830 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[September, 
The American Pomological Society. 
We trust that no pomologist or fruit-grower, whether 
his operations are on a small scale or on a large one, will 
fail to attend the meeting of the American Pomological 
Society, which will ho held at Boston on the tenth of the 
present month and continue for three days. Every fruit¬ 
grower should he a member of this Society ; the veterans 
in the cause that they may give others the benefit of 
their experience, and the novices that they may learn 
from others. The sessions are biennial, and are beid in 
different parts of the country. The dues are small, and 
are amply returned in the volume of transactions. 
Although Boston has suffered severely from fires, the 
enthusiasm of her horticulturists is in no wise abated, 
and we hope that fruit-growers from abroad will make a 
special efi'ort to be there, as it will gratify them to see 
the general sympathy with horticultural matters that per¬ 
vades the whole community. 
There are two things that we hope will be settled at 
this meeting. One, the matter of giving premiums. At 
the meeting at Philadelphia four years ago premiums 
were given; at Richmond the example of Philadelphia 
was followed. The home of the president could not be 
outdone by other cities, so premiums are offered at this 
meeting. We hope that the Society will vote to discon¬ 
tinue all premiums in future. The objects of the Society 
are to correct nomenclature, to ascertain the adaptability 
of varieties to the different States, and to take proper 
notice of new fruits. This offering of premiums to 
States, societies, or individuals is foreign to the purposes 
of the Society, and besides this, it subjects cities where 
the meetings may be held to an unnecessary and onerous 
expense. A dozen new fruits are of more value, speak¬ 
ing pomologically, than the whole car-load of old—and 
no doubt splendidly grown—varieties that Nebraska will 
bring. Hereafter let those who can show their fruits, 
but let the matter of premiums be dropped now and for¬ 
ever, reserving the Society’s medal for those -who have 
distinguished themselves in promoting pomology. The 
second is essays. If there ever was a waste of time it is 
in hearing one read an essay on fruit culture that might 
just as well be perused at leisure in print. It is gener¬ 
ally the case that those who write well do not read well, 
and if essays are of necessity to be read, let the Society 
employ a reader. If essays must be, let them be submitted 
to a competent publishing committee. Some things have 
been printed in the Society’s reports that would be more 
appropriate in a report of the Farmers’ Club of the 
American Institute. 
Bee Notes.—Advice to Beginners. 
BY SI. QUINBY, 6T. JOHNSVTLLE, N. Y. 
Whenever a man thinks that he knows all there is to 
be known about any one thing there is with him an end 
to all improvement. For a person of such conceit there 
is considerable doubt of a cure. Yet, in my own case, I 
feel that I have been greatly helped by finding out a bet¬ 
ter way for some things than that which I once supposed 
the best. By carefully following out the idea that there 
is much to learn much more may be acquired. If some¬ 
thing turns up to-morrow superior to what we have to¬ 
day, I see nothing to hold us to the old idea—except it 
be some patent we want to support. In regard to feeding 
bees, I thought a few years ago that I had the best way, 
and recommended putting off feeding for winter stor s 
until October and November. Atmosph ric changes for 
the last two winters indicate that bees should be fed 
earlier. Colonies that are suitable for winter, or can be 
made so, will have brood sealed up after the honey season 
has failed. This will occupy the combs mostly near the 
center or bottom of the hive. It all hatches at the end 
of the season, leaving the cells empty, and as bees in 
cold weather pack themselves closely for mutual warmth, 
this is just where they should be. A great many can 
creep into these cells, they being shorter where brood 
has hatched than where they have stored honey. It gives 
more room between the combs for packing. Five or six 
times as many will crowd into the same space in the hive 
as where honey has been stored—the closer they are 
packed the warmer they will be. The past two winters 
bees have, suffered more from cold than in forty years 
before. tVe should guard against every emergency. If 
to bees that need winter stores food is given after the 
brood is all out, they will store it in these empty cells, 
occupying the best place for clustering in cold weather. 
