THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



173 



Expressing Opinions. 



Criticisms were next called for. The corn crop 

 tolerable; lioRS looi; well, but their pen miplit be 

 improved. Tliere should be flowers in the front 

 yard, some thought; others thought a well kept yard 

 looks better without flowers, though the majority 

 favored flowers; they tend to reflncnient. One of the 

 ladies thought they were like children— they are a 

 pleasant trouble. 



Literary Exercises. 



Recitation, "Good Old Farm," by Vhebc King; 

 Mabel A. Haines recited "An Incident," setting 

 forth the diflferenl positions to which some are born, 

 and how a little cliild was sent with a bottle to get 

 filled with rum on a cold night, and was found by a 

 lawyer, who had been musing and wondering why 

 he was favored more than others. On going but he 

 lound this little creature almost dead. He tried to 

 bring her to life, when she begged to be left to die 

 saying, that even for her father, wliom she dearly 

 loved, she could not enter the dreadful ihu. And 

 also showing it to be the duty of every man to vote 

 for prohibition, and do everything in their power to 

 banish intoxicating liquor. Mabel Haines read the 

 "Woman Farmer," showing what a woman can do. 

 East or West, Which? 



Regular question, "What advantages have the 

 Western farmers over the Eastern?" The principal 

 advantage was that no fertilizers are needed, but to 

 balance this they get small prices for their produce, 

 and they have to undergo many privations. If we 

 are willing to live here as we have to in a new coun- 

 try, we would make money equally as fast. A farm 

 in the West, where a person can live comfortably, 

 costs almost as much as East, (a farm with all the 

 Improvements). The only advantage, if you must 

 endure privations, is your neighbors are like you and 

 here you would be alone. Many persons who go 

 West do not succeed, most of them becoming discon- 

 tented ; upon the whole, we think the argument was 

 in favor of staying East and improving the advan- 

 tages we have. We do not have such severe storms 

 and do not have so many destructive insects. 

 Programme for Next Meeting. 



"Would the average farmer who owns a farm be 

 justifiable in buying another of the same size, going 

 into -iebt for the latter, the other being free, if he 

 could get the money at five per cent ?" 



Literary appointments: Sadie A. Brown, Nettie 

 .lackson, Mabel A.Haines, Phebe and Mary A. King, 

 for recitations or selections. 



Adjourned to meet at the residence of Josiah 

 Brown, on the first Saturday of December. 



MEETING OF THE STATE BOARD OF 

 AGRICULTURE. 



A meeting of the State Board of Agriculture was 

 held at Mercer, October 17, 1879. Dr. Calder, Presi- 

 dent of the Slate College, read an essay, entitled, 

 "Should Agricultural Text-Books be Introduced in 

 the Common Schools?" Dr. Calder is too well 

 known to question his ability to handle well 

 any subject he undertakes. His arguments in the 

 affirmative were strong, and were heartily 

 endorsed by the meeting. A resolution was passed 

 to that efiect. I shall be disappointed if .such a 

 measure will not be carried into effect in the rurtil 

 districts in the near future, as the head of the scliool 

 department expressed not only his willingness but 

 also hie desire to give it his hearty co-operation. 



An essay on potatoes, their culture and best varie- 

 ties, was read by Hon. N. T. Underwood, of Wayne 

 county. From his essay it was easily understood 

 that he is no novice in potato culture. It was evident 

 that we were in a potato region, as the essay elicited 

 quite an interesting discussion, which placed promi- 

 nent some varieties not extensively cultivated in 

 your section. Early Vermont and Early Ohio were 

 considered more desirable than Early Rose. Early 

 Ohio was especially highly spoken of. Burbank's 

 seedling was highly spoken of as a late variety, both 

 as to quality and productiveness. Cuttings or whole 

 potatoes lor seed came in for a lively debate, but, as 

 usual, may be considered a drawn game; nothing 

 was proven except that both methodswere best. 

 The Law of Trespass. 

 Mr. G. W. Hood, of Indiana county, read a paper 

 on "The Laws of Trespass as They Relate to Agri- 

 culture." The gentleman is a lawyer by profession. 

 He defined quite a number of laws which every 

 farmer should know for himself, as it would, no 

 doubt, prevent many litigations which are invariably 

 much more expensive and unpleasant than a little 

 study of common laws would be. The discussion 

 upon this subject culminated in an apparently unani- 

 mous agreement that a small manual containing the 

 matter referred to should be published and circulated, 

 so as to be in reach of every farmer. Who, in the 

 face of so many lawyers throughout the country 

 will prepare such a work ? 



