Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 38, Number 18, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 October 1905 — FARM AND GARDEN [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

FARM AND GARDEN

Proper bedding Is essential In making rich manure as well as increasing the bulk. Foot-rot is one of the worst enemies of the sheep breeder, especially where they are run on low, .marshy land. When a horse has frequent fits of colic it Indicates chronic indigestion jand should have careful treatment With the majority of fruits the aim should be for a few fine, large, smooth and plump specimens rather than for many small ones. One advantage in feeding wheat middlings made Into a slop with skimmilk to hogs is that it will give a better proportion of lean meat. Much of the poultry we see in the market Is poor and scrawny. The breed, of course, has much to do with this point, but the quality of any breed can be improved by a judicious mode of fattening. Keep winter beets growing rapidly, as they must come out of the ground before being touched by the frost If the roots are not large enough, growth may be prolonged by protection with newspapers on cold nights. Ever think of the work one hen will do? A hen will raise at least one lot of chickens every year, but suppose she raises ten. If half of these ten are pullets they will reproduce at least one lot of chicken the next year. In addition, the young roosters may be sold.

It is reported that a discovery has recently been made whereby vegetables may be preserved indefinitely by sterilizing them with hot air. Corn, peas, string beans, Lima beans, etc., thus treated “take on a withered form much like cured hay, but when put in cold water will resume their shape and regain their former brittleness and garden flavor. The making of butter on farms leads to great variation in the quality, owing to the difference in methods used on the farms. While a choice article of dairy manufacture will bring a higher price than creamery butter, yet the creamery butter is more uniform, as the milk from a large number of farms is handled at the same factory. There are n few dairies which sell butter at two or three times the regular price, but they are exceptions. Do not make the earth in the boxes and flower pots too rich. All plants protected during the winter, by setting them on a stand in a warm room, such as geraniums, should not make heavy growth, but be kept in good condition for slipping, as the spring and summer are the proper seasons for having them to perfection. The mealy 'bug must be guarded against when the plants are kept in a warm atmosphere. The profits are sometimes absorbed in a manner that may not easily be noticed, and frequently the loss is in the manner of shipping an article to market. It costs no more to market $lO worth of butter than it does to send two or three bushels of wheat to market, while wheat is more profitable to the farmer considering the receipts from each. The best produce should bo marketed as such. Inferior grades should never be shipped with that which Is good ns the inferior article will regulate the price.

A great scheme of Irrigation for the wheat lands of India has in view the vast possibilities it will open up for the growing of wheat. The works will take ten years to complete, and will cost something like $30,0(}0,000. During the last forty years much has been done in this matter, but what is yet easy of accomplishment may be judged by the fact that five years ago •, just about six million acres received tUp benefit of the Punjaub rivers, while the present scheme will irrigate nn additional two million acres, command six thousand square miles of country, while behind these are many millions of acres of the most fertilo kind imaginable—given the necessary added moisture. Fertilizers and Manure. Farmers who have used fertilizers and manure together clnlm that tlio combination is superior to either alone, and that acid phosphate is excellent ns an addition to the manure heap. The mixture of fertilizers and manure gives , the crop soluble plant food in the early stages of growth and the manure provides a supply later. Every farmer values bis manure, ahd will apply it somewhere, hence the beat mode of deriving the greatest benefit from It is to Increase its efficiency by adding fertilizers in some form to the heap. Loeins the Cud. When a cow “loses the cut,” or, more correctly, fails to “chew the cud,” it is not becnuse she hns lost any definite object or mnterial, which, If she still retained, would be used ns a “cud,” for ail such necessary material lies useless in her paunch. Her failure to chew the cud la due to ill health, Just as a lack of any desire for

food characterizes a sick man. A cow that falls to chew the cud is a sick cow, and as soon as she recovers from that sickness she will recover her desire and ability to chew the cud. Rations for Colts. The young colt should be kept growing all the time. There is nothing better for promoting growth than cow’s milk that has been skimmed. Most colts can be taught to drink milk without much trouble, especially if they have learned to eat bran mash while running with their dams. A spoonful of ground flax-seed added to each grain ration tends to keep the bowels In excellent condition and gives a rich gloss to the coat It is also a good idea to teach the foal to eat apples, potatoes and carrots. Destroying; Insects by Electricity. An apparatus is mentioned, invented by a Russian, for killing injurious insects by electricity. A dynamo is so placed upon a hand car that no electricity is engendered while the car is standing still. When in motion the current passes into the ground through the Iron wheels of the car upon one side, and upon the other through the points of brushes of copper wire, which are fastened In the rear of the car so as to be a few inches above the ground. The result is said to that all insects in the vicinity of the copper brushes are killed as if by lightning.

Beeta aa Cow FXed. At the lowa station is was found that turnips Injure the flavor of both milk and butter. This injury is duo 'to volatile acids which can be driven off by heating the milk to 160 degrees for a short time. Beets increased the milk and butter product and caused all the cows, even Jerseys, to lay on fat quite rapidly. When the roots were discontinued butter fat decreased and the cows ceased to gain weight, and it took more pounds of feed (calculated to dry matter) to produce a pound of butter. When turned on pasture there was immediate increase of milk, butter and live weight. Feeding bran during part of the grazing period produced sufficient gain to yield a small profit. Care of Horses’ Feet. If your blacksmith knows his business your horses will be properly shod, but do not lay foot troubles of the horse at the door of the blacksmith, for the chances are you are at the bottom of the trouble because you will not keep the floor of the stables clean and thus avoid thrush. There is no reason why there should not be a gutter behind the horses such as are behind the cows, and thqs avoid to some extent the possibility of the horse standing in his excrement. Then, keep close watch of the hoofs and see that they are cleaned dally. With sticks dig out any substances and then cleanse with a stlfiF brush and finally wash with a sponge, using tepid water, In which a dozen drops, or a teaspoonful, of carbolic acid has been mixed. Try it, keep It up and avoid thrush.

Give Plenty of Water. It is astonishing how many people think animals do not particularly need water. They give the horses and dogs all they want and frequently, the cows not so frequently, and the rest of the stock on the farm when they think of it. Frequently people say that cats do not require water, and yet those who have had experience know that cats crave water—not much at a time, but several times a day. The lack of water has thrown them into convulsions. If man needs considerable water in order to be healthy, there is no reason why animals should not need It. Water poultry and other stock as regularly and as carefully as they are fed. Take swine as another exumple. Make it a business to see that they have clean, fresh water dully in a clean vessel, and you will see how readily they drink it, and drinking it they mutt need it and it must do them good. Summer Work on Potatoes. Many potato growers make the mistake of stopping the sprnyer us soon as the plants have gotten a good start. From the middle of July on is the time when the sprayer gets In its most effective work, nlthough it is not necessury to do the work as frequently as earlier in the season. If it is thoroughly done once a week is sufficient. The formula of o—6 of the Bordeaux mixture is quite strong enough for potatoes, using at the same time the parls green for the bugs and thus overcoming the blight and the bugs at the same time. It has been demonstrated that the blight can be overcome by the use of Bordeaux mixture, and it should be freely used all through the summer by potato growers. The cost can be reduced »o a minimum if one has large areas in potatoes by using a horse sprayer. „n some sections men make a nice living operating the horse sprayer for their neighbors and by frequent practice become experts in the work, doing it cheaper than the grower could himself. —Exchange.