Jasper County Democrat, Volume 4, Number 8, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 June 1901 — GARDEN AND FARM [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

GARDEN AND FARM

ECONOMY IN HANDLING FEED —— STUFFS. In making sale* and purchases of feeding stuffs, the mala point to bear l& mind is to sell, so far as practicable, puch products as contain much carboy hydrogen and oxygen, which are att-given elements, and to buy those containing relatively large quantities of nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash, which are soil-derived elements and readily lost through cropping. So Vtr ns possible, make one’s farm a sitrbyhydrate factory and seek supplementary protein at the feed store. A NITROGENOUS SUBSTANCE The cow pea is a very nltrogeneous subfctunce, and can be used to advantage as a portion of the ration for cows, sheep and swine. The mode of feediog on the part of some is to grind one part cow peas with four parts <sSrn, or with two parts corn and two parts oats, the ground corn, peas and 6ats being fed with cut hay or other bulky food. About twenty bushels per acre of cow iteas can be secured, but the labor of picking the pods is an Iteln. The vines are valuable as hay, or the crop may be plowed under when the seed pods are about tilling, in which condition they quickly decompose in the soil. POULTRY-HOUSE FLOORS. The best floor for the poultry house Is clean, fresh earth, slightly Ailed above the outside level. This dirt may and should be occasionally replaced by fresh earth from the garden or fields, thus utilizing the droppings as fertilizers. When properly constructed the greater portion of the filth is gathered from the dropping boards, and but little of it comes in contact with the floor. Next to the fresh earth comes the solid cement floor, which gives general satisfaction when properly arranged, but which is a source of everlasting worry if not exactly right. Next and last comes the board floor. But these are objectionable in many ways. They harbor and lice tiJbke the cracks their hiding places. They are often damp, and unless built several inches from the ground they soon decay. Those who are most successful say there is uo floor to equal the dry, natural earth.—Home and Farm.

BEWARE OF WET FOOD It is a mistake to suppose, because the chicken is small, that it needs to be fed mainly soft food. No other one thing causes so many deaths among young chicks as wet cornmeal, left where they can run into it, trampling the food with their dirty feet, and then leaving a large part of it to ferment, which it Is sure to do in the warm sunshine. The food for the chicks should be as nearly dry as it can be.to feed conveniently, and cornmeal should never be given to small chicks except as It is mixed in a dry, crumbly state. A very good feed for male chicks is cornmeal, bran and ground oats, equal parts. For this purpose the oatmeal should be sifted, so as to remove nil coarse matter, then mix and bake hard like a jolinnycake. To get this bread in good shape to feed, it should be run through a mill and ground tine. But I believe in giving dry gaaius from the start—pin-head oatmeal, millet, finely cracked corn and wheat. Some tine grit and charcoal should be placed where they can get at it. Whole corn should not be given to chickens until they are quite large; the kernels are too large for them to digest well, aud its heating nature makes it likely to ferment In their gizzards, as cornmeal will do, if eaten freely. Wheat is an excellent food for chickens after they are eight ;or ten weeks old.—Poultry Monthly.

PLANTING POTATOES When should potatoes be planted? Y\ bat variety is best? These questions are uppermost iu the minds of potato growers at this season, and are often forwarded to the experiment station for answer. Professor Jones makes the following general suggestions in reply: Potatoes In Vermont are practically grown iu three crops, the early, the medium and the late. The larger part of the potatoes grown come In the second or medium crop, but those which pay the largest profit are undoubtedly the early potatoes and the late ones. The early crop is profitable only on warm, light, quick soils, and where there is a good local market. Such a soil, however, is not suited for a late ci iff>. The late crop is best -secured by using a vigorous, long-lived variety. This Is planted after the ground Is well warmed, say, May 10 at Burlington. It then requires very careful attention, the aim being to produce ns healthy a growth of leaves as possible, and to keep them green nud vigorous until frost time. This means thorough nud continuous cultivation, so that the field Is as free from weeds in September as in June. It also means thorough nud systematic spraying, continued until late in the season. The medium crop ripens in Atlgust, and is dug early in September. It may be secured from either the early varieties of the Early Hose type, or from the late varieties. In the latter case the medium ripening of the crop cotues about as the result of neglected cultivation or Insufficient spraying. Iu either case the yield is small, or, at leait, never large. The crop Is ready too late to secure the fancy prices of the early crop, and too early to be stored advantageously for winter, so that It Is aq. all-around miss. The moral Is that a enreful potato grower will grow either early or late

