146 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



March 



Hence it is necessary to come to some conclusion 

 a.s to what the word "muck" means. Webster's 

 opinion is tliat it means "a mass of deca^'ing vegc- 

 tal)le matter." AVorcester says, "a substance, as 

 ilung, straw, &c., that is moist or in a fermenting 

 state." In England the word is a]>plied to green 

 manure. And wirli tl>e title "Muck Jloolc" Mr. D. 

 J. Browne published a book some thirty years ago 

 wluL'h treats of all kinds of ma/iures. 



But if the farmers of New England were to make 

 a dictionary, what would be their definition of 

 "muck ?" Would not the common idea be ex- 

 l)res!»ed \)y saying, "Any dark-colored substance 

 found in low wet i)laces." It umy be brook sand, 

 colored by the oxide of iron or some "sour stuff;" 

 it may be earth washed from the surrounding liills, 

 and mixed witli a snuUl amount of vegetable 

 matter; it may ])e nearl\' pure vegetable matter, 

 the remains of trees, water grass and other plants; 

 or it ma^' possibly be composed largely of the sliells 

 of minute aquatic animals. 



However composted, tlierefore, different kinds of 

 muck will operate differently when used as a fer- 

 tilizer. Generally it is not advisable to apply crude 

 muck directly to the soil. Farmers call it "sour." 

 The books say it contains acids injurious to vege- 

 tations. Muck needs to be mixed with something 

 that will neutralize these acids and i)ut it in a con- 

 dition to be "com])ared with manure." 



Our correspondent asks how to do just this thing 

 next spring with a lot he has lying in heaps. Mix- 

 ing it with the droppings of cattle, horses and hogs, 

 both solid and liquid, especially the latter, is the 

 first and best way of composting. Then the privy 

 will make a large pile properly managed. >So will 

 the sink spout and waste water from the kitchen. 

 Mr. Ames, of Wilmington, Mass., obtains the salt 

 and brine in meat and fish barrels from stores, and 

 mixes four barrels of it and four casks of slacked 

 lime with five cords of muck, overhauls twice, and 

 gets what he thinks a cheap and good manure. 

 Dr. Nichols says that fresh peat allowed to ferment 

 in contact with lime is changed into new sub- 

 stances capable of nourishing plants. Btit still he 

 thinks its chief use is as an absorbent for the liciuid 

 nnmure of-stock, so generally lost; but which he 

 says is about eijual in value to the solid portions. 



RED WATER IN HORSES. 



AVill you or any of your coiTcspondents please 

 inform me of a remedy for the red water in horses ? 

 Marlow, Mass., Jan. 10, 1811. c. w. 



Remarks. — Bloody urine is generally thought 

 to be the result of some strain, ])low, or violence to 

 the system. Yellow water is an indication of liver 

 complaint, resulting in jaundice. We should en- 

 deavor in tlie first place to ascertain the cause or 

 hication of disease. If the l)loody urine is the re- 

 sult of a strain, good care and nursing should lie 

 tried in preference to much dosing. We advise 

 you to get your family ))hysician to examine your 

 case. Disorders that affect the urine are similar in 

 man and beast. Perhajis rubljing the l)ack and 



loins to produce counter-irritation might be bene- 

 ficial. Messes of potatoes or any green food may 

 be beneficial, if the bowels are at all costive. 



SHEEP PULLIXG WOOL. 



Can you or any of your correspondents tell me 

 the cause of my sheep pulling their wcjol, and any 

 in-cventive ? They are a good tiock ofCotswolds 

 and South Downs, mcH fed aiid as well cared for 

 as I know how. Will getting loo fat cause it ? 



YovNG Farmer. 



East Greenwich, li. I., Feb., 1871. 



Remarks. — Probably the wool is pulled out by 

 the sheep in their etforts to allaj' some irritation of 

 the skin, — in other words, in trying to scratch 

 themselves. The itching nuiy be caused by ticks, 

 scab, &c., or by some mild cutaneous disease caused 

 by high feed, bad ventilation, want of green feed, 

 or by cold weather. The remedy should be adapted 

 to remove the cause of the trouble. Tol)acco wash 

 is a very common remedy. Dr. Randall i-ecom- 

 mends an ointment composed of lard, two pounds; 

 oil of tar, half a pound; su!i)hur one pound. 

 Gradually mix the last two, then ml) down the 

 compound with the first. Apply a little of this 

 ointment on the head of the animal. Part the wool 

 so as to expose the skin in a Ihic from the head to 

 the tail, and apply with the finger a little of the 

 ointment the whole way. Make a similar furrow 

 and application on both sides, four inches from the 

 first, and so on over the body. A less thorough ap- 

 plication in most cases of slight skin diseases would 

 probably be sufficient.' • 



cabbage avokms. 



I have been troubled the past season with gi-ecn 

 worms on my cabbages, and having seen cont-ide]'- 

 able in the Fakmer relative to their origin, I give 

 it as my oiiinion that they are produced by the 

 common yellow biitterily, as I saw one alight on a 

 plant and" deposit two or three eggs and then fiy 

 away, and return several times and deposit more. 

 But as the plant was removed l)efore they hatched, 

 I don't know what the residt would have been. 



Alexandria, JV. JI., Jan. 10, 1871. i. L. F. 



Remakks. — The I'ieris rapce, butterfly is light 

 colored, and may have been mistaken by you for 

 the common yellow buttertly; or, if not, the yel- 

 low butterfly may not have laid the eggs you found 

 on the cabbage. We suppose the butterfly that de- 

 posits the eggs that produce the new cabbage worm 

 is just as well known to naturalists as is the robin 

 or swallow. The common yellow butterfly must 

 have learned new tricks within a few years past if 

 she is the mother of the fearfully destructive cab- 

 bage pest, 



SIGNS or PREGNANCY IN COWS. 



Under this cajition, I notice the remarks of"D. 

 C." In regard to his cows, he does not say which 

 of his cow.- he is in doulit aliout. If it is the Jer- 

 sey, I should not wonder if he was uiuibie to tell 

 wiiethcr she was with calf or not. They are thin 

 Ituilt, ami their calves are generally small. I have 

 a threc-tburtlis Jersey cow, a valual)le animal that 

 should, according to our reckoning, have come in 

 the first week in Decendter. She has not l)ecn in 

 heat since last taken away, — as our figures niake it, 



