agriculture 
PROGRESS AND IM I'ltOV ID MK>TI 
FOR THE WEEK ENDING SATURDAY, MARCH 22, 1862 
! WHOLE NO. 636 
This insect was doubtless imported from Europe 
with our seed peas. For many years after its ap¬ 
pearance. here, it was unknown in Canada, and even 
now is not very injurious, we believe, though we 
often see samples of Canada peas that show its work. 
This is the reason why we have so long depended 
upon Canada for our best seed peas. Occasionally 
we have seasons that are unfavorable to the insect, 
and good crops are grown, and it is generally 
admitted, we believe, that a cold, wet spring is 
favorable to a crop. In St. Lawrence and some of 
the Northern counties of this State, peas are grown 
in perfection, and we never saw •liner samples 
than have been grown in Allegany county. 
Early planting, it has been suggested, would pre¬ 
vent the attacks of the insect; but we have no hope 
from this course; for every onu will notice iu plant¬ 
ing “ buggy ” peas on a warm clay that, the “bugs” 
are ready to lly away. We cannot, therefore, get 
the start of them. Late planting is a better course, 
and a sure preventive, we think. Peas planted from 
the first to the tenth of June, will not form pods 
until after the beetles have disappeared. But peas 
sown so late very often suffer from drouth and mil¬ 
dew, and seldom yield an abundant crop. This, we 
think, is, and will be found, the general experience, 
though we know of some who say they seldom fail 
with late planting. Perhaps, in a cold, damp, 
heavy soil, late planting may prove successful. 
The beetle is destroyed in the peas by pouring 
boiling water over them, and allowing it to remain 
one minute, which will not injure the germ. Kiln- 
drying at about 130 degrees will produce the same 
effect If proper care were exercised in killing all 
beetles in the peas, the ravages of this insect would 
be grefttly curtailed. 
MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
THK LEADING AMERICAN WEEKLY 
RURAL. LITERARY AND FAMILY NEWSPAPER. 
CONDUCTED BY D. D. T. MOORE, 
With an Able Corps of Assistants and Contributors. 
CHAS. D. BRAGDON. Western Corresponding Editor. 
The Rural Nkw-Yorker is designed to be unsurpassed in 
Value, Purity, Usefulness and Variety of Contents, and unique 
and beautiful in Appearance. Its Conductor devotes his per¬ 
sonal attention to the supervision of its various departments, 
and earnestly labors to render the RURAL au eminently Reliable 
Guide on all the importaut Practical, Scientific and other 
Subjects intimately connected with the business or those whose 
interests it zealously advocates. As a Family Journal it is 
eminently Instructive ami Entertaining—beirift so conducted 
that it eau bo safely taken to the Hearts and Homos of people of 
intelligence, taste and discrimination, It embraces more Airri- 
cultaral, Horticultural. Scientific, Educational, Literary and 
News Matter, interspersed With appropriate and heautiful 
Engravings, than any other journal,—rendering it the most 
complete Agricultural, Literary and Family Newspaper 
in America. 
ty Enr Terms and other particulars, see last page. 
INQUIRIES AND NOTES. 
Field Culture of tliu 1’cn. 
Gan you inform a subscriber of the value of the Pea for a 
field crop ? It. is considered one of the most valuable in 
Europe, but U seldom grown here. I have grown some, and 
am we.ll satisfied with the result. Would it not be greatly to 
the advantage of American farmers to cultivate, this legumi¬ 
nous plant more generally. Would not information on the 
mode of culture be valuable to many readers of the Rural V 
Jackson Co., Mich., March, 18C2. Farmer. 
Peas are used very extensively in Europe in 
making pork, and they- also constitute', a cheap 
article of diet, and ate in common use. Here onr 
corn crop furnishes material for fattening, and white 
beans seem to take Ibo place of peas for human 
food. Dried beans \vn tlunk are seldom used iu 
Europe. Peas, no doubt, might bo grown to great 
advantage in some sections of our country; and we 
know a successful farmer who claims that there is no 
better or cheaper way to enrich land than to sow 
field peas broadcast, and as soon as they begin to 
ripen let the fatting hogs have the range of the field. 
The haulms, with the manure, is plowed under, and 
greatly improves the fertility of the soil. From five 
to ten thousand bushels of peas are brought every 
year to this city from Canada, at a cost of from 
seventy-fire cents to one dollar a bushel, and the 
inquiry has often been made why we cannot grow 
peas enough for our own consumption. The difficulty 
is, the pea-bug, ( Bruchus Pisi,J has been so destruct¬ 
ive in its ravages as almost to compel the abandon¬ 
ment, of the crop. If the peas arc consumed in tbo 
fall, but little evil results; but when kept over, they 
are about destroyed. The appearance of this insect 
when magnified is shown in the engraving, and 
We are assured that the above engraving correctly 
portrays two of a lot of twelve hogs, fed the past 
season and recently killed by Mr. I). R. Prindlk, 
of East Bethany, G' nesoo cf.nty, N. Y. Mr. I’, 
claims lhat his porkers were a eery good illustra¬ 
tion of the old udage. that “it's a good deal in the 
swill pail breed.'' They were, however, of fair 
breed, though no particular pains had been taken in 
that direction, and were of too small bone to make 
great carcass or weight. They were of a mixed 
breed—mainly Native and Suffolk. When killed, 
these hogs were a little over 1!) months old, and 
dressed about 540 lbs. each. They were remarkably 
above portraits as proof of his theory. He believes 
in cooking food for hogs, and practices accordingly, 
and evidently thinks the Agricultural Caldron and 
Steamer, of his own invention (which he did not 
expect we would mention in this connection,) is a 
great desideratum in feeding and fattening (dock. 
