238 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[July, 
Contents for July, 1867. 
A Hopeful Sign 25S 
Animals as Weather Guages 349 
Apiary for July 240 
Blood-reel Amaranth 25S 
Blue-tailed Skink Illustrated . .217 
Books and How They are Made 23S 
Boys and Girls' Columns — Instructive Experiments — 
The kind-hearted Tanner — Iron at $20,000 per pound 
— Many a Slip "between Cup and Lip — Independence 
Day— -Educated Senses— New Puzzles to he An- 
swered—Answers to Prohlems and Puzzles — i IHtts- 
trations. 201, 262 
Buckwheat 2S3 
Cold Grapery in July 240 
Crops for the Orchard 257 
Drying Fruit, Hops, etc 4 Illustrations. .257 
Experience with French Fowls 24G 
Farm Work in July 238 
Fatal Accident from Mowing Machines 249 
Flower Garden and Lawnin July 240 
Fruit Garden in July - 239 
Green Com Pudding 200 
Green and Hot-Houses in July 240 
Horticultnral and other Patents 256 
Household Department — Dashes at Housekeeping with 
a Free Pencil — Tidies, Prize Essay — Diary of a 
Young Housekeeper — Housekeeper's Journal S 
Illustrations 259, 260 
Housekeepers with small Children 245 
Kitchen Garden in July 239 
Lady's Slippers Illustrated. .255 
Large versus Small Cotton Plantations 249 
Left-handed Plows Illustrated. . 251 
Lizards Illustrated. . 247 
Markets 240 
Mole or Gopher Trap ^Illustrations . . 251 
National Tax on Dogs . .246 
Orchard and Nursery in July .239 
Pears, some of the less known, 3 Illustrations. .256 
Pine Lizard Illustrated. .247 
Puma Illustrated. .247 
Raise Your Own Wheat 24S 
. Raising Seedling Strawberries ,254 
Re-stocking Fresh Waters with Fish.. 2 Illustrations. .250 
Shad and Alewivcs 3 Illustrations. .254 
Sorrel Tree Illustrated. .258 
The Jewel in Toads 253 
Tiger Triton Illustrated. . 247 
Tim Bunker, or the Eight Hour Law 2-43 
Tritons ._. Illustrated.. 247 
Turnips, their Place on the Farm,... 25-2 
Using Three Horses Ahreast 3 Illustrations. .250 
Value of Com Husks - 253 
Yiola Cornnta 258 
Virginian Lungwort Illustrated. . 255 
Walks and Talks on the Farm— No. 43— Drain Tiles- 
Wheat Culture — True's Potato Planter — Sores on 
Animals— Ditching— Working Heavy Land 252, 253 
Whitewashed or Painted Fences 257 
Young Grape Vines 25S 
INDEX TO "BASKET, " Or, SHORTER ARTICLES. 
Advertising Agency 242 Mutual Exchange 24-1 
Aeration in Churning 243 Notes of Travel 243 
Appleton's Encyclopedia 244 Orchards on Gravel 244 
Aspara°us 244 Over-cropped Land 245 
Bees from Italy 242 Patent Brooms 244 
Bio- Things 245 Pears in Maine 244 
Birds and Eggs 241 Piano. A Good 212 
Blacking Brush Holder.. 24-1 Plastic Slate Roofing. .. .245 
Bowen's Microscope 242 Perseverance and Pianos 243 
Broom and Dust Pan 244 Potatoes under Straw 215 
Chess Again 244 Poultry Club. 241 
Commercial Enterprise.. 242 Premiums, Chances for.. 241 
Corn, Value of 245 Quinces 243 
Cost of Marketing Crops .245 Kat Premiums 214 
Crop Prospects 241 Registered Letters 241 
Cure for Gapes 245 Re-packing- Pork 244 
Deceptive Circulars 241 Sailed for Europe 243 
Diseased Peach Leaves . . 242 Separating Honey 244 
Duty on Imported Ani's. 245 Shall we Milk" before 
Farmer's Fruit Cake 245 Calving 245 
Fire & Water-proof Wash245 Sheep as Lawn Mowers.. 244 
Flowering Almond 242 
Grape Literature 243 
Grape Queries 243 
Grape-vine Beetle 242 
Gregory on Squashes 243 
Horse-racing at Fairs 245 
Silver-leaved Maple 243 
Soap and Candles 244 
Soap on Oil Stones 242 
Sowing Barley 244 
Suffolk Pigs 245 
Sumach Berries 242 
Horse Radish 242 Sundry Humbugs 241 
Hungarian Grass 243 Tennessee Lands 243 
Keeping Meat 244 The Hoove 243 
Lice on Cattle 245 JTighteuirg Screws,Dogs.244 
Manure and Ashes 243 ("Time Keeper" 241 
Married 243 ;To Officers of Societies.. 243 
Metcalfs Strawberry.... 312 'Value oT Hay. etc 245 
Milch Cows and Dairy. . .244 Wasted Thunder 244 
Miner Plum ". . . ,244JWeather Observations. . .241 
Mohr on the Vine 243,Where can I get it ? 243 
More Grape Vines 243 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
N£W-YOIiK, JULY, 1S6T. 
