THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



13 



Horticulture. 



Planting Potatoes in Autumn. 



An iuqulry was lately made iu the Lomlou Garden, 

 of such correspondeuts of that journal as had tried 

 planting potatoes in autumn, as to the success of the 

 practice. A number of answers were received, re- 

 porting exactly opposite results. One cultivator 

 Btatcs that fall plantinp: had been practiced In one 

 neighborhood for SO years, and always with first-rate 



mediately after planting, which was raked off in 

 spring. Another correspondent said tlie practice 

 had been pursued for 30 years in another place with 

 great success, the three important conditions being 

 observed, of using whole seed, planting 9 or 10 inches 

 deep or below frost, and placing a liberal allowance 

 of stable manure over and in contact with the seed. 



A third planted two adjoining crops both ways ; 

 the autumn seed being much the deepest (or nine 

 inches,) was later coming up than the shallow 

 epring-planted portion. But the fall-set plants soon 

 outgrew the others, and the result was nearly double 

 the yield. There is no question that the stable 

 manure on the seed, or on the surface, discharged a 

 large supply for the benetit of the plants, of liquid 

 manure during all the winter, which would not have 

 taken place if applied in <>prlng. 



On the other hand, other experimenters reported 

 opposite results. One cultivator stated that his 

 spring-planted crop gave 20 bushels of exeelletit and 

 eound potatoes, while his fall-set crop produced only 

 12 and many of these diseased. But he planted the 

 fall seed only six inches deep, nine inches being 

 claimed to be necessary by the advocates of autumn 

 planting, to escape frost. Another speaks of fall- 

 worked soils running together in winter, and asserts 

 that for one good fall-planted crop, a thousand may 

 be cited which have done best from setting in spring; 

 and another s'ill expresses the opinion that fall 

 planting can succeed only in light and poorer soils 

 which do not become hard. 



These opposite reports show that some important 

 conditions were present where success followed fall- 

 planting which were absent in others. It would be 

 interesting to discover by varied experiments what 

 these conditions were. It is not probable that the 

 practice would succeed in the Northern States, ex- 

 cept in such regions (on the Grand Traverse for ex- 

 ample,) where snow lies all winter on unfrozen 

 ground ; but it might be vvell worth trying farther 

 south. Although the scattered roots left in the 

 ground after digging sometimes grow after having 

 been frozen in the soil, yet generally the vigor of the 

 seed is retarded by such exposure, and wherever the 

 experiment is tried the seed should not be in reach of 

 frost. 



The Beet Sugar Industry. 



Recently a new sugar mill at Riverside, a short 

 distance above Wilmington, Delaware, commenced 

 operations, and is now working up tifty tonsof greou 

 beets per day. The mill is owned by the Delaware 

 Beet Company, which expects to work up three to 

 four thousand tons more beets than they did last 

 year. Many citizens along the line of the Philadel- 

 phia and Baltimore Central Railroad were invited by 

 this company to supply beets, some of whom agreed 

 to furnish them. The beets already delivered are 

 testing from 8 to H per cent, of saccharine matter, 

 and the company are paying from $3..50 to ?7 per 

 ton for them. If they obtain the quantity of biets 

 calculated upon, the product, under the new and 

 improved process now in use in the now mill, will be 

 about .5.50,000 pounds of raw sugar, 300,000 pounds 

 of molasses, and 1,700 tons of pulp, which is now 

 selling at the factory to farmers at $1 per ton. It is 

 stated that some of the beets were allowed to re- 

 main in the ground too late in the season, and 

 thereby were somewhat deteriorated for producing 

 sugar. This, with other defects in the cultivation, 

 will, It Is said, be remedied the next season. — Village 

 Record. 



Valuable Hint. 



For the last live years I have not lost a cucumber 

 or melon vine or cabbage plant. Get a barrel with 

 a few gallons of gas tar In it ; pour water on the tar; 

 always have it ready when needed, and when the 

 bugs appear give them a liberal drink of tar water 

 from a garden aprinkler or otherwise, and If the rain 

 washes It off and they return repeat the dose. It 

 will destroy tne Colorado potato beetle, and frighten 

 the old long potato bug worse than a thrashing with 

 a brush. Five years ago this summer both kinds 

 appeared on my late potatoes and I watered with tar 

 water. The next day all Colorados that had not 

 been well protected from the sprinkling were dead ; 

 and the others, though their name was legion, were all 

 gone, and 1 have never seen one of them on the farm 

 since. I am aware that many will look upon this 

 with Indifference, because it is so cheap and simple a 

 remedy. Such should always feed both their own 

 and their neighbors, as they generally do. 



Protecting Plants and Siirubs. 

