THE CULTIVATOR. 
91 
DICTIONARY OF TERMS 
USED IN 
Agriculture and its Kindred Sciences. 
BREEDING. A term applied to the improvement of 
animals by crosses, or breeding from new varieties, by 
which new and superior kinds are obtained, and any de¬ 
sirable quality, whether of size, propensity to fatten, or 
for milk, secured. It is only within the last half cen¬ 
tury that the business of breeding has received the at¬ 
tention it deserves; and the astonishing improvement 
made in the animals of those countries where it is best 
understood and practiced, shows that few steps in re¬ 
ducing agriculture to a science, have been attended with 
happier consequences. Such has been the result in 
England and Scotland, that the average individual 
weight of the immense numbers of cattle and sheep 
now annually slaughtered at Smithfield, is nearly or 
quite one-half greater than it was at the time the first 
efforts at improvement by breeding commenced. Of 
the many who have distinguished themselves in Great 
Britain, as breeders, Bakewell and Codings, Culley and 
Berry, are noted for cattle, and Bakewell and Ellman 
have" distinguished themselves in the improvement of 
sheep. The principles of breeding are few and simple. 
Let the object desired in any particular race of animals 
be distinctly understood, and the animals for breeding 
or crossing be selected with reference to these objects. 
It should be remembered, that in determining the cha¬ 
racter of the offspring, it is found by experience, that 
the influence of the male is greater than that of the 
female. It is by the observance of these, and a few 
other principles equally plain and simple, that Bake¬ 
well and the Codings raised the Durham short horns 
to so high a standard ; that the first named gave to the 
Leicester sheep a form and weight of which former 
sheep growers had never dreamed; that Ellman has 
brought the South Down to within a few grades of the 
Merino in fineness of wool; and that the improved va¬ 
rieties of swine, such as the Chinese, Berkshire, and 
others, have so far exceeded in value and actual profit 
to the farmer, the common kinds of this animal. Great 
efforts are at this time making in this country, and with 
decided success, to raise the standard of our domestic 
animals, by importations from abroad, and careful breed¬ 
ing at home. The results are such as to encourage the 
belief, that in a few years first rate animals of all kinds 
will be as common here as they have hitherto, and most 
unfortunately been rare. 
BROADCAST. The putting of seeds into the earth is 
performed in various ways, as by broadcast, planting in 
hills, drilling, and by dibbling. Grain in this country is 
usually sown broadcast, while maize, potatoes, &c. are 
planted. In sowing broadcast, considerable skill is re¬ 
quired to spread the seed equally over the ground. A 
failure of this kind is not only injurious to the crop, but 
as when the grain springs up, it may be seen for a great 
distance, the unevenness of the sowing gives a most un¬ 
farmerlike aspect to the field. In broadcast sowing, it 
is requisite to take advantage of the wind, or guard 
against its drift, as in this way great inequalities are 
sometimes produced. When grain is sown broadcast, 
the plow or the harrow must be relied on for covering 
it; and unless these operations are well performed, much 
of the seed will remain uncovered, and be lost to the 
purposes of vegetation. In planting, the hoe performs 
the office of covering the seeds, and of course the depth 
can be easily regulated to any desired thickness of earth 
in covering. Drilling and dibbling are as yet but little 
practiced in this country, but they have many advan¬ 
tages to recommend them, both in the saving of seed 
and the equal manner in which the seeds used are dis¬ 
tributed. (See these articles.) 