The weather — hoiv much depends upon the 
weather ! Millions of dollars' worth of hay will be 
exposed to damage from rain ; millions of bushels 
of grain will be in condition to suffer likewise. 
The lack of rain may bring a blight, if not a failure, 
to other crops. By the blessing of Heaven we are 
in little danger from a general famine in this broad 
land, with its diverse soils and different climates, 
bound together, not alone by a Constitution, but by 
potent and ever strengthening net-works of rail- 
ways and of commercial interests. The plenty of 
one section quickly supplies the want of another. 
How to judge beforehand of weather probabilities, 
and how to shape his plans so that protracted 
storms, or even hard showers, shall do little damage 
to crops, and cause little loss of time to himself 
aud his hands, is a study to which the farmer may 
well give considerable thought. One thing we may 
certainly do, namely : always have work for our 
regular hands on rainy days. It is more difficult to 
find work for teams. V,'e have no doubt that the 
time is not distant when the coming of all great 
storms will be told by telegraph, so much in ad- 
vance, that wide-awake farmers, in neighborhoods 
receiving a daily mail, may easily prepare for their 
approach. The habit of closely watching the clouds 
aud changes of the wind, and the indicated currents 
of the air, high above the earth, is a valuable one. 
The barometer, taken in connection with other in- 
dications, is a very important premonitor of ap- 
proaching storms. So also are thermometers and 
hygrometers, the one indicating the temperature, 
and the other the amount of moisture iu the air. 
No one of these is of reliability alone, and all indi- 
cations must be weighed with the judgment which 
experieuce gives. It is great folly for a farmer to 
buy a barometer, aud think he can tell when a storm 
is coming, by its ups and downs. As well might 
he go by the wind alone, much better might he be 
guided by the clouds. All the signs should be 
taken together, the energy of the indications con- 
sidered, and past experieuce, after all, taken as the 
surest guide. To gain experience, no way can com- 
pare with that of keeping a record of observations. 
See basket note on weather. The labors of this 
month are at all times severe. The facilities for 
using horse-power, iu securing the bulky summer 
crops, are every year greater, 3'et human muscle is 
not dispensed with, but only made more efficient. 
Nevertheless, every year the farmer's success de- 
pends less on brawn, and more on brain. 
Hints Afcoiit Work. 
Animals. — Cows at pasture must not lack pure 
and fresh water — stagnant pools are a poor source 
of supply. No stock ought to be forced to drink 
from them, and, least of all, milch cows. Calves 
are better pastured by themselves than with other 
stock. Young horses often get the bad habit of run- 
ning after, and striking them, if they feed together. 
An old horse will take care of himself among cows, 
but colts, of one or two years old,- are needless, and, 
if pastured with cattle, may be hurt by their horns, 
without any real malice ou the part of cows. Work- 
ing stock should not lie over night in the pasture. 
It is very well for them to have a few hours, in 
which to graze, during some part of the day, but 
both cattle and horses work better on good hay, and 
some proviuder, corn and oats, rye-shorts, and the 
like. The amount of feed may be graduated in 
accordance with the average amount of work re- 
quired, but it should be uniform. All animals, not 
at pasture, should have some green feed — perhaps 
one-third of all they eat. This should be cut, 
wilted, and brought to the yard or stables for them, 
and be ready when the day's work is done. 
