VOL. XXXVI. No. 15.1 m n in V A D 1/ 
WHOLE No. Mill. ( 1 \ K \V YORK 
“ ¥- —— -------- - --- 
CITY. OCT. 
13 , 1877 . 
(PRIOR siat CKNTS 
t *.*.50 PER YEAR. 
[Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1877, by the Rural Publishing- Company 
—j ;-- 
in the office of tho Librarian of CongreBs at Waniiington.! 
--- 
Jficlii Crops. 
PEANUTS. 
Rukai. Ex pkkimental GROUNDS, Sept. 25. 
We remember many years ago during our first 
visit to the Sunny Sontli, a boy asked at the 
door: “Want any Goubors to-day?" Wo re¬ 
plied “ No," though without the least knowledge 
of what thoy wore, not wishing to show onr 
ignorance of Southern names. It was Just be¬ 
fore the attack upon Fort Sumter, and the 
“South" was not the pleasantest place in the 
world for northern people whose “ principles" 
were not well known. They are also called Pin¬ 
dars, Ground Nuts and Ground Peas, in certain 
parts of the South. Arachis hypogn-a is the 
hard botanical name. The origin of Aracliis is 
unknown. Hypogn n is derived from two Greek 
words meaning “under” and “ground,” refer¬ 
ring to the fruit which forms only under the 
surface of the earth. At least we havo never 
heard of an instanco of the flowers maturing 
fruit upon the branches of this spreading, trail¬ 
ing plant. 
The flowers which form in axillary clusters, 
are yellow, perishable and inconspicuous. As 
soon as they wither, the ovary, situated at the 
bottom of a long calyx tube, if fertilized, is car¬ 
ried downwards by the growth of what seems to 
bo the receptacle. The commencement of this 
elongation is shown at one. At flgnro two it is 
further elongated and at three has begun to 
work its way into the soil, where it at once begins 
to dovolop as at flgnro four. Five shows the 
mature fruit which, for years past, has been in¬ 
creasing in value, until at the present time it 
constitutes the most valnabie product of tho 
land in many districts of the Southern and Mid¬ 
dle States. 
But its cultivation in tho North is tho subject 
about which wo are at prosent exercising our¬ 
selves. It 1 h said tho season is, in this climate, 
too short and tho peanuts of inferior quality and 
flavor. 
The first objection may bo overcome by start¬ 
ing the plants in hot-beds and transplanting as 
soon as tho weather becomes warm. The readi¬ 
ness with which they germinate and grow, ren¬ 
ders this an inexpensive mode of cultivation and 
they will then mature their frnit as early as (ho 
first of September, when wo havo found by this 
soason’s experiments that the peanutH arc as 
largo and when roasted, possessed of the same 
flavor as those of Southern cultivation. 
To ascertain whether tho seeds will germinate 
sooner without the “ shell,” some were planted 
with and some without. Tho latter rotted. 
Whatever may be thought of the practicability 
of peanut culture on a large scale for this cli¬ 
mate, wo havo demonstrated, to our own satis¬ 
faction, that a very small hot-hod or a part of 
that used for forwarding vegetables, will suffice if 
tho plants are fairly attended to in tho garden, 
to supply all the peanuts needed by the family. 
Tho drawing is that of a Single branch of a 
plant from lifo. The plant itself spreads 
over a surface Hovon or eight foot in circum¬ 
ference. 
<$ara drononti). 
THOUGHTS FROM A FARM. 
LET THE FARM REMAIN UNKNOWN FOR THE PRESENT AND 
THE WRITER REMAIN INCOGNITO. 
ENGLISH AND AMERICAN FARM MANAGEMENT. 
Thinking of the ideas about farming, which 
aro entertained on this side the Atlantic and on 
tho other—iu England in particular,—it is sin¬ 
gular how very much they differ. A gentlemanly 
common farmer, an associate of tenant farmers, 
and a friend and companion of t he farmer whose 
thoughts appear hero—at least ho was in days of 
yore, or over a quarter of a century since—has 
boon writing respecting former occurrences and 
present fuels and prospects. 
To show tho difference, it is only necessary to 
state, what everybody hero knows to be true, 
that il Is considered that a farmer in Amerioa 
must not only have hourly supervision of his 
laborers, but nine out of ten suppose it to bo 
essential to lead tho workmen, literally Baying, 
“ come along boys." Indeed it is nothing uncom¬ 
mon to see tho “ boss " take hold of any tool or 
implement and put it right for working with, 
while the man looks on, and moreover it is cus¬ 
tomary for the farmer to do all his errands after 
supper, going to the store and obtaining seeds, 
and leaving there butter, eggH, vegetables and 
other farm produce. 
Now, this English farmer manages several 
hundreds of acres belonging to Lord Reuebiut.e, 
at Batsford, and has a general supervision of sev¬ 
eral thousands rented by the year in farms of from 
150 np to 500 acres, lie also has the same to do 
for Sir Chah. Ruhkout whose ostato Joins tlio 
other, tho only intervening land being tho Rec- 
tori il farm of about 500 acres, which was tho 
home of him whose thoughts run there, for his 
boyhood became merged there into manhood, 
and he afterward managed an extensive baronial 
domain in tho vicinity. This land steward had 
also charge of another smaller place called 
“Banks Fee” ndjoining Leziucoto and at tho 
East of both the last mentioned places he reutod 
a farm at Longborougb, the property of Lord 
Lee, so that it will bo admitted he had ample 
opportunity of knowing all about tho tenants’ 
circumstances. 
It is a fact that on all this tract of land and 
among this numerous tenantry, not one farmer 
could be found to turn out with his men to work, 
although they would not bo idling or sitting still. 
There is mnoh more labor done on an English 
than on an American farm, consequently there 
is much more to bo looked after, and moro 
the growth of tiie peanut. 