Although the picture is “good looking,” a state¬ 
ment, including cost of keeping and feeding, value 
of the pOrlc, profit, Ac., would no doubt prove more 
convincing to many — though the figures might 
have little weight with those care-for-nolhing fann¬ 
ers who let their hogs take their chances on the 
“big pig, little pig, root hog or die” principle. 
fat, the meat measuring from II to 13 inches thick 
above their shoulders, and afforded, of clear mess 
pork arid lard, about 300 lbs. each. The most rapid 
growth of these hogs was made while being fnl on 
cooked food, such as carrots, potatoes, pumpkins, 
Ac., well cooked and mashed up while hot — when 
just taken from the steam-box — ami a little proven¬ 
der added, with salt, Ac. Their last days wore 
devoted to the consumption of good, well-cooked 
Indian pudding. 
Mr. I’niNDi.E is of opinion that more depends 
upon the feeding (and kind, quality and quantity of 
feed,) than the breed in pork-making, and offers the 
Plants far Farm Hedges. 
Is there not some of our native thorns that will make a first 
rate hedge ? lias any one in your section fried the hawthorn 
and found it an effective farm hedge ? 1 have a hedge of some 
common plants, mostly lilac hushes, and it grows without care 
or pruning, and is now very thick, clear from the bottom. A 
farmer cannot spend time to prune hedges every spring in this 
country, and although the time is fast approaching w hen we 
must have hedges, it is important that we obtain plants that 
are hardy, free growers, and need hut little care. 
Genesee Co., N. V. p. 
Our correspondent will find in our last issue an 
article from John Park, who has paid much atten¬ 
tion to the Hawthorn, and is quite satisfied that we 
need look no further for a hedge-plant exactly 
adapted to our country and the wants of farmers. 
Others, we know, have failed from inattention; yet 
the borer and other insects are very troublesome to 
this plant. We do not expect to find a plant that 
will make a good hedge without care, nor can a 
hedge he kept in even tolerable condition without 
annual pruning. The Lilac makes'something of a 
hedge if neglected, and so will any plant that throws 
up a great number of suckers from the roots, but the 
farmer will find that they require more labor to keep 
them from invading his fields than would be neces¬ 
sary to give the hedge a proper pinning every sea¬ 
son. This habit of suckering is a great objection to 
a hedge-plant, as many have l'ouud to their cost 
Until we get rid of the idea tjiatwe can grow hedges 
without care and labor, we shall never succeed. 
The pruning of a hedge is very little trouble with a 
proper knife, and after a little practice. We have 
seen experts at this work who could trim a hedge 
about as fast as they could walk. 
aver that they were compelled to join tho Southern 
army; and they are glad to see free soil. Many of 
them are from the North — have families and homes 
in the North, and are. anticipating a re-union with 
them. This class are mostly of Irish birth and have 
been at work on (he Southern railroads. But others 
are surly, sullen and full of malice and venomous 
hate—especially toward “the Yankees.” Those of 
them who are really Southern men nurse this 
hatred; hut they aver that they do not want to fight 
the Western boys; they do want to whip the 
“ Y'ankees.” 
AT CHAMPAIGN. 
I stop at Champaign and spent the Sabbath with 
Hon. M. L. Dunlap, Editor of the Illinois Farmer ; 
agriculturist and horticulturist, theoretically and 
practically. Have a good time, as I always do here. 
The soil is soft and oozy, but nevertheless we 
traverse the domain—both farm and nursery. 
OPEN DITCHES VS. MOLE DRAINS. 
THE STRAWBERRY FOR WINE. 
In an article already forwarded to tho Rural 
sanctum I have referred to large profits in one in¬ 
stance, realized from the manufacture of strawberry 
wine. Just as 1 was leaving the city I took from 
the Post-officd a letter from the ;-ar(y referred to, 
from which I mnke tho lollowing extracts, premis¬ 
ing that I am assured by men of integrity, that these 
statements can he relied on as correct: 
“ In reference to the manufacture of wine from 
the strawberry, 1 will say that. I have realized full 
six hundred dollars net profits from not over one-half 
acre, the past season—[the letter is dated Feb. 20th, 
1862,]—making eertainly double the amount of 
money that could bo realized in our markets from 
the fruit. The article (of wine) you tested in 
Chicago, was not a fair specimen, as it was drawn 
from the lees too soon. 
