1869.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
439 
and sugar, as preferable to the “t^'ist” and whip. 
Oxen. —It is a cruel practice to drive oxen on the 
road in winter un-shod, or smooth—and there have 
been hundreds maimed by falling, so that they were 
even lost for beef. Because an ox will bear a great 
deal of rough usage, it is no reason for putting him 
to torture or neglecting him. Keep well stabled. 
Cows. —The more a milch cow eats the better. 
There is a tendency in all she digests over and 
above enough to sustain her life and repair the 
wastes of the system, to go to milk, so, as a rule, 
the more she eats, the more milk she will give. 
The longer a young cow is milked, up to within 
four to six weeks of calving, the more is the milk¬ 
giving tendency fixed. Meal fed now is cream in May. 
Swine.— Boiled corn is just as good as ground, 
and it is a great saving. It should be boiled soft 
enough to crush between the finger and thumb. 
Keep fattening hogs in very warm styes, if possible 
—all swine do better for being warmly housed. 
Sheep may have the range of a small field or 
large yard. They will relish hemlock boughs, and 
should have some kind of grain and oil-cake, in 
moderate quantities, regularly, to keep them gain¬ 
ing. Give plenty of litter, and spread it evenly. 
Poultry, in warm quarters, if properly fed, will 
lay freely. Never throw down an excess of grain 
or any feed. Feed them as long as the fowls or 
ducks will run after it. Soft feed in the morning, 
scrap cake at noon, and hard grain at night, is the 
best rule. Some cabbage leaves or other greens 
will prove very acceptable as well as healthful. 
Protection against frost and snow. —Before the frost 
penetrates through the root-pits, cover them with 
additional layers of earth or of straw, kept well in 
place by poles laid upon it. Pumps and pen-stocks 
may be protected by setting headless barrels around 
them, and packing them full of moderately strong 
horse manure. Pumps and pipes are easily thawed 
out by attaching a wire or ratau to a rubber tube, 
through which hot water can be poured, while, by 
means of the wire the pipe is kept in close contact 
with the ice. Snow, which lies upon roofs, often 
becomes saturated with water, and thus subjects 
the roofs to inordinate pressure, to which they uot 
unfrequently yield. Such accumulations are easily 
removed before they become soaked witli water. 
Manure. —Working over, checks fermentation and 
“ firefanging” as easily ns water does. With materi¬ 
als enough to compost with manure under cover, 
an immense amount can be made. Common barn¬ 
yard manure is so rich, that it often burns if neg¬ 
lected; that composted with muck or soil has lit¬ 
tle or no tendency to do this, but steadily improves. 
Work in the Horticultural Departments. 
With this month we complete the circle of the 
year. To those who have accompanied us from 
month to month, we need not say that these col¬ 
umns are not intended to be more than seasonable 
suggestions, and that it will often be air advantage 
to look back a month or two, or even forward, 
(which may be done by turning to last January) 
and see if there are not some needed reminders. 
Every thing should be done during the winter, 
which will save an hour’s labor next spring. 
©rcliard aiul r^'sii*sevy. 
Newly planted trees are benefited by having a 
mound of earth, a foot high, drawn against their 
trunks. This enables the tree to withstand the 
heavy winds, and prevents the attack of mice. 
The earth must be compact, and have no rubbish 
mixed with it to make it loose. 
Mice , which are often so troublesome, are kept 
off by other means also. Cylinders of tin or sheet- 
iron are sometimes used, as are cloth and tarred 
roofing-paper. Keep litter from near the trunk, and 
when there is a fall of snow, tramp it down around 
the trees, so that the mice cannot work under it. 
Pabbits are also to be guarded against. The use 
of fresh blood, thrown upon the trunk by means of 
a swab, is found to be effectual. Laths, bound 
around the trunks with wire or pieces of corn¬ 
stalk attached in the same way, are used. Let 
boys set traps, as rabbits make a good stew or pie. 
Animals belonging to the farm, must be prevent¬ 
ed access to the orchards. 
Ileeled-in Trees should be looked to, if the work 
was not thoroughly done at the time. There 
should be no cavities among the roots, but a good 
smooth mound of earth made over them. See that 
no litter is near by to harbor mice, and for the 
same reason put no straw over the tops of the 
trees. Provide for carrying off the surface water. 
Water should not be allowed to stand in the 
orchard; open surface drains, and if underdraining 
is needed, see what the author of “Walks and Talks” 
says about draining in winter, on page 410, last 
month. What he does, others can do. 
Pruning. —Such pruning as can be done with the 
knife, such as heading back young trees, is done in 
our nurseries all winter. Authorities differ 
as to the propriety of removing large limbs at 
this season. It is, however, better to prune a 
neglected orchard at this time than to leave 
it in a .suffering state. Large wounds should 
be painted over with melted grafting wax, or some 
similar preparation, to protect the surface. 
Cions are to be cut when the trees are not 
frozen. See article on preserving them on page 450. 
Root-grafting is usually done when the weather 
is such as to put a stop to out-of-door work. 
Seeds. —Peach and plum stones, if kept in a cellar 
during the winter, must be exposed to freezing be¬ 
fore spring. The best way is to spread them on a 
bed, and cover them with a few inches of earth or 
tan-bark, and allow them to remain out all winter. 
