Ellsworth American., 1874-07-02
Farm anb houseboIo.
Cultivation Of Roots.

Mr.. Lewis Is very successful Ia the
culture of roots, and raises them in large
quantities for his dairy; preferring them
to ground grain for feeding to cows. for
obtaining large quantities Of milk. Amer
stating that all kinds of soil can be made
TO produce paying crops of roots. though
carrots and turnips do best on sandy or
grayelly soils, and beets on clay loan; he
say. that after many years. careful trial,
he has finally concluded that the best
varieties of the French and German sugar
beets are the most nutritious. the mos. ac-
ceptable TO the COW, aud produce the best
favored milk of all the roots have ever
fed. But all these sugar beets grow down
% the crown in the soil, and cost three or
four times as much labor per ton TO har-
vest them as II does to harvest any one OF
the kinds of beets known as the mango,
wurzel Again, the sugar beets seldom
yield more thaI twenty tons per acre.
while the mangel wurzel often yields over
forty tons per acre. We would there fore
recommend the large mangel wurzel.
Norbition Giant, Long Mammoth. Red.
Yellow Ovoid, and Yellow Globe, for gen.
eral cultivation, as those kinds which will
give the greatest yield per acre, and as
cattle food, give entire satisfaction TO all
dairymen or cattle-feeders, who may grow
and feed them In connection with hay, or
other dry fodder, during our long winters. !"
In the preparation of the ground he pre-
fers to have the land plowed careful in the
fall. BY fan blowing clay soils, the frosts
of winter and spring will do more to rem
der II in good condition for cultivation
than anything in our own power to do.
About thirty loads per acre of good stable
manure is none too much for the beet crop.
and If convenient to use more 1t will do no
harm. The manure should be free from
hay, straw, corn stalks, and everything
that will prevent q thorough pulverization
of the manure, and a complete mixture OF
il with the soil. Well-rotted manure for
the best crop, is altogether the best; but
when this is not TO be had, COW manure
drawn on during the winter while the
ground Is frozen, will answer q good pur-
pose, ifwell pulverized and mixed with the
soil at the time OF preparing the land 70 r
seed.
He regards greensward, properly pre-
pared, as the most certain for a large yield
of beets, of any kind of land, especially on
good soil not underdrained and in wet sea-
sons. As 10 the preparation of green
sward he says:
"lf greensward is taken for the best
crop, it may be fitted in the following man
ner: After the first furrow in each land,
turn a thin or shallow furrow, as thin as
possible 10 include the grass roots, into
the bottom of the previous furrow. and
then follow In the same furrow with the
same or another plow, covering the sod
about four or five inches deep. Then a
good coat OF manure, well mixed with the
surface soil, will, as general rule, insure
large crop Of beets.'
He advises sowing four pounds of seeds
10 the acre; or half that quantity if plant
ed with a hoe in hills eighteen Inches apart,
and two seeds to the hill. He prefers
planting to sowing with machine. One
inch deep is his rule for covering the seed,
unless in dry time, when it may have an
inch and half Of earth over it.
He believes in heavy special manuring
for the beet crop, preferring hen manure
TO all others. His practice has sheen 10
pulverize the hen manure. and sift il
through q common coal sieve before mix
ing with the muck and plaster. and using
about ten bushels OF the mixture per acre.
This cheap fertilizer, within the reach OF
all, will increase the beet crop on an aver
age about ten tons per acre. Salt mixed
with this compound at the rate OF about
two or three bushels Of salt per acre, will
do wonders in dry seasons, or on dry
soils. Wood ashes are also very valuable,
leached or unleached. for the beet crop.
But as a special fertilizer for beets, the
beet leaves plowed under Immediately
after harvesting the crop, is king every
time, and must be used in this way IL beets
are to be grown after each other.
In using the mixture of hen manure,
muck, plaster and salt, put about table
spoonful to each beet, soon after singing
the plants. All crops requiring q large
amount Of labor to grow them, like the
root crop, at the present high price of
labor, should be supplied with all the nee
essary fertilizers to stimulate their growth
and bring the land up to its utmost limit
reproduction. hold it to be good econo-
my in growing q crop of any kind to apply
the most manure where we apply the most
labor. whether the price of labor be high
or low"
The cultivation consists simply in keep
ing the ground free from weeds and grass,
and the soil mellow.-[Lewiston Journal.