388 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Aug. 



EXTBACTS AND REPLIES. 



APPLE TREE BORERS. 



Can you tell me the best remedy for borers in 

 apple trees ? I find places in my trees as if they 

 were bored with a gimlet, where I suppose the 

 borers have gone in. It is impossible to get at 

 them, even with wire. Dedham Farmer. 



Dedham, Mass., June 11, 1869. 



Remarks. — Those smooth round holes in your 

 trees, which look as if bored with a gimlet, are 

 the places where the borer left, after having spent 

 some two years in their trunks, excavating a tun- 

 nel without legislative aid, and preparing himself 

 for that perfect state of a winged beetle in which 

 he left your tree. If the Saperda bivittata ever 

 laughs, he probably does so when he sees a person 

 closing up this orifice, or fishing therein for his 

 poor body, now clothed with feathers and wings. 

 This beetle deposits its eggs, as described by Mr. 

 Hersey in the Farmer of May 22, on the soft bark 

 near the ground in June and July, from which a 

 small worm soon hatcnes and eats through the 

 bark, where it passes the first winter. Here it re- 

 mains about a year, when its jaws become strong 

 enough to cut into the solid wood. Stopping up 

 this end of his hole, at this time, as directed by 

 "Zen," in the Farmer of June 19, or probing 

 with a wire, may be effective. But the best time 

 to destroy them is before they enter the wood. 



KINDNESS TO ANIMALS PROFITABLE. 



I am very glad to hear so much said in the Far- 

 mer, in regard to kindness to animals. I believe 

 many valuable heifers have been ruined by harsh 

 treatment. My father raised a great many heifers, 

 and my mother always took it upon her to break 

 them. I have seen her stand in astouping posture 

 half an hour at a time trymg to milk a kicking 

 heifer. In one case that I particularly remember, 

 the heifer would stand on three legs and kick at 

 her as fast as she could make her feet fly. After 

 getting tired of standing on three legs, she would 

 put her foot down, but at the moment mother com- 

 menced milking she would commence kicking. 

 All this time mother would wait patiently, still 

 holding the teat in her hand, ready to milk as soon 

 as the hciter put her foot down. Mother would 

 not allow any one to speak a harsh word to the pro- 

 voking animal, much less to ^ive it a blow. As 

 soon as the heifer became sati^Hed that no one 

 wished to hurt her, she gave up, and would letany 

 of us sit down and milk with both hands. I do 

 think a cow will give more and better milk if she 

 feels perfectly at ease, and can regard every one 

 about her as a Iriend, than one that expects a kick 

 or a blow from all who come near her. j. p. p. 



North Weare, N. H., June 4, 1869. 



Remarks.— The grand secret of the successful 

 training of animals can be learned, we think, from 

 a single sentence in this article. Just think what 

 a kicking creature the writer is speaking of. She 

 would stand on three legs and strike with all her 

 might till fairly tired out. Some boys would have 

 given her a "course of sprouts" that would have 

 resulted in a confirmed kicker. But not so with 

 our correspondent's good mother. She would not 

 allow even a cross word to be spoken. Then 



comes the sentence in which the "grand secret" we 

 have spoken of is imbedded,— "As soon as the heifer 

 became satisfied that no one wished to hurt her, 

 she gave up, and would let any of us set down and 

 milk with both hands." Boys, do you "see it V 



HAT MAKING. 



From my experience in growing grass and mak- 

 ing hay I have been led to adopt the following sys- 

 tem. My land generally remains in grass four or 

 five years. I spread no manure on my grass land, 

 as I find my stock eats new meadow hay best. I 

 plough in my manure. I sow no clover seed. I 

 commence haying very early, and though I use a 

 mowing machine, it is rather late by the time I 

 get through. The mower is started after the dew 

 is off in the morning, and runs until noon. The 

 tedder is then put into the field, and the grass 

 thoroughly shaken up. After which the horse is 

 fed and rested half an hour. Then the tedder runs 

 an hour or more, when I change for the horse rake, 

 and put the hay into windrows. These are thrown 

 into large heaps and covered with caps two yards 

 square. I give my hay from two to three sun- 

 nings; stirring it diligently from three to four 

 o clock in the afternoon. My object being to make 

 it as fast as I can and make it well. Then I want 

 to put it into the barn, and I wa::t the barn as 

 tight as a stone jug with the stopple out. I do not 

 approve of a cellar under the hay, or of any draft 

 of air through it, as it ought to be so well cured 

 before being housed that it will not be injured by 

 the sweating process, to which all hay is subjected 

 in the mow, though it may be so thoroughly dried 

 that you may think there is no moisture in it. 

 E. G. Turner. 



New Bedford, Mass., June 5, 1869. 



REMEDY FOR KICKING COW FOUND. 



Last winter I made inquiries through the Far- 

 mer for a remedy for a kicking cow. Among the 

 many replies were one from O. C. Wait, West 

 Georgia, Vt., and another from 11. Parker, Cor- 

 inth, Vt. My cow being dry at the lime they were 

 publi-hed, I hail no- opportunity to try either reme- 

 dy until she dropped her calf this .•-pring. As Mr. 

 Wait wibhcd me to report progress tlirouah the 

 Farmer for the benefit of those similarly afHicted, 

 1 will state how his remedy has worked on my 

 cow, one of the worst kickers that 1 ever fell in 

 with in all my life. I could not make the lea^t at- 

 tempt to take hold of her teats wittjout receiving a 

 kick, and all caused by the brutal treatment of a 

 drunken vagabond, in the shape of a man, who had 

 to sell her tor about one-third of what she would 

 have brought providing she had been treated kindly 

 and gently. 



After she dropped her calf this spring, I first 

 thought that I would build one of Mr. Parker's 

 "fiddles," as his boys called it, which 1 know must 

 prevent any cow from kicking ; but not having the 

 lumber at hand, I concluded to try Mr. Wait's 

 remedy. Having an old harness-saddle on hand, 

 I put the cow in the stamhiou, laid the Siiddle on 

 her back as gentle as possible and by the help of 

 one of my bo.ys, worked it aft close to tlie forward 

 part of her hips ; then brought the strap under her 

 belly just forward of her udtler, and drew it 

 through the buckle with a quick and firm jmll. It 

 took the kick out of her in an instant, siie never 

 has offered to lilt a foot to kick when the saddle 

 was on her back. Now she is so far subdued that 

 all 1 have to do is to lay the saddle on hei back, 

 sit down and milk away without fear of being 

 kicked over, and liaving the milk pail spoiled. 

 This one simple remedy for a kicking cow is worth 



