162 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST*. 
[May, 
Contents for May, 1870. 
Calendar for May. 
Hints About Work. 
Apiary in May.170 
Barlierry as a Hedge Plant.178 
Birds—The American Dipper . Illustrated. .173 
Boys and Girls’ Columns;—Guinea Pigs—Rambles in 
China — “ Pigtails ”—Answers to Problems arid 
Puzzles—Illustrated Rebuses—The Fairy Marauders 
.4 Illustrations. .187-188 
Branding Cattle.. . Illustrated . .180 
Crows in the Corn Field. Illustrated. .176 
Devon Cattle. Illustrated.. 101 
Duties on Trees and Plants.. .170 
Entrance Gates.5 Illustrations.. 182 
Experience with a Willow Hedge .184 
Farm Work for May.162 
Field Culture of Sage.179 
Flower Garden and Lawn in May.164 
Flowers—The Grassy Calamus. Illustrated. .1M 
Flowers—The Lungwort. Illustrated . .181 
Flowers—The Yallotta. Illustrated .. 1S4 
Fruit Garden in May.163 
Fnrrowing Corn Marker. Illustrated. .176 
Grass Pond Cranberry Bog.17S 
Green-house and Window Plants in May.164 
Horse Bot and Bot-fly.5 Illustrations . .177 
Household Department. — An Aquarium — How I 
brought Water into the House — An thipatented 
‘ Clothes-Horse—Gardens, Flowers, and Children, by 
Faith Rochester—A Comforting Use of Flowers— 
Hints on Cooking, etc.5 Illustrations . .185-186 
Housekeeping Conveniences.6 Illustrations. .168 
How much Manure to a Cow?.179 
Kitchen Garden in May.163 
Large Onions.173 
Laying Out a Vineyard or Orchard.184 
Lettuce Growing in New York City.182 
Market Reports.165 
Ogden Farm Papers.—No. 5—Cost of Keeping Stock— 
Draining—Summer Fallowing.171-172 
Opium Culture. Illustrated. .181 
Orchard and Nursery in May.163 
Planting Indian Corn..2 Illustrations. .176 
Premiums.165 
Quadrupeds—Our Gray Rabbit. Illustrated. . 173 
Seeds and Seed Sowing.178 
Sill’s Hybrid Melon. 184 
Starting a Yellow Locust Plantation.'.83 
Sweet Corn—Varieties and Culture.179 
Sweet Potato Culture.175 
Terraced Propagating Pot.2 Illustrations . .183 
Tim Bunker on Old Hats—Old Folks.172 
Trellises for Tomato Plants.2 Illustrations .. 1S2 
Trap for Muskrats.17S 
Veal—The Fatted Calf.3 Illustrations. .177 
Walks and Talks on the Farm—No. 77—“ How Crops 
Feed’’—Available Nitrogen in an Acre—Cultivating 
Corn—Merino and Cotswold Sheep aud Lambs. 174-175 
Young Evergreens from the Woods.181 
INDEX TO “BASKET’’ Oil SMALLER ARTICLES. 
Ag’l Colleges. 
Ashes on Wet Land. 
Bee Queries. 
Best Fowls. 
Beet Sugar... . 
Books acknowledged 
Cal. Pitcher-plant_ 
Carbolic Soap. 
Cement for Cellar.... 
Cement for Manure Pit.. 
Cheese-Factories South . 
Corn Fodder. 
Crops in Ill. 
Cyclopaedia, Biblical. 
Earth-closets. 
Eumelaii Vines. . 
Every Saturday. 
Experimental Farms... 
“Farming as a Profess’n’ 
Four-Acre Farm. 
Fruit for North’ll Iowa. 
Gladden’s Tick Killer.. 
Glory Pea. 
Grass on Hill-side. 
Handy-book of Husb’ry. 
Harris on the Pig. 
Hay and Harvest Mach’s 
Horse-tamer’s Secret... 
Howard Co. Ag’l Ass... 
How Oils Explode. 
