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; VOLUME II. NO. 1G. I 
! MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER: 
A WEEKLY JOURNAL, DEVOTED TO 
> Agriculture, Horticulture, Mechanic Arts and Sci- 
' ence, Education, Rural and Domestic Economy, 
General Intelligence, the Markets, &c., &c. 
{ CONDUCTED BY D. D. T. MOORE, 
\ ASSISTED BY 
J. II. BIXBY, L. WETHER ELE, and II. C. WHITE. 
5 Contributors and Correspondents: 
ROCHESTER, N. Y.-TIIUllSDAY, APRIL 17, 1851. 
THE POTATO ROT. 
L. B. EANGWORTHY, 
William Garbutt, 
S. P. Chapman, 
David Ely, 
Myron Adams, 
H. P. Norton, 
F. W. Hay, 
T. E. Wetmore, 
R. B. Warren, 
Archibald Stone, 
Chester Dewey, ll. d., 
.1. Clement, 
W. Wallace Shaw, 
R. G. Pardee, 
Samuel Moulson, 
Jas. II. Watts, 
IV. K. Wy’CKoff, 
W. II. Bristol, 
W. D. Ali.is, 
E. D. WlIITlNO. 
I And numerous others—practical, scientific, and literary 
writers—whose names are necessarily omitted. 
PROGRESS AND IMPROVEMENT. 
PLANT SHADE TREES. 
\ The subject of transplanting shade trees 
to ornament our yards and streets is one of 
| general interest, and we hope the following 
j remarks may be deemed seasonable, and 
j serve to incite to action in the matter. In 
| country and city, they add so much of health, 
beauty and convenience, that all who may, 
ahould seek to extend their benefits. 
We do not now intend to say anything of 
) the kinds be6t adapted to the streets of vil- 
> lages, the door-yards of dwellings, or the 
j road-sides of the country, but there can be 
( no great difficulty in getting any where 
( those varieties which experience lias prov- 
J ed to be the most durable, ornamental and 
) useful. Judgment and taste should be ex- 
^ ercisod in this matter, a? in all others._ 
■ With those trees that put forth their leaves 
> earliest should be mingled those that part 
l with their foliage latest, so that we can see 
( the first buddings of spring and the last 
! verdure of autumn. The locust, maple, 
> beech, oak, linden, willow, chestnut, and 
many others are all well fitted for this pur¬ 
pose, and may be safely used. 
It is to be hoped that the residents of all 
our cities and villages, who have not already 
done so, will not allow the season to pass 
without at least making a commencement 
towards rendering more beautiful their 
streets and walks by setting out appropriate 
trees. The expense and labor attending 
this very desirable improvement are so tri¬ 
fling, and the benefits resulting from it so 
general, that all should engage with enthu¬ 
siasm in the agreeable work. It has been 
tYuly said that there is nothing that makes 
home more attractive, or that is more pleas¬ 
ing to the eye of the stanger, than the trees 
that decorate the door yard or the wayside, 
and cast their cool and refreshing shade 
over the weary in the full tide of a mid¬ 
summer’s sun. It is in such places that the 
traveler seeks rest, and at that hearth there 
must be peace, when beauty makes so 
pleasant the path that leads to it. 
IIow much better it is to have finely sha¬ 
ding trees along our walks to lure to their 
spreading branches those little warblers 
whose songs we all love so well to hear, 
than leave them without these cheap, but 
very useful ornaments. Let there be an 
abundance of shade trees—there is little 
danger of their being too many. No dwel¬ 
ling should be without them. The happy 
influence which a general improvement in 
this respect would have, will a thousand ! 
times repay all trouble it can cause or 1 
cost, i 
It would be well if each one would do < 
this much for himself and village—to plant 1 
a tree and so take care of it that it shall 1 
grow and live. If the planter of it cannot 1 
always repose under its shadows, somebody 1 
else may, and who would not. leave some ^ 
oherished memorial behind a witness to the I 
kindly emotions of a noble heart, showing a 
that it was not wholly unmindful of the i] 
wants and happiness of others. s 
Lockporl, April 7, 1850. D. YV. B., Jr. g 
:i- Eds. Rural: —It would seem that the 
subject of the potato disease had been suf¬ 
ficiently discussed; or had been complete¬ 
ly exhausted by the many notions which 
e. have been brought forward to enlighten 
the world, and discover the cause of so 
much suffering and death in the countries 
of Europe, where this edible formed the 
main dependence of the laboring classes- 
I have been waiting particularly for 
something which would coincide with my 
y notions on this subject, but have seen noth- 
_ ing in confirmation of what I now state, 
except that the disease is caused by a. fun¬ 
gus, which I believe, and that this parasite 
exists on the plant long before the disease 
s shows itself in its effects, either on the tbps 
,f or tubers. 
