Democratic Sentinel, Volume 20, Number 33, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 August 1896 — FARMS AND FARMERS [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

FARMS AND FARMERS

Vegetable Forcing Hour. A good plan for securing a maximum sis warmth at the least possible expenditure of internal heat Is shown befow. Such a house is, moreover, cheaply built wherever loose stones arm abundant, whether the stones be Irregularly faced, or simply rounded cobblestones. A cut is made into the bank and the wall laid up In cement, or cement and lime.

The rear and end walls should have a tile drain laid just outside of their base, coming out upon the surface at the front The rear wall should rise a little above the ground, which should be graded a trifle higher in tm? middle at the rear than at the ends to turn aside the surface water. The tile drain will take care of all water that soaks down through the ground. The wall in front Is extended a little beyond either end of the building to retain a full hank of earth against the end walls. The interior arrangement will of course bo similar to any single-roofed forcing house. --Farm aud Home. ’ * Right nnd Wrong Way of Feeding. The summer feeding of pigs is an Important matter under present conditions. Doubtless pasture is the most healthful and profitable basis for the feeding, but as time is an element to be considered, it is advisable to feed grain with It to push on the growth as fast as possible. There Is everything in good clover pasture needed for the sustenance of the pigs, but we want something more than this, for the most growth made in the least time is the Indispensable requirement for profit; but whole grain is not a desirable food. A considerable portion of it Is swallowed without mastication, and is voided whole. When waste milk Is to be had, It will pay more value as food for pigs on pasture than used In any other way, and with this some mixed finely ground meal corn and buckwheat will produce more growth of a perfectly healthful character than any other kind of grain food.

Hena in the Orchnrd. Many farmers and orchardlsts would like to have liens in the orchard for the good their presence would do to the trees, were it not that the fowls must be kept confined because of the damage they would do the adjacent garden and flower beds. The sketch shows a way to keep one or more flocks of hens In an prcliard. A light, low house, made of half-inch matched stuff, has a wire run attached to the end, as shown In the Illustration. The house has no floor. The eggs are gathered by opening the hinged board in the end. Low trucks are attached to the comers so that the whole can be moved occasionally to a new location. It can thus he moved up

and down beside the rows of trees, stopping for a day or two under each tree, scratching, fertilizing the ground and destroying insects. The fowls all do well under such conditions, and their presence will be of great value to the orchard. The lower sill of the sides of the house should continue out and form the base of the sides of the run. The Control of Swarming. To control swarming bees, remove one of the "prime factors. Brood is the only factor we can remove and not defeat our object—honey. The removal of brood, instead of decreasing the honey yield, rather Increases It. We. may remove the brood by direct confiscation, or we can do it more gradually. This method would be better where the flow Is very short and profuse, the second better where the flow lasts forty to sixty or more days. The cause of swarming Is Instinct; Its control, broodlessness. Other methods at times seem effective, but the only method of com trolling swarming that Is at all times a success, Is broodlessness.

Bite of a Hog. i The bite of the licg Is more apt to be serious than that of any other domestic animal. No one who has n' sore oiri his hand should be called on to butcher> hogs, as he may be Infected from contact with the saliva without being bitten. In all cases of bite or cut, a wash of some antiseptic should be applied. Diluted carbolic acid In the proportion of one to fifty of water is good, as Is a" weak dilution of corrosive sublimate' In proportion of one of the poison to 2,000 parts of water. These poisons thus diluted do no harm, and they will prevent poisons from working in cuts and bruises of any kind. tat Esnentnls to* Success. Farming is not a business where the failure of one adds to the success of Another; on the contrary, the success

of each Individual is largely dependent upon the prosperity ofhfl. The product from poorly fanned farms is of an Inferior quality, soy which it Is dUßeult to , find , buyers. Thft best Is cheap enough, aud anything of an inferior quality is not only a drug on the market but interferes with the sale of better goods. When buyers are looking for farm produce, they go where they know they can get the best. The better the quality of the goods produced, the more buyers you will have for your product, and the competition upon the part of buyers will enable you to get good prices within easy distance of your own doors. Every help which tends in an economical manner to lm'nfovp the quality of our productions ; hou|d be eagerly sought. A well conducted Institute, receiving support from the farming community In which It is held, will furnish more practical Information from the practical experience of others, aud which practical farmers can make use of, than perhaps any other method yet adopted. It Is unfortunate that farmers as a class lake so little interest In them. Education Is just as essential for the farmer as for the lawyer, doctor or business man. Oood farming does not consist wholly of manual labor; It requires the exercise cf good intellectual powers. There is also a vast difference between scientific and theoretical fanning. Thu theorist Is In luck when he cun pay the interest on his mortgage. But practical farming, backed by good judgment, pays well when prices are fair, and always will.

A Pretty Lann Table. Stumps of old trees that lmve outlived their usefulness and been relegated to the wood pile are not. uncommonly seen upon lawns, and many attempts are made to turn them to artistic and useful account. The simplicity of the plan Illustrated In Farm and Home commends Itself, The stump Is first sawed to a fiat surface and then fitted with a top of thick boards of the desired dimensions. Four rustic supports or brackets are placed underneath at . the four cornel's. These should be ns much as possible In their natural state, with any little crookedness or knots allowed to show, ns they add iritichjto the pretty effect on the whole. The edges, tod, of the top board ,mny be given a rustic tone by

tacking to them Btrips of wood with tho bark on them. When the little table Is finished and “set" with Its dishes and pots of plants, the owner of It Is epre to stand a 11/jile way off and admire it audibly. Poultry ISoten. Scrub chickens are out of date. They don’t pay. Clean the nests regularly, to keep them free from vermin. Persons who do not take a natural pleasure in fancy poultry are not likely to succeed with them. The possibility of profit In raising turnkeys comes from their ability to pick up a good part of their living. Rubbing the heads and thighs of fowls'with a rag dipped In oil is an excellent thing to keep off vermin. From five geese can be picked a pound of feathers every six weeks. These will sell for 40 cents or more. When the cockerels begin to pull the pullets about and worry them, tho sexes should at once be separated. When incubator chicks are put with a hen, always be sure that she has no lice. A little lard and sulphur applied under the wings and about tho head will got away with any louse in two or three days. Any attempt through the use of stimulants or any unnatural methods to increase the number or fertility of the egg, always brings disastrous results to the breeder, whether fancier or market man.

Horticultural Hints. Cultivate a home-town market.' There is a form of blight working upon apple, cherry and quince trees, which Is quite destructive. Are the young trees In the orchard starting in’ the right position—leaning a little to the southwest? The cultivation of the growing crops should be the principal occupation of the horticulturist In mid-summer. Do you assort and grade your produce as well as you know how? You may bo losing money because you dpn’t do so. In making up the selections of Varieties of apples far a now family orchard, include a good number of sweet kinds! ’ ■ ; ; If weeds have ljeen kept down in the early part of the summer, it is usually sufficient to go over.garden and flower beds dace a week after the first of August; u '-" With all grafted stock some attention is neccessary the first summer to keep down the prouts which will start freely, and which, if allowed to grow, wlli rob the grafts. Celery Is usually planted In July. The soli should be moist and very rich. It needs good cultivation to make It grow rapidly, but it must not be hoed when wet with dew or rain.

BANK FORCING HOUSE.

MOVABLE POULTRY HOUSE.

RUSTIC PLANT STAND.