Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1850-01-18
Agricultural.
From the American Farmer.
Work for the Month.

X
Having made our neac gears bo,c, with sincere
though homely grace, let conf you, if you have
not done so before, to commence the year with the
firm determination to carry on all your operations
Systematically to do everything in the right way
and at the right time-to have no work done on YOUR
farm plantation, but what is we'll done-to permit
no concurrence of circumstances to induce you to
postpone the execution of work that should be at the
instant attended to, to distant period, as de-
lays in all human transactions dangerous,
and to no class OF men more than to huSbandmen.
Set down your work in farm record, have all your
intended labOrs noted week ahead, taking care to
finish whatever you may begin, before you commence
anything else, as having several things hand at
and the same me is very apt to result in neither
being done WELL if not to deude you into the folly of
undertaking more than you can accomplish thing
in business which is always productive of evil and
yet unless by accident resulted in good Form
the resolution, and be to carry it out of always
making your arrangements so that you Will not only
be master of your on time but that you will always
be able to keep an advance Of at for time once lost is
never to be reganed precious is time to the farm
er, that the loss of few days in the putting in
of crop may endangcr its success. And while you
are making other good resolves make THIS and live
up to it-provide yourself with good implements of
husbandry and plenty of them, if you have them not
already-once possessed of them, be to see you
SELF that they atCays kept first rate order, ready
for work. ReSolue not to crop more land than your
working force will enable you to cultivate thorough
ly and well be to plough your land sufficient
Depth to give ample pasture to the roots of the crop
you may grow on it, as you may rest assured that
one hundred acres, we'll manured we'll ploughed
thoroughly puverized, and carefully cultivated, will
produce as much twice thrice that quantity, if
titled without attention to these particulars and
solve and let nothing interfere with your carrying il
into effect, to permit no opportunity to escape you
unimproved, of accommodating materials for making
manure, and to lime mari your land to keep from
onefourth to oneffth of it always in clover and pas
ter it each returning spring.
Now let us see what may be judicously attended to
ON THE FARM.
Winter Ptough1ng.-As there are many times du-
ring winter when the ground may be ploughed with
out injury therefore, if you have any stiff clayey
fields that you intend for spring crops, you should
seize every opportunity through the winter, aUen the
ground is not aret to have such fields we'll ploughed,
taking care to Tap the rolCs, as to ensure the wa
ter which may fall to find drains beneath them to
carry it off. By attention to this recommendation,
you will, through the action of the FROST have the
tenacity of such clay soils broken down. and its tex
ture greatly improved, as there is nothing except
the application of large quantities of coarse manure,
mari, lime, better calculated than exposure to
winter freezngs and thawngs to effect this object,
than winter ploughing when effectively done, at a
time when the land is not saturated with water If
ploughed when wet, your object will not only be de-
| feated, but the soil will remain in bad condition
| throughout the season.
Surface Drains-Examine the surface drains in
your grain fields, and be careful to have all impedi
|
there is nothing which tends to prevent the
ciater-kng of your grain than the keeping it free
from flooding through the winter and early spring
Keep your grain beds dry, and the danger of being
killed is but trifing. With deep tillage and well
constructed surface drains you will be able to avoid
| loss from this cause.
| Working Stock.-As these generous creatures have
to perform their labor at this season. through every
degree of nclement weather. they should be well fed
comfortably lodged in good straw bedding, curried
or combed twice day, be we'll rubbed down with
brush or wisp of straw be watered thrice day, be-
fore each meal and receive an allowance of SALT OF
one of a mixture of salt, hme and ashes, at leas
twice week. We prefer the mixture of SALT lime
and ashes to salt alone and oystershe lime to tina
made from limestone, for the simple reason tina
there is nearly two per cent. of phosphoric acid il
the former a thing very essential when combined
with lime, and forming in fact bone-earth, to re
place the daily and tear of the bones of the ami
NAL
Fencing-Have you had all the posts and rails cut
which you think you may need through the year
If not send your force into the woods have the tree
felled cut up and split into proper lengths; thel
have your posts and rails in the rough, hauled int
your barn-yard and piled up. When there, yor
should occupy the time of your hands, in all bat
weather, in fashionng the posts morticing the ne
cessary holes in them and pointing the rails in orde
f that, soon the frost is out of the ground il
spring, you may go to work with will put up an.
new line of fence needed, and make the necessar,
repairs to the old When we tell you that you SHOULD
always have fencing stuff ready for use, we spea
]. from experience of years, which was not gaine
: without cos.
GGtes.-H the entrances TO your helds Is thf0ug
that troublesome centrivance called barr
substitute them by gates.