1884.] 
AMEEICA^T AGRICULTUEIST. 
95 
trees have any inner bark left on the wounds cover 
it with earth heaped up against the tree, or better 
by the use of a plaster made of cow-manure and 
any stiff soil. Bind on with a piece of old bagging. 
Kitclien and iflarlcet Ciiardeii. 
Early Planting requires early plants. The mar¬ 
ket-gardener depends upon his cold-frames and 
hot-beds. Every farm-garden or other family 
garden can provide early cabbage and cauliflower 
plants, lettuce, tomatoes, etc., by sowing the seeds 
in boxes of soil placed in the sunny kitchen win¬ 
dows. We have in former numbers described con¬ 
venient window boxes, but any box that will hold 
soil will do. Sow the seeds about six weeks be¬ 
fore the time at which it will be safe to set out the 
young plants in the open garden, and gain a month. 
Phubarb. —THe acid of Rhubarb stalks is espe¬ 
cially welcome in spring. The stalks may be had 
early by taking up a few roots as soon as the 
ground thaws; place them in a barrel and fill the 
spaces with earth. Cover the barrel and let it 
stand where it is warm. If a new planting is to be 
made, do it early. Divide an old root so as to 
leave a bud with each piece. Set the pieces in 
highly-manured soil, four feet apart each way; 
Peas. —The round sorts, while not the best, are 
earliest aud hardiest. Sow Daniel O’Rourke or Early 
Kentish as soon as the frost is out of the ground. 
/Seeds to be Sown Early, as soon as the soil can be 
worked, are: Beets, turnips, parsnips, salsify, 
spinach, kohlrabi, and radish. The following 
may be sown in seed-beds, to be transplanted: 
Cabbage, cauliflower, parsley and lettuce. 
Things to be thought of. —Nothing helps along 
in garden work more than a good seed drill. A 
market garden must have it, and it will pay in a 
small garden. A line and reel is needed. A good 
wooden reel is better than a poor iron one, such as 
is often sold. Repair all implements. Have a 
good wheel-barrow. It is convenient to mark the 
handles of hoes and rakes with feet and half-feet. 
A lance-headed hoe or one like that described in 
January last, is a most useful tool; any black¬ 
smith can make one. All seeds when sown should 
be marked with kind aud date. Prepare labels ; 
let them be so large that they cannot be hoed 
up without effort. Secure bean-poles and pea¬ 
brush before the trees and shrubs are in leaf. 
mid Window Plants. 
As the heat of the sun increases the ijlants will 
grow with more vigor and present a greater 
abundance of bloom. The same cause will bring 
renewed activity among the insects, which w'ill be 
ready to attack the tender new growth. Fumiga¬ 
tion, by burning tobacco stems, if frequently ap¬ 
plied, will keep the majority of insects in the green¬ 
house in subjection. It is difficult to fumigate 
window plants, aud the best substitute for tobacco 
smoke is tobacco water. Pour boiling water on the 
stems, or if these are not readily obtained use cheap 
plug tobacco. This strong infusion, when used, 
should be diluted with water until the color is like 
that of tea. The plants may be sprinkled or show¬ 
ered with this, but the best way to apply it is to 
have the tobacco water in a pail, or if that is not 
deep enough, in a keg, and dip the plants in it. 
Invert the pots, the fingers being over the ball of 
earth. Plunge the plant aud move it up and down 
in the liquid two or three times ; then hold it, still 
inverted, a few minutes, or until it ceases to drip. 
For scale insects which often attack ivy, smooth¬ 
leaved and other house-plants, apply the kerosene 
mixture or emulsion, made as described on p. 114. 
Annuals that will soon be needed to plant out in 
the borders may be sown in the green-house or in 
boxes or pots of soil in the window. Drummond’s 
phlox, stocks, candytuft, asters and others will 
be needed in abundance. Plants to be set out, 
from the green-house or window, should be har¬ 
dened off by gradual exposure, and if need be, 
pruned into compact form. Propagation of gerani¬ 
ums, verbenas, and other plants to be used in 
the beds, should be rapidly pushed forward. 
A Grafting Knife. 
Mr. F. B. Mills, N. Dunbarton, N. H., sends us a 
sketch of an instrument used in grafting. It can 
be made from an old razor or file. The broad blade 
is sharp, and the narrow end is turned and made 
into a perfect wedge. After cutting the limb to 
be grafted, split it in the center with the wide 
blade, then insert the wedge end in the split, and 
hammer lightly until room is made to insert the 
cions. With one light blow the wedge can be 
drawn without disturbing the cions. For a mallet 
use a small hard-wood club, like a policeman’s billy. 
Another Gate with Wooden Hinges. 
We herewith give another wooden-hinged gate, 
in addition to the forms presented in the February 
A WOODEN-HINGED GATE. 
American Agriculturist. Its simplicity and ease of 
construction are evident from the above engraving. 
Shelter-Screens or Wind-Breaks. 
