42 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



[ March, 



in shingling a i"oof. I recall one particular 

 occasion in the shingling of the shed of a 

 cider-press. It was shingled with oak shin- 

 gles, all made from one tree. Those shingles 

 that were put on in the rising turned up their 

 ends, and looked like the reversed feathers of 

 a certain variety of chickens, (Siraub-hinMe) 

 once very common on every farm ; whilst 

 those that were put on in the setting remained 

 flat. 



Pruning trees is best when done in the 

 "increase," (Zumemcn) because the wound 

 will then heal sooner, and the wood will grow 

 over the wound than when the limbs are cut 

 oft" in the "decrease," (Abnemen). These are 

 matters upon which every one can and ought 

 to experiment for himself. — J. O., Wanvick, 

 March, 1878. 



[It may be necessary for us to say, that by 

 "rising" and "setting," and by "increase" 

 and "decrease," our contributor alludes to 

 the diflereut phases of the moon. Of course 

 we do not hold ourselves responsible for the 

 opinions entertained by those who write for 

 The Farmer, but equity requires us to give 

 our patrons an opportunity to express their 

 views on all subjects relating to agricultural 

 economy. We may, however, say this, that a 

 larger number of the citizens of Lancaster 

 county — and perhaps of the whole State of 

 Pennsylvania — attach more or less importance 

 to these "signs and seasons," than we have 

 any idea of ; and, as our contributor hints, 

 many of those who puhlidy repudiate them, 

 privately practice them. They seem to be 

 inborn in our people ; moreover, there are 

 many phenomena tliat seem utterly inexpli- 

 cable upon any other basis. It is ac- 

 knowledged that the moon affects the tides 

 and physical health, and this is only carrying 

 its influence to the more solid substances.] 



For The Lancaster Farmer. 

 REVU OF THE FEBRUARY NUMBER. 



Home Expressions. — It shud be som encur- 

 agment to the Editor and Publisher of The 

 'Farmer, that ther ar a fu of the county jur- 

 nals that apreciat its merits, 'but the many 

 farmers liu shud patronis it, prefer to help 

 bild up jurnals from ain'oad. 



Kitchen Garden Calender. — Farmers hu wil 

 not prepar hotbeds, wil be served rit if tha 

 hav to wat thre weks longer for thar erly 

 vegetables. 



Lancaster County Pajjers. — If Iha wil in- 

 creas in a proportionat ratio, every man wil 

 publish his on paper by and by. 



Queries and Ansioers. — The Editors reply 

 is gud advis to planters. Many shud tak 

 advantag ov it. Thar is no necesite for hy- 

 ing so many peches from other stats, while 

 tha can be gron at horn. 



Peek Bark Louse. — Pech groers beter kep 

 an I on it, as it mit spoil our pech prospects. 



The Loraljard Plum Inks fln on paper, and 

 no dout also on the tre, if the litle turk don't 

 put his trad-mark on it. 



Essay on Grape Culture is vere gud, but it 

 is tu long to overhaul it in arevu of this kind. 



Half way plowing and harrowing wheat by 

 J. G. ma satisfy him, but we must not forget 

 that won swalo dos not make a sumer, nor is 

 won seson a far test for any crop. 



Ruralist exiilans his fowl air as we expected, 

 but he is a litle in the mist with our Fonetic, 

 but he wil yet lern to spel it without Ph. He 

 givs gud advis for rasing toliaco plants, and 

 we are glad that he did not get his bristles up 

 instead of puting. them down. 



The Coming Tomato has reched us about 

 wons a yer, and no dout wil be coming for a 

 long wile yet. 



Planting Trees for Timber and Fuel seems 

 to be a mooted question — we hav strong argu- 

 ments pro and con. A. B. K. has bandied 

 the subject very wel. It wud be beter not to 

 trifle with this matter tu long, for we al no 

 that timber can not be gron at short notis, 

 like field crops. 



Hoeing Wheat. — This is water on our mil. 

 We belev strongly in the doctrine, and pre- 

 dict a buz if gud reports com in this seson 

 wher it is tested. 



