58 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
WORK FOR THE MONTH. 
In the month of April the farm labor of the husband¬ 
man may be said to commence. His flocks and herds, 
his fields and his garden, all now require, or begin to 
demand his constant supervision. His young animals 
now as well as his old ones, claim his care, and the 
least neglect on this point may occasion losses which a 
year of toil can hardly repair. Too many seem to sup¬ 
pose that because the snow is gone, and the cows or 
sheep are permitted to go into the fields, (a very bad 
policy at this season by the way,) therefore, less atten¬ 
tion is necessary, and that they may safely be permitted 
to “ shirk for themselves.” Now no man who under¬ 
stands his true interests will do this. He is aware that 
animals need good looking to now as much as ever, 
and it is probable the inattentive farmer loses more 
of his stock in April than any other month in the year. 
Look then well to your animals ; see that that expres¬ 
sive, but unfortunately too often appropriate phrase, 
“ ■poverty struck ,” be not applicable to your creatures. 
One great secret of having first rate cattle, sheep, and 
swine, consists in keeping them in first rate condition 
at all times. — 
Plowing. 
Do not plow when your land is not in a fit condition 
to work. Some soils, those of a light or porous kind, 
are ready for the plow as soon as the frost is out, but 
there are many of a clayey, heavy, or retentive kind, 
in which early plowing, or moving the soil while wet, 
would prove fatal to a crop. Such must remain until 
sufficiently dry to work without adhesion, or the labor 
upon them is worse than thrown away. To remedy 
such tendency to adhesion as far as practicable, they 
should be thoroughly underdrained, which will much 
reduce the period of time in which they cannot be work¬ 
ed. It is generally an excellent plan to plow heavy 
soils in the fall, while quite dry, as the winter’s frost 
pulverizes them, and they are fit to work earlier than 
when left for spring plowing. 
Spring Grains. 
Spring wheat, barley, and oats, will succeed best 
when put into the earth as early as it can be properly 
fitted for their reception. Wheat when sown late is 
very apt to suffer from blight or rust, and give an infe¬ 
rior kernel ; barley is injured by the extreme heat of 
our summers, unless its growth is so far advanced that 
such an effect cannot take place ; and although oats 
will bear late sowing better than other grains, yet every 
farmer is aware that his heaviest crops and best ber¬ 
ried oats are produced by early sowing. Some farmers 
who raise oats, select their most thistly fields and sow 
them as late as will admit the ripening of the grain. 
This late sowing, finds the ground in a state favorable 
to rapid and vigorous germination ; and the check the 
late plowing gives the thistle, enables the young oats 
to attain the ascendancy, which they usually maintain 
through the season. This treatment is however, only 
palliative ; it does not destroy the thistle ; and as 
spring crops do more than any thing else to extend and 
perpetuate this pest of the farmer, we are convinced that 
summer fallows, without regard to spring grains, must 
be more generally adopted by tillers of the soil, if 
they would hope to have their lands continue fit to cul¬ 
tivate. — 
Peas. 
Next to corn for making pork, in our estimation, 
ranks the pea ; and in clean soils a crop of them may 
precede a wheat crop with advantage. Peas may be 
sown early ; itmatters littl* how early, as they are rare¬ 
ly injured by spring frosts, and they are the sooner fit 
to remove from the field where wheat is to be sown. 
Some important experiments made by Dr. Plummer last 
year, seemed to prove that peas-might be subjected to 
the action of boiling water one minute without injury, 
but with the effect of destroying the larvse of the pea 
bug, which in the fall or at the time of gathering is but 
just below the surface of the pea and is killed by the 
heat. We hope this experiment will be repeated, and 
0 ,,m ?+ ^ rr ,„ 0 successful, ’t will add nvucli to ih.£ vuitLC 
of the pea crop in the country. 
Flax. 
This is one of the plants, the cultivation of which is 
too much neglected, and which is deserving the atten¬ 
tion of all farmers. We are aware that cotton costs 
less than linen, but is it worth as much ? And beside, is 
it certain the farmer’s sons and daughters will be earn¬ 
ing any thing to buy cottons with if there is no pulling,and 
dressing, and spinning flax ? We vvould not be thought 
insensible to the charms of music ; but we have a dim 
recollection of a kind that sounded much more like 
health, thrift and economy, than that of the harp or 
piano, and that was the music of the spinning wheel. 
Flax grows best in a cool, moist climate, and hence 
with us requires to be sown early, and on ground moist 
but not wet. Where flax can be dressed by machinery, 
as it can in manv parts of our country, the flax crop, 
taken in connection with the seed, maybe considered a 
valuable one for the farmer, dhere is no use, howe¬ 
ver, in attempting its growth in poor, exhausted soils, as 
it will succeed in none but those in good condition. 
Corn. 
