1883.] 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



85 



our orchards annually simply because the 

 trees are overcrowded and the fruit becomes 

 unsaleable, and cherries, peaclies and even the 

 small fruits are no exception. 



Auother point to be observed is that trees 

 niid vines must not be allowed to make any 

 ell'ort other than by seeding. The shoots and 

 runners must be kept down, as they rob the 

 parent stock of vital power — as is well known 

 to those who grow strawberries especially, the 

 runners of this year being detrimental to 

 ■ fruit production the succeeding season. Let 

 every fruit-grower endeavor to produce good, 

 well-formed, marketable fruit, eulling out 

 that which is inferior, and allotting to tlie 

 trees only that which is suitable to their 

 capacity, and the increased prices and ciuiek 

 sales will be more than a satisfactory rcmunei-- 

 ation for a small amount of extra labor re- 

 quired. — Philadelphia Record. 

 ^ 



STUDY YOUR FARM. 



There is too much farming done at random. 

 Failure frequently pursues a man through 

 life for want of a clear and determined con- 

 ception of the object that he ought to aim to 

 accomplish. A forcible writer in the Library 

 of Useful Knowledge urges every farmer to 

 consider the nature of his farm ; the quality, 

 abundance, or the deficiency of his pasturage ; 

 the character of the soil ; the seasons of the 

 year when he will have plenty or a deficiency 

 of food ; the locality of his farm ; the market 

 to wliich he has access, and the produce 

 which can be disposed of there with the great- 

 est profit. These things when wed studied 

 and decided will point him to the breed of 

 stock he should raise, and the kinds of grains 

 or grasses he should cultivate. The man of 

 more means and more ambitious aims may 

 take in more extensive views, and look scien- 

 tifically to the question of improvement of 

 stock. But the farmer with limited means 

 and less ambition, with whom we liave most 

 to do, does not feel like running any risks, or 

 engaging in the least doubtful enterprises. 

 Such regard their cattle as a valuable part of 

 their yearly income, and that source of rev- 

 enue cannot be disturljed by interrupting the 

 regular routine of business. And yet by care- 

 ful study this necessary inflow can be kept up, 

 and the income of his farm greatly increased 

 without much enlarged expense, while the 

 annual outlay otherwise may be lessened, and 

 labor lightened. Kich or poor, humble or 

 ambitious, he ought to study closely what 

 ■will best suit his farm, examining closely the 

 potnts and qualities of his own cattle and 

 those of his neighbors. If he determines 

 dairying is best for him. he must examine the 

 question of quantity and quality of milk, and 

 its value for the production of butter and 

 cheese ; the time that the cows continue in 

 milk ; the character of the breed for gentle- 

 ness, their predisposition to disease, and the 

 natural tendency to turn to nutriment or to 

 milk ; the ease with which she is fattened 

 and value as a beef when she is given up as a 

 milker ; the proportion of food requisite to 

 keep them in full milk or to fatten when dry. 

 If grazing is decided to be the main business, 

 then consider the kind of stock which the 

 farm will be best suited for, the kind of meat 

 most in demand at the greatest profit iu his 

 neighborhood, the early maturity, the quick- 



ness of fattening at any age ; the quality of 

 the meat ; the parts upon wliich the Ihisli ami 

 fat are principally laid, and, liist of all, the 

 hardihood and adaptation to the climate and 

 soil. When a farmer wisely settles all of 

 these questions, he will find lie has but little 

 time to loiter about neighboring street cornei-s. 

 ~]ini;a ^tatc Uajider. 



A PROFITABLE FRUIT TO GROW. 



Of all the varieties of fruit usually grown 

 on tlie farm, perhai>s the quince is less fre- 

 quently seen than any otiier. Of late our 

 farmers have begun to set out peach trees iu 

 hope of obtaining partial crops at least. There 

 are many reasons why every farmer's garden 

 should have a few quince bushes growini; 

 therein in order that a supi)ly for the family 

 may be secured, if none are marketed. The 

 quince is a hardy, deciduous shrub, reaching a 

 height of from ten to fifteen feet and bearing 

 large white and pink blossoms <\n\U: late in 

 the season. The fruit is of a rich golden 

 color and in some respects resembles the 

 orange. The quince is easily propogated from 

 seed, layers or cuttings. The soil most suit- 

 able for this fruil is a deep moist loam and 

 when well manured if the bushes are thrifty 

 abundant crops may be secured. It bears 

 easily and witli a favorable growth in four 

 years from transplauting the trees ought to 

 bear a peck of fruit. There are a number of 

 sorts grown in this country, the Champion 

 being the latest acquisition and said to be the 

 largest variety grown. The most extensively 

 grown variety in this country is the Orange. 

