151 
1846. 
sary at any time to use the hoe in working- close to the 
row. It is not best to thin either beets or carrots till they 
get well into leaf, as they are liable to the attack of 
insects, particularly the turnep flea or “ fly, 55 and the 
various kinds of ec cut worms.” The best protection 
against the fly which we have ever tried, is a sprink¬ 
ling of plaster, air-slacked lime or ashes, while the 
plants are wet with dew, so that the dust will adhere 
to them and form a crust. 
CAPABILITIES OF GEORGIA. 
Mr. Tucker —The great improvements that have 
been made in our world, and are still making in Agri¬ 
culture and all the mechanic arts, are calculated to cheer 
the heart of every friend to our race, and we wonder 
how any being can live at this time and not feel a deep 
interest in these great matters, and a desire to contri¬ 
bute something, if it is ever so little, to so good a cause. 
In Georgia we have made a very prodigal use of the ma¬ 
ny good things with which Providence has blessed us. 
This is wrong, morally wrong. We ought to turn 
everything to the best advantage, and if possible leave 
the country in a better condition than we found it. 
Another race of men will come after us, and they will 
want land and timber too, as well as we, and as just men, 
we ought to leave something for them. But we are by 
our improper conduct, doing posterity a great injury 
without benefitting ourselves, for our wasteful ways are 
no advantage to us, but the contrary. But notwith¬ 
standing all our wasteful ways, and prodigal doings, 
we can yet do well enough in Georgia, if we can wean 
ourselves from our bad habits. 
A great portion of our land can be reclaimed by pro¬ 
per management, and a good many things can be profit¬ 
ably cultivated that hitherto have received little or no 
attention. We can make wheat and flour in Georgia 
good enough for any body, and the people are in a fair 
way to convince themselves that they can produce the 
article in great abundance, for from everything we can 
learn on the subject, there was as much wheat sowed 
last fall as has ever been sowed in any two years before, 
and there is little doubt but what sugar can be profitably 
cultivated in half the state, and the other half is blessed 
with water-power in abundance, and other great advan¬ 
tages. 
Wool and silk can be produced in Georgia as cheap 
perhaps as they can anywhere. Bye does not do well 
here, but barley does extremely well, and if the crop 
is profitable anywhere it can be made so here. On 
suitable land barley grows so thick and fine that it 
looks as though there was no room for any more on the 
ground. The sweet potato too does extremely well 
here, and it is certainly one of the most valuable roots 
in the whole world, and yet it is not cultivated to that 
extent that we think it should be. Almost every 
planter in Georgia cultivates sweet potatoes, but there 
are but few that cultivate the article for stock, and this 
is what we think every planter in Georgia ought to do. 
Every body knows that sweet potatoes are good for 
hogs, cows, and sheep, and that the article can be pro¬ 
duced in great quantifies, and yet it is not done. It is 
thought that cows fed on sweet potatoes give better 
milk, and more of it, than those fed on any other food 
we have in this country, and some think that hogs will 
fatten as fast on potatoes as they will on corn, but 
whether this is correct or not, there is little doubt but 
hogs thrive better or faster on corn and potatoes, or on 
peas and potatoes, than they do on either corn or peas, 
or both corn or peas. In every pea field that is intend¬ 
ed for hogs, there ought to be a potato-patch that the 
hogs may get both peas and potatoes at the same time, 
and if the people would adopt the plan of feeding hogs 
partly on peas or corn, and partly on potatoes, they 
would doubtless find the plan a good one. If potatoes 
are left in the ground they will keep good enough for 
hogs, in that condition, a long time, sometimes almost 
or quite through the winter, and by leaving them in the 
patch and turning the hogs in, we get clear of digging. 
which is a considerable job. Perhaps the best plan is 
to turn both hogs and sheep into the potato-patch at the 
same time, that when the hogs root up more potatoes 
than they eat, the sheep can take care of them. 
We possess many important advantages in Georgia, 
and if the spirit of improvement that is abroad in the 
world extends here, and the people abandon their old 
wasteful habits, Georgia can yet become one of the most 
desirable countries in the world. We have a sufficient 
variety of climate and soil to produce almost every¬ 
thing that is produced in the world-, we, in fact, have 
so many advantages that we don’t appreciate or improve 
any of them as we should do, but sometime we hope 
the people w r ill wake up on the subject of improvement, 
and divide the honors and profits that are to be derived 
from these things. A. E. Ernest. 
Bibb Co., Ga., 1846. 
TURNING- STOCK TO GRASS. 
Unless compelled by scarcity of winter food, we 
should not generally turn stock to pasture till the grass 
had started so as to afford what farmers call a good 
bite.” If animals only get a little grass, and that of a 
watery and innutritious nature, as the first growth gene¬ 
rally is, it takes away the appetite for other food without 
giving much nourishment in its place. Besides, grass¬ 
lands, while in a soft or unsettled state, are injured by 
being trodden or poached by stock. This is perhaps 
the greatest objection to turning out early, or before the 
soil gets firm; though sheep, from their comparative 
lightness, do much less injury than heavy stock. 
Clover and timothy are generally much injured by 
early feeding. Red-top and blue-grass are more hardy, 
and from their habits tend to unite the soil and make a 
firm sod. On this account, soils set in these grasses 
may be pastured, if dry, at almost any season, without 
much injury. 
To check the too laxative tendency which young grass 
sometimes has, it is best to give stock a foddering of 
hay at night, for a while after they are turned out; and 
in case of storms, they should have the benefit of shel¬ 
ter. 
Sheep may be pastured on rye for a short time, if it 
is pretty forward, without injury to the crop, and with 
very great advantage to the sheep, especially to nursing 
ewes. In case of a scarcity of other feed they may be 
turned on dry meadows. If not too heavily stocked, 
we do not think the )deld of hay is much lessened by 
meadows being fed by sheep till the 15th or 20th of 
May. The crop is made later, but it is usually finer 
and thicker. Mr. M. Y. Tilden, of New-Lebanon, 
N. Y., an extensive wool grower, is in the practice of 
pasturing his meadows with sheep both spring and fall; 
yet he finds his crops of hay rather increase than di¬ 
minish. He certainly gets a good product. In 1843, he 
took from 132 acres, 2S5 tons of well-cured hay, and 
not more than ten acres, as he states, was manured at 
all, excepting- from the sheep as they grazed over it. 
We have known several similar instances. 
It is best not to turn working oxen to grass till they 
have done their <( spring work.” They will perform 
labor much better when fed on good, bright soft hay, 
with two or three quarts of meal from Indian corn, bar¬ 
ley, or oats and peas, with a few potatoes, carrots, and 
other succulent vegetables than when fed on the young 
grass. It takes some time for the animal system to ac¬ 
commodate itself to the change from dry to green food, 
or from hay to grass, and the first growth of grass, be¬ 
sides being deficient in nutriment, is likely to weaken 
animals by its cathartic action. 
Deep Cultivation.—A correspondent of the Lon¬ 
don Gardener’s Chronicle, speaking of the importance 
of deep cultivation, and in connexion a deep diffusion of 
manure, says, e( I have found the roots of the Swedish 
turnep five feet below the surface on which its bulb 
was growing, and all around it to a distance of three or 
four feet, the fibres of the root to a lesser depth, had 
completely permeated the soil.” 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
