VOLUME V. NO. 27.1 
ROCHESTER, N. Y. - SATURDAY, JULY 8, 1854. 
S WHOLE NO. 235. 
font's gttwl g£to-|«Iur: 
A QUARTO WEEKLY 
Agricultural, Literary, and Family Newspaper. 
CONDUCTED BY D. D. T. MOORE, 
ASSISTED BY 
JOSEPH HARRIS, in the Practical Departments: 
EDWARD WEBSTER, in the Literary and News Dep'ts. 
Corresponding Editors: 
J. H. Bixby, —H. C. White, —T. E. Wetmore. 
Thk Rural Nkw-Yorkkr is designed to be unique and 
beautiful in appoarance, and unsurpassed in Value, Purity 
and Variety of Contents. Its conductors earnestly labor 
to make it a Reliable Guide on tbe important Practical 
Subjects connected with the business of those whose in¬ 
terests it advocates. It embraces more Agricultural, Horti¬ 
cultural, Scieutifie, Mechanical, Literary and News Matter, 
interspersed with many appropriate and handsome engrav¬ 
ings, than any other paper published in this Country,— 
rendering it a complete Agricultural, Literary and 
Family Nkwsrapkr. 
For Terms, &c., she last page. ^3 
Progress and Improvement. 
RAISE YOUR OWN CLOVER SEED. 
Of the great value of clover on all wheat 
farms we have often reminded our readers.— 
The most economical method of increasing the 
acreage production of any wheat farm, is, iu 
our opinion, by growing a large quantity of 
red clover, and plowing it under or consuming 
it on the farm, by sheep and other stock, iu 
summer and winter. This is owing to the fact 
—fully established alike by experiment and 
common practice—that clover—a leguminous 
plant—requires for its growth a different pro¬ 
portion of the elements of plants, in the soil, 
from that required to produce wheat. Peas, 
beans, tares, and probably other leguminous 
plants, to some extent require similar qualities 
of soil to red clover, and, in a good degree, 
produce a similarly beneficial effect on the fer¬ 
tility of a wheat farm. Dut our object is not> 
at this time, to enter into a consideration of 
the rationale of this subject, or to recommend 
the increased cultivation of peas, beans, tares, 
lentiles, &c. There are some practical objec¬ 
tions to these crops, which retard their exten¬ 
sive culture; but clover is, iu every respect, 
suited to American agriculture, it grows most 
luxuriously, occupying the land, to some ex¬ 
tent, conjointly with other crops,—is liable to 
no disease,— requires no cultivation except 
what is required for the crop with which it is 
sown, the only expense being the cost of seed; 
and our climate is so well adapted to the pro¬ 
duction of clover seed, and each farmer can 
raise his own so cheaply, that the expense of 
growing clover is, or may be, merely nominal. 
The cost of red clover seed in England, the 
climate not being hot enough to ripen it, is 
seldom less than $15 per bushel; and twenty 
ibs. per acre are frequently sown for the pur¬ 
pose of insuring a crop, and, after all, the crop 
is quite precarious. The turnip crop is called, 
and most justly, “ the sheet anchor of British 
agriculture.” It appears to us that, when all 
things are taken into consideration, the same 
may be said, with equal truth, of Run Clover 
on all American wheat farms. 
In order to induce farmers to sow as much 
clover seed as will be to their interest, we 
know of nothing more necessary than to per¬ 
suade them to raise their own clover seed ; for 
when a farmer has to pay one dollar per aero 
to the city seedsman, or his neighbor, for seed, 
lie will not be likely to sow so much clover as 
though he had raised his own seed, at a com¬ 
paratively trifling expense. We were over a 
farm a few days ago, where the owner said lie 
paid last spring over Si00 for clover seed. On 
asking him why he did not raise his own, he 
said that he had “ no field of clover but what 
was too large to be spared, and he had no time 
to fence off a portion.” lie was well convinc¬ 
ed that it was cheaper to raise his own seed, 
and agreed with us, that he would sow more 
land to clover, had he abundance of seed with¬ 
out paying cash fur it. There will be, gener¬ 
ally, some little difficulty attending raising clo¬ 
ver seed; but let every farmer be well satisfied 
that it is a “consummation devoutly to be 
wished,” to be spared the temptation of sowing 
less clover seed than his judgment tells him 
would ultimately be profitable, and every ob¬ 
stacle will give way before an earnest purpose. 