Harness and Yoke Galls.— Wash with castile soap 
and cold water, and, if possible, bind on a piece of 
sacking, wet with water, to remain over night. Re- 
lieve pressure upon file sore spots by shifting the 
harness, or by padding, and protect from flies with 
grease ;md pine tar mixed, during the day. 
Sheep are distressed by the gad-fly this month and 
next, and should be protected by tarring their 
noses. Daub the tar on their noses, extending up, 
where they will not rub it off in feeding. The fly 
lays eggs in the nostrils, which hatch, and, the 
worms ascending, cause the " grub in the head." 
Hogs. — Provide swine with roomy pens, to work 
over all the litter and weeds that can be gathered, 
besides sods, muck, etc. The amount of excellent 
manure made,as noted on another page,is enormous. 
Weeds. — Suffer none to go to seed, is easily writ- 
ten, but very hard to carry out. Still, the nearer 
we can live up to this injunction, the easier will it 
be to carry it out, year after year. Many weeds, 
pulled or cut up in blossom, will ripen seed while 
dying, but few, the seeds of which are not fully 
mature, will survive the hog pen, in root or seed. 
It is never too late to pull docks in the mowing. 
Canada thistles, cut a few times below the surface, 
will disappear. Carrots are biennial, and, perhaps, 
in a few cases, will live a third year, if the\- cannot 
blossom the second ; and we have strong faith, 
though not positive assurance, that the seeds will 
not germinate after the third year. So, two years' 
cultivation will almost always clean them out. 
JIbicings. — If grass lodges badly, cut it without 
reference to fitness. Timothy is fittest when it is 
just out of bloom ; orchard grass and clover bloom 
at the same time, and should be cut when the latter 
is in fullest flower. Cut all grasses before the seed 
will shell after curing. The best time to manure grass 
is just after mowing; the best manure fine muck 
compost, with a modicum of ashes, bone dust and 
plaster. Spread with a shovel from the cart, and 
go over the land with an iron toothed horse-rake, 
to spread and knock the lumps to pieces, aud work 
them into the sward. See hints of last month. 
Grain Harvesting. — Barley should become nearly 
ripe before it is cut, and it ought to be bound and 
shocked the same day, aud protected from dews 
and rains as much as possible. Thus the brightest 
and most marketable grain is obtained. Oats ripen 
so unevenly that it is often best to cut them while 
many are hardly out of the miik, to save those that 
are getting too ripe. The best time is wrro«-4Ue 
kernel is in the dough state. What is lost by early 
cutting, in the grain, is gained in the straw. Wheat 
ought to get nearly ripe, according to the latest 
doctrine, to give the greatest weight of grain aud the 
best quality. The happy medium between sufficient 
ripeness and liability to shell out is the point to be 
sought in determining when to cut. The older and 
perhaps safer theory, favored cutting while the 
grain was in the dough. Make all preparations early, 
engage extra hands to be ready to cut, and harvest 
at the right time ; have sharp and good tools. 
Hay and Grain Caps. — The cheapness of fabrics 
will now permit the economical use of caps for hay 
cocks and shocks of grain. Four feet square is a 
good size, and loops for pius at the corners are the 
best fastening. Onee using sometimes pays the cost 
Hoeing. — Hoe to kill weeds, to stir the soil, to 
replace earth washed off by rains. The stirring of 
the soil is a great security against the effects of 
drought. It enables the plants to get the full ad- 
vantage of showers and dews. It enables the au- 
to circulate freely through the upper stratum of 
earth, and to penetrate lower, taking moisture with 
it, aud depositing it in the cool soil below the sur- 
face. Work the soil as deeply as convenient, and 
not disturb the roots of crops. As a rule, avoid 
raising hills, either about corn or pototoes. Per- 
fectly flat culture requires, however, deeper soil 
than we ordinarily have on all fields. 
Turnips after Corn.— With the lart hoeing- of 
corn, if the soil be toleraDiy riccy, ana the culture 
flat, turnip seed may be sown aud hoed iu lightly. 
(A potato hook, or " claw hoe," is the best thing 
to hoe com with, especially the last time, if there 
are not many weeds to cut up. It leaves the surfuee 
in excellent shape.) The corn is cut up and re- 
moved when the kernels are glazed, and the turnips 
often make a good crop, having 6 weeks to grow. 
Turnips Alone— Turnips may be sown any time 
this month. On tolerably mellow soil, it is best to 
sow in drills, and give as much cultivation as other 
