62 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



should depend for carrying liis stock cheaply and 

 safely through the winter. But the less cost is not 

 all that can be said in favor of hay and corn, for they 

 have yet a greater proportional value in the manure 

 made from them. 



It may be proper to say that the figures after the 

 comparative nutriment table are my own, so that if 

 the calculations are wrong tlie error may be placed 

 to its proper credit. 



Mr. HiLLER further added that while hay and corn 

 meal are the cheapest, straw is the dearest. Yet, you 

 might as well talk heresy at Rome as to talk to Lan- 

 caster county farmers about selling straw, although 

 it commands a good price in the vicinity of paper 

 mills which use straw stock in the manufacture of 

 paper. 



Mr. Engle said it was comparatively easy to put 

 these things on paper, but to his mind they were not 

 altogether satisfactory. The analysis read may be 

 correct, and no doubt it is, so far as it goes. It is 

 said, so much corn contains so much nutrition. What 

 is nutrition ? The carbonaceous foods are heat pro- 

 ducing, and are the best for fattpning stock. Hence 

 we use the yellow corn. But to produce muscle and 

 bone the nitrogeneous foods, such as the white-flint 

 corn, are preferable. We in the North often wonder 

 why in the South they eat corn all the year round, 

 while it is rejected in the North as summer diet, be- 

 cause it is considered too heating. The reason is that 

 in the South they grow the white corn, which contains 

 more nitrogen and phosphate, and less carbon. For 

 working horses the white is the best, as it produces 

 more bone and muscle ; but to fatten hogs the yellow 

 is the best, as containing more carbon. Hence it is 

 important in estimating the value of such an analysis 

 to know what kind of corn was experimented upon, 

 and to what kind of stock it was inteudet to be fed. 

 It was the same in regard to hay. It is an open ques- 

 tion as to when is the best time to turn grass into hay. 

 He gave it as his opinion that we cut it too late to get 

 its full nutriment. If cut young, the cattle will relish 

 it much better. It is not so much a question of what 

 nutriment is in it as what the cattle can extract from 

 it. Since we steam corn fodder, one load goes as far 

 as a load of hay or as far as three loads of fodder fed 

 in the usual way. In this connection he would not 

 discuss the question of manure. 



Mr. Eshleman thought the low value of wheat 

 bran given in the analysis could not be correct. 

 Wheat is known to be the strongest of nutritious 

 grains, and the more of the bran is worked into the 

 liour thy more wholesome it is. 



Mh. Enole said he had seen it asserted by a chemical 

 authority that there was more nutrition in a pound of 

 bran than in a pound of flour. But it is an undispu- 

 ted fact that the grain of wheat contains more nearly 

 all the elements of healthy imtrition than anythingelse 

 we can eat. To get all these eli'iuriils the grain and 

 bran should be ground and used toixi'tlier. 



As this question was considered a little out of sea- 

 son, further discussion was postiwned until fall. 



What Trees are Most Profitable for Fencing 

 and Fuel ? 



This, another deferred question, was discussed at 

 some length, Mr. Eshleman favoring locust (or both 

 fencing and fuel ; although chestnut was better for 

 fencing rails, it did not pay so well to plant it. The 

 chairman considered locust most valuable for posts 

 and many other purposes. 



Mb. Epuiuam Hhoveu said every farm has some 

 corners and fence lines which can be best utilized by 

 planting locust trees. Besides using it for fencing, 

 tilt- porliiiiKs of the wood not suited lor that purpose 

 makes excellent fuel, there being very little ditlerence 

 between it and maple. Every farmer can raise 

 enough to fence his farm without detracting' from his 

 area of cultivation. A locust post lasts from twenty- 

 five to thirty years. In twenty-Hve years he can 

 easily grow enough from seed to renew his fencing. 

 It may be said that while locust makes good posts it 

 is not adapted for rails, and both are wanted. But 

 we can sell the surplus locust posts to purchase 

 chestnut or pine rails. He therefore preferred locust 

 for fencing and fuel, as chestnut is not nearly so good 

 for fuel. 



Mr. Hii.ler introduced a new competitor for the 

 meed of profit, in the cherry tree. He had recently 

 cut down a cherry tree twenty-five years old which 

 made excellent fuel, aud the lumber obtained from it 

 is valuable. 



Mr. Keist championed the locust as most valuable 

 for all purposes. It can be raised sooner and cheaper 

 than any other. Owing to the scarcity of other woods, 

 such as oak and hickory, wheelwrights must use it 

 for axles and other mechanical purposes for which it 

 is well adapted. He would use locust for posts and 

 willow f(jr rails. A willow tree in twenty-five years 

 wiitild yield from 100 to l.'iO rails, and when cut in 

 the proper season (which he thought is May) it will 

 last as long as chestnut. The ailahtus was the most 

 rapid of growers and would make good rails. He cut a 

 cherry tree which he had planted 22 years ago which 

 g.ave a valuable yield of boards; but for fencing and 

 fuel his trio would be the locust, willow andailantus. 