BROKEN WIND. This is a disease of horses, in 
which the inspiration is performed by one effort, and the 
expiration by two; which is plainly distinguished by ob¬ 
serving the flanks, and noticing that the expiration occu¬ 
pies double the time of the inspiration. The cause is, 
the rupture or running together of some of the air cells 
in the lungs, and the consequence is, that while the ex¬ 
pansion of the chest fills the lungs with air, an unusual 
and double effort is required to force it out from the un¬ 
natural position it occupies. The origin of the disease 
is to be found most commonly in the previous treat¬ 
ment of the animal; though it is sometimes the result 
of inflammation of the lungs. Horses which are fed 
on bulky food, which are allowed but a short time to 
eat, or are naturally great feeders, and which are put to 
severe work on a full stomach, are the horses that most 
commonly are broken winded. Race horses, carriage 
and coach horses, that live principally on grain, or food 
of little bulk, rarely suffer from this disease, though 
their exercise is frequently of the severest kind. Far¬ 
mers’ horses sutler the most, as the food they receive is 
generally more bulky, and the time allowed for receiv¬ 
ing and digesting it, is less than with the kinds named. 
The bulky food presses severely on the lungs, and while 
filled in this way to repletion, the horse is taken from 
the stable and put to the plow or wagon, Avhere the 
result is such as might reasonably be expected, serious 
injury to the horse at the time, and fatal results here¬ 
after. No person, we think, has ever seen a broken 
winded horse cured. Palliatives are all that can be ex¬ 
pected to produce beneficial effect. The nature of the 
disease points out these. Food containing much nutri¬ 
ment in little compass; water sparingly given through 
the day, or while the horse is at work ; the bowels kept 
loose; and above all, the horse must never be put to 
hard work while the stomach is full. Broken winded 
horses should not be turned out to grass; the food is 
too bulky; the stable and grain is their proper place 
and treatment. 
BUCKWHEAT. A triangular grain produced by a 
plant of the Persicaria tribe, of which the Polygonum, 
fagovyruinis the common cultivated kind. Its leaves are 
arrow shaped ; its flowers purplish white. It originat¬ 
ed in the north of Asia, and has been known in Eng¬ 
land about 200 years. Buckwheat is a valuable grain, 
and is grown extensively in Pennsylvania, and all the 
states farther north, as food for cattle, swine, and poul¬ 
try. Buckwheat cakes, well made, are an excellent 
substitute for bread; and in some years have furnished 
a large part of the food of the laboring part of the com¬ 
munity. When well prepared, such cakes have esta¬ 
blished a reputation, which, during the winter months 
particularly, renders them a welcome visitant at the 
tables of the most fastidious. Some farmers sow buck¬ 
wheat for the purpose of plowing it in, as a green 
dressing for crops. Its quick and luxuriant growth 
renders it very suitable for this purpose. Buckwheat 
straw, if properly secured and kept from exposure, is 
one of the most valuable kinds of fodder for animals 
in general, but it must be cut before it is bitten by frost, 
to retain its good qualities. There is no plant which 
furnishes more abundant supplies of honey for bees, or 
for a longer period than buckwheat, and in some places 
it is sown for this purpose alone. It gives a distinct 
flavor to honey, when it is new, but it is by no means 
unpleasant, and it loses it by age. Within a few years, 
another kind of buckwheat, (Polygonum tartaricum,) 
or Indian wheat, as it is called by some, has received a 
good deal of attention in some parts of our country, 
and been highly recommended as a great bearer and ex¬ 
cellent grain. Whether it will prove superior to the 
common variety remains to be seen. All kinds of 
buckwheat are valuable, as producing good crops on 
soils comparatively exhausted, and requiring but little 
seed to an acre. Indeed the great fault in sowing this 
seed is, that in spite of precaution, it is used too libe¬ 
rally. If sowed too early, there is danger from spring 
frosts; if too late, the fall frosts will be likely to over¬ 
take the plant before the seeds are ripened. 
BUD. All plants, vegetable stems, and every branch 
springing from these, are developed from buds or germs, 
and these at first are so small, that no optical means we 
can command are able to determine their origin. When 
developed, the bud is found to contain within itself the 
parts that are to arise from it, in miniature, and folded 
up as it were, in the smallest possible compass. So 
true is this, that the future plant or tree may be consi¬ 
dered only as an enlargement of parts already existing 
in the germ. From the fact, that each bud is a perfect 
plant, the practice of budding, or the insertion of buds 
in inoculation to propagate trees or plants, or substitute 
valuable varieties for those of inferior quality, has ari¬ 
sen. A bud so inserted, attaches itself to the tree, and 
with proper care, forms a new head to the original 
stock, the fruit or foliage of which is like the tree from 
which the bud is derived. 