g I have investigated this matter with a 
d great deal of care, and have found in nu¬ 
ll nierous instances, a sort of reddish mildew 
>, which would stain the hands like the rust 
r , from wheat straw. Now this was the case 
early in the season, in June while the plants 
if were in a luxuriant state of growth. In 
every case where I have observed this rust 
e on the tops the potatoes rotted badly, but 
e when the tops began to perish, there was 
e nothing of this kind to be seen—the plants 
- appearing clean, and nothing to indicate the 
I oause of the calamity. 
The fact of the existence of various kinds 
of fungii, which afflict different plants of a 
s higher organization is generally conceded, 
t and I am glad that the Genesee Farmer 
3 has taken up the matter and added some 
t light to this subject, the more thorough in- 
, vestigation of which should occupy the at- 
1 tention of our scientific men. I will here 
- state cases where the fungii, as seen by the 
naked eye is the cause of diseases, which 
1 cannot be denied. Rust in wheat, blight 
r in potatoes, fire blight in seedling pear trees, 
i mi'dew on exotic grape vines, curl on peach 
t l eaves m May, and smut in -different kinds 
• of grain. I believe that all plants must be 
s in a peculiar state of growth for the seeds 
; °f fungii to attach themselves, at least in 
the most luxuriant state; and rainy weath- 
i er while in this stage assists the seeds to 
attach themselves and germinate on the 
surface. When the first set of plants have 
matured spores they are set afloat by the 
wind, and disseminated through the air; 
and when these come in contact with what 
will afford nourishment, they take root by 
the aid of moisture, and thus again furnish 
seeds for future crops of the same, so that 
these seeds pervade the whole atmosphere, 
and consequently all vegetation is liable to 
be affected, some with one variety and some 
with another. We have evidence that the 
seeds of fungii are afloat, from the fact that 
all vegetation, as soon as decay commences* 
when exposed to the air, is directly covered 
by mildew, which is a species of this class 
of plants. 
In the month of June, 1849, during a 
long rain that occurred, the apple tree 
kaves in my vicinity, became covered with 
mildew, which after a few days, made the 
leaves curl and become dark colored, and a 
good part of them fell off. The fruit se t 
kindly enough, but after the leaves became 1 
I affected the fruit fell prematurely, so that ‘ 
there was but a small crop of apples. I s 
have heard people express their wonder at 
this circumstance-they thought it curious 1 
that the apple crop failed after the trees 1 
had blossomed.so fully. Peach trees have * 
been sadly afflicted by this malady for the 
past two years, and there has been almost 
an entire failure of the fruit in consequence, 
in Western New York. But when the sea- li 
sons come around, not favorable to the 1< 
growth of this parasite, or warm and dry v 
in the months of May and June, the peach 
B trees will again appear healthy. And also 
•_ in seasons that the weather happens to be 
unfavorable for the spores of the fungii to 
i attach themselves to the potato plants, bet- 
j ter and more healthy crops of this esculent 
5 will be produced. As a remedy, I think 
, that ammoniacal substances mixed with the 
} soil, so that plants ean partake freely 
of this stimulant, will act as a preventive, 
„ as its circulation in the sap of the plants 
r will prevent the fungus from taking root. 
Big Stream Point, March 10,1851. I. II. 
, ON DRAINING.- (No. 4.) 
Next, I wish to notice the two kinds of 
; swampy land. The first are those that are 
! supplied with water, by the fall rains, the 
’ melting snows and spring rains, which fill 
them till they overflow their banks. These 
1 swamps are the most numerous on level 
lands, the soil resting on a stiff clay. Where 
there is a sag, or basin, the water is held 
' until it evaporates in the heat of summer. 
Where such swamps are small, the ex¬ 
pense of fitting them for the plow, is not 
great, for in most cases a drain to the cen- 
' tre of the swamp will make it sufficiently 
dry for the plow. In case the swamp is 
large it may be necessary to extend the 
drain acrosss the swamp, with some side 
branches, extending to the border. But 
where the outlet to the swamp in wet 
weather is through a swale, cnc^ the inlet to 
another swamp, the drain should be com¬ 
menced where the water passes from the 
swamps into the brook or off of the farm, 
and extended through swale and swamp, 
which will make both, good land for grain. 
