180 
[Mat, 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
Hints and Helps for Farmers. 
BY L. D. SNOOK, YATES CO., N. Y. 
Open Ditches. — Intermittent, or occasionally 
flowing streams cannot be carried off by under- 
WWwmm. 
Fig. 1.— USUAL FORM OF DITCH. 
drains, on account of the large quantity of water 
brought down by them at certain seasons. Open 
ditches are, therefore, necessary to conduct away 
the water of these courses. Generally, these open 
Fig. 2.— IMPROVED FORM OF DITCH. 
ditches are a nuisance, because of their improper 
shape. The usual form is that of a hollow, B , fig. 
1, with ridged banks, E, E , by which the ground is 
made useless when the stream is dry. In the form 
Fig. 3.— PORTABLE FEEDING COOP FOR CHICKS. 
shown at figure 2, there will be no obstruction to 
the passage of wagons or mowing machines, the 
grass in them can be mowed, and the sides and bot¬ 
tom being turfed over, there will be no washing. 
A Portable Feeding Coop.—A coop in which 
Fig. 4.—reversible feeding trough. 
young chicks, that are permitted to range with the 
large fowls, may be fed without interference by the 
others, may be made as shown at figure 3. Com¬ 
mon laths are sawn into proper lengths and nailed 
to a frame, three inches space being left lot the 
chicks to go in and out. On one side the laths are 
cut off six inches from the ground, and a strip, A, 
3 inches wide, is secured so as to be raised as the 
chicks grow larger, to permit them to pass under 
it. If made 10 feet long and 5 feet wide, it will ac¬ 
commodate 200 chicks. The frames for the sides 
and ends may be attached to each other by pins, or 
hooks and staples, and when not in use, they may be 
taken apart and packed away, until again required. 
A Feeding Trough.— A device for keeping feed- 
troughs free from dirt, rain, or snow, is shown at 
figure 4. Supports are attached to the trough, and 
extend above it, as at E, E, H, II. When the trough 
is not in use, it may be tilted over so that it will be 
kept free from water, or rubbish, and always be 
in a proper condition whenever needed for use. 
Dibbles for Potato Planting.— When plant. 
ing potatoes in rows or hills, the holes for the sets 
may be made very easily by means of the dibbles 
shown at figures 5 and 6. The first is made of a 
piece of hard-wood, 31 feet long and 2 inches thick, 
bluntly sharpened at one end. Pins, A, A, 10 inch¬ 
es long, are inserted near each end, one intended 
for a handle, the other to be pressed with the 
foot into the soil, by which the hole is made. The 
second is similar, excepting that a piece of iron is 
screwed to the wood for a step, on which to place 
the foot. By changing the place of the lower pin, or 
the step, the depth of planting may be regulated. 
A Convenient Feed or Grain-bin. —A feed or 
grain-bin, made as shown at figure 7, will be found 
very useful; it is divided into three compartments, 
and the shelf above will be a convenient place for 
measures or scoops. It will tend greatly to save 
feed if the Jiox is provided with lock and key. 
A Useful Corn-marker. —Acorn-marker, which 
will adapt itself to any uneven and stony surface, 
may be made as follows : A bed piece, li, fig. 8, five 
inches square and 10 feet long, is provided The 
marker-holders, F, F, four feet long and four inches 
square, are attached to the bed-piece by wooden 
pins 2 inches thick, A, A. The markers, E, E, are 
10 inches long and 3x4 inches thick, and are fasten¬ 
ed to the holders, P, P, by 2-inch holes near the 
ends. The markers are beveled at the bottom, to 
facilitate their passage 
over obstructions and 
make a more distinct 
mark. At B, B, are up 
right sticks, 3 feet long, 
by which the marker is 
guided in a straight 
line by the driver. At 
the ends of rows, the 
marker is lifted around 
by the rear handles. 
Hitching Posts and 
Rings. —A double hitch¬ 
ing post is shown at 
figure 9. It is made of 
two posts set in the 
ground and joined to¬ 
gether by a cross-piece, 
mortised into them. 
This makes the posts 
very firm, and not easily loosened or torn out of the 
ground. Different forms of single posts are shown 
at figure 10. These require no description. Rings, 
which may be fastened into posts or barn timbers, 
are shown at figure 11. One of these is made to 
screw into the timber; the other is fastened by a 
staple having notches in it,to render the lio[d secure. 
Improvement of Corn 
This being the month for planting corn ovei a 
large portion of the Northern States, some remarks 
about the means of improving this grain are timely. 
No crop that we grow has 6uch promising possibili¬ 
ties as this, none is grown with less care as to its 
improvement. The general yield over the United 
States, is from 25 to 45 bushels per acre. At the 
rate of 100 ears to a bushel 
of shelled corn, this is from 
one to two ears to two square 
yards, or only about one ear 
to a hill under ordinary 
methods of cultivation. 
Generally three, and some¬ 
times two, stalks are left in 
each hill. There are then a 
large number of barren 
plants produced. If each 
stalk bore one good ear, the 
yield would be from 50 to 
150 bushels of grain to the 
acre. If we could produce 
three or four ears to one 
stalk, and leave but one stalk 
to a hill, with hills 3i feet 
apart (3,555 hills to the acre), 
we should gather from 100 to 
140 bushels of grain per acre. If we could grow of 
the common northern field-corn, three ears to a hill, 
Figs. 5 & 6. DIBBLES. 
that is, one ear to every stalk, with hills 3 feet 
apart, we should gather 145 bushels per acre. The 
advantage and profit from such cultivation is ap- 
Fig. 7.— BIN FOR GRAIN OR FEED. 
parent. The question is, how can we produce such 
a yield as this ? It is well worth the effort to try to 
do it. Vegetables and animals reproduce their kind 
under somewhat similar laws. Like produces like 
in both cases. There are shy bearers iu both plants 
Fig. 8.—A CORN-MARKER. 
and animals, but we quickly weed out of our flocks 
and herds the non-productive portion. If we could 
do the same with our corn-plants, and prevent the 
barren stalks from shedding their pollen upon the 
productive ones, we should apply the same rule 
which stock-breeders enforce in their yards and 
pens. We might go further than this, and choose 
seed from the most prolific stalks of a previous 
year, selected in the field ; plant these in highly fertil¬ 
ized soil; cultivate the crop perfectly; remove 
the tassel from each stalk that has no ear, before 
the pollen is shed ; and see that every ear that 
shows the silk is fertilized with pollen from a pro¬ 
ductive plant. If this be carefully done for sev¬ 
eral years in succession, there can be no doubt that 
the effect upon the production of the crop aud 
the value of the seed, would be highly beneficial. 