The largest crops of clover are generally 
raised by grazing the clover with sheep till the 
middle of May, and allowing the clover to 
grow and go to seed. But the common meth¬ 
od is to cut the first crop for hay. In this case 
the earlier it is cut the better, and if it is mown 
in showery weather, though the hay will run a 
little risk of being somewhat injured, yet the 
second crop will get a good start, and the seed 
be all the better for it. After the first clover 
is cut, a bushel of plaster sown per acre, will 
much improve the growth of the second crop; 
though, as it has a tendency to prevent early 
maturity, and as there is much danger from 
early frosts, it is seldom used. The only injury, 
however, frost does clover seed is in checking 
its growth; after the seed is matured, the 
severest frost will not injure it, so that there is 
no danger iu letting it remain in the field till 
quite late; and now that we have several ex¬ 
cellent machines for taking off the heads of 
clover seed, thus avoiding the expense and 
labor of curing the clover in cool and wet 
weather, it may be left out late in the fall 
without any loss or inconvenience. Of course, 
in selecting a piece for clover seed, care should 
be taken to have it as free from all weeds as 
possible, for weeds spread rapidly enough with¬ 
out fanners being at the trouble of sowing 
them with their seed. We repeat, raise your 
own clover seed, and never, if possible, sow a 
field with wheat or barley without seeding it 
down with 10 to 15 lbs. of red clover per acre. 
It will pay, even though you plow it up the 
next spring. 
WILL UNDERDRAINING KILL QUACK GRASS ? 
We continue to receive answers to Mr. 
Joiinston’s query as to whether “ a farmer in the 
State of New York ever saw quack grass 
growing on land that was dry,” and all without 
exception iu the affirmative. As the commu¬ 
nications are similar to those already published, 
we have concluded to “ lay them under the ta¬ 
ble,” and glance for a moment at the positions 
of the disputants. 
We understand Mr. J ohnston to assert that 
Quack, Twitch, Couch ( agopyrum repens,) or 
by whatever name it is known, is an “ aquatic 
grass,” and that it requires for its growth more 
water thau any other grass, and sufficient to 
ruin the wheat crop; and furthermore that by 
thorough underdraining it may be destroyed. 
To none of these assertions can we fully assent. 
There is no evidence that Quack is in any 
sense of the term an aquatic plant, and none 
I has been adduced by Mr. Joiixstox. That it 
delights in more moisture than our commonly 
cultivated and nutritious grasses, or than the 
wheat plant, none will question; but that it 
requires more for its growth we cannot admit. 
That underdraining alone will kill it, few, we 
think, can seriously believe; but as this is the 
point on which Mr. J ohnston’s position rests, 
we will consider it particularly, for, if it con¬ 
flicts with observed facts, it follows that the 
other assertions are equally faulty. 
In introducing a letter from Mr. Hilditcit 
an English correspondent, in the Rural, of 
May 6th, we observed that the Couch or 
Quack was the “ great pest ” of all the light- 
laud farmers of Great Britain, and Mr. H.’s 
letter was in reference to a new mode of de¬ 
stroying it by double plowing. Now Mr. Hil- 
ditch is one of the best practical farmers of 
England, and we know that his farm has been 
for many years most thoroughly vnderdrained; 
it is, therefore, perfectly evident that if under- 
draining would kill Quack grass, there would 
be none on this farm, and the resort to doable 
plowing, instead of several plowings, harrow- 
ings, &c., would be unnecessary. Mr. John¬ 
ston will admit that underdraining is more 
generally practiced in G reat Britain than in this 
country, and lie cannot but be aware that 
Quack grass is infinitely more troublesome on 
British farms than it is with us. 
