8 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
rom grass to hay, or where, from the ground being 
covered with snow, sheep are deprived of access to 
the turf, it is here pretty conclusively shown, must be¬ 
come a primary cause of disease, though the disease 
itself may not assume a formidable appearance for 
some time afterwards. The preventive suggested, is 
to give the animals, once a day, and particularly at 
the time of change in regimen, roots or other succulent 
food. So far as we have been advised, but very few 
sheep have died in flocks which have had a daily sup¬ 
ply of ruta baga, or other roots. Half a peck a day, 
or seven pounds and a half, would constitute an abun¬ 
dant ration. Estimating the average product of ruta 
baga at 600 bushels, two acres of these roots would 
suffice to feed one hundred sheep about one hundred 
days, or during the winter months, and would in a 
great measure supersede the use of hay. But as the 
ground is not ordinarily covered with snow more than 
six weeks or two months, half the quantity would ve¬ 
ry much contribute to their health and thrift. The 
observations of Mr. Daubenton apply, with perhaps 
no less force, to the ox and other ruminating animals, 
and suggest the value of green food, during the unre¬ 
lenting severities of a northern winter. As a substi¬ 
tute for turnips and other roots, we have no doubt 
that well cured corn stalks, cut and steamed, and gi¬ 
ven once a day, would answer a valuable purpose in 
counteracting the tendency in sheep to sickness, on a 
change from green to dry food. Browse, particular¬ 
ly the branches of resinous trees, as hemlock, spruce, 
pine, &c. it will be seen from the examination which 
is given to the subject, are also likely to prove highly 
beneficial; and even clay, by correcting the humors 
of the stomach, has undoubtedly been serviceable. 
Horticulture .—While agriculture supplies our abso¬ 
lute wants, horticulture, her sister, furnishes us with 
many of the innocent luxuries and delicacies of the 
table,—with a succession of choice fruits and vegeta¬ 
bles, grateful to the palate, and promotive of health,— 
and, as coming within the products of the garden, 
with a succession of fragrant and beautiful flowers, 
eminently calculated to add to our intellectual enjoy¬ 
ments. The inhabitants of large towns must be de¬ 
pendent, in a grea.t measure, for these rural luxuries, 
upon the market gardners of their neighborhood ; and 
the quantity and quality of the supply, and even the 
price, will materially depend upon the encouragement 
which is given to the producers—and upon the com¬ 
petition which is induced among them. Nothing 
tends more to bring into market choice fruits and ve¬ 
getables, at an early season and in quantities, than 
the emulation produced among the growers by pe¬ 
cuniary rewards ; and where this practice has obtain¬ 
ed, the most beneficial results have been experienced. 
The cities of Philadelphia and Boston have shared 
largely in these benefits, in consequence of the pre¬ 
miums which have been annually awarded by their 
horticultural societies. The Philadelphia society 
awards annually from three to four hundred dollars to 
gardners and florists, for articles exhibited at their 
monthly exhibitions ; and the consequence is, a con¬ 
stant improvement in the quality of the garden pro¬ 
ductions, and an increase in their quantity, which go 
directly and materially to benefit the consumers. We 
saw at the Philadelphia monthly show on the 16th 
May, a great display of fruit, flowers and vegetables ; 
among the latter, quantities of new potatoes, cucum¬ 
bers,. cauliflowers, lettuces, &c. We have referred 
to this subject with the view of impressing upon the 
citizens of towns, who depend upon the market for 
the productions of the garden, the patronizing horticul¬ 
tural societies, as the surest means of being better 
and more cheaply supplied. 
Mixed Crop of Corn and Potatoes .—John Lorrain 
planted ten acres of Indian corn, in rows eight feet 
three inches distant, and hills with three plants at 
eighteen inches in the rows. Between each row he 
planted two rows of potatoes. The product was 430| 
bushels of corn, and 848 of potatoes, or 43 of corn and 
84 of potatoes on each acre. At another time he 
obtained 50 bushels of shelled corn, and 150 bushels 
of potatoes from an acre. A gentleman has just as¬ 
sured us, that he made a similar experiment last sum¬ 
mer, alternating two rows of corn, at two and a half 
feet, and two rows of potatoes, with very great suc¬ 
cess. This mode of culture gives to the com the ad¬ 
vantages of air and sun, which it requires, while the 
shade of the corn does not prejudice, or but partially, 
the growth of the potato crop. 
Value of Ruta Baga. 