We are inclined to the opinion that the agricultural 
census of the United States will show that, not¬ 
withstanding the vast quantity of wheat produced and 
its importance to the country, the great bread product of 
the nation is after all, corn. Certainly it will be so, if 
its capacity of feeding both man and beast is taken in¬ 
to consideration. April is the month in which prepara¬ 
tion must be made for this staple crop. The manure 
should be spread and plowed in, and always remember 
that corn is one of the few cultivated plants that can¬ 
not be manured too high. Cold, wet land should never 
be planted to corn, and if necessary to cultivate such 
it should not be moved with the plow, until so dry as 
to fall to pieces, or be friable. There is many a piece 
of ground spoilt for the season, and the labor and crop 
lost, by being worked when too wet. The English 
make great use of the turnep, and it is a most valuable 
plant in proper soils and climates ; but would the Eng¬ 
lish grow the turnep as much as they do, if they with 
the same manure and labor could raise 70 or 100 bushels 
of corn to the acre"? Give your manures invariably to 
your corn and root crops, and let these be followed by 
grain with grass seeds. Heavy manuring will make 
great wheat straw, but it will not give a plump fine 
berry ; the manure must be thoroughly incorporated 
with the soil for that, and corn is’ the best crop for this 
purpose. — 
Sowing Plaster. 
In the mind of the good farmer, plaster and clover 
is always connected with ideas of fertility and good 
crops. He accordingly uses both liberally; and while 
some may sneer at his expenses on this score, he knows 
that he finds his account in their use. The latter part 
of April is a good time to sow plaster, as the young 
grasses and grains have usually made their appearance 
and require its aid. It is better to apply plaster to land 
annually in lighter dressings, than only at intervals of 
several years, with heavier ones. Loamy, sandy, or 
gravelly soils, feel the influence of plaster most; it can 
be of little use on wet or strong clay lands. We have 
found that on such soils, ashes were better than plaster, 
the alkali tending to correct the acidity which genera¬ 
ted sorrels and mosses. Never sell your ashes. We 
have known the quantity of grass doubled the first year 
on a meadow by the liberal use of leached ashes alone. 
The Garden. 
“ A good garden is half a farmer’s living,” is an old 
saying that approaches very near the truth, and should 
stimulate to more attention than it usually receives. 
Good ground, thoroughly drained, rich and clean, plow¬ 
ed or dug deep, are the requisites of a garden. Com¬ 
post manure is to be preferred, as it will be free from 
seeds of grass, weeds, &c. A garden is a minuature 
farm, and many experiments may be made in it, 
which may be repeated if desirable, on the farm, on 
a larger scale. Yegetables that are hardy or semi-hardy 
should be planted as early as the state of the earth will 
admit, or the danger from frost allow. Lettuces, peas, 
and in some situations, potatoes may be sown or planted, 
and furnish an early supply for the table. Onions, 
beets, carrots, and parsneps, should also be sown early ; 
as the first require ample time to grow and ripen, and 
of the others double crops may be cultivated. Too 
many farmers think that work done in the garden is 
lost, but this is an error not to be tolerated for a mo¬ 
ment. Directions on the most important topics of gar¬ 
dening will be found in the former volumes of the Cul¬ 
tivator ; to which the reader will please to refer. 
Sowing Gras ^ Seeds. 
Do not spare your clover and timothy seeds, in seed¬ 
ing land this spring. Timothy for stock is the most 
valuahle grass grown, and for enriching land alone is in¬ 
dispensable. We sow our grass seeds as though we were 
throwing away money; an English farmer sows them 
as though using them liberally was the only, or the 
surest way to make money. We should be wise to take 
lessons of them in this respect. It shuts out weeds, 
makes a fine, even and sweet turf, and does much more 
to enrich the soil than a few straggling roots, left to 
struggle with the weeds as they best may. 
Fences. 
Never consider Shy thing has been properly done on 
the farm, or its business commenced, until every fence 
has been fully repaired, fallen rails replaced, walls that 
have been injured by the frost restored, and every pre¬ 
caution to prevent making unruly cattle and trouble 
among neighbors has been taken. Do what you do, well ; 
be very careful not to undertake too much, and you can 
hardly fail of success. __ 
Ayrshire Cows. 
In a recent no. of the New-Bedford Mercury we observe 
a statement furnished by George Randall, Esq., of the pro¬ 
duce in butter of an imported Ayrshire cow, a native cow, and 
<i ricitiv6 heifer. The cows chIvgcI ns follows : the first ncimcd* 
20th of March -, the second 22d of May; and the third on the 
18th of June ; and the milk was used for butter m each case 
about eight days after the cows calved. These two cows and 
the heifer, (the last two years old,) brought up four calves, and 
from April 1st to December 31st, made 622 pounds 5 ounces 
of butter, of a very superior quality. This is, unless we are 
mistaken, over seven pounds per week for each of the three 
cows during the entire season. Whatever other New-Bed¬ 
ford people may do, we are confident Mr. Randall does not 
feed his cows on “ beach grass, cods' heads , and mackerels 
tads." Mr. Randall adds that he has imported three cows 
and two bulls of the pure Ayrshire blood, and beautiful ani¬ 
mals he pronounces them to be. We are always glad to an¬ 
nounce the arrival in this country of such stock, and ho™ the 
present statement of Mr. Randall cannot doubt he will find 
an ample reward. 
doraspcmiiemt ani> Inquiries. 
