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GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Aug. 15. 



and our wants will be alike. If you really wish 

 that God would look into our hearts and see the 

 purposes written there, then these purposes 

 must be honest and good — at least, we desire 

 that they should be honest and good. If God 

 sees our hearts, and we want him to see them 

 — if, in fact, we enjoy having him look over our 

 plans and purposes that are concealed from 

 mortal eyes, why, there can 7iot be any bad 

 ones. And the text includes something morn. 

 It takes in the thought that, if our words and 

 our meditations are not wholesome and proper. 

 God will straighten us out — tell us our errors, 

 and make us good and pure: make us love our 

 neighbors: make us at an agreement with him; 

 and if we agree with him. we shall agree with 

 each other. Oh! but wouldn't it just be fun to 

 do business were all people like that — where 

 everybody desires the good of his neighbor as 

 much as he desires his own good ? 



And now, my unbelieving friend. I want to 

 leave this verse with you. I want you to be 

 honest in this one thing, anyhow. Am I not 

 right in saying that we should have a heaven 

 here on earth if everybody honestly prayed — 

 prayed to God, I mean — that simple little 

 prayer? And now if you really feel aroused 

 and intiTested in this wonderful text. I wish 

 you would read the whole chapter. This 19th 

 Psalm is one of the celebrated ones. 



And now I want to close this little talk with 

 two other texts that run quite parallel. Here 

 they are: 



Search me, O God, and try my lieai-t; try me, and 

 know my tliouglits. and see if there be any wicked 

 way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. — 

 Psalm 139 : 3:5, 34. 



You will at least admit this much— I am sure 

 you will, every one of you: Wouldn't this world 

 be a better one if there were more people who 

 honestly prayed, from the bottom of their 

 hearts, such prayers as these I have given you? 



High-pressure Gardening. 



PLANTING STRAWBEKRIKS IN AUGUST. 



This will always be the favorite time. or. at 

 least, one of ihe favorite times, with market- 

 gardeners, for putting out strawberries, for the 

 reason that spots of ground will be vacated 

 all through this month and next. Another 

 thing, our ground, as a rule, is in better con- 

 dition to work in August and September 

 than at any other mouth of the year; and es- 

 pecially during the past four or five seasons has 

 it been too wet to get the ground in proper con- 

 dition in the spring. I know there has been a 

 good deal of grumbling because certain straw- 

 berry-growers have advised fall planting. Their 

 objections may hold good so far as the average 

 farmer is concerned. But with the market 

 gardener who is accustomed to putting out 

 plants whenever he gets ready or feels like it. 

 and who knows exactly what he can do and 

 what he can not do. it is just the time for him. 

 We have been putting out strawberry-plants 

 almost daily for a month back, or wh(>never a 

 piece of ground could be cleared off. Of course, 

 we put in lots of manure, plow it deep, and 

 work it up fine: then if the weather is very hot, 

 dry. and sultry, we pour about a teacupful of 

 water around the roots of each plant. Then, 

 to prevent baking, we cover the surface with 

 fine dry soil. Whole rows of plants put out in 

 this manner, during the hottest and dryest days 

 of this hot month of August, show every plant 

 living. Furthermore, as we ran short of plants 



of some varieties, to fill out the row we took up 

 old plants with black dry roots. These, too. 

 are growing and sending out I'unners. But 

 pleai^e bear in mind that tlie ground was made 

 very rich: and right where the plant was put 

 out it was made very wet. fine dirt being pulled 

 over the wetness, so as to prevent it from dry- 

 ing out. Of course, however, we have had so 

 far good soaking rains on an average of once 

 evei'v week or ten days. 



Now. another advantage of fall-set plants is 

 this: If done in the proper manner they will 

 put out runners, and you will have a nice stand 

 of plants (not at all crowded, of course) by the 

 time winter sets in; and if you want fruit you 

 will get at least half a crop of the veiy largest 

 and linest berries, providing always, of course, 

 that you mulch them to keep them out of the 

 dirt. During the next summer you can get 

 just as complete a stand of pi ants for a matted 

 row as you may desire. As a rule, work is not 

 crowding during August and ■September, as it 

 is in spring: and although we have tried both 

 ways repeatedly, this month and the next will 

 probably always be our I'egular time for putting 

 out strawberries. After they have given us 

 two crops, the whole bed is turned under, just 

 as soon as the last beri'y is picked; and we so 

 invariably get splendid crops of almost every 

 thing planted, where stra\Nberries have been 

 turned under, I am beginning to think that 

 a heavy growth of strawberry-plants is worth 

 almost as much to turn under as a heavy 

 stand of clover. Cucumbers for pickles, wax 

 beans, late beets, and lots of other things 

 that should be put in just about the time 

 berry-picking is over, always thrive wonder- 

 fully after strawberries. Prof. Green, of the 

 Ohio Experiment Station, was on our grounds 

 this week, and he could hardly realize that the 

 cabbages we showed him were planted after an 

 immense crop of strawberries had been taken 

 from the same ground. 



CABBAGE-WORMS BANISHED BY THE USE OF 

 COMMON WHEAT FLOUR. 



For destroying cabbage-worms, sift common 

 wheat tiour over the plants while the dew is 

 still on them, and it will stop the ravages of 

 said worm. The dew makes a sort of paste 

 with the flour, which sticks to the worm, hold- 

 ing him fast, and the heat of the sun later in 

 the day destroys what remains of his majesty. 

 I have copied and tried it. R. V. Murray. 



Cleveland. O. 



[Thanks, friend Murray. It is very comfort- 

 ing to know that our engraver knows "sum- 

 mut" about gardening as well as bees. I 

 have several times noticed the use of flour for 

 cabbage-worms; but my faith was small, owing 

 to the fact that almost as many remedies have 

 been given through the papers as we have rem- 

 edies for bee-stings. Vvith your explanation, 

 however. I look at it differently, and we will 

 make a test of it at once. By the way, as we 

 wish to use as much I'conomy as possible, even 

 with wheat flour, can it not be used in our ordi- 

 nary dust- bellows^] 



WHAT IS A FAIR STRAWBERRY CROP ? 



I bought 100 Strawberry-plants one year ago, 

 and want to know how much fruit I should have 

 for a good crop. I got this year only 1.54 quarts. 

 Have I done well ? They are Sharpless. 



Jackson. Mich., June 27. W. D. Higdon. 



[Why. I should think you had done exceed- 

 ingly well, friend H. A hundred plants, as we 

 put them out. would make only 200 feet of row; 

 and if increased so as to give over three pints of 

 berries from the parent plant and its surround- 

 ing young plants, you should be satisfied.] 



