Proceedings of tee Farmers' Club. (jGO 



Prof. J. A. Whitney. — If the gas lime can be had for one-half the 

 price of ordinary lime, it will pay to cart it six miles. It should be 

 exposed to the weather for some months before being used. This will 

 enable the sulphur and sulphites, which are hurtful, to be converted 

 into sulphates, which are harmless and beneficial. It may be spread 

 on the land then, say sixty or seventy bushels on an acre. 



The Value of Wood Ashes, 



Mr. C. 11. Goan, of New Lyme, Ohio, desired to be informed 

 whether he had better sell his wood ashes for eight cents j)er bushel, 

 or say no to the person who ofiers that price, and scatter them upon 

 his fields. 



Mr. F. D. Curtis. — Ashes, unleached, are worth at least twenty- 

 five cents per bushel. Many pay much more, and do not grudge the 

 outlay. 



Mr. II. L. Reade. — The value of ashes is not sufficiently under- 

 stood. Several years ago, before plowing in the spring, I raked the 

 potato vines on a certain field into winrows, and burned them. The 

 crop of oats on these particular lines, \vas twice as large as on the land 

 five feet distant ; and the yield of grass was nearly twice as large for 

 at least three years. I have bought ashes at eighteen cents a bushel, 

 carted them eight miles, and consider them the cheapest of all 

 manures. 



The Currant. 



Mr. P. T. Quinn. — Among the last known as " small fruits," 

 which have been cultivated for market with a view to profit, the cur- 

 rant has not, until quite recently, received the attention it well 

 deserved. For a dozen years past, the popularity of the currant as a 

 table and dessert fruit has steadily increased, and it is destined to 

 become a general favorite with consumers. The subacid flavor of the 

 cultivated kinds is agreeable to most persons, and considered by all 

 as a healthy sauce to any feast, especially in midsummer. 



To the practical fruit grower, the currant possesses special charac- 

 teristics, which are worthy of thoughtful consideration. Take, for 

 instance, the strawberry, and, when ripe, two days' rain often spoils 

 one-third of the crop, and of course lessens the profits to that extent. 

 With the currant the case is different. The fruit has a season of six 

 or eight weeks, and even, when fully ripe, two or three days' rain 

 does not injure the fruit, the storm simply stops the "pickers" 



