C6 TRANSACTIONS OF TIIC AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



soda) are not more than will three times lill a man's li:it; and certainly it 

 is marvelous that three hatfulR of any snbstance should increase so much 

 and s(» rcj^ularly the eorn upon a whole; acre of <;round, as it did foinhined 

 with 04 pounds of common salt, in one expcMiment, in whiih it in calcula- 

 ted that one horse cart load of nitrate of soda i>roduccd eij^ht cart loads of 

 grain. Tlw. ]>urpose of the common salt is to restraijj tln^ invi;^'oriitinj^ 

 power of V V nitrate. One cart load of nitrate and two of salt prodvici il an 

 eflect equal to 400 cart loads of farn) yard nKiinue. 



Petroleum for Fruit Trees. 



Mr. Thcioii r. Paikt-r, Byron, Ogle county, 111., gives the following as 

 his experifuce in the use of gas tar iijion fruit trees; and as cnie fact is 

 •worth a volume of theory', we publish his letter entire: 



" 1 notice in a late report of the Farmers' Club that George Bush, of 

 (.'rawford county, Pa., says that 'crude petrijleuin applied to fruit trees aa 

 a wash to the bark, destrt)ys all kinds of vermin.' If the last two words of 

 the sentence were omitted I think hi.s statement entirely correct. And as 

 inftrnnition was solicited at a former meeting of the Club with regard ti> 

 the use of gas tar as applied to young trees, and the tar and pftrolcum aro 

 so nearly relateil, I proj)0se to give my experience in using it. Jjast year, 

 after preparing my seed corn with gas tar and lime, 1 had some of the tar 

 left, and I thought it would be a good use for it to put it on the bodies of 

 some twenty thrifty young apple trees that had been put in the orchard to 

 supply vacancies. 1 thought it wt)uld prevent rabbits from gnawing the 

 baik, as I have been much annoyed by them. Well, it did do that elVectu- 

 ally, for only one, and that a pretty large ojie, survived; and that looks art 

 if it had had the ague. 



"These applications for killing bark lice and otiier insects remind mo of 

 a pert reply of a doctor to an im|)atient mother, who inejuired (»f the doctor 

 if he could not give her sometiiing th;it would kill the worms in her child. 

 ' Oh, yes, matlam, there is no diflicully about that.' ' Oh, do then, doctor; 

 I shall be so glad to save tin; life of my child.' 'Ah,' sanl the doctor, 'if 

 you want to kill the worms and not the child with them, it is a pretty 

 dillicult matter.' Such, at h-ast, has been my experience. Strong soap 

 Hiids is by far the best ap|)lication I have ever used for bark lice. I5iit the 

 tar on seed corn does well, for nothing will eat it, and it does nut injtne the 

 seed when prc»perly prepared." 



Top Onions. 



Mr. K. \V(,llington, Lowville, N. V., impiires iiow " the onions conimonly 

 called Dutel) Sets are raised? ^Vhelher they are froui the black scu'd, or 

 an entirely difl'ereiit kind? At what time they ought to be so\Vn, how t<» 

 preserve the seed? " &c. 



Mr. Solon llobinson. — This is an entirely dilVerent variety fron» the 

 black seed onions. The sets are miniature onions, which planted in spring, 

 grow to largo onions. These nnittire earlier than onions from seed. Thai 

 is their greatest value. If kept over till spring and set out, they produce, 

 instead of black seed, a handful of little onions on the top of the stalk. 

 These should be preserved over winter in a dry room, where they will not 

 freeze. Plant them as early in spring as the ground will permit. 



