THE CULTIVATOR. 
■ 
nicnting the result of their own experiments, which they are willing to vouch 
for, even under oath. Farlicularly should the mode of using medicine, be 
communicated in detail, in a plain, intelligible manner. The sheep is so use¬ 
ful and necessary an animal, that every man who owns or has the care of them, 
ought to be attentive to their comfort in sickness and in health. If they art- 
kept well, they increase rapidly; if neglected, they are often the victim.- of 
wild animals, as also of various diseases. The men who have been regularly 
bred to the profession of shepherds in this country, are scarce, and although 
there are some who are truly deserving the name of good shepherds, they are 
not easily obtained. Our flocks generally being small, will not enable our 
common farmers to keep a man exclusively to attend to his sheep, with profit. 
Every farmer, therefore, for his own interest, as well as for the benefit of his 
country, ought to keep sheep, and to be able to prescribe for them when sick. 
Most respectfully yours, URI TRACY. 
THE CONSTRUCTION OF BARNS AND THE WINTER MANAGE¬ 
MENT OF STOCK. 
Mr. Editor —Having had access to a few numbers of the Cultivator, and 
feeling a deep interest in the subjects there treated of, I have concluded to be¬ 
come one of your subscribers. 
I shall shortly be under the necessity of building a barn, or barns; and wish¬ 
ing to build on the best possible principle, that is, so as to secure the most va¬ 
lue of manure, and keep the largest amount of stock in proportion to the quan¬ 
tity of fodder consumed, I have formed a plan in my own mind, and venture 
to state it to you for publication, if you think proper; by this means, hoping to 
have some improvement made upon it, or a better one drawn by some person 
or persons, more experienced than myself, and communicated through the me¬ 
dium of your paper, that others, as well as myself, may derive benefit thereby. 
I have been led to conclude, that the usual method of building, is a very bad 
one. 1st. In this cold section of the country, our domestic animals suffer ex¬ 
tremely, a considerable part ol the winter; many are lost in consequence, and 
much more food is required to carry them safely through, than would be if 
they were kept comfortably warm. 2d. The manure is exposed to drenching 
rains, and the urine is totally lost, and I firmly believe, that one-half of this 
valuable article, upon which depends the success of the farmer, is wholly lost. 
3d. The lower timbers soon decay, and the barn suffers much injury in conse¬ 
quence thereof. 4th. The profits of fowls are in a great measure lost, or are 
destroyed by depredators, which readily find shelter under them. The plan I 
have formed may be applied to a large or small farm. 
I should prefer to budd on ground descending to the south, say five feet in 
forty, dig the cellar and stone the east, north and west sides of sufliciet depth, 
seven, or eight feet; turning the south end of the west wall with a right angle, 
continuing so far as to form a wall for the north side of the cellar for the second 
barn, the remainder to be built of timbers, raised sufficiently from the ground, 
so as to secure them from decay, supported by stones and lime; (this may be 
supplied by a shed if circumstances require) the floors of both barns being on a 
level, all double, so as to secure the chaff from falling upon the cattle or sheep 
below, entering each with the produce, upon the two sides united, which frees 
us from passing through the yard, which is often unpleasant. The whole 
space under the second, having the east side open, or nearly so, to shelter cat¬ 
tle summer and winter, and so constructed as to feed upon three sides from 
above, without descending below. In the cellar of the first barn, which is, 
say forty feet square, I would erect stalls upon the east and west sides, head¬ 
ing towards the walls, built similar to those built for horses, in width twelve 
or fourteen feet, leaving a space between the two of twelve or sixteen feet to 
receive the manure, the floors to be laid so tight that the urine cannot pass 
through, but conducted to such a place, that tt may be readily thrown with 
the manure. Let the cattle be tied with a rope or small chain, much after the 
manner of tying horses, and fed from above into suitable cribs or racks, which 
spaces should be left open for ventilation. 
