62 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



[April, 



terial for cabinet work, and fence posts made from 

 it would outlast those made from any other timber. 

 The tree soon bicame the most highly prized of any 

 Russian timber tree. It also bore edible fruit wliicli 

 was maj-ketable in Russia. 



When the Mennonites came to this country, they 

 brought the seed of this tree with them. The mul- 

 berry grows quite rapidly. Trees, the seed of which 

 was planted six years ago, are now twenty feet high, 

 and large enough for fence posts. The tree resem- 

 ble, the'apple tree in its habits of growth. The Rus- 

 sians say that they grow quite large after reaching 

 the height of forty to fifty feet, and from three to 

 fite feet in diameter. It bears fruit very young, 

 frequently commencing at two years old, and 

 bears every year. Last year the trees were densely 

 loaded with fruit, and farmers came several miles 

 to purchase this fruit for desert. It varies in flavor 

 from sub-acid to sweet; color jet black and reddish 

 white, ninety per cent, black. As the tree is differ- 

 ent from any mulberry we know in this country, we 

 call it "Russian mulberry.'' The bark is grayish 

 white and branches drooping. The .Mennonites also 

 use it as a hedge plant, and it makes a beautiful 

 hedge, and stands shearing as well as any tree, Prof. 

 Budd, of the Iowa Agricultural Collegs, says it is 

 propogated more readily from cuttings than any 

 mulberry with which he is acquainted. The Men 

 nonites have interested themselves in the silk business 

 somewhat since they have been in this country, and 

 have some cocoons for sale. 



An Excellent Old Apple. 

 The Yellow Bellflower— the "Belle Flour" of 

 Coxe— one of our oldest apples, is most valued 

 where best known. But the reason given in The 

 Prairie Farmer for its unproductiveness in some 

 soils, namely, an imperfection in the blossoms, is at 

 most only partially correct. The tree is one of the 

 very hardiest, and in rather poor, dry soils it is one 

 of the surest croppers. In strong soils it makes a 

 luxuriant, profusion of growth, but often fails to 

 bear. The cause of this unfertility is in that very 

 profusion of leaves and shoots. Nurserymen find it 

 remarkable in their nursery rows for the great num- 

 ber of twigs thrown out. While other sorts devote 

 themselves chiefly to make spurs on the two-year old 

 wood, with only a few wood shoots near the tips, the 

 Bellflower sends out a brush of wood-shoots, or 

 twigs, all the way up. The tree, of course, retains 

 this disposition when set in the orchard. It is en- 

 couraged to it by rich soil. In such a location the 

 countless drooping twigs that cover the whole head 

 of the tree like hair, shut off the light from the fruit 

 spurs on the older wood. The leaves of these drop 

 off, or grow thin for want of sunshine, and of course 

 but very few blossom buds can be properly formed. 

 I have a magnificent tree of this first-class apple at 

 the foot of a hill of rich loam. It is like a mountain 

 of spray which rises far aloft, hides entirely all the 

 interior frame of branches, and sweeps to the ground 

 all around. Yet there is not a surer or better bearer 

 in the orchard. Every winter I take a ladder and 

 pruning shears and thin the exterior shoots all over 

 the vast head, .so that those left can leaf out without 

 either shading each other or cbscuring the leaves 

 that will issue from the fruit spurs on the older 

 wood immediately below. This is using many words 

 and much room in the interest of one apple, but the 

 Bellflower has such exceptional excellencies as justify 

 the outlay, in the iulerest of all wlio enjoy apples, 

 whether at dessert or from the oven, in their highest 

 perfection of apple flavor, aroma, size and beauty. — 



J'eitit. 



^^ 



An Experiment in Potato Planting. 



Last spring when planting my Beauty of Hebron 

 potatoes, says a correspondent of the Tiurat Xew 

 Yorker, I planted one row through the piece as fol 

 lows : I took potatoes below the medium size, out of 

 the seed and seed ends, cut out all the eyes but two, 

 planted them and gave them the same care as the 

 rest of the piece. The •' seed " for the rest was of 

 the same size potatoes cut in two and planted one 

 piece in a hill about eighteen inches apart in the row. 