As soon as the yield of honey closes, or very early, and 
before the brood hatches, we should ascertain if they are 
likely to have sufficient stores, cither by weighing or 
guessing. By feeding now those that, need it they are 
obliged to put it outside the combs already occupied : it 
i» sealed np while the weather is mild, and everything in 
order for winter, just as if they had got their supply 
direct from the flowers. Twenty-five or thirty pounds of 
honey is sufficient for a large colony. If one is weighed 
to ascertain the amount, allowance must be made for the 
weight of brood. If the combs are old, the difference 
between such and new ones should also be considered, 
as well as the bee-bread they sometimes contain. If a 
hive has too few bees at this time, and all else is right, 
and it is wished to stimulate breeding, feed very moder¬ 
ately, not quite a pound a day for two or three weeks, 
until there are bees enough, and then give all they will 
take until the stock is heavy enough. The feed may con¬ 
sist of honey, or syrup made of white sugar. Honey 
should have a little water added, and if candied scald 
and liquify it. To the sugar addabout one quartof water 
to three pounds of sugar, and boil it. Bees will thrive as 
well on this as on honey, and it is generally cheapest. 
A colony that has too little comb to hold sufficient 
stores for winter and give a space for the clustering of 
the bees, should have combs added, or it will be unsafe 
to attempt wintering. If bees are taken out of such, and 
the combs arc healthy, it is more economical to save the 
%ombs than to mash them up and strain the honey. The 
combs are of more value than the honey. Either let the 
bees take out the honey now or put away the combs un¬ 
broken for spring, when they can be given to the bees to 
stimulate early breeding or transfer to empty frames for 
their use. Waste no good combs, even if old and dark. 
Examine more particularly the first of this month every 
stock, to see the condition for winter. I once introduced 
an Italian queen (September 1st) to a black colony that 
had been queenless for some time, yet was pretty strong, 
strong enough to nurse the brood. When put into winter 
quarters, a little over two months later, all the black bees 
had disappeared, and a colony of Italians occupied their 
place, that wintered well. 
Tlie market for surplus honey begins thismonth. It 
should bo packed in cases holding about 50 pounds, and 
only one tier of boxes in depth. Have open sides, that 
it may be seen, if in glass. Have a handle on each end, 
that one person may carry it instead of throwing it. 
Mark it glass, as very many erroneously suppose that 
glass is more easily broken than honey-combs. Boxes 
are usually safer when carried bottom up. Paste paper 
over all holes and passages in the boxes. Keep every¬ 
thing clean, that it may appear as tempting as possible. 
Most of the honey is sold at commission houses to retail¬ 
ers, and by them to consumers. 
I would like to inquire, and have every one inquire of 
himself, if any progress has been made in getting rid of 
the fear of stings, the great obstacle to successful man¬ 
agement; and is the impropriety of teaching children 
the fatal bugbear that bees are always disposed to sting, 
whether molested or otherwise, fully realized ? The fact 
that a bee at work on a clover head, away from home, 
can not be made to sting unless caught and held fast, is 
so easily and safely proved, that any one without courage 
to test it had better not undertake to manage bees. 
Smut in Wheat. 
An Ohio farmer writes: “I wish you would tell us 
how to prevent wheat from turning to smut.”—Wheat 
does not turn to smut. Smut is a fungus. It is pro¬ 
duced from “ seed.” You can make any wheat “ turn to 
smut” by introducing the fungus to the growing wheat 
plant. As a rule, smut, or bunt, is produced by sowing 
seed-wheat that has the spores or seeds of the fungus 
attached to it. We must kill these spores before 
sowing the wheat. They are easily killed. Chamber- 
lye and lime will kill them; so will a weak solution of 
common salt and water, say one pound of salt to a gal¬ 
lon of water. This will not hurt the seed-wheat, but a 
strong brine will seriously injure its germinating proper¬ 
ties. We think it very likely that a weak solution of 
carbolic acid will prove useful, but we have not yet 
tested it sufficiently to recommend it. 
The remedy that we have the fullest confidence in, 
and which has been repeatedly tried, is as follows: For 
each bushel of wheat take 3 ounces of blue vitriol and 
dissolve it in a quart of boiling water. When cool, 
sprinkle it over the wheat and turn the grain till every 
seed is moistened with the solution. Nothing more is 
needed. It i3 not necessary to use lime to dry the 
wheat. It will be dry enough to sow with the drill as 
soon as it has been treated, but it will not bo hurt if it 
remains for days or weeks before sowing. The quantity 
of blue vitriol named above is sufficient to kill the smut, 
but double the quantity may be used without the slight¬ 
est injury to the seed. Our own plan is to place, say 20 
bushels of wheat in a heap on the barn floor, and sprin¬ 
kle on to it, while it is being turned, about six gallons of 
water containing 5 pounds of blue vitriol. If old wheat 
is used for seed, or if the wheat is very dry, more water 
will be needed to moisten it, say eight gallons for the 20 
bushels. The great point i9 to be sure that every kernel 
and every part of the kernel is wet with the liquid. The 
heap will need to be turned over half a dozen times, and 
the scattered kernels on the outside of the heap should 
be swept up to the heap and mixed with it so as to 
moisten them. A little common sense and some care 
and patience will enable any one to do the work properly. 