Manure may be spread upon the orchard. Do 
not put coarse manure close to the trees. 
Labels of various kinds are always in demand, 
especially when trees are sold. Moss and packing 
materials should be laid in by the nurseryman. 
Fruit ftarden. 
Young Trees here, demand the same care as those 
in the orchard. See that dwarf trees are not in¬ 
jured by heavy snows. 
Raspberries. —All the foreign kinds, and those of 
foreign parentage, need to be laid down and cover¬ 
ed with a few inches of earth. 
Orape-Yines. —It is a safe plan to lay down all 
vines, the hardiness of which has not been tested, 
and, indeed, all young vines, whether hardy or ten¬ 
der, will do all the better for a covering of earth. 
Young vines that have been pruned, should have 
the earth drawn up around them. Pruning may 
still be doue in mild weather, and the wood saved 
for propagation, if needed. 
Strawberry Beds should be covered. Bog or salt- 
hay, straw and leaves, are the materials generally 
used. Corn-stalks are sometimes laid between the 
rows, and pine leaves are used where they are 
readily obtainable. It is the earth rather than'the 
plants that need covering; take care that the 
material is not too thick over the vines. 
BiiitclieinL Cw.n'alesi. 
Roots, if not finally disposed of for the winter, 
should be housed without delay. See article on 
page 414, last month. 
Parsnips, Salsify, and Jlorse-radish are perfectly 
hardy, and what is not needed for winter use, may 
be left in the ground until spring, or be dug during 
a thaw in winter. 
Spinach, Sprouts, and Leeks that are to be win¬ 
tered in the ground, need a covering in cold locali¬ 
ties. Bog hay or other litter may be used. 
Pits and Trenches, in which vegetables are stored, 
must not be entirely covered too soon, nor should 
the contents suffer from frost. It is well to have 
the covering material at’hand, to add in ease the 
weather becomes severe. 
Cabbages. —Cover them with earth—the heads be¬ 
ing of course inverted—about six iuelies deep, with 
the surface of the covering smoothed to shed rain. 
Manure is to be accumulated at every opportuni¬ 
ty. Muck, sods, waste from breweries, distilleries, 
and the like, all add to the value of the compost 
heap. The usually wasted fertilizers of the dwell¬ 
ing should be made available. See last month’s ar¬ 
ticle on home-made earth-closets. 
Seeds. —Finish thrashing and winnowing, and put 
all away with correct labels, where mice will not get 
at them, and where they will bo free from damp¬ 
ness, and not exposed to great changes of tempera¬ 
ture. Keep no seeds of doubtful quality. 
Flower Garden mid. Bbsiwit. 
Clear up, and make all as tidy as possible. The 
garden need not present a forbidding appearance in 
winter. All movable articles, such as 
Trellises and Seats, as well as garden ornaments, 
should generally be put under cover, as they will 
last much longer than if exposed. 
Protection of roses and other half-hardy shrubs is 
best given by means of earth or sods. See note on 
protecting roses on page 457. 
Bulbs will do all the better if the beds are cover¬ 
ed with coarse manure, and 
Herbaceous perennials, even if hardy, are all the 
better for the same treatment. The roots of the 
somewhat tender ones are well protected by hav¬ 
ing a mound of earth made over them. 
Wistarias and other climbers should, in localities 
where they are not hardy, be taken from the trellis 
and covered with a few inches of earth. 
Shrubs, especially evergreens that are not entirely 
hardy, are best protected by fastening some cedar 
boughs around them, or in their tops. This is the 
safest treatment of young evergreens, even of 
hardy sorts, until they become established. 
Snow should not be allowed to remain in the tops 
of evergreens or dense shrubs until it becomes 
compact and icy. 
Cold-Frames containing half-hardy plants should 
be aired whenever the weather will allow. Keep 
them as dormant as possible. See that the plants 
are not injured by mice. 
Lawns may be manured with well-rotted compost. 
Lmprovcments of various kinds, such as road¬ 
making may go on when the weather will allow. 
Grec«i*li«iise and Window Plants. 
Heat, in houses where plants are to bloom, must 
be at least 60 or 65“ during the day, and fall to 15* 
less during the night. Plants cannot be kept at 
the same temperature day and night, and remain in 
health. In houses where plants are merely kept 
out of the frost, the night temperature may go 
down to within a few degrees of freezing. 
Bulbs that were potted and set in a cool, dark 
place, may be brought to the light, if they have 
formed good roots. 
Air the house whenever it is safe ; and air should 
be given to window plants every pleasant day. 
Water. —Plants suffer more from over-watering 
than from dryness as a general thing. Each plant 
has its requirements, and no general rule can be 
given. A little experience will teach one when a 
plant needs watering. Give house plants a 
sprinkling overhead every now and then. This can 
easily be done by setting the pots in a sink or bath¬ 
tub. It will remove 
Bust, which is one of the greatest enemies of 
window gardening. Plants with large, smooth, 
and thick leaves, like Camellias, Ivy, etc., can have 
the leaves cleaned by means of a damp cloth or 
sponge. This operation will help remove 
Insects, which will often get upon house plants in 
spite of the best care. The green fly, or aphis, is 
readily disposed of by tobacco smoke, and the red 
spider will yield to frequent showeriugs. The last 
named insect is generally the cause of browned 
leaves which appear upon plants in dry rooms. 