 Now for the result : The first row, containing seventy 

 hills, gave 19.5 pounds; one row by the side of it, 

 with eightysix hills, gave 143 pounds— a difference 

 in yield per hill of over fifty per cent, in favor of the 

 whole potatos with two eyes. This row could be dis- 

 tinguished from the rest as far as the piece could be 

 seen, until the dry weather dried up the vines. The 

 whole piece yielded a splendid crop, as did a piece of 

 Suowflake in another part of the field. 



Household Recipes. 



To Make a Cheap Wash ou Paint. — Put half a 

 bushel of good lime in a clean barrel, and add 

 enough water to make a thin whitewash, stirring 

 with a flat stick until every lump is dissolved ; then 

 add fifty pounds whiting, fifty pounds road dust. 

 Then thin to the proper consistency for spreading 

 with a brush, by adding sweet buttermilk fresh 

 from the churn in small quantities at a time, to give 

 a chance for the ingredients to assimilate. 



Rice, Milanaise Sttle. — Fry one ounce of butter 

 (cost two cents) light brown; put into it half pound 

 of rice (cost five cents) well picked over, but not 

 washed, and one ounce of onion, chopped fine; stir 

 and brown for five minutes, then add a pint of gravy 

 from meat, season with a level teaspoonful of salt, 

 quarter that quantity of pepper, and as much cay 

 enne as you can take on the point of a very small 

 pen-knife blade; the oninn and seasoning will cost 

 less than two cents; stew gently for fifteen minutes, 

 stirri'ig occasionally to prevent burning, and serve as 

 soon as the rice is tender. This makes a palatable 

 dish for about ten cents. 



Macakoni and Ham. — Take one-half pound of 

 macaroni, put it in boiling salt and water, and cook 

 for twenty minutes or until tender. Drain the maear 

 oni, put it in boiling salt and water, and cook for 

 twenty minutes or until tender. Drain the macaroni, 

 and put in cold water until you are ready to use it. 

 Take a quarter of a pound of the. lean of cold boiled 

 ham, chop fine; take half a can of tomatoes, season- 

 ed with salt and pepper; stew with a small onion; 

 pass the tomatoes, when thoroughly done through a 

 colander; thicken with a tablespoonful of butter, 

 rubbed smooth. Lay the macaroni in a layer, spread 

 on the chopped ham, add some of the tomato sauce, 

 a little pepper, a little salt, and so on, until the dish 

 is filled. Bake in a hot oven for twenty minutes. 



Poor Man's Plum Pudding. — Take three cups of 

 flour, one cup chopped suet, one cup stoned raisins, 

 one-third cup molasses, one cup milk, one teaspoon 

 of saleratus dissolved in the milk, half teaspoon of 

 salt, one teaspoon each of allspice, cinnamon and 

 cloves. Boil three hours. Serve with sauce as fol 

 lows : One cup of sugar, half cup of butter, one egg, 

 one tablespoon of flour, beat all together. When 

 ready for the table pour in two thirds cup boiling 

 wine. Add nutmeg, grated, and you will have a 

 dish fit for a king, though planned for a poor man. 



Fig Pudding. — One pound of flour, six ounces 

 fresh beef suet, with half tablespoonful of salt; 

 and one pound flgs, with one tablespoonful of baking 

 powder. Chop the suet as fine as possible, remove 

 all strings ; mix well with the flour, salt and baking 

 powder ; make this into a paste with iced water, 

 and roll out into a sheet; cut the figs into long 

 slices, cover the paste with them, tie in"a cloth, and 

 boil in fast boiling water for two hours. Eat with a 

 sauce. 