Dairying. — This is an interesting subject, 

 and Mr. Reall has handled it wel. The asso- 

 ciated plan shud work as wel her as in other 

 sections, wher it has proven quite succesful. 



Dark Brahma Fowls. — We wud not object 

 to receiving a par lik them as a present — we 

 wud prefer them to squashes. 



Address on Fruit Growing by President Val- 

 der. — This is won of the best articles on this 

 subject that we hav sen. But Mr. Calder 

 never talks nonsense, nor wastes words to no 

 purpose. It wud do yur county societe gud 

 to hav him give a lectur on any subject per- 

 taining to Agriculture or Horticulture. 



Paris Letter. — We ma alwas expect som- 

 thing nu from France. The leter contains 

 som things worth trying here. 



Agricultural and Horticultural Society is 

 not progressing vere fast, but beter slo than 

 not at at. We think som of the smaler coun- 

 tes hav mor active societies. 



Tobacco Growers Association sems to spred 

 mor than any other societe. Perhaps ther is 

 no more in it than in other pursuts. Som ov 

 the members, however, sem redy to growl if 

 tha don't get 30 cents per lb. Formerle tha 

 wer wel satisfid when tha got 10 or 12 cents 

 per lb. Wonder if thar aint some sharks 

 among the groers as wel as the byers. Can't 

 the groers send samples to Paris ? 



The Linnean Society dos not mak so big a 

 splurg as the others that met in the sam rum, 

 but we think it serves the public as much and 

 posterite mor. 



Value of Hen Manure. — This is an articl 

 that is niuch neglected. Perhaps if it wer 

 caled hen guano it wud be valued more. 



Oat Meal as Diet. — Its incresed consumption 

 augurs wel for economy in diet, as also the 

 cousequent helth of thos hu us it. Ther has 

 ben som prejudis against ethig hors fed, but 

 why not et it as wel as hog fed. 



Walking iiorscs.— This articl shud be print- 

 ed in larg leters and posted in every farmers 

 hors stabl in the county. It mit be of grat 

 vain. 



We must drop som articls, or revu wil get 

 too long. — Von Humbolt. 



For The Lancaster Farmer. 

 FRUIT— WHAT VARIETIES TO GROW. 



By special request, I will make some note 

 of my personal experience in growing apples 

 and other fruits, in Lancaster county. There 

 are certain localities within our domain which 

 we may properly call fruit-belts, where we 

 can raise apples, pears, peaches, cherries and 

 grapes with the usual success. All we have 

 to do, is to plant and replant, and we can 

 bring fruit to reasonable perfection. But, it 

 is at the .same time a life-study and a daily 

 experience. In some localities in this county 

 we can raise no fruit successfully but apples, 

 and in others both apples and pears, and 

 again in other places the apple tree will not 

 thrive, or will produce only very inferior 

 fruit. It is, therefore, necessary to find out 

 the nature of our soil, in order to know what 

 is, or what is not adapted to the different 

 localities. Forest and fruit trees thrive well 

 in some localities whetlier they be high or low 

 dry or wet. The Black-oak and Hickory re- 

 quire a rich dry soil ; the Po])lar, White-oak 

 and Red-oak, a low and wet soil ; the Black- 

 walnut and Locust, a deep, dry alluvial soil ; 

 the Persimmon, Paw-paw and Pear, a low, 

 loamy soil. The sweet-cherry will never 

 thrive in low places, and especially not along 

 a creek, or low running water. The Early 

 Richmond cherry will thrive either on high or 

 low ground, and so will the Prune, if it is not 

 destroyed by the curculio. 



I spoke in the beginning about fruit belts. 

