Rensselaer Republican, Volume 27, Number 37, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 May 1896 — TOPICS FOR FARMERS [ARTICLE]

TOPICS FOR FARMERS

A DEPARTMENT PREPARED FOR OUR RURAL FRIENDS. - 0 -;-v v Advice ns r to the Management of Orchards— How to Preserve Moisture ih the Soil—The Cow la a Money-Makei—Notes. Management of Orchards. Fruit growing has in this country been too generally made a side issue by farmers, who have given most of their rffne'l thought and fertilizer to other crops that have not half the possibilities that fruit growing has. ; Occasionally the conditions for large crops of fruit are all right, and everybody h - a large crop, usually making the orchard pay far more than all the farm besides. It is at such times as these that farmers see what fruit growing may be made to yield. What Is needed for this result is that more farmers go into fruit growing as an exclusive business,.*or only combined with such other branches of farming as can l*e subordinated to It When this is dope and the orchard is managed after business methods it" will be made. to pay, and not before. It ought nor to be .thought any more risky to spend a hundred or thousand dollars to supply the orchard with needed fertilizers than it is fb use the same amount of money to buy feed for cows, horses and other stock. It is the habit of thinking that the orchard produces wholly by the aid of nature that makes farmers regard its treatment differently from other crops. They buy fertilizers. for grain and also for hoed crops, and find that this pays them. They will find that it pays still better to buy fertilisers for the orchard, whose crop is- much more valuable^ Saving Moisture in the Soil. There is an increasing tendency in all the older imrts of the country to Injury of crops by drought. This Is not because the climate is changfng, nor is there less rain and snow in the year than there used to be. The trouble Is that 'while cultivation makes the soil looser, it at the same time makes it compart much more closely when exposed to rain. The presence of air in the soil which cultivation makes possible soon decomposes its vegetable matter, and then it speedily hecomes more compart than before. The best way to gave moisture-4n The soil ix-to thoroughly underdrain it.> This increases the porosity of the soil, as the drained land freezes more deeply than that which is filled with water to its surface. As it freezes the soil expands, and this enables it to hold more moisture. l,f the soil has been drained, subsoiling, which loosens the soil below the furrow, also Increases its ability to retain moisture.

Money in the Cow.. There's money in the cow—more money than in any two other things on the farm; but there is also money in hogs, sheep and poultry; and»money, too. in first class early vegetables, corn and millet—more money in any of these than in all your wheat, oats, flax and barley put together, unless raised tQ feed stock or to sell for seed. Farmers sell too much grain—they are In too great a hurry to turn it into money. The successful farmer raises a little of everything—he makes one thing help along another. He has comfortabla barns, as little machinery as possible; only a little help, and that the best. He does nahspend touch pf Ills time in town, but lets his wife do the trading. He keeps fencSs anff Buildings'ln good repair and makes war on Weeds. And he does not work overwork his wife, nor keep his children out of school. He tries to make his home more pleasant to his family than town. He lays by something for a rainy day. He buys good books and papers and an organ for the children. He loves his calling and is an honor to it.

Raising Currants. In answer to an inquiry as to the distance apart to plant currants on a large scale, and the probable profit, we could say: In planting the common red and white kinds 4 feet each way is sufficient, thus giving 2,722 plants per acre. If we estimate our crop at 2 pounds per plant, which is not one-half the amount they should produce when fully grown, we will get 5,444 pounds per acre, or over two tons and a half, and at S2OO per ton It amounts to over SSOO. Then we have the gathering, shipping, cultivation and other incidental expenses to deduct therefrom. But even then It can be seen that it will be a very profitable crop. In case of great abundance the prices might be somewhat reduced, but by good cultivation the crop may be the-estimate given above. The currant possesses many good qualities to recommend it, among which are its perfect hardiness, early eulture, great productiveness and almost the certainty of a full crop every Tear.—Fanner’s Voice. Bones for the Trees. Save ail of the boues for the frees and vines. Quite a large amount of refuse bones are accumulated from various Bourses during the course of a year, and if they were ' placed on one pile would prove a surprise to those who throw away the lames from the table every day. If the bones are buried around the trunks of trees and' vines the effects of their use will be noticed for many years. It is preferable to reduce them if convenient, but many fruit-growers use them without any preparation whatever.

