894 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER, 
[ October J9, 1889. 
debate on this matter now, important though it be, but we 
will keep to the point of our lesson—the quantity of food we 
have in store, the number of animals for which food has to 
be found during winter. 
Dairy cows must not only be kept, but they must have a 
liberal diet; therefore we must give them first place. Next 
to them come any beasts which we design either for Christ¬ 
mas beef or to have ready for the butchers at a given time 
in the three months after Christmas. Next come heifers and 
cow calves reserved as future additions to the dairy herd. 
We cannot well dispense with them, but if, after we have 
made sure of having enough food for the whole of them, 
there is the slightest prospect of running short, we must 
have no hesitation as to the immediate disposal of any other 
calves or store cattle we may have. The price is undoubtedly 
so low now as to make one slow to sell, a yearling being 
hardly worth so much as a calf was a year or two ago. We 
have recently seen yearlings in fair condition sold for £5 10s. 
apiece ; yet we cannot hope to gain any profit upon keeping 
superfluous stock till spring. It has never answered to let 
any cattle fall into poor condition in winter, and we again 
say, Keep well within the scope of your means in this matter, 
and let what you do be done in the best way. In making 
calculations take care that there is abundance of wholesome 
food and pure water, in addition to warm, snug, yet spacious 
quarters, dry bedding, and sound sheltered yards. By sound 
yards we mean yards with firm raised bottoms and efficient 
drains, so that there is no danger of any harmful accumula¬ 
tion of water. 
Sheep must also be taken fully into account, for notwith¬ 
standing recent low prices the flock still brings in the nimble 
9d. of profit under skilful management. We must have 
chaff of both straw and hay, with crushed Oats and bran of 
dry food, with plenty of Cabbage and grass up till lambing 
time, when—or a little sooner—Mangolds come fully into 
use, and Turnips are held in reserve later on for the breeding 
flocks, but hoggets will be put upon them at any time. Do 
not in any case reckon upon Turnips for the breeding flock 
till after lambing ; many serious losses by abortion have 
happened solely through folding the ewes upon Turnips. By 
all means keep ewes in lamb in good condition now and 
onwards throughout winter if you would have a healthy 
strong crop of lambs. Our safety crops for spring feeding of 
the flock are almost all sown, but it is not too late to sow 
Winter Tares for a supply of green food next May, and we 
strongly advise those who feel doubtful of their provision of 
food for that critical period of the year to lose no time in 
sowing a large breadth of them. We have had a few acres 
of Mangolds pulled somewhat early specially to clear the 
ground for another piece of Winter Tares. Our bailiff said 
it had always been customary upon that farm to put sheep 
upon the Mangold ground when cleared of roots to eat the 
leaves, but we would not allow this to be done, knowing as 
we do what an excellent supply of manure the leaves impart 
to the soil when ploughed in quickly. In the field next to 
where the Mangold was so cleared off we have eleven acres 
of Rye nicely above ground, a strong thick sturdy plant. 
This green crop is after Barley, and no manure was used for 
it at the time of sowing; but next February we purpose 
giving it a hundredweight of nitrate of soda per acre. 
(To be continued.) 
WORK ON THE HOME FARM. 
Calves and coils should now be confined to the yards arid lodges to 
keep them from exposure to cold and wet, and to protect calves from 
hoose, which is so often rampant among them in autumn. The larva is 
picked up by them from the coarse herbage which comes in wet undrained 
land, or from foul water in stagnant pools, and developes in the animal 
into thread-like worms from 1 to 2 inches in length. These worms are 
sometimes found in masses in the throat, causing a cough which proves 
fatal in many a case. The remedy is two or three inhalations of sulphur 
fumes ; but do not forget that prevention is better than cure, for if once 
this disease get strongly hold of an animal it causes much debility. The 
sowing of winter corrr and the application of artificial manure goes 
steadily on as weather permits. See that all sloping land has enough 
water furrows to chevk ny serious surface washing by heavy rainfall. 
Every effort must be made to get in the Wheat as soon as possible. In 
very wet districts it is safe practice to plough and sow day by day, for if 
we plough and wait for fine weather for sowing, we may have long to 
wait at this season of the year. Do not let Mangolds remain out in the 
fields any longer. No more growth can reasonably be expected now, and 
much harm may be done by early frosts. Do not forget that Mangolds 
may be used at once with perfect safety if pulped, mixed with chaff, and 
allowed to undergo a slight degree of fermentation before being used. 
Much Barley was laid and discoloured. Some of the grain, too, is slight, 
owing to drought. We should refrain from pressing the sale of such, or 
of any inferior corn, but rather hold it in reserve for crushing or grinding 
for animal food. Barley meal for pigs, and oatmeal for both pigs and 
poultry, is excellent food, and there should be no waste upon a farm, nor 
need there be any sacrifice of corn at extremely low prices. Pigs that 
have been out on the stubbles may now beklisposed of at once for porkers, 
or brought on quickly for bacon. We have no faith in a low diet for 
swine, but prefer to bring them on quickly batch after batch, and we 
have several yards full of them now to consume inferior corn and to make 
some manure for our root crops next summer. We have so often found 
some farmyard manure insure success in root culture, especially in seasons 
of drought, that we do not like to dispense with it altogether for such 
crops. 
