Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1877-05-23

|
Having anAgricultural College ofour owr
in Vermont we naturally have an interest
kind Of fellow feeling" for those in 9TH
er states, and the following report of pro.
gress by Mr.. Southwick, Farm Superinten.
dent of the Massachusetts Agricultural Col.
lege at Amherst, which we clip from the
Ploughman, must be generally interesting.
Perhaps some may think it doesn't &c
quite far enough; may want to know by
whom the work is done and how well the
fam pays, which perhaps VIC may hear
sometime:
Perhaps it will not be wholly uninterest-
ing 10 the readers of the Pioughman 10
know how work is progressing at the Col
lege.
Four acres have been sown TO wheat.
and 1T present the crop looks very nicely.
Stockbridge Fertilizer has been applied
for twenty-four bushels of grain to the acre
more than the natural produce ofthe land,
which is said to be twenty-five bushels 10
the acre.
The demand for nee spring wheat for
seed seems to be increasing, and it is hoped
that this crop will prove To be remunera-
tive here this season, for this field is but
an experiment.
We are now hauling manure for an eight
and one-half acre field of corn, and we are
putting on at the rate of one hundred
loads of A cubic feet TO the load to an acre
| asked Prof Stockbridgc how much corn
we should be likely to get, and be said
without hesitation, one hundred bushels
shellcd corn to the acre. 1t is the inten-
ton now to SOW the grass seed among tie
corn and hoe it in late in the season.
My main object is to grow heavy crops
upon small acres. | want to cut four tons
to the acre at least, of first quality hay on
this cornfeld for year or two to come.
Another field of seven and one-half acres
is 10 be MANFRED with Stockbridge Fertii-
Ger, and next winter l propose 10 haul Il
large amount Of first quality manure upon
seds to this field for some crop next year.
This piece is naturally excellent land, but
last summer we cut only about five hun
bred pounds Of hay to the acre, worth
about ten dollars ton. Underdrain first
and plenty of manure to follow is what is
needed. The latter we can easily furnish
but it takes mouey TO procure the former.
1t is my intention to grow Lanes i'm
proved sugar beet in large quantities the
coming season, also turnips and carrots.
have given my personal attention to
the accumulation of manure whenever u
CHI al f,,1 10 l., IL
suit, about five hundred loads have been
already drawn out, and about six hundred
more remain to be moved. | must say
that never saw so large an amount Of 30
even quality before.
may be disappointed in the quality of
the soil here, but I venture to say that in
five years if as much manure is made and
applied as has been the past year, that
there will not be storage room for the
crops if every building on the farm, suita-
bic or not, is brought into requistion.
No grain has been bought the past sea-
son, and have now On hand about seven
hundred baskets of ears of corn from last
years crop. have wintered about fifty
cattle, six heavy horses, and from twenty
to forty hogs. l think the farm NAV east
ly be made to produce grain sufficient for
use the year round.
The Introduction of steam at the farm
has resulted in a greater saving of fodder
than one can easily imagine who has never
used this method. Many pronounced this
Il failure before we had fairly commenced
operations in earnest, others asserted that
as soon as the novelty Of the thing was
over with that we should give it up in dis
gust. l am happy to state that the whole
has been success in every respect, and
the more | see Of it the better like it. II
can easily imagine that work of this kind
might easily become failure if the work
were trusted entirely to incompetent per-
sons, or to those who would not be likely
10 take any interest in the matter. have
given my personal attention to this, and
some of the older cattle are a lit |
tie notional about what they eat, the ma
jorily have taken hold of the steamed Iod- |
der with n relish and have douc extreme
ly well on it.
We prize the steam as means for cook !
ing the swill for the hogs as highly us we
do for cooking the cornstalks for the eat |
Wv We HdNe I"l sc ldukS upon WbeclS OF
about twelve barrels capacity. into which
the raw material is placed. and then steam
We can now cook swill
enough in two hours to feed the whole
stock Of hogs week, whereas by the old
it took the greater part of
ones time every other day to accomplish
the same work. We feel our great in
debtedness to the Hon. VIM. Knowlton,
who so kindly furnished the means for sue
cessfully accomplishing this great improv-
ment.
Grass is looking unusually well, cspec-
tally where the Stockbridge Fertilizer was
sown last fall. More as the season pro-
crosses.
April Goth, 1871.