SEPT.-J/ 
THE BUBAL WEW-YOBKEB, 
tural College, the advantages claimed for the 
method are three-fold: 1, by it the crop may 
l»e made at one-fourth less cost than by the 
old method; 2, the yield per aero is considera¬ 
bly increased, and, 3, the “ listed ” corn stands 
drought better than that planted in the ordi¬ 
nary way. The lister, as seen in the accom¬ 
panying engraving, Fig. 550, is simply a 
double mold-board plow which throws the 
earth equally to right and left, it is usu¬ 
ally worked by three horses, and in the fur¬ 
rows made by the plow the corn is drilled 
either by i u ordinary com drill or by a drill 
attaehed to the lister, as represented in the 
out. By the use ol’ the ordinary lister and 
drill a man and three-horse team can put in 
from eight to ten acres of corn a day, and with 
the drill attachment to the lister it is claimed 
that I i'oiii 10 to 12 acres can be planted with 
equal ease. After the corn is planted, the 
harrow is used on the field till the corn is from 
eight to ten inches high, and then the cultiva¬ 
tor finishes the job. 
fidt) Crops, 
TOBACCO GROWING NOTES. 
The dry weather which has prevailed to a 
serious extent during the present Summer 
throughout many of the tebaeeo-growiug sec¬ 
tions, has led to much discouragement among 
tobacco growers. It has, however, served as 
a useful lesson to many in the way of teach¬ 
ing them the importance of giving soil upon 
which this crop is to be grown very thorough 
preparation. It has been generally found 
that upon soil highly manured and thoroughly 
pulverised to a considerable depth, the crop 
has suffered comparatively little damage, 
while soil improperly fertilized and otherwise 
poorly prepared, has failed to produce a pay¬ 
ing crop. Another important lesson taught 
by the drought is the advantage gained from 
early setting. 1 fail to find an inferior 
growth of plants where the soil was properly 
prepared and the seedlings transpla nted early. 
The early setting of plants usually secures a 
fair growth before mid-suiumer, when tho ex¬ 
cessive lieal. and dry wwither do not so ser. 
iously affect tho growth of the crop. Bate to¬ 
bacco, on the other hand, that does not have 
time to become well rooted and started by 
mid summer, cannot fail to become seriously 
impaired during times of drought. 
Tobacco growers who have found their 
crops greatly curtailed in growth by the 
drought, may do much in tho way of making 
their product more salable by careful man¬ 
agement. Early and low " topping" is highly 
important with late tobacco, as it hastens tho 
plants to maturity, and adds greatly to the 
size of the loaves. In all eases, when it is pos¬ 
sible, let such tobacco become ripe before har¬ 
vesting, by allowing it to stand at least two 
weeks after it, is ‘ topped." In the mean¬ 
time no suckers should be allowed to grow and 
a diligent search Should be kept up for worms. 
It can not lie expected that.a small, late crop 
will mature as many leaves per plant, as early 
tobacco; hence the importance of topping it 
low. While with seed loaf or cigar making 
tobacco, a large leaf is usually most desirable, 
a small leaf, if fully matured and properly 
handled and cured, may make a product of 
very fair quality. 
One of the most difficult points to learn in 
tobacco culture is to tell when the plants are 
fit to be harvested. Tho most experienced 
growers are frequently unable to tell definitely 
when the best jieriod of maturity is reached. 
It is pretty generally considered that a fully 
matured plant-will yield a greater weight of 
cured leaf than one not wholly ripe, but the 
difficulty lies In determining the exact point 
at which tho quality begins to deteriorate, if 
the crop is left uncut. 1 have this season al¬ 
lowed my plants to stand four weeks after 
“topping,’'which is longer than seed-leaf to- 
bueeois usually allowed to ripen. I hope by 
the experiment to be able to demonstrate tho 
advisability or unadvisability of allowing to¬ 
bacco to become fully ripe. 
too rapid drying, which causes unfavorable 
results, it is advisable to hang tho plants 
thicker in the top than in tho bottom of tho 
curing bam, decreasing tho number of plants 
to a given space as the lower tiers are reached. 
