318 WISCONSIN STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
Cutting and Curing ITay. —This is a subject not well un¬ 
derstood by the generality of farmers, and many appear not to 
know the difference between curing hay and drying it up. To 
convert grass into nourishing hay, the principle to be observed 
is to abstract its moisture, without destroying its saccharine 
matter. Most of the hay annually harvested in Wisconsin, is 
much fitter for fuel than for fodder, and this fact is a striking 
illustration of that melancholy truth, how much innocent ani¬ 
mals suffer from the negligence of man. Clover should be cut 
when in the bloom, while timothy should never be cut while in 
blossom, for if it be done, the hay will be dusty and very un¬ 
healthy for horses to eat. During a very hot day, the horse- 
rake should almost immediately follow the mower, and gener¬ 
ally, what is cut in the morning, should be cocked in the after¬ 
noon, and if possible, hauled into the barn. 
» 
Hoot Crops. —It has been said that the destruction of the 
Turnip crop in England would half ruin the agriculture of that 
country, from which we may infer the great importance attached 
to it there, as well as the large extent to which it is cultivated. 
With the exception of potatoes, the root crops of the West are 
insignificant in themselves, and in comparison with others, van¬ 
ish into nothing. This fact must be attributed, not to any 
great trouble in raising them, nor to ignorance of their value, 
but to an excessive ardor in the culture of other crops. One 
objection to roots, the difficulty of winter-keeping, can only be 
urged in the absence of a good cellar. 
Potatoes. —The best soil for these is that which is dry and 
mellow, and abounds in vegetable matter ; they not only flour¬ 
ish better on such land, but are much less liable to disease.— 
They may be cultivated in hills or rows, but I prefer the for¬ 
mer method, as they are more easily hoed, and more expedi¬ 
tiously dug. The hills, or rows, should be about four feet 
apart. Potatoes should be planted as early as the spring will 
permit. It is not advisable that many plants be put in a hill, 
nor that too much earth be gathered around them. Whether the 