BULB. There are a number of plants, the roots of 
which are perennial, while the tops are annual; and as 
these seem destined to contain the nourishment of a 
new plant, they are enlarged, and either flatted or round¬ 
ed as the variety or species may happen to be. Many 
of the finest flowering plants are bulbous, and in some 
places, particularly in Holland, the culture of such 
bulbs (tulips and others) for sale, is an important and 
lucrative branch of trade. Among farmers, the only 
two bulbous roots that attract much attention, are those 
of the onion and turnep. Bulbous roots, like the tuberous 
ones, are preserved with ease, requiring only a tempera¬ 
ture of little above freezing, to prevent germination, and 
atmospheric dryness to prevent mouldiness or rotting. 
BURNING. In agriculture, burning consists in taking 
the turf from land with as much of the earth as will 
adhere to it, drying it thoroughly, and then either with 
or without the aid of other fuel, burning it in large pits 
prepared for this use. The greatest benefits of burning 
are experienced on clay soils, where a mixture of other 
earths are required to counteract the natural adhesion 
of the clay. In burning, all the clay particles are con¬ 
verted to a kind of brick earth; and this, on being 
spread over the earth, together with the ashes and salts 
produced in the process, furnishes an excellent dress¬ 
ing, as well as a permanent amelioration in the soil. 
The brick dust acts as the addition of siliceous matter 
in rendering the earth more friable, and from its color, 
it retains the solar heat better than when in its former 
state. Paring and burning is also destructive of all foul 
seeds, and of all insects, unless their habitation lies be¬ 
low the turf. In this case, the ashes not unfrequently 
destroy or drive them away. The ashes so made are 
sometimes mixed with lime and vegetable or animal 
manures, in the manner of composts, and then applied 
to the soil with great effect. 
BUTTER. Milk is composed of an oily, caseous and 
watery substance, from which butter, cheese and whey 
are respectively produced. There is scarcely an arti¬ 
cle of domestic production in more extensive use, or 
one which varies more in quality than butter. To pro¬ 
duce the best, it is necessary that the food of the cow 
should be sweet and good; that the milk should be kept 
free while the cream is rising from all offensive odors 
or impure air ; that the cream should be taken off be¬ 
fore the milk sours and renders separation impractica¬ 
ble ; that the churning should not be delayed, lest the 
cream become bitter and rancid; that the churning 
should be performed with the cream at a proper tempe¬ 
rature, or not far from 63 degrees; and that the separa¬ 
tion of the buttermilk should be complete. After the 
churning is commenced, and particularly after the for¬ 
mation of the butter is begun, there should be no inter¬ 
ruption until the work is finished. The great cause of 
butter becoming rancid, or frowy, is the imperfect sepa¬ 
ration of the buttermilk, and neglect in salting. None 
but the best and purest salt should be used for butter ; 
and when these several points are attended to, there is 
little danger that the article will not be of good quality. 
Butter made in this way, freed from milk, salted with 
pure salt, and every part of the process conducted with 
the neatness which is indispensable in the dairy, can be 
kept for any desirable time, if packed in close vessels 
that exclude the air, and kept at a low temperature. 
The quantity of butter a given quantity of milk will pro¬ 
duce, varies much in different animals, the milk of some 
being much richer than that of others. Tall slender 
glasses are useful in determining the quality of milk, as 
they show the relative thickness of the cream. Cows 
will give of butter from 150 to 300 pounds in a year, 
and none but the best animals should be selected for a 
butter dairy. 
CABBAGE. (Brassica oleracea.) This well known 
plant is extensively cultivated in most gardens for culi¬ 
nary purposes; and in some places is grown largely in 
the field for feeding to animals. The cabbage formed a 
prominent article in the plan of Cobbett, by which one- 
fourth acre of land was to support a cow the year round. 