Chemung Co., N. Y. g. a. g. Jr. 
♦♦♦ 
RAISING WHEAT IN NEW YORK. 
Having had BO years experience in raising 
Winter wheat, I propose to give, for the bene¬ 
fit of Uukai. readers, a low of tho conditions 
my experience has taught me to be necessary 
for the production of a profitable crop. The 
first—and a very important one—is tho thor¬ 
ough preparation of the soil; second, tho 
location or situation of the field; third, tho 
proper manner of sowing tho seed. In addition 
to the above material points, duo attention to 
many minor ones will aid greatly in produc¬ 
ing a good yield. 
Preparing the soil implies plowing, ma¬ 
nuring and all work preparatory to putting in 
the seed. He that would reasonably expect a 
good return in bushels, must not expect to 
cheat the crop by a hurried tillage of the soil, 
for in so doing he is sure to cheat himself.* 
Plow the land not to exceed six inches in 
depth; turn a narrow furrow from eight to 
ten inches in width, lapping the furrows, lay¬ 
ing them at an angle of about BO degrees, loav 
ing the vegetable mold, or surface soil, ex¬ 
posed between eaeli furrow. If you wish to 
sow broadcast, and your land is well plowed, 
sow the seed on the furrows and harrow it, in. 
It will come up in drills the width of the fur¬ 
rows, striking the roots directly into the best 
part of tho soil between tho furrows. I prefer 
plowing and harrowing the land thoroughly 
before sowing the seed, leaving the ground 
smooth for a seed-bed, and covering the seed 
with u two-horse cultivator, going once 
thoroughly over it, leaving it rough. Cover¬ 
ing it deep furnishes a hotter protection for 
Winter. One material point in Otsego Coun¬ 
ty is to cover the seed to a good depth—say 
two inches, and bow early in order to obtain a 
strong root the better to withstand the hard 
W inters. 
Now we arrive at tho point of location or 
situation of the field, Select a dry piece of 
upland where snow— nature’s protection for 
VV inter—lies as it falls os nearly as may he, 
avoiding heavy mi fling or blow i ug off, leaving 
the crop exposed to Winter’s severity. Let us 
now examine the manner of sowing the seed, 
with u view to overcoming disastrous results. 
Shall we sow broadcast in tho old style ' that 
is, half plow, smooth down with a harrow and 
Bow the seed; then harrow again, leaving a 
good ileal of the seed uncovered, and some 
more barely covered, to be washed out by the 
first shower, and at harvest time wonder why 
Our crop is so uneven ? The Western farmer 
says use the drill, All right; but I prefer using 
the cultivator n-s hinted above after having 
tried both, ns the grain then Comes up in the 
ridges, whereas by the use of the drill the re- 
vei-se is true. It winters bettor in the ridges 
than in the hollows made by the drill teeth. 
T have raised 15 Impels of Diehl to the acre 
by operating as above, with the addition Of 
1« or 20 loads of manure to the acre, 
centrated fertilizer. Result, 1,180 bushels and 
37 pounds of wheat, and 45 tons of straw 
when pressed. The weather during, and for 
some time after, sowing was so exceedingly 
dry that the grain sown on the sod did not 
come up as evenly as that on the stubble. A bout 
three weeks before harvest tho Army-worm 
entered the field and marched directly across 
it, stripping the leaves from the stalks and 
cutting off the smaller heads. Tho quality of 
the wheat was good, weighing 02 pounds to 
the measured bushel. The Army-worm did 
considerable damage—just how much I am 
unable to say. The yield from the 19 acres of 
stubble was estimated—the two plots not being 
separated—40 bushels t.o the acre. The wheat 
on the sod piiece came up unevenly, and, as a 
result, the yield from this piece reduced the 
average yield considerably. The grain from 
the two pieces was harvested together, and 
when thrashed was accurately measured and 
weighed. W. S. Combs. 
