American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1864-02-03
che farmers department.
UTILITY OF COAL ASHES.


tilizer as well as for hardening the
walks, and as soon as this fact is DEM
onstrated we shall get rid of what is
now great nuisance in a city, stand
ing barrels and boxes of ashes upon
the sidewalk. The New England
Farmer is of the same opinion as to
the utility of coal ashes, and says
that it is much more valuable as an
absorbent for fertilizing elements in
manure than is generally supposed,
and may be worth something as dis
infectant.
We find the foregoing in several
papers without any source. We know
something about coal ashes, having
literally used them in the garden for
many years. We do not believe they
fertilize the soil to any profitable ex-
tent; but we do believe they have the
effect, on many soils, in loosening the
earth, and in that way benefting it.
As to walks, we have also had consid-
erable experience, nearly all our gar
den avenues being made of coal ash
es, as we have often said, and afford
the highest satisfaction. If the
ground is dug out from six to eight
inches, and the lower stratum be the
cnders and other coarser portions of
the ashes, or small stones, brickbats,
ETC., topped off with from two to three
inches of the finer ashes, and rolled,
it will make first-class walk. If the
foundations of the walks are so made
as to drain off the water falling upon
them, they are always in good order,
winter and summer. The frost does
not effect them injuriously in winter,
and in the summer they are in dry
condition five minutes after rain.
We have spread coal ashes to the
amount of three inches over the soil
Of our garden, which is low but well
drained, and we are satisfied they have
made the soil more friable, but do not
think they are of any value specially
as a maupe.-G Germantown Tele-
graph.
WILD OATS FOR SEED.-The seeds
of the native wild oats are in such de-
mand for sowing on the arabic noun
tain sides, that they bring higher
market value than the tame variety.
A farmer living in this valley says
that they produce much heavier crop
of seed than tame oats, and at the
price which bid fair to rule the next
year to come, will be the most pro-
ductive crop that can be put in. On
the routes to Silverland, thousands of
acres are being seeded down for hay
and pasturage wherever the oat is not
found Indigenous, and, until the'i iron
horse has made.its way over the Sier-
ras the mountain sides will never, if
then, bear too luxuriant a growth of
this cereal.-Napa Reporter.
WHEAT IN THE WEsT.-A cores
pondent of the Genessee Farmer at
St. Heters, Mimi, writes: "Farmers
are receiving good prices here; oats,
go cents corn, so cents ; barley, 70
cents. Our main crop is wheat, which
can hardly be said to have any sale at
present, as buyers only offer so cents
bushel, and farmers will not sell ex-
cept to satisfy some pressing want.
Sheep and horses are being rapidly
introduced, and this will yet be great
wool country" The crops which have
a local demand are in request and
bring good prices, but in the case of
wheat, which has been sent East, the
price is comparativelyslow, owing to
the fact that the freight amounts to
at least half the value of the wheat
after it arrives in New York.
ENORMOUS YIELD OF WHEAT FROM
A SINGLE GRAIN.-The Brighton
(Eng,) Guardian states that at the
Lewes Flower Show, Mr.. Spray, of
Chailey, exhibited bundle of wheat
containing fifteen hundred and fifty
one ears, the product Of a single grain.
This enormous yield was obtained by
sowing the seed in June, and dividing
the parent plant into three parts In
a month or so these plants were re-di-
vided and again planted, and in the
following spring the plants were again
divided.
GREAT YIELD OF WHEAT. J.
Mechi, of England, writes to the
Marx Lane Erpress that he has
threshed three fields of wheat: the
two yielded So bushels per acre, and
the third field 50 bushels per acre.
Part of it was red wheat, and part
white wheat. The red wheat weigh
ed sc pounds, and the white wheat GA
pounds per bushel. What do our'ag-
ricultural readers think of that?
To SwEETEN BUTTERFLY adding
two and half drachms of carbonate
of soda to three pounds of either fresh
or salt butter, possessing disagreeable
flavor, renders it perfectly sweet
Soda produces the same result when
it is added to other culinary greases,
as dripping lard, etc.