Mr. Kenuu; said the locust is not adapted to all 

 soils ; but where it will do well lie is in favor of plant- 

 ing along the fences around the farm. Around a 

 farm of IfiO acres, we would have 1,020 feet, which 



would accommodate 440 trees planted 13 feet apart. 

 In twenty-five years these would yield 8,SS0 posts 

 worth S+,440, which would be the amount the value 

 of the farm would be enhanced in twent3'-five years. 

 The wood cut in trimming from year to year would 

 supply the family with fuel. Besides, it is a great 

 pleasure to have the roadside lined with trees which 

 afford a delightful shade in the hot summer when one 

 is driving along. 



Mr. Engle, while he agreed with the other speak- 

 ers in their estimate of the value of the locust, said 

 he was looking to the day when fences would be 

 altogether dispensed with. We don't need much 

 wood for fuel when coal is so abundant and inex- 

 haustible, for years to come. A very valuable tree 

 had, however, been overlooked. The walnut will 

 grow more rapidly than locust and is more valuable. 

 You can sell enough of its fruit and lumber to buy 

 your fencing material. The improved American 

 chestnut is now extensively grown for its fruit., A 

 gentleman in New Jersey annually cropped from $2.5 

 to SSO worth of fruit from a single tree. The market 

 for this fruit is never overstocked. But after all, he 

 still desired to point public sentiment in the direction 

 of doing away with fences altogether, which "good 

 time " would certainly come. 



Varieties of the Tree-Borers. 



Mr. Kendig desired to know why the locust 

 would not grow in certain localities. In answer, 

 various theories and illustrative facts were given; 

 some remarking that the locust flourishes in gravelly 

 soil and does no good on limestone ridges — others 

 that it is often killed by excessive and close pruning 

 — but the locust borer was finally credited with all 

 the trouble ; but why this insect was so destructive in 

 some localities and never seen in others was not 

 explained. In answer to a question as to whether 

 the locust borer confined its ravages to that tree, 

 Prof. Rathvon said, to the best of his knowledge it 

 did ; that is the Clylus robinia does : but there are two 

 species of Cli/tus so nearly alike that it is very difficult 

 to distinguish between them — the one already named 

 and the Clytws jncttis, which is a hickory and walnut 

 tree borer. The former does not make its appearance 

 until September, and then it is often found abundantly 

 in the mature state, on the blossoms of the Soliilai/o. 

 The latter appears, in the beetle form, in the month 

 of June — sometimes even earlier. On one occasion 

 hundreds of them came out of hickory wood in my 

 cellar in the month of May, and two years ago John 

 A. Hcistaiid, esq., gave me several specimens that 

 came out of a piece of hickory wood in his office, in the 

 month of April. But there is a much larger " borer " 

 that infests thelocust trees — namely the larva of a 

 moth (Xylen/tcn robinUe) which is capable of doing more 

 damage tnan the Clylus. This insect also infests the 

 chestnut trees. On one occasion I took the larva of 

 our largest grey "snapping-beetle" (Alans occulatns) 

 out of tile limb of a locust tree, although it more fre- 

 quently occurs in the dead limbs or trunks of the 

 apple. There is also a minute leaf miner {llispit) 

 and a leaf puncturer {Ajnon) both of which infest 

 the foliage of the locust in vast numbers, often leav- 

 ing them as if they had been scorched by fire. [As 

 soon as we can olitain accurate illustrations of these 

 insects, we will publish detailed accounts of them.] 



Mr. Engle said the fact being admitted that the 

 locust would not thrive in all localities, should teach 

 farmers the futility of attempting to grow trees not 

 adapted to the soil, or liable to be destroyed by the 

 borer, but to select those which were best adapted to 

 these conditions. 



Milk Cows — Cultivation of Corn. 



The questions as to the best food for milk cows, and 

 what variety of corn produces the most bushels to 

 the acre, were deferred ; and at the suggestion of Mr. 

 Engle the latter question was put in tbis form — What 

 variety of corn is most profitable, and what is the 

 best plan of cultivating it ''. 



The Grashoppers. 

 Prof. Rathvon said they had h.ad so much dis- 

 cussion of the potato beetle of late, that he had con- 

 cluded to say something of grasshoppers. In the 

 March number of The Lancaster Farmer he had 

 said something about utilizing potato beetles and 

 grasshoppers. Since then he had seen an interesting 

 account of the exhumations going on at Pompeii, 

 where, among other things exhumed, was a table set 

 for the meal, containing, among other edibles, a dish 

 of stewrd f/rasshn/ipers. Although we might yet come 

 to this mode of utilizing the grasshoppers, we would 

 be still 3,000 years behind the fashions of the Pom- 

 peiians ! He proceeded to read a very interesting 

 article on The frrasshoppern, relating to their ravages 

 in Nebraska, and discussing the probabilities and 

 effect of a grasshopper raid in this county ; but owing 

 to the crowded state of our columns we are obliged 

 to defer its publication. 



Cropping Oats on Corn Ground. 



Mr. Grossman, of Warwick, inquired whether it 

 would not be better to chanije the usual jjractice of 

 cropping oats on corn ground preparatory for the 

 wheat crop, by manuring for the corn and foUow'ing 

 it with wheat, leaving the ground lie fallow during 

 the summer. 



