THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



87 



FRUIT VARIETIES. 



THE DIPLOMA CURRANT AND ITS ORIGINATOR. 



CHARLES A. GREEN, ROCHESTER, N. Y. 



Seventy years ago a son was born to a prominent 

 Rochester, N. Y., nurseryman. When this son was 

 still a young man his father died, leaving the son a large 

 inheritance. The son was industrious and frugal. He 

 was endowed by nature with a desire to improve our 

 various hardy fruits. Early in his life he began to 

 hybridize the apple, peach, pear, plum, cherry, grape, 

 currant and almost all of the fruits grown in this local- 

 ity. Se deeply interested was this son in his work im- 

 proving fruits that he neglected opportunities to marry, 

 and lias never had a home of his own. 



Has this man increased his fortune by these labors 

 of a lifetime? No, instead of that he has seen his in- 

 heritance, that came to him from his father, fading 

 away year by year. He is now an old man, poor in 

 this world's goods, but joyous in the satisfaction of 

 knowing that he has done the world great service in 

 introducing many valuable new fruits that have been 

 created through his skillful manipulation. 



This man's name is Jacob Moore. He originated 

 the Brighton Grape, the Diamond Grape, the Bart-Sec 

 Pear, the Eed Cross Currant and many other new fruits, 

 among these the Diploma Currant. 



Jacob Moore's greatest work has been done in im- 

 proving currants. When I visited his grounds 10 years 

 ago I found there at least twenty new varieties of cur- 

 rants, of various colors and sizes, but all remarkable in 

 one peculiarity or another. These new currants attract- 

 ed wide attention. They were exhibited at the Pan 

 American exposition at Buffalo, where Mr. Moore re- 

 ceived a diploma for the largest and best exhibition of 

 currants ever exhibited in this country. One of these 

 varieties of currants being larger than all the others, 

 and having the longest stem, it was given the name 

 diploma currant. 



Having known this new currant for ten or more 

 years and having great confidence in it, I have planted 

 many thousands of plants of this variety for fruit and 

 also many thousand plants for propagation. It is my 

 opinion that it will prove to be the largest currant in 

 cultivation. Since it is remarkably productive and a 

 strong grower, I see no reason why it should not become 

 a general favorite. 



But how sad to consider the disappointment of an 

 old man like Jacob Moore, encumbered now with the 

 infirmities of age, realizing that his life work, which has 

 been of great value to the country at large, should be so 

 little appreciated I The man who produces by his skill 

 or discovery an improved variety of fruit, and makes 

 the discovery known over this wide country, benefits his 

 fellow man to the extent of many million dollars, but 

 there are few who realize this. Possibly after Jacob 

 Moore has died, and his fruits are grown on almost every 

 hillside of America, there may be a few who will sound 

 his praises, but great masses of our people will never 

 do him the honor he deserves. 



ECONOMICAL RATIONS IN BEEF PRODUCTION. 



Bulletin No. 100, entitled "Economical Rations in Beef Produc- 

 tion," just issued by the Department of Animal Husbandry of the Ne- 

 braska Experiment Station, contains forty pages of experimental data, 

 together with comments upon each of the problems investigated. The 

 results cover a period of four years and are briefly summarized at the 

 close of the report as follows: 



Prairie hay when fed with corn alone to fattening cattle gives 

 small and unsatisfactory gains and very little or no profit. 



Alfalfa *hay with corn alone gives large and profitable gains. 



The use of a well-cured corn-stover with alfalfa and corn, while it 

 may not produce large gains, will make the gains less costly because of 

 its low market value, thereby increasing the profits over corn and alfalfa 

 alone. 



In feeding only prairie hay as roughness to fattening cattle, much 

 larger and more profitable gains can be made if linseed-meal or possi- 

 bly some other protein concentrate is fed with corn in small quantity 

 rather than feeding corn alone. 



The results of two experiments indicate that linseed-meal is a little 

 more valuable than cotton-seed meal and much more valuable than 

 wheat bran for supplementing 'corn when fed with prairie hay or corn- 

 stover. 



When alfalfa is made at least half of the roughness with prairie 

 hay or corn-stover, good gains may be made and at less cost than 

 when no alfalfa is fed, the protein being supplied by the use of lin- 

 seed-meal. In other words, it is possible to grow protein on the farm 

 at a price much below what it will cost on the market in the form of 

 some commercial protein food. 



Corn-stover cut immediately after the ears ripen and cured in 

 shocks possesses a value fully two-thirds as great as prairie hay. The 

 part usually consumed, viz., the leaves and upper portion of stalk, is 

 quite the equal of prairie hay pound for pound. 



The results of a single experiment in which but little more than 

 half a full feed of corn was supplied two lots of fattening steers sug- 



fest the possibility of making a larger u'se of hay in finishing cattle 

 or market than is ordinarily made and at less cost, especially where 

 hav is relatively low and corn high in price. 



From a commercial point of view the results of this entire series 

 of experiments g_o to show that cattle feeding can be made profitable 

 when discretion is used in the selection of foods for the ration. On 

 the average farm in Nebraska where grain and hay command figures 

 below Lincoln prices and where cattle are undisturbed by frequent 

 weighings which experimental feeding necessitates, the profits can be 

 made much greater than those reported in this bulletin. Good feeding 

 will make our corn bring more as beef than when sold direct to the ele- 

 vator companies even though the selling price of finished cattle is not 

 far in advance of cost price as was true in many of these experiments. 

 The importance of manure and the growing of alfalfa and clover _as 

 agencies contributing to the maintenance and increase of land fertility 

 argue further for this mode of selling a larger part of pur annual corn 

 crop. The cattle industry deserves much greater attention in this state 

 than has been given it in the past. 



This bulletin will be sent free to all residents of Nebraska who 

 requ'est it by writing to the Nebraska Experiment Station, Lincoln, 

 Nebraska. H. R. SMITH. 



Corn Planters 



Runners, Single Disks 



Hfld Double 



Adjustable 3 feet to 5 feet, 2, 3, 4. or 5 



kernels to bill as desired. 



Drills fertilizer in continuous rows or 



checks in hills. Write for catalogs. 



HOOSIER DRILL COMPANY, 



Division, The American Seeding-Machinc Co. .Incorporated 

 RICHMOND. INDIANA, V. S. A. 



Runner Planter with Fertilizer Attachment 