DRAINING. 
This is the time of the year when landowners undertake draining 
operations, and, if I may be allowed to speak from experience of most 
English counties, those operations will be conducted in a wrong because 
not a thorough manner. 
The usual way of draining a field is to cut a trench about 3 feet deep, 
put in some 2-inch pipes, fill in the stiff clay again, and thus ends the 
matter. In a few years the pipes are choked up, or rather do not act, the 
truth being that they are choked up in a few months by the loose soil from 
above, but there is a certain amount of good effected by them until the 
soil that was turned back upon them becomes homogeneous once more ; 
then of course drainage is at an end. 
Now, the only lasting and efficient cure for bad drainage is not to turn 
back the clay upon the drain pipes, but to burn that clay into ballast, and 
put back the ballast upon the pipes. Ballast is both hard and porous ; 
rain trickles slowly but surely through it down to the pipes, and thus, 
instead of the drain being merely 2 inches in width when the job is done, 
that drain is at once increased to a practicable depth of 3 feet with a 
2-inch fair outlet all along its base. Such a drain can never become 
stopped. 
To burn clay to ballast is very inexpensive—not more than a shilling 
per cubic yard of clay. It expands 25 per cent, in burning. The ballast 
heap when cold should be raked down, so as to avoid using the fine stuff 
This fine stuff is rich in soluble potash, and the very best of manures for 
Potatoes. In fact, in many cases the manurial value of the superfluous- 
ballast would pay the expense of burning it. 
If any of your readers desire information how to burn clay into- 
ballast I shall be happy to inform them, or, if you think fit, to describe 
the process in your columns.—W. M. 
[Practical notes on this important subject could not fail to be accept¬ 
able to many readers.] 
OUR LETTER BOX. 
Grain ( F. S .).—The Tare seeds had escaped from the packet and fell out 
of the envelope in opening the letter. The Barley is only a moderate sample. 
It is contrary to our practice to recommend dealers. Farm seeds can be 
had in all markets that are largely attended by agriculturists. 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
Camden Square, London. 
Lat. 51° 32'40'' N.; Long. 0° 8' 0” W.; Altitude, 111 feet. 
DATE. 
9 A.M. 
IN THE DAY. 
1885. 
i m <=9___ 
Cl CO O) 0J 
Hygrome¬ 
ter. 
a . 
£•& 
Temp, of 
Soil at 
1 foot. 
8hade Tem¬ 
perature. 
Radiation 
Temperature. 
0 
"5 
tf 
October. 
& & 3^ 
Dry. 
Wet. 
5o 
Max. 
Min 
In 
sun. 
On 
grass. 
Sunday . 
Inches. 
30.185 
deg. 
45.1 
deg. 
44.6 
N. 
deg. 
47.8 
deg. 
50.4 
deg. 
43.0 
deg. 
58.8 
deg. 
38.2 
In. 
Monday. 
19 
30.122 
43.6 
41.8 
N. 
4 .7 
50.8 
41.3 
91.2 
35.4 
— 
Tuesday. 
29.990 
42.8 
39.7 
N.W. 
47.2 
51.3 
39.9 
89.2 
35.6 
— 
Wednesday . 
21 
29.832 
43.8 
40.6 
E. 
46.6 
514 
39-7 
61.8 
34.5 
0.037 
Thursday ... 
22 
29.587 
44.3 
429 
N.E. 
466 
50.7 
39.5 
61.6 
33.1 
— 
Friday. 
29.535 
41.1 
44.8 
E. 
46.7 
48.7 
42.1 
51.2 
35.2 
0.983 
Saturday ... 
24 
29.208 
46.3 
45.2 
S.W. 
47.2 
49.5 
44.4 
62.1 
40.4 
— 
29.780 
44.6 
42.8 
47.1 
50.4 
41.4 
68.0 
36.1 
l.#20 
REMARKS. 
18th.—Dull, and rather raw. 
19th.—Pair generally. 
tOth.—Fine bright day. 
21st.—Foggy till 11 A.M., then fine till 8 P.M., afterwards thick with slight rain. 
22nd.—Fine early, cloudy day, moonlight night. 
23rd.—Dull early, very wet after 10 A.M., and all night. 
24th.—Rain early, fine and bright about 10 A.M., then windy, dull, and showery, but not 
measurable. 
Rather damper and cooler than the previous week, and with less sunshine. The mean 
maximum temperature continues its unbroken decrease, which this week amounts 
to 2°.—G. J. SYMONS. 
