118 THE CULTIVATOR. March 
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has been more than doubled, and the increase has 
been owing mainly to the use of muck in the com¬ 
post-heap ; and 1 am by no means satisfied that the 
maximum product has been attained. 
My mode of operation is to draw from the swamp 
whenever leisure permits, and line my barn and hog 
yards with the muck, a foot thick. Whenever the 
hogs have well composted their allowance, (and 
they work very cheap,) I give them another. Also 
under my horse-barn, and under my stable windows, 
I am sure to put a coat of muck, whenever there is 
a sprinkling of manure. By the side of my swamp, 
I draw out, mostly in the winter, different piles, 
and with one, mix a few ashes say one load of ashes 
to ten of muck, and with another a little manure, if 
it can be bought—say one load of manure to three 
of muck—and with another a dead horse from the 
neighboring village. These separate deposites are 
shovelled over as convenience may allow during the 
summer, and in the fall mostly used as a top-dress¬ 
ing on the meadows. I have never known lands 
thus treated that were not grateful for it, and did 
not pay good interest on the investment. Grass, T 
am satisfied, is the remunerative crop for most 
New England farms; still on corn and potatoe 
grounds, I have found muck to operate with bene¬ 
ficial effect. With such a resource for manure, 
what eastern farmer need fear competition from his 
western neighbors, two days journey, or a thousand 
miles off? Berkshire. 
Potatoes from Seed. 
Eds. Cultivator —The following brief of some 
experiments, with my seedling potatoes last season, 
is respectfully submitted for the Cultivator. 
All the different varieties, though the season was 
much too dry for good crops, came off' in the ad¬ 
vance of former years. 
I planted as late as the 19th of June, on a patch 
of new land, just cleared from the stump, about 7 
bushels of the very smallest of several varieties of 
my improved seedlings. They were the remnants 
from what I had selected and sold at home and 
abroad for planting. “ Too small to offer for sale 
as potatoes.” A large portion in size less than 
Robin’s eggs. The soil was too green and rooty 
for the plow; it was broken with the grub hoe; a 
sandy loam, not at all manured; the crop suffered 
much by the drouth, was hoed once, and lifted, 
after the frost had killed the foliage when in vigor¬ 
ous growth, and the product was good. A good 
portion of the crop range in size with large pota¬ 
toes. The u Buffalo Pinks,” 11 Rus$e)s” and 
11 Eries,” were finely developed. Others also were 
good. The surface of the plat was too much inter¬ 
rupted with stamps and roots to allow any just 
estimate per acre. 
I planted a few “ Prussian Seedlings the pro¬ 
duct of seeds from the balls which I obtained di¬ 
rect from Germany. The tubers are of the finest 
specimens. Shall cultivate these Prussian Seed¬ 
lings with the expectation of adding to my lists 
for public inspection another most beautiful stand¬ 
ard seedling potato. 
I sowed my improved seedling potato seed at dif¬ 
ferent dates—1st, March 1st; 2nd, May 1st; 3d, 
May 19th. The 1st and 2nd sowing was in hot 
bed, both of which did well, though the crops, on 
account of the drouth and prevailing sickness, 
were limited. But the third sowing, the 19th of 
May, was in open bed like cabbage-seed, and 
transplanted. Also in drills, in the field, where the 
plants remained and were cultivated the same as 
common potatoes. The product, notwithstanding 
the severity of the drouth, was abundantly satis¬ 
factory . The young seedlings were numerous, de¬ 
veloping new varieties, and several of fine appear- 
ance. Many of the tubers were as large as a hen’s 
egg. Mr. Ackerman, a gardener near me, sow 7 ed 
of the same seed the 25th of May in open bed, trans¬ 
planted in rich garden soil, and the product was 
equal to 200 bushels per acre. Six of the first sized 
tubers weighed 22£ oz. Others are equally suc¬ 
cessful with the sown seed. Good improved seed- 
ling potato-seed is sure to vegetate, produces very 
hardy plants, and may be used to great advantage 
by sowing it in open bed or in drills in the field, for 
the purpose of new varieties and producing seed for 
the next season. N. S. Smith. Buffalo, Feb., 1850. 
Experiment with Potatoes. 
Eds. Cultivator —The following is an experi- 
ment which I made last season in planting potatoes. 
The kind is called by some the “ Merino,” and by 
others the “ Red Mercer.” It is a large long red 
potato with sunken eyes and a great many of them. 
It is a good potato for the table at any time after 
reaching maturity, but it is the best in the spring. 
It yields well in all soils, but produces the best 
quality in a sandy loam. The soil on which the 
experiment was made, was a sandy loam, and had 
been in clover two years. Planted three feet apart 
side by side. The following is the product of eigh¬ 
ty hills of each: 
Kind. 
Yield, lbs. 
Yield, bush., lbs. 
Yield 
per acre. 
1 large,.. 
5.45 
348 
1 small,..... 
3.544 
236 
1 large slit lengthwise,. 
... 287£ 
4.474 
290 
1 large, cut in two,.... 
1 large, seed end only.. 
5.09 
312 
... 251 
4.11 
253 
I large, root end only,’. 
... 2S7£ 
4.384 
281 
The produce of the small ones were small, and of 
the large ones large. You are at liberty to do as 
you please with the above. G. T. Pearsall. 
Owcgo, Jan. 21, 1850. 
Ativice Wanted. 
Eds. Cultivator —My farm consists of about 
220 acres, arable land, divided into seven lots, num¬ 
bered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. No. 1 is river bottom, 
sandy alluvial, medium quality; average yield, 30 
to 35 bushels corn, 10 or 11 bushels wheat per acre. 
Nos. 2 and 3 are identically the same; 4 and 5 are 
upland, gently undulating, stiff red clay, and dry, 
quality inferior ; average yield per acre, say 20 bush¬ 
els corn, 8 bushels wheat; clover and all the grass¬ 
es do pretty well on these five lots; gypsum has a 
good effect. Nos. 6 and 7 we may regard as one 
field. The northern half was once a good clay 
mould; but it has been skinned, and we have now 
the clay without the mould. It lies almost level- 
quality about equal to 4 and 5. The southern half 
is totally different from the northern half, and from 
any other lot yet described; and it is in regard to 
this .particular, that I want information. 
This ground lies perfectly level-—is, in fact, what 
we here call second bottom; that is, a bench or flat 
of land lying from 5 to 10, sometimes 20 feet above 
the first or sandy alluvial bottom. Clay predomi¬ 
nates in this soil, and is sometimes, (that is in dif¬ 
ferent places,) blue, sometimes nearly white, then 
again yellow, but is mostly a gray. In it there is 
gravel and sand; the gravel is small at the surface 
and increases in size as you descend. This is the 
poorest part of my farm—indeed, in its present con¬ 
dition, it is not worth cultivating ; it would not yield 
