THE CULTIVATOR. 
135 
institutions ? These are all great and important duties* and in a 
well regulated community ought not to be slighted or forgotten. 
Society cannot flourish without them—they are the stamina that 
give stability and health to our country and its government, and 
that man is unfit for associated life—he is wanting in principle and 
reckless of consequences, who will not lend his aid to the attain¬ 
ment of these great and important objects. 
Should our sheet continue its labors through the changes of the 
year, and at the end of it we appear again before you, we hope to 
meet you under still more auspicious circumstances. Our first wish 
is for the prosperity of our country; the next for its agriculture— 
and we hope to find you not only more zealous in the pursuit of if, 
but more willing with you pens to lessen the labors of your hands. 
Depend upon it, when mind is brought to operate upon the stubborn 
soil, it removes obstacles, creates facilities and gives an expansion 
to our ideas, a directness to our efforts and a success to crown them, 
that hard knocks alone cannot overcome. With these remarks, we 
wish you all a happy New-Year. A. 
AGRICULTURAL REPORT FOR 1834. 
Although the quantity of wheat raised in this state, is annually in¬ 
creasing, from our becoming rather better acquainted with the plant, 
and a denser population, and consequently new grounds coming un¬ 
der the use of the plough, still the crop, considered as a whole, and 
allowing a pro rata calculation for the causes of its increase, is not 
as great this year as it was in 1833. The winter of 1833-34 was 
what is called an open one. A good deal of wheat was frozen out 
in the course of it, from the want of snow, which is essential to a 
good winter crop. The spring of 1834 was favorable to its growth, 
but in the early part of the summer, the weather was extremely hot 
and dry. The thermometer for some weeks in July, ranged nearly 
at 90°, and no rain to moisten the earth and cool the atmosphere. 
This weather was not injurious to wheat in particular localities, but 
in other parts of the state, the wheat suffered from blight, rust and 
in a few of the midland counties from the depredations of the grain- 
worm, supposed to be Vibrio Tritici. This grub made its appear¬ 
ance in June, was most troublesome in a few counties north of Al¬ 
bany, where it committed great ravages, and from whence it will 
probably spread to contiguous counties the succeeding season. The 
earliest indication of its appearance hereafter ought to be carefully 
noted, and its method of propagation and propensities closely ob¬ 
served, in the hope that it will lead to the adoption of a plan for its 
extinction. Generally speaking, the crop was of less weight too 
than the last year, and would hardly average 60 lbs. to the bushel, 
which is less than the weight ordinarily of our wheat. The price, 
too, has been at least 15 per cent less than the last year. We pre¬ 
sume this was imputable to rather a lessened demand for many of our 
productions. 
Wool .—The quantity grown in this state is annually and rapidly 
increasing, and the quality improving. Farmers generally are be¬ 
coming better judges of both the animal and its fleece, and raise 
more of the valuable kinds. The native sheep have been much im¬ 
proved upon by intermixture with the foreign varieties, and we bid 
fair by a careful attention to this branch of agriculture, considering 
our facilities for its prosecution, to rival the English in the quality 
and weight of carcass, whilst we compete with Saxony and Spain 
in the fineness of the fleece. Perseverance will in a short time ef¬ 
fect this, for the American wool is now preferred by our own manu¬ 
facturers to a rather finer quality of foreign, because it works up 
better. The home market being supplied, the prospect is, we will 
soon see the time when it will be sought after from abroad. The 
price was about the same as last year, if any thing rather better; 
the supply on hand, now in the country is not large, and will proba¬ 
bly be very nearly consumed by the manufacturers this winter, and 
the coming spring. The importation the last season has been small, 
and the prospect of the price for the crop of 1835, as flattering as 
the one just disposed of. The last public sales previous to the sus¬ 
pension of navigation by winter, (and which are a criterion not only 
of the quantity in market but the prospect of what the price is likelv 
to be for months to come,) was quite as good as former sales, and 
if any thing rather in advance. The price of the article in Europe 
remains much the same as it has been some months previous, al¬ 
though there were reports to the contrary. The manufacturers of 
woollens in Europe have constant employment and a brisk demand 
for their products. 
