Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1852-09-29

PLASTER ON WHEAT IN THE FALL.-As
many farmers in this vicinity are putting
plaster on their wheat in the fall instead Of
the spring as heretofore, have taken pains
to inquire the reason Of the change; and be-
lieving the information obtained important
to wheat growers generally, take this me-
thod of giving it to the million if you think
proper TO place it in your widely extended
journal.
Wheat, when plastefed in the fall, obtains
more root, and is thus enabled to stand the
frosts better; it has the assistance Of the
plaster at season of the year when II IS
most needed namely, in the very early
spring j. gets its growth and ripens in good
time; whereas, when applied in the spring
the wheat continues to grow late; some
times to the injury of the crop-a SUPER
abundance of straw, falling down, rust, &C.,
&C., ofIen.imes being the consequence.
LARGE AND SMALL PoTAToEs FOR PLAN
rING.-Having read great number of ar
ticles upon the long mooted point whether
small Irish potatoes will no. answer as good
purpose for planting as large ones, all Of
which left US very nearly as much in the
dark upon the subject as though we had
never seen them, we determined last spring
to test the matter for ourselves. We accoid-
ingly selected three rows in the middle Of
one of The patches in our lot, of exactly the
same length, Of the same character and
strength of soil, and all equally exposed TO
the influences Of the weather. These rows
having been all manured alike, both as re-
garded quanti,i!y aud quality, we planted in
one Of them potatoes cut so as 10 leave two
eyes to the set in another, whole potatoes
about The size of a pigeons egg, end some
few probably isle larger, but none as big
as hens egg; and in the third, whole po-
tatoes of The largest size that we could find
such as would have made from four to
six good large sets each. The potatoes
were all planted the same distance apart in
the driIls-len inches-and were all cover
ed to the same depth. In their coming up
we could perceive no difference, except that
one of The sets failed in the row of small
whole potatoes and two in that OF the cut
ones, all Of which were replan.ed. In few
days after coming up, however, the plants
from the large whole potatoes took the lead
Of the others and maintained isup to the time
ofripening- difference in size and vlgor
being plainly dlscernible across the whole
patch. The plants in this row also began
to show evidences Of maturing from week
TO ten days earlier than the Others The
working of the three rows was precisely the
same, end was done al the same time. On
last Monday we dug them, and the result
was as follows: The row in which the cut
potatoes had been planted yielded half
bushel and 1-3 of peck that in which the
small whole potatoes were planted, yielded
half bushel and 2-3 Of peck; and that in
which the large whole potatoes were plant
ed yielded one bushe and Is of peck
The potatoes in the two first rows were as
nearly IS possible of the same sze-( if there
was any difference, though, we think it was
ra,her in favor Of that in which the whole
,ubers were planted land would be cQnsid-
cred fine specimens in any market. In the
third row, however, or that in which the
large whole tubers had been planted, the
potatoes were very nearly one-!hird larger
than those in the other two, being 'he1inest
10, of potatoes that we ever saw dug from
the same space Of ground. The potatoes
were ell of the kind known as the Kidney
shaped Mercer. Having stated our exPer
ment, we leave the agricultural reader
make his own deduction.-Edaor OF 1he
.Mary's Beacon.