"What crops are most profitable on the cleared 

 pine lands of Pennsylvania?" by Mr. J. A. Herr, of 

 Clinton county, contained many excellent hints, 

 which if put into practice would prove that there is 

 room for thousands of farmers to purchase cheap 



lands that would pay good interest by proper man- 

 agement, without going 1,000 miles or more west- 

 ward. Mr. Herr is of Lancaster county stock, and 

 well posted generally. 



A paper was read by Dr. Roland, of York, enti- 

 tled, "The State Boaril of Agriculture." in which he 

 reviewed the past, defined the present, and ventured 

 some prediction of the usefulness of the Board In the 

 future, if it continues to discharge the duties for 

 which it was created. 



The doctor's term expires with this year, and he 

 does not expect to return, which is to be regretted, 

 as he is one of the most efllclent members of the 

 Board. 



Prof. F. A. Allen, of Tioga county, read an essay 

 on "Experimental agriculture— its results and 

 lessons," which was replete with many valuable 

 hints of interest to farmeis generally, but especially 

 to such as are not afraid to step out of the old ruts. 

 He advocated experimenting in agriculture, but not 

 loosely, as is the very common practice, which is 

 mostly guess work and is unreliable. 



Mr. Allen experiments extensively, but is very 

 cautious in drawing conclusions. He applies com- 

 mercial fertilizers largely, and is quite successful in 

 raising regular and large crops; but on being asked 

 the eti'eels of certain fertilizers, he almost invariably 

 answered, "I don't know." His method is appar- 

 ently to supply his land witli fertilizing material, 

 such as he knows crops generally require, without 

 relying too much on specialities. 



All the papers presented having been read and 

 discussed, tlic meeting adjourned «»«; (itc on Thurs- 

 day, Ifith inst., at 2.:i0 p. m. 



It is not the province of your correspondent to 

 discuss the merits or demerits of the State Board, 

 but he would direct the attention of every farmer in 

 the State to its published volumes of 1877 and 1878, 

 and the forthcoming one of 1.S79, which they should 

 carefully compare with publications of the same 

 kind, which will enable any fair-minded man to 

 decide whether agriculture receives sufficient lienefit 

 to justify the continuation of the Board. 



Agriculture. 



Summer Cultivation of Wheat. 



The results of the experin.cnts in the cultivation 

 of wheat during the past year have not realized ex- 

 pectations ; at least not in this section of the coun- 

 try. Several farmers in tliis and the adjoining 

 county of Chester last autumn put in a small quan- 

 tity of wheat, generally from one to three acres, 

 with wide spaces between the drills, in which to har- 

 row in the coming spring. Generally these were 

 stirred three times and the grass-seed sown after the 

 last dressing, all the cultivation being finished about 

 the 10th or 1.5th of May. 



And while the crop of wheat in this locality is not 

 nearly so good as last year, when it was the largest 

 grown for a great many years, it is still above "the 

 <in:raf/e of several years past, and the cultivated 

 wheatsown alongside of wheat raised in the ordinary 

 way in the same field and with the same manuring, 

 is not so good, neither in straw nor grain. Several 

 bushels of grain per acre seem generally to be the 

 deficiency. This result causes us to inquire whether 

 this method of raising wheat is adapted to our 

 cliraatC: or whether Uie present season had anything 

 to do with it. In one instance at least in this county 

 in other years — that of GroflT's — the superiority of 

 the cultivated was most marked and beyond dispute. 

 Some will say it is contrary to the nature of wheat 

 for the earth around the plant to be disturbed while 

 growing; but this view I think can hardly be sup- 

 ported by any just analogy with other species of 

 growth. It is not considered good farming to let our 

 corn go unworked, no matter how thoroughly the 

 ground was tilled previous to planting. In setting 

 out a new orchard it is considered of the utmost im- 

 portance to cultivate it until the trees are pretty well 

 grown ; and the belief is pretty general that even 

 rank weeds will grow better when the earth is stir- 

 red around them than if left to become hard and 

 compact. And I believe this theory is supported by 

 the best English wheat-raisers who hoe their wheat 

 in the month of May. 



Now let not our progressive farmers be discouraged 

 by the result of this experiment for only one year, 

 but try again. 'Tis perseverance that uinavcls the 

 secrets of nature and teaches the farmer useful 

 things.— r. JBaker, Lancaster county, I'a., October, 

 187il, in Qermantomi Telegraph. 



A Mixture of Grasses. 

 It is a well known fact that mixed crois are r 

 productive than those sown singly. Thus one acre 

 sown to oats and barley, or oats and peas, will yield 

 as much, or nearly as much, as two acres sown 

 singly to either crop. So in grass lands, clover and 

 timothy, mixed, will produce nearly twice as much 

 as if the ground were seeded to one of these alone. 

