THE CULTIVATOR. 
202 
The ruta baga I had cultivated to considerable extent for three years 
with success. This year I planted three acres in drills twenty-one inches 
apart 26th and 27lh of June. So soon as up, I sifted house ashes and 
plaster, mixed in equal quantities, at the rate of fifteen bushels per acre, 
with wire sieves, row by row, over the whole. The effect more than an¬ 
swered my expectations: that little pest, the turnip bug or fly, orits rava¬ 
ges, was not seen at all, and'the growth was most vigorous. One acre of 
the piece had been planted with carrots, only about one-l'ourth of which 
was standing, by reason of the insect, bad seed, or both, and ruta baga 
was planted in all the vacant places in the rows. They were thinned out, 
and hoed twice; they soon covered the ground, and the work was done. 
The product is over 1,000 bushels per acre; 3,000 bushels the whole, not¬ 
withstanding one acre was partially seeded with carrots, and produced 200 
bushels. About one acre of the land is fine sandy loam, and the remain¬ 
der is slate washed from a ravine,-all highly manured. 
The ruta baga I think draws more from the atmosphere, and less from 
the soil, than any other vegetable; for I have always found it retained the 
dew longer, and held it in greater quantities, than any thing else. It 
leaves the ground in finer condition than any other crop, and cannot be 
too highly valued. The carrot is excellent for fattening cattle, milch cows, 
&c. but is not so sure a crop, and requires much more labor in tillage. It 
does not always come up well, and is very liable to be destroyed by the 
insect. 
The mangold wurtzcl—of this root I planted one and a half acres on the 
29th and 30th of May, (too late by ten days,) in drills twenty-one inches 
apart. Thinned once and hoed twice; tillage same as the ruta baga, (ashes 
and plaster omitted.) About two-thirds of the piece was planted with 
seed, which proved to be a mixed kind of all the beet family; the other 
one-third part was the pure seed. The crop was fine, and if all had been 
of the same kind, the product I think would have been one-fourth larger. 
But as it was, the yield may be considered a fair one—over 800 bushels 
per acre, and the whole 1,250 bushels. See the importance of having 
genuine seed, for have no doubt the product was 200 bushels less than it 
would have been had all the seed been pure mangold wurtzel. Reynolds 
and Bateham, of Rochester, have sold me genuine seeds, and I should 
have confidence in any they will sell as such. I am much in favor of this, 
root for feeding—probably it is equal to any, except the sugar beet. 
The sugar beet—of this I had only seed to plant six rods of ground. It 
seems to be well adapted to our soil and climate. The growth was much 
greater than any thing I have seen of the best kind. I have no doubt it 
will prove most valuable for feeding cattle, as well as for sugar. The pro¬ 
duct was over eighty bushels, and at the rate of about 2,100 bushels per 
acre, or sixty-three tons. I rate all by weight, sixty pounds to the bushel, 
for otherwise most of the roots could not be measured with any degree of 
accuracy. Here follows a statement of the produce of seven and a half 
and six-one hundred and sixtieth acres of what maybe considered first 
rate corn land, and in a high state of cultivation. 
3 acres potatoes,. 
Whole product. 
Per acre. 
. 433£ 
1,000 
800 
3 do. ruta baga, ) ... 
carrots, s ........ 
1 £ do. mangold wurtzel,. 
6-160th sugar beets,. 
800 
2,100 
7\ acres 6 rods. 
5,830 bushels. 
Five thousand eight hundred and thirty bushels, at sixty pounds per bu¬ 
shel, give 346,800 pounds, or 176 1-5 tons. The potatoes thirteen tons, 
ruta baga thirty tons, carrots twenty-four tons, mangold wurtzel twenty- 
four tons, and the sugar beet at the rate of about sixty-three tons per acre. 
This crop last year would have broughtmore than $2,300. What the price 
may be this year I know not. It is not my purpose to sell any, but to feed 
all to my cattle; so I have my own market, and trust I shall turn them to 
good account. 
I am now feeding thirty-one head, at the rate of one bushel each per 
day, with hay nights and mornings, in their stalls, with corn and other 
coarse fodder through the day. I shall add to their allowance as shall seem 
proper, and change from one to the other now and then. All the cattle 
eat greedily, and are doing well. 
Barn Cellars, Storage of Roots, and Manner of Feeding. 
1 have two barn-cellars under the barn floors, which together hold 3,000 
bushels. They have each a small door at the back end, and scuttles 
through the floor—are well - pointed and proof against frost. By opening 
the door and scuttles I can dispel the foul air or gas at pleasure,- for large 
quantities of roots stored in cellars must be ventilated, or they will heat 
and spoil. These cellars are filled by drawing the loaded cart on the floor, 
and dumping the load through the scuttles—and the cellar is filled with 
very little labor. 