 There is one principle which should not be forgot- 

 ten ; whatever be the nature of the covering applied 

 to tender plants, more especially to the woody por- 

 tions or parts above ground. This is, that the ex- 

 ctuxioii. of moitture is an important object, without 

 excluding air. Ligatures are sometimes left on in- 

 serted buds for protection, and more usually destroy 

 the buds by retaining water like a sponge. Closely 

 wrapped straw operates in the same way, as well as 

 by excluding air, which is often important. Roots 

 and stems like those of the grape, which will bear a 

 greater degree of moisture, arc partial exceptions. 

 Roots even are often destroyed when in a too moist 

 soil ; and there is no doubt that many tender herbace- 

 ous perennials would survive the rigors of our win- 

 ters If in earth with a dry bottom and sheltered from 

 rain. — Albany Cultivator. 



A Difficulty With Shrubberies. 



Shrubs, when set in the grass of a lawn, arc often 

 dwarfed by the turf which su.rounds them. Spading 

 about them only partly removes the difllculty, as the 

 spaded ground never extends to the length Of the 

 roots which always run at least as far each way as 

 the height of the shrubs. Besides, the ground is 

 necessarily more or less defaced by the operation. 

 The true remedy Is top-dressing. Superphosphate, 

 on such soils as are benefited by it, will answer a 

 good purpose and not present an unsightly appear- 

 ance like coarse manure. Finely pulverized old 

 manure will be unobjectionable. In many cases 

 liquid manure for sniall plants will answer well. 

 The top-dressing should be done in autumn or very 

 early In spring^ and special care must be taken to 

 extend it as far from the stems as above indicated. 



Fruit Garden. 



Winter protection : Many plants are killed by too 

 much protection. For example, strawberries are 

 hardy, and the covering of straw, marsh hay, etc., 

 that is recommended for them is not so much to 

 shield them from cold as to prevent frequent freezing 

 and thawing of the soil. The covering should be 

 mainly around and not upon the plants. 



Shrubs that are not quite hardy do not require 

 bundling up, as was thought necessary not many 

 years ago, when more plants were smothered than 

 benefited by the coverin:;. A little brush, or bel- 

 ter, some evergreen boughs placed close to the 

 shrub will ward off the severe winds, modify sudden 

 changes of temperature, and be a sufficient protec- 

 tion. Tender raspberries must be bent down, and 

 covered covered with earth before freezing prevents it. 



Notes and Comments. 

 Dwarf apple trees, worked on the Paradise stock, 

 although quite hardy at the East, often fail to endure 

 the severe winters in the Western States. The College 

 Quarterly states that one of the oldest Iowa nursery- 

 men planted and propagated them largely for the 

 supply of the demand in towns. The past winter 

 killed nearly every one. The editor of the journal 

 recommends in place of the Paradise stock the use 

 of the dwarf service-bury (AmelattcMer), judging 

 from recent experiments made upon it with the 

 hardy Russian varieties.— Co'M«(rj^ Oentleman. 



Fuchsias. 



Fuchsias, says a writer In The fforticultnrist, may 

 be trained into any desired shape if taken in time. 

 Take the little upright plants, pinch out the centre, 

 and in place of one there will spring out two, often 

 three shoots. Let these branches make about the 

 same growth, and repeat the process to each, keep- 

 ing the side branches of equal length, or tapering 

 like a pyramid ; or by clipping off all the lower 

 limbs and letting the upper ones droop over, you 

 have an umbrella. 



How Long Will Seeds Live .' 

 Darwin and others have made experiments on 

 seeds by immersing them in salt water. Out of 

 eighty-seven kinds sixty-four germinated after being 

 in salt water for twenty-eight days, and a few after 

 an immersion of one hundred and thirty-seven days. 

 Instances are on record, too, of seeds of American 

 plants, which have been washed on the shores of 

 Western Europe, germinating after their long voyage 

 across the Athintic. Radish aoptl lias been known 

 to grow freely whiMi sp\riifi''-ii years nhl. 



Domestic Economy. 



How to Hang Thermometers. 

 ""Old VVeathercock" writes to the St. Paul Pioneer 

 Pretx: "There seem to be so many errop'-ous notices 

 among the many amateur meteorologists of the city 

 about the minimum temperature of the twenty-four 

 hours, and how to obtain it correctly, that a few 

 lines from an 'old weather'ock,' I trust, will not be 

 altogether lost. In the first place, then, the tempera- 

 ture of the wall of any building, at any hour of the 



night or day. Is not the true temperature of the cir- 

 culating air and Is of no use to science. A wood wall 

 radiates its heat more rapidly than a brick or a stone, 

 and the amateur scientist who hangs his thermome- 

 ter on on a wood wall can force hie mercury down 

 below the amateur who selects a brick wall. The 

 proper way to expose your thermometer Is to sur- 

 round It with a light wood frame covered with slats, 

 like shutter work, and roofed ov r. This will protect 

 It from the direct rays of the sun and reflected heat. 

