100 THE CULTIVATOR. March, 
Destruction of Quack Grass. 
Eds. Cultivator —From a digger in the Placers of 
California, I have become a digger of the soil—having ex¬ 
changed some of the dust of the former region, with the 
small profits and honors of a profession, for a few - ‘ broad 
acres” in the neighborhood of this city. Some of the 
results of my present occupation, I propose to place at 
your disposal, to publish or not, as you may deem pro¬ 
per. 
In my selection, I have purchased what was consider¬ 
ed the tail-end of a large farm, a full half of which had 
become nearly unproductive, except of every kind of 
foul vegetable growth; and the balance, save a half 
dozen acres, so filled with quack, as I afterwards 
learned, that little else could be produced, and which 
was given as a reason, by a former owner, for a 
sale of the premises. The selection was made, not from 
a quixotic agricultural disposition to wage a weedy 
warfare “ for the love of it," but on account of the 
natural characteristics of the soil, being mainly of a 
fine sandy and gravelly loam, with a free subsoil of 
several feet in depth. The one I deemed as an acciden¬ 
tal evil, resulting from bad husbandry, and easily reme¬ 
died ; the other, as a quality of the first importance, 
and where wanting, not readily or cheaply created. A 
half dozen acres of bottom land, bordering the creek, 
added, producing annually a most luxuriant growth of 
golden rod, wild parsnep, &c., with patches of blue flag, 
constitute my “ small farm" of BO acres. Having thus 
made you acquainted with the conditions, I shall pro¬ 
ceed now or hereafter, with practices and results, suc¬ 
cesses and failures. And first: 
The Cultivator vs. Qiiack and Counsel. —Intending 
to engage somewhat in the culture of tobacco—-com¬ 
paratively a new staple for this county, a field of five 
acres was selected as the best on the premises, the crop 
requiring rich, as well as other conditions and peculiari¬ 
ties of soil. This field had been manured with a liberal 
dressing for a single season,seven or eight years ago, when 
it wasput into corn. Subsequently it had been constantly 
under the plow, and croped with wheat and oats. The 
last year’s crop of spring wheat, waslight. I commenced 
by clearing a portion of the field of cobble stone, which 
covered no inconsiderable portion of the surface, and 
which had been plowed in and out for 40 years. The 
latter part of April, the plat was plowed to the depth 
of seven or eight inches, generally bringing up a small 
portion of the sub-soil, and following with a sub-soil 
plow, the earth in the mass was loostened to the depth 
of 12 or 14 inches. The field was well harrowed and 
left at rest till the first of June. In the interim the 
Quack, which in many places at the plowing formed a 
stiff turf, sprung up with luxuriance, and covered the 
surface like a field of grain. A legal friend who happen¬ 
ed to view the premises in this condition, expressed a 
private opinion that I would not be able to raise a crop, 
and gave a professional one, that I could sustain a suit 
for damages against my grantees for selling the premises 
without notice of the existence of this troublesome oc¬ 
cupant of the soil. Thinking, however, that half the 
amount of a counsel fee Avould procure a good two horse 
wheel cultivator , and that the latter would be the best 
quack exterminator, (literally, if not in a double sense,) 
such an implement was procured. The season for plant¬ 
ing out having arrived , the field was covered with about 
20 one horse cart loads of manure to the acre, evenly 
spread and cultivated in, while at the same time the 
quack was cultivated out-— gathered into winrows by a 
wire tooth horse-rake, and carted off the field. This 
process was repeated, crossing the field diagonally—and 
the late green field exhibited scarcely a live blade. The 
only extra labor, properly, being the carting off the 
roots, as the Use of the cultivator was necessary to the 
proper covering and incorporating the manure with the 
soil, pulverizing, &c., while the rake served as a good 
substitute for the harrow, leveling the surface well, and 
more expeditiously, preparatory to working. Nor has 
the carting off the roots proved any loss of labor, as 
they have doubly paid the expense as food for swine, 
and the manure into which they have been converted. 
En passant ; this may afford the material for a chapter 
on the manufacture of manure, in a future article; as 
its incorporation with the soil by means of the cultiva¬ 
tor, wilbanother. The present is.with the quack, and 
its exterminator. The after treatment of the field was 
but that common to the crop, which suffered nothing 
from the former almost sole occupant of the soil. Some 
broken and scattered roots remain; but which, it is be¬ 
lieved. a repetition of the process for a season or two, 
will entirely remove. The crop was pronounced to be 
unusually fine—one of the best in the county.” Had 
the field been prepared merely by plowing and harrow¬ 
ing, I have some reason to know it would have proved 
nearly or quite a failure; but of this, in the history of 
another crop—a failure. Yours, Ra-ab Shagy. Syra¬ 
cuse, Jan. 1851. 
P. S. I am quite well satisfied that the sub-soil 
plowing was highly beneficial to the crop above referred 
to. 
-Kfr.- 
Fruit Destroyed by Rose-Bugs. 
Eds. Cultivator —For the last four years we have 
been afflicted with a bug called the rose bug, which has 
nearly destroyed our fruit of most kinds, such as apples, 
peaches, and cherries. Can some one tell us whether it 
has ever appeared in any other section of country in such 
formidable manner—and if so, what number of years has 
it been troublesome, and what has been done successfully 
to save fruit from its ravages. 
It is a small striped bug, very generally known; makes 
its appearance about the 18th of June; remains about 
20 days; is very ravenous; appears to come from the 
ground like the locust, and again to descend to the earth 
and disappears. Respectfully yours, David J. Beabds- 
ley. Freedom, Portage county, Ohio, Nov. 10, 1851. 
Having no minute personal acquaintance with this in¬ 
sect, we can only give the observations of others, and 
we hope some of our correspondents who may be fami¬ 
liar with it, will furnish additional particulars. Dr. Har¬ 
ris gives the following description of the habits of the 
rose-bug, (so called,) the Melolontha subspinosa of Fa- 
bricius: 
“ For some time after they were first noticed, rose- 
bugs appeared to be confined to their favorite, the blos¬ 
soms of the rose; but within thirty years they have pro. 
