1851. 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
' ' 277 
taking care of stock in the fall and winter, when it is 
muddy and wet weather, many farmers keep their cat¬ 
tle out doors, instead of putting them into a good warm 
stable, and feeding them there. They often leave them 
out doors in the rain, exposed to cold winds enough to 
freeze a creature. They will consume a great deal more 
food than they will in the barn. Their cattle have'to go 
too far after water, and when they get there, will fill 
their bodies to excess, and on their return they will pitch 
into the hay as though they had not had anything to eat 
for several days—frequently, they will go but once a day 
to water. I think a creature ought to have water as 
often in the winter as in the summer. I think if a far¬ 
mer is able to keep a farm, he is able to have water in 
his farm-yard. 
In sowing their grain, they will always try to be very 
saving of it; and then they will not put enough on to the 
land; and just so with their grass seed; they leave a great 
many spots that will not be covered. Then there will 
be a great chance for Canada thistles and other foul stuff 
to take root. I have seen a great many sow their old 
seed that they would collect in the barn, full of all kinds 
of seeds, instead of going to the seed-store and getting 
good seed. A Youth. Bridgewater, N. Y. 
Stage for Cutting Plants for Hay. 
There has heretofore been considerable diversity of 
opinion in regard to the proper stage at which plants 
should be cut for hay. It will be remembered that this 
journal has for several years advocated the practice of 
cutting while the herbage is in flower, on the principle 
that a greater amount of nutritious matter is then con¬ 
tained in the plant than at a later stage. Although the 
present haying season is nearly over, the following ob¬ 
servations from the North British Agriculturist , will be 
read with advantage. The remark in regard to the value 
of the rowen or aftermath, we believe to be entirely 
correct, being supported by the experience of many of 
the best farmers. The remarks in regard to rye-grass, 
would apply equally well to most grasses cultivated for 
hay in this country. 
As regards the common mixtures of rye-grass and 
clovers, the most common error is in allowing these to 
become over ripe previous to cutting. This is a most 
serious mistake, and one that no after management can 
remedy. Both rye-grass and clover as they begin to 
mature the seed, are converted into a woody texture, 
the starch and gum undergoing a change, as the seed ar¬ 
rives at maturity. As the seed of the rye-grass becomes 
matured, it drops off, during the process of forming it 
into hay; while that of the clover plant loses the leaves 
and often the flower. The wonder is, after so much has 
been written about the evils which result from allowing 
hay to become over ripe, that custom and prejudice 
should continue so powerfully to influence the practice 
of many farmers. The bulk is indeed greater, but the 
weight is often not increased, arising in part from the 
plants losing their leaves and seeds. Irrespective of the 
loss of the leaves and seeds, the second crop of grass is 
seriously injured when the first crop is allowed to stand 
beyond the proper period. 
There is a very common mistake as to the nutritious¬ 
ness of a second crop of hay. For fattening, second 
crop clover if properly saved, is superior to the first 
crop, if the summer and harvest months have been pro¬ 
pitious. The propriety of cutting grass at the proper 
period of ripeness is not alone dependent on the first 
crop. The value of the second crop necessarily forms 
an important element in determining upon early cutting, 
and the weight of the two crops should always be .taken 
into account in forming an opinion of the relative profit¬ 
ableness of the one over the other. Asa rule, all grasses 
intended for hay should be cut as soon as the pollen of 
the flower is observed to rise in a gentle breeze in a cloud 
of dust from the field; this will be about three weeks 
after the heads of the grass have burst out of the hose. 
The JLocust.—Cicada Septendecim. 
This interesting insect has appeared the present sea¬ 
son, in several districts of the country. It has long been 
known that its period of appearance, once in seventeen 
years, did not occur in the same year everywhere, 
but that it is seen in different places in different years. 
The fact, though singular, has attracted but little atten¬ 
tion till lately, and it has, indeed, been doubted by many 
persons. To Dr. G. B. Smith, of Baltimore, Md., the 
public is indebted for the result of some very close and 
thorough investigations in regard to the habits of these 
insects, which have not heretofore been well understood. 
He says— 
“ I have the particulars of twenty-eight districts in 
the United States, in each of which these insects appear 
every seventeen years; but each district has a different 
time for its appearance from that of any neighboring dis¬ 
trict. For example, the locusts appeared about Rich¬ 
mond, and east of the Blue Ridge in Virginia, in 1843, 
and will appear there again in I860; while on the west 
of the Blue Ridge they appeared in 1844, and will ap¬ 
pear again in 1861. So it is over the whole of the Uni¬ 
ted States south of latitude 44°, north of which I have 
not yet heard of their appearance. I have no doubt that 
they appear throughout the west as far as the shores of 
the Pacific. I have the fact of their appearance at In¬ 
dependence, the western limit of Missouri. In someone 
part of the American territory, they appear no doubt, 
every year. I have only been able to get authentic ac¬ 
counts of their appearance in fourteen out of the seven¬ 
teen years. ” 
Dr. S. thinks the locust does not pass from one dis¬ 
trict to another; that though it can fly, its flight is limited. 
In general, rivers and mountains are boundaries of these 
districts; but very high winds, it is thought, sometimes 
drives it a considerable distance, even across rivers. 
With this exception, he thinks they will not pass over a 
river an eighth of a mile wide. Still he thinks they will 
ultimately appear once a year over the whole country, 
“ in consequence of the mingling of the districts by the 
insects being wafted by the winds from one to another.” 
Dr. S. has critically examined the insect in all its sta¬ 
ges. He has found that the eggs, which are deposited 
in the limbs of trees, hatch (in the latitude of Balti¬ 
more,) about the 25th of July—having been deposited 
from the first to the 25th of the previous month. The 
young insects, as soon as hatched, come out of the 
branch of the tree, drop to the ground, and imme¬ 
diately work their way into it. where, as stated by 
Dr. S. “ they attach themselves to the tender roots 
of grass and other vegetables,”—sucking the moisture 
which exudes from the roots. He states that with a good 
magnifying glass, it can be seen that “ the young insect 
has every feature and member precisely the same as the 
large one had when he came out of the ground in the 
spring.” 
Dr. S. mentions that pigs and fowls are very fond of 
locusts, and eat large quantities of them as soon as they 
appear above ground. “ So fond,” he says, “are the 
fowls, birds, and pigs of these insects, that they will 
