Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1868-11-24

v y
age is better and the whole picking
has appearance of assorted berries"
The above are the statements of a
good, careful, and, we believe, honest
fruit grower, who loves more his pro-
fession than the dollars it brings, new
ertheless they are strong statements,
and should be swallowed at least mo-
derately, until we have the record of
the variety grown in other hands,
Charles Downing, however, gives the
variety good "boost," and as we all
want to continue our strawberry sea-
son as late as possible, even into the
middle of July or August, let us try
a few of the plants if we can get them
and report results next year.-Rval
NeW Yorker.
A SUBSTITUTE FOR MANURE.-After
making and saving all the manure that
the present general system of farming
in this country renders practicable:
there is sufficient to adequately fertil-
ize but small portion of our cultiva-
ted land. Farmers cultivate the lar
ger part of their crops without any
manure, and those to which the arti-
Gle is applied, rarely receive sufficient
to restore what they withdraw from
the soil. Successful farming here is
based, at present, on the natural fer
tility of the soil, the use of clover,
and the laying of land down to grass
to let it recuperate. This is a natu-
raj course of events until country
becomes densely populated, when the
demand for varied productions of the
soil springs mp and causes a rotation
in the cropping; food is consumed
near its place of origin, and the ma
nure it makes returned to the soil that
grew it. When the manufacturing and
commercial classes consume the sur
plus products of the farm near to it,
there is opportunity for restoring to
the soil by manure all that is abstrac-
ted from it by the crops.
But, in the meantime, what shall
take the place of manure on the prai-
ries of the west, the fields of the south
and farms OF the middle states a.? We
answer, thorough culture of the soil.
Every farmer has heard of the theory
of Tull, that the soil contained mex
haustible fertility, and the only thing
needed to render it available was mi
mute division of the particles to admit
air, water and the feeding roots of
plants. He claimed that if the cul-
ture was thorough enough crops might
be grown continuously on soil with
out exhausting it. Science has reject
ed this theory, and logically shown
that soil thus treated will, at length,
become utterly exhausted and barren.
But facts are hard things, and often
smash finely constructed scientific the
cries, and there is no recorded in
stance Of naturally good soil becOm-
ing barren under such treatment
On the contrary experiments seem to
Indicate that with thorough culture
and continuous cropping, the yield at
first increases, then falls to a certain
standard below which it is not apt to
range. There seems to be an end to
this downhil road before it reaches
the desert, or even passes the region
| of moderate average crops
By thorough culture we mean any
and all mechanical operations which
tend to aid the roots of plants in pro-
curing food from the soil. 1t includes
understanding, subsoiling blowing, har-
rowing and rolling, every means, in
short, whereby the area of soil in
which plants grow, may be pulverized
deepened, drained of stagnant water
and rendered porous and lively. On
heavy soils, thorough culture will pro
duce greater results than on light, fol-
there the earth is richer, but, under
ordinary management, more impervl
Gus to the roots of plants. Let the
farmer who cannot make manure en-
ough to insure large crops, resort tt
thorough culture, and put his soil il
such mechanical condition that plants
may avail themselves of all the fooC
it contains. Not only would the in
.. creased production tend to furnish {;
greater supply of manure, but the i'm
proved condition of the soil woult
give more force to the fertilizers tina
might be applied.--Moore's RwGL Ne,
Yorker.
: A Frenchman has invented new
5 system OF shoeing horses. He lets a.
e iron band into a rectangular groov
= scooped from the outer circle of tn
horses foot. This band is fastene,
with seven rectangular nails, driver
into oval holes. The sole of the foo
: and the frog are thus are allowed t
! touch the ground, the horse neve
:, slips and never gets diseases of tn
: feet.
It Buckwheat has been found useful i
| dyeing wool. The dried flowers wi
e yield different shades of green, an
l. the succulent stems and blossoms
O with the addition of bismuth of til
O produce beautiful brown.
l ABOUT HORsEs.-From the Rocf
% ester Union we take the following:
~ Horses as a general thing get to
q much licking and too little feed. If
{ man loses his hat while driving h
O horse, he ticks the horse to pay for
Q If he runs into another wagon throug
~ his own carelessness, he ticks his hors
,o to make it all right. If his horse sliI
% or stumbles, he gets licked for it