The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1861-06-04 00:00:00

cagrtculturt.

TURN I P CULTIVATION.

In preparing the land for turnips a great eosnomy of
labour iu many indanoes has taken place of late years,
by the substitution of the grubber for the plough in
spring. When well and deeply ploughed in autumn
the grubber and the roller will often effect the thorough
reduction of the land. If twitch abounds, however,
it is commonly imusidcred desirable or even essential
to plough after the surface has been cleared. For it is
equally bad practice to plough down either clods or
twitch ; and where the land is inclined to ran either
to the one or the other, • spring ploughing is often of
great importance to obtain • deep, clean, and well•pul-
verised mould.

Turnips are not so apt to mildew on deep barns, when
sown early, as they are upon thin and light soils. On
the latter descriptions of laud, when swedes are sown
before the 20th May, they often become prematurely
ripe, and the roots loss the crispness and succulence
which are well known to be • characteristic of good
feeding quality. On strong and We lands, on the other
hand, an opportunity for putting in the seed is not
omitted after the 10th May. The swede may be said to
be a longer liver than the common or yellow varieties
of turnips, and for this reason, it being quite as greedy
as any other variety, it must be snore liberally supplied
with ulanure,

All our cultivated plants feed upon much the ems
substances; but 1101110 have much greater facilities of
taking these substances from the soil, and some from
the atmosphere. Turnips, perhaps,
can take • large
quantity of ammonia from t atmusphere,but it as also
necessary to furnish a large amount in the soil.
It is often said that nitrogenous manures
only produce top or leaves; but where the seed
is sown by the middle of May, and not grown tot, close
together there is no fear of having a superabundance of
steins ends deficiency of roots.
In other cases where the soil is light, and where it is
neither profitable nor desirable to sow swedes or turnips
early, phosphoric manures come in with great benefit.
The turnip seed, being so exceedingly small in proportion
to the mature plant, cannot, when sown in summer,
supply the young roots and leaves with • quantity of
phosphates commensurate with the rapidity of itsgrowth.
'the soil must furnish a liberal supply, else the plants
wake little progress. It ought to be kept in mind that
phosphorous sod nitrogen arc worked together in the
cells of plants, so that the one substance is useless
without the other. Apply sulphate of ammonia alone
for the turnip crop on • soil deficient of phosphates
and the young plants become loaded with food which
they cannot clutest,and become quite unbeatiby. mai
fr the same soil offx phosphates with the ammonia,
and vigorous growth is obtained.
Phosphorus, therefore, may be regarded as the
element which enables a plant to assimilate nitrogen in
the form of ammonia, or of nitric acid. The two last-
named substances are diffused in sparing inantities,
both in the soil and in the atmosphere. A dressing of
phosphates, therefore, enables the plants to seize upon
those compounds of nitrogen. To this cause iM to be
attributed the success attending the application of
phosphate, and still wore of superphosphate of lime to
the turnip.