Our neighbor Bement has kept twenty of his Berk¬ 
shire hogs, mostly full grown breeders, from the first 
of November to the 15th of February, upon ruta baga 
and buckwheat, bran, at the rate of six bushels of 
roots and one of bran per diem, fed them two raw 
meals a day, and one warm meal, boiled. When he 
began to feed with the roots, the hogs were low in 
flesh; at the termination of the three and a half; 
months, they were too thrifty for breeding 4 , and some 
of them fit for the butcher. He estimates that four 
quarts of corn to each hog per day, for the time they 
have been fed with the roots, would not have brought 
them into a better condition than they now are. 
What then has been to him the value of his ruta 
baga! 
Four quarts of corn per day to each hog, 
would have amounted, in the 105 days, to 
262 bushels, which, at 75 cents per bu¬ 
shel would be,.....$196 50 
Add 105 bushels buckwheat bran, at 15 cts. 17 50 
And "It shows that the ruta baga was worth 
the balance, to wit,.....$179 00 
Which, divided by 630, the number of bushels fed out, 
[Fig. 
gives the value of a bushel, used in this way, at about 
28| cents. Deduct for the cost of raising, the quan¬ 
tity being about the average product of an acre, four 
cents the bushel, and it shows a nett profit of 24| 
cents per bushel, or of $154.25 per acre.' We call 
this a demonstration of the profits of root culture. 
Select Breeds of Cattle. 
We gave in our last volume, figures of the Improv¬ 
ed Short Horns, of the Devons and Ayershire cattle, a 
bull and cow of each. We now present two other 
cuts, one (fig. 2,) the Yorkshire cow, and the other 
(fig. 3,) the Devonshire ox, which are correctly copied 
from the most approved British works, 
o. 2.] 
This, says the author of British Cattle, is a fair 
specimen of one of these cows, the character of the 
Holderness and Durham beautifully mingling. These 
constitute almost exclusively the stock of the London 
milkmen, and the numbers there kept to supply the 
metropolis with milk, amount to about nine thousand. 
They are celebrated alike for their milking and fatten¬ 
ing properties. They are kept in houses, fed upon 
hay, turnips and brewers’ grams, and milked without 
being suffered to go to the bull, till they no longer 
yield a profit on their keep, when they are dried oft, 
and in a few weeks turned into good beef. They are 
said to give in some cases thirty, and even thirty- 
six quarts of milk per day. Loudon states the ave¬ 
rage product for the entire year at nine quarts per 
day—British Husbandry the average quantity given 
by each cow (probably when they are flush in milk 
only,) at twenty-two to twenty-four quarts. The 
good points of these cows are said to be well express¬ 
ed in the following doggrel lines, from the Farmer’s 
Magazine :— 
“ She’s long in her face, she’s fair in her horn, 
She’ll quickly get fat without cake or corn, 
She’s clean in her jaws, and full in her chine, 
She’s heavy in flank, and wide in her loin. 
She’s broad in her ribs, and long in her rump, 
A straight and flat back, without ever a hump, 
She’s wide in her hips, and calm in her eyes, 
She’s fine in her shoulders, and thin in her thighs. 
She’s light in the neck, and small in her tail ; 
She’s wide in the breast, and good at the pail, 
She’s fine in her bone, and silky of skin,— 
She’s a grazer’s without, and a butcher’s within.” 
Several of the Yorkshire cows have been imported 
into our country, on board the London and Liverpool 
packets, to supply milk on the voyage, though not urn 
der their proper distinctive name—having been gene¬ 
rally classed with the Improved Short Horns. One 
has been upon the farm of the Messrs. Townsends, 
which adjoins ours on the west, and another is owned 
by Mr. Bloodgood, whose farm adjoins us on the east. 
The latter, in February last, two weeks after she had 
dropped her calf, gave, upon moderate feed, thirty- 
three quarts and a pint of milk per diem. It is desi¬ 
rable that this valuable breed of milkers should be 
better identified, and their purity preserved among us, 
particularly in the great dairy district embraced be¬ 
tween lat. 40° and 45°. 
We have already given a general description of the 
Devon cattle, and the criteria of fine animals, vol i, p. 
26, 40. The figure (3) here presented is that of an 
[Fig. No. 3.] 
ox begun to be fattened, but still exhibiting all the 
irpminent points of the breed. “ Where the ground is 
not heavy, the Devonshire oxen are unrivalled at the 
dough. They have a quickness of action which no other 
'weed can equal, and which very few horses exceed. 
They nave also a degree of docility and goodness of 
temper, and also stoutness and honesty of work, to 
which many teams of horses cannot pretend.”— Bri¬ 
tish Husbandry. The greatest objection to Devon 
oxen is, that they are not stout enough for ploughing 
in heavy clay ; and for this reason the Hereford cat- 
tie, which are a cross of the Devon upon a larger ani- 
