1892 
THE  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
201 
per  cent  of  phosphate  and  six  of  potash,  worth  eight 
cents  a  pound  for  the  former  and  six  cents  for  the 
latter.  These  may  be  used  for  the  clover  in  any  quan¬ 
tity  suited  to  the  purse  of  the  land  owner  or  the  needs 
of  the  soil,  bearing  in  mind  that  high-grade  fertilizers 
usually  contain  about  eight  per  cent  of  phosphate  and 
six  per  cent  of  potash  and  that  500  pounds  per  acre  of 
such  a  fertilizer  would  be  a  moderate  dressing.  All 
such  materials  are  supplied  by  fertilizer  manufacturers. 
It  is  now  thought  that  clover  will  supply  all  needed 
nitrogen  to  the  soil  if  it  be  rich  in  potash  and  phos¬ 
phate. 
Clover  Sod  ;  How  To  Use  Chemicals. 
W.  H.  C.,  Ontario,  Can. — 1.  Is  there  any  difference 
in  the  value  of  clover  roots  as  a  manure  when  plowed 
in  the  fall  when  green,  and  when  plowed  in  the  spring 
after  being  killed  by  winter  frosts  ?  2.  About  what 
time  should  chemical  fertilizers  be  applied  to  Timothy 
sod  to  insure  the  best  results  for  a  crop  of  grass?  Are 
200  pounds  enough  for  ordinarily  fertile  land  ?  3.  I 
have  four  acres  of  sandy  loam  (verging  on  clay  loam) 
which  I  summer-fallowed  last  summer,  plowing  under 
a  good  crop  of  clover,  Canada  thistles,  etc.  I  intend  to 
plant  it  to  potatoes  this  spring  and  will  use  from  200 
to  400  pounds  of  a  chemical  fertilizer  per  acre;  how 
should  it  be  applied  ?  I  am  thinking  of  sprinkling  it 
in  the  trenches  directly  upon  the  seed  pieces;  would 
this  be  likely  to  injure  the  seed?  Not  knowing  whether 
my  land  is  lacking  in  any  one  of  the  ingredients  of 
manure,  I  intend  to  use  a  complete  fertilizer;  would 
the  following  be  right — ammonia  3  to  4  per  cent;  phos¬ 
phoric  acid  9  to  10  per  cent;  potash  5  to  7  per  cent  ? 
Ans. — 1.  Little  if  any,  depending  somewhat  upon 
the  crop  to  be  grown.  For  potatoes  we  should  prefer 
to  plow  in  the  fall  and  to  cross-plow  in  the  spring. 
For  corn  we  should  plow  as  close  to  planting  time  as 
convenient.  The  roots  plowed  up  and  exposed  to  the 
frosts  and  snow  would  decay  more  quickly  than  those 
plowed  in  the  spring.  2.  Just  after  the  last  snow  dis¬ 
appears  and  as  the  young  grass  starts;  200  pounds  of 
complete  fertilizer  ought  to  be  a  fair  dressing — try 
400  on  one  acre.  3.  You  will  make  a  great  mistake  to 
put  the  fertilizer  directly  upon  the  seed  pieces.  It 
will  injure  the  seed.  Better  kick  a  quantity  of  dirt 
over  each  piece  as  you  drop  it  and  then  scatter  the 
fertilizer  on  top  of  that  and  fill  the  trench  at  once,  or 
partly  fill  it  and  complete  the  filling  as  the  plants 
break  through  the  soil.  By  running  the  cultivator 
close  to  the  rows  you  can  easily  fill  in  level.  That  is  a 
good  analysis  for  a  potato  fertilizer. 
“  Chemicals  and  Clover”  Without  Wheat. 
H.  E.  C.,  Antrim,  N.  H. — 1.  Why  does  not  Mr.  Lewis 
put  2,000  pounds  of  chemicals  on  his  land  instead  of 
1,200  and  increase  his  crops  accordingly  ?  2.  Does  the 
theory  of  chemicals  and  clover  apply  to  light  soil  with 
a  sandy  subsoil  ?  3.  Will  potatoes,  corn  and  clover  do 
for  a  rotation,  omitting  the  wheat  ?  4.  Would  this 
rotation  bring  up  the  fertility  of  the  land  sooner  ?  5. 
