46 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



[Marci 



on the 2d day of February, 1S81. Donated by Geo. 

 O. Hensel. For further particulars see paa;e6 17 and 

 18, Vol. 13, of the Lancastee Farmer. 



The Alligator Misxixaippiensix, donated by Prof. 

 Geist at the last meeting having died, the* curators 

 had it preserved in alcohol and placed it in the 



Two small bottles of North and South American 

 "Walking twigs" (Phasmida) in alcohol. These 

 animals Belong" to the orthopterous order, which in- 

 cludes the grasshoppers and crickets. 



Donations to the Library. 



Proceedings of the " American Philosophical 

 society," from March to December, 1880. Nos. ti, 7, 

 8 and 9, Vol. 13, of " Official Gazette of the United 

 States Patent Office." Catalogue of .works on 

 natural history. Lancaster Farmer for February, 

 1881. Four catalogues and circulars. 

 Historical. 



Three envelopes containing 40 historical and bio- 

 graphical soraps. 



Papers Read. 



A short paper by S. S. Rathvon on the systematic 

 position the alligator occupies in the class Reptilia, 

 and its relation to other animals in the same class. 



The committee appointed to examine and make a 

 specific record of the donations of the January 

 meeting, and also the library, reported progress and 

 are continued. 



New Members. 



Mr. Brinton and Miss S. S. Lefever were nnanl- 

 mously elected active members of the society, pend- 

 ing which a question arose upon the status and con- 

 ditions of the dift'erent forms of membership, when, 

 on motion, Messrs. liathvon, Davis and Dubbs were 

 appointed a committee to examine the constitution 

 and subsequent legislation on the subject, what 

 changes, if any, are necessary, and report at the 

 next meeting of the society. 



Under "Science Gossip" various topics were tem- 

 porarily discussed and thoughts interchanged, after 

 which the society adjourned. 



STATE FRUIT-GROWERS' ASSOCIA- 

 TION. 



This society met in twenty-second annual session 

 in the Court House, Gettysburg, on January 18 

 ISSl. President Stitzel and Secretary Engle, witli 

 ten or a dozen of the members, were on hand in 

 good time, and they, assisted by the local committee, 

 proceeded to arrange on tables provided for the pur- 

 pose in the court-room, an exhibition of such fruits 

 as had been brought in. The exhibits were largely 

 from Adams co., but Berks, Lancaster, Cumber- 

 land, York, Chester, Philadelphia, etc., contributed 

 many handsome specimens also. In apples the dis- 

 play was especially rich, and well worthy of the 

 admiration it excited. Several new seedlings (nota- 

 bly that presented by ex-Sheriff Hersh) grown in 

 Adams county were received with much favor by the 

 visiting fruit-growers, and at their suggestion have 

 been sent to Mr. Charles Downing for examination 

 and report. 



President Stitzel called the meeting to order at 3 

 o'clock. H. J. Stable made a epeech of welcome, to 

 which the President responded. The speeches, 

 essays and discussions will be printed in the annual 

 report . 



Several prominent apples. Smith's Cider, Newtowu 

 and Abemarle Pippins, etc., were taken up and their 

 points inquired into. Smith's Cider and Ben. Davis 

 seemed to be favored more because of abundance in 



The evening train brought quite an accession of 

 members, and the regular business of the meeting 

 was taken up and attended to in order. 



Various committees were appointed and reports 

 read, the latter showing the society to be in good 

 financial and working condition. 



A number of new members were added, the annual 

 fee being one dollar. 



Three sessions were held on the 19th. The elec- 

 tion for officers resulted in the retention of all the 

 old ones, viz : President, Hon. George D. Stitzel, 

 Reading; Vice Presidents, Henry M. Engle, Mari- 

 etta; Josiah Hoopes, West Chester, and Wm. P. 

 Bissell, Pittsburg ; Recording Secretary, E. B. Engle, 

 Marietta ; Corresponding Secretary, W. P. Brinton, 

 Christiana; Treasurer, George B. Thomas, West 

 Chester; Professor of Botany, Thos. Meehan, Ger- 

 raantown ; Professor of Entomology, S. S. Rathvon, 

 Lancaster ; and Professor of Horticultural Chemistry, 

 S. B. Heiges, York. 



The committees for the year were also appointed, 

 Kaphael Sherfy being at the head of that on No- 

 menclature (naming fruit.) Joel V. Garretson, also 

 of this county, is a member of the General Fruit 

 Committee. 



The President read his Annual Address ; followed 

 hy Raphael Sherry's essay on " Peach Buds and 

 Peaches," received with decided expressions of favor 

 on all sides of the hall, and printed in this issue of 

 the Compiler. Joel V. Garretson read' an essay on 

 "The Apple," J. C. Hepler on "General Fruit Cul- 



ture," Rev. Dr. Calder on "Pruning," and Prof. 

