THE CULTIVATOR. 
197 
States, we refer to the back numbers of the Cultivator, particularly to 
Dr. Dailington’s communication in vol. i, p. 59. 
NEW KINDS OF TURKEYS AND GEESE. 
Our respected friend, Robert Sinclair, of Claremont Nursery, near Bal¬ 
timore, Md. wishes us to advertise the public, that he will sell, at $4 the 
pair, a few pure white turkeys and Westphalian geese. 
PLOUGHING MACHINE. 
Marshall Williams, of Stockbridge, Mass, has sent us a drawing and de¬ 
scription of a ploughing machine, to be,driven by steam, and containing 
a combination of ploughs, and asked our opinion of its probable utility 
This we dare not venture to give, at least till we see it on trial. 
ROOT CUTTER. 
We have received from D. M. Walker, Esq. of Whiting, Vt. a drawing 
and description of a root cutter, invented by L. P. White, of that town, but 
who does not intend to patent the invention. Mr. Walker states, that 
though but a common farmer, he has built one of these machines himself; 
that the iron work for it cost about six dollars; and that with two men to 
turn the cranks, he has cut with it a bushel of luta baga in one minute, 
into pieces half an inch thick and one and a half inch wide. We may 
hereafter publish the communication entire. In the mean time we will 
state, that the machine consists of a cylinder of hard wood, twenty-two 
inches long and nineteen inches in diameter, into the periphery of which 
are inserted four knives, of eleven inches, at proper angles to slice the 
roots as the cylinder revolves. The cylinder is perforated with mortices 
where the knives are inserted, so as to permit the sliced roots to pass to 
its centre, and out at one end. On the uppersides of the mortices are in¬ 
serted small knives, with blades three-fourths of an inch long, to reduce 
the slices as they are separated by the large knives. The machine, we 
suppose, might be afforded for ten to twelve dollars. The drawing and 
description are at this office, at the service of any mechanic who may wish 
to construct a machine. A good machine for slicing roots is much want¬ 
ed, and would find a ready sale at a fair price. 
THE DAISY-COMPOST. 
G. W. Allen, of Hunterdon, N. J. inquires of us, how to get rid of the 
white daisy—and how to convert his swamp muck into compost. The 
daisy is got rid of most readily by alternate husbandry and good tillage. 
Mr. A. will find his other inquiry answered in the last and present num¬ 
bers of the Cultivator. A compost of swamp earth and lime, or yard ma¬ 
nure, properly prepared, will benefit corn. Spread and harrow it in be¬ 
fore planting. 
CORRESPONDENCE, 
GREAT CROP OF CORN. 
Laurens, Dec. 1 , 1837. 
Judge Buel,—D ear Sir,—I send you a statement of the expense and 
product of an acre of Indian corn, raised by me, together with the mode 
of its cultivation. The corn was the little eight rowed yellow variety. 
Soil and culture .—The soil is a warm sandy loam. It was ploughe4 
deep in the autumn of 1836. About the first of May, I carried on, and 
spread all over the ground, about thirty loads of stable and barn yard un¬ 
fermented manure, then rolled and harrowed the ground well, being care¬ 
ful not to disturb the sod, which was timothy, and mown the summer pre¬ 
ceding; and on the 9th and 10th May planted the same, two and a half 
feet between the rows, and fifteen inches between the hills. It was 
dressed with ashes when it made its appearance above ground. On the 
10th June commenced weeding and thinning, leaving from two to four of the 
best spears in each hill, the whole averaging about three spears in a hill. 
After this I ashed it again, using in all about ten bushels of good unleach¬ 
ed house ashes. On the 10th of July commenced hoeing, and at the same 
time took off all the succors—put no more earth about the hills than we 
took from them, but carefully cleaned out all the weeds from the hills. 
The seed was prepared by simply wetting it with warm water, and rol¬ 
ling it in plaster. 
Harvesting .—The corn was cut up the 18th September, at the ground, 
and shocked in small shocks; and on the 9th of October it was housed and 
husked, and subsequently threshed and measured. 
Product. —Ninety-nine bushels of first rate corn, without even a nub¬ 
bin of soft or poor grain, owing to the fact, probably, that there was no 
suckers on which to grow them. 
EXPENSES. 
