THE CULTIVATOR. 
141 
mends—with reference, of course, to land that is not too strong—is to 
lake one crop of oats the spring subsequent to marling: plough the 
stubble immediately, in order to expose the marl again to the influence 
of the frost; fallow, with manure, for turnips—a crop which, under 
this management, is never known to fail; then barley, clover, wheat, 
turnips fed off with sheep, and barley again, with well-dressed hay 
seeds, and white clover and trefoil for a perennial ley, or at least for 
some years. Under which management, poor land may, when pro¬ 
perly tilled and duly supplied with putrescent manure, be rendered 
highly-exuberant without being in the least degree liarrassed.-—-Far¬ 
mers’ Series . 
From the United States Gazette. 
BEET SUGAR. 
To J. R. Chandler, Esq. —Sir—Perceiving by the many applica¬ 
tions made to me for information respecting Beet Sugar, that not only 
a very general interest prevails on the subject, but also some very er¬ 
roneous views, I take leave, through your wide circulating paper, to 
publish a few of my views thereon, being the conclusions I have come 
to, after numerous experiments, as well as from information I have ob¬ 
tained from the most scientific French authorities. 
1 . An establishment will not clear its expense unless it be calculated 
to manufacture at least from two to five hundred pounds of sugar per 
day, so that the idea of individuals in this country manufacturing pro¬ 
fitably for private consumption is preposterous; their sugar would stand 
them, including labor, a dollar per pound. 
2. The greatest advantage will be derived from steam power, which 
will accomplish three objects at least, viz:—First, the rasping of the 
beets; secondly, the reducing of the liquor “in vacuo;” and thirdly, 
the boiling of the syrup without the risk of burning it, of which the 
beet syrup is in much greater danger than the cane syrup ; the proof of 
the former being some degrees higher than that of the latter. 
3. The juice of the beet decomposes in the summer in this country 
in less than two hours. I have known the viscid fermentation com¬ 
mence in twenty minutes. When this once occurs, sugar can never be 
obtained from it; in a large establishment in this country, it must be 
prevented by chemical agents. 
4. Not only must the acid be neutralized, but the mucilage must be 
chemically coagulated, the cerate decomposed, and the malate of lime 
extracted, or the crystalizing will be rendered extremely difficult, if not 
totally impracticable in many cases, and good sugar never will be made. 
5. I am persuaded the refining process can be profitably united to the 
manufacture of the raw sugar. 
6 . The profits are incredibly increased in proportion to the extensive¬ 
ness of the establishment, but no one ought to engage in this business 
who has not mind , as well as capital. 
7. One half of the manufacturing expenses will be saved, by a scien¬ 
tific arrangement of the apparatus, so as to dispense with, as much as 
possible, manual labor. 
8 . Understanding from various farmers within from ten to twenty 
miles of this city, that they are perfectly content with about twenty or 
twenty-five dollars per acre’s produce, and as each acre ought to yield 
on an average 40,000 lbs. of beets, which will produce 2,400 lbs. of su¬ 
gar, I have made the following estimate. Supposing the apparatus to 
be capable of working only about 100 lbs. of sugar per day, it would 
take 24 days to manufacture 2,400 lbs. of sugar. 
EXPENSES. 
One acre of beets, (40,000 lbs.).$25 00 
Two men for 24 days,.i 48 00 
Two boys for do.. 22 00 
Fire and rent, &c., 40 00 
Total,.... $135 00 
RECEIPTS. 
Quantity of sugar from the acre of beets, would be 2,400 lbs. which 
at 10 cents per lb. would be,...... $240 00 
Beet cake and molasses, &c. 20 00 
Total......... $260 00 
Expenses, .... 135 00 
Profits,.$125 00 
By this general statement it will be perceived that there will be nearly 
cent per cent profit, but then the interest of the capital sunk, in the 
purchase of machinery is not included. On the other hand, the two 
men could work twice or four times as much, and the apparatus for the 
increased quantity cost very little more. 
If you think these remarks worth publishing, you are welcome to 
them, and I am, sir, your very obedient servant, 
W. W. SLEIGH. 
Hamilton Village, corner of Cedar-lane, Sept. 30, 1836. 
ON POTATOES. 
