THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



55 



A Blessing- in Disguise. We hear 

 but little now as to the spread of the 

 Russian thistle. A recent writer has 

 claimed it is a saline plant, which may 

 be permanent near the sea-coast but 

 which will not live long in the interior. 

 It requires alkali to feed on and exhausts 

 it from the soil very rapidly. It should 

 therefore be ultimately beneficial to 

 " alkali soils." 



Fertilizer. The South Carolina agri- 

 cultural Experiment Station in a recent 

 bulletin says: 



The cotton farmer who sells a ton of 

 cottonseed for $7 sees as much fertility 

 taken off the farm as a dairyman who 

 sells twenty-five tons of butter for $400 

 per ton; while the dairyman who buys a 

 ton of cottonseed meal for his cows brings 

 to the farm as much fertility as he will 

 drive off in the shape of forty live hogs 

 that will bring him $400 and the man- 

 ure of the hogs as well as that of the 

 cows, will remain behind. 



Western Wealth. According to the 

 census returns the per capita wealth of 

 different groups of States is as follows: 



North Atlantic States $1,231 



South Atlantic States 479 



North Central States 1,129 



South Central States 569 



Western States 2,250 



The Western States, therefore, aver- 

 age nearly twice the wealth per capita 

 of the northeastern and north Central 

 States and nearly four times the wealth 

 of the Southern States. 



Do not go to Extremes. The low price 

 of potatoes last fall will naturally tend 

 to a reduction of area to be planted this 

 season. The chances are that many farm- 

 ers may be over prudent in this respect. 

 It is a standard crop, the consumption is 

 always very great and ordinarily it pays 

 the farmer as well as any. The cheap- 

 ness of the tubers this year is tending to 

 open new avenues of consumption, even 

 for the manufacturing of Irish whisky 

 in quite a large way. 



Alfalfa. If there is a failure to get a 

 full stand of clover or alfalfa from in- 

 sufficient seeding, or any other cause, let 

 the first crop go to seed. Then when 



the ground is in good condition run 

 over it with a light harrow to beat the 

 new seed out of the hull and to harrow 

 it in at the same time. 



Grangers and Farmers Clubs in many 

 places are saving their members consider- 

 able in purchasing . supplies through 

 combinations that secure wholesale rates. 

 It requires good business management 

 and co-operative buying is more easily 

 accomplished, and with better average 

 results than co-operative selling, though 

 the latter is becoming more general each 

 succeeding year. 



Farms ana Farm Rentals in the 

 United States. 



By the census of 1890 the following 

 is shown to have been the number and 

 status of farms in the United States: 



1890 1880 



Farms in United States 4,564,641 4,008,967 



Farms rented for money 454,659 322,357 



Farms rented on shares 840,254 702,244 



This shows a slight increase in tenant 

 farming during the decade, 1880 to 1890. 

 In 1880 the tenant farmers occupied 

 25.56 per cent of the farm and in 1890 

 the percentage had risen to 28.37 per 

 cent. 



The Propagation of the Olive tree 

 from cutting has made it possible to sell 

 these trees from nursery at 10 to 12 

 cents instead of $5 to $10 a tree as form- 

 erly. A Pomona man was the first man 

 to do it successfully, but has never de- 

 rived advantage from his discovery. 



No Danger From Irrigation. The 



Greeley, Colorado, Tribune says, exclud- 

 ing nine accidental deaths and six from 

 old age, the death rate for 1895 was less 

 than one in a hundred of the population. 

 It cites this as evidence that the popular 

 idea that there is a great danger to 

 health from the irrigation ditches is 

 wholly without foundation. 



The Best Fertilizer. Strawberries 

 introduced into Southern California rec- 

 ently are known as the ever bearing var- 

 iety. The vines yield fruit every month 

 in th<e year. Strawberry growers will do 

 well to follow the example of New Jer- 

 sey berry growers in the matter of 

 fertilizing. The Jersey people use cow 



