1876.] 
123 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
be used instead. For grass or wheat 150 lbs. of ni¬ 
trate of soda, or the same of guano, per acre, 
would be a good dressing. In using commercial fer¬ 
tilizers, it is well to make experiments as to quan¬ 
tities and varieties for different soils and crops. 
Corn .—For the corn crop we have found the 
sooner the planting is done after the plowing, and 
while the soil is moist and fresh, the better. North 
of Virginia the next mouth is ample time to plant 
corn. A top-dressing of coarse manure upon the 
sod this month, would be an excellent preparation 
for this crop. 
Flax .—Many western farmers have made this a 
profitable crop, the seed being in demand at the oil 
mills at good prices. It is a useful crop to mel¬ 
low and clean the soil, and may precede fall wheat 
with advantage. A bushel and a half of seed per 
acre, may be sown this month upon a corn-stubble. 
Live Stock.— For hints about live stock, see last 
month’s American Agriculturist. Every reader of 
these hints should keep his papers and refer to back 
numbers, which will always recall something that 
has been forgotten. 
The Dairy .—The Ohio dairymen have done a wise 
thing in resolving to make no cheese in April; in 
carrying the resolution into practice, they will do a 
still wiser thing. The milk in April makes poor 
dairy goods, and if given to the calves, would be 
more profitable to the owners. Dairymen should 
Raise the Best Calves, and thus gradually raise the 
quality of their herds. A good calf is well worth 
a month’s fresh milk, and if their coming was 
timed for April, they could have the April milk, and 
the dairyman be richer and they the better for it. 
Sheep .—Early lambs should be pushed forwards 
for market, by giving extra feed to the ewes and 
increasing the flow of milk. To feed the lambs 
meal or other food, for which their stomachs are 
as yet unprepared, hinders their growth. (See 
hints for last month). 
Swine .—Young pigs may be pushed as fast as 
possible. When a week old they may be taught, 
without difficulty, to drink milk from a shallow pan, 
and in doing this the young animals may be tamed 
and rendered perfectly docile. To have tame and 
tractable animals about the farm, will add much to 
their value, and the ease and comfort in tending 
them. Feed the nursing sows well, and keep them 
warm. See hints for previous months. 
The Roller should be used with judgment. It is a 
valuable implement, but sometimes it is used in¬ 
juriously. It is most effective upon dry soils ; when 
the soil is damp, clods are easily crushed, but the 
surface is packed and crusted. Meadows on the 
contrary, should be rolled while moist and soft, 
that stones and rough places may be pressed into 
the soil, and the surface levelled for the mower. 
Fall grain may be rolled with advantage, the day 
after it is harrowed, if rain has not fallen. 
Tools .—In purchasing tools and implements, 
those that are lightest, other things being equal, 
should be chosen. To handle a heavy tool is a 
waste of muscle, now that steel is in universal use 
for the best kinds. Even a hoe should be sharp 
and bright to be most effective, and in a mower a 
dull knife will double the draft. This is equally 
true of horse-power machines, and of hand-tools. 
Poultry .—See article elsewhere about nests. In 
the general spring cleaning up, the poultry houses, 
roosting poles, and nests, should be thoroughly 
coated with hot lime-wash, with a little carbolic 
acid in it. Preserve early chicks from damp, by no 
means let them be exposed to cold rains. Keep 
ducks shut up until they have dropped their eggs ; 
they do this early in the morning, and if not 
watched will drop them anywhere but in their nests. 
It is not worth while to set a young goose, they are 
poor sitters. If turkeys are kept, the best only 
should be chosen ; a mature bronze “ gobbler ” of 
25 pounds or more, is the cheapest kind to have. 
Cleanliness is imperative everywhere about the 
house, out-houses, barns, and stables; health is 
generally valued most when it is lost, and the 
quickest way to lose it is to neglect cleanliness. 
The health of the farmer, as well as that of his 
stock, is a matter of money to him, and economy, 
if nothing else, should induce him to care for it in 
every possible way. 
Work in the Horticultural Departments. 
It now looks as if we shall have an unusually 
early spring, and abundant time for tree planting 
as well as for getting in early vegetables. Seeds, 
trees, and all implements needed must be ordered 
soon, else delay will be caused by their not being 
on hand. For main crops depend upon the standard, 
well-tested varieties, but it adds much to the interest 
of gardening to try all the novelties one can afford. 
Orchard and Nursery. 
The very full notes of last month should be con¬ 
sulted now, as in many localities they are timely. 
Planting .—Set the trees as early as possible. A 
good tree will have abundant roots and well ripened 
wood. If there is a nursery in the vicinity, it may 
be cheapest to arrange with the proprietor to allow 
you to go and select and dig the trees personally, 
the first cost may be somewhat more, but the care 
in taking up, and time they are out of the ground 
is so little, that it will be found profitable. 
Crafting .—Many trees which now bear fruit only 
for cider, would in a few years, if grafted, produce 
crops of good marketable fruit. The present month 
is a good one in which to do this, and numerous 
directions with descriptive cuts, have been given in 
the American Agriculturist in former volumes. 
Cions should have been cut earlier, but it may be 
done now if the buds have not started ; store them 
in sawdust in the cellar until wanted for use. Most 
of the larger nurseries offer cions of the standard 
varieties for sale at very cheap rates, and as they 
can be sent by mail, it is a very convenient way 
for securing choice sorts. 
Cherry and Peach Stones which were stored in 
boxes or bedded in the fall, should now be sown in 
rows, without breaking off the sprouts. 
Insects .—Take especial pains to destroy all eggs 
found upon the branches and trunks of fruit-trees. 