. Concerning: Kgga, like milk, form Another complete food, and like the milk and chew®, being a food that can be eaten raw, require little cooking. They form a very nutritious and concentrated article of diet, and it Is well to combine them with milk or other liquid and starchy foods, such as bread, potatoes, rice, etc. The most important point to be observed iu cooking eggs Is that the temperature does not exceed 160 or 170 degrees, which Is considerably below the boiling point (212 degrees). When cooked at a temperature of 160 or 170 degrees the egg is tender and delicate, when raised to 212 degrees it becomes tough, bard and indigestible. There are two ways by which an egg is properly cooked in the shell. Put. enough boiling water in a saucepan to more *&an cover the eggs to be cooked, let

them stand on the hearth or any place where the water will not cool too quickly, and In ten minutes the egg will bo cooked soft, or put the eggs into cold water and bring them slowly to a boil. In order to cook the eggs hard to the center, they need only to be exposed to a continued.heat in hot water for half an hour. In order to properly cook eggs, milk, meat and other albuminous food, the knowledge of the proper temperature is necessary, and we would apply this principle In the cooking of any custard or puddings where eggs are used. In preparing an egg and milk dish where starch is used, the starch should be thoroughly cooked first.

” Water Cress. Water cresses can be made to payjf any vegetable can. If you have Trie right facilities, I, e., a piece of ground-,, that can be covered from 1 to 6 inches deep, with cool, gently flowing water, yon will have no difficulty in produc- e Ing large amounts of this popular green stuff.- The most work connected with it, Indeed, Is to cut and tie It in bunches. A springy meadow with a clay subsoil is a good,location for the crop. To start a bed, all that Is required is to stick some slips or cuttings into the mud or' sand that is kept lightly covered with water, or to sow some seed into the moist soil on the edges of running streams. The plant is bo" easily grown that it Is a wonder It Is not found more frequently on farmer’s premises. It Is worthy of more attention. In some cases, a piece of ground that has some slope, might be terraced, and arranged for growing water cresses in beds one above another, the water flowing from ohe to the other. Snbsoiling. Teachers of agriculture who know what they are talking about, says the Examiner, are not revising farmers to plow so very deep as they were fifty years ago. Then farmers were informed that every fanner had two farms, lying one above the other, and that they were cultivating one only, and that not always the most fertile. But long observation and experience have taught that most of the available plant food of the soil lies within eight inches of the surface, and that there all the most favorable conditions of growth, al , \ heat and moisture, are present, and that there the roots of plants should be encouraged to feed. Soils vary much In depth, from four to eight or ten Inches, and there Is but little use in plowing much deeper than the soil* and it is the upper eight Inches that must bemainly relied upon to supply plants with their proper food.

Trim the Pench Trees. In the spring and somewhat early, the peach trees should be- trimmed and all dead wood removed. The peach tree Is one that can endure severe cutting back; indeed, it seems to thrive best when kept clear of all superfluous wood, and soon sends out new branches for the next year. The roots of peach trees are sometimes attacked by insects before an inexperienced grower is aware of it, and examination should be made early, using strong soapsuds as a remedy several times within a brief period. Try Dairying. If a firm is run down in condition there is no better plan than to turn one’s attention to dairying, because in producing butter less of soil is removed. There should be a choice to feed witj» reference to the manure product, and all the liquid manures should be caught and preserved as invaluable. Let there be some good absorbent tn fix the ammonia In the liquids; none better than land plaster. Farm Notes. Try a small patch of kale this spring for early greens. It is one of the least difficult of garden crops to grow, and the seed may be broadcast, after which no further labor is required except when removing the plants for use. When farmers send poop butter to market they noF only assist to lower prices, but enable the olemargarine manufacturers to find market,—Butter is an article that has no middle ground In quality. It is either good or bad. There may be second and third grades, bjjt, outside of the first grade, it is not wanted and sells below cost. Every piece of ground that has been plowed during the winter will have some or the insects destroyed which were brought to the surface. Cold does not usually kill insects, but when are exposed to dampness at the surface and alternate warming and freezing of the soil they are soon destroyed, and especially is this the case with cutworms. From ten to twelve pounds of clover seed has been considered a large application on an acre of land, and the high price of seed has not encouraged farmers to exceed that quantity; but more failures occur from not using more seed every year than the average, as a large portion may be inferior, destroyed by birds, or lost from exposure and other causes. A sheep worth $5 should pay a yearly profit of $5. Thus there should be a profit of 100 per cent, on the farm suitable for Its keeping. Where mixed farming is practiced, and hay, grain, roots and straw are produced, and a permanent pasture maintained, one hundred sheep could be well kept on one hundred acres, and even more than that fed well during the winter season. Last year plums were grown in localities where they never before succeeded, due to excellent work done with the sprayer in warding off the curcullo or in mitigating its ravages. There Is no curcullo-proof variety of plum, though some kinds escape attack more than others. The only sure - method of preventing destruction by the curcullo Is to make warfare against It