302 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



COOKING FOOD FOR STOCK. 



Solon Robinson read a letter from T. H. Collins of New Albany, 

 Ind., asking the club to discuss the value of cooked food, by- 

 steam or otherwise, as compared Avith raw food for domestic an- 

 mals. He wants, and so do all farmers, all the light that can be 

 obtained upon the subject. He also thinks the question of soil- 

 ing cattle one that may be profitably discussed. And finally he 

 thinks the reports of these meetings in The Tribune are about 

 worth all it costs him. 



Adrain Bergen of Long Island. — I use steamed food for my 

 stock constantly, with marked good effect. It is an advantage in 

 steamed potatoes to mix meal or bran with them. Pumpkins 

 may be fed raw, if the seeds are taken out and thrown away. The 

 seeds are injurious, unless cooked. 



The Chairman stated that pumpkin seeds are sold by boys in 

 the streets as nuts are here for food. 



Dr. Trimble,— Pumpkin seeds are very injurious to ducks. I 

 have seen whole flocks of ducks ruined by pumpkin seeds. 



E,. G. Pardee. — In Connecticut, in my boyhood, we used to 

 feed pumpkins to cows, and I never heard of injury. For hogs, 

 m}'' father used to stew pumpkins, with good results. Pumpkins 

 potatoes, and sometimes apples and a little corn made good pork. 



Wm. S. Carpenter. — I feed pumpkins largely, and it increases 

 the milk, and I have never discovered any injury from the seeds. 

 I consider pumpkins very fattening for hogs when cooked. 



BARK LICE. 



Solon Robinson. — I have a letter from S. Armstrong, of Racine 

 county, Wisconsin, who says : 



" I wish to ask the Farmers' Club what I shall do to get rid of 

 bark lice on apple trees, which are aff"ecting nearly all the orch- 

 ards in that part of the country. I noticed that orchards where 

 there are hoed crops had much the most healthy appearance, yet 

 more than half the orchards are in laud seeded to grass. 



** I wish to propose the following questions : 



" First : Where the trees are partly cleared or have a stunted 

 appearance, would you prune them pretty close ? 



" Second : How do you think it would do to dust ashes, lime 

 or plaster on the limbs in the spring, before the leaves start, in 

 a damp day when the limbs are sufficiently wet to make the dust 

 adhere ? Also, how would it do to dust on ashes or plaster in 

 the summer when the branches are sufficiently wet ? 



