Rensselaer Republican, Volume 27, Number 37, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 May 1895 — THE FARM AND HOME. [ARTICLE]

THE FARM AND HOME.

MATTERS OF INTEREST TO FARMER AND HOUSEWIFE. Don’t Realize Their. Favored Conditions—Peach Culture Increasing in Michigan Potatoes . Not a Profitable Feed for Cows. The Farmer’s Condition. The farmers do not realize their favored condition as do the laborers In the city who, in the best circumstances, havehovering over-themtheagonizing fear that they will be thrown out of work with nothing to fall back on. They envy the condition of the farmer, who, if he cannot always have luxuries, can depend upon having the necessaries of life. Trusts and rings may demoralize business, but no combination of man can prevent the sun from pouring his riches upon the responsive earth. The farmer can be sure of good, pure, wholesome food; his stock will not organize a strike against him, but will serve him faithfully in return for proper treatment. There must, too, be a constant demand for the farmer’s products. People may do without fine furniture, books, pictures, and fine clothing, but they are not exempt from the demands of appetite. People eat during the hardest times, and to the farmer all humanity looks for food and clothing.

Peach Culture. Peach culture is on the increase in Western Michigan, and in Kent County many orchards of from 500 to 10,000 trees will be sot this spring. The climate is dry, the wood and fruit buds harden early and are consequently able to stand a much lower temperature than in some districts. The orchards are profitable when thoroughly and systematically cultivated. For instance. Mr. E. E. Church has an orchard of 500 trees, on a clay loam soil well fertilized, at time of planting, with barnyard manure. The trees have been set for six years and given thorough cultivation, planted to corn the first two years and the third to buckwheat, the returns from these crops more than paying for setting out the trees, care, cultivation, etc. The profits given have been as follows: 1892, fourth year from setting, $400; 1893, $500; .1894, S6OO. The* trees are set out one rod apart each way and occupy about 3U> acres, thus making a total yearly profit of over $l4O per acre. Frank White from 2% acres of peach orchard five years old received during 1894 $462, J. E. Lee from an orchard of 700 trees, set out 12 years, in 1881 got 860 bushels, then 985, 1,335 and 925 bushels, or a total for four years of 5,105 bushels. This fruit sold on an average at $1.15 per bushel.— American Agriculturist. Potatoes Not Profitable for Cows. Some of our dairy exchanges recommend feeding potatoes in small quantities to cows giving milk. The feeding value of raw potatoes is not very large. It has 80 pei* cent, of water, and though a good deal of the rest is starch it does hot make a rich milk, nor increase the quantity, as will carrots, parsnips, and beets. At present prices of potatoes they are the_dearest feed for any stock that can be'bought. No matter how cheap they were we should not think of feeding them to milch cows. The butter made from them is white, scaly, and lacks the grain that good butter ought to show. Even so small an amount of potato as is found in the potato peelings where potatoes are cooked for family use affected the quality of the butter. The potato peelings will be eagerly eaten by horses that have only dry feed. It will do them good, relieving the constipation from which horses in winter usually suffer.

Growing Ducks Without Water. Ducks like water and will swim in it ■whenever they get a chance, however small they are. Yet it is not good for young ducks to have water except for drinking. Until their feathers are nearly grown the ducklings cannot oil their covering of feathers so as to exclude water. When hens are set with duck eggs and have the care of young ducks they will go through wet grass and leave young ducks draggled and ready to die as If they were so many chickens. The Pekin variety of ducks had better be kept from water except in summer. They are very liable to Injury from too much water at any age, the oldest and finest-looking ducks often going lame from a very little exposure. This susceptibility to cold and wet is almost the only drawback to this excellent variety. It is a drawback that is, however, easily avoided by giving the Pekin ducks only water to drink and by keeping them in dry quarters. To Teach a Nervous Horse to Stand. Many horses have the foolish habit of frettying and worrying after they are hitched to a vehicle and are not allowed to start at once. This may be overcome often by using the most gentle treatment—by pattiug i»nd caressing them and by making them feel at ease as much as possible. Kindness is sometimes of no avail, and a course of treatment or discipline seems necessary. When nothing else wil) do harness and hitch the animal up just as if you were going to take a drive. Put good strong harness on and hitch to a vchMe that will not be broken easily. Drive to the front gate, or whither you arc in the habit of driving to wait for others to get in. Be patient and keep quiet w|ien the horse becomes restless. Talk to the animal and draw his attention from the surroundings as much as possible. Take time to make these lessons long enough and Interesting enough to thoroughly convince the horse that It must and can keep quiet when in the harness and hitched up ready to start. If kind treatment does not do, a little chastening with the whip is bencflclat The main point is in taking time to make the lesson thorough. Make it stand

When you have bo time to spare do not try to give lessons in patience to a dumb animal that is not supposed to know as much as you yourself.—National Stockman.