will usually mark ground 
in straight rows without worrying a team. 
Weeds in the Fence-hows. —A fire will 
often run very well in the old weeds and grass of 
the fence-rows and along the walls, and at any 
rate the bush-hook, or brush-scythe may be used 
to advantage in cutting every thing close to the 
ground, so that the operation of mowing the 
weeds off may be repeated as often during the 
summer as the weeds make a good growth. The 
burning is very desirable to kill the seeds, and 
if w’atched, will not damage the fence. With a 
stout team and plow the fenee-strip may be torn 
up, where the land is not too stony, turning the 
fuiTow outward, often better at this season than 
at any other. Buckwheat sown in such ground 
is one of the most effectual means of killing 
weeds. It may be sowed early, cut when ripe, 
and sowed again, or left to sow itself, the old 
haulms being raked off. Shrubs, blackberry 
vines, etc., are eradicated by the same means. 