Examine the ends of the smaller twigs for eggs of 
the tent caterpillar, which may be readily seen be¬ 
fore the leaves appear, in the form of broad rings 
glued upon the branches. Scrape off all dead bark 
from the trunk and large limbs, and wash with 
a strong solution of soft soap. Bark-scale is a 
most destructive insect in many sections of the 
country, and if only a few young trees are affected, 
it will be best to dig them out root and branch, 
burn them, and set others in their places. When 
very abundant, use oil as noted on page 139. 
Fruit Garden. 
Where land is abundant, it is very desirable, to 
have the small fruits and trees in an enclosure dis¬ 
tinct from the vegetable garden, as the young trees 
and bushes are likely to shade the vegetables too 
much. An amateur with a small plot can grow 
dwarf pear, apple, peach, and other trees in the va¬ 
rious styles, such as oblique and horizontal cordons, 
pyramids, wine-glass, and other forms described in 
the works on fruit culture, and find much inter¬ 
esting occupation therein, but in this country the 
refinements of horticulture are little cared for, and 
the fruit garden is kept mainly for its fruit. 
Blackberries —The roots spread so fast and far 
that where it is possible, they should be planted in 
a spot a little aside from the rest of the garden, so 
that they will not interfere with the growth of 
other plants. Provide strong stakes to which to 
tie the canes, and do not allow them to grow more 
than five feet high, with lateral branches cut back 
to 18 inches. Set from 6 to 8 feet apart, each way. 
Raspberries .—Set in rows from 4 to 6 feet apart, 
and 3 to 5 feet in the row. One of the best ways to 
support them is by a strong wire stretched along 
the line of the row and fastened securely to well- 
braced posts at each end ; provide a support of 
some sort at distances of 15 or 20 feet apart to keep 
the wire from sagging where the rows are long. As 
the canes grow to the top of the wire, tie them to 
it in fan-shape, cutting them off at the liight of 
four feet, and laterals at 18 inches ; four canes at 
most to a stool, and less even the first year, are 
enough, if the plants are weak. 
Strawberries. —The easiest way to have a supply 
of this fruit is to renew the bed, as described last 
month. Make new beds, setting the plants in rows 
3 feet apart and 1 foot in the rows. In small gar¬ 
dens the plants may be set closer, with the runners 
cut off as fast as they appear; and if the soil is 
well enriched every year, the bed will bear abund¬ 
antly for 4 or 5 years. 
Crapes.— Let every person who has a bit of 
ground, plant one grape vine at least, this spring, 
as with a little care in training and pruning for two 
or three years, it will seldom fail to produce an 
abundance of fruit. The soil for grapes should 
not be rich with stable manure, but use ground 
bones, or wood ashes. The first year allow only 
one shoot to grow, and in the fall cut this back to 
two or three buds ; the next season allow only two 
of these to grow. The first year a vine bears, only 
allow two bunches to each shoot, as more will ex¬ 
haust the vine. There are many other ways of 
training, and the vine can be adapted to the locality. 
Dwarf Trees which require any pruning, should 
be attended to now, before the buds start; avoid 
cutting off any large branches until June, when 
they may be taken off with safety; cover the 
wounds with shellac varnish or melted grafting wax. 
KiteBaeisii <S«i*dleM. 
The care of hot-beds and cold-frames, and sow¬ 
ing of seeds for early plants, will be the work in 
northern gardens. Manure should be turned over 
often, and made fine before applying ; it is difficult 
to sow seeds in a soil where the manure is coarse, 
as it will impede the rake or seed-sower. 
Asparagus beds that were covered with manure 
in the fall, should have the coarse litter raked off, 
and the fine forked in early, before the plants start. 
Beans. —Do not plant before the soil gets warm, 
as the cold, damp soil will rot the seeds. 
Beets. —Sow early and thickly,so that the t hinnings 
may be used as spinach. Frosts do but little injury. 
Cabbages. —Sow in the hot-bed for medium early, 
and set out plants from the cold-frame in well ma¬ 
nured soil; moderately moist and strong soil is 
much better than a light, sandy one. 
Cauliflowers. —Set out plants from the cold-frame 
the same as cabbages, and give them a rich place. 
They must be either an early or a late crop, our 
strong sun being injurious to their growth. 
Carrot. —Sow Early Horn on light soil. 
Celery. —Sow seeds in hot-bed if early plants are 
wanted, or in the open ground. 
Corn will not stand frost, or damp, cold soil; do 
not plant before the ground is dry and warm. 
Cucumbers may be started in pots or squares of 
sod in the hot-bed, and set out when the weather 
has become suitable, or if one has hand-frames, a 
few hills may be planted for extra early. 
Cress, or Pepper-grass. —Sow for use as a salad. If 
the black “ flea ” is abundant, it is of no use to try it. 
Egg Plant.— Seeds may yet be sown in hot-bed. 
Do not set plants in the open ground until it is 
thoroughly warmed. Look out for the “Potato 
Beetle,” which attacks these plants even in prefer¬ 
ence to the potato, and will soon destroy them if 
not hand-picked. 
Kohl-Rabi. —This excellent vegetable is seldom 
seen in gardens ; its culture is as easy as that of 
turnips, and no one who has tried it will fail to 
have it every year. It should always grow quickly, 
and be eaten while young. 
Leek. —Sow the same as onions. When large 
enough, thin to 6 or 8 inches in the row, and set 
out the thinnings at the same distance. 
Lettuce. —Set out plants from the cold-frame in 
rich, warm soil, and sow seeds for second crop. 
Martynia,Melons,and $p<as/tes,should not be plant' 
ed until the weather is settled and the ground warm. 