YouKSHTRE Pudding. — A quarter of a pound of 

 flour, with a quart of water or milk ; three eggs, 

 well beaten, to be mixed with it; pepper and salt; 

 butter the pan ; put it under the beef so as to catch 

 the gravy ; have it in „ good big pan, so as to be 

 thin. Cut in pieces when served with the beef, and 

 arranged around the dish. 



Warm Slaw. — Slice a head of cabbage fine ; put 

 it in a stew pan, with a little water, and scald well ; 

 sprinkle salt, pepper and suga'- over it ; then take 

 two thirds of a teacup of vinegar, one-third of a 

 teacup of water, one egg, one-half teaspoon of flour, 

 well mixed togetlier ; pour it over the cabbage, and 

 let it come to a boil, when it is ready for the table. 



UoLD Slaw. — Slice one head of cabbage very fine; 

 sprinkle a little sugar and salt over it; |then 

 pound the cabbage. For the dressing, take half 

 teacup of cream, whip it into a froth, add to it one 

 teacup of vinegar; stir the dressing well through 

 the cabbage. 



Lincoln Cake. — One and one half pounds sugar, 

 one pound butter, one and three-fourihs pounds 

 flour, two pounds fruit, one pint sweet milk, one 

 tablespoonful soda, six eggs, one nutmeg, one tea- 

 spoonful cloves, two teaspoonfuls cinnamon, one gill 

 of brandy. 



Pastry. — Fruit and custard pies are almost invari- 

 ablj spoiled by having a soggy undercrust. This may 

 be remedied by coating the top of the lower crust of 

 pies with the white of an egg; it will absorb no 

 moisture from the fruit or custard, will come out of 

 the oven crisp, and will remain so. 



To Clean Marble. — To clean smoky marble 

 brush a paste of chloride of lime and water over the 

 entire surface, tirease spots can be removed from 

 marble by applying a paste of crude potash and 

 whiting in this manner. 



Valuable Hints. — When ice is required at night 

 for a sick person, break it into small pieces, and if 

 scarce care must be taken to prevent its melting, put 

 into a soup plate, cover with another plate; and put 

 between two feather pillows. 



' Cocoanut Cookies. — One cup of milk, one cup 

 of sugar, one cup of grated cocoanut, and prepared 

 flour enough to roll out. Make very thin and bake 

 quickly. The dessicated coacoanut may be ijsed, 

 but it is not quite so nice 



To renovate black grenadine take strong cold 

 coffee, strain it, and wring the grenadine out of it 

 quite tight, after wliich shake out and fold up. Then 

 iron it with a moderately hot iron over a piece of any 

 old black material. 



Silk stockings must be washed in cold water with 

 white soap, rinsed in cold water, laid flat on a fine 

 towel, rolled tightly until dry, and rubbed with a 

 piece of flannel to restore the gloss. 



Corn-Stabch Cake. — Two cups of sugar, one 

 cup of milk, one cup of torn starch two cups of 



flour, four eggs, one teaspoonful of soda, and flavoj 

 with lemon or vanilla. 



Black Bean Soup.— One quart of black beans; 

 soak them over night in cold water; drain off the 

 water in the morning and add three pints of fresh 

 water; let them stew gently four and one half hours. 

 Add salt, pepper and a little clove. While cooking, 

 put in meat, cooked or uncooked, as preferred. When 

 done strain the soup; cut the lemon in slices; pfecein 

 your dish; also add a hard boiled egg cut in slices. 

 Pieces of bread toasted brown are an addition. Salt 

 pork may be used instead of meat. 



To Clean Musty Barrels — A German paper 

 gives the following directions for cleaning rusty or 

 mouldy casks and barrels; First rinse them out well 

 with water in which a little soda has been dissolved; , 

 then fill up with water slightly acidulated with 

 muriatic acid, and let this stand for two days; then 

 pour out the water and rinse with clean water, and 

 the casks will be found perfectly sweet. 



