Democratic Sentinel, Volume 17, Number 35, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 15 September 1893 — AGRICULTURAL NEWS [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

AGRICULTURAL NEWS

A FEW SUGGESTIONS FOR OUR RURAL READERS. Bow Single Poultry Houses May Be Enlarged at Small Cost—Support for Bushes and Trees— Crate for Gardeners—Plan Out the Season's Work. Enlarging the Poultry House. There are scores of poultry houses in the land that are detached buildings in themselves, and in size something like 10x14 feet accommodating twenty or twenty-five fowls; and there are scores of owners of these huildings who would like to keep a larger stock of poultry, were the accommodations for housing them ample. The accompanying sketch from the American Agriculturist shows ho.w these sing.e houses may readily be enlarged to three times their present size, and that, too, at small expense. Two wings of equal dimensions with the original building are built upon Its sides, the roof of each being a continuation of the original roof, though forming a small angle at the point of juncture. The side wulls of the old

building are left intact for increased warmth in tne inner rporn, Where $ more tender breed of fowls, the Leghorns, may he kept in winter, giving the outside rooms to the mure hardy Plymouth Rocks, or Brahmas. Through these side walla however, is cut a door on either side at the front, so that communication may be had with the side rooms from that in the center. This gives but one outside door tor the whole building, and so adds to its warmth in winter. The additions, as well as the ends of the main house, should be covered with building paper and then shingled. With a double door and double windows, such a house ought then to be mostcomfortableduringcold weather. Support for Bushed and Trees. Raspberry and other berry bearing bushes often set and mature more fruit than the stalks can support, and, consequently, are so loaded as to rest upon the ground, injuring the fruit if not breaking the stalks. The same trouble occurs in fruit trees with Bpreading branches. This can be remedied by nailing together two strips of lath within six inches of one end, with a single round steel nail, and clinching just tightly enough that

the laths may be opened qr closed for storing away. The manner of using them is shown in the sketch, if the surface soil is hard, the lower end of the lath should be pointed. This arrangements by being kept under shelter when not in use, will last for many years, and frequently saves enough fruit upon one tmsh to pay the purchase cost, and preparing an entire bundle of l^ths.

Pot Grown Strawberry Plants. Seedsmen have been for a few years supplying strawberry plants grown in pots that can be set out any time In the summer almost, and make a full crop the next year. The pot grown plants are grown from runners, the same as ordinary ones, only where a runner starts a set, a flower pot, two inches Ip diameter, is sunk into the earth and the set allowed to take root in the soil with which the pot is fllied Plants grown in this manner can be taken up and transplanted at any time [luring the summer without the least Injury to them, and will not even wilt down, and would produce almost as freely as they would if left to stand where they grew originally. If one grows his own plants this way the cost is not great, as the pots can be got for $5 a thousand, but seed*men have a habit of charging pretty, stiff prices for them on account of the extra work they require.—American Farmer. . Treatment of Hast. An experiment made in France for the treatment of rust in wheat is said to have been successful. On a field of one-half acre one-half was sprayed with a solution of four and one-half pounds of sulphate of copper and six and three quarters pounds sulphate of soda dissolved in two gallons of water. The sprayed portion produced at the rate of thirty-six bushels per acre, with clean, white straw, while the other produced only twenty-two bushels per acre, with a very rusty black straw. This would be at the rate of eighteen pounds of copper sulphate and twenty-seven pounds of soda sulphate to eight gallons of water per acre, and a gain of fourteen bushels of wheat. Hake Only the Beet Bujter. If dairymen will bear in mind that the best butter pays'a profit and the poorest insures a loss, they will have one large foundation stone of dairy economy established. The average grade just pays the cost of production; the poorer grades fall below, and the better grades rise above. The profit accrues from the better grades of butter, prod uced from the better grades of cows, insists the Orange-Judd Farmer. For, while it Is entirely practicable to always make a high-grade butter from a lowgrade cow, It is uot possible to secure a profit, because of the small quantity. Neither can a profit be obtained by making large quantities of poor butter. First, we need a good cow; then give the cow and her milk good care, and success is certain,

