14 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
Tillage Hnsltanriry. 
Tins department vvill bo ile\oied to ullage crops and ulitrnale husbandry,—or 
that system of farming v\hicli brings most parts of the farm successively in¬ 
to plough, meadow and pasture land. We consider this system as one of 
the greatest improvements in modern husbandry; and vve shall illustrate its 
advantages in the communication which follows, which was prepared lor, 
and fairly belongs to, the Farmers' Register. With this acknowledgment, 
we trust its liberal editor, Mr. Ruffin, will be neither displeased with us, 
nor his correspondent. 
Most of our readers have heard of, or seen, the pine plains of Kinderhook.— 
They were, under the old system of farming, deemed of little value. It is 
not many years since three dollars per acre w'as deemed a liberal price for 
these lands. Under the alternate system of husbandry, they have been ren¬ 
dered extremely profitable and valuable, and it will be seen, have recently 
been sold at $60 the acre. The subjoined communication will suggest use¬ 
ful hints to those w ho cultivate similar lands. Mr. Harder’s is not a solitary 
case; hut we are told exhibits a fair specimen of the system and profits of 
farming in that district. 
PRODUCTS AND PROFITS OF A FARM Or TWO HUNDRED ACRES OF 
SANDY SOIL, IN 1833. 
Sir, —At the solicitation of a friend I am induced to give a state¬ 
ment of the products of my farm for the year 1833, and of its gene¬ 
ral arrangement. In doing this, as my grain is not yet all thrashed 
and taken to market, I cannot now arrive at perfect accuracy; but 
from what is thrashed and sold, I can make a correct estimate of the 
quantity, and I have ascertained the price for such as has not been 
actually sold. My farm is situated on an extensive plain that was 
once covered pretty generally with small pine timber. The soil is 
sand, occasionally gravel, and more or less mixed with loam. It 
consists of two hundred acres, of which thirty acres are in wood, 
twenty in meadow, and ten acres of waste, leaving for cultivation 
about one hundred and foriy acres of arable, or land used lor the 
plough, which is divided into seven lots, of twenty acres each.— 
One of these lots is planted in corn, on clover sod. The corn is the 
large twelve rowed early yellow 7 , and my usual produce is about fif¬ 
ty bushels per acre. My mode of cultivation is, that after the lot 
has lain one year in clover, to plough it the last of April or first of 
May, about six inches deep; then furrow both ways with a light 
corn plough ; the first time across the furrows about two feet nine 
inches apart, the next about three feet. I plant immediately after 
furrowing. As soon as the corn is up the length of the finger, I 
harrow it with a large heavy harrow lengthwise with the furrow, as 
the ground was originally ploughed, and take two rows at a time. 
Two men or boys follow the harrow with aprons, out of which they 
plaster the corn, and also raise any plants which may have been 
thrown down by the harrow passing over them. In a week after, I 
plough once between the rows, as they are planted the narrowest 
way ; the men follow with the hoe, and they will finish twenty acres 
in ten days. In about a fortnight more, I plough it the widest way 
of planting, twice between the rows, and throw the ground towards 
the plant. I cut the stalk above the ear as soon as the kernel in 
the ear is hard, and secure the stalks in shooks. We husk the corn 
on the hill, and two men will gather one hundred bushels of ears in 
a day. The lot which was in corn, 1 put down the succeeding year 
to oats, and it commonly produces about forty bushels per acre.— 
This lot I seed down with western clover seed, eight quarts per 
acre. Two lots are in wheat, which were likewise the year previ¬ 
ous in clover seed. The one is ploughed the first of August, and 
again just previous to sowing in September; the other but once, the 
last of August or first of September, about a fortnight previous to 
sowing. These lots have the benefit of my barn manure, which is 
scattered on such portions as I think require it most. 