•• My success in the 1 ! sale of the article has been 
beyond my most sanguine expectations. I have the 
assurance that I can sell all that I eau make, by 
parties who have been introducing it in Cincinnati 
and Dayton, Ohio, and Indianapolis. Indiana. In 
short, it is universally admired, especially by the 
ladies. 
“I am so confident of its success, that I intend 
making seventy-five or one hundred barrels of it 
next season. I have no trouble in selling it at $2.50 
per gallon. I sold, a few days since, to one party, 
the second barrel at the above figure. 
“ I have about forty acres in strawberries in Illi¬ 
nois—about half of them at Aurora, forty-three miles 
from Chicago, where l intend removing the first of 
April, and turn my whole attonlion to fruit and 
wine-making. I have eighteen acres iu Southern 
Illinois, for early market, and expect the coining 
season to plant eighteen acres more—making nearly 
sixty acres I have in small fruit and peaches. My 
peach orchard is iu '• Egypt,” in South Illinois. It 
is now just coming into bearing and of the best 
varieties now cultivated in the United States.” 
Talking of the wine he says:—“I am satisfied 
with one thing. If you want a fine fabric, you must 
employ a line material. It is conceded by all, that 
the strawberry is the finest of all the small fruits; 
then why may not the wine excel the Catawba, if 
made right?” 
Some will dissent from the premises, and there¬ 
fore from the conclusion; but it is a fact of some 
significance that many of our best Western fruitists 
have expressed great faith in tho ultimate and suc¬ 
cessful use of the strawberry for wine manufacture. 
The success above detailed must be credited to Mr. 
E. St mk, of Boone Co., Indiana. 
“ SKCF.SU.” 
We pass long trains of the Fort Donelson pri¬ 
soners, on their way from the sunny seceding South 
to the chill air and raw climate of Chicago. The 
prairie country is full of novelties to them. They 
talk of cotton, corn, and sugar. At the stations 
they proclaim their loyalty or disloyalty to the old 
Union. It is a tact that many of these prisoners 
also the pea of natural size, with its head protrud¬ 
ing, as may always be seen with “buggy” peas in 
the spring. 
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. IlarriB says:—“The eggs are laid only 
during the night, or in cloudy weather. Each egg 
i3 placed opposite tho 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 sub¬ 
stance, and in spring it is transformed into a perfect 
insect, pierces the skin, and emerges to deposit its 
eggs in the new pods. The larva has a soft w hitish 
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 jound 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 small engraving. In 
many of the peas the insect will be found dead. 
Whether this arises from a lower temperature than 
they are accustomed to, not invigorating them suffi¬ 
ciently to leave their habitations, or w hether they 
return to feed when they cannot make their escape 
readily, which is tho case when the peas are confined 
in sacks, or heaped up in a warehouse, lias not been 
determined. The vitality of tho seed is not usually 
destroyed, as the egg is deposited in thesideof the pea, 
where the insect when hatched emerges, leaving the 
germ uninjured. It is doubtlul, 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 w'hen it can be 
avoided. 
TO CAIRO AND RETURN.—NO. I. 
At 9 o’clock, A. M,, “Washington's Birth-day,” 
1862, took Illinois Central Train for Cairo. Frater¬ 
nal company:— Upton, of tho Chicago Tribune, and 
Coffin, of tho Boston Journal, both going to New 
Orleans by the first boat. 
corn cribs. 
We are hardly out of Chicago before we begin to 
pass the immense corn cribs erected by the Illinois 
Central Railroad Company. They have capacity to 
receive three million bushels of com, and are fast 
filling up with maize from the granaries of far¬ 
mers indebted to the Company for land. The Com¬ 
pany pays eighteen cents per bushel (or allow' it,) 
for all good merchantable corn, delivered at any 
station on the line by land purchasers. 
Hundreds of men who have no corn, but have 
payments to make to the Company, buy corn at 
nine and ten cents delivered, and are credited 
eighteen cents by tho Company. 
SORGHUM AT LOIU. 
I learn that arrangements have been made at 
Loda for the erection of a large sugar boiling appa¬ 
ratus, under competent superintendence, for the 
purpose of manufacturing 1,000 acres of sorghum 
cane, already pledged to be planted and cultivated 
the coming season. The manufacture will be under 
the conduct of the Chicago Sugar Refinery. And it 
is believed by the refiners that with the proper ap¬ 
paratus no after refining process will be necessary 
in order to secure a high grade sirup—and that, 
now that analyses have discovered so much cane 
sugar (over 50 per centum,) in the crudely manu¬ 
factured simps, this first process will be only pre¬ 
liminary to the precipitation of a first class sugar 
from this product. We have much to hope from this 
cane, now that the experience and knowledge of 
veteran sugar boilers and refiners is being enlisted. 