What  shall  I  plant — ej/es  or  pieces  of  potato  ? 
Ans. — 1.  Mr.  Lewis  is  a  practical  and  conservative 
farmer  who  “  makes  haste  slowly.”  He  believes  that 
he  can,  in  time,  largely  increase  his  use  of  chemicals, 
but  he  would  not  jump  up  to  the  ton  per  acre  at  once 
and  risk  a  loss.  He  will  increase  slowly,  adding  100  or 
150  pounds  per  year  and  watch  the  result.  If  it  seems 
to  pay  he  will  continue ;  if  it  does  not,  he  will  stop. 
2.  Yes.  3.  Yes,  though  it  may  be  more  difficult  to 
secure  a  good  crop  of  clover  without  some  grain  crop 
to  shade  the  young  plants.  4.  Yes  to  the  extent  that 
wheat  would  take  fertility  from  the  soil.  Twenty-five 
bushels  of  wheat  contain  substances  worth  $5.80  when 
bought  in  the  shape  of  fertilizers.  This  would  be  left 
in  the  soil  for  the  potatoes  and  corn  while  the  land 
would  be  in  grass  every  third  year  instead  of  every 
fourth.  5.  Plant  pieces  of  potato — a  good-sized  piece 
with  every  eye.  Much  depends  upon  the  variety 
planted.  Some  varieties  with  many  eyes  will  send  up 
half  a  dozen  or  more  shoots,  while  others  will  send 
but  three  or  four  strong  ones.  We  should  cut  the 
potatoes  lengthwise  with  one  or  two  good  eyes  on  each 
piece.  This  will  leave  enough  flesh  for  each  eye. 
Shall  I  Keep  10  Cows  or  20  P 
W.  D.  C.,  Watertown,  Conn. — Which  of  the  following 
courses  will  be  more  profitable :  1.  To  keep  20  cows, 
selling  the  milk  at  2%  cents  a  quart,  using  the  man¬ 
ure,  one-half  on  the  meadow  and  one-half  for  cultivated 
crops ;  or,  2,  to  keep  10  cows  with  milk  at  the  same 
price,  putting  all  the  manure  on  the  cultivated  ground, 
and  buying  Canada  wood  ashes  at  $14  a  ton,  and  sell¬ 
ing  the  hay  which  the  10  cows  in  the  first  case  would 
eat,  at  $16  a  ton  ? 
Ans. — No  man  can  answer  such  a  question  fairly. 
There  are  too  many  conditions  that  an  outsider  can¬ 
not  comprehend.  There  is  very  little  money  in  milk 
at  2)4  cents  per  quart.  Eye  straw  and  potatoes  both 
ought  to  sell  fairly  well  with  you.  We  understand 
that  Connecticut  farmers  do  not  grow  potatoes  enough 
to  fill  all  the  Connecticut  mouths.  If  you  have  land 
that  is  suitable  for  nothing  but  pasture,  keep  your  10 
cows  on  that.  Build  a  silo  and  put  all  your  stable 
manure  on  ensilage  corn,  following  the  corn  with 
potatoes,  using  800  pounds  or  more  of  a  complete 
fertilizer.  Then  sow  wheat  or  rye  and  seed  to  grass 
with  clover  in  the  spring.  You  can  sell  most  of  your 
hay  and  your  rye  straw.  The  ensilage  with  some 
clover  hay  will  feed  the  cows,  with  cotton-seed  meal 
and  other  grain.  This  will  give  you  milk,  potatoes, 
rye  straw  and  hay  for  cash  crops.  This  is  assuming 
that  you  have  a  market  for  all  these  products.  If  you 
have  not,  the  plan  must  be  changed. 
Color  in  Jerseys  ;  Killing:  Bean  Weevils. 