there is comfort in the fact that it is just as easy to make good butter bv good methods, as to mSnt'Apoor butter by the "old granny” 'methods; in fact it is very inu'fi eatjter and. tea times more satisfactory," Plan Out th» Work. Plan out the season's Work in advance. By having the work properly systematized and distributed less hired labor will he needed,, and fl thus will be in nearly all cdsek the Bost reduced. Often a proper i&e -i (W- machinery will help to lessen the cost, but at the same time it should not be forgotten, that it is often possible to get to an extreme and purchase more machinery than Is reallV profitable It is only -by takihg every advantage in doing the work'that "Wife lowest cost is possible, and with a Uiw cost a profit is often possible where otherwise, with present would be occasioned. Tne farm and the work must be studiod and' the. season’s work planned out to’tbenest possible advantage. o«j % Late Tomatoes Pay Well. Most of the profit ftops.thc tfffllato crop Is from those \suls 'very parly, which always brihg those that come after;-sthe glut is over. The tomato Is a perishable fruit, and usually about the time the vines are nipped by the frost there is a brisk demand for it-» The very early tomatoes cost beatily, as they have started in hothouses, and if planted out early need extra protection and rich soil The late crop can bo grown in the open air, and if all the fruit does not ripen there -is always a good demand for It green to use in making mixed pickles. <: • i A flood Crate, flt. r A peck crate, likp the . ope illustrated in American Gardening; is very useful in the retail market garden trade. They are particularly valuable in handling tomatoes, preventing bruising, N Jn carrying, and avo ding handling.,,-. .I jiaye found

them so much more durable than baskets, says a correspondent, that I shall attempt to" use those and haltbushel sizes in gathering from the field. I will devise s6tne kind of iron handle for carrying them. Big Barn* Not Britt. The burning of Levi ,P. Norton’s big barn suggests a doubt whether such enormous buildings are advisable. It is impossible To properly guard them, and a big\ssirn in a country district when itoncegelaon tire generally proves a total loss. With so much combustible material as most barns contain it» is better to build more of them and smaller. The insurance corn pan teß wllMi not take risks on these enormous structures to their full value. They Insure up to the amount that ought to be put into a barn. It perhaps ousts dess to put up one immense barn than smaller ones having the same space, but if the small barns are not bunched together they are much safer. As the old adage goes, "It is better to be sure thap to be sorry.”

Handing an Underdrain.

There is no special art required to make nnderdrain except to see that the bottom is smooth with no elevations or depressions and a nearly uniform descent. The throat should also be as nearly uniform as possible. In time or floods the narrow parts will hold back the water which will rise and loosen soil above the channel. This is often the dause of underdrains failing. The farmer should himself lay the dralfr.' tfb -is more interested than any one else can be, and with a water level seb in the edge of a 10 or 12-feet board, 1 vflthstr&ight edges, any one can easily 'detect depressions or ridges which careless workmen will leave according as the soil is easy or hard to dig. A drain well laid below the frost line will always do good wotk if'the outlet is kept open. ; ■ s *r —‘ ; i■■ v For Faded Carpels. > r It is easier and costs less ,to renew a faded carpet than to bring back the lost tints to a faded completion. ! After the carpets have been cleaned put back on the floor, dissolve a 'package of diamond dye of the prevailing tone of the background, ap'cording to the directions, and put it in a bucket of with a large sponge go carefully over the worst faded spots first and afterwards over the entire carpet. If you wish to bring the figures out more plainly, mix some dyes of the correct colors and use like paints. It does not rub off or fade and makes the carpet look almost like uew.— Country Gentleman.

Osage Orange Hedges. In the West there is at least a reaction against barbed-wire hedge as dangerous to stock. As timber for fencing is scarce and dear, it has taken the direction of favoring the osage orange as a hedge plant The only objection to it is that it takes a good deal of room. .Where the/armcr has enclosed fa- more than lie can prolitable cultivate, the lossof a little land need not trouble him much.— American Cultivator. An Absurd Idea. The idea that young animal? must be “hardened” by some forced exposure to rough weather is now #ut of date. Give them good shelter and plenty to eat until the weather is settled and the pastures well started. Then turn them out and they will harden themselves fast enough. Draining Swamp. In Winter. If a loose surface is kept open by frequent plowing, deep ditches may often be profitably made in winter. While the ground if frozen and comparatively little water jsjjpwiog, the tiles may be.laid anfi.uie djfch filled in so as to be ready for early plowing of the wet land on soring.

ENLARGED POULTRY HOUSE.

SERVICEABLE TREE SUPPORT.

A PECK CRATE.