These stalls may be used for horses, or cattle, or readily converted into pens 
for calves; cows or sheep when dropping their young in cold weather. The 
walls should be so constructed as to exclude frost to any considerable extent, 
but to receive sufficient light and air, that it may be well ventilated. In the 
north end of one row of stalls, let there be a place sufficiently large for the 
fowls, where they may be kept dry and warm, and with proper attention, 
they will supply us with an abundance of eggs through the winter. Let the 
cattle have free access to water without leaving the yard. Let the barns be so 
placed, that the ends of the roofs come towards the yard, that the water there¬ 
from may be carried from it. Sheds may be erected on the south and east, either 
temporary, or permanent, as circumstances admit. The yard to be the lowest 
in the middle, so as to receive all the liquor it contains, and the earth so pre¬ 
pared that it shall not penetrate it. I think we may safely estimate the ma¬ 
nure made from this plan, worth double of that made from the same quantity 
of fodder in the usual manner of spending it, and a saving of thirty per cent, 
in feeding it to cattle thus sheltered, besides more or less of their lives. 
Johnson, March 7tli, 1836. Yours, etc. H. WHITING. 
NEW SPRING WHEAT. 
J. Buel, Esq.— -Sip. —I send you enclosed a small sample of Italian spring 
wheat. This sample is taken from a parcel I purchased a fewyaers since, and 
is part of the four years crops since the introduction of the original importation. 
The seed was brought to this country in 1832 by Signor J. B. I. Carbonai, 
from the city of Florence. Italy. The cask was sold for charges; I bought it, 
and finding ita heavy and beautiful grain, prevailed with several of our farmers 
to sow it; the result was most gratifying. Sowed side and side with our coun¬ 
try spring wheat, it exceeded it two feet in height, standing on the ground, 
and yielded double the quantity, weighing sixty-three pounds to the bushel. 
It has succeeded well every year since, producing from twenty-five to thirty- 
five bushel to the acre; grow's well on every variety of soil on which it has 
been sown. Very few of our farmers will now 7 sow winter wheat, finding this 
wheat a sure crop. Yourob’dt, 
Rome, N. Y. March 24, 1836. JAY HATHAWAY. 
51 
MODE OF RAISING CUCUMBERS AND MELONS ON CLAY SOIL. 
Sherburne, March 22, 1836. 
J. Buel, Esq.— Dear Sir — I take a good deal of interest in horticulture, 
and my most pleasant hours are spent in cultivating a small garden. The 
soil is a stiff’clay loam, resting upon a loose gravel. I carried on sand and 
manured it highly, but for several years was unsuccessful in my attempts 
to raise melons and cucumbers. I became quite discouraged and conclud¬ 
ed 1 must give it up; but still thought it worth another trial. I prepared a 
spot of about forty feet square, by covering it with sand to the depth of 
six or eight inches, and a heavy coat of manure; it was then spaded about 
twelve inches deep, and well mixed together. On this spot I made eight hills 
by digging holes eighteen inches deep, and two and a half feet diameter, these 
I filled with fresh stable manure (in which was considerable straw,) even 
with the surface of the ground, well pressed down. I then brought from the 
woods a load of rich black mould, formed from decayed vegetables; with this 
was mixed an equal quantity of sand, and the hills covered to the depth of six 
or eight inches. The seeds were soaked between w 7 et sods of grass, laid near 
the fire for about twelve hours, and then planted. I put over each a box of 
eight inches deep, of sufficient size to take four lights of ten by eight glass. 
In about thirty-six hours after planting, they began to show themselves above 
the surface. The growth of the plants was rapid beyond any thing I had 
ever witnessed, and the seed leaves looked like those of pumpkins or squash¬ 
es. As the weather become warmer, I removed the glass and substituted a 
covering of single foundation muslin, to prevent the ravages of insects. I suc¬ 
ceeded beyond my most sanguine anticipations, and had as fine melons and 
cucumbers as are grown on Long Island or elsewhere. I have no doubt now 
that they may be cultivated with as much certainty of success as any other 
vegetable. There may be many subscribers to your useful paper who would 
be benefitted by the above information. It is written in much haste, and my 
time so much occupied, I am not able to revise it. If you shall deem it of any 
consequence, you are at liberty to make any use of it you think proper. 
