278 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Apr. 1. 



TOP ONION-SETS. 



As long ago a« when I was a lid, our peojile raised 

 these same "top onion-sets," and for keeping qualities 

 and firmness 1 have never found their equal ; and if 

 grown in a favoralile season they are very crisp and 

 sweet flavored. In a very dry seasin they will grow 

 very slowlj', and be strong, and small in .size. This is 

 true of any onion, so far as my experience goes. It 

 has been my custom to rai.se from one p' ck to 12 bush- 

 els of the.se sets every year for the last 2.") years. There 

 is always a local demand for these sets in our section, 

 and they are staple goods. The principal use is for 

 green onions before others mature. 



Kirkwood, N. V. C. G. Marsh. 



COFFEE BEANS. 



I have raised several kinds of coffee beans, and wish 

 to say that, besides using them for coffee, we cook 

 them as we do other beans, and find them very palat- 

 able ; and as for nutriment, they have but few equals. 

 They also make some of the richest kind of meal for a 

 cow giving milk, and are very u.seful to feed hens as 

 egg-producers. I have none for sale. 



Hendersonville, N. C. J. I<. Hubbard. 



I am glad to get the above, for I have for a 

 long time felt that the coffee beans were valu- 

 able for many purposes besides coffee. They 

 will grow on any soil, and with an}' sort of a 

 chance will make a tremendous yield. The 

 plant is as valuable as any of the clovers for 

 improving the ground. Let us have them 

 raised in such quantities that they can be sold 

 as cheapl}' as the navy beans. 



SWKKT POT.ATI CULTTRE — GROWINC! THE PLANTS. 



Making the plant-bed usually begins about the first 

 of April in Southern Ohio; farther South it should be 

 earlier; north, later. The bed that is easie.st for the 

 novice is the ' manure bed." This can be made by 

 setting the frame on top of the heatin,a: manure, or by 

 digging a pit a foot deep, dumping in the manure, 

 and setting the frame over this. In either case it is 

 neces.sary that the manure should "heal up" before 

 putting on the dirt. Tf you wish the bed to hold heat 

 a long time it is lietter to use two feet of straw in the 

 bottom and the manure on top of this. Be sure to 

 tramp it down well before putting on the dirt, which 

 should be about :! in. r'eep. and not packed. Also pro- 

 vide drainage. If this should be neglected you may 

 awake some morning and find your bed filled with 

 water. This would cause a rapid cooling of the ma- 

 nure. After making the bed, place a thermometer in 

 the dirt; ctver it w'th boards or cotton cloth (you will 

 not need sash for this bed), and allow the temperature 

 to run down to !ll)° before bedding the potatoes; 10t1° 

 will not hn t the potatoes if you have properly tem- 

 pered them before bedding, if you depend upon buy- 

 ing your potatoes, keep them in a warm corner by the 

 kitchen .stove at least a week; they will have become 

 acclimated by that time, and the high temperature of 

 the hot bed will not cause .so many to rot. [ have 

 seen many 1 eds burn up the potatoes because they 

 were too cold, and the change in temperature was too 

 sudden. Before bedding my potatoes I usually run 

 the temperature up to ilO° a week before taking them 

 from the cellar. 



With bottom heat, be careful that the potatoes do 

 not touch each other, and do not cut the large ones. 

 Cover the pot.iti es with A inches of fine sifted loam or 

 .sand. 1 believe I p efer a mixture of well-rotted ma- 

 nure, fine garden soil, and wood ashes run through a 

 sieve with a i^-inch mc-h. I know many will ol)ject 

 to c.vering the potatoes so deep but I am sure they 

 will root better in -t inches of soil than in - inches. 



Never water till the sprouts are well through, and 

 then water in the morning on bright days. Watering 

 in cloudy weather o late in the evening often causes 

 the plants to take slem rot. 