 This sort is of good size, color and flavor ; it 

 is remarkably productive and with good treat- 

 ment bears fair, smooth fruit that uniformly 

 stews tender and is excellent for drying jiur- 

 poses. 



There is one thing to be considered in grow- 

 ing this fruit — that it is never grown in such 

 quantities but what the farmer can got at 

 least SI per bushel, and it is oftener that he 

 gets twice tliat amount. The canning of vast 

 quaiitKies of this fruit always render their 

 sale assured. Very many growers do not 

 properly prune the bushes so as to admit the 

 sunlight and thus avoid having so much green 

 fruit. When the bushes are overloaded the 

 fruit should be tliinned out and the rest will 

 be larger and better. When set in rows about 

 twelve feet apart is the right distance, and if 

 in very rich soil fifteen feet may not be too 

 great a di.stance. The boarer is liable to at- 

 tack the young bushes and even those that 

 have reached a considerable size. In this 

 section the quince is chiefly grown iu the gar- 

 den, but in the Middle States and at the West 

 large orchards of the quince arc cidtivated. 

 Riding into a gentleman's door-yard recently 

 we noticed three large bushes close by his 

 hennery. The fruit had been gathered, but 

 the owuer informed the writer that from the 

 three bushes lie obtained two barrels of large 

 marketable fruit. When properly cared for 

 there can hardly be a more paying crop, since 

 almostevery family " puts up " a fewquinces. 

 — Sprin^eld (Mass.) liepubUcan. 



STEERS IN PASTURE. 



Thirty steers of i^OO or 9UU weight, on good 

 pasture from May 1 to November, should gain 

 each 400 pounds. Much depends on their 



condition wlien turned out in spring. Tliose 

 wintered aroimd straw stacks, without grain, 

 will not Ijegin to gain for several weeks. 

 Their digestion is bad ; inucli blood is needed 

 to renew tlieir coat of liair and loosen the 

 hide. On tlie other liand, a .steer already fat 

 will not gain so much as one in what is called 

 good condition. .Such an animal will increase 

 very fast from May 1 to the middle or last of 

 June, averaging perhaps (with a little gniiu 

 at first) four poiuids per day, but during July 

 and August very little grain would be mani- 

 fest, while tile thin steer would then be in 

 condition to be adding some weight, it is 

 much belter to market July 1 the steers that 

 were fat when turned iiiion grass in May. 



Cattle wintered around straw stacks will 

 be iu good condition without any grain if 

 they are fed at the .same time with a moder- 

 ate amount of corn-fodder, or four or live ears 

 of corn per day without the fodder. A farmer 

 will make it pay to borrow money witli which 

 to buy corn to feed cattle wintering around 

 straw stacks, as the most of the cattle do in 

 all States West of renn.^ylvania. It is no un- 

 usual thing iu this coujitry of cheap and 

 abundant corn to see during March dead cat- 

 tle lying around straw stacks, starved to 

 death ! Two months ago I saw such a sight 

 within two miles of my residence ; the owner 

 worth S2"),000, with hundreds of bushels of 

 corn conscientiously kept to feed hogs — the 

 everlasting hog. Farmers make an exiien- 

 sive mistake in thinking grain led to stock 

 cattle is wasted. 



A correspondent from Michigan, whose in- 

 quiries suggested this article, speaks of liav- 

 ing pasture in an open grove, and also of a 

 pasture well set in timothy and clover. Now 

 much depends upon the way these lots are 

 pastured. The wool-lot should be pastured 

 first, and the cattle kept ofl the timothy and 

 clover, because the grass among the trees will 

 be much richer and more palatable if fed be- 

 fore the trees come into full foliage. This 

 pasture then should be allowed to grow until 

 October 1, when it will again be in prime 

 condition at a time when timothy and clover 

 have stopped growing. 



Many persons overstock their pastures, and 

 the animals fail to gain as much as (hey 

 would with a better range. IJuring May and 

 June the grass seems so abundant they pur- 

 chase more stock to keep down the growth, 

 and the result is, the cattle during August 

 and .September frequently gain nothing. The 

 farmer must recollect that he can not depend 

 upon the growth of any grass except red 

 clover from middle of July until fall rains set 

 iu. With plenty of rain in latter part of 

 summer the grasses do not grow half as fast 

 as during May and June. These things niii.st 

 be considered by the breeder of cattle if he 

 expects the largest gain in weight, and his 

 pastures must be at all limes such that the 

 cattle can readily and quickly find suflicieDt 

 grass. — Cor. JV. Y. Tribune. 



INSECTIDES 

 Very soon the farmers and gardeners 

 throughout the country will have to commence 

 the annual battle with noxious insects. We 

 have learned how to manage some oi these 

 enemies, and to conquer them every time ; 

 but others continue to resist every known 