The potato will grow upon almost any kind of soil, provided it be 
not too wet and clayey; but light, dry, and friable loams, or sands of 
tolerable consistence, are the most appropriate. Reclaimed bogs and 
peat land, when well drained, produce large crops; and some of the 
finest qualities are grown on alluvial soils, and in the warped land in 
the neighborhood of the Humber. Grubbed wood-land is also favora¬ 
ble to its growth, and the planting of potatoes will probably be found 
the most profitable mode of bringing it into immediate cultivation ; in¬ 
deed, as much as 560 bushels per acre have been thus obtained, but the 
land was manured with twenty wagon-loads of dung. A sward, or first 
ley, is, however, the most desirable; and it is for this purpose the com¬ 
mon mode of breaking up grass-land in Irela.nd, where it is frequently 
i let to the peasantry at extravagant rents, in what are there termed 
I “ Con-acres,” and yields crops of superior quality. The climate, in¬ 
deed, is there more genial to the growth of esculents than that of Eng¬ 
land, and the soil is generally so much richer, that in no other country 
has the culture of the potato been carried to such perfection. 
The produce of four eyes cut from the cluster species, and planted in 
four different kinds of soil, was— 
On a strong rich loam,. 34 lb. 
-light rich loam,. 29 “ 
-a good gravel,. 19 “ 
•-sandy soil,. 15 “ 
But, although some idea may be thus formed of the probable produce, 
yet no definitive conclusion can be drawn from this experiment regard¬ 
ing the crops to be obtained from the land, for other sorts might have 
been better adapted to the soils; they must be all heavily manured, 
land good sands are especially favorable to the growth of the larger 
roots. 
CULTURE. 
In Yorkshire, and other parts of the north, the ground is ploughed 
into one-bout ridges, and the “sets,” or cuttings from the potatoes to 
be planted, are placed in heaps or baskets, and laid by women and 
children in the furrows ; the manure is laid at the same time, and the 
ridge is covered with earth by the plough dividing it, and making a 
fresh one over the potatoes. As soon as the plants make their appear¬ 
ance above ground the ridges are harrowed down, and are suffered to 
remain in that state about a week, when the weeds will again begin to 
' appear; the ridges are then earthed up, and in a week or two as much 
of the earth from the sides of them is ploughed down as can be done 
without leaving the roots too bare. After this the tops of the ridges are 
carefully hand-hoed, and the earth which was ploughed from the ridges 
is again turned to them: if afterwards weeds grow up, they are again 
hand-hoed, after which the earth is drawn up to the top of the ridges. 
The plants having by this time got to a considerable size, soon over¬ 
come all weeds, and consequently require no further attention till the 
time of taking up. It has, however, been justly observed, that, “On 
all very dry sands, and in a dry climate, the land should be laid quite 
fiat, and the plants should be hoed by hand, as the only means of pre¬ 
serving the ground sufficiently moist to promote the growth of the crop ; 
but in every situation where there is no danger of the land being too 
dry, and on all thin soils, one-bout ridges have the advantage over 
every other method.” 
Another mode—which it seems has been borrowed "from America— 
is to plant the sets in banks. “ The field is marked out in shallow drills, 
at about two feet and a half distance, by the double mould-board plough, 
and is then marked out transversely at the same distance; thus inter¬ 
secting the surface at right angles, and the dung is laid at the time of 
planting The holes for the reception of the sets are formed by a la¬ 
borer at the intersections marked by the plough, in such a manner as 
to leave them flat at the bottom, about ten or twelve inches diameter, 
and three or four inches deep. This being done, the manure is divided 
into holes as evenly as possible, taking care that the particles be well 
separated by women and children breaking it with their hands. Four 
cuts are then to be laid in each hole, within four inches of the edge, 
and about six or seven inches distance, and covered by levelling the 
soil into the holes withshovels, which finishes the work until the plants 
appear above ground; after which only a small quantity of earth is 
thrown lightly on the banks, just sufficient to refresh the surface, and 
if the land be foul with weeds, it should be hand-hoed before the banks 
are dressed. The last earthing should not be performed until the crop 
is in full blossom, when it must get another light dressing.” 
Mr. Burroughs, from whom we have extracted the above account, 
says, that “ many who have heard of this culture, but who have not 
practised it, imagine that its chief object is to afford a great quantity 
of earth being thrown up to the plants; but so far from this beinar the 
scientific principle of the system, that should the sets be desposited too 
deep, or the banks be landed too high, the crop would prove very un¬ 
productive.” He adds also, from his own experience, that “the banks 
being left quite flat at the top when finished, the crop proved much 
more productive than the adjoining drills sown with an equal quantity 
of manure, and the potatoes were of better quality.” 
