THE DIVERSIFIED FARM. 



123 



ranean insect?, and undoubtedly will be of value 

 against these cutworms. They have the additional 

 advantage of being good fertilizers, so that their ex- 

 pense as insecticides is more than offset by their 

 value to the crop and to the land. 



Artesian Investigation. An association has 

 been formed in Los Angeles county, Cal., for the pur- 

 pose of investigating and making a complete report 

 of the artesian water supply. The association ex- 

 pects to prepare a complete map of the Antelope 

 valley, showing the location of the various wells, to 

 be accompanied with a complete report containing all 

 the information it is possible to gather. J. Howard 

 Russell, of Lancaster, Cal., has the matter in charge. 



Fertilizers in the Irrigating Water. In 



some localities the notion prevails that the irrigating 

 water can always be relied upon to supply any lack 

 of fertility in the soil, but such is manifestly not the 

 case. A certain amount of humus may no doubt 

 be deposited during some irrigations when the water 

 is filled with sediment due to recent freshets, but 

 often this condition is found to work inconvenience, 

 if not actual damage. In any event, the use of fertil- 

 izers should not be considered unnecessary. 



Cost of Drying Prunes. -C. G. Shaw, a lead- 

 ing grower and packer of Italian prunes, at Vancou- 

 ver, Washington, informs the Northwest Horticultur- 

 ist that a fair estimate yield of the number of pounds 

 fresh fruit per tree, for crops each year after prune 

 trees are seven years old, is about 100. He says: 

 "The charge per pound for drying fruit through this 

 fruit belt is % cent. This is enough, and a man can 

 make good interest on his investment at that rate, 

 The actual cost of drying is % of 1 cent ; so the man 

 who dries fruit at price stated will clear one-fourth of 

 the Y 2 cent per pound, or $2.50 per ton." 



Pruning Trees in Summer. This is generally 

 effected by pinching off the soft ends of the side 

 shoots after they have made a few inches' growth. In 

 these the sap immediately accumulates, and the 

 young buds upon the remainder of these shoots, 

 which otherwise would produce leaves, are gradually 

 changed into fruit buds. 



It often happens, and especially when the pinching 

 is done too early, that the new buds send out shoots 

 a second time the same season. When this occurs 

 these second shoots are to be pinched in the same 

 manner as the first, but shorter; and the third ones, 

 should they start, are to be similarly treated. The 

 bruising giving by pinching off with the thumb and 

 finger is more apt to prevent this result than clipping 

 with a sharp knife. 



Ve>y fine trees have been produced which never 

 had a saw or knife about them. The thumb and fore- 

 finger only had been used. Rub off all unnecessary 

 buds that grow on a tree, and remove as they appear. 

 This is easily done, keeps the tree clean and grow- 

 ing in the proper channel. It is no doubt the best 

 system of training trees where the orchardist can give 

 the proper attention at the right time. 



The California Prune Crop. The crop was 

 a light one last year, and probably did not go beyond 

 35,000,000 pounds of cured fruit. In 1892, the State 

 had 25,328 acres of bearing prune orchards, and 

 24,298 acres not yet of bearing age. The prune tree 

 begins to bear the fourth year from planting. It has 

 thus far proven one of the most profitable fruits 

 grown in California. In 1893, the California prune 

 crop reached about 50,000,000 pounds, while the raisin 

 crop was .over 85,000,000 pounds. For the year end- 

 ing June 30th last, 9,908,122 pounds of foreign prunes 

 were imported into the United States, valued at 

 S416.342, and 13,751,050 pounds of raisins, valued at 

 $554,090. 



Aprivots. Nine-tenths of all the apricots pro- 

 duced in the United States are grown in California. 

 In 1892, there were 5,776 acres of bearing apricot 

 orchards in that State, and 19,831 acres not yet old 

 enough to bear. The yield of cured apricots from 

 last year's crop was about one thousand carloads, the 

 largest ever produced in the State. 



Twenty Dairy Points. A. E. Jones, a success- 

 ful Western dairyman, whose cows are registered 

 Jerseys, which make over 300 pounds of butter a year, 

 writes to the Farm and Dairy as follows: 



My eight years' experience in dairy work has led 

 to the following conclusions, viz. : 



1. Get rid of the scrub cow. 



2. Good cows lead to better methods. 



3. Without good feed dairying is a failure. 



4. People will not pay twenty-five cents for ten- 

 cent butter. 



5. It requires brains and gumption to succeed in 

 the dairy. 



6. A careless person cannot make good butter. 

 7 Promptness and honesty always win. 



8. The finishing touches are what pay. 



9. Cows need shelt -r from storm and sun. 



10. Clean hands invite clean methods 



11. A prosperous dairyman is always gentlemanly 

 to his customers. 



12. When serving customers always wear clean 

 clothes. 



13. Those that make bad butter are easily offended. 



14. If you do not like the work, quit. 



15. Good butter cannot be made where the sur- 

 roundings are filthy. 



16. Poor butter gives the dairyman a lean purse. 



17. There is a growing demand for good butter at 

 payiner prices. 



18. Badly made butter hurts the trade and gives 

 the oleo. men a better market. 



19. Kansas needs a dairy school to educate the 

 people in this work. 



20. Keep pace with the modern improvements. 



Do not let a lazy pig miss its meals and become 

 stunted. It will burrow itself in a pile of bedding 

 and be content to almost starve itself rather than to 

 turn out of a warm bed on a cold dav. 



Relief for a Choked Animal. Cattle having 

 access to apples or potatoes are liable to be choked 

 in the attempt to swallow them without sufficient 

 mastication. Valuable animals are often lost from 

 this cause and a great variety of remedies have been 

 suggested from time to time. A Vermont farmer of 

 much experience recommends the following: Pour 

 down the throat of the animal a solution of three table- 

 spoonsful of common baking soda in a quart of water. 

 This should generally relieve the animal in the 

 course of two or three minutes. 