New Lands at the West. 
THE BURLINGTON AND MISSOURI RIVER RAILROAD. 
Large grants of land have been made by Congress to 
different railroad companies in the West to aid in build¬ 
ing their roads through unsettled portions of the country. 
Usually these grants embrace every alternate section of 
G-10 acres for twenty miles on each side of the road. The 
government retains the remaining alternate sections for 
sale to actual settlers or for occupancy under the Home¬ 
stead Law. The price of Government lands within these 
railroad limits has been doubled, so that there is no loss 
of money to the national treasury by the grants, and the 
construction of the roads has doubled the value of these 
lands to settlers by bringing them within reach of 
markets. 
The railroad companies have advertised their land3 
extensively in the American Agriculturist and other 
papers, and we have received numerous inquiries as to 
their character and the advantages open there to new set¬ 
tlers, etc. It is our purpose to give as much such infor¬ 
mation as our limits will allow, derived from recent 
somewhat extended tours through a large part of these 
grants in Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, and Minnesota. 
The Burlington and Missouri River Railroad, which 
has a large area of this land, extends from Burlington on 
tiie Mississippi River westward through the southern 
part of Iowa to Plattsmouth on the Missouri River, 
thence westward through part of Southern Nebraska to 
Kearney, where it intersects the Union Pacific Railroad. 
Eastward it has direct connection with Chicago by the 
Burlington, Quincy, and Chicago Railroad. This gives 
easy access to markets for all surplus crops. ThiB com¬ 
pany offers lands along almost the whole of their line 
within a distance of twenty miles on each side. Almost 
the whole of it is prairie country of unsurpassed fertility. 
Along the streams, which are plentiful, the country is 
mostly level, and the black bottom lands yield generous 
crops of wheat, corn, and other cereals. The soil is from 
three to teu or more feet deep. A few miles back from 
the streams the surface is gently rolling, the soil almost 
equally good, and in dry seasons even more desirable, 
the drainage being excellent. The whole region is in¬ 
tended by nature for the production of breadstuff's. They 
can be raised with less labor here than in most of the 
older settled States. Frequent instances were met among 
the new settlers where the crops of two years had more 
than paid for the cost of the land. 
Here and there a locality more broken or hilly than the 
general surface of the country is admirably adapted to 
grazing. We sawlicrds of cattle, numbering thousands 
in each, feeding upon the unfenced prairie, under the 
care of herdmen who remain with them throughout the 
season. 
Water is abundant in the streams, and easily procured 
from wells, which require to be sunk or driven fifteen to 
twenty feet only. The banks of the streams are fringed 
with trees, mainly cottonwood. Where the fires have 
been kept away from the young growth in the more set¬ 
tled parts they have spread with great rapidity. The 
settlers have planted groves of trees in the neighborhood 
of their houses quite extensively, and the rapidity of 
growth is remarkable. We saw numerous instances 
where trees grown by the acre averaged nearly or quite 
six inches in diameter six years from the planting. One 
grove contained cottonwood, elm, oak, maple, and black 
walnut, surrounding apple, cherry, and other fruit trees, 
and all were of most thrifty appearance. Small fruits 
thrive as in a garden. In fact, almost the whole section 
embraced in this grant is a natural garden only awaiting 
cultivation to give the most bountiful returns. 
The healthfulness of this region is attested by the nat¬ 
ural features of the country and the unanimous testimony 
of the settlers. The region is elevated, well drained, and 
free from malaria and the consequent diseases which are 
so frequently prevalent in,new countries. 
The rapidity with which the region has been peopled 
with settlers is good evidence that the country is at least 
attractive to agriculturists. Three years ago there was 
scarcely a house in sight of the road for one hundred 
miles or more in the Nebraska portion. Now, through 
the same region, there is scarcely a point on the road 
where one or more houses may not be seen. The Iowa 
portion of the lands have been very largely disposed of, 
though much that is desirable remains, lying, however, 
back from the railroad, and of course being held at less 
price than farms adjoining the line. In Nebraska there 
are opportunities for thousands of young and middle- 
aged energetic men to do as thousands have already done 
—settle and thrive. 