170;IIow to Remit.166 
.1691 Keepi ng Cabbages.169 
lTOjKilling a Dog.169 
.1671 Letters without Names. .166 
.169 Mark Twain. 1(16 
,167|Minn. Hurt. Soc. 169 
.167 Moles.169 
.169 Naphtha for Bark-louse..167 
lfWjOreliarcl Queries. 167 
lBblOniors. 166 
169!Out-door Whitewash_166 
169 Pamphlets acknowl’d_167 
.169'Pear D’chess doBordeauxl66 
.167)Peas and Oats.169 
. 167 j Pleasant Val. Grape Ass.166 
.166 PIow Deep.166 
.166 Prize Butter Essay.169 
.170.Saddle Galls.169 
”170 S<»tli Boyden, Death of. .160 
.169 Slugs.166 
.169 Sour Milk for Cows.169 
.167 Spaying Animals.169 
.169 Stable Manure.167 
.169|Steaniing Food forCattlel69 
166 Suggestion to Farmers’ 
166 Clubs.166 
166 Snlphnr-cnre.170 
179 Sundry Humbugs.166 
.169 Tree Seeds.167 
.1671 Valuable Book, Free_166 
Black Volumes Supplied.—The back volumes 
of the Agriculturist are very valuable. They contain 
information upon every tonic connected with rural life, 
out-door anu in-door, and the lust thirteen volumes make 
up a very complete library. Each volume lias a full index 
for ready reference to any desired topic. We have on 
hand, and print from electrotype plates as wanted, all the 
numbers and volumes for thirteen years past, beginning 
with 1857—that is. Vol. 1C to Vol. 23. inclusive. Any of 
these volumes sent complete (in numbers) at 8>1.75 each, 
post-paid, (or $1.50 if taken at the office). The volumes, 
neatly bound, are supplied for $2 each, or $2.50 if to be 
sent by mail. Any single numbers of the past thirtuen 
years will be supplied, post-paid, for 15 cents each. 
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AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
NEW YORK, MAY, 1S70. 
This month brings active work, usually over 
much, and as every man’s most precious property 
is health, this should not be wantonly jeopardized. 
The fact is, we continually risk too much and often 
suffer for it most terribly—as is the experience of 
almost every family in the land. The laws of health 
in both man and animals cannot be disregarded or 
violated without a penalty, and it is much more 
agreeable to keep one’s self, one’s family,one’s labor¬ 
ers, and one’s stock in good health than it is to re¬ 
cover health if lost. Steady, regular, hard work is 
conducive to health, but it must be sustained by 
good food and shelter. It is a very important mat¬ 
ter to most farmers to know how, and to economise 
the labor of animals. We are very apt to tax them 
severely one week and let them stand still another, 
and this irregularity aud its accompanying exposures 
often cause disease. Turning unused horses and 
oxen to pasture is a remedy, blit this is accompani¬ 
ed by inconviences, unless the animals are not to be 
used at all. Grooming is a partial cure, and takes 
the place to a certain degree of both exercise and 
food. After very hard work for some weeks, horses 
and oxen need rest and time to recuperate. Liberal 
feeding is essential, but no severe tax upon the 
system can becompensated for by food alone. Entire 
l est is equally important. This should not be con¬ 
tinuous, however, but it should be given like the 
feed at regular intervals and in connection with 
moderate labor or exercise. Mere fat gained in the 
stall is of little use before the plow, and it brings 
a certain delicacy or tendency to disease. 
Plan for a crop of corn for cutting and feeding 
green to milch cows and hogs ; for roots, mangels, 
carrots and parsnips for feed—the last two to be 
put in tills month; for some crops to be sold for 
cash if you are situated so that this is possible. 
Some crop may almost always lie raised which is 
nearly as good as money. This in some sections 
is tobacco, in others fruit, in others broom-corn, in 
others flaxseed, in others cotton, in others castor- 
oil beans, etc., etc. As a rule we think some such 
crop is as advisable as it is usually profitable, if 
grown nuclei'standingly and not in a way, or so large¬ 
ly, as to impoverish the farm. Many food crops 
may be raised on the same principle, i. e. not for 
feeding out on the place, but for immediate sale. 
