The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1857-10-17
agrtculturdl.

OCTOBER-Work to he ,le%e.-Make COM
post in,lustriously; use those made in Au-
gust on your clayey lands, ridging and back
furrowing them, running the subsoil pillow in
the bottom of the open burrows, By this sys-
tenn the manures will occupy the centre Of the
ridges, and thus their gases during decompo-
siton will he absorbed, instead of passing off
in the atmosphere, The sub-soiling between
ridges will prevent the ridges from compact
ing by rains, and the subsoil will be render
ed fit for sustaining plants another year from
receiving the atmosphere and the carbonic
acid and ammonia carried in by the rains.
The frequent freezings and thawings during
winter will render the ridges pulverulent by
spring, and suitable for early culture. do
not pillow sandy lands in the fall.
Rake up leaves from the woods as they
fall, and put them in the compost heaps.
Cart headlands to the manure shed. Have a
good supply of materials suitable for bedding,
near the stables. DO not attempt to fatten
more cattle than you can fully supply with
food, or they will not afterwards flourish well
even if fully supplied. Young cattle cannot
be brought up in flesh at an outlay which
will pay. if neglected early.
Skin old woods of the surface soil. and re-
ID; &c half its value as manure with lime and
ashes in the woods, and both farm and wood
land will gain in the exchange. Get all the
night soil YOU can, and mix it with hcad-land.
&C., for the compost heaps with salt lye from
the soap boilers, if YOU can get it. Use half
a bushel of refuse salt to every cord of COM
post, to prevent the reorganization of weeds,
grubs, &c. do not forget that corn is more
valuable when changed to fat, than when
found in the hog manure; and to secure the
first condition. cook it before feeding to hogs,
or your manure will be very rich at too high
4 cost. Mr. Ellsworth has satisfactorily
proved that one pound of cooked corn, will
make more pork than two pounds fed in the
raw state.
PICS AND PIGGERIEs.-We never could
conceive why some farmers would persist in
feeding one of those long -gcarcd. flat sided
animals unless it was for the purpose of as
ccrtaining how much corn it was possible for
an animal Of its size and weight to destroy.
Tie attempt to f,tten them for the mar
ket nth profit is insanc-wc know moth
ing that will 81 quickly consume mans pat
rimony except it be bank and railroad stocks.
Secure good stock for the farm, whether it
be cattle, sheep Or Swinc,-thcsc are the right
kind of " fanccs they always declare hon
est dividends, never suffer from street pan
les, nor, when they are wanted, do they col
lapse.
Rapiditv and economy are the objects
which should be kept in view by those fat
tcning swine, and every means calculated to
promote those ends should be readily adopt
ed. Experiment have frequently been made
in which the comparative effects Of raw and
boiled food have been tested, and the great
benefits arising from the consumption of the
latter sufficiently demonstrated to warrant the
expenditure and troublc necessary to thus
prepare it. Regularity IN feeding is of para
mount importance-delay will soon cause a
loss equal to the good resulting from the pre-
vious meal. The quantity should be so
guascd that while none be put upon sholt
allowance there will be, at the same time,
nothing wasted.
The kind of food best adapted for fatten:
ing swine is we'll known to our readers, still,
as the pig is almost an omnivorous cater
anything and everything seeming to tickle
his palate variety is an essential. The
Smithfield (Eng) Club directs all exhibitors
to state how their animals are fed, and from
these statements it appe,rs that barley, bean,
pea-mcal peas, corn-meal, potatoes, mid
dlinss, skim-milk, whey, &C., are used, the
barley and pea-meal taking the palm, as the
choicest food. The following mixture is high
" recommended by English feeders: a few
roots of mangold, or Swedish turnips well
steamed, little bran or meal added; or in
stead of these, brewers grains or half-maltcd
barley we'll boiled, and given moderately
cold and in a moist state" Potatoes, with
little meal, are much used in the earlier
stages Of fattening, the quantity of meal be-
ing increased as the period of slaughtering
pproaches.-Ltural 1New Yorker.
e The following is the Cash valuation of
some of the leading articles of Agricultural
production in the United States, as taken
from the Census Report of 1850 -
Indian Corn $296,O35552
Hay l3S,3S2,42O
Wheat 90,437 ,260
Cotton 7S,265,376
Tobacco 11,9Sj1j9
Rice 4.3O6,27O
Oats 51,3O4 1853
Irish Potatoes 263l91jS
Sweet Potatoes 19l34.O74
Sugar 94Sj319