 I own a part of one, where we can raise al- 

 most any kind of fruit adapted to this lati- 

 tude, almost to perfection. MetaphoMcall)- 

 speaking, or in point of altitude, we are one 

 of the neighbors of Gen. Geo. M. Steinman, 

 of Martic township, in this county, but we 

 are twenty miles apart. We are on the 

 southern slope of Kissel-Hill, or New Haven 

 Hill, running east to the Conestoga, near 

 EarlvUle, Our place is MUlport, and our 



township is built from the valley up to the 

 hill, from the summit of which we can see the 

 residence of Mr. Steinman and other build- 

 ings east of the Copper mines and Octoraro 

 Hills. I planted a small orchard eighteen 

 years ago — also Co trees twelve, and the same 

 number eleven years ago ; and at the same 

 time filled up an old orchard, where a good 

 many trees were missing. The three diflerent 

 orchards are less than half a mile apart. The 

 old orchard is on a Red-shale southern slope : 

 the twelve year orchard on rich gravel, 

 southern slope of a lower location, and the 

 eleven year orchard is on a wet loam and still 

 lower in location. I have most of the new 

 popular varieties of apples growing, but not 

 yet in a bearing condition. In order to save 

 time and space I omit naming the varieties. 

 The Red-shale orchard is the best of the three 

 and seldom fails to produce a good crop, as 

 can be attested by Mr. J. B. Garber and 

 others who have seen it loaded down with 

 apples, when they were scarce elsewhere. I 

 planted from one nursery iu the three or- 

 chards, three trees at the same planting. 

 Those in the Red-shale orchard are bearing 

 heavily. The Hubbardston Nonsuch are the 

 largest trees, but they are rather "shy" 

 bearers, whilst in the old orchard they bear 

 profusely, and come to perfection. As I was 

 requested to give a list of apples for our 

 county, I must speak of diflerent varieties for 

 diflferent localities, because I have experienced 

 that some varieties will do best in limestone 

 land, or in gravel, sand or loam. Sometimes 

 apples in their native places will do well, 

 whilst they will utterly fail in others. I think 

 it wrong to discard some of the older varieties 

 of apples. I desire to have a good word for 

 the old Pennsylvania Redstreak and Smoke- 

 house, for yield or profit. I have ten trees of 

 Northern Spy of eighteen years planting, and 

 I got out of patience with them for not bear- 

 ing. But two years ago they began to bear 

 liberally, and I now consider them worthy of 

 culture. The apples on my place are the 

 Pound, Baldwin, York-Imperial, Berks coun- 

 ty cider, Kj-auser, Conestoga Pippin, Para- 

 dise, Winesap, and Romanite. The latter is 

 my principal winter apple, and at the present 

 writing it is the only apple in use in my 

 family. The Millport Sheepnose is also a 

 prominent apple with me, but on account of 

 their overbearing they are not long livers. 

 The Spahnhower is a good summer apple— a 

 middle-sized red-api>le — an ornament to the 

 tree or table. —i. <5. P.— Oregon, March, 1878. 

 [We regret that L. S. R. so completely 

 ignores the Rambo. In its season there is not 

 a better fall and winter eating apple, and 

 none more healtiiful and generous to the taste. 

 It is also good in a stew, pie, dumpling or 

 fritter — none better. — Ed.] 



^ 



For The Lancaster Farmee. 

 AROUND THE FARM.— No. 6. 



Sweet Potato Plant. 



Many farmers have a difficulty in raising 

 sweet-potato plants. As we have had uni- 

 form success in raising fine plants it may not 

 be out of place to give our method of laying 

 up the tubes : Dig out the old miild of your 

 pit about two feet deep and fill up with fresh 

 horse manure. Cover the manure about three 

 inches deep with the mold that was thrown 

 out and on this lay the tubers, covering them ; 

 also with mold about two inches deep. Don't 

 use glass, the plants don't come quite as soon 

 Ijut are much hardier. The bed should be 

 sprinkled every morning with warm water 

 and covered at night with carpet or matting. 

 Care should be taken not to let cold rains to 

 fall on the plants. By this method we have 

 raised fine plants. 



Fire Wcod. 



In going through the country one sees sights ] 

 sometimes which do not uphold the boasted 

 credit of Lancaster county. One of these is 

 that of women chopping wood. Whatever 

 tends to elevate and lighten woman's labor 

 should engage the attention of every farmer. 

 Their labor is so varied and multitudinous 



