Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1850-06-05

Po'atees.-If you have been prevented,
thus far, from planting Potatoes, do so with
in the first ten days of this month. For the
method of doing so, and the general man
agement Of the crop, we refer our readers
to p. 3O7, March number.
Corn.-Let nothing prevent you from
keeping your Corn-field clean, from this up
to the period of laying the crop by. Weeds
and grass rob the plants of their food, and
if there were no other reasons this alone
should induce you to give them no quarter;
but there is another potent reason, which
should operate to force conviction upon
your minds, as to the propriety of maintain
ing cleanliness in your corn-feds. IL the
surface Of the earth be indurated, its powers
of attraction and absorption are greatly less
than when the same earth is kept stirred,
open, and free to imbibe the enriching mois-
ture of the air !: and hence it is, that, in the
first case, the dew which may fall on hard
surface, is chiefly exhaled by the sun, and
does very little benefit to the growing crop;
whereas, when the soil has been recently
stirred, and is visited by dews. it at once al
tracts, condenses, and appropriates to-lhe
plants whatever may be of value in the
gases thus brought down. 1t is an admitted
truth, that plants derive portion of their
food from the atmosphere, and, if such be
the case, it becomes an object Of deep mo-
ment with culursts, to keep the soil of
their corn fields in the best possible condi-
ton, to absorb the enriching gases which
float in air. Frequent stirring of the surface,
and especially in time Of drought, will be
found to be highly conducive to this end.
The idea that corn should not be worked in
dry weather we hold to be unsound. We
admit that corn should not be p7oughed so
deep as to reach and lacerate the roots a.
such periods; for, as the roots are the feed
ers-the mediums or mouths through which
the plants receive their food, every rent or
tear which may be made in them, abstracts
from them much of their capacity for feed
ing. Though you may have placed the
food in the earth for their use and benefit,
by cutting up their roots or feeders, you
deprive them for time, of the means eat
ing so that it is not, until, by vigorous
effort of nature, they provide themselves
with new set of feeders that they can carry
on the process Of eating, 10 any extent; but,
in the meantime, they are compelled to sub !
and as a consequence the process of asslmlla-
lion and elaboration are partially suspended:
and hence it is, that many fields of corn
which promised well, early, have disappoint-
ed the best grounded hopes when the corn
came TO be gathered, Hence it is, that SO
many stalks, and partly filled ears occur in
almost every field, which may have been
cultivated with plough. Reasoning thus
in our mind we long since came to the con-
clusion - and acted upon it-that corn
should never be ploughed but once-that
all subsequent workings should be with cul-
.va,or and hoe. Nature furnished roots to
corn plants to eat with, and it is unnatural
for man to deprive them Of them. We 60
for frequent stirring Of the earth, butnot SO
deep as to touch or injure the roots OF the
corn plants.
Again the ploughing of corn deep in
the course of culture, turns up the manure;
as consequence, much fits fertllzng viz
tues are lost to the crop and to the soil; be-
cause such gases being lighter than the at
mospheric air, on being eliminated upon the
surface of the earth, they ascend, unless up
substance which will attract and condense
such volatile bodies. This admitted; as
the grain of corn receives lis greatest means
of formation and perfection from the earth,
it follows that constant supply of nutrimen-
tai food should be kept therein !; and this
cannot be done, where the manure is at
each succeeding ploughing brought to the
surface, to expend its ammoniacal gases up
on the air, at The expense of the growing
crop Of corn.
If not done before, a dressing of bush
els of ashes and | Of Plaster, per acre,
mixed too ether and sown broadcast, or on
the hill, will operate advantageously.
Broadcast Corn-.Wlet.-As your pas
lures will be giving out in August, and your
cattle suffer for want of succulent food, you
will find it to your interest to put in an acre
Of corn, and one Of miIlet, broadcast; to cut
and feed to your stock during August and
September. By manuring couple OF acres
we'll, pIoughing, and narrowing thoroughly,
and sowing these grains, you will be able
to make up for the deficiency of your pas
lures In or 6 weeks your milet vii be
fit to cut, and by the time that is exhaust
ed the corn will be ready. Four bushels OF
corn, and one bushel of milIet seed, per
acre, for such purposes, are the quantities
that should be sown.
With regard to .Nillet, we will say fur
ther, that if you have no Glover fields or
timothy meadows to draw upon, for long
provender for your horses, you could not
do better than to pu. down a few acres in
] this grass, as, when cultivated in rich,
we'll manured and prepared soil, it affords
very heavy crop, say, from 3 to 4 tons per
acre, aud makes a most excellent hav-a
hay that is highly relishcd, and is as nutri-
tious as any other we know of, except timo