The other kind of swamps, are those that 
are mostly supplied by springs, which make 
out of the banks on their borders. These 
are more difficult and expensive to drain 
effectually, for as soon as the drain enters 
the swamp you have a surface on a water 
level to drain, and the water constantly 
coming in around the extreme border.— 
There should be a deep cut for the outlet, 
of at least four feet, where the drain enters 
the swamp, then give it an elevation of two 
or two and a half feet, in crossing, and lay 
off the side drains on the same elevation, 
which will give a brisk current to the water, 
if the swamp is not large. 
In building the drains from the main 
drain to the border, if the springs make out 
through quick-sand it may fill them at the 
ends, but as soorj as the water enters the 
swamp muck, it acts as a strainer to stop 
the sand and the water enters below it.— 
Though there may be some wet places 
where there is quick-sand yet the rest of 
the drainage would be perfect. 
I have frequently seen the plan tried, of 1 
cutting a ditch around the border to drain 
off the springs. But they shared the fate 
of Mr. M. Ct Crapsey’s, of Lockport, that 1 
J he laid sideways of the hill,—they were * 
too level to be useful long. Drain tile or ^ 
pipe would be better than small stone thrown 1 
into the ditch because they make a regular * 
water course,—but if there was much quick¬ 
sand they could not be depended on for a 
great length of time; the quick-sand would * 
fill' them, or any drain, unless there was f 
sufficient current to the water to keep the 1 
sand moving to the outlet. 
In my next I intend to give my views on 
what materials are the best to build drains t 
with, and shall speak more fully of laying \ 
them in future numbers. 
Alvin Wilcox. 
West Bloomfield, N. Y., April 4, 1851. 11 
THE PEA BUG. — (Bruchus Pisi.) 
The accompanying cut represents an in¬ 
sect well known to our farmers. It is a spe¬ 
cies of beetle, called by entomologists Bru¬ 
chus Pisi, and has made such ravages among 
peas in some parts of this country and Eu¬ 
rope, as to compel the inhabitants wholly to 
abandon the culture of this crop. Like the 
Hessian fly and grain weevil of Europe, it 
was introduced into this country in seed 
imported from abroad. As the economy 
and habits of this insect have been well in¬ 
vestigated, I will relate what has : been 
published concerning them, and give such 
remedies and preventives as are known to 
the writer. It is hoped that by diffusing 
information as to the habits and times of 
transformation of this and other insects af¬ 
fecting grains, some more effectual means 
may be devised of destroying or avoiding 
them. 
It will not do to hoe a great field for a 
little crop, or to mow twenty acres for five 
loads of hay. Better farm twenty acres 
well, than forty acres by halves. 
Early in summer, when the peas are in 
, flower and forming pods, the female beetle 
, deposits an egg in almost every pea. When 
, matured, the pea does not appear injured, 
but on close examination we can discover 
in each a minute black speck, which is the 
, larva. Dr. Harris says:—“ The eggs are 
laid only during the night, or in cloudy 
weather. Each egg is placed opposite the 
pea, and the holes through which they pass 
are so fine as scarcely to be seen, and are 
soon closed*’ 
The larva remains in the pea all winter, 
gradually consuming its internal substance, 
and in spring it is transformed into a per¬ 
fect insect, pierces the skin, and emerges to 
deposit its eggs in the new pods. The 
larva has a soft, whitish body, and a head 
small, scaly, and armed with strong and 
sharp-cutting mandibles. The maggot, 
when it reaches maturity, gnaws a circular 
hole to the husk or skin of the pea, and 
even ,cuts round the inner surface which 
covers the aperture—so that when changed 
to a beetle, by a slight dilation of its body 
it forces off the lid, and emerges the new¬ 
born Bruchus, as represented in fig. 3. Fig. 
1 is the size of life,—fig. 2, the same mag¬ 
nified. 
In many of the peas the insect will be 
found dead. Whether this arises from a 
lower temperature than they are accus¬ 
tomed to, not invigorating them sufficiently 
to leave their habitations, or whether they 
return to feed when they cannot make their 
escape readily, as is the case when the peas 
are confined in sacks or heaped up in a 
warehouse, has not been determined. 
