THE CULTIVATOR. 
sions during the winter, and the roots that stay in 
the ground all winter, are not injured, and pro¬ 
bably improved, by the frost. Parsneps seem to 
be eaten with more relish than either turneps or 
potatoes, and yield, in the raw state at least, a 
greater amount of nutriment. 
Another advantage in cultivating parsneps is, 
that on a suitable soil—sand or loam, rich or well 
manured, and deep plowed—a large growth may 
be secured. At the rate of 1,200 bushels have 
been gathered from an acre of ground. 
Parsneps may be planted either in spring, or in 
the latter part of summer, say in August or Sep¬ 
tember. The ground should be well manured, 
mellow, and deeply plowed, and the seed sown in 
drills, so as to have plants to thin out, while pre¬ 
serving them at about eight inches apart. This 
will probably require at about the rate of two 
pounds seed to the acre. The drills should be two 
feet apart, and the space between well cultivated 
and kept clear of weeds. If sown in the spring, 
the earlier the better. A larger growth may be 
secured, however, by sowing the seed in Septem¬ 
ber. There will be some considerable growth be¬ 
fore the ground freezes up, and the growth will 
commence again as soon as the frost leaves 
the ground in the spring, which will continue 
throughout the whole season, without running 
to seed. They will thus have a growing season 
of about twelve months; whereas, when sown 
in the spring, they can grow only eight or nine 
months. 
All the advantages of this root crop have not 
yet been named. Among them are these—tha- 
they seem uninjured by either a wet or dry seat 
son, and that no insect nor bug attacks them at 
any stage of their growth. Observer. 
Use of Tan-bark for Manure- 
Messrs. Editors —I believe I promised some¬ 
time since, to give some account of Helderbergh 
Farming. I proceed now to fulfil that promise, 
although what I shall say will relate chiefly to 
myself, reserving for some future letter, perhaps, 
further remarks in relation to fanning, as prac¬ 
ticed by our hardy agriculturists. 
You inquired of me in relation to my manner 
of applying spent tan-bark as a man ore. I answer, 
I have been in the habit of using it more or less 
for several year. Having to haul it about one mile 
up-hill, I have never been able with my limited 
means, to apply more than about one hundred 
loads in one year. This is used up in various 
ways. The application of it to land in a raw state, 
unless it be spread and dried before it is plowed 
in, I conceive to be injurious, although I have 
never tried the experiment; consequently I first 
to begin in the summer, fill in one or two loads 
into my yard for fattening pork, say latter part of 
August; when that is thoroughly used up, I fill 
in again, making my yard tight so as to retain all 
of the urine. From that time until the winter 
sets in, I endeavour to keep the hogs dry by filling 
up the yard with tan-bark. While loading it one 
day, very busily, a lad of some ten or twelve years 
old, annoyed me exceedingly by inquiring what I 
did with so much of that hark; I replied, I fat 
my hogs on it, n which gave me rather a had 
name—one man declaring he would not work for 
me, if I fatted my hogs on tan-bark. I let these 
yards remain until spring, when I cart out the 
manure thus made on my corn ground. It has all 
the effect of pure hog manure, which is said to he 
the best manure we can get for that crop, and pro¬ 
duces pumpkins in a wonderful manner. 
My next method of using in the manufacture of 
manure is, in my stables, especially my horse sta¬ 
ble. To a span of horses I put in one load as bed¬ 
ding, eight or ten inches deep over the entire floor. 
This is, or ought to be, forked over every day for 
ten ot twelve days; it will then do to cart out 
in large heaps, say three or four cart loads to the 
heap, and then a fresh load in the stable. This 
method is pursued until the hard, frosty weather 
prevents Us use as bedding, after which I substi¬ 
tute straw until the warm weather in the spring. 
I have now a heap of some four or six loads which 
I have made in this way from, my horses*since about 
the middle of March. Nut feeding my horseshay, 
makes it entirely free from seeds; this I always 
apply to my carrot ground or garden. Enough 
should be kept under the horses to absorb the 
urine, and when it becomes completely saturated 
it should be taken out and fresh put in. The urine 
has the effect to turn it blaek, and will rot it very 
quick. A pile of thirteen loads which I made last 
year could not he distinguished from clear muck 
when carted out for wheat hi September.. 
In using the bark for stabling my cattle, I will 
say that I have no cellar under my barn; in 
the absence of that convenience, I do as I con¬ 
ceive the next best thing—I cover my stable 
over some six inches with the bark, (and it 
makes a nice dean, soft bed for them;) the 
stable is cleared every morning of all that gets 
wet, and the remainder is leveled off until the 
whole is shovelled out; then again fresh is put in, 
and so on until frosty nights prevent its use. 
Straw ?s then added until the warm weather in 
the spring, when the use of bark is again resum¬ 
ed. In the course of the winter a large pile, say 
ten loads, is drawn near this deposit, and as soon 
as we are done stabling in the spring, the whole 
mass is forked over, and the ten loads in its own 
stale, mixed with it—a layer of bark, and 1 then 
manure, and soon until all is worked over. This 
remains until September, when it is carted out 
for a wheat crop. I also fill up my cattle yard oc¬ 
casionally in the fill and during the winter, espe¬ 
cially in thawy weather; my aim is to keep my 
cattle yard dry; and occasionally during the sum¬ 
mer I spread on a few loads, sufficient to keep my 
cows that I yard nights, dry and clean. 
These are the only methods which I have used 
thus far to manufacture this article into manure. 
I have on hand at present some few heaps*, drawn 
directly on the field where I intend to apply it, 
which I intend to fork over and mix with lime or 
ashes, and let it decompose in that way until it is 
fit for use. This is my first experiment in this di¬ 
rection. I have in one or two instances drawn out 
my yard manure in autumn, into heaps of three 
loads* and tlien covered these heaps with about 
half'a Toad of bark, which I think has done quite 
welt. Thus far my experiments in the-manufac¬ 
ture of manure from spent tan-bafk, and now for 
the result. This I must reserve for another let¬ 
ter, or perhaps let it remain till you come out 
here, about tl>e first of July, when I will tell you 
all about it. Note we expect you here about that 
time. 
Should you think this communication of any 
value to the agricultural interests of the country, 
and conclude to publish it, (which I hardly think 
is best,) I wish you would insert it in the Cultiva. 