Monmouth Co., N. J. 
Every farmer with whom we have con¬ 
versed, that has tried both Fultz and Clawson 
and meant red the yields, prefers tho FultZ. It 
is not surprising that those who have not 
measured the yield should hold that Clawson 
is the heavier yielder, The reason is that the 
grain is larger, the heads more spreading, 
presenting a heavier, fuller appearance. The 
truth is, however, that, though the single 
grain of Clawson is heavier than the single 
grain of Fultz, the average head of Fultz is 
heavier than the average head of.Clawson, 
owing to the fact, which we havesoveral times 
alluded to, that the spikelet of Fultz bears one 
more grain that the spikelet of Clawson. 
» » »- 
WASHINGTON AND GHALLENGE 
OATS. 
In the Rural of August fi, G. C. asks in 
regard to oats, “ What’s in a name ?” and re¬ 
ferring to the Washington Oats, says: “I 
have grown tho Washington Oats, and about 
half the yield is smut.” G, C. also says, “ I 
have grown the same oats for years, having 
got them from the Department of Agricul¬ 
ture first, and afterwards I bought a bushel 
from B. K. Bliss & Co., of N. Y. City, under 
the name of English Challenge Oats. Having 
compared nil, I know they are identical." 1 
would like to ask fi. C. if tho Challenge Oats 
were about half smut as grown by him, also 
if he has grown the Washington Oats for years, 
us he says he has, and they were about, half 
smut, why does lie keep on growing them { I 
have grown the Washington Oats the past 
year, also for two years past the English 
Challenge Oats, purchased of Messrs. B. K. 
Bliss & Hons, and both myself and my son 
think them different varieties. We thought 
so soon after they came up, and, though both 
sorts were sown with a drill in t he same field, 
at the same time, yet the appearance was de¬ 
cidedly different to our eyes at, and sinee, har¬ 
vesting. The Challenge Oats, too, were the 
earliest to show their heads and first to ripen. 
They wore also entirely free from smut this 
year as well as last, while there was some smut 
m the \\ ashing ton ; but these were not nearly 
so badly affected as G. ft, represents his to 
and have been. 
COMBINKU DRILL AND LISTER. —KIG. 5.50. 
A valuable property in tobacco is the resin¬ 
ous gum which the leaf freely exudes dur¬ 
ing the process of ripening, and which, being 
soluble in water, may be washed off by a 
heavy rainfall. For this reason tobacco 
should not be cut immediately after a rain. 
If the work is postponed for a few days after 
a rainfall, tho loaf has time to again secrete the 
necessary supply of gum. Neither should to¬ 
bacco bo cut when wet, for if laid upon the 
ground in this condition, dirt will adhere to 
the leaves, causing damage to the crop. 
It should be remembered that tobacco will 
dry much more rapidly in the upper portion 
of the curing barn than in tho lower parts of 
tho building. For this reason, and to prevent 
think there is no more risk in a crop of wheat 
than in one of oats. w. b. nkaking. 
Otsego Co., N. Y. 
- »4 ♦ 
WHEAT RAISING IN NEW JERSEY. 
Wk are permitted to publish the following 
letter addressed to a friend:— 
In reply to your inquiry as to my wheat 
crops of last, year, 1 sowed 3(1 acres—19 of 
which were stubble and 17 Timothy sod; vari¬ 
ety sown, “ Fultz" about, two bushels to the 
acre. Soil, a pretty stiff clay. Treatment: 
B0 acres had 500 pounds per aero of conc@n 
trated wheat fertilizer alone; ti acres were 
dressed with stable manure—about ten loads 
to the acre, and about 500 pounds of the con- 
Either G. C. is mistaken in saying, “ he 
knows they are identical,” or myself and my 
son are not observant enough, or jierhaps one 
of us may not have the genuine Wash¬ 
ington Oats. Who can decide the question 
correctly.' We had the Washington, White 
Russian, White Schoencn, and Challenge Oats, 
all growing in drills about 40 rods long, in 
the same field. The difference was very per¬ 
ceptible In the appearance of each sort; the 
Challenge* were the first to ripen ; the Wash¬ 
ington aud Schcenen ripened about the same 
time, and the Russian last. What say other 
cultivators? Are the Washington.and Chal¬ 
lenge identical i If so. I did not get these 
varieties true to name, or have not watched 
them closely enough ; for my observations of 
O**30 
them this season very decidedly prevent me 
from believing that they are one and the 
same variety under different names. 