M.  II.  A,,  Moulton,  Tex. — 1.  Has  any  one  color 
among  the  Jersey  cattle  any  preference  over  another 
for  milk  qualities  ?  Some  Jersey  breeders  prefer  the 
solid  fawn  color.  Is  this  a  matter  of  fancy,  or  does 
the  fawn  color  show  a  better  milk  record  ?  2.  To  how 
high  a  temperature  can  beans,  peas  and  corn  be  sub¬ 
jected  without  injuring  them  for  planting  ?  In  this 
locality,  where  beans,  peas  or  corn  are  put  up  for 
seed,  they  are  liable  to  be  ruined  by  the  weevil.  We 
propose  to  try  heating  them  in  an  evaporator.  Can 
they  be  heated  so  as  to  kill  the  weevil  without  injuring 
the  germ  of  the  seed  ? 
Ans. — 1.  No.  Preference  for  a  predominance  of  any 
of  the  usual  colors  in  Jerseys  is  merely  a  matter  of 
fancy.  One  color  is  as  good  for  milk  as  another  ;  but 
there  are,  of  course,  certain  colors  whose  appearance 
in  any  animal  of  the  breed  would  lead  experts  to  doubt 
or  absolutely  disbelieve  the  purity  of  its  descent.  Tests 
have  shown  that  grays,  fawns  and  spotted  cows  have 
made  great  records.  2.  Dr.  Peter  Collier  writes  :  “We 
have  conducted  no  experiments  to  determine  if  beans 
and  peas  can  be  heated  sufficiently  with  dry  heat  to 
destroy  weevils  without  impairing  the  vitality  of  the 
seed.  We  have  recently  conducted  some  germination 
experiments  with  beans,  in  which  we  found  that  a 
temperature  of  140  degrees  in  water  for  15  minutes  de¬ 
stroyed  every  germ.  A  few  beans  germinated  which 
were  kept  in  water  at  140  degrees  for  five  minutes.  Those 
which  were  kept  in  water  at  130  degrees  for  15  minutes 
seemed  to  germinate  as  readily  as  those  not  treated. 
Seeds  which  have  been  thoroughly  dried  will  stand 
much  higher  temperature  (dry  heat)  than  those  seeds 
in  which  the  cells  contain  quite  an  amount  of  moisture, 
and  succulent  plants  are  much  more  readily  affected 
either  by  freezing  or  by  high  temperature  than  dry 
tissues.  Sachs  states  that  peas  can  resist  a  tempera¬ 
ture  of  158  degrees  for  an  hour  without  losing  the 
power  of  germination  if  they  are  air-dried.  Wheat  and 
maize  heated  to  149  degrees  for  an  hour  in  one  case 
gave  25  per  cent  germination.  Peas  soaked  in  water 
for  an  hour  and  heated  to  130  to  131  degrees  were  all 
killed.  Rye,  barley,  wheat  and  maize  soaked  the  same 
way  were  killed  at  128  to  129  degrees.”  You  can  de¬ 
stroy  the  weevil  in  peas  by  pouring  water  of  a  tem¬ 
perature  of  200  on  the  dry  seed,  and  leaving  it  for,  say 
10  seconds,  then  pouring  it  off.  Of  course,  this  must  be 
done  just  before  planting,  and,  in  our  experiments,  it 
has  not  hurt  the  seed. 
Corn  Worm  ;  Vegetables  in  Shade. 
T.  B.,  Monticello,  III. — About  12  years  ago  we  could 
raise  the  earliest  sweet  corn  entirely  free  from  boll- 
worms.  This,  unhappily,  is  no  longer  the  case,  as  our 
earliest  corn  has  usually  from  one  to  three  worms  in 
each  ear.  1.  Can  The  Rural  suggest  any  means,  by 
spraying  or  otherwise,  for  the  destruction  of  this  pest  ? 
2.  At  what  period  of  the  corn’s  growth  would  spraying 
with  insecticides  be  likely  to  be  most  effectual  ?  3. 
What  would  be  the  best  insecticide  for  this  purpose, 
the  corn  being  wanted  for  market  ?  4.  What  should 
be  done  with  a  piece  of  low,  black,  sticky  soil,  that 
was,  while  very  wet,  run  over  and  badly  tramped  by  a 
large  herd  of  cattle  ?  5.  What  would  be  the  best  vege¬ 
table  to  raise  in  the  shade  of  an  apple  tree  ?  6.  What 
would  be  the  best  insecticide,  by  spraying,  for  the 
destruction  of  the  flea  beetle  ? 
