New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1861-07-29


and in 1860 it is considered full 900, 600, 600, thus
equslling the wheat crop Of the whole earth.
The Slave States produce more corn than the
Free States; but rebellion ia the former has pre-
vented the transmission Of the census returns,
and hence we are without any recent data from
that section, except the knowledge that che corn
crop increases more than fiyo per cent. per an
nam. This knowledge enables Us to fix the product
OF 1860 us above though there eau be little doubt
that when the full returns made up, the total
will be found to be even greater. The varieties
of corn are numerous, and are continually IN
creasing by Improvement, and the introduction
of seed from section to another. The plant
bybridizes with great facility. Some choice va
rleties have been originated in this way and
others wall undoubtedly be forthcoming as no
| topic occupies more space in our agricultural
! journals than and it's culture. Small
| fortunes have been realized by the orr
! guators of new Strawberries raspberiies, and
other perishablc fruit. Others have grown rich
| by providing machines for husking Smelling, and
| grinding corn, aud chopping tho stalks into TOD
| der. But 70 the fortunate author of y0riety
/ shich will lneasuraby suppant oil others, there
/ will he n rich reward Ii would be almost i'm
/ possible to enumerate the varieties now cult'-
/ vated, or to give the reasons why one is pre-
| ferred above ihe other, One Is grown 10 one
/ district OF country because it was first nitro
/ duced there the growers satisfied without look
/ ing further. Another because great crops have
| been secured from it in different section where
! the sol had been found especially cOugenial.
third because the grain was large and the cob
small A fourth because the stalk grew very tai.
aud Yielded much fodder; while 9Th was pre-
| fcrrcd for pecuiarties directly opposite. 1t hap
pens fortunately that oil varieties are good for
/ man and beast: aud that where cultivation Is
we'll managed, good crops and certain profits are
the result.
II is remarkable that chemistry has been less
eaborstely applied to detecting the peculiaritles
of these numerous varieties of the cereal monarch,
than TO those of all other grains. But whenever
It's luminous powers have been thus applied, dis.
coycries have been made which common Obser'
crs had been unable tO account for. They bad
long noted certain peculiar facts, but the causes
were unknown. grain of corn cut in half,
and immersed in n solution of srlphydrae of
ammonia, will have the chit changed to a dark
olive color, thus proving the presence of salts of
iron. The exact limits of starch and dextriue
contained in the grain are indicated BY the tine
turo OF iodine striking an intense blue with the
starch aud a deep pOrt.wine red with dextrine;
so that this test, By producing n rich violet, n-
dicated the presence of both starch aud deNtrlne.
If the oil be extracted from the transparent
horny part of corn by alcohol or ether the tine
.ure of iodine will show the presence OF starch
in that part Of the grain associated with the
gluten. By these means one can readily cause
any grain to define the extent and precise limit
of each Of its Ingredients, and enable the naked
eye to form a pretty correct estimate Of their
relative proportions in different seeds This Is
one of the simplest and most beautiful app
cations Of chemistry. II proved also, that the
relative proportions of the phOsphates in
| grain depend on the appropriatiug power of
| each species or variety. Thus, an ear Of
/ corn being selected containing two different
kinds the Iuscarora and the sweet corr, and these
seeds being split in two, and immersed in the same
solution, they soon gave evidence of more than
double the amount of phosphatcs in the sweet corn
than in the other variety. This result was extpor-
dnary, because the grains came from the same ear,
and grew side by side; yet they had obtained un-
equal quantities OF phosphates from the same sap,
drawn from the same soil. Thus II crop of sweet
corn viii appropriate twice much OF the phos-
pilates as the other variety, aud will consequently
sooner exhaust the sol Of them Hence the fact j.
rendered beautifully apparent, that ground bones
l the specific manure for sweet corn. This variety
has recently come into such extensive for table
consumption that thousands of tuns reach this city
daily and the sale is annually increasing. it,
numerous growers should freely make use of ground
/ bones as IFS fayonte fertilizer. It's origin is I'M
known but il appears to have been used by the abo-
regimes of Ncw-Englaud previous TO the settlement
/ OF the country by the Pilgrims. In addition TO a
large proportion of the phosphates, it contains u
great quantity of sugar and gum, with but little
starch Its short and slender stalks take up less
proportion of the saline matters of the soil.
Chemistry proves that corn contains more of
the phosphates than the smaller grains. This
fact explains the peculiar value Of corn as food
for animals, as the more highly phosphate grains
animals with bOny matter, sometimes even pro-
ducing long connections of phosphate of lime, like
those resulting from govt. The stiffness of the
joints and lameness of the feet, common in horses
fed too freely on corn may be accounted for by
this prepOnderance OF phosphates. Farmers wit
ness the effects without knowing the cause.
Hence the bones of young animals are greatly