Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 20, Number 62, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 April 1899 — FARM AND GARDEN [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

FARM AND GARDEN

Device for Smoking Meat. Recent Illustrated articles in the Ohio Farmer on this subject, says a ■correspondent of that journal, generally provide for locating the fire directly under the meat in the smokehouse. The accoinpanying sketch illustrates a far better method, as the smoke is cooled before reaching the meat. The illustration explains Itself. All that is required is a few joints of stove-pipe and an elbow, a barrel with a loose cover into which the pipe is fitted and connected with the smokehouse as shown. A few inches of ashes In the bottom of the barrel, hollowed out to receive the fire, and the outfit is complete. It is almost impossible to smoke meat with the fire directly under it without heating it more or less, and these partial cookings and

sweatings impart an unsavory taste. Another advantage of this method is that all danger of Are is avoided. Savins Brush for Kindling. In pruning orchards the branches cut ■out are often piled in heaps, and when dried are burned, often injuring the trees in their vicinity. There is a much better way than this. Apple, pear or peach wood makes when dried a very hot fire, and should be saved for the stove when the branches are too large •to cut readily. Even the twigs have their value. They make the very best ■of kindlings when dried, and if they are somewhat crooked they are all the better, because they will not pack closely together as the straight sticks are pretty sure to do. An old story is told of a farmer who ofice boasted among his companions what a good, patient wife he had. She never complained of anything he did. One of them suggested that the next time he drew up wood for the house he should make a load of the crookedest sticks he could find. He did so, and as he drew up the load to the house his wife came out smiling to meet him. “Mary, how do you like this load of wood?” was the Inquiry, while the farmer’s companions stood by expecting a storm of abuse. Instead, the reply was given In the sweetest tones, “Oh, John, that is capital wood. We always used it at home when I was a girl, and mother used to say that the crooked pieces made the hottest fire because they fitted so nicely around the kettles.”—American Cultivator. Feed Trough for Hogs. The trough shown in the illustration I have found quite convenient. The board between the uprights b can be removed when the trough is to be cleaned. Placed in an opening in the fence as in the cut, the slops can be

poured in from the outside. If used in the open lot the middle board keeps the hogs out of the trough.—A. O. Harvey, in Orange Judd Farmer. Teaching Calves to Drink. Nature teaches the calf to turn its mouth upward to get its food. The unwillingness of the calf to put its head down into a pail is the result of Instinct Some have thought to offset this instinct by never allowing the calf to suck its dam even once. But we think this injures the calf. It needs stimulation when first born, and should be allowed to get it in the way most natural to It In sucking the teat the milk comes slowly, and a good deal of saliva is mixed with it But after once sucking its dam the calf should be taught to drink out of a pail, and to put its head down when eating. It will need to be pretty hungry to do this readily, and the finger should be used, placing it first in the calf’s mouth, and then putting the finger into the milk. So soon as the calf gets fairly to drinking, the finger should be withdrawn.— Exchange. Black Knot in Plum Trees. Before warm weather all the plum trees should be looked over, and any that show marks of black warts that innate black

some other antiseptic.* In fact, it Is a good plan to spray plum trees with a carbolic acid solution, made one part of carbolic acid to 2,000 parts of water. This will remain on the spores, which are dormant during the winter until they burst their bounds and begin to spread the disease over the tree. The solution named is much stronger than can be applied after the foliage is in its tender growth. Weak-Growing Apple Tree*. There is a great difference in varieties of apple trees as to their habit of growth, and judgment is needed in portioning out the manure to be used on each. The strong-growing varieties like Northern Spy will need very little stable manure until they begin to fall from old age. But there are other kinds of slow and feeble growth that even while young can bear some stimulation with stable manure, especially if it is composted, and its deficiencies of potash and phosphate are supplied. Coarse manure ought never to be applied to apple trees at any age. It is the fermentation of manure in the soil that is the prolific cause of the fungus growths that injure foliage and fruit more than the manure can help the tree. The only fertilizers that can be always used with safety are the miner-. als potash and phosphate. Severe Root Pruning Pavorod, Although the horticulturist of the Georgia experiment station declines to make any positive statement concerning the advisability of severe root pruning when planting young trees, he says that he is fairly satisfied that peach trees from which the roots have been largely cut -off will live and flourish in Georgia even in stiff clay and under adverse weather conditions. The same statement may also be made of apple and cherry trees. In some.experiments made the last two years he found that the root-pruned trees made fewer, deeper, larger and more robust roots. These roots penetrated 17% inches, against 9% inches for the roots of unpruned trees.

Black .Rot in Grapes. The black rot of the grape was the subject of experiments conducted last year In France. A solution of Bordeaux mixture containing not less than 2 per cent of copper sulphate was found to give the best results. The first application should be made when the shoots are quite short The efficiency of the subsequent sprayings depends upon the time of their application. For ordinary black rot four or five sprayings will be sufficient. Brood Hena. . If broody hens are properly treated nine out of ten will begin to lay again within two weeks after being removed from the nest. But If they are half drowned, starved a week, or bruised and abused, It is more than likely they will get even with their owners by declining to lay a single egg until they have fully recovered from their illtreatment and acquired their customary tranquility. Posts from Rough Sticks. Good-looking fence posts about the farm buildings and along highways go a long way toward giving a thrifty, progressive a p -

pearance to a place. Where one’s fence posts are rough and knotty and too small, perhaps, to square out properly, the plan shown In the cut may be used to ad-

vantage. The part of the post to be above ground is squared a little on each side as shown and then covered with Inch boards. A cap is then put on to keep water out and a very handsome post is the result—American Agriculturist

Have a Tool House. A special house for tools would save much that goes for repairs every year. Many tools and Implements are exposed by farmers because they have no storage room for them. A tool house should be in a convenient location, and it matters not if the interior is cold or warm, provided that it is perfectly dry. A tool house, In addition to preserving implements, will enable the farmer to have a place for everything, with everything in its place. Bose Culture. For roses select a spot where they will always get the sun; keep them away from shade trees; and climbers always do better upon the sunny side’ of the house. The soil does not matter so much, if the place be not low and wet. Chip dirt and barn-yard scrapings are good fertilizers, and should be well worked into the .earth. Profits in Agriculture, The facts derived from impartial investigation show that farming conducted on right basis pays probably a larger per cent, of profit than most other lines. It is at least profitable. And Is there not a point worth noting that the farmers that use best methods and get resists seldom complain of results in relation t to the sale of their product?—Minneapolis Journal A Good Dairy Ration. Two pounds each of cornmeal cottonseed meal find gluten meal ten pounds corn ensilage and as much timothy hay as they want is recommended by the Maine station as a satisfactory ration for milch cows, to be fed twice a day. Many farmers would doubtless prefer to substitute i bran for cottonseed meal Grafting Wax. A good grafting wax is made of four pounds rosin, one pound of tallow and one pound of beeswax. Melt all together over a slow fire, and when melted pour into a vessel of cold water and pun as wiui snoemasers wax. When w&nwa wr use soneu wito w*nn WHT™. 1

SMOKING MEAT.

FEED TROUGH FOR HOGS.