 Meehan on " Farmers' Gardens." Others were read 

 by the Secretary ; John I. Carter on " Tree Planting 

 by Roadsides and Waste Places," and " Apple Cul- 

 ture in Cumberland Valley," by Dr. Sibbett. Seve- 

 ral highly interesting discussions followed the read- 

 ing of essays ; and a number of prepared questions 

 were reached: "Is Pennsylvania well adapted to 

 Apple Culture ?" "Will the new methods of Evap- 

 orating Fruits prove profltableto the Fruit Grower?" 

 " What birds are trulv the Farmer's Friend ; what 

 of the English Sparrow ?" "Should Rabbits be Pro- 

 tected by Law?" 



lir. Satterthwait, of Montgomery county, one of 

 the most extensive fruit growers in the State, pro- 

 nounced unqualifiedly in favor of stable manure for 

 orchard trees. The President had had excellent, if 

 not the best, results from wood ashes. Opinions dif- 

 fered as to the bext manure, but all agreed upon lib- 

 ■eral feeding, nearly all upon stirring the soil of the 

 apple orchard, and all upon plowing the peach or- 



As to the birds, there seemed to be no difference 

 of opinion in regard to the value of the old insectiv- 

 erous kinds, the robin, blue bird, woodpecker, &c., 

 but the English Sparrow came in for a good deal of 

 adverse criticism, the President concluding the dis- 

 cussion by declaring that there are those now living 

 who will have abundant reason to regret the impor- 

 tation of this bird. 



"The five best winter apples for Pennsylvania, con- 

 sidering vigor of trees, productiveness, quality and 

 long keeping," was voted upon, and the following 

 were the favorites in the order mentioned : York 

 Imperial, Smith's Cider, York Stripe, Baldwin and 

 Ben Davis. The Smokehouse had many friends, but 

 classed as a, fall apple, it received only a few votes. 

 So with the Red Streak, Pound Apple, &c. 



The society voted to hold the next annual meeting 

 at Harrisburg, and passed resolutions thanking the 

 citizens of Gettysburg and vicinity for their atten- 

 dance and interest. 



The society then adjourned without day, after a 

 meeting that appeared pleasant and profitable to the 

 membership, as it surely was to our people. It has 

 served to create a new interest in frnit culture, and 

 the result we think will show itself in marked im- 

 provement in succeeding years. Adams county 

 already has a good position among the fruit produc- 

 ing sections of the Commonwealth, but the discus- 

 sions of last week in our midst cannot but work out 

 for it a still better name. 



The officers of the society proved themselves eiH- 

 cient in every sense. Judge Stitzel presides with a 

 good-natured dignity that suits the average taste, 

 whilst Secretary Engle shows himself exceptionally 

 well fitted for his post. 



The debates were participated in by Professor 

 Meehan, Mr. Satterthwait, Dr. Calder, Mr. Woods, 

 Mr. l^upp, Mr. Engle, Mr. Hoopes, Mr. Hepler, Mr. 

 Brinton, Mr. Garretson, Mr. Lint, Rev. Dr. Hay, 

 Rev. Joseph Sherfy, Raphael Sherfy, H. J. Stable 

 and others. — Oettyxburg Compiler. 



Agriculture. 



Weight and Mi 

 Mr. A. P. Owen states in the Santa Cruz county 

 Courier, of California, that he spent two days recent- 

 ly in gathering items from persons of intelligence 

 and veracity of that county, who had taken pains to 

 weigh the wheat and measure the ground from 

 which it was taken, and that a good many fields 

 turned out from 70 to 90 bushels t<) ih' acre, and 

 two fields yielded over 100 bushels to the acre; while 

 50 to 70 is 



Bone-dust and Wood-ashes. 



An Indiana farmer sends to the Practical Farmer 

 the following result of experiments with bone-dust 

 and wood-ashes on wheat: " I applied 600 pounds of 

 dry, unleached ashes to the acre, and sowed wheat 

 on that, and the result was only six bushels to the 

 acre. Adjoining this tract I drilled in 200 pounds of 

 bone-dust; and three acres produced 20 bushels to the 

 acre, being an increased yield of 14 bushels over the 

 tract sown with wood-ashes. The following year I 

 used 200 pounds of bone-dust on the plat on which 

 I had previously sown 600 pounds of ashes, and the 

 result was forty bushels of wheat to the acre, being 

 double what the bone produced alone. This experi- 

 ment satisfied me that ashes alone nor bone alone 

 would not give me a yield that paid to my 

 satisfaction. The acre with ashes yielded six bush- 

 els ; the acre with bone-dust yielded twenty bushels; 

 but when the two were combined I harvested forty 

 bushels. This showed what experiments and a_ small 

 expenditure of money will do for the progressive 

 farmer." 



Why We ShaU Never Starve. 