In nineteen cases out of twenty, we but throw away
our money if we dress our young grasses or clover
with super-phosphates. These crops have their seeds
thickly strewed over the surface and slowly do they
send their roots through the body of the soil. In
ordinary eircumstances, so far as regards phosphates,
they can readily enough supply themselves, and are
ever ready to respond to a dose of nitrate of soda or
sulphate of ammonia. The roots seem always ready to
lay hold of as much phosphoric acid as will digest any
amount of nitrogen we choose to apply. On the other
hand, the turnip must have phosphoric acid before it
can form either roots or leaves, and hence the immense
quantities of this material which are coed as niauure.
To all the late and short-lived varieties of turnips,
phosphates and ruper-phomphates 11'70 used with
immense benefit. On land especially which has been
pastured, and where the decaying tarf yields up a large
amount of food, the application of phosphoric manures
is attended with the oest nuns. When the turnips
are somewhat late in being sown, these quickly-acting
manures give an early tendency to the formation of
bulbs. It is in these circumstances that large doses of
ammoniacal manures are in • great measure entirely out
of place. As this is quite the phosphate season, we
shall enter more into the detiaiLi of this question next
week, in noticing Dr Voelcker and Professor Tanner's
papers, in last number of the Royal Agricultural
Society's Journal.
The made of sowing the turnip seed has undergone
considerable changes of late years. A few years ago
the double roller—one in front, the other behind, the
seed coulter—was the common form. The coulters,
too, were not self-acting by changing their distance
apart with the width of the drills. Now the self-acting
rollers are almost universally in me, and the hind rollsr
omitted. The seed is covered in by the coulter track
sufficiently well without any rolling. To roll with the
heaviest roller, however' in dry weather, will often be
the means of securing a braird. The chief innovation
In late years in the sowing isplumping the seed at certain
distances instead of sowing in a eentinuons stream. A
great saving of seed is thus effected—no inean considera-
tion in such • year as this, when prima are so very high.
The difficulty, too. experienced of having turnips
singled out at fixed distances is overcome. And it may
be further stated, in favour of the innovation, that the
plants are not so soon spoiled should hand's be scarce
at singling time; and that it supersedes, in • great
measure, the use of horse-power machines for thinning
turnips.—ScottisA Farmer.
IMPORT AND EXPORT Of AGRICULTURAL Coss.
MODITILIL—The trade and navigation accounts for
the month of April, and for the past four months of
the present year, have jest been issued. Again they
present a marked increase in the imports of live cattle,
both on the month and four months as compared with
the corresponding periods of 1806. The number of
oxen, bulls. and cows, then, were respectively 1713 and
7862, while this year they are 4810 and 12,716, show-
ing on the shorter period an increase of about 275 per
cent., and on the longer an increase of more than 60
per cent. In the case of calves and sheep, however,
the slumbers imported have decreased materially in
both periods as compared with last year, calves having
fallen in the month from 1304 to 876, and in the four
months from 4482 to 2954. and sheep from 12,421 to
9003, and from 31,939 to 20.588. Swine and bogs have
increased from 184 and 460 in the month and four
months of 1860, to 1060 and 1806 iA the like period* of
1861. Farmers in this country appear to be manuring
their soil more and more every season, it being found
that land well treated returns the kindness manifold.
Bones have increased from 3375 tons in the month of
April 1860 to 5244 tons last month, and from 10.363
tons in thy four months of lut year to 11,958 in the
corresponding period of the presept year. Guano bas
likewise increased from 12,716 tons to 18,509 tons, and
from 32,758 to 60,058 tons respectively.
Tag LATE DUKE of BEDFORD AS A FRIEND TO
Aanieumax.—Just as agriculture is beginning to
rejoice under the approving smile of Royalty itself, she
turns aside for a moment to mourn the loss of a true
friend. And right worthily may he who was just left
us ask the tribute of • tear. He was a good man, who
used his great means in doing good to those around hini.
Descended of a noble race, that has long stood high in
the annals of Agriculture, his own unchequcred weer
of 'maul/leas will eclipse even the faine of his ancestors.
Seldom has a man worked so steadily onwards. Rarely
has any one left so ninny lasting monuments to his
memory. At every turn whermover hir path was
followed, you see what • blessing it was for the poor
to own such • friend, the tenant to boast of such
landlord, and the gentry to feel the force of such an
example. The blocks of clean comfortable cottages—
the complete well finished homesteads— the thriving
schools. and the spiring churches--either alike in town
or country, there is that retard of him that the sculptor's
art or the poet's pen All seek in vain to vie with. The
Duke of Bedford has done his duty in that state of life
in which it pleased God to place him. Tbe charge was,
no doubt, • heavy one; but he ably fulfilled it.—Mw*
Lone Szprest.
AGRICULTURAL Morrota.—A farmer may sell and
I permanently alienate all that portion of the produce of
his farm which has been supplied by the atmosphere.
A field from which something is permimently taken
away upped possibly increase or even continue equal in
Productive power. Nothing eve, nothing get. In our
fields and pastures are the true mines and treasures of
Peru. He who cultivates the lead the be is likely to
ddead it the best.