Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1869-01-13

Arithmetic in Farming.

"a frcer use Of the multiplication table
would enable farmers to act with more pre-
cision in many operations now conducted
entirely by guess work We have frequent
inquiries for example. as to the proper
amount Of certain special manures to be ap-
piled per acre for different crops; but the
use being new, the application is made with
out any guide as to quantity, and too much
is used in one case, and too little in another
One man Injuries his crop and wastes the ma
terial by oyerdosing another uses too little,
and does not witness any sensible effect A
little figuring would obyiate these difficulties,
and enable the farmer to calculate accurately
beforehand just how much to apply. Suppose,
for instance, that he proposes to use super
phosphate at the rate Of 500 pounds per acre
in his turnip drills . Instead Of trying at
random. and coming out wrong, as he will be
sure to do, let him bring his work down to
figures, in the following manner His drills,
we will suppose, are % inches apart, amount
ing to 1920 rods in length on each acre. or
at the rate of about seven ounces per rod.
Or. to be more accurate, a. well as to take
more convenient length, the fertilizer should
be strcwed along the furrow at the rate of
one ounce to two feet and two inches in length.
Weigh out a small quantity in ounce portions,
and practice il few minutes by strewing it
along a firrow 20 that each ounce shall reach
measured length Of two feet and two inches
\ little practice will enable the operator to
apply the fertilizer 80 that he can distribute
the required quantity over the acre or field
with much accuracy IL he wishes TO use
only half this quantity, or two hundred and
fifty pounds per acre, strew it 50 that an ounce
shall extend four feet and four inches, and he
will accomplish the desired purpose.
II fertilizer is to be applied in hills, as
in a cornfeld, similar mode Of calculation
may be readily adopted. Hills three feet and
half apart each way will be at the rate of
about 5000 per acre, requiring about two
ounces per hin, if 500 pounds Of the fertii-
zer are used, or one ounce for $50 pounds.
In sowing plaster by hand at the rate Of
bushel or 100 pounds per acre, the operator
should only take the tenth Of pound for
each handful, for if he covers a space five by
ten feet at each throw, it will take nearly one
thousand to go over the acre, as little
figuring will prove.
The same mode may be used to determine
the amount of grass seed for each handful in
sowing broadcast Each throw will cover as
before, from Ave to ten feet and whatever
quantity is used for an acre should therefore
be divided up into about thousand parts.
A peck of clover seed, for example, weighs
fifteen pounds, and to cover an acre, each
handful should be little less than the fourth
of an ounce. The previous use Of pair Of
scales for weighing of few of these por-
tions would enable the operator to hit at once,
with considerable accuracy, the right quanti-
ty, instead of being compelled to make ran
dom guesses for days, or even years, before
acquiring proper experience.
II is often regarded as an indication Of
shrewd guessing when the farmer brings his
domestic animals through winter on the exact
supply of fodder which he has stored away
for this purpose. Sometimes he may find
towards spring that he has many tons of sur
plus, and perhaps, more frequently, that he
has to purchase considerable amount in or
der to apiece out" the winter supply. Meas
uring, weighing and calculating, the work of
a few minutes, will obviate much of this I'M
certainty. The farmer who frequently weighs
load Of hay, acquires sufficient experience
in estimating, to determine very nearly, from
record of the size and number of the loads
which he draws into the barn, the whole
amount which he has on hand for winter If
he has neglected to do this he may hit the
amount nearly as well by measuring his bays
and allowing an average Of 800 cubic feet
per ton of timothy, 600 feet if part clover,
or 700 feet if all clover. lie will thus be
able to learn, very nearly how much hay he
has on hand. The next question is to know
how much his animals will eat. If he has
provided good racks, to prevent them tread
ing hay under foot, aud has given them fair
shelter, he may adopt the following rule with
good deal of certainty Determine the
weight Of his animals, aud allow three per
cent of the weight Of his horses for their
daily food III hay, and two and half per cent.
for cattle. Multiply this daily allowance by
the whole number Of animals, and again by
the number of days which he expects to give
them dry food, and then compare 1t with the
quantity on hand, and he may strike the bal
ance, one way or the other, with considerable
certainty
Every farmer should have tape line, or
other means for measuring his fields. II he
has had much experience in pacing, he may
indeed make temporary measurements with
some degree of accuracy, but he should fre-
quently correct such rough work with the
tape line A cord or garden line will do
length is frequently corrected by the use Of
an accurate tcn-foot pole, and taking care
that il is not shortened afterwards by drag
ging through wet grass, or heightened by
stretching, or by exposure to hot sun on a
dusty surface. Pieces of red yarn may be
sewed through il to mark rods and feet.
Every field should be measured, so that the
owner may know the number of acres, and
record should also be made Of its length and
breadth, that the amount Of land powed in
day may be readily reckoned, and the con-
tents Of each land definitely known.
Among other advantages, this accuracy will
enable the owner TO determine easily agreeable
products under different modes of manage
ment, and to acquire a great deal of valuable
information, in few years, as to the most
profitable way of raising heavy crops.
There are many other modes, which will
suggest themselves to the intelligent farmer,
for adopting the weighing and measuring sys-
TEN, and submitting his work to accurate
figures, instead Of TO loose and random CUES
sing. Every granary should have gradua-
ted scale inside, to show at glance the num-
Der of bushels at any height. A similar
measurement and record should be made of
his wagon boxes. These he may do by meas
uring the length, breadth and depth for the
cubic feet. Then divide the number of cubic
feet by So, and multiply by 40, and the re-
suit will be struck measure. Or he may al
low 2,l50 cubic inches for each bushe, or
add one-fourth for heaped measure, as for po-
iatoes, corn in the ear, &c.
Cutting Grass Late.