THE CULTIVATOR. 
23 
too long upon your time, suffice it at present to say, that 
I challenge all Europe to produce so much weight of 
mutton from another breed, as I can produce upon the 
same keep from the pure South Downs, and yet of such 
superior flavor : for I know from experience, that no 
sheep in Europe will live on such short keep, nor can 
any exceed them in symmetry ; and it may also be re¬ 
marked, that the fleece of the South Down sheep, (that 
of the ram weighing eight pounds,) has within these 
few years so much improved in quality, that a great 
part has been considered fit for the manufacture of su¬ 
perfine cloths. 
My brothers have lately exported rams to foreign 
parts, and a great many to Scotland, by which a cross 
has been gained that has nearly driven the native breed 
out of the country. 
I must in conclusion observe, that as I hold a situa¬ 
tion under government, and have no lands at my dispo¬ 
sal, I am unwilling to import these sheep, unless I see a 
certainty of disposing of them, and I can without hesita¬ 
tion warrant those to be of the purest blood. 
If you consider these remarks worthy of attention, I 
will thank you to give them a place in your valuable 
columns. I am, sir, your very obedient servant, 
WM. ELLMAN. 
J. Buel, Esq. 
Remarks. —We make no pretensions to be a judge of 
sheep, hut we do profess to have an opinion of mutton. 
We have tried the South Down mutton several times 
during the past year; and we would cheerfully pay 
one cent a pound more for it than for any other sheep’s 
meat we ever ate. The wool of the South Down bears 
a higher price in the English wool market than that ot 
any other native breed of sheep.— Cond. Cult. 
Ruta Baga. 
Easton , Pa. January 8th, 1839. 
J. Buel, Esq.—Dear Sir—Last season I have raised 
about one and a half acres of ruta bagas, yielding a lit¬ 
tle over 700 bushels. I am well pleased with the crop, 
as respects the quantity, considering the very dry and 
unfavorable season for roots; they are of great benefit 
to my cows, producing much richer milk and cream than 
any thing else I have ever fed them during the winter 
season, the milk being entirely free from any taste of 
the turnips, giving my cows a little salt every day. But 
with all these advantages, I have been much discourag¬ 
ed in the raising of this crop, it having been an immensely 
troublesome and expensive one to me; they were soAvn 
on ridges, in drills, with Merchant’s drill-barrow, and 
owing to the very dry weather, came up very thin, slow, 
and delicate and were immediately attacked by millions 
of insects (turnip fleas,) which I tried to stop by sowing 
all the drills with ashes and lime slaked in urine, but 
succeeded only partly, and was obliged to water the 
whole of them with urine from the cistern attached to 
my stables, which cleared them effectually from all in¬ 
sects. But during these operations the plants of course 
grew but very little and the weeds entirely overpowered 
them; (the ground being very rich) then after the horse 
hoeing, commenced a very slow and tedious hand hoeing, 
the plants in some places being hardly perceptible 
amongst the rank and thrifty weeds. A week or two 
afterwards we had to repeat the same tedious operation, 
and only after that, and after a few refreshing showers 
they took a start and commenced growing; when after one 
more horse hoeing there was nothing more done to them. 
Now my object is to ask Mr. Buel’s advice as to the 
practicability of a plan which I think of adopting hereaf¬ 
ter, and by which it appears to me that in the raising of 
the valuable roots, the above described, expensive, labo¬ 
rious, uncertain, and I think, general mode of culture, 
would in a great measure be overcome. It is this: I 
thought of sowing my seed eight days earlier in a well 
prepared seed, bed, where all the plants for one or two 
acres would be in a very small plat of ground, and where 
with little trouble they can be watered and protected 
from the flea. A few days belore I commence transplant¬ 
ing them, I would prepare my field for receiving the 
plants whicjh I then think would be too strong to be in¬ 
jured by insects or to be outgrown by weeds. (I judge 
from the few I transplanted last summer, from where 
they stood too thick in drills, and which at that time 
were very large and strong, and which all grew and 
turned out as fine turnips as any in the field, and besides, 
they were more smooth and had not so many roots as 
those not transplanted.) First I should commence re¬ 
moving the largest plants from my seed bed, and pre¬ 
pare and plant part of my field according to the number 
of plants that would be fit; by these means thinning 
them out and giving the smaller ones air and room to 
come on, for I think it of much importance to have all 
the plants stout and strong before they are removed, in 
which case the stems of the leaves will remain green 
and erect, and they will take a start immediately, and 
will then of course be.out of the way of weeds and insects. 
