The Placer herald. [volume] (Auburn, Placer County, Calif.) 1855-1991, 1861-10-12
Placer County Cotton.

Dr. }. A. llill of this county, few days
since sent stalk of native cotton to the
Editor Of the Union. 1t was grown in the
garden of Mr.. Duchstein at Gold HILL The
Doctor says:
AS the article Of cotton seems to be at
tracing general attention just now, and its
growth and cultivation having been fire.
quentiy alluded to by the newspaper press of
the State, send you one of two stalks that
grew in a garden in this town. The stalk
herewith sent grew on hard granite soil, with
very little manure, but received by hand all
tie moisture necessary to its mature growth.
There are quite a number of cotton stalks
growing in different gardens here. | seec
ted this however, as the best, perhaps be
cause of its better cultivation and irrigation,
although by no means the taIlest High
or great size in the weed is not always AN
index to its prolific WELD | consider this
stalk as a very fair sample of the growth of
this staple on the best nplands Of South
Carolina, not, perhaps, quite 50 tall as the
ordinary growth Of the uplands of Carolina,
but it is as well or better filled" than the
same sized plant in that State. Hight or
great size of weed, as before remarked, is
not an evidence of its great yield; as, for
instance. Honey Island, in Holmes county,
Mississippi, formed by the division of the
Y azoo river, is ,amous for its splendid crops
of cotton. The weed rarely attains an ay-
eraoe hight Of over four feet; vet the same
crop makes an average yield of $500 lbs
Of seed cotton per acre-equal to bale
and half or 600 pounds of lint. Then
again, Deer creek, in an adjoining county
and all of the Mississippi bottom, the aver
age height Of the plant is over six feet; in
deed, have seen whole plantations where
the hight would average eight feet, and the
Weld per acre not SO much as a smaller
growth. The space between the stalks in
drill and the width of the ridges must be
governed by the general growth of the
plant on that quality Of soil If larger
then proportional width in its drill and
ridges. Hence larger stalk will take up
so much more ground. 1t is obvious, unless
size carries with it a proporlionate degree Of
maturity, the crop will not be a fuil one.
But to return to our stalk Of cotton. find
on examination, including blown boIls and
those previously y plucked, over forty pods
mature anl i'll process of maturity, with
ample time to allow full growth before the
first trosts. Assuming then, that the plants
the size OF the sample, to stand eighteen
inches apart in the drill, and the ridges tour
feet distance, and allowing one hundred
pods or bols, (the usual estimate in Missis
sippi) to The pound Of seed cotton, If you
wi take the trouble to ma the caIcula
ton you will find the yield per acre to be
immense, even with SO small a growth AS the
sample sent. An approximation to crop
however. can scarcely be made in this way,
unless the ''stand' is a perfect one, which
is now rare, even with the most favorable
Spring-and a liberal allowance be made
for waste in The field before packing, and
also in the process Of ginnng and packing.
In reference to the growth of cotton in
this State. it occurs to me that the rich,
moist. aluvia lands on the Sacramento and
San Joaquin rivers, excellent crops would
GROW. The weel would likely not allow
any great hight, but would be well tilled
and, Judging from this sample, the opening
of the bolIs and picking would be very
nearly as early here as in the Gulf States
The production of cotton, however, in this
State must necessarily be very limited. The
continuous character of the labor requisite
to its successful cultivation and growth, and
the subsequent picking and packing requlrl
ing unremtted labor the year round, infer
will prevent its cultivation to any extent in
this state. No one would engage in it
largely without the rtainty of obtaining or
securing beforehand the labor necessary to
its full comp pleton.
The staple on the stalk is fine but, rather
short. The seed but little over half the size
of ordinary Petty CUR seed.
Yours truly, }. A. HILL.
The PnWar of Music.