THIRD €0 3mjicnut tljt Inil nftr tie |3pl SERIES 
Yol. YL ALBANY, FEBRUARY, 1858. . No. II. 
Plans for the Year. 
There is nothing like systematic arrangement, in fa¬ 
cilitating the operation of complex business. What 
endless confusion would result from a hap-hazard man¬ 
agement of such vast establishments as the New-York 
Central and Erie Railroads! The stockholders and 
bond-owners would get rather small dividends, if the 
trains were all run with the same irregularity that some 
farmers perform their labors—instead of the precision 
which marks the time for the passage of every train 
for months in advance. It is easy to understand how 
a railway company would fail from the blunders of 
confusion; but the smaller loss, but equally great as 
compared with the capital, resulting from bungling 
plans in farming, or no plans at all, is often overlooked. 
There is nothing where so small an outlay would result 
in so great profit, as well digested plans for the year to 
be promptly and skillfully executed. A watchmaker 
might about as well think of placing the parts of his 
machine together with his eyes shut, as for cultivators 
of the soil to hobble along with a year’s work, with no 
system to guide them. 
Agricultural papers teach many valuable improve¬ 
ments. There is probably not one careful reader in a 
thousand, that would not be benefitted many dollars 
every year by the various hints he receives, 'provided 
he only put the best of them into practice. He often 
finds suggestions which his good sense tells him would 
be very useful. But why were they not tried 1 “ Ah ! 
he intended to have done so, but in the multitude of 
thoughts and labors, they were overlooked till just a 
few days too late!” Now, how would a banker suc¬ 
ceed, if he should trust his memory alone to remind 
him of the day when discounted notes are due ? Why 
cannot the farmer adopt the same systematic method 
of laying before his eye the work of the season, that 
the banker’s tickler performs in placing before him the 
required money transaction of each successive day ? 
We have before made the suggestion (but it will bear 
many repetitions,) of a very simple and easy mode to 
obviate so many disastrous delays from forgetfulness, 
as occur on nearly every farm. Devote a page in a 
small pocket blank-book to each week’s work during 
the season, and mark it distinctly with its proper date. 
Enter under the proper head every suggestion which 
may occur during the present winter’s reading. Addi¬ 
tional suggestions will occur at all periods throughout 
the season, and should be entered at the time. In a 
year or two, such a memorandum book if properly used, 
will be worth hundreds of dollars annually to every 
extensive farmer, and to the smaller one at least an 
equal proportion. So much for securing seasonable at¬ 
tention to the operations of the year. 
But there are other important departments of syste¬ 
matic farming. The skillful railway-manager adopts 
a practicable time table, and sees that all the trains 
are worked to the specified time. The good farmer 
should adopt a similar mode of management. He 
should bring before his eye a list of all the important 
operations of the season — and he must so arrange 
them, — fit them together, — and add to or curtail the 
extent of each, that all may be well performed in sea¬ 
son. A crop of five acres planted early, well put in, 
and properly cultivated, may yield more nett profit 
than ten acres a fortnight too late, and badly managed 
because there is other clashing work at the time. Too 
much plowing for his teams in spring ; too much hoe¬ 
ing for his men afterwards; too much haying or har¬ 
vesting for them to perform at midsummer; or a larger 
extent of autumn crops than he can secure in proper 
order,—will all operate to the disadvantage of the far¬ 
mer. If he hires men by the month and for the season, 
he wishes to avoid a more costly resort to day hands, 
and therefore all these different crops and operations, 
must be so arranged that the labors of the establish¬ 
ment will move on uniformly, quietly, efficiently, with¬ 
out delay or confusion, and with the clock-work preci¬ 
sion which marks the superintendence of the success¬ 
ful railway manager. 
There are several other important points, which at 
present need be only briefly mentioned. Rotation of 
crops is an indispensable requisite to systematic farm¬ 
ing. He who has never properly divided his farm into 
fields, nor brought their yearly occupation under a 
regular, unalterable succession of crops, must spend 
time and thought every year to determine how to plant 
his fields, and often become so confused as to change 
his mind half a dozen times before he is done with the 
task, and probably end in laying out conflicting labors 
for the year. Systems of rotation are given elsewhere; 
but we can state briefly some of the best for this coun¬ 
try, which may be modified according to circumstances. 
For four fields, of nearly equal size,—1st year, corn on 
sod, with roots and manure; 2d, wheat; 3d and 4th, 
clover,—meadow and pasture. For six or seven fields, 
—1st, corn, Ac.; 2d, barley, oats, beans or peas; 3d, 
wheat; 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th, clover and timothy, the 
first two years for pasture, the last two for meadow. 
t rood Implements constitute another requisite. A 
poor tool or machine which is liable to break or get out 