Ploughing one day and board,...^2 00 
Rolling and harrowing one day,... '’2 00 
Seed and plaster.. j 25 
Planting two days, at 75 cents,..* 1 50 
Five days hoeing and board,... 3 75 
Horse and hand with cultivator two days,...* 2 00 
Cutting up and shocking two days, 75 cents,.. * 1 50 
Husking and housing ten days, 75 cents, ..’ 7 gq 
Ten bushels ashes, at 25 cents,.... 2 50 
Labor on ruta baga, (sown among the corn,)... 1 gq 
Interest on land, at $50 per acre,... 3 gq 
Threshing corn three days... 2 25 
35 loads manure, at 25 cents,.... <a g 75 
Carting and spreading do. .. 8 75 
Deducting two-thirds for succeeding crops in rotation, .... 11 67 
- 6 83 
Total charges,... $37 gq 
VALUE OF PRODUCE. 
70 bushels seed corn, (selling price,) at $2.®j 4 q qq 
29 do. sound do. (do.) at $1.25,. 36 25 
4 loads stalks, at $2.50,.... .... 10 qq 
20 bushels ruta baga, at 25 cents.g qq 
1 load pumpkins,.j qq 
r, ^ i $ 192 ? 5 
Deduct expenses. 37 08 
Nett profits,.... $igg 17 
T , , , H. HOPKINS. 
I hereby certify, that I am personally acquainted with the above named 
Henry Hopkins, believe him to be a person of veracity, and that the truth 
of his statement may be depended on. A. MARK, Jus. Peace. 
GREAT RUTA BAGA CROP. 
- Lenox, Madison co. Dec. 6th, 1837. 
Mr. Buel,—S ir,—I saw in your March number of the Cultivator a pre¬ 
mium ottered on several articles of agriculture; I therefore send you a 
statement of one acre of ruta bagas raised by me this season, hoping, if it 
does not prove a successful competitor, the cause of agriculture may re¬ 
ceive an additional witness in its behalf. The soil is a rich mould of sand 
and clay, containing besides the vegetable decompositions, some lime 
and a small portion of the oxide of iron. It is first rate wheat land The 
manure was drawn in the fall and ploughed in, which I deem very’essen- 
tial m raising this crop. About the 15th of June the seed was sown in 
drills about twenty inches apart one way, and from eight to ten the other 
I raised from one and three-fourths acres 1,800 bushels; the three-fourths 
of an acre was not as well prepared as the other. The product of the acre 
was as follows. 
Dr. To 30 loads manure, at 25 cents,. $7 50 
“ carting and spreading the same,. '750 
“ ploughing one and a half days,.. 3 qq 
“ rolling and hariowing,...j qq 
“ seed, — . 50 
“ sowing one-halfday, . 5() 
“ Three hoeings four days each, at 7 s. per day,...*.".'iq gq 
“ harvesting eleven days, at 6 s...’ 8 25 
“ interest on one acre, 75 dollars,... 5 25 
$44 00 
Cr. By 1,120 bushels ruta baga. Is. 
“ tops for fodder,.. 
$140 00 
6 00 
$146 00 
44 00 
Balance ». $102 00 
State of Mew- York, Madison county, ss: WILLARD C °TTON. 
I, Stephen Chapman, a Justice of the Peace of the town of Lenox in 
said county, do certify that I am well acquainted with Mr. Willard Cotton 
whose name appears to the above; and that he is a man of truth and ve¬ 
racity and entitled to full credit. s. CHAPMAN 
December 15 th, 1837. Justice of the Peace. 
RUTA BAGA CROP. 
nn J 'fVA EL ’ Es( 3 ( .— Bir >— 1 have cultivated during the past season one and 
one-third acres of ruta baga turnips, on half of an acre of which I mea¬ 
sured and had five hundred and seventeen bushels of roots. It was a clo 
ver sward, which had been pastured one year; soil a sandy loam. Before 
ploughing I put on fifty loads of barn-yard manure; I ploughed it one week 
previous to planting. I put in my seed in drills two feet and a half apart 
time of sowing was on the 22d June. part » 
50 loads of manure, at 6 s. per load,. 
Spreading and carting, at Is. do. . . a oz 
Ploughing one and one-fourth days, at 16s. per dav .!. % f 
Harrowing one-half day, at 16s. do. '...”*” * ’ * f „„ 
Sowing seed one-half day, at 8 s do . 
Weeding three times 30 days work, at 4s. do. ’. [!. 
Going through with cultivator three times, at 12s. per day. 2 25 
