1894 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



f*03 



Hold vvlien it is too muddy to run a who(>l barrow, 

 and we expect to use it to carry sand, manure, 

 etc., into ihe greenhouses. Hy putting on a 

 cover it strikes me it will be just the thing for 

 carrying Bordeaux mixture, Paris-green solu- 

 tions, etc., for spraying the crops. Attacli a 

 rubl)er liose to the bottom, and then put a liook 

 on the other end, close by the sprinkler. When 

 you want to stop sprinkling, hook the nozzle 

 over tlie side of the tub. and not a bit of liquid 

 will run out. Unhook it and hold it over the 

 potato- vines, and there you have a knapsack 

 sprinkler with larger capacity, perhaps, than 

 any in the market. Should the liquid be going 

 too fast, squeeze the rubber tube iti your hand. 

 A rather soft, pliable tube will be needed for 

 this purpose. The only thing we lack is an 

 agitator to keep the liquid stirred up so the 

 chemicals will not sink to the bottom and make 

 it too strong. Perhaps the "sloshing about" 

 as it is carried around on the back will agitate 

 it enough. I wish our friends Green, at the 

 Expeiiment Station, would tell me about this. 

 We have got a machine mounted on a cart, for 

 carrying spraying-liquids, but it is tremendous- 

 ly hard work running tlie cart through our 

 soft fine market-garden ground, and the wheels 

 do too much mischief when the potatoes are 

 large. I think I, like Terry, would decide on 

 some sort of knapsack spraying - apparatus; 

 and I am sure these German tubs, made of the 

 proper size, will be the cheapest, nicest, and 

 best thing we can get hold of. One of my Ger- 

 man boys told me. some time ago, when I was 

 applying liquid manure to my strawberries, 

 that they used that kind of stuff on all their 

 gardens in Germany. He says further, they 

 make the women carry the liquid manure 

 around in these tubs. It seems to me that is 

 rather a joke on the German girls, especially if 

 they have the kind of liquid manure we use. 

 You see, I had a manure-cistern made, and I 

 pumped the liquid on to a manure-heap, and 

 let it run back again. It was excellent stuff 

 for the plants, but it was not very pleasant 

 when the rank-smelling liquid happened to 

 slop and fly into your face, or run down the 

 back of your neck. Now. if these German 

 women have any such like experience, they cer- 

 tainly ousht to be rewarded with magniticent 

 crops; and I sincerely hope the German hoys 

 are able to appreciate them— I mean tlie girls, 

 not the crops. 



A HOME-MADE HARROVS\ 



The Ohio State University describes as fol- 

 lows the harrow which they use in experiments 

 in cultivating corn: 



It is made of Iig-ht2x4iii the shape of an A har- 

 row, each side of wlilcli is 7 feet 4 inches long-. 

 Eijrlity (jO-peuny wire nails were driven in two rows 

 around this frame, and the nails afterward bent 

 slanting- SI) that the harrow is drawn from one side 

 instead of from one corner. One horse pulls tliis, 

 and poes over two rows at once. This implement 

 being- ligiit, and having- long- teeth, can be used with 

 but little injury to the corn, after the ordinary 

 could not be used. It is iiu ended to prevent the 

 weeds from starting, rather tlian to kill tliem after 

 tliey liave started. 



My impression is, that the above harrow will 

 do just as well as, or perhaps better than, many 

 of the harrows in the market that cost a good 

 deal more — that is, I think it will answer for 

 mellowing the surface for shallow cultivation. 

 They add as follows in regard to cultivating 

 shallow: 



The experiment here given, and so many others 

 which liave been made, indicate that corn should be 

 cultivated as often as it is necessary to kill the 

 weeds, and need not be any ofteniu-, and sliould not 

 be any deeiier than is necessary to kill weeds. The 

 best depth will usually be from one to two inches. 



I confess this last troubles me; but I am very 

 well aware that, for a series of years, tlui ex- 

 periment station has decided then! is no advan- 

 tage ill cultivating as often as market-gardeners 

 usually do. 1 must conclude that the vcu'y 

 light soil in the vicinity of Coliimbus has .some- 

 thing to do with it. 1 should l)(i very glad in- 

 deed if the experiment stalicu at Woontcv would 

 tell us if they arrived at me same results on 

 their poor clay soil on top of those great liiils. 

 I would not go so far as to say that it pays to 

 cultivate after every light shcnver, but 1 feel 

 sure that it is a benelit to stir the ground enough 

 to break the crust after any considerable rain; 

 and where we have these tremendous soaking 

 rains I believe it pays to cultivate down deep, 

 pi'oviding the plants are snuill and we do not 

 go too near them. Yes, 1 believe that, under 

 such circumstances, a subsoil plow would help 

 the plants to stand a drouth that might conn^ 

 during the latter part of the season. 



A NE\V FORAGE -PLANT. 



Like many of the rest of you, I have, for a 

 month or two back, been reading with great 

 interest the seed-catalogs. Whatever may be 

 said in the way of extravagance and misrepre- 

 sentation in the way of bringing out new 

 plants, there is no question but that the seed- 

 catalogs of our land are a wonderful means of 

 education, and a great help in the way of com- 

 paring notes and experiences. How pleasant 

 It is to hear or to see. rather, how others have 

 succeeded with the new things we have been 

 watching anxiously! Now, 1 have alighted 

 upon something that fills me with such en- 

 thusiasm that there is a strong tendency to fill 

 a page or more in regard to it. I will try, how- 

 ever, to hold off a little. And, by the way, I 

 have for years decided not to recommend any 

 thing until 1 have first tried it. The.Gault rasp- 

 berry might be said to be an exception. It is 

 true, I have never grown it yet myself; but I 

 saw it growing and bearing fruit on such poor 

 soil that it seemed almost as if there could be 

 no mistake about it. I notice some of the pa- 

 pers are criticising the plant, and the editor of 

 Gleanings likewise, for booming something 

 out of his line. Very well. Suppose we let the 

 matter drop then until I /wft'e myself grown it 

 on my own grounds. If, however, some of you 

 wish to try a plant or two, and test it for your- 

 selves, there certainly can be no objection. 

 Friend Gault is so near by, I propose to look 

 over his plantation quite often during the.com- 

 iug season. Jiut it is nut tne raspberry 1 wish 

 to talk about now. Let me explain. 



I told you some time ago about one of my 

 visits through Northern JNlichigan. I told you 

 of the miles of unoccupied sandy land because 

 nothing could be made to grow on it profitably. 

 I told you, too, that the Michigan Experiment 

 Station at Lansing had been at work on the 

 problem of finding some use for this vast un- 

 occupied territory. Well, they are beginning 

 to see daylight through the result of their 

 researches— at least, I think ihey are. Let me 

 diverge again a little. 



While in Arizona two years ago this present 

 winter 1 was full of enthu.^iasm over uw alfalfa- 

 fields that vver(! spreading out into the sandy 

 desert. Where people and animals would oth- 

 erwise starve, these alialfa-tracls with their 

 beatiful luxuriant green were furnishing food 

 and wealth for quite a population. I never 

 saw any thing in my life in gardening or crops 

 that pleased me as did the alfalfa- fields; and I 

 have had a longing for something of the sort 

 here at my own home. Friend Terry's clover- 

 fields came pretty iK^ar it. lint clover do(is not 

 go down deep enough, and it is not permanent 

 enough to suit me. I want something like al- 



