THE GENESEE FARMER. 



255 



An American Mowing Machine in England. — The Lon- 

 don AgrkiiUural Gazette of July 7, speaking of the forth- 

 coming Exhibition of the Eoyal Agricultural Society, 

 says : 



"Notliing is now more perfectly certain than the avail- 

 ability of machinery for cutting grass. The road to the 

 show-yard lies through a grass field from which a heavy 

 crop of bay has just been gathered. It has bet^n niowu 

 by scythe, and the ([uality uf its performance when com- 

 pared with Wood's mower is obviously very inferior. The 

 stubble IS left of uuexen length, and a great deal of it 

 much too lung where the mowing has been done by hand ; 

 where done by the horse-drawn mower the stubble is of 

 perfectly even length, and no sythe could remove anything 

 more, worth saving." 



Sorghum Sugar. — We have received specimens of sugar 

 made by Cook's Portable Sugar Evaporator from the 

 Chinese .sugar cane. It is nearly as white as the best 

 ■ cane sugar. This sugar evaporator is manufiictured by 

 Messrs. Bi.tmyus, Bates & Day, of Mansfield, Ohio, and is 

 highly sj)oken of. For price, kc, see advertisement in 

 this number of the Farmer. 



The Farmer and Rural Annual Clubs. — We will send 

 eight copies of the Genesee Farmer for the currant half- 

 volume (July to December, inclusivej, and eight copies 

 of the Rural Annual and Horticultural Director]/ for 18G0, 

 for three dollars (374 cents each), and an extra copy of the 

 Farmer and Annual to the person getting up the club. 



The Rural Annual and Horticultural Directort. — 

 As aniiouuced last month, we have just struck oft' another 

 edition of three thousand copies of this work for 18G0. 

 Nut a reader of the Farmer should be without this work. 

 It will be sent prepaid by mail to any addre*js for twenty- 

 five cents. 



Ladies Department. — We are compelled to omjt the 

 Ijudies' Department this month. It is our wish to devote 

 more space to this department, and should feel obliged 

 if our fair readers would send us a few short and appro- 

 priate contributions. 



The Rural PoETKr of the English L\nguage. — (T. L. 

 M.) We will send yon, or others, this beautiful book, 

 prepaid by miul, on the recer[3t of the publishers price, 



$3 00. 



Inquiries and Answers. 



Farms for Sale. — I have often thought that it would 

 be interesting and useful to the readers of the Genesee 

 Farmer if those having farms for sale or to rent would 

 advertise them in your paper. The advertisements need 

 not be long — briefiy stating the location of the farm, num- 

 ber of acres, improvements, buildings, price, etc. — John 

 Williams, July, 1860. 



This is a good suggestion, and one which we shall be 

 happy to see carried out. We will make a special depart- 

 ment in our advertising columns for this purpose. Let 

 the advertisements be sent in early in the month, and as 

 sJiort as possible. 



Wire Worms. — Can any of your readers tell me a 

 method of destroying the wire-worm. — W. D. L. Branip- 

 ton, C. W. 



Destroying Wild Mustard. — Will some of your cor- 

 respondents inform me of a more eflectual way of destroy- 

 ing it than by pulling by hand? — L. M., Franktown, 0. W. 



Unfruitful Apple Trees. — I have four apple trees, 

 about fifteen years old, all tliiifty and apparently in good 

 cimdition. They bloom abundantly every spring, but 

 while the fruit is forming it all di'ops. I have pruned 

 and dug aboui them, but without success. Will you, or 

 some of your correspondents, please inform me through 

 the Farmer how 1 must proceed V—B. R. D., Flrn iSpriiKj, 



We suspect that these trees, although they are iiov,- 

 " apparently in good condition," have been stunted by 

 poor culture, which has caused them to form an excessive 

 quantity of fruit-spurs. The remark of our correspond- 

 ent, that he has pruned the trees and dug about them, to 

 cause them to set fruit, leads to the inference that this 

 practice has not been habitual with him, during the whole 

 growth of the trees since transplanting, as most assuredly 

 it should have been. 



That the trees " bloom abundantly," but set no fruit, is 

 evidence in itself that they are not equal to the task im- 

 posed on them, and the strength of the trees is exhausted 

 in the production of the blossoms. 



Our advice is to continue to cultivate the soil about 

 them as far as their roots extend ; in the fall give it a 

 good coat, two or three inches deep, of well-rotted man- 

 ure, and dig it in. During the winter, prune oft' two- 

 thirds of the wood of this summer's growth, and thin out 

 the branches where they are growing too close together 

 to admit the free passage of light and air. As soon as 

 the blossom buds form in the spring pick oS" three-fourths 

 of them; and if the desired result is not obtained the 

 first year, let this system of culture be followed up and it 

 will prove effectual. 



Budding the Peak on Thorn. — Can you or some of your 

 correspondents who are acquaiuted with the theory of 

 budding, inform me if it would be profitable to bud the 

 pear on thorn, or whether it would be more profitable to 

 graft in the roots of thorn, as the pear stocks are very 

 scarce in the West. I bought, in the spring of 1860 a lot 

 of apple, pear and cherry seedlings ; out of 3c.O pear seed- 

 lings, there are but 70 growing. Therefore, if thoi'u stocks 

 would answer the puipose as well as pear stocks, it would 

 be a great advantage to me, for there are thorn stocks 

 with us in abundance. — R. H. M., Falmyra, Ind. 



The pear may be worked on the thorn and form a tree 

 that will last a short time, but the union is quite imper-. 

 feet, and there must always be a feeling of insecurity in 

 high winds ; at the longest they are short-lived. 



There is no necessity of using this stock while good 

 trees budded on the Angers quince or pear stocks are to be 

 so easily obtained of the nurserymen. It is the worst of 

 folly to try to patch up unsuitable stock, or to waste land 

 in growing seedling apples, peaches, cherries, etc., when 

 good trwjs, of the verv best varieties of fruit, can be pur- 

 chased with little trouble and at reasonably moderate 

 rates. The planting, staking, training, and after culture 

 of the trees, is the same, whether the varieties are good 

 or bad ; and the first crop of good fruit usually pays the 

 difi'erence, if not more, of expense in the first cost. 



Trotting at Agricultural Fairs. — Are not our agri- 

 cultural exhibitions degenerating from what they were 

 first intended to be V The intention of the originators of 

 these exhibitions was to improve stock; to advance agri- 

 cultural and mechanical scieuce; and to further agricultu- 

 ral improvement. But what is the effect? Mainty, I 

 would say, to know whose horse can trot the fastest. 

 Take away this part of the exhibition and it will cease to 

 attract attention — in fact, could not be sustained. This is 

 the case in our section, and peihajis more or less in others, 

 — W. H. Snyder, Jiosemon 



1 peinap: 

 f, i\; J. 



