REVIEW OP THE AUGUST NUMBER OF THE AGRICULTURIST. 
367 
"boiling point, and suffering it gradually to cool. 
After twenty-four hours, to decant the water from 
the seeds, and select such as have opened, for im¬ 
mediate sowing. He also recommends another 
mode, and perhaps a somewhat more economical 
one, so far as time is concerned, which is, to sub¬ 
ject the seeds to the action of nitric acid mixed in 
the proportion of half an ounce to two quarts of 
water. The seeds are to he steeped in this mixture 
for twenty-four hours before sowing, and the water 
kept tepid, or slightly warm, by means of an oven 
or stove. By this process, the perfect seeds will at 
once evince signs of vitality and germination, while 
those which remain unaffected at the end of twen¬ 
ty-four hours, will probably be unsound, and may 
be thrown away. An experiment is related in 
Wither’s u Treatise,” by the results of which, it 
appears that “ immersion in hot water accelerates 
germination, but tends to destroy or injure the 
seeds.” Mr. Loudon, in his “ Arboretum Britan- 
nicum,” remarks that, steeping Australia and Cape 
acacia seeds for twenty-four hours, in water which 
had been poured on them in a boiling state, or 
nearly so, accelerated their germination nearly two 
years. Great caution should be observed, how¬ 
ever, in experiments of this kind, as even a short 
continuation of seeds in water at the temperature 
of 212° F., must of course destroy the vital prin¬ 
ciple. 
The seeds should be sown in a good, free, warm 
soil, rather rich than otherwise, an inch or two 
apart every way, and covered with finely-pulveri¬ 
zed earth, from a quarter to three quarters of an 
inch deep. In fine seasons, the plants will grow 
from two to four feet in height, the largest of 
which may be removed in the following autumn, 
to the places where they are finally to remain, and 
the others may be transplanted into nursery lines. 
In regard to the removal of the locust, Loudon ob¬ 
serves, that “it will transplant at almost every 
age. and with fewer roots than almost any other tree.” 
The trees should never be suffered to stand nearer 
than fifteen feet apart, in any soil, and should they 
be consigned to a soil thin and light, they should 
be planted at least twenty feet asunder. As they 
advance in age and growth, care should be taken 
to clear out all broken branches or dead wood from 
their tops, and to keep down their suckers, which 
will sometimes issue from their roots, where the 
soil is moist and rich. Under favorable circum¬ 
stances, the plants will sometimes produce annual 
shoots from six to eight feet long for several years 
after planting; whereas, in wet or poor soils, they 
will not exceed one fourth of this length. After 
the first ten or twelve years, upon good land, the 
locust will probably have attained a height of fif¬ 
teen or twenty feet, with a diameter of three or 
four inchesand then its growth, in general, be¬ 
comes very slow ; and few trees, at the expiration 
of fifty or sixty years, will be found over fifty feet 
in height, and one foot in diameter. 
To Improve the Quality of Fruit. —The qual¬ 
ity of the fruit of a grafted tree is said to be im¬ 
proved if you graft it over with the same variety, 
provided your scions come from a tree whose fruit 
is of better quality. 
REVIEW OF THE AUGUST NUMBER OF THE 
AGRICULTURIST. 
Topping Corn .—The experiment suggested by 
the editor ought also to be tried as to what effect 
the stripping the leaves from the stalks has upon 
the grain, as at the south, the stalks are never cut, 
but “pulling blades,” is done to a great extent. 
Many farmers depend entirely upon “ blades” for 
winter feed, and never use hay. I fully agree 
with the editor, that this is a subject of vast mo¬ 
ment to the farmers of a large portion of the Uni¬ 
ted Statesand if it is a fact, that topping corn 
does lessen the crop by “ one fifth,” or even one 
twenty-fifth, the practice ought to be abandoned 
at once. It is probable that one fourth of the com 
crop of this country is annually stripped of its 
stalks or leaves, and if by so doing it deducts one 
fifth from the yield, it will lessen the amount a vast 
number of bushels. Perhaps there is no more im¬ 
portant subject discussed in your columns than this 
one. The experiment will never he sufficiently 
well tried until some of our agricultural societies 
offer premiums large enough to warrant the trouble 
and expense of making the trial in different parts 
of the country, for several years. Who will be 
the first to move in the matter ? 
Green-Sand Marl .—The value and importance 
of this singular and but little known substance, is 
hardly thought of by many who are aware of its 
existence. In fact, its existence was known for 
many years before it was ever thought of as a 
manure. No doubt, that, hereafter, other things 
will, like this, be accidentally discovered to pos¬ 
sess fertilizing properties, and that many other 
farms, lying along the marl belt, will, like Hr. 
Bartlett’s, be found to possess valuable beds of this 
fertilizer; and it is well worth the attention of 
those interested, to make careful examinations. 
The great difficulty, however, is the want of faith 
among those who are equally as much interested 
as Hr. B., but who, unlike him, would never un 
dertake to haul such a substance three miles to 
convince themselves of its value. I know men 
now, who laugh at the idea of hauling “ green 
sand” for manure. It is only by the slow process 
of the example of such men as Hr. Bartlett, that 
they will finally become convinced. And some of 
them will not give up when they actually see the 
effects upon his fields. They fight against light 
and reason. 
Adulteration of Food , No. 2.—We read the 
account of these adulterations, with wonder and al¬ 
most incredulity. Yet are we constrained to be¬ 
lieve, and then inquire what is the remedy ? In 
buying a barrel of flour, we cannot stop to examine 
whether one fourth of the quantity is made up of 
“ potatoes, beans, peas, Indian corn, rye, chalk, 
bones, powdered white flints, plaster of Paris,” and 
1 know not what other indigestible substances. If 
the adulteration of flour is carried on to the extent 
that many believe, particularly for exportation, it 
becomes Congress as much to look into that matter 
as after the adulteration of drugs. And it certain¬ 
ly would become our “ city fathers” to devise 
means to prevent our buying and eating so many 
drugs in our bread. But there is one thing to be 
1 borne in mind in relation to mixing these drugs, or 