It is certain, therefore, that underdraining 
will not kill Quack grass. But it is also equal¬ 
ly certain that it will greatly retard its growth 
and extension. This is well understood in En¬ 
gland. We well recollect walking over a tur¬ 
nip fallow iu the spring with an intelligent 
English farmer, and observed that about four 
acres of the field was completely covered over 
with heaps of Quack grass, which, by repeated 
plowings, harrowing, rolling, &c., had been 
worked out of the soil, and were then ready for 
burning (the burning, with all due respect for 
our friend's practice, cannot be recommended; 
far better draw the Quack off and mix it with 
stable manure and cover the heap with loam; 
in this way it makes a most valuable compost,) 
while, on the other portion of the field, there 
was scarcely any Quack. On asking the rea¬ 
son he said “ the couchv part is not under¬ 
drained, while all the rest of the field is.” This 
case came under our own observation, but such 
facts are every where to be met with and are 
well known. We believe, therefore, that while 
underdraining will not kill Quack grass, it is 
one of the best of means for accelerating its 
extermination by the ordinary processes of 
summer fallow, and other cultivation, and that 
Mr. Johnston is more than half right. 
’ ABOUT ROOT CULTURE. 
The following excellent dialogue is from a 
late number of the Wool Grower and Stock 
Register. Those who desire a farther ac¬ 
quaintance with the writer, will find his whit- 
tlings in future numbers of the journal named: 
Whittling Shingles. 
Scene. —Mr. Plow-handle’s front room. Time — Just 
after tea. 
Persons. —The Editor; John, and his family. Tiie Edi¬ 
tor commences by apologising; to Mrs Plowhandle for 
whittling in the room. John insists that it’s a much more 
genteel pastime than smoking,as no one is thus compelled 
to inhale the tobacco vapor which lias been blown from the 
mouth and nostri's of another. The habit of using tobac¬ 
co, except as a decoction for kiliiug ticks on sheep, he 
calls vile and filthy. The lady very good naturedly says she 
likes to have her husband pleased, aud to hear him talk, 
and to confess the truth she says he always talks better 
when he whittles; besides she lias a broom iu the other 
room and knows , how to use it. At tea the subject had 
been roots, and it is again commenced by the 
Editor — The fact is, John, you are decidedly 
stupid. You dislike any kind of labor that re¬ 
quires care. What you can do with your plow 
or cultivator, is all very well, but any thing that 
requires hand labor, or patience, you dodge, if 
possible. 
John —Well, I confess to a great dislike to try¬ 
ing to grow any other roots except potatoes. This 
getting down on your hands and knees and crawl¬ 
ing along on the ground all day hunting out young 
onions, or juvenile carrots, or ruta bagas, and pull¬ 
ing the weeds from them, is a leetle too small a 
business for my big hands and stiff back. 
Editor. —But there is very little need of having 
the weeds get so very troublesome. 
John —I should like to know how you can pre¬ 
vent that evil ? 
Editor —In the first place you should use ma¬ 
nure that has been composted aud is well rotted, 
so that no seeds can grow from it. Then you 
should, if possible, follow after some hoed crop, 
where the ground has been kept clean. 
John —Suppose that can’t be done ? 
Editor —Then sow your seed as soon as you 
can after preparing your ground, so that the weeds 
will not get the start of your plants. After niv 
ground is harrowed for the last time, I reverse the 
harrow and go over it again, which leaves the 
surface quite smooth. Then' with a marker I 
make the drills, and sow the seed either by hand 
or with a seed plauter. If the seeds come up 
before the plants appear, I have the ground well 
hoed over between the rows. 
John —But you don’t get rid of hand weeding 
yet? 
Editor —No. Nor can it be entirely dispensed 
with. Yet, if well hoed between the rows it re¬ 
quires bat little labor to hand weed, and generally 
only once if well done. 
John —Yes ; but that once is the trouble. Be¬ 
sides, to confess the truth, I have no faith in your 
roots. 1 had rather have one acre of good Indian 
corn, than all the roots you can grow in a whole 
township. 
Editor —Did you ever use them any, good 
John ? 