The remainder of the crop were pulled and buried directly on the ground, 
such as potatoes, in heaps of about thirty-three bushels, leaving a small 
passage at the top, in order that the gas may pass off, without which they 
will not keep. In these two barns I stable thrity-eight head of cattle, 
thirty-one of which are beef cattle, one pair of working oxen, and five 
milch cows—all convenient to feed from the cellars. The roots are thrown 
upon the barn floor—cut with large English hay knives, which can be done 
by a smart man at the rate of a bushel per minute, and are passed to the 
manger with a scoop shovel. I have heard of cutting machines for roots 
—never saw one, nor do I wish to. A good pair ofhands, knife, andawil- 
ling mind, is all the cutting machine I want. Every farmer should have a 
barn-cellar; the cost is but little, and the advantage great. No one can 
know their value until he has one. 
With good cattle, well constructed, clean, well littered stables, plenty 
of roots, and good hay, with card and curry-comb appplied every day, I 
have fine cattle and good beef. Those roots should be extensively culti¬ 
vated. They are within the reach of every man who farms any land, even 
one acre, and can be guaged to his wants. The poor man with his one 
acre and one cow, can at least plant six rods, and till it when he will do 
nothing else. See my eighty bushels of sugar beet from like quantity. 
Let all raise according to his wants and means of feeding, depending on 
his own market, and omit raising a portion of other produce which costs 
him five times as much both in labor and land. This fact I have made 
plain in the exhibit of the entire product of two acres of ruta baga, buried 
directly on the ground as I pulled them, in heaps of say thirty-three bu¬ 
shels, weight one ton, standing as thick as cocks of hay in common mea¬ 
dows of one hundred each. Twenty to one ! To see is to be convinced. 
The point to gain is to be able to take the greatest producf with least 
labor from the land, and to return the whole or an equivalent back again. 
Keep cattle, raise roots, &c. make manure, and one important point is 
gained; for with manure I can raise roots, and with roots fed to cattle I 
can make manure, and can pay back to the land as much as I received 
from it. I intend in due time to communicate the result of the feeding 
process this winter, and offer you something on other subjects, provided 
this effort in your opinion is worth the use of ir.k and types. Do with it 
as you please, and I am content. 
I am, sir, respectfully, your ob’t serv’t, 
JOHN SANFORD. 
Marcellus, December 26th, 1837. 
CHILLBLAINS. 
This affection forms one of the most troublesome of the small troubles 
incident to cold weather. The cause of chillblains is generally to be traced 
to sudden transitions from heat to cold or the reverse. Exposure to cold 
and wet united, and particularly immersion in snow water, are causes of 
chillblains. Accordingly, they do not alway occur during the continuance 
of intense frost, but are often more troublesome when the temperature 
begins to be milder by a thaw. It was observed by the celebrated Larry, 
in the winter campaign of the French in Russia and Poland, that but a 
few days before, and a few days after the battle of Wagram, the themo- 
meter was very low, from ten to fifteen degrees below zero; and yet dur¬ 
ing that time there was no mortification, nor did any other particular suf¬ 
fering about the hands or feet occur. But about two days after the battle 
a thaw took place, the themometer rose from ten to twenty degrees, and 
then a great number of cases of mortification of the feet occurred in the 
army, in some particular divisions that were much exposed, and nearly all 
the soldiers suffered more or less. 
Chillblains occur most frequently in persons of a feeble constitution and 
delicate skin. Hence they are common in females and in children. Like 
many other evils they are more easily prevented than cured. The means 
of prevention are, first, such as tend to diminish the susceptibility of the 
surface; and second, such as protect it from vicissitudes of temperature. 
Among the first there is nothing better than cold water and thorough fric¬ 
tion with a coarse towel. Among the most popular remedies for chill¬ 
blains may be mentioned a strong brine, vinegar, camphorated alcohol, oil 
of turpentine, and other articles of this class. We have lately seen recom¬ 
mended the tincture of iodine as a wash, which is said to bring the parts 
to a healthy state. A solution of the chloride of lime, in the proportion of 
one part to twenty-four parts of water, has been found to answer a good 
purpose. Another wash which has produced excellent effects is prepared 
by adding one part of tincture of flies to six parts of liquid opodeldoc. With 
this the affected part should be frequently rubbed. When the skin has 
broken, and the part has assumed the character of a sore, regular medical 
treatment must be resorted to, as the matter then becomes too serious for 
quackery— Phil. Herald. 
TO THE FRIENDS OF AGRICULTURE OF THE STATE OF 
NEW-YORK. 
As the period is approaching to which the last agricultural convention 
stands adjourned, (viz. first Thursday of February, 1838,) we beg leave 
to draw your special attention to the importance of the subjects that must 
engage the attention of that meeting, in the hope that as many of the 
friends of agriculture will give their attendance there as practicable. 
It is unnecessary to dwell on the importance of agriculture to every in¬ 
terest in the state. This is so obvious to all, that it would be only wast¬ 
ing time to prove what every one believes and admits. All admit, too, that 
there is vast room for improvement; that it ought to be made, and that 
they feel friendly to it. But what is to us totally unaccountable is, that 