Mu. Hoover was opposed to manuring oats stub- 

 bles too heavily for wheat. Corn could not be grown 



too rank, but there was such a thing as manuring for 

 wheat so heavily as to cause it to grow to straw. 

 Two successive crops of corn are too exhaustive on 

 the soil. If he did not sow oats he would seed with 

 clover. 



Mr. Kendig said the oat crop had been a failure 

 for some years past, but it was a question whether 

 this was not owing to want of manure. A friend of 

 his had ground prepared for a crop of tobacco, but 

 the person who was to have planted it failed to do so 

 until too late. His only alternative was to plant it 

 in oats, and he got a crop of 90 bushels to the acre, 

 which paid him well. 



Mr. Engle said that oats is an uncertain crop in 

 unfavorable seasons. We may, however, have favor- 

 able seasons and it will again pay well. In dry seasons 

 it fails, but if we knew what the season would be aud 

 manured accordingly, it would pay. If manured, 

 and a wet season follows, it will grow rank and run 

 tostraw. He had known cases where, for this reason, 

 it did not pay to harvest it. So he would not venture 

 to manure oats as a rule. Owing to a large demand 

 for other purposes, he had found it necessary to 

 economize manure for wheat on oats stubble. He 

 had it turned frequently to aid decomposition, and 

 then put it on lightly as a top dressinj^ after plough- 

 ing, stirring it in well, and had a good crop. 



Mr. Hoover thought that if it was not intended 

 to follow corn with a crop of oats, the next best plan 

 would be to set the corn in larger shocks than usual, 

 and a greater distance apart ; then sow rye in the 

 spaces between. In the spring break the stubbles off 

 where the rows of shocks stood, and plant potatoes. 

 He would rather do this than let the ground lie 

 fallow. 



The Chairman endorsed this suggestion, having 

 tried it successfully with five acres of rye in a twenty- 

 acre cornfield. 



Mr. Engle said that sowing Hungarian grass 

 instead of oats was successfully practiced by many 

 farmers in Chester county, a yield of two tons of good 

 hay to the acre having been secured. 



Mr. Eshleman suggested that crops were often 

 spoiled by too deep plowing; but.Iohnson Miller said 

 his rule for corn was to plough deep and plant shal- 

 low, and he always has good crops ; and Mr. Engle 

 said he had been harping on this for years. There 

 was an exception, however, in soil where the fertility 

 was shallow. There is nothing to be gained by 

 turning up sterile soil. 



Native Seedling Apples. 



Mr. Grossman presented specimens of a seedling 

 apple which he called his " Favorite," which was re- 

 markable for being unpalatable when first cropped, 

 but which kept well and grew into excellent flavor, 

 and also for cropping most prolificly when other vari- 

 eties failed. To our taste we never ate a better apple 

 at this season. 



The same gentleman presented specimens of what 

 he supposed to be the White Vandivere, but Mr. 

 Engle said they did not correspond with his variety 

 of that name. 



In this connection Mr. Engle, who is chairman of 

 the General Fruit Committee of the State Fruit 

 Growers Society, stated that they were desirofis of 

 securing specimens and;deseriptions of all good native 

 fruits in the county for notice in their annual report. 



The State Agricultural Fair. 



The chairman called attention to the fact that if the 

 proper effort is made the next fair of the State Agri- 

 cultui'ai Society can be sectired for Lancaster. This 

 matter was earnestly urged by the chairman, Mr. 

 Engle, and others, who commended it to the citizens 

 of Lancaster as a subject which should engage their 

 active co-operation. If the proper inducements are 

 held out by hotel keepers and our business men gen- 

 erally, there is no doubt that it will come here. The 

 advantages arising from this will not end with this 

 year. It has been the practice of the State Society of 

 late years to hold their fair in the same town two 

 years consecutively. If, therefore, we secure it at 

 Lancaster this year, we can retain it next year also, 

 which will be the great Centennial year. It requires 

 no argument to illustrate the great advantages this 

 would confer upon our county. Its near proximity to 

 the Centennial exhibition would give strangers from 

 all parts of this country and the world an opportunity 

 to see something of the richest agricultural county 

 in the nation, and we have no doubt hundreds of such 

 would avail themselves of this opportunity. 



Native Flowers and Fruits. 



Daniel Smeych, of Lancaster, presented a num- 

 ber of seedling geraniums — sub-genus Pelargonium^- 

 of his own raising, in relation to which the botanist 

 of the association, Mr, Staulfer, has furnished our 

 reporter with the following paper : 



Do Varieties Die Out 1 The variety of plants of the 

 stork, or cranesbill family, called Pelargonium, from 

 pelargos, a stork, is extensive. Johnson, in his Gard- 

 eners' Dictionary, has a list of ninety-nine species, 

 herbaceous and tuberous rooted, and one hun'lred and 

 sixty named evergreen shrubs, cultivated in the green- 

 house. Superior varieties have been raised by seeds, 

 by hybridizing and tricks in trade which defy all rules 

 for classification. Mr. Daniel Smeych, No. I)3S West 

 King street, this city, who takesa great interest in 



