738 Journal of AgricuIUfrt. [10 No\'., 1910. 



(5) Fumitory {Fiiiiiaria officinalis, L.). A cosmopolitan weed, not poisonous, 

 but containing Fumaric acid and a bitter tonic principle which gives an unpleasant 

 flavour to the milk and butter of cows eating it. It is a weak but freely seeding 

 annual, growing and seeding in spring and early summer. In most crops the weed 

 is easih' kept down by hoeing, but in hay and corn crops if it cannot be kept down 

 by harrowing while the crop is young it often proves troublesome. The land fouled 

 with its seed can be cleaned with the aid of a root crop like potatoes or any crop 

 which can be hoed between the rows. If the land is laid down in permanent 

 pasture for two or three years the weed soon disappears. The seed form a 



common impurity in agricultural seed, and may last in the soil at least two or 

 three years. The local name, " McDonald's Devil,"" furnished by our correspondent 

 (H. B. S., Broadmeadows), is not generally recognised. 



ER-\niCATiON OF Sorrel. — W. B. I. writes : — "My garden is full of sorrel. Is. 

 there anything I can add to the soil that will kill it? For over three years I have 

 tried to eradicate it by careful digging, but still it comes." 



Answer. — Sorrel is very difficult to eradicate when once well established, 

 particularly among such plants as strawberries and small perennials. Heavy doses 

 of lime, which in a garden can be applied at the rate of 10 or more tons per acre, 

 will help to keep it down. This must be aided by forking out the underground rhizomes, 

 followed by frequent hoeing as often as any green shoots appear. This is parti- 

 cularly important in spring and early summer. Care should be taken to see that 

 the weed is not being re-introduced by seeds carried in manure. They may be 

 abundant in unfermented horse manure, and particularly in cow manure. 



Lichen ox Fruit Tree.'^. — L. K. N. forwards specimen of growth affecting 

 his fruit trees. 



Answer. — It is lichen, and can be removed by spraying with Bordeaux mixture. 



Raising Orange Trees from Seed. — A. W. T. asks whether orange trees 

 can be raised from seed. 



Answer. — Orange trees may be grown readily from seed — the seed to be 

 sown in a compost of sand and leaf moidd or vegetable humus. Trees raised 

 in this way are practically useless for commercial ])urposes. They rarely fruit 

 satisfactorily, their fruit is inferior, and they are many years coming into bearing. 



Pumpkins for Stock Feeding. — A. W.'T. asks for best varieties of pumpkins 

 for stock feeding. 



Ans7tjer. — Ironbark, or Connecticut Field. 



Buckwheat. — Red Gum desires information as to sowing Buckwheat. 



Aiis7i>er. — Buckwheat can be grown in succession from the latter end of 

 September (provided the frosts are past in the jiarticular district where it is to be 

 .sown) until March. Sow in drills at the rate of a quarter bushel per acre, or if 

 broadcasted i bushel per acre. Poultry do well on the seed, ami the straw after 

 threshing is good pig food. 



REMOyiNG Aftek'HIrth.—T. J. B. asks how to remove the afterbirth from a 

 mare or cow. Also asks what food should be given. 



A)is7L'er. — Irrigate the womb daily by injection with i gallon of 2 per cent, 

 iolution of Lysol in warm water or solution of Permanganate of Potash ; remove 

 by gentle traction any traces of retained membranes and give a drench consisting of 

 Epsom salts, i lb. ; powdered gentian, i oz. ; ginger, ^ oz. ; in i^ pints of warm 

 water. Slo])py bran mashes and green food should be given. 



Death of R.AMS. — K. S. B. writes : — '' I purchased two prize rams at the 

 recent Royal show. When removing them from the truck at the local railway station 

 I noticed that one was a bit 'off.' In the paddock, a grassy garden patch' of half 

 an acre, it got worse. I called in men of exjierienre, and the general opinion was 

 that stoppage of water was the cause. Nitre was given internally, but in five days 

 death ensued. On fosf mortc7n examination I found the bladder burst. Two days 

 afterwards the other ram took bad, and although treated similarly it died five days 

 later. Its bladder was full and badly inflamed with clots of blood in the urine 

 passage. Kindly inform me whether successful treatment could have been applied. 

 I also bought two ewes at the same time, and I am fearful lest the same fate may 

 overtake them." 



.\ns'i.<cr. — Small lahuli being arrested in the ]iassage from the bladder was 

 probabl}- the cause of the death of your rams. The point of stoppage is usually 

 at the end of the penis, where they may be felt. Efforts should be made to remove 

 them by lubricating the passage with oil and the penis gently manipulated. If all 

 efl"orts fail the animal's life may be saved by removing the point of the penis, but 

 he would be of no further use for breeding purposes. You need not be anxious 

 .about the ewes as tliev are not subject to the trouble in the same degree as the rams. 