I commonly sow about one bushel twelve quarts per acre, and my 
common yield is twenty bushels of wheat per acre. Thus four lots 
are employed, one in corn, one in oats, two in wheat; the remain¬ 
ing three are in pasture. Two of these are again to be ploughed : 
up in the fall for wheat, and the remaining one is for corn the suc¬ 
ceeding season. The experience of twenty years has confirmed me 
in the belief that this is the most successful mode of cultivation in 
our soil, and I have at all events been satisfied with the amount of, 
produce my farm has yielded me. I annex a statement showing the 
amount of produce and the proceeds therefrom, of my farm, for the 
year 1833, and the expenses of its management. 
Cr. 
20 acres meadow, 2 tons hay per acre, sold at $7£ per 
ton,. $300 00 
20 acres producing 1,000 bushels corn, for which 1 am of¬ 
fered 62 j cts. per bushel,. 625 00 
40 acres producing 800 bushels wheat, sold a 8||6,. 850 00 
20 acres producing 800 bushels oats, sold a 37%, . 300 00 
500 bushels potatoes a 2||,. 125 00 
3000 weight of pork, a $5.50,. 165 00 
Sold one beef. 25 00 
500 lbs. butter, a 16 cts. 80 00 
225 lbs. wool, a 4|[,. 112 00 
55 lambs, increase of my flock,. 80 00 
$2,662 00 
Dr. 
$100 00 
70 00 
13 12 
25 25 
25 25 
15 00 
50 00 
$320 62 
320 62 
Income,.$2,341 38 
The farm sold a $60, for 200 acres,. $12,000 
Stock and implements valued at. 1,000 
$13,000 
Interest on this sum at 7 per cent,. 910 38 
Gain,.$1,431 00 
Making the entire interest upon $13,000, after deducting ex¬ 
penses, about 18 per cent. There are other profits from the farm 
not enumerated in the within statements, such as house-rent, gar¬ 
den, orcharding, raising of poultry, &c. I will put them against any 
little incidental expenses not enumerated, but which they will be 
t amply sufficient to defray. The labor upon my farm is performed 
by two men as above stated, but under my own direction, and all 
our operations tend to lessen the amount of labor as much as prac¬ 
ticable ; and I find that nothing conduces more to this result than to 
keep ahead of my work through the season. For myself, I labor 
but moderately, but keep up a constant supervision. I will only far¬ 
ther add, that since I have adopted the principle of total abstinence 
from ardent spirits, at all seasons of the year, I think I have not on¬ 
ly gained vastly in the amount of work done by my men, but my 
farming business has gone on more cheerfully. 
Yours respectfully, 
TEUNIS HARDER. 
Kinderhook, Columbia co. Jan. 14, 1834. 
ROTATION OF CROPS. 
We find a great deal said in English publications, of the impor¬ 
tance of a rotation of crops; and although we may receive, and 
doubtless do receive, many valuable hints from our trans-atlantie 
brethren, yet their soil, their climate, their mamets, and price of la¬ 
bor, are so different, as to render it highly improper for the Ameri¬ 
can farmer implicitly to follow their directions. Indeed, it would be 
imprudent to follow the directions of the best farmers of New-Eng- 
land, for the good reasons, that our most valuable ^products, as well 
as our soils, are different. In western New-York the soil is well 
! adapted to wheat. It is the great staple. To that the farmer looks 
i to supply him with money. That inode of larming, therefore, which 
1 produces this crop in the greatest perfection, is the one he ought to 
pursue. It is well known that land may be too rich for wheat, and 
that the application of barn-yard manure immediately preceding a 
crop of wheat, is considered by the best farmers injudicious. I 
am in favor of an alternation of crops, and have found the follow¬ 
ing to answer best on my farm, which is considered a good wheat 
soil. 
Indian corn is a gross feeder; indeed it is impossible to make 
land too rich for it; I therefore give my corn and potato ground al- 
The item of pasturage not put down. 
To hiring one man per year,. 
To do do seven months,. 
To hiring 15 days in haying and harvest, .... 
3 A tons plaster, a $7.50,. 
3% bushels clover seed, a $7.50,. 
Taxes, . 
Mechanics’ bills. 