Another advantage I see in this mode, is that the plants 
will all be placed at regular distances and exactly as I 
want them; which cannot be the case if they are not 
transplanted, for some of them will be so placed that, 
if in thinning them out you remove the one, there will 
be too much space between the remaining and the next 
one, and if you remove neither, they will stand too close. 
I have often heard ruta bagas much praised as a vege¬ 
table for the table, but cannot make use of any of mine; 
we have tried them frequently and could never boil 
them soft; they would after three to four hours boiling 
still be hard; or are there different kinds, and mine per¬ 
haps not of a good kindfor the table 1 
I hope Mr. Buel will excuse this long letter, about a 
matter in which I may be entirely wrong, and in reference 
to which any advice from him would he thankfully re¬ 
ceived. I have never seen the above manner of raising 
ruta bagas recommended, and have therefore thought best 
to ask advice, before I attempted it, of a person in whose 
extensive knowledge in all agricultural matters I have 
the greatest regard and confidence. Very respectfully 
yours, FREDK. SEITZ. 
N. B. I consider the trouble of transplanting the ruta 
bagas nothing to be compared to the advantages arising 
from doing it. 
Remarks. —Our correspondent suggests the same 
mode of avoiding the turnip fly, and of obtaining a large 
crop, that Cobbett employed while farming on Long 
Island, viz. transplanting into fresh ploughed ground— 
and which he strenuously recommended to others. He 
obtained in this way, thirty-three tons of roots to an 
acre, and the transplanting of an acre, occupied him and 
one hand the morning and evening of three days, the 
middle of the day (August) having been too warm to 
work. The great difficulty is to get hands who can use 
the dibble with facility, and use it well. A smart man 
will transplant nearly one thousand m an hour, the 
plants being furnished to his hand by a boy. We have 
had ruta baga that would not readily boil soft; and we 
consider such of inferior kind, or planted too early, 
which is apt to render them ligneous or woody.— Con¬ 
ductor. 
Culture and profits of Melons. 
Narrows, L. I. January 18th, 1839. 
Mr. Bttet.—I will now endeavor to describe the man¬ 
ner in which we cultivate musk melons, and also state 
the produce and amount of sales from my crops of the 
preceding four years. 
The kind which we at present cultivate, and with 
which the New-York market is principally supplied, 
is known among us by the name of Skillman me¬ 
lons. They average about six inches in diameter, are 
nearly round, have a rough skin, and their flesh is of a 
green colour. This is the sixth variety which has been 
in vogue during my recollection, and the finest of them 
all. The seed from which all these varieties originated, 
I believe to have been imported from the coasts of the 
Mediterranean. They soon degenerate unless care is 
taken in the selection of the seed. We prefex for melons 
a rich sandy soil, and on this they flourish better than on 
any other, and are not so liable to speck in rainy wea¬ 
ther. When planted on a red clover sod I have seldom 
failed having a good crop, but when this is not to he had, 
we prefer preparing the ground by so wing with rye in Au¬ 
gust or September of the preceding year, as described 
in my former communication on the cultivation of cu¬ 
cumbers : the ground is also prepared in a similar man¬ 
ner in the spring, except that the hills are furrowed five 
feet apart, and the same kind and quantity of manure 
made use of. 