Indian Corn.— In this article for the last year there has been a 
great falling off in the quantity. The prospect for a crop was ne¬ 
ver more flattering than it was in the month of June last, when the 
coolness of the preceding spring had abated and the warm weather 
set in, but early in July the drought commenced, which continued 
nearly three months. The corn suffered very much from it. The 
crop taken as a whole, was not over a half yield, but the quality is 
good, and none was lost for want of ripening. Although this crop 
is small, the price is not advanced beyond the previous year. Corn 
is more extensively cultivated than formerly, and in ordinary sea¬ 
sons more is raised off of an equal quantity of land. It delights in 
| a warm rich soil—clayey lands are not congenial to its growth with¬ 
out they are well manured, and we have a wet but warm season. 
Under such circumstances they will produce heavy crops, but it re¬ 
quires a late fall, (that is, late frost,) to ripen it. In suitable situa¬ 
tions it is a profitable crop, next only to wheat, for it yields not only 
heavy crops of grain, but large quantities of the best of provender 
for a winter supply for stock, at the same time that it materially adds 
to our supply of manure. It is more extensively cultivated in the 
southern and middle than in the western portions of our state. 
Oats are our next best crop. As they are extensively cultivated 
the supply in a measure supersedes the demand for corn. They do 
well on lighter land. The spring and summer were both favorable 
to their growth, and they probably suffered less from the drought 
than any other kind of grain. This crop, taken as a whole, was ra¬ 
ther more than an average, and their growth seems to be congenial 
to all situations and soils. Upon the highest hills and lowest val¬ 
leys—upon the lightest sands or heaviest clays, they make the best 
of circumstances, and thrive in all places—but from their greedy na¬ 
ture they exhaust the soil, and for that reason ought not to be ex¬ 
tensively cultivated. The price about the same as last year. Stock 
will eat this straw next in avidity to that of corn. 
The increasing demand for barley , for some years, has rendered 
its culture of the first importance in many of our agricultural dis¬ 
tricts, particularly in towns near and contiguous to the Mohawk, 
and even farther west; and it gives us pleasure to say, that the crop 
has been good—better than medium, and the quality fair—though 
prices, probably from the abundance of the crop, have not sustained 
their usual grade. 
Hops have yielded too a fair crop, though we are sorry to say the 
quality has, as usual, been bad. The growers have suffered greatly 
in their prices in consequence of either the premature gathering of 
the crop, or of its having been injudiciously cured. But few good 
samples, we are told by buyers, have been offered in market; but 
these have brought a good price. 
Potatoes were a light crop—not more than one-third of an ave¬ 
rage yield. It was entirely imputable to the dry weather, and they 
are now an article both high in price and in great demand. The 
kinds of potatoes generally cultivated are bad in quality and not 
over large in product. In both they are susceptible of great im¬ 
provement, and it is against the farmer’s interest that they do not 
receive it. 
Pork has not been as cheaply fattened nor as much sought after 
as last year. The want of apples this year has been a serious loss 
to this interest, and the consequence was that to fit our hogs for 
market drew too much on our grain crib, which has made the fat¬ 
tening of the animal extremely unprofitable. The price, too, from 
there being much old pork left in market of last year, was a falling 
off. 
Apples and fruit there were none. 
Upon the whole, the year has not been as extensively prosperous 
to the farmer as the preceding one. The dry weather beginning in 
July has not ended even now, and winter has commenced with the 
fountains almost dried up and the streams of water low. But farm¬ 
ers will never despond, throwing themselves upon the bounties of 
Providence and their own industry. The spring of 1835, will see 
them recommence their labors with redoubled activity and zeal, as 
they act upon the motto that if they cannot “ command success, they 
will at least try to deserve it. A. 
EXCRETORY POWERS OF PLANTS. 
Science is continually making new discoveries of the laws which 
regulate the animal and vegetable kingdoms, and furnishing new 
and useful suggestions to aid the operations of skill and industry. It 
is hardly two centuries since the circulation of the blood was fully 
confirmed by Harvey. The discoveries in vegetable have been more 
tardy than those in animal physiology. The laws which governthe 
