The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1858-11-06
Agricultural.

ESSAY ON CLEARING LAND INFESTED WITH
SAssAFRAs AND BRIERs.- By W. W. GHmer.
Repeated cropping in corn, wheat, or oats
will but multiply these pests. The best plan
to eradicate them, have found latter manv
trials 10 be moving them off in the month Of
May, and snhjecting the land to close grazing.
y field Of mine, in 1850, was after corn. so
thicklv set with sassafias and brlers, that a
a friend remarked that it afforded good
swarth nearly all over. 1t was sown in wheat
and grass in iie spring, and was afterwards
grazcd for ionr years the utmost limit of its
capatIlity, the bushes and brers were nov.
ed hut once, and, TO my great delight, the
bush, except where sa> So fraS tree had been
ernbbcd up Grubbing thickset field is a
very costly operation, and will not cure the
evil. The idea prevails in the Valley of Yir.
GINA, that our lands on this side ofthc noun.
talns are far more liable to such pests than
thciis. The reason for this impression Is
obviously not in the greater liability of our
lands to be so infested, but in the different
MODES OF treating them which prevail in these
localities respectively. Their lands are Sc: in
grass when fresh, and srazed from the year
they are cleared, by which means these pesls
ally worked as long as they would paw, and
IN many instances much longer, and not
grazed, because we had but little stock, and
were only moved to very limited extent ;
on which account the evil complained of has
not been checked by the remedial process
have suggested.
Let me not, however. be misunderstood on
inns SUBJECT. The moving recommended re-
ters only to the BUSHES and brcrs. He who
has an ahunant supply of corn stalks, shucks
wheatstraw, and chaif has no need of hay for
stock otany kind. If near the market and
hay can be sold fer one dollar cash, then NOW
1t; but II at distance from market, and the
staple crops are corn and wheat, NOR not.
1t is my decided opinion that the cutting of
crop of cover-hay, and the taking away Of
the seed, will exhaust land as much as crop
Of corn. Rich flats will stand it, but com j.
mon high land cannot.
The question may be asked why Craze if
so much opposed to hay-making ? Because
caSh payments are made to the land IT, grazing
it. whilst but little is returned to it
when hay is cut and fed on the farm, and
nothing when 1t is sold off. Again. the gra-
zlng process proceeds slowly, and but grad.
nally deSpolls the land Of its covering, while
moving leaves it suddenly denudcd and ex-
posed TO the blazing sun. keep as fat
horses and oxen as NEST persons. yet | have
not on farm peculiarly adapted to the bust
ness, cut five tons Of bay within the space of
twenty years Let those who have rich moist
Hats institute careful experiments to lest the
relative value Of their production in corn and
IN hay. 1t will fc found that the corn will
give at least fifty bushels of grain per acre,
While the rough food from that acre will
amount to al least as much in quantity. and
he fully equal in quality to hay so far as
1t is eaten. The difference then, in favor of
the corn crop will be the nett gain Of the
amount Of grain produced. the oGM Of the
crop being fully equal in value to the produc-
ton of the same quantity Of land in hay.
Americdn Farmer