Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1849-03-22

III aooon 10 the labr Of cul.iva ion man has n cn
u W." uilncultes nttentmes of more serious nature
me wnole ot which combined causes him to realize in
It's full extent TIE burden imposed upon him in ,b ha
ginning that ne should his bread by the sweat Of
his brow vi
10 discuss the su Iects in full would require SPACE
:af exceeding the limits Of essay. Moreover human
ingenuity has been taxed 10 The utmost without dspv
erlng any preventive in many Of the cases cited All
d' can De done Is IN the way Of paation BY waging
namely war ofexermnaton so as to diminish the min
y oy reduction OF their numbers. The obacco fields
of instance must he overlooked stated tines and the
youe nood u worms destroyed BY hand; and The roots of
the peach Tree must be annually examined and cleaned
"f the grab This treatment, however il is impossible
To extend to many of the insects which nfet crops;
and 1t Is only by judc1us cuva ion that their depre
da tluns can be partially guarded against.
In regard to Birds it is believed that they are, the
whole. benefit AMI friend TO the farmer rather than
nuisance. The writer will therefore to take The
position that the safety Of crops nsfes their pro
lection rather than their destruction. Birds If nearly
every ea her,-,hose at least which are most familiar 10
us,-teed upon insects and thereby prevent the
nous increase which would otherwise attend these pess
Every farmer has doubtless observed how eagerly his
barn yard fowls follow the plough in search Of the
that ale exposed to view. The number of insects des
tfoyed by flock Of turkeys is ncalculabe. Their pre-
daory habits sometimes exceedingly annoying, in
somuch that the farmer would ofienmes eJolce if his
good wife would give Them up; but she is undoubtedly
rendering him service in every young flock that she
turns upon his grounds-Bu! it may be said there
is necessity for rearing fowls Let US then advert to
those which not under cntro. And first Of the
crow By common he is regarded with almost
much antpathy as that which heredtirily cherish
Tor snakes None passes in reaching distance of the
fowler that he does not discharge his gun al him. All
the good lessons have been taught our childhood
against cruelty to BIRDS have exception in him. His
nests are pundered, and the young destroyed, by all
classes. Even premiums have been offered f.. their
ps by grave legislative bodies. The sagacy by which
he Is enab ed to eude his pursuer only stimu
iate The desire TO destroy him. And after ALL what do
his offences amount TO The most serious depredaon
he COMMITS Is tn tear up the young in the spring
thus subectng the farmer the necessity of planting
gam 1t there was remedy for this there would be
some Jnstlncaon for the hatred with which he pursu
ed But with he Of the trouble that is taken to de-
soy him. the seed may be effecuaIy prepared so
that he will have no relish for it. pint of diluted
IN qnsntityo u hot water sufficient bushel of
corn, will afford to each grain coating which renders it
dlstasteul to every bird. The crow from his excessive
midty, may also be readily frightened away by stuff
ed figures, Familiarity termed scare crows or BY any
lhlng OF unusual appearance in The field In smaller
heldS or patches. few strings OF cotton Irvine stretched
across the ground will efectualy keep him off. This
is the common mode Of protection in melon grounds
where crowds are sometimes exceedingly mischlveous
sOf they appear to have especial ondness for peckng
INTO young waterwebns. They are also sometimes de-
structive in autumn. Their habits then become grega
Ilous and when they light field Of corn which the
u''Ni " u!igalneTeQ 100 long
they are apt TO diminish the product Indeed. whole
helds have sometimes been DESTROYED but ONLY when the
grower shave neglected 10 harvest them in good sea-
son. On the whole, then, it is confidently believed that
even crows which are amongst the rapacious of
birds, do far more good than HARM During the summer
when then are breeding, they destroy infinite numbers
OF insects for the nourlshmen of their Young and there
by more that compensate for all the depredaons they
commit the crops of the farmer. The same remarks
VIII apply with more "r less modification, other
bers of The gathered tribe We would moreover consid
er that provision for birds especially made by divine
Providence, and that hostility to them is therefore
N contravenon OF the order of nature. "Behold the
fowls OF the air, for ,hey not neither do thew reap
nor gather INTO barns yet your heavenly Father eedeth
Them" "Shall lie then much more cIo,be and
iced you, O ye of little faith %
Seeing then that birds should be regarded as friends
and not as enemies the ndscrimnae massacre to which
they are subjected cannot be severely eprobated-
mere are any exceptions it's only in the OF hawks
ana OWLS which not only prey upon all other birds Of
Inferior strength and activity, but particularly de,
ructve to domestic fowls Though they sometimes feed
on noes and MICE and even snakes YET on the whole no
defence be offered in their behalf
II IS therefore from the orders Of insects that
the farmer suffers the creates, loss and chiefly those in
The dmlnutn Of whose numbers birds can afford hi N no
essential relief. Some Of these which do the greatest a
mount OF damage field crops will now be particu-
larly considered.
The Hessan Fhy-The Hesssn fly sis small
o"i"geu ny Vi hidge, nearly black, and Suppo-
SEQ 10 nave been brought 10 America BY the Hessian
troops during the Revolution Volumes have been writ
ten concerning this Sect and its natural history is well
understood but discover has been made by which il
can be entirely arrested in its avages In the fall Of the
year and again In the spring it deposits eggs on the
blades OF the wheat which hatch the course of few
days--when the little maggots crawl to the bottom If
me oaoes and md Their nouriShmen the Juices of the
piants The circulation in the plants become. thereby
hpeded the blades first dark green COLOR sub
sequensy they turn yellow, and finally the whole plan
Perlshes or lr out scky existence The prevalence
o' Inc ny has been the of bringing about great
revontion In the culture OF wheat Before it was know
II was customary TO fiom months earlier
nan can be now done with safety. BY early seeding
the stools acquired such strength as to enable them 10 III
Ter well In the spring. and the consequent early harvest
secured Inc crop from another enemy no less formidable
than the fly. namely rust Since the inreductiun Of
'e ny has been found unsafe to sow wheat sooner than
about The period of the first sharp frost Even then or
III cases OF SUI later sowing, there certain exemp
on from It's ravages while the change of seed time rem
uers Improbable to pat any land wheat which is
mol IN g'"d State of improvement. The only conpen
san therefore to the farmer for the injury to his crons
oy me n.y. and the necessity he is under Of Swing late
$ 10 place his heat land in condition TO render il pro
oucNve He must give his wheat not ONLY nourshment |
enough Tor The fly but enough asO to stimulate its prowtb
beyond the abstraction Of its juices which is caused nv
~ ny ~ favorable seasons he may then calculate or
reaching me maximum degree Of produc,ivenss. Bu
upon ordinary poor lands especially after corn with
out the benefit of manure the farme, is hardly .ve, 20
houfSed Tor ms expenses in seed and abor-Counlinp
every expense, less han crop of ten bushels 10 The
not yield sufficient profit 10 Justify the cultiva
Vauon OF wheat And yet how many far ners there ara
"use crops TALL greatly below that averaJe AMI yvh,