John —Yes, sir. Some three years ago. Bull, 
the Englishman who bought out Slack, over in 
the hollow, told great stories about what he had 
done, and seen done in England with rutabagas ; 
and to do him justice, he had a fine field of them 
iu the fall. So, to please the children — by the 
way your Wool Grower lias turned their heads. 
The Children — But it’s filled your pockets, 
father. For it was only last week you were 
boasting to the neighbors that it had saved you 
hundreds of dollars. 
John —Well, never mind that, now. I put in 
half an acre, and we harvested Ml four hundred 
bushels of as nice bagas as you ever saw. Bull 
came up to see them, and confessed he never saw 
handsomer at ’omc. We had got the elephant, 
but what to do with him. Bull said they were 
used for fattening cattle and sheep with great 
profit. So I tried the critter. I fed the oxen, and 
I fed the cows, but the more I fed them the less 
fat they got. And the upshot of it all was that 1 
made up my mind I could make more beef or 
mutton from one acre of corn than all the roots 
that would grow on the farm. 
Editor — Have you tried carrots, and mangel 
wurtzels ? 
John —Yes, I have tried them all, and think 
my cattle, and sheep, and horses would do just 
as well on basswood sawdust, and snow balls, as 
upon any kind of roots. The fact is, the whole 
subject of roots is one of your book farming hum¬ 
bugs, and no mistake. 
Editor — So, what is not in your thick head is 
not worth knowing. Ah! my good John, I 
should be out of aU patience with you if there 
were not a great many other stupids, besides 
yourself. In the first place you don’t like to raise 
the roots because it’s too much smaU work—a 
puttering job you call it. And then you don’t see 
any good in it Your first experiments failed be¬ 
cause you did not feed properly. 
John —I would like to know why ? 
Editor —You shall. In England and Scotland 
the farmers would not be able to pay their rent 
but for the turnip culture.—I may say root culture 
for they are not now confined to turnips as form¬ 
erly, but use the beet, particularly the mangel 
wurtzeL And the cultivation is constantly ex¬ 
tending. Now, the farmers there find that they 
could not live without the roots. 
John —But they have no Indian corn as we do ? 
Editor —All true. But our corn would not and 
does not make‘a good substitute for roots, where 
it’s worth eveu no more than 50 cents per bushel. 
Root feeding is but,little understood in this coun¬ 
try; and great improvements are being made 
abroad in regard to this subject. Perhaps you 
will better understand some of the benefits by 
my giving you the results of some very carefully 
made experiments by a gentleman in Scotland 
some two years ago. 
He was in the habit of feeding about 250 steers 
yearly; and one fall he selected 60 from the lot, 
as nearly alike as possible ; these he divided into 
10 lots, 6 in each lot. Ten different experiments 
were tried. Some were fed witli turnips or beets, 
three times a day; some only twice, with hay or 
straw, or bran meal. They all consumed about 
the same quautity of roots, but the profit was not 
in the quantity of the roots consumed, so much 
as the gain of other feed. One lot in particular 
he fed with roots morning and night, but at noon 
he fed each bullock 4 lbs. of cut straw, and 4 lbs. 
of bran meal cooked, and they had no other hay, 
straw or meal Others were fed with same, dry, 
and hay instead of straw. But the result. of> all 
was, that the most profit was made upon the lot 
fed with the cut straw and 4 lbs of meal cooked. 
And so conclusive were the experiments consid¬ 
ered, that the best feeders now adopt the plan of 
feeding the noon meal of cut straw and oil meal, 
or bran meal, 4 lbs. of each for eacli ox weighing 
from 1,200 lbs. to 1,400 lbs. live weight — aud 
from 80 to 120 lbs. of root.s morning and evening. 
But it is essential to the good condition of the 
animal that it be kept warm, and it does not re¬ 
quire water when fed as that man fed his. It is 
true that roots alone fatten but slowly. But a 
light feed of meal with the roots makes the whole 
more profitable than either alone. 
John —This cooking business looks like a great 
bother to me. 