In climates that are suitable, the plant called the tree 
cabbage will furnish a great amount of food, and is pro¬ 
fitably cultivated for animals. The common cabbage 
requires a rich soil, and will thrive the best in loam. It 
should be planted from four to six feet apart, according 
to the kind; some varieties being much larger than 
others. Cabbages should be planted as early as the 
ground can be fitted for their reception, and those de¬ 
signed for summer use, should be started in hot-beds, 
where this convenience is at hand. In the preservation 
of cabbages for use in winter, they are generally put in 
cellars, but they are very apt to mould and rot; and if 
the temperature is not very low, the heads will crack 
open, and the new shoots put forth before the season for 
transplanting arrives, thus destroying the head. Bury¬ 
ing in the ground where the earth is dry, the covering 
of earth comparatively slight, is probably one of the 
best methods of preserving them fresh and in good or¬ 
der. The cabbage will bear a considerable degree of 
cold without injury, if situated so that the frost is taken 
out gradually by the earth. Large quantities are annu¬ 
ally made into sour krout, an article which forms an 
important part of all ship stores destined for long voya¬ 
ges, and to the use of which, much of the exemption of 
sailors from that terrible disease the scurvy, is now to 
be attributed. There are many varieties of this plant; 
but the general properties are the same. 
CALCIUM. This is the name of a metal discovered 
by Sir H. Davy, and constitutes the basis of lime. It is 
of a silver color, burns with great brilliance when brought 
in contact with atmospheric air, and absorbs oxygen so 
rapidly, that it instantly assumes the form of lime. The 
term calcareous, as applied to earths containing lime, is 
derived from this word; and in the form of carbonate 
of lime, or common limestone, there is perhaps no sub¬ 
stance more universally diffused, or which acts a more 
important part in the economy of vegetation. 
CALORIC. This is the name given to that agent 
which produces heat and combustion, and exercises a 
great influence on the principal phenomena of nature. 
It is imponderable, and appears to exist in two states, 
free or uncombined, and latent or combined. Perhaps 
there is nothing that has a more decided influence in na¬ 
ture than caloric. Under God, it seems to be the sup¬ 
porter of all vegetable and animal life; and it appears 
certain, that a state of absolute cold would be a state of 
absolute death. The opinions of learned men at the pre¬ 
sent time seem tending to the belief, that caloric, elec¬ 
tricity, galvanism, magnetism, and light, are effects ol 
one and the same agent, depending for the different ap¬ 
pearances and effects on its accumulation, rest or mo¬ 
tion. On agriculture, this agent acts with great effect, 
since the soil is cold or hot according as it retains or 
parts with the caloric it receives from the sun. Soils that 
are black or white receive the least benefit from heat ; 
the black mould, while it acquires heat with great rapid¬ 
ity, giving it off still more freely; and the white soils, 
owing their color principally to clay that retains mois¬ 
ture very strongly, scarcely feel its influence, the heat 
being carried off in evaporating the water. The experi¬ 
ments of Rumford and Leslie show, that a vessel cover¬ 
ed with lamp black radiated heat at the rate of 100 de¬ 
grees, while one made of bright tin plate, gave out only 
12 degrees. Soils in which mould or black earth is pro¬ 
perly combined with silex and alumine, will retain heat 
the longest, as the black gives it out to the others in¬ 
stead of radiating it into space- A melon laid on a bed 
of powdered charcoal will ripen, Avhen one on common 
earth Avill remain green and immature. 
A Good Sheep. 
A letter from a correspondent at Skaneateles, has the 
following:—“Jacob Yanatten, of Skaneateles, has a 
buck, from which he last year clipped 9 lbs. 12 oz. of 
wool, of excellent quality. This fleece made 8 lbs. 12 
oz. rolls, from Avhich was spun, runs, or the filling 
of 19 yards of fulled cloth, equal to 9^ yards of such 
cloth from one sheep.” 