potatoes and not be wasting his Hme on a medium crop.—American Cultivator. RUNNING OUT CORN One of the solutions of the corn problem Is that of yield. In many cases where the yield Is so small that It hardly pays to raise corn, the trouble is that the seed has ran out. When a farmer boasts of his big yields a few years ago, and then says that he cannot make as good any more, there is trouble with the soil, with the seed or with bis methods. Which one of these, troubles is at the foundation of his failure is not an easy matter to discover. Most men will not admit that it Is their methods. 'They much prefer to abuse the soil, which is only an indirect way of condemning their methods of culture. If corn Is cultivated with an idea in view of keeping up the fertility of the soil, the latter will not degenerate. We give to the soil as much as we take from It. The trouble with most of us Is that we like to take a little more than we give, and in the course of time the soil degenerates and becomes poor. But the degeneration of the seed, or the running out of the corn, is often more dangerous than permitting the soil to go back on us. Annually the yield and quality of the corn decline, and yet wst continue to use the same seed. Among the dozens of different kinds of corn recommended there are really only a few breeds that are first class, and when a farmer secures such seed he is apt to stick to it. But the trouble Is that these good breedg are maintained at their high standard only by careful artificial methods of breeding and cultivating. They will degen erate very rapidly if not careffilly handled. When you get new seed of an excellent breed of corn It has sufficient vigor to adapt itself to the new soil and conditions. But each year thereafter there will be a little fulling off from the higli standard. For the first two or three years there will be little appreciable change, but after that the vigor of the seed weakens rapidly. Good culture and congenial environments will go a long way toward conserving the force of the corn, but even these will not do for all time. The corn plants become weaker and are more susceptible to attacks of insects and blights and drouths. The yield aud quality grow smaller every year. There is only one corrective to all this. Renew the seed, add new blood and vitality and keep up tiie high standard. W. FI. Edwards, in Massachusetts Ploughman.

ADVANTAGES IN THOROUGHBRED CATTLE. The time is uot far distant when the scrub cow will become a thing of the past, aud will be superseded by the thoroughbred and high-grade. Even the high-grade will in turn give way to the thoroughbred. It is noticeable that the common farmer Is waking up to the truth that the common grade cow is an unprofitable creature, aud figures are helping the milk farmer to learn the facts. In every locality can be seen the steady improvements in <sur dairy stock, and although the progress is slow, very slow, yet It is as sure as the rising and setting of the sun. Not many years ago it was rarely a thoroughbred bull could be seen. Now every farmer who has any considerable dairy has a thoroughbred sire. Many have pure bred, registered cows and not a few have their entire herds made up of thoroughbred aud registered animals. It is uot so much a question of what breed, as it is of a well-bred thoroughbred. On tliis point fflone hinges largely the question of profit and loss to the cow owner. The strong desire of practical farmers to know which of his cows are profitable aud which unprofitable is the element contributing so largely to the weeding out of the scrub, aud substituting well-bred thoroughbred animals. The many official tests, which have been and are now being made, both for quantity as well as quality of milk, and published so widely by agricultural papers is another influence that is doing much toward the steady changing of grades to thoroughbreds. The tierce competition, the small profits, the great nfid widespread desire for improvements and belter things and the moderate prices of thoroughbred animals are still other factors to bring about this change. But the present strong demand for a better quality of ntilk from a more intelligent and critical milk-consuming public is perhaps the strongest factor tending to this change of stock. It is a fact that tiie pure bred animal produces a better quality of milk because of tiie better care it receives from better housing, better feeding and more attention to the details of sanitary' conditions. The thoroughbred Is freer from tuberculosis aud other diseases because of tin* uniformly better treatment they receive than are the grades. Besides all this, tiie thoroughbred is of more even temperament. of kinder disposition, more Intelligent, • better feeders, have 1 tetter form, shape and color than grades.— American Agriculturist. MUST STUDY CONDITIONS. What one can grow with profit another can only grow nt a loss, because of the conditions of the market. The first consideration of importance is, to grow such fruits and vegetables only ns can be grown to perfection In your locality. That matter settled study your markets, and this Is a study, us the marketing of fruits and vegetables during the past twentyfive years has undergone a radical change. The question arises, what can be grown to the best advantage, or with the greatest profits The first consideration Is, what vegetables or fruits will be the most productive In the soil and situation

we have for them? At the same time which will reach the greatest degree of perfection? It is quality not quantity that brings the highest price, consequently the most remunerative. It Is an axiom in agriculture that there are certain districts in all countries, and some particular farms in each, which are famous for the production of a given crop, as for Instance, celery, which In some localities has a richer, nutty flavor than in others; in such localities It should be made a specialty. In our locality the lima bean, while fairly good, does not compare in richness with those grown on a heavy loam, or rich alluvial soil. And such is the case with all other fruits, and vegetables. Consequently we should grow, for the markets we are to supply, such classes and varieties as will give the greatest satisfaction. In regard to those favored localities their advantages arise not less than the nature and properties of the soil being favorable to, the production of one particular vegetable or fruit, than to the infinitely greater care ind attention which Is paid to the growing of the crop. Many of our farmers say the extra quality of their productions is largely due to the extra care given to their cultivation. After ascertaining what you can produce, the next step is to know what the market demands, then grow accordingly.'' In supplying a local market a much greater variety will be required than if growing for the markets in the large cities, which are in a great measure supplied by those who grow largely of a single variety. This is much better for the gardener, as he can keep every rod of his soil constantly at work doing something, and land suffers from Idleness as much as individuals. In all cases, the proper method to pursue Is to keep the land constantly at work. It is no more exhausting to the land to raise a crop of vegetables than a crop of weeds, and nature will not permit idleness in the soil; if it Is not employed with the useful It will he with the useless. Whenever there Is a vacant spot cover it with spinach If nothing else is wanted. As a fertilizer for some other crop it is valuable; If it can be sold, and there Is always a demand for it. It is doubly valuable.—C. L. Allen, to New England Homestead.