Rome, N. Y., Johnathan Talcott. 
Cixtomo logical. 
THE LOCUST SAW-FLY. 
There are many reasons why the Locust or 
Black Locust, as it is sometimes called (Robi- 
nia Pseudocode), would make a desirable 
shade tree. The graceful foliage forms, wheu 
tho tree is healthy, a symmetrical top, and in 
the Spring this is covered with a profusion of 
fig. 557. 
flowers that may be admired for their fra¬ 
grance as well as their beauty. But we have, 
perhaps, no tree that is more subject to the 
attacks of insects. The trunks and large limbs 
are yearly channeled by the larva; of the Hy- 
leutos Kobinia*, a moth, and Clytu.s Robiniie, 
a beetle, which render tho trunk unsightly 
ami cause the death of many of the limbs, and 
perhaps a premature dropping of the leaves. 
Besides these, the leaves are eaten by the 
larva* of a butterfly and a moth. Tho recent 
investigations of Prof. Comstock, late Ento¬ 
mologist to the Department of Agriculture, 
add one more to the list of insects that seem 
to conspire against the life of this tree. This 
is a saw-fly or hyruonopterous insect related 
to the imported currant worm or saw-fly, the 
raspberry slug mid many others that might 
be mentioned. One feature of tho work of 
this group of insects is that they multiply 
rapidly, so that, they soon swarm on the plant 
that constitutes their food. T have seen 
clumps of willows porfectly denuded of their 
leaves by another species of Neuiatus. the 
stems being as bare as though it were Winter. 
The accompanying cut, Fig. 557, will give an 
nloa of the manner in which those insects work. 
1 he Locust Saw-fly (Nematus simelaris) is a 
small, four-winged fly, the body being nearly 
a quarter of an inch long and tho wings ex- 
Ilanding a little more than half an inch. The 
body is of a dirty yellow color, with black 
spots on top of the head, and on the thorax 
and abdomen; but the wings are transparent. 
This insect deposits an egg in a crescent-shaped, 
slit m ide in the under surface of the leaf, aud 
the egg is secured in its place by fastening 
together the cut edges. When it hatches, the 
young larva at first feeds upon the portions of 
tae leaf where it finds itself; but it soon leaves 
tho center of the loaf, going to the outside, 
where it eats tho tissue of each leaflet from the 
edge to the mid-rib. The young larva is pale, 
greenish-white, with a brownish head, but 
the mature one is a more distinct green, with 
the head yellowish green and the eyes black, 
with p ile centers. The only other markings 
that are prominent are dusky spots below the 
stigmata or breathing poras on the first six 
joints. 
These pests grow to be about two-thirds of 
an inch long, and may readily lie known from 
Caterpillars or tho larva* of butterflies and 
moths, by their having ton pairs of legs, while 
caterpillars never have more than eight pairs. 
Also, they have a habit of curving the hind 
part of the body round wheu walking. There 
are said by Mr. Comstock to be two if not 
three broods in « season, the first pupating in 
loose cocoons hid among leaves, grass or other 
rubbish; but. it is probable that the last brood 
pass the Winter in the ground in their co¬ 
coons, as this seems to he the habit of several 
Other species of Nematus, and, like tho apple 
worm, or larva of the codling moth, they, or 
the Bpedos I have observed, seem to remain 
larva* until Spring; then they chftge to pupae 
a short time before the fly emerges. 
Prof. (Jomstock says ho has bred a parasite 
from thorn, which shows that nature has pro- 