We generally commence planting about a week later 
than we do cucumbers, but occasionally at the same time, 
dropping from twenty to thirty seeds into a hill, and 
covering them about an inch deep with fine soil. Eight 
or ten days after putting in the first seed we commence 
planting over, which we seldom perform the second time 
unless by examination we find the first seed about to 
fail. The seed of melons is not as liable to rot as that of 
cucumbers, but long storms are very apt to destroy the 
young plants, and they will even produce great injury 
when the plants have vined from off the hills. In 1837, 
a succession of wet weather caused the ends of the prin¬ 
cipal part cf the melon vines in our vicinity to die as 
late as the 8th of July, but mine fortunately did not suf¬ 
fer as much as those of my neighbors. We cultivate the 
plants in the same manner as cucumbers, except that 
in hoeing, it is generally necessary to remove a small 
portion of the soil from between them, in consequence 
of their being too short to admit of the young weeds be¬ 
ing covered without injury to the plants. We gradual¬ 
ly thin them down to four in a hill, standing from five 
to six inches apart. The plants are liable to the depre¬ 
dations of the same species ol insects which prey upon 
cucumbers, and they are destroyed in the samemaaner. 
Melon vines are in bearing from five to six weeks; when¬ 
ever a drought occurs, this period is much less, for that 
of 1838 finished mine in four weeks. They often bear 
a second crop which answers for pickling, but I have 
known this crop to come to perfection. 
When the fruit is ripe, it requires to be gathered eve¬ 
ry day, otherwise there would be large quantities lost 
in consequence of becoming too ripe and soft. When 
ripe they have a yellowish colour, but such as are crack¬ 
ed around the stem and come off easily from the vines, 
we always gather, for they will be fit for eating by the 
next day, when sold in the markets. 
To ensure good crops, melons should not he planted 
two years in succession on the same ground; they re¬ 
quire a rotation. Marshall, an English writer, recom¬ 
mends the carrying of cucumber and melon seeds a 
week or two in the breeches pockets previous to plant¬ 
ing, to dry away some of the more watery particles: 
were we believers of this doctrine, it would be a difficult 
matter and require large pockets, ora regiment of small 
ones to cax-ry it into practice, since some of us, to secure 
our crops, plant from three to four bushels of seed in a 
season. 
The following is the number of hills planted, produce 
(large quantities of unsaleable ones fed to the hogs ex¬ 
cepted) and amount of sales for the preceding four 
years, viz. 
Year. Hills planted. 
1835, 6,664 
1836, 7,850 
1837, 8,011 
1838, 7,590 
Y ours, _ 
Bushels sold. Amount received. 
1,133 $939 10 
561 590 57 
990 913 56 
823 713 96 
TUNIS G. BERGEN. 
Great product of Sugar Beets. 
Albany, January 1838. 
Mr. Buel —Sir—The following account of a most ex¬ 
traordinary yield of the sugar beet, was communicated 
to me, in a letter, from Mr. Samuel Guthrie of Sacket’s 
Harbor. I regret he omitted to give his mode of culture, 
nature of the soil, &c. 8tc. as we could then probably 
profit by his experience. 
I cultivated a small patch last season, of sugar beets 
and carrots, but my crop did not begin to compare with 
his—still I am so well convinced and satisfied with their 
value for feeding stock, that I have determined to try 
them again, the coming season, should my life be spared. 
My cows, calves and hogs, prefered them to the ruta 
baga, while my sheep prefered the latter. 
I feed my horses carrots, one meal per day, and think 
them equal to oats—bushel for bushel—it not only keeps 
them loose, but gives them fine glossy coats. 
CALEB N. BEMENT. 
THE EXTRACT. 
“I observe in the Cultivator,” says Mr. Guthrie, “ that 
you had great success, last winter, in wintering hogs on 
ruta bagas. You have not probably given a trial to the 
French sugar beet. From some experiments I am induc¬ 
ed to think that theFrench sugar beets will prove to be the 
best and most economical food for the hog, to be found 
among the root tribe. In the same enclosure, last sum- 
Hier, I raised, ill Lilt; raliu to thcamount of ruta baga oF 
about 500 bushels, of carrots 937, and of French sugar 
beet llie very large quantity of 2176 bushels to the acre. 