According to a recent compilation and comparison 

 of the statistics of grain production of the country 

 made by the Chicago Times, the wheat yield of 

 1871 was 230,732,400 bushels, in 1S75 it wm 293,136,- 



000 and in 1880 it was 480,840,733. In the same 

 period the yield of corn increased from 991.898 000 

 bushels in 1871 to 1,.5.37,.535,940 bushels in 1880, the 

 Western States producing the bulk of corn as well 

 as wheat. The grain area of ISSO was 104,143,676 

 acres, a large total, but yet 70,000,000 less than the 

 single State of Texas contains. The average yield 

 per acre of wheat in 1S80 was 13.3 bushels ; of corn, 

 3S.9; of oats, 27.8; of barley, 25.1. The value of 

 the grain products of the United States since 1871, is 

 put down at $10,000,000,000. The value of last 

 year's crop is divided as follows : Wheat, ?453,.5.58,- 

 371 ; corn, ?i;06,6S5,37l ; other grains, $177,389,269. 

 The growth of the export movement of grain has 

 been constant during the decade, except in 1875 and 

 1877. In the former year there was a decrease of 

 18,000,000 bushels and in the latter leas than 1,000,- 

 000. In 1871 the total exports of grain from all 

 ports of the United States were 73,122,.398 bnshels ; 

 in 1880, 289,537,974 bushels. 



Killing Canada Thistles. 

 A cotemporary notices two modes of destroying 

 this weed, one of which is to be a tablespoonful of 

 salt on each stalk or stub, causing the plant to wilt, 

 become dry and disappear by October. This is re- 

 commended as better than the other mode, which is 

 to cut off each plant with a knife, just below the 

 surface of the ground, as one does asparagus. 

 These modes may answer for very smalT patches in 

 gardens, but any one may easily contrast its econo- 

 my in labor on a large scale on a farm, with the 

 rapid work of turning the plants under with a plow. 

 We have destroyed many acres in this way, so that 

 not a plant ever reappeared. A strong pair of 

 horses will turn over a sod eight inches deep, and 

 much lower than the knife in the hand will go ; and 

 if the work is thoroughly done and no.balks left, the 

 plants will stay under the inverted soil for three or 

 four weeks, unless in very porous or light soil, which 

 must be plowed oftener. The only failure which we 

 have known with this treatment was wheie the 

 plowing was imperfectly done, or so long intermitted, 

 that strugglers found their way to the light and fur- 

 nished a feeding to the roots below. 



Suggestions of and for the Season. 



Manure, the key to successful farming over the 

 larger part of the country, demands attention. Per- 

 haps in no one item of farm practice has there been 

 a greater change than in that of the management of 

 manure. Formerly it was thought that manure 

 should only be brought to the field just as it is to be 

 used. Now it is taken out when carting or sledding 

 is good, and the hands and teams are not pressed 

 with other work. By hauling it in winter, and 

 placing it in heaps near to where it will be needed in 

 spring, it gets the benefit of an extra turning, and, 

 if desirable, these heaps may be again turned'before 

 they are spread. Of course some forethought must 

 be taken to put the manure in the most convenient 

 place for the after labor of distributing it. What- 

 ever else is done with manure, let it be kept in com- 

 pact heaps ; to scatter over the whole barnyard that 

 which should only cover an area of a few square 

 yards is wicked waste. After the winter rains have 

 washed out the soluble matter from the scattered 

 manure (often it runs to the nearest creek), what 

 remains is of little value. It would be far better 

 were the manure upon the field where its washings 

 would be utilized. One fact has been often repeated 

 in these columns, but our correspondence shows that 

 it is not everywhere understood, which is— the 

 quality of the manure depends upon the quality of 

 the food. The animal adds nothing to what is fed 

 to it; it takes out something, but leaves the refuse, 

 which it does not want, but the soil does, in an 

 available form. The old adage, " out of nothing 

 nothing comes," is commended to those who think 

 they can make a large quantity of rich manure out 

 of a little poor food. — American Agriculturist. 



Horticulture. 



If a new garden is to be made, or plants added to 

 the old one, the varieties and the number of each 

 should be decided upon, and the order sent to the 

 nearest reliable nurseryman at once. It is best to 

 select the bulk from well-tried kinds, though the 

 new sorts may be indulged in somewhat. The mar- 

 ket and the home table have both to be consulted in 

 making the choice. If the market is a distant one, 

 then firm fruit that will reach its destination in good 

 order must be selected. The local market and the 

 home table demand a difi'erent class of fruit. The 

 claims of those having new varieties of strawberries, 

 blackberries, raspberries, currants, etc., for sale are 

 not to be ignored, but a good well-tested sort is not 

 an uncertainty. Tnere is much work to be done in 

 the fruit garden that may be preparatory to the busy 

 time of spring. All such work as the getting ready 

 of the trellisses and supports of grapevines, raspber- 

 ries, etc., may be flone now with great advantage. For 



