108 



QUERIES AND ANSWERS. 



Sugar Cane. 



Clover. 



Tomatoes. 



at the season indicated, when nearly all other peas become so covered 

 with the mildew as to be of little value. 



668. Q. From what country did the original sugar cane come ? 

 A. From Southern Asia, India, Cochin- China, and Malaysia, whence 



it spread into Africa, and thence to America, reaching St. Domingo in 

 1530 and shortly afterwards Mexico and Brazil. 



669. Q. Where did the Crimson clover originally come from ? 

 A. It is found wild in Northern Italy, in Sardinia, and in Algiers, ia 



the valley of the Danube and in Macedonia. 



670. Q. I have very poor success in growing tomatoes in my garden. 

 The soil is good and rich, and I can grow very large plants, but they do 

 not bear much fruit, and it is generally small and knotty, no matter what 

 variety I plant. Can you explain the cause and remedy ? 



A. Possibly the plants go too much to leaf. Try pruning the roots by 

 digging about them deeply; this will reduce the vigor of growth and per- 

 haps cause blossoms to appear and set. Also trim the foliage to let in the 

 light and air. 



671. Q. How many brands of commercial fertilizers are there? 

 A. Probably 600 or 700 distinctly named sorts, all diflfering from each 



other in the proportion of contents of available plant food, some brands 

 worth ten times the value of others, some not worth five dollars a ton. 



672. Q. Is kainlt more valuable than common salt? 

 A. Yes ; because it contains from 15 to 20 per cent, of potash, while 



common salt does not contain any. Potash Is a fertilizer or plant food — 

 salt is not a food, only an alterative and insect driver. The kainit cou- 

 talns 60 to 70 per cent, of common salt in addition to the potash. 



673. Q. Of what country is the sweet potato a native ? 

 A. Not known positively, but presumed of Mexico or the West Indies, 



as it was cultivated in San Domingo in 1526. It differs from the white 

 potato in its tubers being roots, while in the white potato the tubers are 

 branches. 



674. Q. Where did the garden pea originate ? 

 A. Probably in Asia, from the Caucasus to Persia. It has been 



found among the remains of the lake-dwellers of the bronze age in Switz- 

 erland. 



675. Q. Which is the most nutritious for milch cows, green sugar corn 

 or green sorghum ? 



A. Sorghum by all odds, as it contains from 8 to 12 per cent, of sugar. 

 Winter Oats. 676. Q. Can I successfully grow Virginia Winter oats In Pennsylvania ? 



A. Yos, if it be treated as a Spring oat, as the Winters are too severe 

 in Pennsylvania to admit it to live as in Virginia. Sown in early Spring 

 it will ripen three weeks later than ordinary Spring oats. It will be found 

 far more productive than Spring oats and far heavier to the bushel, fre- 

 quently going up to thirty-eight and forty pounds. As long back as 1869 it 

 was grown as a Spring crop on Bloomsdale Farm, giving seventy bushels 

 to the acre. 



Fertilizers. 



Kainit. 



Sweet 

 Potato. 



Pea. 



Cow Feed. 