The soil and advantages of culture the same in each. 
The ruta baga was greatly injured by insects, while the 
beet was without an enemy. The cost of the sugar beets, 
which, by the bye, were almost as white and smooth as 
hens eggs, scarcely exceeded one cent per bushel. I 
washed and sliced a quantity of ruta baga, carrots and 
beets, and fed all at once to my hogs, on a few occasions, 
and was induced to believe that the hogs gave the pre¬ 
ference to the sugar beet. I am zealously preparing 
for the purpose, and intend to feed a few thousand bush¬ 
els of French sugar beets another winter, at all times 
thoroughly steamed, with a slight admixture of bran, 
shorts, or ground screenings, and I have no doubt but 
I will winter a swarm of hogs in this way for a less ex¬ 
pense than has ever been heretofore done.” 
Hints to those who raise great Crops. 
New-York, January 18, 1839. 
Mr. Buel —Dear Sir—I take my pen with reluctance, 
inasmuch as I fear some unpleasant feelings may arise 
from what I have to say; but as I have no object in 
view but to vindicate the propriety of fairness and truth, 
I hope none will be offended. I have all the voluxrfes of 
the Cultivator, and the pleasure they have affoxdedme, 
has induced me to obtain several subscribers to the 
work. In so doing, I used no other argument than this, 
viz. that it contained more matter of fact than any other 
agricultural periodical I had ever met with, and I am 
sorry to say, that some recent communications are cal¬ 
culated to create wrong impressions. While reading 
the last, number, my attention was drawn to a close exa¬ 
mination of the several statements in relation to the 
corn and ruta baga crops, each of which foots up a large 
amount of profit, and that is the only point I shall now 
consider. Statements made up in this manner, are cal¬ 
culated to do injury, not to the experienced farmei - , but 
to the new beginners and persons unacquainted with 
agricultural pursuits. If you examine the statement of 
Mr Osburn, I think you will sustain me in this position. 
He states that he planted and cultivated three acres 
of corn, and that the cost of so doing was $61.80, and 
that the best acre produced a nett profit $87.71; had the 
other two acres produced as well, the whole profit would 
have been $263.13; i. e. if the statement is a fair one. 
I think it an unfair one, and believe many others will 
form the same opinion. It is difficult for us city people, 
who do little with corn but cook and eat it, to see how a 
farmer can buy and fence land and then furnish 50 
loads of manure to the acre; and think the expense too 
trifling to occupy a place in the accounts of his farming 
operations. This is what I complain of, telling the 
truth, but not all of it, leaving the uninfonned to guess 
at what is omitted in the debit side of the account, or 
pass it as unimportant, whilst on the other side, we find 
every thing set down with the most scrupulous accura¬ 
cy, even to the stalks and pumpkins, and yet the land, 
manure, replanting, shelling, gathering pumpkins and 
stalks are forgotten. Now I can believe that 118 bush¬ 
els of corn were raised on the acre, but must protest 
against the claim to so great an amount of the proceeds 
as profit—profit, you know is the pith of every thing, in 
these days, and if the farmers take the Frenchman’s 
plan of calling the amount of sales nett profit, I fear the 
stock will fail. But let us look a little farther, and see 
how the profit is made out. First, one man, two boys, 
one horse, and two cattle, worked at the manure ten 
days for $10. Only look at that to begin with. Why, 
sir, you or I would have asked that amount forl'ae board 
and keeping of the cattle during that time, and thought 
il little enough too. Then look at the hoeing; thirty- 
four days work of men and boys, horse and cultivator 
all for $13.87. Who could not realize large profits from 
any business with labor at that price. 1 do not mean 
