THE CULTIVATOR. 
Impermanent Manures the most Permanent. 
This, at first view, seems to be contradictory. But 
let us look at it. Let us see whether the most imper¬ 
manent manures, under a sharp, wide-awake system 
of farming, are not the most permanent in their effects. 
•A permanent manure is one, in which the plant¬ 
feeding ingredients are so far insoluble, as.in coarsely 
crushed bones, for instance, that the plants take but 
little of them the first yeai", little the second, and so on 
for 20, 30, and sometimes more years. The farmer 
would hardly wish his manures to be permanent in 
this respect, because they do not give him back their 
money value sufficiently quick. He desires a speedier 
return for the value of his manures at the time of their 
application. 
An impermanent, or quickly acting manure, on the 
other hand, is one in which the plant-feeding ingredi¬ 
ents are so far soluble, that the plants take nearly or 
quite the whole of them the first year. The strength 
of the manure goes to the first crop. And yet I con¬ 
tend that the effects of this manure, under good man¬ 
agement, are most permanent; because it quickly pro¬ 
duces an increase of crops. This increase of crops, if 
expended on the farm, leads to an increase of stock, 
that to an increase of manure, that to a still greater 
increase of crops, and so on permanently, as long as 
the good management is continued. In this way will 
a farm soonest become rich; and not only so, but it 
will become capable of keeping itself rich, without the 
addition of manures from abroad; and thus it appears 
that the most impermanent, quickly acting manures, 
may really be the most permanent in their effects. 
It is well for the farmer to apply such home fertili¬ 
zers as he may have at command, though some of them 
may give him but a slow return. As they cost him 
but little, he can afford to wait for the result. But 
when he purchases manures, it should be with the ex¬ 
pectation of getting the whole cost and something more 
back in the first crop. N 
Clearing and Cultivating New Land. 
Messrs. Editors —Premising that I have sixty 
acres of land, twenty of it bottom and forty of upland, 
all timbered with oak, ‘ good corn or wheafr soil,’ and 
that I am a novice, I take the liberty of making the 
following inquiries: 
1. What is the best method of bringing the bottom 
into meadow ? 
2. What is the best method of clearing the upland so 
as to put in a crop the coming spring, and what crop ? 
3. To what purposes should the land be devoted so 
as to make it profitable ? 
4. What portion should be reserved for woodland? 
5. If an orchard is to be set out, what situation 
would be best, a northern, southern, eastern or western 
exposure? 
6 . What books would prove of’benefit to me, the 
price, and where to be procured? An answer will 
much oblige Novice. Pine Grove , Gallia county, 
Ohio , Jan. 13, 1854. 
1. Having never settled in the “back woods” or 
“ out west,” we cannot speak from actual experience 
as to the best way of clearing new land, and bringing 
it into cultivation. No doubt the inode of clearing 
would be much modified by the character of the tim¬ 
ber, its uses, distance from a lumber market and saw¬ 
mill, value of fire-wood, &c. 
2. It often happens that by thorough harrowing, a 
sown crop may be put in new land before it is in fit 
condition to plow, but for ordinary cultivation, the 
sooner the stumps are extirpated the better, and to as¬ 
sist their decay, a pile of turf or earth placed on each 
is a good thing. 
3. The most profitable cropping must depend on the 
peculiarities of the locality—the capacity of the soil, 
nature of markets, &c., but in all places, a good rota¬ 
tion, which shall enrich instead of impoverish the soil, 
is indispensable. The nature of this rotation, and the 
system of cropping pursued, must be founded on prin¬ 
ciples laid down by the best writers, assisted by the 
best general practice, and by the farming of the best 
cultivators in that particular region. 
4. The portion reserved for woodland must depend 
greatly on circumstances—the probable value of tim¬ 
ber in future years—the amount of fuel required—the 
present value of the land if cleared, &c. We have 
never been able to learn the precise number of acres 
required to keep up a certain continued supply of fuel, 
without diminishing the woodland; and if any of our 
readers possess any definite information on the subject, 
they would confer a great favor by communicating it. 
5. Elevated portions of land are best for all tender 
fruits—with hardy sorts, like the apple, they are still 
best, but not so indispensable. Tender fruits should 
have a northern or western exposure, rather than a 
southern or eastern, as this exposure hardens them, 
and prevents-destruction by frost. 
6. The “ American Farmer’s Encyclopoedia,” ($4,) 
for farming, and the “ American Fruit Culturist,” ($1,) 
for fruit. They can be had at most bookstores. 
Mowing Machines. 
Messrs. Editors —I am pleased to see you answer 
your correspondent so explicitly in regard to mowing 
machines. I have taken much pains to examine other 
kinds, and have come to the conclusion that Ketch- 
urn’s machine is by far the best yet made. 
I think the improvements he has made by an entire 
change of gear, and by the addition of the counter¬ 
balance, which acts as a balance wheel to regulate the 
motion of the knives, have added greatly to the value 
and durability of the machine. 
With a good team, tolerably good mowing ground, 
and observing the directions, which are plain, there is 
no fear of a failure. Stones and sticks should be clear¬ 
ed from the ground. One who has used one. Con¬ 
necticut , Feb. 6, 1854. 
Fancy Poultry in England. —The Mark Lape 
Express, speaking of the last poultry show at Bir¬ 
mingham, says that the “ best classes were the Dorking 
and the Spanish. The Cochin Chinas or Shanghais were 
as plentiful as ever, but never did they seem to attract so 
little notice, and never, certainly, to command so little 
admiration.’ ’ 
