1854 . 
THE CULTIVATOR.. 
141 
instead of greater, and the seedsman to incur the 
charge of having sold had seed. 
Thus my dear sir, I have set down these thoughts 
as they have occurred, and in closing I would repeat, 
that I consider the effect of ashes and many other ma¬ 
nures, as important in their chemical and mechanical 
effects on the soil, as in their directly furnishing food 
for plants.; in fact operating somewhat like the small 
doses of medicine called by the faculty alteratives, 
which, though insignificant in themselves, may produce 
great results on the system. Yours, &c., T. S. Gold, 
Cream Hill , March 8, 1854. 
Culture of Spring Wheat, 
Messrs. Editors —Will you permit a few remarks 
on the questions proposed by “A New Subscriber,” from 
one of your old subscribers, who has taken the Culti¬ 
vator from its infancy, now more than twenty years. 
I have raised spring wheat For fifteen or twenty 
years, without missing I believe a single year. It was 
formerly thought we could not get a crop in our town, 
it grew so rank and blasted; but for fifteen years I 
have had but one crop blasted, and that only partially. 
The answer given for a fair crop, (in the communi¬ 
cation alluded to,) was stated at “about twenty bush¬ 
els per acre.” As this small amount might prevent 
some from making a trial of it, I will state that I have 
not raised so light an average crop for fifteen years, 
except one year. 
I have taken three first premiums in our county, for 
from thirty to thirty-two bushels. 
I was taught to sow only one bushel to the acre, hut 
hy reading and practice, I found more to be necessary, 
until I increased to three bushels to the acre; hut 
have found that there should never be less than two 
bushels, nor more than two bushels and a half sowed 
to the acre. 
“ The price (stated in the answer as above) was one 
York shilling less than winter wheat,” 
Now this cannot be fairly said to be the difference 
in the wheat, but in the foul stuff mixed with the 
wheat. Some farmers think anything almost, will do 
to sow that is called spring wheat; but I have learned 
from your valuable Cultivator, that you must sow good 
clean seed, if you will have a good clean crop to har¬ 
vest. Nothing but the largest kernels well screened, 
the pure wheat itself, will do for me to sow; and then 
I raise wheat that will command a price with the 
finest winter wheat. It is preferred with us for bread, 
to the finest western flour. I have sold from fifteen to 
thirty and forty bushels per year for seed, at from 
$1,50 to $2 per bushel, for many years past. 
The mode of culture is the all-important considera¬ 
tion for the young farmer. You have taught me to 
plow deep, and to pulverize the earth as fine as possi¬ 
ble, so that sometimes when my men say a piece of 
ground is harrowed sufficiently, I have double the la¬ 
bor expended which they thought sufficient. 
Any land that you can raise good corn or potatoes 
upon, will grow good spring wheat. I manure for corn, 
with 20 to 25 loads of barn-yard manure to the acre— 
put on in the spring after the sod is turned under— 
harrowed until it becomes as fine and mellow as a 
drag can make it. Thus I raise, with lime, ashes and 
plaster, a large and profitable crop of corn. 
But now comes the spring wheat, the best and most 
profitable crop I can raise. The stalk ground is plow¬ 
ed in the fall when quite dry, or as early in the spring 
as the ground will do to work—deep fine furrows—only 
one plowing, (but the labor of twice, as some do it;) 
and now comes what my neighbors say is the secret of 
my raising spring wheat. Some of them are yet so 
faithless that they will not try, while many are raising 
as good as I do. 
I put on all the leached or unleached ashes I can 
get—if it Is six, eight or ten loads to the acre, or if 
only a single load—spread evenly out of a wagon, then 
harrow it well. When this is done, it is ready for your 
seed; when sowed, put' on your team and harrow and 
make it as mellow as an ash heap. 
I have been thus lengthy and particular, as I know 
the difficulty of getting the generality of farmers to 
do it just right; for I hare had the question put to me 
so often, “ if you will warrant mo as good a crop as 
you raise, I will buy your seed.” I tell them I will, 
if they will do just as I say, but -scarcely one in ten 
will. 
But this is not all; I never have raised smutty 
wheat but one year, (at least for fifteen years past.) as 
I have invariably attended to preparing the seed my¬ 
self, except this year,. I must relate this anecdote to 
close. 
I told my man to take the wheat, the salt and lime, 
prepare it, and sow it as I directed. He put the lime, 
the salt and water together, washed the wheat and 
sowed it. The crop was so smutty it almost destroyed 
the wheat. What was the cause of this I know not; 
but there is a right, and when the right way is found, 
it should be strictly adhered to, no matter by whom 
first discovered. 
The right way then is, take your wheat -it must bo 
the best seed wheat—make a very strong brine, pour 
in a half bushel of wheat at a time, wash and skim, 
and skim and wash until you know there is nothing 
but wheat—then pour off the brine in another tub, put 
the wheat in a box, and roll it in new slaked lime, as 
much as you can make adhere to the kernel—keep 
adding brine as you need, to cover the wheat, that it 
may be well saturated with salt 
When you harvest it, keep it away from your oats, 
rye and buckwheat, or thresh it from the field, so that 
you know you have nothing but wheat to sell, and you 
will not need to sell for a shilling less than winter 
wheat, or be satisfied with less than thirty bushels to 
the acre. 
If you are dissatisfied call on me, and I will show 
you what good bread my wife makes of it, (ah, "and 
butter too,) and this with hundreds of other sugges¬ 
tions, for the garden as well as the farm, which we 
have learned from a constant perusal of your Cultiva¬ 
tor. My neighbors ask me what I still want to take 
