1850. 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
79 
Qwmtxs to (Jomoponknts. 
Canary Grass.—G. N., Hobart, Del. County, 
N. Y. This grass will perfect its seed in this lati¬ 
tude. It is usually sown in drills, with a machine, 
about one foot apart, requiring from sixteen to twen¬ 
ty quarts per acre. It is an annua], and the seed 
is sown at the same time of sowing spring grain, 
and ripens nearly at the same time, or rather later. 
The yield is from twenty to thirty bushels per acre. 
The straw is eaten by cattle and horses. 
Berkshire Hogs. —B. S., Greenwich, N. J. 
There are no full blood Berkshires in this neighbor¬ 
hood , and we are unable to say where they can be 
had. 
Colza. —N., Bridgeton, N. J. We have heard 
of no experiment with this plant in this country. 
If any one has tried it, we should like to know the 
-results. 
Stump Machine. —J. F. C., Grand Rapids, 
Mich. The description of the article to which you 
refer, (Cultivator for 1846, p. 116,) evidently con¬ 
tains a mistake in regard to the length, which is 
there given as u two feet. ,, We regard it, howev¬ 
er, as a matter of little consequence, as the cut 
gives a definite idea of the form of the article, and 
it is obvious that it should be of such dimensions as 
will suit the size of the stumps. We have seen 
such things used of various sizes. It is only stumps 
the roots of which are considerably decayed, that 
■can be taken out in this way; but fcr such the con¬ 
trivance answers well. 
Seeding land to Grass.—S. W., North Easton, 
N. Y. On lands of medium dryness, we have used, 
-for one acre, eight pounds or four quarts red clover, 
<eight quarts timothy or herds grass, and from half a 
bushel to a bushel (according to its cleanness) of 
red top. 
The White Snow-Bird.—S. W. According to 
Dr. De Kay, this bird breeds mostly, high at the 
north, along the coast of Labrador, but has been 
known to breed in Massachusetts and Maino. In 
winter it comes down from the north, and is some¬ 
times seen as far south as Maryland and Virginia. 
It feeds on the seeds of weeds and grasses, which it 
finds above the snow. 
Ohio Mineral Paint.— A Farmer. The sub¬ 
stance of what we know in regard to this article, 
was given in our last volume, page 379. 
Food of Fowls. —L. B., Clayton, N. Y. Fowls 
-should have a variety of food. Indian corn, barley, 
buckwheat and wheat-screenings, may form the bulk 
of their food in winter; but they should have some ani¬ 
mal food, such as butcher’s offal, and pure green 
vegetable food, as cabbages and potatoes; and also 
mineral matter, as lime, oyster-shells, bones, and 
gravel. 
Plaster. —C. H., Central Village, Ct. The 
qualities in plaster, to which its action as a fertili¬ 
zer are attributable, are undoubtedly dissipated, in 
some degree, by exposure to the weather; but with 
that which has been kept in casks, as you describe, 
we should not think the loss was very great. 
Colman’s European Agriculture.—A. L., 
Gale’s Ferry, Ct. This work is for sale by A. D- 
Phelps, Boston, and also at this office. It is bound 
In two volumes, price $5. 
Guano. —We believe the best success has attend¬ 
ed the use of guano when sown just before a rain, 
or applied in solution. The proper quantity is 200 
to 300 lbs. per acre. 
Fish for Manure. —We believe it is considered, 
best to make them into compost with peat or earth, 
to be applied when decomposed. 
Prouty’s Centre Draft Plow. —A. B. P., 
Boone Grove, Ind. We have never heard of these 
plows being used in any soil where they did not work 
clean; and we are not aware of any objection to 
their use in 11 the black, loose soil of the prairies.” 
Tiles for Strawberry-beds. —J. I. K., Sing- 
Sing, N. Y. The tiles about which you inquire, are 
described in our volume for 1845, page 128. We do 
not know of any establishment where they are made, 
but it would be an easy matter to make a mould and 
have them made at any brick-yard, and burnt in a 
common kiln. 
Centrifugal Wind-mill. — J. P., Capo Vin¬ 
cent, N. Y. There is a mill of this kind, on a small 
scale, in use in this vicinity. We cannot tell how 
it answers for general purposes. Perhaps some of 
our correspondents, who have more knowledge of 
it, will inform us in regard to its operation. 
Ice-Houses.— O. L. D., Portage county, Ohio. 
It is best to build an ice-house with a double parti¬ 
tion, the space to be filled with tan-bark, or some 
non-conducting substance. The bottom should be 
covered a foot deep with small blocks of wood, and 
over these a covering of shavings. Some lay the iee 
on the shavings—others lay a floor to receive the ice 
over the shavings. The ice should be packed as 
closely as possible. You will find a cut and des¬ 
cription of the plan adopted by the great ice-mer¬ 
chants of Cambridge, Mass., in our volume for 1847, 
page 345. 
Charcoal and Lime.— E. C. J., Campbell 
Court-House, Va. If your charcoal and lime are 
mixed together, and the lime is slaked, you may use 
with safety a bushel to each fruit tree of the size 
you mention. 
Wheat Drill. —W. S., Lahaska, Pa. The 
grain drills which are most distinguished, so far as 
we know, are the following: Sherman’s, made and 
sold by J. W. Sherman, Ontario, Wayne Co.; Pal¬ 
mer’s, made by Fitch &t Barry, Brockport; Graggs 
Sc Reynolds’, made by O. Reynolds, Webster, Mon¬ 
roe Co.; Burrall’s, made byT. D. Burrall, Geneva. 
Our acquaintance with the operation of these drills 
is not such as to enable us to say which is the best. 
We should be glad to hear from those who have tried, 
different kinds. 
Abolition of Bull-fights in Spain. —It is said 
that measures are about to be taken by the Junta 
General of Agriculture at Madrid, for the gradual 
suppression of Bull-fights, in consequence of their 
prejudicial effects on the interests and morality of the 
country. It is calculated that 4000 horses annually 
perish in Spain upon the horns of the bull, and in a 
country essentially agricultural like Spain, this con¬ 
tinued and cruel destruction of a useful animal, de¬ 
prives those who dedicate themselves to the culture 
of the soil, of a large amount of working power that 
might be applied to the augmentation of their pros¬ 
perity. The annual destruction of 1500 bulls in the 
various fights celebrated throughout the Peninsula, 
destroys the best working breeds, impairs the quality 
of beef, impoverishes the milk markets, contributes 
to the decadence of pastures and fields, and augments 
the price of butter and milk, which in civilised coun¬ 
tries are counted amongst the necessaries of life. All 
these considerations, and the fact that the people by 
attending bull-fights acquire habits of brutality and 
ferocity, by becoming accustomed to scenes of blood¬ 
shed, is likely to induce the government to attend to 
the representations of the Junta of Agriculture. 
