KEEPING ONE COW. 95 



as evenly as possible, and plow it under as deep as we can. We 

 do not sow anything for next year's use, as we think we get a bet- 

 ter return from our land to sow early in the spring and continue 

 it through the summer. It is a mistaken idea, or rather a grave 

 blunder, to undertake to grow good crops of anything without the 

 liberal use of manures. As soon as our land will do to work in 

 the spring, we sow our oats, peas, and rye, giving a top dressing of 

 guano, superphosphates, or bone meal, which we repeat with each 

 successive sowing, also giving each hill of corn and rows of beets 

 and turnips a small quantity. We alternate the top dressings, 

 that is, if we use superphosphate the first sowing, we use ground 

 bone or guano the second, and vice versa, as we find the continu- 

 ous use of any one kind of manure or fertilizer is as injurious as 

 continuous planting of corn or potatoes, without rotating with 

 something else. 



BAERELS FOR KEEPING ROOTS. 



We have a way of our own for keeping our roots in the ab- 

 sence of a vegetable cellar, or when we do not want them in the 

 house cellar. We take any old barrels and set them in the ground, 

 the chiner just coming to the top of the ground (we do not 

 want a head in either end of the barrels). Into these headless bar- 

 rets we put our beets, turnips, cabbage, etc. As the weather grows 

 cold we cover the barrels with some loose boards. Whenever it 

 is cold enough to freeze hard, we throw over them enough hay or 

 straw to keep out the wet. By this method we can, with very lit- 

 tle trouble at any time, get out a barrel or part of a barrel 

 of roots. In this way the roots keep in fine condition. Late 

 in the spring, turnips and beets will be as brittle and good as 

 when pulled in the fall. Our subject is " keeping one cow," but 

 any one that feels disposed to try it, will find the above a very 

 fine way to keep turnips, beets, cabbage, or celery, for family use. 



We prefer to have our cow calve about the first of April, as we 

 then have time to make veal of the calf before we begin to make 

 grass butter. There is generally, in any place, a better demand 

 for milk through the winter, and better prices, hence if one wishes 

 to sell milk and buy butter, it would perhaps be better to have her 

 calve in the fall. 



We hardly feel competent to advise, if help is needed in calving. 

 As her time of calving draws nigh, we give our cow extra care and 

 attention. If the bowels are kept in a healthy condition, we ap- 

 prehend there is rarely trouble, from the fact that our cows have 

 always calved without the need of help. 