Ans. — 1  and  6.  The  R.  N.-Y.  regrets  to  be  obliged  to 
say  that  there  is  no  remedy  for  either  at  present 
known.  Tobacco  water  has  been  recommended  for  the 
flea  beetle,  but  has  not  succeeded  with  us.  Answers 
2  and  3  are  included  in  the  above.  4.  You  do  not  say 
whether  the  land  is  to  be  plowed,  or  not.  If  to  be 
plowed,  do  the  work  when  the  land  becomes  dry 
enough  and  use  the  Acme  harrow  for  pulverizing  it. 
5.  We  know  of  no  vegetable  that  will  succeed  as  well 
in  the  shade  as  if  it  had  a  fair  supply  of  sunshine. 
Perhaps  potatoes  would  come  as  near  to  it  as  any  other. 
Miscellaneous. 
Grafting  Crab  Apples. — J.  M.  V.  M. — Transcendent 
and  Hyslop  Crab  Apple  trees  20  years  old  can  be  success¬ 
fully  grafted  with  fall  or  early  varieties  of  apples;  but 
it  is  not  a  desirable  union,  as  the  scion  grows  so  much 
faster  than  the  stock,  that  it  makes  an  unsightly  tree 
and,  in  the  end,  breaks  at  the  union.  The  crabs  named 
are  both  small  growers,  which  aggravates  the  diffi¬ 
culty.  Gravenstein  is  one  of  the  best  fall  apples. 
Symptoms  of  “  Yellows .” — J.  H.,  Kent,  Ohio. — The 
notable  indications  of  yellows  are  the  production  upon 
the  branches  of  thin,  wiry  shoots,  a  few  inches  in 
length  and  bearing  starved,  diminutive  leaves.  These 
shoots  are  not  from  the  terminal  buds,  but  from  latent 
buds  on  the  main  stems  and  branches.  The  fruit  ripens 
prematurely,  from  two  to  four  weeks  in  advance  of 
its  proper  season.  The  first  year  the  fruit  will  grow 
nearly  to  its  natural  size;  the  following  season  it  will 
be  much  smaller,  and  no  matter  what  the  natural  color 
of  the  fruit  may  be,  it  will  always  be  marked  with 
patches  of  purplish  red,  and  the  flesh  of  the  peach  will 
be  generally  more  or  less  colored  in  a  like  manner. 
The  Agricultural  Department  at  Washington  has  been 
studying  this  disease  for  years  and  is  still  working  at 
it,  but  has  found  no  cure.  Send  there  for  a  bulletin 
on  the  subject.  At  pi-esent,  the  only  way  to  get  rid  of 
it  is  to  promptly  dig  up  and  burn  every  infected  tree. 
D.  E.,  Industry,  Pa. — Cuttings  of  the  Keiffer  Pear 
will  root.  Apple  seeds  fresh  from  the  fruit  will  grow 
this  spring  without  being  frosted. 
Wire-Worms  on  Potatoes. — A.  S.,  Grove,  Mich. — On 
your  field  “  planted  to  potatoes  last  year  a  part  of  which 
were  destroyed  by  wire-worms,  while  only  a  few  were 
found  on  the  rest,”  it  is  probable  that  the  worms  will 
be  no  worse;  possibly  not  so  bad  this  year.  All  depends 
upon  when  the  grubs  change  to  beetles. 
Tobacco  for  Manure. — N.  W.  S.,  Waynesburg,  Pa. — 
There  is  no  accurate  way  of  determining  the  value  of 
a  sample  of  tobacco  dust  or  stems  except  by  having  it 
analyzed.  This  tobacco  refuse  varies  greatly  in  value. 
Send  a  quantity  to  your  State  experiment  station  at 
State  College,  Centre  County,  for  analysis.  Unless  we 
knew  from  analysis  that  it  was  worth  more,  we  would 
not  pay  over  30  cents  per  100  pounds  for  it. 
IF.  A.,  Coleman,  Canada. — The  “Early  White”  Cory 
sweet  corn  is  offered  in  all  the  leading  catalogues  for 
1892. 