If you are going to raise enough plants for an acre 

 of ground, and have enough to .supply your neighbors 

 also, you will find the manure-bed too laboiious. Some 

 three yea's ago I planned to heat a bed by blowing 

 ,steam into tile-; Ju.st as I was re.idy to bed my potatoes 

 my boiler sprang a leak, and I put in the potatoes 

 without any bottom heat whatever. In following this 

 plan I find it is necessary to .start the potatoes in the 

 cellar by running the temperature up to ilO° some 

 two weeks before bedding; have the frames well pro- 

 tected on the sides, and leave the sash on till the 

 sprouts are well through the ground. In this form uf 



bed the potatoes can lie close together; in fact, I carry 

 them from the cellar and dump thetn, spreading them 

 with my hinds. Do not ventilate during the warm 

 days, even if the temperature should run up to 110°. 

 ].,et the fiist few sprouts that appear burn; it will not 

 dama e thejn much; they w ill so n regain their vigor 

 when the bed is ventilated. Just as soon as the sprouts 

 begin to show over two thiids of the be<i, then it is 

 time to give ventilation, and soon the sash can be left 

 off during niglit and day but niu.st always be put on 

 whenever there i.s any indication of frost. The sweet- 

 potato plant will not stand freezing, no miitter how 

 much tiiey have been hardened. The same rule for 

 watering will apply for this form of bed al.so. 



The plants will not come up .so evenly in this form 

 of bed, and the first year I clipped them off whenever 

 they grew over four inches high; but this seemed to 

 stunt the plants so much that I thought of another 

 plan which I find to be very successful. Whenever 

 the plants reach 4 or (i in. in height I pvill them and 

 heel them in good rich mellow soil, where they can 

 get plenty of .sunshine, and about 25 to the foot. 



I dig a shallow trench with a spade or ma.son's 

 trowel, then take a handful of plants in my left hand, 

 and, by the aid of my right, just spread them along in 

 the row, pushing the dirt again.st them so they will 

 stand straight, making the rows 10 inches apart. I 

 water them the same as the beds; they must not be 

 watered on cloudy days, and they must be protected 

 from rain. If 5'ou are not cautious about this you will 

 find them growing with the stem rot .some day when 

 you are least e.xpecting it. 



By following this plan you will be able to get five or 

 si.x pullings from a bed. Every time you pull the 

 plants that are ready it gives the remaining ones a 

 much better chance. You will also find these trans- 

 planted plants ever so much better than those just 

 taken from the bed, and you will get almost double 

 the amount of plants also. 



This method of transplanting plants will serve just 

 as well for other plants, especially those that have 

 come from a di.stance. I never set plants in a field 

 that are shipped to me, unless the weather is very fa- 

 vorable. Heel them in and wait till they start to 

 growing, which will be shown by the little white root- 

 lets making a fresh start. 



I neglected to say that one must not stamp the ma- 

 nure with the feet, but must take a boTrd tht width of 

 the bed and walk across, .stepping off, turning over, 

 and walking back, repeating this till the bed is fin- 

 ished, then put on the dirt. J. Q. Mulford. 



I,ebanon, Ohio. 



Coiichidi'd hi tie.i't issue. 



PILGRIM SONG. 



BY REV. NORMAN PLAS.?. 



We. as pilgrims of a day. 

 Only once can pass this way; 

 Therefore let us tiot delay, 

 .\\\y good we can bestow 

 As we on our journey go. 



That will prove a" boon indeed, 

 I.,et's bestow it. 

 .\ny kindness we can show 

 That will ea^e another's w.e 



And his hungry spirit feed, 

 I,et us show it. 

 Any luster we can throw, 

 Others' paths to set aglow 



And their feet to glory speed, 

 I<et \is throw it. 

 I^et us not defer, neglect; 

 God-.sent moments we reject 

 When our time we .select. 

 Let us fill each moment, then, 

 Full of fragrant gifts to men; 

 We'll not pass this way again. 



DANZENB.AKER'S BOOK. 



I have had Danzenbaker's " P'acts about Bees" a 

 long time, b\it never took particular time to read it 

 thoroughly, n ir .see how very practical it is, till yes- 

 terday. Tread it through, and, without any exagger- 

 ation at all. I positively think it the best and most 

 coinmon-sen.se and practical little book 1 ever read, 

 and I have been reading beeology for the last 2.5 years. 



Kingston, N. Y., Feb. 24. Aaron Snyder. 