 Run a light wood bar across the centre of your In- 

 strument shelter, to which you can attach thermome- 

 ters, which should be, when properly exposed, oy the 

 north side of the buihling, and the thermometer at 

 least one foot from all objects. If these directions 

 are followed erroneous reports of extreme cold 

 weather will not find their way Into print so often. 

 It is not a very funny thing for the press to report 

 25° below zero when 15° represented the true tem- 

 perature of the circulating air. It gives persons 

 a wrong imi)rcssic)n of your t'limate." 



To Wash Flannels Without Shrinking. 

 First have soft water for the whole process, made 

 so artificially If necessary, and next have good soap, 

 or that which does not contain rosin. Our best 

 soaps are safe for this purpose. You may wash and 

 rinse entirely in cold water if you choose, but if you 

 wash in warm water you mnst not rinse In cold. It 

 is decidedly best to use warm water all through, 

 the rinsing water warmer than the suds, if there is 

 any difference. It is best to make good, strong, 

 cleati suds (and not wash nice white flannels in a 

 dirty suds with other clothes that are to be boiled,) 

 and put the flannels in it, instead of rubbing soap, 

 into the cloth. Hand rubbing tends t© full and 

 shrink flannel, as it mats and interlaces the delicate 

 fibres. — American Agriculturint . 



For a Time of Need. 

 Some one sensibly suggests that every house should 

 hold a trunk of half worn clothing, sheets and pillow 

 cases in readiness for sickness. For this purpose a 

 double gown, made of two calico dresses, might 

 prove serviceable as well as some soft handkerchiefs, 

 bandages and lint ; also plenty of linen, cotton and 

 woolen pieces. While overlooking the various re- 

 ceptacles of such articles, it would be well to re- 

 member this timely hint, and collect them against a 

 time of need. Incase of sudden illness, a store of 

 this kind is invaluable. 



What Not to do for Sick People. 



Don't make a fuss. Don't bustle, don't fidget, 

 don't prognosticate. Don't hold consultations in or 

 about the patient's room, recounting all your own 

 and your neight)or's cxjjcriences iii what you suppose 

 to have been like cases. Don't meddle and advise 

 and experiment. We all need a great deal more 

 letting alone than we get, and when we are sick it is 

 one of our prime needs. If mortuary lists were 

 honestly tabulated, we should find that more people 

 have been bored to death than have died from ne- 

 glect. The pest of the sick-room is the inevitable 

 friend who drops In to " cheer up " the patient, the 

 glistening eyes and flushed cheeks which such minis- 

 trations evoke being hailed as evidence of success by 

 the well-meaning persecutor. 



Don't tease the patient with questions about food 

 or drink, but present the proper quantity at suitable 

 intervals ; and if one article is found to be disagree- 

 able, quietly substitute another without remark. 

 Don't think, because the patient declines nourish- 

 ment, that it becomes less necessary to administer 

 It. By quiet, firm, methodical persistence in pre- 

 senting food at stateil periods, oiyections will be- 

 come feebler and cease, in self-defense. Solid food 

 need not be Insisted upon unless by special direction 

 of the physician, but milk and beef-tea should never 

 be omitted. — /fame Guardian. 



Scrape the Feet. 

 Every careful housekeeper, with an eye to first 

 causes. Is much interested in the way feet — or rather 

 feet-coverings come in from out of doors. If Imys did 

 n;U have muddy boots tlie cares of the house would 

 be much lessened. But the boys are not the only 

 ones that "bring in the dirt." Men folks are often 

 very forgetful of the amount of work they may make 

 by not attending to the simple matter of cleaning 

 their boots and shoes. Every door step should be 

 provided with a foot scraper, and a brush or broom, 

 and every one, young or old, as he comes In should 

 take the time to use them before appearing on the 

 carpet or clean floor. If a scraper — one made for the 

 purpose — is not at hand, one can make one from a 

 bit of hoop-iron, which is to be placed on a step or 

 edge of the |)orch In a convenient place. It Is well to 

 provide a "mud-mat," which Is simply strips an inch 

 or so square— fence pickets will answer— screwed to 

 to three or four cross pieces, an inch apart; or a 

 more elaborate one can be made by stringing the 

 slats upon fence wires. One with muddy boots is 

 very apt to stamp and rub tliem on the steps or floor 

 of the porch ; a mud-mat will clean them more ef- 

 fectively, and save the porch hard wear. A very 