Editor —You only have to cook the straw and 
meal together—not the roots. It’s a small matter 
for the number you or I should feed. A tub or 
barrel would hold straw enough for 10 or 15 head 
of cattle. Set it in the wood-house or swill-room, 
turn on hot water, stir in your meal and cover it 
up tight, and the whole would be sufficiently 
cooked by the time you would want it. 
• John —I have a good kettle set in an arch in 
my piggery, and it would be no great trouble to 
cook for 20 head, if that’s all that’s necessary to 
do. But will it pay to feed ? 
Editor —Now you are sensible, John. That’s 
the question,— Will it pay ? Much depends upon 
circumstances. My own opinion is, it will. We 
must have manure. No manure, no crops; no 
crops, no cattle ; no cattle, no manure. On a good 
grain farm it will pay if judiciously managed, even 
if you get nothing for your trouble but the manure. 
John —Y ou don’t mean that! ‘ 
Editor —Yes, I do mean just exactly that, and 
no more. If you cau get pay for your grain and 
straw a fair price, and your money back for your 
animal, and your net profit is only the manure, I 
think you are well paid. The manure we must 
have, and I know of no cheaper method of making 
or getting it. But if you use any kind of judg¬ 
ment in making your purchases, you canuot fail 
to realize a good profit aside from the manure. 
The Children —Well, father, let us try it again. 
Our hands are smaller and our backs liinberer 
than yours, and if you please, we will raise the 
roots and corn and feed them this winter to the 
fattening cattle as the Scotchman did. 
Editor —Do, boys, and I will come again next 
winter and see how you get along. But you 
would do well to get up a good pile of muck and 
bogs out of the swamp this summer to litter the 
cattle with during the winter. It will help you 
out with your manure finely. 
John —I intended to ask your advice about 
getting my front yard fixed up, what trees to put 
out, and the best way of doing it, but the con¬ 
founded roots have taken up all your time. Sup¬ 
pose you stay all night. 
Editor —Can’t do it now, my good John, but 
another day we wiU talk about the trees. So good 
night all. 
TnE value of live stock in the U. S., accord¬ 
ing to the last census, is $600,000,000. 
SHEEP DIPPING APPARATUS, 
Most of our readers probably know that in Great 
Britain, especially in warm showery weather, sheep 
are very much troubled with the maggot-fly, 
a species of muscar. We have known the mag¬ 
gots to make such progress during a few showery 
days as to kill the sheep, and even if this does not 
happen, the wool either comes off or is much in¬ 
jured. To guard against this, a week or ten days 
after shearing, the sheep are dressed with the “ fly 
powder,” which generally lessens the evil. Re¬ 
cently, dipping the sheep iu some liquid prepara¬ 
tion has been adopted with very beneficial results. 
It kills ticks, keeps off the fly, and, the advertise¬ 
ment says, promotes the growth of the wool. i 
The apparatus most used for this purpose is the 
one represented by our engraving, which we saw 
at the Crystal Palace last fall, and which, we 
presume, is still on exhibition. It consists merely 
of a tank somewhat in the form of a common 
bathing tub, with planks for platforms. Upon 
the right hand platform is a grating, and as the 
end of the platform nearest the tub is a little lower 
than the other end, the liquid which drains from 
the animal as it is pressed out of the tub, on the 
grating, will ruu back by means of grooves iu the 
plank beneath the grating, into the tub. Thus 
little of the preparation is lost. Five men will 
dip 500 sheep in a day. Happily our sheep are 
seldom troubled with these flies, except from 
gross negligence in tagging, Ac. This is probably 
attributable to our comparatively dry summers, 
and also to tire compact nature of the wool of 
Merino sheep. Whether the long wooled English 
sheep are much troubled with the fly here we are 
not informed. We should judge not, however, 
otherwise we should have heard of it. Such an 
apparatus, therefore, is not generally necessary on 
an American farm. In case of scab or other skiu 
diseases, when it is desirable to apply a liquid 
preparation it would be found valuable. Any 
ingenious farmer could make an apparatus of this 
kind in a few hours. 