Corn Planting .—Our great cereal demands the farm¬ 
er’s care early and late this month. Manure is to 
be hauled upon the sward and plowed in, for corn is 
the best breaking up crop for most farmers. With 
a heavy dressing of manure, plow pretty deep, 
especially if it be desirable to deepen the soil. With 
deep plowing on heavy land it is best to manure in 
the hill, either with good compost, or with some 
commercial fertilizer. Corn can hardly be manured 
too much, as it draws very heavily on the land. 
When the object in breaking np a sward is to get 
the land in grass again, corn should not be put on. 
Potatoes will abstract much less of value to the 
grain and grass which will follow. Select a variety 
sure to ripen, getting seed from the North if you do 
not use that of your own selection. Mark out with 
care, after giving the ground a thorough, light har¬ 
rowing to kill weeds, in case the ground lias lain 
more than a day or two after plowing and harrow¬ 
ing, and plant immediately. Corn ground may he 
plowed, marked and planted the same day. It is not 
best to plant too early. Seed soaked in warm water 
and having a little pine tar stirred into the water, 
will be coated with the tar. If rolled in plaster it is 
not bad to handle and is much less subject to the 
attacks of grubs, blackbirds, crows or squirrels. 
Broom-Corn .—Put on warm, dry, clean land, rich 
and in good tilth. If this is very free from weeds 
plant early; either in hills 3 feet apart, accurately 
marked each way or in drills 3 to 4 feet apart. 
Ashes and plaster is a good application in the hill 
or drill. Test the seed, as, unless it has been care¬ 
fully gathered and preserved, it will not grow. The 
seed may be long in coming up, and is always long 
in getting established and rapidly growing. On 
weedy land it should be planted late in the month. 
Tobacco .—Water the seed-beds with liquid manure, 
weed carefully, thin if necessary. Work over and 
haul out manure upon the field ; plow as soon as 
the manure is spread, and harrow as often as weeds 
start, before time to set out the plants (next month). 
Potatoes .—We have little to add to the hints given 
in April. Garnet Chili aud Gleason are prolific 
sorts for general culture. The White Peaehblow 
is both very good and moderately productive. The 
Climax, Early Mohawk, and Early Rose are early, 
prolific and good; Bresee’s Prolific late and very 
prolific. These are among the promising new sorts. 
Peas and Oats for fodder.—Plow in the peas lightly, 
and harrow in the oats. The crop may be cut and 
fed green before corn—if let stand until ripe, it 
may be thrashed and the seeds separated. 
Oats ought to be sowed early if at all—if delayed 
in sowing, put the land in potatoes, roots, buck¬ 
wheat or corn sowed in drills for fodder. 
Grain Fields and Grass may be sometimes weeded 
to advantage very early in the month. Clover and 
grass seed sown upon them, and they may be top- 
dressed with plaster, ashes, superphosphate, etc. 
Working Stock .—The farmer’s great dependence 
this month upon his working oxen and horses 
should lead to their having extra care, shelter, good 
feed, and grooming. As the heat of the season in¬ 
creases, it is important to give longer resting time 
at noon, especially to oxen. Bathe yoke and har¬ 
ness galls, or belter, wash tender spots, and if pos¬ 
sible ease the pressure upon them by pads or other¬ 
wise to prevent galling. Oats with barley, or corn- 
meal, or with barley-meal and Indian meal mixed 
and fed upon cut hay, is good feed to work upon, 
and a great deal more labor will be done by well- 
fed animals, than with others. Everybody knows 
what a difference it makes with horses, and this is 
quite as marked with oxen, which are seldom too fat. 
Milch Cows .—The greatest care should he exercis¬ 
ed, that the milk does not fall off before cows are 
turned to grass; the employment of corn-meal, 
wheat or rye bran, cotton-seed oil-meal (if the seed 
was well hulled), and linseed oil-meal, is to be ad¬ 
vised, if the supply of roots has not held out. Bran 
may be fed very freely; corn meal moderately 2 to 
6 quarts a day; oil-ineal 3 pints to 2 quarts a day. 
Boot Crops .—Sugar Beets, Mangel-wurzel Beets, 
Parsnips, and Carrots should be sown as soon as 
