1858. 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
27 a 
then be removed in a neat and careful manner. To 
cure them, place them in a sack of thin cloth, and hang 
them in an airy place, shaking up and stirring fre¬ 
quently. In this way they become thoroughly dry in 
a few weeks, without any disagreeable scent, and will 
keep good in any dry place until worn out by use. 
Importance of the Rollers 
In our issue of June 3d, an incident is related re¬ 
specting the grass seeds sown on a lawn (in front of 
Mr. Calvert’s house,) vegetating much more freely on 
those portions of the ground that had been driven upon 
by the teams while grading, which fact clearly points 
to the utility of a free use of the farm roller in “ fin¬ 
ishing off” land sown to grain and grass seeds. That 
there is great benefit in compressing the soil about the 
newly sown grain and grass seeds, there can be no 
doubt. It frequently is for lack of pressure of the soil 
about the small seeds in garden and floriculture, that 
they fail to germinate, and the honest seedsman comes 
in for any amount of censure, when in truth the fault 
is wholly on the part of those sowing the seeds. The 
slight covering usually given, and its want of com¬ 
pactness, (unless a succession of rains follow,) soon be¬ 
comes as dry as powder, and the seeds fail to germinate, 
and the seedsman gets all the blame therefor. 
Aside from the above, there are other important ad¬ 
vantages in the use of a roller; such as a more 
thorough breaking the sods and lumps of soil. Once 
passing over the plowed field with a heavy roller, will 
more thoroughly pulverize the soil than two or three 
extra harrowings. Those farmers that have read Tull’s 
“ Essay on Tillage, 1 ’ will fully understand the impor¬ 
tance of a finely comminuted and well pulverized soil. 
In passing the roller over the harrowed field, it leaves 
a smooth surface for the scythe, cradle, and rake; 
presses the small stones into the soil, and saves the 
back-aching, finger-wearing labor of picking them; 
and less seed is required in stocking-down a field, espe¬ 
cially if sown with oats. 
To insure good crops on light, naturally drained pine, 
and similar land, the roller is almost indispensable. 
Some years ago, the Hon. W. Clarke, Jr., of North¬ 
ampton, Mass., reclaimed large tracts of worn-out 
sandy land, and brought them into a profitable state 
of cultivation. In answer to some written inquiries 
we made of him, in reference to the course of cultiva¬ 
tion he had pursued in the improvement of those worn- 
out soils, he remarked, “ that without the application 
of a heavy roller to light pine lands, he considered 
them of little value ; but with its use in stocking-down 
to grass, he had found these light soils as profitable as 
any he had cultivated.” 
The use of the roller on land sown to wheat—either 
spring or autumn sown—may be of greater advantage 
than many farmers are aware of; for it is the opinion 
of many who have experimented in the matter, that 
wheat requires a firm soil. 
The late Mr. Colman said in his European Agri¬ 
culture, “that in some parts of England the farmers 
consider it very important to give their newly-sown 
wheat a close, firm soil; and frequently to effect this, 
after the grain is harrowed in, large flocks of sheep 
are driven in every direction over the field, to give a 
solid surface; or in other cases, large numbers of 
women and children are employed to travel over the 
field to effect the same object. Heavy cast iron rollers 
are also much used to pulverise their soils and give a 
firm root-hold to the wheat plant.” 
Mr. Colman in his second report of the Agriculture 
of Masachusetts, gives an account of a Wheat crop in 
Lenox, Mass., in 1837—“ by a farmer whose uniform 
success in raising wheat is ample proof of his agricul¬ 
tural skill. The extent of land sown was two acres 
sixty and a half rods ; the whole crop was 89 bushels 
26 quarts. On one of the two acres the crop amounted 
to 40 bushels 20 quarts. The mode of cultivation 
pursued by this farmer is somewhat peculiar. After 
sowing, the ground was harrowed for five or six days, 
alternately crossing the field in every direction.” 
Probably the crop was much augmented by the tho¬ 
rough pulverization and close packing of the soil in the 
daily repeated and extra harrowings. But we opine 
that these objects could have been equally well, and 
much more cheaply accomplished by the use of the rol¬ 
ler, in passing it over the field two or three times dur¬ 
ing the harrowing process, whereby doubtless one-half 
the labor might have been saved. 
At an agricultural meet ing in the State-House, Bos¬ 
ton, on the evening of Feb. 27, 1849—subject of dis¬ 
cussion, “Grass and Grain Crops,”—Mr. Bigelow of 
Walpole, said: “The farmers in his vicinity had not 
succeeded well of late in raising wheat, with one ex¬ 
ception. One farmer, an Englishman, had succeeded 
well in raising wheat. His method was to prepare the 
ground for his spring wheat in the fall, by manuring 
it if necessary, and then plowing it, to remain through 
the winter. In the spring, the ground is simply pre¬ 
pared by the use of the harrow, the wheat sown, and 
good crops follow. This farmer contends that the wheat 
crop requires a firm soil.” 
We have collected these statements for the consider¬ 
ation of our readers. How far a compact soil, after 
the ground has been properly prepared by the plow, 
harrow, &c., may be advantageous in increasing the 
wheat crop, could easily be ascertained by farmers who 
raise wheat, by giving a portion of their fields an ex¬ 
tra harrowing and rolling at the time of sowing their 
wheat. A few experiments would decide the question, 
yea or nay. 
As far as our observation extends, those farmers who 
use the roller on their newly stocked-down grain and 
grass lands, are much more successful in getting a catch 
of grass, than those farmers in the same neighborhood 
who only use the harrow; and it is a matter of sur¬ 
prise to us, that so very few farmers in some sections 
of the country we have visited, should neglect to pro¬ 
vide themselves with one or more—a heavy one, to 
be drawn with a pair of horses and oxen, and a lighter 
and shorter one, to be drawn by a horse. 
Rollers are variously constructed. Some are very 
expensive. Such as Crosskill’s—others of stone, or 
cast-iron. These may be well for large farmers who 
can afford it; but good and efficient ones can be made 
for a moderate sum. We have seen them made in two 
parts—some made of plank, others from a large round 
log. When made in two parts, there is a round iron 
shaft or axle passing through the center of the two 
portions of the roller; such turn more readily at the 
end of the field, as the two parts turn in opposite direc¬ 
tions. A good, sound, round log, at least two feet in 