Respectfully yours, H. N. FARGO. 
ON THE PRESERVATION OF TIMBER. 
In the year 1801 I built a ware-house on my lot in Union-street, in Schenec¬ 
tady. The cellar was dug about four feet deep, and the stone wall a foot or 
two deeper. I left no opening lor door or window. The floor beams were of 
excellent pitch pine timber, of twelve by twelve inches, slit, and were six by 
twelve inches when placed in the wall, and about eighteen inches above the 
ground. I laid a floor three inch oak plank loose, neither jointed nor nailed, 
although they were square edge and lay close to each other. Five years after, I 
observed a jostling in a place in the floor, and raised one of the plank to learn 
the cause, and found one of the six by twelve beams rotted off, and fallen on 
the bottom of the cellar. The plank was rotten below, except about an inch 
sound on the upper side. I lifted the whole floor, found most of the plank rot¬ 
ten, except a shell on the top; and the timbers were rotten, and so decayed, 
that I took them all out and put in oak, after making windows and a door in 
opposite sides of the wall. I thought the depth of the cellar would have pre¬ 
vented injury to the timbers, but found it the cause of the destruction, as shav¬ 
ings of pine boards, and pine slivers laying on the bottom of the cellar, were 
perfectly sound, w’hile the timbers were beautifully ornamented with curtains 
of white mould, hanging in festoons to nearly the depth of the cellar, as white 
as snow, very thick, and appeared as if of bleached muslin. 
In 1817, I took down an old kitchen on the same lot, the floor had lain on 
saplings of oak, six or eight inches over, such as are used for scaffold poles. 
They were bedded in the ground, so that the pine flooring came next the ground, 
and excluded air. They had lam there from 1794, and both the timbers and 
flooring were very little injured by rot. I concluded, that a free circulation of 
air must be allowed, orair must be entirely excluded, to save timber from decay. 
If you think the within may be of use to builders, worthy a place in the Cul¬ 
tivator, you may insert it. Respectfully, D. TOMLINSON. 
Schenectady, March 24, 1836. 
CORN—GRASS SEEDS—MANGEL WURTZEL. 
„ T . Schenectady, 23d March, 1836. 
Sir— If anything in the following communication is worth publishing it is 
at your service. 
The two last years, corn has been raised m the following manner, on the 
Mohawk Flats, near this city. If in grass, the land is ploughed and well har¬ 
rowed, lengthwise of the furrow, without disturbing the sward. The ground 
is then prepared for planting, by being marked out two and a half feet one 
way, and three feet the other. The last season, the field was rolled after be- 
jtis* planted, with evident benefit, as it made it level. When the corn is three 
inches high, the cultivator is passed through both ways; and twice afterwards 
it is used in the same manner; no hills are made, but the ground is kept level. 
Neither hand hoe nor plough are used, after the corn is planted. Fields ma¬ 
nured with coarse manure have been tilled in the same manner. Corn tilled 
in this way is as clean of weeds, as when tilled in the usual way; it is no more 
liable to be blown down, and the produce is equally good. It saves a great 
deal of hard labor, which is an expensive item in the usual culture of corn.— 
Last October, ten rods were measured out, in two different places, in a corn¬ 
field, on grass land—the one yielded ten, the other nine, bushels of ears. In 
one corn-field, after the last dressing in July, timothy and clover seed were 
sown, and in the fall the grass appeared to have taken as well as it had done in 
adjoining fields where it had been sown with oats. 
The following is the result of a comparison of your Dutton corn with the 
common yellow eight-rowed: 
1334— Oct. 22 d. Inches. oz. dr. oz. dr. 
One ear of Dutton corn measured 181 
do. do. do. 11 
grain weighed 7J 
do. 64 
1 
u*. u/ 
cob 2 4 
“ 13 4 
“11 
do. eight-row 7 ed, do. 
m 
do. 
5 
i 
do. do. do. 
10i 
do. 
54 
i 
“ 1 4 
“ 1 4 
do. do. do. 
10 
do. 
54 