Cottage Gingerbread. .^Take one cup of butter 

 and lard melted together, add one cup of New Or- 

 leans molasses; stir into this one cupful each of 

 sugar and cold water, two laree teaspoonfuls of 

 ginger, two eggs beaten, and four cups of flour 

 having In three large teaspoonfuls of baking powder. 

 Bake in a moderately hot oven. 



Household Weights and Measures. — Wheat 

 flour, one pound is a quart. Loaf sugar, broken, one 

 pound is one qurrt. White sugar, powdered, one 

 pound one ounce is one quart. Best brown sugar, 

 one pound two ounces is one quart. Eggs, average 

 size, ten are one i ound. Liquid measures, sixteen 

 teaspoonfuls are one pint. 



Scotch Butter Candy. — One ponnd of sugar, 

 one half pint of water. Boil as hard as possible with- 

 out graining. When done add half a cup of butter 

 and lemon juice to flavor, if deiired. Turn on a 

 buttered dish and when partly cool cut with a knife 

 into Binall squares. When cold a slight tap will 

 break it off. 



Live Stock. 



Sawdust for Bedding. 



Many farmers claim that sawdust is not only 

 worthless as a manure, but positively injurious to 

 the soil. A farmer seuds the following words in its 

 favor : I use it when I can get it, and value it very 

 highly for bedding the cow stable, as it will keep 

 cattle cleaner than any other beddi..g I know of. It 

 also makes thE manure fine and mellow, so that it 

 •preai's more evenly and mixes with the soil more like 

 composted manure. I also use it in the hen-house 

 for filline' the nest boxes, and on the floor to mix 

 with the manure, as it absorbs all the ammonia and 

 prevents the manure from slicking to the floor. For 

 summer use it is not as good as dry dirt or sand In 

 the hen house, because it tends to breed vermin, 

 unless cleaned and replaced by a fresh lot quite 

 often. A small quantity of it thrown into the privy 

 vault will absorb all bad odors arising therefrom in 

 hot weather. It is also one of the best dryers to nii.x 

 with superphosphate. It makes it fine so as to 

 handle well. I do not think sawdust is very valuable 

 in itself as a fertilizer, yet it must be worth some- 

 thing. If it has no other value it contains all the 

 saline properties found in wooil ashes as well as some 

 nitrogen: but these elements are found in small 

 quantities and in a form which is unavailable for 

 immediate use. Sawdust contains more nitrogen 

 than straw, but less potash and phosphoric acid, and 

 is probably not as good as cut straw for bedding or 

 manure, but it is a better absorbent of bad odors, 

 and is usually cheaper than cut straw. I believe its 

 mechanical effect on the soil is excellent, especially 

 to lighten heavy clays. Professor Johnson has said 

 that "fresh sawdust in light, thirsty soils tends to 

 increase their water holding capacity. In sticky 

 clay it lightens the texture, and soil that forms a 

 hard crust after rain it prevents, like other mulch, 

 such puddling and backing of the surface." I think 

 a cord of sawdust, well saturated with liquid ma- 

 nure, is worth as much if not more than a cord of 

 solid manure. 



Salting Stock. 



Prof. James Law writes to the Farmers' Advocate, 

 of London, Ontario, on the subject as follows : 



In addition to its use as a condiment, salt is one of 

 the best laxatives. In cattle, and sheep especially. 

 In which a dry winter feeding is liable to induce a 

 partial impaction of food between the leaves of the 

 third stomach, the stimulus given by the salt to the 

 free secretion and the muscular movement of the 

 stomachs, together with the engendered disposition 

 to drink more freely, serve to dislodge such obstruc- 

 tions and to restore perfect digestion. Even if a full 

 purgative action is wanted, few agents will serve 

 better than one or two pounds of salt, according to 

 the size of the cow. But it should never be forgot- 

 ten that water must be allowed without stint after 

 the administration of such a dose, as a concentrated 

 solution of salt is highly irritating to the stomach 

 and bowels. An abundant consumption of water 

 serves at once to remove the irritant qualities of the 

 salt, and to hasten the action of the bowels. 



