1858. 
THE CULTIVATOR 
299 
spread if carted on to the land in the spring. How¬ 
ever, this may be remedied by having all the straw 
and other long litter used for bedding, cut in a straw 
or stalk-cutter. There would be some labor in this, 
but we think it would pay well. 
Partially dried, fine swamp muck, makes a capital 
bedding for cattle in the hovel, as well as an absor¬ 
bent, and a divisor of the mortar-like manures. 
Good swamp muck may be profitably used with the 
winter made manure, at the rate of two or three of 
muck to one of manure. At this rate there could be 
but little, if any escape of gases, by over heating of 
the mass, or waste of urine by draining off. With 
many farmers it is difficult procuring swamp muck; 
but most have wood lots, from which, in autumn large 
quantities of leaves and leaf mold could be obtained; 
the leaves from hardwood trees and mold derived from 
the decomposed leaves, are among the very best mate¬ 
rials for mixing or composting with animal manures, 
that can be readily obtained. The fertility of newly 
cleared land, is, in a great measure, due to the vege¬ 
table mold derived from the fallen and decomposed 
leaves of trees. The leaves of trees contain a much 
larger per centage of ash (inorganic matter) than the 
wood. Prof. Johnston says, “ the wood of the elm 
contains less than two per cent, while its leaves con¬ 
tain nearly twelve per cent.; the wood of the oak, 
leaves only one-fifth of a per cent., while from its 
leaves four and a half per cent., or 22 times as much 
are obtained. The leaves of the willow and the beech 
also contain about twenty times as much as the wood 
of these trees does, when it has been dried under the 
same conditions.” 
The inorganic matter found in the ash of the 
leaves of trees, is precisely the same that is found 
in the ash of our cultivated plants, but not in exactly 
the same proportions; these proportions differ in dif¬ 
ferent varieties of plants. These inorganic constitu¬ 
ents are much more soluble in the decomposing leaves, 
than they are, as found in the purely mineral matter 
of the soil, from which they were originally derived ; 
but in addition to the great amount of inorganic mat¬ 
ter in leaves, “they contain three times as much ni¬ 
trogen as barn-yard manure, and are, therefore, near¬ 
ly three times as valuable.” From the foregoing, we 
get a pretty correct idea of the manurial value of 
leaves and leaf mold. 
While the ground is covered with snow, the leaves 
and vegetable mold from the woods cannot be obtain¬ 
ed ; but as soon as the snow is off and the frost is out 
of the ground, farmers can most profitably devote a 
few days time in early spring in putting up large heaps 
of the “ rubbish ” in their wood lots. Put up in large 
masses, the leaves would mostly decompose during the 
summer, and the whole would become a vegetable 
mold, far more valuable, pound for pound, than 
swamp muck, lighter to cart, and an equally good ab¬ 
sorbent of the liquids of the cattle hovels. If the 
wood lot is too rough to collect the mold in carts or 
wagons, it should next autumn be put into as large 
heaps as can be conveniently done, and if to be had 
the heaps should be covered with branches of ever¬ 
greens, so as in a measure to prevent freezing. Soon 
as there is snow enough to use the sled, it will be best 
to haul the material , and place it in the barn cellar, 
or a shed, where it may be daily obtained as bedding 
for the hovels, stables, hog pens, &o. We have col¬ 
lected large quantities of wood scrapings, both in au¬ 
tumn nnd winter, as above described, and are satisfi¬ 
ed we were expending our money in this way, at a 
much better profit than in the purchase of guano, su¬ 
per-phosphates, poudrette, or ta feu, &c., &c. 
-o • •-- 
Broom Corn. 
MessRS. Editors — I noticed in the Country Gentle¬ 
man of July 1st, page 411, that E. M. S. “ wishes 
some one to furnish an article on the culture of broom 
corn , to enable one unacquainted with it to grow it 
successfully I have had no time till the present to 
comply with his wishes, and if I had, it would 
have then been too late for any practical benefit to 
him the present season ; but our friend caD take these 
few hints, and if rigidly put in practice, he may profit 
by them another year. 
As to soil, any good, rich soil, the more free from 
stumps and stone, the better, such as prairie or river 
bottom land. Better also to be free from corn stalks, 
straw, &c., as they are rather a nuisance in planting 
and cultivating. Flant any time in this latitude from 
the 10th of May, to 15th of June, in rows four feet 
apart, and in drills so that a seed will be dropped from 
three to four inches apart. These directions are for 
the large kind of broom corn which is the best, and 
for a rich soil. If the smaller kind is planted and the 
soil not very strong, then the rows may be about three 
feet and four inches apart. (The large kind produces 
the best brush and is more free from the green lice 
or bug, and burn stains.) 
The tools wanted are seed planters, cultivator, 
shovel, plow and corn plow. It is important that the 
rows or stalks of broom corn stand in as perfect a line 
as possible, in order to save labor with the hoe, and 
that just enough seed should be planted, for if too 
much is planted, then it has to be cut out with the hoe 
or pulled out by hand, (which is a back-aching busi¬ 
ness.) Now in order to plant it right, procure Emery’s 
seed planters, take out the lead screws from the cylin¬ 
der and plug up the holes with any hard wood, and 
smooth off the plug nicely, even with the surface of 
the cylinder, then take a half inch bit and bore about 
one-twelfth of an inch, such a cavity or bucket as will 
hold eight or nine seeds, (serve the three buckets in 
the same way.) Then try the machine before plant¬ 
ing with it to see that it drops the right quantity of 
seed. For this purpose take it on to a floor, or carpet 
is better as seed bounds, or you may try it on smooth 
ground. Measure the distance and count the seeds 
dropped, and alter if necessary, till it drops on the 
average one seed to three or four inches, when the 
planter is ready for use. 
The ground having been recently plowed and har¬ 
rowed smooth, mark it out with a light marker. One 
horse will draw two planters with ease, with a man to 
hold each planter. They may be fastened at the right 
gauge, on a cross piece and thills for the horse. When 
your corn is planted, if the ground has been long plow¬ 
ed, and is inclined to weeds, it should be harrowed over. 
This may be done three or four days after planting. 
Then the ground should be rolled with a heavy roller, 
(unless wet,) which will crush all the lumps and leave 
it smooth, which is an important consideration, as my 
experience has taught me. 