Hickory  Nuts  for  Seed. — Subscriber. — We  doubt  if 
your  hickory  nuts,  packed  in  sand  and  kept  in  the 
cellar  since  last  fall,  will  sprout,  unless  the  sand  has 
been  kept  moist.  A  better  way  to  keep  hickory  nut 
seed  is  to  alternate  thin  layers  of  nuts,  then  of  sand  in 
a  box  and  bury  the  box  out-of-doors.  Do  not  crack 
them.  All  of  our  nurserymen  sell  black-walnuts. 
Spring  Wheat  in  Rhode  Island. — W.  C.  S.,  Harmony, 
R.  I. — On  your  moist,  sandy  loam  ground  which  has 
been  planted  three  years  in  succession  with  potatoes, 
and  on  which  1,600  pounds  of  fertilizer  have  been  used 
per  acre  each  year,  we  would  use,  for  spring  wheat, 
only  nitrate  of  soda  at  the  rate  of  200  pounds  per  acre. 
Use  about  two  bushels  of  spring  wheat  per  acre  for 
seeding. 
Dry  Brick  House;  White  Paint. — V.  T.,  Moundville, 
Mo. — To  avoid  dampness  in  a  brick  house,  stud  the 
building  inside  the  brick  walls  and  lathe  and  plaster,  as 
in  frame  buildings.  That  is  the  best  and  only  reliable 
way.  For  a  paint  to  use  on  old  pine  floors,  add  to 
white  lead,  raw  linseed  oil,  a  little  turpentine  and 
drier.  If  color  other  than  white  is  needed,  add  that. 
If  you  wish  to  preserve  an  inside  floor  very  white,  omit 
oil  altogether.  Oil  on  inside  work  tends  to  turn  it 
yellow. 
C.  F.,  Braebum,  Pa. — Charring  the  ends  of  oak  posts 
in  fire  is  believed  to  add  to  their  durability.  Giving 
them  a  good  soaking  with  crude  petroleum  is  also 
recommended. 
Rape  Culture. — A.  B.  Jr,  Malone.  N.  Y. — Rape  seed 
can  be  procured  of  any  of  the  seedsmen  who  advertise 
in  The  Rural.  When  sown  in  drills  about  22  inches 
apart,  it  takes  from  one  to  two  pounds  of  seed  per  acre. 
If  sown  broadcast,  more  will  be  required.  It  will  live 
through  your  winters,  and  probably  produce  seed  the 
second  year.  You  should  sow  it  about  July  1st  to  5th. 
When  it  is  plowed  under,  it  ends,  as  does  clover  ;  it 
will  not  sprout  from  the  roots.  Send  to  Prof.  Thomas 
Shaw,  Guelph,  Canada,  for  a  bulletin  on  its  culture. 
Raspberry  Fertilizer,  Etc. — W.  A.  F.,  Homewood,  Pa. — 
We  would  not  use  strawberry  plants  from  a  plantation 
of  Wilson  that  blighted  badly  last  season.  For  a  Marl¬ 
boro  Raspberry  patch  to  make  a  growth  of  wood  we 
like  raw  bone  powder  and  muriate  of  potash  or  un¬ 
leached  ashes,  all  in  liberal  quantity. 
J.  A. — Polk  County,  Iowa. — The  Manual  of  The 
Apiary,  by  Prof.  A.  J.  Cook,  is  excellent,  price  $1.50. 
Alsike  makes  good  bee  food. 
Fertilizer  and  Drill. — Subscriber,  Ashburnham,  Mass. 
— It  will  be  perfectly  safe  “  to  apply  1,600  pounds  of 
Bradley’s  potato  fertilizer  all  in  the  drill  for  potatoes 
if  well  mixed  with  the  soil,”  but  you  will  not  obtain 
as  good  results  as  you  would  by  broadcasting  1,000 
pounds. 
The  Crosbey  Peach. — N.  G.  B.,  Colchester,  Canada. — 
We  have  only  to  say  regarding  the  Crosbey,  Excelsior 
or  Hale’s  Hardy  Peach  that  Crosbey  is  the  accepted 
name  and  that  we  have  confidence  in  the  excellent 
reports  regarding  it  that  have  been  made  by  good  men. 
