1S62. 



THE ILLINOIS FAEMEE. 



243 



"ruitfuhiess any year ever known in this locality. 

 tVe have grown thirty bushel of the Houghton's 

 Seedling goosebery on three rewsof bushes about 

 twelve or thirteen rods long — all fair fruit with- 

 out even a speck of mildew. 



THE BLIGHT 



On the apple is more universal this year in 

 this and Whiteside counties than ever before 

 knewn. Many of the native crabs are severely 

 attacked with it — have seen some so bad that I 

 think their recovery from its effects doubtful. 

 Thefact of the native crab being attacked with 

 the blight goes far to establish the theory that 

 the blight is caused by an insect and not by 

 freezing or any other climatic influence. 



The blight was never seen, as I am aware, un- 

 til orchards were planted and were first attacked 

 with the disease. 



We have the Willow Twig in a good state of 

 preservation, kept in the Cave. 



We think the Illinois Farmer a live agri' ul- 

 cultural journal, — it may ride some hobbies 

 rather hard, but there is no other way but by put- 

 ting on steam and cutting a channel through the 

 sandbars thrown across its track by ignorance 

 and prejudice. So "pitch in." 



Yours truly, 



A. S. CoE. 



For the Illinois Farmer. 



Prepare for Sugar Making in Time. 



How shall we get our sugarcane manufactured? 

 There is now planted in the northern part of this 

 State and Iowa, hundreds of acres of sugar 

 cane, and it looks first rate. There "will be 

 more sirup than can possibly be used for home 

 consun}ptioa if it can be manufactured. I hope 

 that every one that has an acre of this will se- 

 cure a place to get it njanufactured in due sea- 

 son, for all those that have machines will have 

 all that they can do. Farmers, don't let your 

 cane go to w.iste. 



Harvest, in this vicinity, is going on rapidly. 

 The wheat is not what you might call a full crop. 

 The heavy rains that fell during the first of July 

 and the chinch bng has damaged the wheat con- 

 siderably in this section as well as in the portion 

 of Iowa which lies opposite here. 



Rye is generally pretty good. 



Oats look promising. Some fields look back- 

 ward on account of poor seed. 



Potatoes look promising for a heavy crop. 

 There has been a large quantity planted in this 

 part of the State. 



N. S. Ketchum. 



Cordova, July 26, 1862. 



Paint for Marking Labels. — 1. In the busi- 

 ness of the garden and orchard marked stakes 

 and labels are often needed for temporary pur- 

 poses, as the designation of rows of fruit trees, 

 new varieties of corn and potatoes, fiowers, etc , 

 or rows of seed sown m hot beds. 



2. The staves of an old barrel sawed in two 

 and sharpened at one end ansner tor larger pur- 

 poses, and short pieces of hemlock lath, planed 

 smooth on one side, for smaller ones. Tlio?e who 

 happen to have blocKS of cedar cut off from long 

 posts, or even the sound poriisn of cedar posts 

 that have failed, will find them especially useful 

 wood for splitting up for either large or small 

 marks and stakes. 



3. For paint to mark such stakes and labels I 

 have found nothing so cheap and readj' as sbti- 

 lac varnish, into which a little lampb'ack had 

 been well worked. Whether used in making let- 

 ters or figures it should be applied with a small 

 brush. It is better applied to the naked wood 

 than to a painted surtaee, to which, especially if 

 the paint be fresh and glossy, it does not adhere 

 well. 



Such paint will continue legible until the stakes 

 decay. 



Its superiority to oil paints is seen ia two facts 

 — it dries rapidly, and it does not spread on ihe 

 wood when first applied, as does oil paint on a 

 great many surf^^ces, and become illegible. 



So also this same mix ure is superior for the 

 same reason for marking barrels, boxes and bales 

 of goods. — Country Gent. 



Geese vs. Cows — A Comparison. — The Rural 

 has been favored by correspondents, with seve- 

 ral inquiries relative to the care of geese, and as 

 we note some talk about this fowl, (though em- 

 bracing another branch of their keeping,) we 

 give the following from a writer in the Irish Far- 

 mer's Gazette: 



Seeing in your "Gazette" of last week a query 

 as to the number of geese equal Jo a cow on 

 grass, an answer at once suggests itself. In some 

 parts of the locality round me a plantation acre 

 of grass wiU fatten a bullock at four or five 

 months' feeding. Now, an average sized goose, 

 weighing ten pounds, will eat at least two pounds 

 of grass per day — that is, one fi^th of her weight, 

 and certainly will destroy as much moie, and 

 leave it unfit for a beast to touch. But leaving 

 the last statement out of the question, a'ld raking 

 for granted that a cow will eat seven stones, or 

 ninety-eight pounds, of grass per day. we have 

 forty-nine geese equal to one cow. But now let 

 us take a view of the two acres ai the end of the 

 season, and what will we see ? The acre fed by 

 the cow, although bare, is well manured; and 

 "nothing worse of the wear; while the one- fed 

 on by tee geese is literally burned up by their 

 dung. Any person that knows the dreadful in- 

 jury inflicted on grazing pasture by geess, would 

 manage to house-feed them, unless there were a 

 commons or bog convenient to drive them out on. 



The editor remarks : Though the drcppings of 

 the geese injure the grass for the time being, it 

 acts as a potent manure afterwards. 