The vitality of the seed is not always 
destroyed, as the egg is deposited in the 
side of the pea, where the insect when 
hatched emerges, usually leaving the germ 
uninjured. It is doubtful, however, whether 
the plants raised from such peas are as 
| strong and healthy as those from perfect seed; 
and they should therefore never be used 
for seed when it can be avoided. ' This in¬ 
sect, though common in all the older States, 
is almost unknown in Canada, owing per¬ 
haps to its not being able to withstand the 
severity of the Canadian winter. Hence 
thousands of bushels of peas are annually 
brought from Canada to the United States 
for seed. 
Remedies and Preventives. —Late sow¬ 
ing has often proved successful. If sown 
the last of May or first of June, the peas 
will not blossom or form their pods until af¬ 
ter the beetles have disappeared. But peas 
sown so late often suffer from drought, and 
rarely yield a very abundant crop. It is 
1 WHOLE NO. 68. 
recommended in Hovey’s Magazine to sub¬ 
ject the peas immediately after they are 
gathered, to the action of boiling water for 
one minute / by this means the larva are 
f destroyed, which are at this time just below 
the integuments of the pea, without affect- 
j * n S vitality of the seeds. If the peas 
> remain in boiling water four minutes, most 
[. them will be killed. To kiln-dry peas 
[ at a heat of 130° to 140° will answer the 
r sa me purpose, and does not destroy the 
germ. When they are intended for culin- 
( ar y purposes, some such means should al- 
( ways be taken to destroy the larva, as 
) instances are given by French writers where 
persons have been poisoned from eating 
p worm-eaten peas, containing the maggots 
and beetles cf the pea-bugs. 
Wm. P. Fogg. 
> Rochester, April, 1851. 
“GREAT YIELD OF SQUASHES." 
I^)s. Rural: —In the February number 
of the Genesee Farmer, page 41, I noticed 
an article headed, “Great Yield of Squashes.” 
One vine with all its branches measured 32 
rods and 4 feet; another, 40 rods—and 400 
pounds of squashes were grown from one 
seed. Truly, a good yield. 
I turned to my memorandum, for 1847, 
to compare a squash plant that I nursed, 
with those of Mr. Wilson, and found the 
following:—“Aggregate lengths of vine, 1,- 
915 feet 4 inches; weight of squashes, 525 
pounds; circumferance of the trunk, 12-^ 
inches; vine extended each way, 2 rods.” 
The seed from which this plant was grown 
was from a squash weighing 143 pounds, 
raised by Mr. Simeon North, of Middle- 
town, Conn. Mr. North’s description of 
them is found in H. L. Ellsworth’s Patent 
Office Report for 1844, page 435. From 
him I received by mail 10 seeds, and started 
four of them in flower-pots in the house, 
but by some mismanagement I lost all but 
one. This I transplanted in the garden, and 
to give it a wide berth I planted garden 
seeds six feet from it, each way, but plants 
in its vicinity were soon run over. It was 
a terror to small vegetables, - the wonder 
and admiration of all who saw it. On the 
15th of August, the leaves and vines were 
so immense that my father and myself tho’t 
it advisable to prune the vine, to admit the 
rays of the sun around and among the 
golden fruit—some of which by that time, 
measured 15 to 20 inches in circumference. 
No doubt an hundred or more were taken 
from the vine, and with all our care we sev¬ 
ered one of the best, (which is not taken 
Into the account,) and 316 feet 4 inches of 
vine. At that time it appeared as if one 
half of the whole vine had been taken away, 
but seemed to go ahead the faster, and 
when its progress was suddenly arrested by 
a severe frost, it was making as rapid strides 
as at any time during the season. 
I have never raised another of the kind; 
I consider them worthless for cooking and 
inferior to good pumpkins for cattle and 
hogs. It was a curiosity, and as great a 
nuisance in a small garden, as a sow and 10 
pigs. I preserved any quantity of the seed 
! and can furnish such of your readers as 
have a desire to be annoyed in this way. 
• J. W. Briggs. 
West Macedon, March, 1851. 
P. S. Shall I give you an account of an 
experiment with the Oregon corn ? 
Yes—give us the experiment.—E ds. 
Early Plowing. —Although clayey soils 
as well as others should be plowed early 
for spring crops, still they should not be 
disturbed while wet. The action of the 
plow compacts them in non-absorbent lumps 
which a whole season will scarcely dissolve 
again. 