Inquiry—Soil, and Rotation of Crops. 
J. M. Johnson, Esq., of Hannibal, (Mo.) is inform- 
ed that a soil, such as he describes, of a rich mold, with 
a subsoil tolerably porous and dry, and based on lime¬ 
stone, needs no analysis to prove its fertility. We 
think the rotation marked out for himself, a very judi¬ 
cious one, with the exception that for the spring crops 
after corn, we would substitute barley instead of oats, 
(barley being preferable to oats, before wheat,) and 
let oats take the place of the rye, leaving out that grain 
altogether. Mr. J. asks to what crop he must apply 
his manures? We answer to the roots and the corn 
certainly. These cannot be manured too much ; but 
heavy manurings applied directly to wheat frequently 
cause more straw than grain. It will be best to mow 
the clover the first year of the rotation, and pasture the 
second. It is a good plan to sow timothy with clover. 
It gives a finer hay, and covers the earth more com¬ 
pletely. Six pounds of clover seed and six or eight of 
timothy to an acre, will seed land very well; but it will 
be found safer to use more rather than less than this 
quantity in seeding. 
Inquiry—Fish Manures. 
Our friend “ W. S.” of Compton, R. I.. inquires re¬ 
specting the propriety of using fish as a manure. All 
animal matter has been derived from plants, and as 
these derive support from the air as well as the earth, 
so animal manures in decomposition give off their am¬ 
monia and carbonic gas for the use of plants, and the 
earths remaining are returned to the soil. All animal 
matter then must be a powerful stimulating manure, 
and when applied to a soil from which every thing in 
the shape of vegetable matter is taken and nothing re¬ 
turned, will, as a matter of course, soon leave it in a 
partially exhausted state. It seems to be natural to 
man to trust to one thing alone; forgetting that the 
processes of nature are combinations, which, he who 
would produce the same results, should aim to follow. 
Plaster, bones, and fish manure, have all been highly 
extolled on their first use, and then as bitterly condemn¬ 
ed by those who used them constantly and neglected 
other manures. Plaster gave great crops, but when the 
vegetable matter in the soil was exhausted, plaster 
could not create plants. Those who have used plaster 
in connexion with clover, and a rotative system, instead 
of exhausting, have enriched their lands. So with 
bones ; and so with fish manure. They are invaluable 
agents of fertilization ; but will not prevent the exhaus¬ 
tion of soils, when relied upon exclusively as manures, 
or when the plants they are designed to stimulate are 
not furnished either by nature or the husbandman, 
with their proper pabulum or food. 
The Chess Controversy. 
This is a question which it seems will not ‘ stay put,’ 
as we have several communications pro and con on the 
subject, which, as we cannot insert them entire, we 
must dispose of in this place ; and first, our friend 
Chittenden, of Michigan, who approaches the subject 
as a man who thinks, and is desirous to ascertain the 
truth. We extract the proposition he makes for the 
consideration of the readers of the Cultivator, trusting 
it may be carried into effect: “ The manifest advan¬ 
tages of having this question settled, and the ease with 
which it may be accomplished, should stimulate every 
wheat grower in putting it beyond a doubt. Let a num¬ 
ber of farmer® in different sections of the country pre¬ 
pare a small piece of ground, from a quarter to an acre, 
by thorough fallowing, or some other way that will en¬ 
tirely free it from all foul seeds, then provide seed by 
sorting or picking from the bundle, that they may know 
they sow nothing but pure wheat. If the produce of this 
be nothing but wheat, let it be sown the follovving year 
upon land prepared in a similar manner, and if the re¬ 
sult is equally favorable, a supply of pure seed would 
be obtained for themselves, and for others who would 
rather nurehase pure wheat of their neighbors than sow 
foul seed of their own. Let the proof thus establishe 
be each year communicated to the editors of the Culti¬ 
vator, and through their invaluable journal made known 
to the world.” 
“ J1 Subscriber,’’ from Ontario county tj- v --y confi¬ 
dent. We give two extracts : •• The facts which I am 
about to relate, occurred in a field that had been sown 
several times with wheat that contained not a single 
particle of chess, nor any other foul seeds, for it was a 
practice of my own, that no foul trash should be sown.” 
* * * “ In what manner the frost acts, whether 
directly or indirectly, to thus cause transmutation, is 
something that I cannot explain ; yet it is something 
that will be understood, if it is agitated but a few years 
longer. An enlightened public will not permit the the¬ 
orist or the logician to triumph over facts which will 
stand to the laws of nature if explained.” We have, 
with David Thomas, been accustomed to believe that 
pure wheat was a scarce article, and our own observa¬ 
tion and experience would induce us to think the first 
quotation must be read with some qualification. We 
have no doubt that facts will triumph ; and facts, not 
suppositions or assertions, must decide. 
The instances and arguments offered by our cor¬ 
respondent Mr. Crenshaw of Ya. in favpr of transmu- 
tation. are such as have been urged and replied to so 
fully in the pages of the American Farmer, Genesee 