 It is also a well known fact, that our grass lands 

 are not so productive as we could wish, and the 

 reason of this may be, and probably is, that we have 



but one or two kinds of herbage in Ihem. If we ex- 

 amine an old, thick, luxuriant sod, in a pasture or a 

 meadow, it will be found to consist of a variety of 

 trasses and other plants, each of which seems to vie 

 with the other in occupying the soil for Itsetf. This 

 Is the result of natural seeding, and gives us a 

 lesson which we may well proflt by. There Is 

 another reason why grasses should be mixed; this Is 

 that the periods of greatest vigor of different varie- 

 ties occur at different times. We can therefore 

 secure a succession of herbage lor a long season by 

 sowing a variety of grass seeds. 



To grivc examples, we might mention that a 

 mixture of orchard grass, red clover timothy and 

 Kentucky blue grass will produce a pasture which 

 will be in good condition for grazing from April, 

 when the first mentioned grass is In Hnc condition, 

 up to October, wlien the last is In Its most vigorous 

 state, the clover and timothy serving to fill up the 

 interval. With one of these alone there would be 

 but one month of good herbage, and that coarse if 

 given the whole field to Itself. In like manner, a 

 quantity of rye grass added to u meadow would help 

 to furnish a qu.ck-growlng herbage which rapidly 

 and constantly recuperates after cutting or eating 

 down. 



The fact is, that we make much less of our advan- 

 tages in regard to our meadows and pastures than 

 we might. — On the average, seven acres of pasture 

 arc required to keep one cow through the pasturing 

 season, when by the best management one acre, or 

 at the most two, ought to be sufflcleut. This Is due 

 in great measure to the prevalent fashion of seeding 

 down with but one variety of grass, with clover 

 added sometimes; a fashion which, hereafter, expe- 

 rience teaches us should be more honored In the 

 breach than in the observance. — Atnerican Ai/ricul- 

 tnrist. 



Changing Seed. 

 Much has been written on this subject, and much 

 of it is true. A single fact has been brought to my 

 notice this year, which Illustrates the good effect of 

 such change. Not having seed corn enough for a 

 field, a dozen ears were bought — all there was of a 

 choice sample of Dutton corn, a variety long grown 

 in this neighborhood and well liked. This sample 

 was planted in one corner of the field and marked. 

 In its growth nothing particular was noticed. When 

 we came to cut it up, the ears were better than on other 

 portions. We selected twenty-four strings of two 

 dozens ears each, a very choice sample for seed. The 

 remainder was also nice. From no other part of the 

 field of the same extent can one-half as much select- . 

 ed seed be picked. The land is no better, and only 

 in one way can I account for such extra growth — a 

 cliange of seed. — Correspondence Country (Jentleman. 



Bone Dust. 



As a general rule when American farmers use 

 bone dust they apply too small a quantity to show 

 decisive results. Thus in improving pasture a hun- 

 dred pounds or so might not show much good result, 

 because the growth being removed daily the increase 

 is not readily recognized^ Only think, if a pasture 

 season be considered one hundred and fifty days, 

 then a ton increase of feed per acre is but about 

 thirteen pounds a day over an acre. In England, 

 where -hone manuring is in favor, large quantities are 

 used with advantage. Prof. Tanner recommends 

 bone dust, applied at the rate of one ton per acre in 

 the autumn, for the improvement of grass lands.— 

 Scientific Farmer. 



Fall Plowing for Corn. 

 Heavy clay soils that have a good covering of 

 clover or grass sod may be plowed in September for 

 a crop of corn next season. We would not plow the 

 furrows flat, but set them on edge. In the spring a 

 good harrowing, lengthwise the furrows, will give a 

 sufficient depth of mellow soil for planting, leaving 

 the decomposed sod just where the roots can reach 

 it. A light application of artificial manure before 

 the harrowing in the spring would be beneficial. The 

 planting should immediately follow the harrow, 

 while the soil is fresh. Light or mucky lands had 

 better be left till spring, as this treatment is not 

 proper for them. 



Storing of Fodder-Corn, 

 The succulence of green corn-stalks renders them 

 difficult to dry thoroughly. To stow away uncured 

 corn-fodder in stacks or barns, without precautiODB 

 to prevent moulding, is unsafe. A good plan is to 

 shock the bundle in a convenient place, covering the 

 top of the shock with a sheaf of straw, and binding 

 the top tightly to exclude rain, and leaving the 

 shocks out of doors until used. A few s'.iocks may 

 be brought in when needed, and will be found fresh, 

 green and in the best order. Sweet cornfodder, with 

 many small ears and nubbins on the stalks, may be 

 covered and kept in this manner in the best condition. 



