212 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



Fruit Preserving Process. Professors Hil- 

 gard and Smith report that the Perkins process gives 

 a. longer preservation of the fruit by the effect of a 

 slow current of air at a temperature from 55 to 65 

 degrees Fahr., passing continuously over it. That by 

 maintaining this temperature at all times, in the hot 

 desert as well as cold winters, by appropriate means 

 <not using ice) but by the expansion of compressed 

 air, good results can be obtained. Fruit stored by 

 this method will not be covered by condensed 

 moisture, as always happens when ice is used to 

 lower the temperature of a car during transportation, 

 and therefore tends to increase the keeping qualities. 

 The invention is correct in theory, and offers a simple 

 and cheap solution of the fruit storage and trans- 

 portation problem. 



Fruit Trees on the Highways. Were fruit 

 trees planted along our highways, especially apples 

 and cherries, as they are in some of the German 

 States, our country drives would not only be things of 

 tteauty, but they would feed many a needy family and 



Various Soils for Grasses. In a recent lecture 

 Professor McAlpine, of Glasgow, Scotland, said one 

 of the causes why clover would not grow in places, 

 was the want of lime in the land. Grass with hair 

 on it should not be grown, although it might be all 

 right as far as chemical analysis went, it could not be 

 digested. Timothy is one of the best grasses. Its 

 roots go down and till the land. Meadow fescue is a 

 capital grass, but it takes time. A grass may be quite 

 suitable fqr one kind of soil and will not succeed on a 

 different kind of soil. 



Fertilizers in California. Fruit growers are 

 experimenting with stable manure, tree and vine 

 pruning, phosphates, potash, nitrates, liquid ammonia 

 from gas works, gas lime, etc., and good results are 

 reported from their use. One instance is reported 

 where one orchardist put from 1,000 to 1,500 pounds 

 of phosphate to the acre on his cherry orchard, and 

 did not require to unscrew the top of his artesian well 

 to irrigate that year. 



A HOOTER POTATO DIGGER AT WORK. 



refresh the wayfarer if everywhere there would be 

 no abuse of them. They would also tend to bring 

 .about our homes more of our merry songsters. How 

 shall we begin it? 



Potatoes as Feed for Stock. At the Leipsic 

 experiment station in Germany potatoes have been 

 fed to cows, sheep and swine to test their value. The 

 results justify the directing in advising the use of 

 potatoes when they are very cheap and plentiful. 

 They should be cooked for swine, and for fattening 

 -cattle they can be fed either raw or cooked when 

 given with hay, meal and other substances. Cows in 

 milk should be fed daily 25 pounds of washed raw 

 potatoes. The larger potatoes should be cut. As a 

 feed they are not good for young lambs nor for cattle 

 under two years of age. 



A bill has been introduced in the North Dakota 

 legislature authorizing the payment of a bounty on all 

 flax fibre raised in that State within the next five 

 jears. 



Gooseberries. Are gooseberries a success under 

 irrigation? Would you recommend them as suitable 

 for the family garden? If so, give directions for 

 cultivation, how often irrigated, remedies for mildew, 

 etc. F. S. F., Kansas. 



My experience in growing gooseberries for family 

 or market garden is that they are successful, and will 

 be more so in my opinion under irrigation, because 

 when properly irrigated with pruning and thorough 

 cultivation, they will come into bearing early, and 

 bear an abundance of berries for early table or mar- 

 ket, coming on even earlier than strawberries. 



Yes, indeed, tell every one in the arid regions of 

 America through your valuable journal (which is in- 

 dispensable to me and is highly appreciated, and 

 every number preserved for future reference) that 

 good crops can be grown by irrigation and cultiva- 

 tion. Now in regard to irrigating, a person should 

 be able to use his own judgment, as some sections do 

 not require as much water as others, but I would refer 

 F. S. F. to the May (1894) issue of THE IRRIGATION 

 AGE, page 218, which contains an article that will give 



