Nebraska advertiser., 1860-06-21
AGRIGBLTURAL.
HInfs on the Root CP0Ds,

>c<~N~~r1>ANNo~ 0cO~Crcrcoco-oSrS0r
SIS From ths Aassricsn Agric5itHrisi.
Hints on the Root Crops.
We have Just fed out the last Of cur
carrots, and the only fault we have to find
with them, is, that they are gone. The
quadrupeds that have fed upon them, from
the horse il the stable to the pig in the
sty, coincide in this lanenlation. We
are sorry that we had not raised two tuns
more. both because our neighbors want to
purchase, and we want more 10 finish out
the season. We have fed rutabagas, car
rotss sugar beetss and mantel wurtzels,
and like them also 50 we'll, that we shall
plant more Of them Than all that we have
ever raised before. Each Of these roots
has its peculiar advantages, and every
farmer who has the usual variety Of stock
upon his farm, should raise them all. All
domestic animals crrve a variety of food,
and will thrive much. better upon a half
dozen different kinds, than upon any one.
They not only eat larger quantity Of
food, but it is more perfectly assimilat-
ed, and the farmer gets a better return
for his fodder, in the growth Of bis ami
mails, or IN beef, milk, or butter.
We have never fed anything that will
bring out horses or cows in 50 good con-
dition in the. spring, as diet partially Of
roots. They are particularly valuable in
the three Spring months, before cattle are
turned out to grass. They are full of
juice, and are highly relished with the
dry hay and meal to which cattle are
often confined at this season. They keep
the bowels loose, and the appetite in uni
form good condition. We have never
had the slightest case Of illness among
animlas fed on roots.
The carrot is the best Of roots for the
horse; fed a peck day with other food,
they aid digestion, and keep them in flesh.
We think diet of hay, oats, and carrots,
half and half of the last two, is the best
food we have ever tried for horses. They
work as well as when fed on hay or oats.
Carrots are also admirable for mich cows
and for young stock. They increase the
richness of the milk, without adding any
any unpleasant flavor. This objection is
brought against diet Of turnips, and for
this reason they should be fed toother an
imals, as oxen, fatlings and young cattle.
fhB SUGAR Bee mere nrlIiei0us l1an
r1abage 81 ihe raan.sei ssuszei, ba-
NOT yield large cp. The nahf
The laEpes rtps 70 .ae acre.
S5lnelines reaehlhg forty tons. Its keep
ing qualities are excellent, and it should
come in for feeding in the Spring.
These roots economic land, and should
receive a large share of attention from
those farmers who live in the vicinity Of
towns and cities, where land is dear. The
yield will vary from five hundred to two
thousand bushels to the acre, according
TO the quality Of the soil, and the amount
of manure and labor expended upon it.
With extraordinary treatment, much larg-
er crops than these are sometimes real
lied. The land that produces three tuns
of hay to the acre, may be made to pro-
duce twenty-five tuns of carrots, which
would have four or FIVE times the nutri-
tive value of the hay. In no other way
can farmer get so mnch valuable fod-
der upon given piece Of land, as by the
culture Of roots. .s4
The bearing of these crops upon the
compost heap, is a very important advan-
tage. The manure voided by an animal
fed on roots, is enormous in quantity, and
of avery good quality, though not quite
equal to that made by feeding grain and
oatmeal. If properly cared for and
mixed with muck, under cover, it will on
ly take one season to make a farmer an
advocate Of root crops.
The strongest objection brought against
the cultivation of these raots, is the fact
that farmers have never tried thsm. The
labor of eultivating, harvesting, and stor-
ing, is generally over estimated, and the
stereotyped farmer keeps on with his hay
and grain. We greatly desire the class
of our readers, who own small farms, and
want to make the most of them, to try
roots, even if it be, no more than a quar-
ter of an acre. The great thing is to
make beginning, and to see with one's
own eyes the enormous Of food the soil
win yield in roots. Prepare the ground
thoroughly, and manure heavily as for
thellargest corn crop. - u -
In all lutitudes north Of this, the first
of June is not too late for sowing the seed
We have for years sown a portion of our
beet and carrot seed in June, and we got
fine crops. TurDips may be sown to ad-
vantage still later. .f.s .s