A bouse upon the open prairie cannot be re¬ 
garded as complete until it is provided with a 
screen of trees to break the force of the prevailing 
winds. W’dile a necessity on the prairies, many 
exposed dwellings elsewhere would be greatly 
benefited by the protection afforded by a belt of 
trees. Besides adding to the comfort of the fam¬ 
ily, such a screen is a matter of economy in the 
saving of fuel, an important item in places equally 
distant from wood lots and coal mines. What is 
good for man is equally good for his beasts, and in 
arranging for shelter belts, the barns, stable, sheep 
shed, piggery and poultry house should be includ¬ 
ed in the plan. In some localities, not only on the 
prairies, but near the sea coast, shelter must be 
given-the orchard if fruit is expected, and crops of 
both the farm and garden will receive great benefit 
from a tree belt. In affording protection to the 
whole farm the shelter belt may also be a timber 
plantation, and the trees selected with a view to 
their future value as timber. Of course the most 
complete shelter is afforded by a belt of ever¬ 
greens, but these grow slowly and it will be a num¬ 
ber of years before their full effect will be felt. 
The shelter afforded by deciduous trees even when 
bare of leaves is greater than is generally supposed, 
aud while evergreens are planted for the permanent 
screen, an outer belt of cotton-wood or willow 
will be of great use. Besides sheltering the house 
and farm buildings it will incidentally promote the 
growth of the evei-greens by the protection it af¬ 
fords them. As to the evergreens the question will 
be, “What trees shall we plant?” If the intend¬ 
ing planter lives wdiere native trees may be had 
within an easy distance, he may get his trees with 
little outlay by taking up young seedlings of Arbor 
Vit®, White and Black Spruce, White Pine or 
Hemlock. Some evergreens transplant more read¬ 
ily than others, but with all, it will be safer to 
plant the young trees closely in rows, and let them 
remain for a year before planting them perma¬ 
nently. Those that survive the first year will be 
quite sure to live when planted in the belt. If 
trees are to be bought, the Norway Spruce easily 
stands first for this use. Its rapid growth, hardi¬ 
ness, the complete shelter it affords, and its value 
for timber are all in its favor, while the ease with 
which it is raised from seeds allows it to be sold at 
a low price. Some nurserymen offer young seed¬ 
lings of this and other evergreens so small that a 
hundred can go in a package by mail. These, if 
set out in rows and grown for a few years before 
they are planted permanently, will afford trees for 
the screen at a very small cost. The benefits of 
the wind-break may be experienced many years 
sooner by purchasing larger trees. The native 
trees mentioned above may be had from the nur¬ 
series. The Austrian and Scotch Pines are also 
useful for shelter. In planting the Norway Spruce 
in a single row six feet apart is the usual distance. 
It is better to plant in two rows, setting one with 
the trees ten feet apart, and ten feet from this an¬ 
other row, with the trees opposite the spaces be¬ 
tween those of the first row. Two rows are 
enough for a screen, but if more treefi are to be 
planted for timber, other rows may be added, the 
trees in which should alternate in the same manner. 
Priming Evergreens. 
It is not very long ago that people supposed that 
to cut an evergreen was to surely kill it. Later 
experience has shown that these trees, when neces¬ 
sary to bring them into shape, may be pruned like 
any others. The pruning of evergreens has some¬ 
times been greatly abused by cutting off the lower 
limbs and presenting a monstrosity which someone 
has compared to “a hay-cock upon a stump.” 
The natural form, when an evergreen has room to 
develop, is that of a cone, with its lower branches 
resting upon the ground and forming a beautiful 
pyramid of green. Instead of cutting away the 
lower branches, the better way would be to apply 
the axe to the trunk, and be done with it alto¬ 
gether. Evergreens so generally take a perfectly 
conical shape that pruning is only needed to pre¬ 
serve that form ; when a branch grows with unusual 
vigor and threatens to destroy the symmetrical 
shape, it should be cut back. To avoid all appear¬ 
ance of mutilation, make the cut upon the under 
side of the branch, and sloping toward its end. The 
shape of evergreens may be controlled with very 
little cutting, by a proper pinching out of the buds 
which by prolonging would form branches. In 
short, the pruning of evergreens presents very little 
difference in treatment from that required by a 
deciduous, fruit, or an ornamental tree. 
An Old Saw Cutting Weeds. 
This is the season to prepare implements, etc., 
for the busier days. Mr. “E. E. B.,” a subscriber 
in Prince Edward’s Island, sends us a sketch of the 
method of turning part of an old saw-blade to good 
account as a home-made weed-cutter. A piece was 
cut off, four by six inches, and four holes made 
through it, as in figure 3. A pronged iron or steel 
Fig. 1. Fig. 2. Fig. 3. Fig. 4. 
PARTS OP THE WEED CUTTER. 
piece (flg. 4) is then riveted on and driven into an 
old rake handle. Grinding the edges of the steel 
blade completes a good garden tool that can be 
made in a very short time with little or no expense. 
It is very convenient for destroying weeds, es¬ 
pecially those between narrow rows, and the 
hours saved in weeding will fully compensate any 
garden worker for the cost of this implement. 
