1892 
THE  RURAL  NEW-YORKER. 
257 
Chemicals  and  Celery.— V. 
HOW  I  GREW  $2,000  WORTH  ON  ONE  ACRE. 
[For  the  benefit  of  those  who  have  not  read  the  previous  articles  of 
this  series,  we  will  say  that  Mr.  Nivens  grows  his  celery  on  the  top  of 
the  ground  in  rows  seven  inches  apart  each  way.  The  plants  are  set 
out  when  two  or  three  inches  high.  The  ground  is  well  enriched  with 
stable  manure,  carefully  plowed  and  harrowed  smooth.  Mr.  Nivens 
used  1,500  pounds  of  Stockbridge  fertilizer,  broadcast  at  harrowing, 
and  1,200  pounds  more  when  the  plants  were  about  half  grown.  This, 
with  good  tillage  and  plenty  of  water,  made  the  crop.— Eds.] 
Bleaching  Celery. — Celery  to  be  good  must  be 
pleasing  to  the  eye  as  well  as  pleasant  to  the  taste,  or, 
in  other  words,  it  must  be  ornamental  as  well  as  useful. 
The  bunches  ought  to  be  uniform  in  size,  the  plants 
washed  clean  and  well  trimmed.  By  adopting  the  new 
method  of  growing  celery — that  .is,  planting  it  seven 
inches  apart — the  foliage  is  so  thick  that  beneath  it  is 
moist  and  dark,  causing  the  celery  to  bleach,  especially 
the  easily  blanching  varieties.  That  not  bleached 
before  it  is  time  to  secure  it  from  frost,  is  packed  in 
pits.  These  are  dug  from  18  inches  to  two  feet  deep, 
according  to  the  size  of  the  plants,  and  about  six  feet 
wide  ;  the  earth  is  thrown  on  each  side,  forming  a  wall 
one  foot  deep,  making  the  pit  about  2%  to  3  feet  deep, 
The  celery  is  dug  up  with  a  little  dirt  adhering  to  the 
roots,  carried  to  the  pits  and  closely  packed.  Posts 
are  placed  where  needed  to  stretch  stringers  on,  to 
support  the  covering  of  boards.  Be  sure  the  covering 
is  strong  enough  to  hold  up  from  three  to  eight  inches 
of  soil.  Leave  a  board  every  15  feet  that  can  be  taken 
off  to  give  air  and  to  get  at  the  celery  when  wanted. 
Cover  this  board  with  coarse  manure  so  that  it  may  be 
removed,  and  the  celery  taken  out  when  the  ground 
is  frozen. 
This  pit  is  described  as  a  substitute  for  cellars  or 
root-houses  and  answers  very  well  for  keeping  celery 
up  to  Thanksgiving  or  Christmas.  One  acre  of  celery 
well-grown  by  this  new  method  will  require  about 
one-tenth  of  an  acre  of  storage  room.  Very  few 
farmers  have  this  in  their  cellars  or  root-houses. 
Make  the  pits  about  one  foot  higher  on  one  side,  so 
that  the  water  may  run  off.  Do  not  store  your  celery, 
when  wet,  in  pits  or  cellars.  I  have  stored  celery  in 
pits  as  green  as  it  could  be  and  taken  it  out  in  Feb¬ 
ruary  and  March  well  bleached.  The  pits  are  dug  in 
the  field  near  the  celery,  so  that  the  latter  can  be 
easily  stored  when,  dug.  My  soil  is  a  sandy  loam,  so 
there  is  no  danger  of  water  getting  into  the  pits.  This 
high,  dry,  sandy  soil  is  considered  poor  soil  for  celery, 
but  my  experience  has  taught  me  that  nearly  all 
ground  can  be  made  good  by  a  judicious  use  of  water 
and  plant  food.  Let  me  advise  all  those  who  contem¬ 
plate  growing  celery  on  an  extensive  scale  not  to  do  it 
by  this  new  method  without  experience.  Let  each 
try  a  small  piece  first.  1  advise  all  experienced  celery 
growers  to  plant  a  portion  of  their  ground  in  this  way 
and  give  a  report  of  their  yield  in  The  Rural  New- 
Yorker.  May  we  have  a  fair,  honest  and  candid  re¬ 
port  of  the  advantages  and  disadvantages  of  growing 
the  crop  in  this  way.  It  is  now  a  very  important  crop 
and  its  importance  is  rapidly  increasing,  therefore  any 
information  obtained  from  actual  experience  whereby 
labor  is  saved,  the  cost  lessened  and  the  production  in¬ 
creased  will  be  gratefully  received. 
Cost  of  an  Acre. — The  expenses  of  growing  and 
marketing  one  acre  of  celery  by  the  new  method  are 
as  follows : 
1  pound  seed .  $2  50 
10  cords  manure .  50  00 
Spreading .  2  50 
Plowing .  2  00 
Raking  and  rolling .  5  00 
126,000  plants .  126  00 
Planting .  41  50 
Hoeing  and  weeding .  27  00 
Total . 
2  tons  fertilizer .  $80  00 
Sowing  fertilizer .  3  00 
Cleaning  and  marketing  ...  250  00 
Pitting  or  storing  a  portion 
of  the  crop .  50  00 
Cost  of  water  and  labor  in 
watering .  50  00 
,$680  50 
With  experience  some  of  these  expenses  can  be  re¬ 
duced.  Barnyard  manure  in  this  vicinity  is  worth 
from  $3  to  $4  per  cord.  The  cost  of  growing  126,000 
plants,  in  hot-beds  or  green-houses,  for  early  celery, 
would  amount  to  more  than  $1  per  thousand  ;  but  part 
of  the  plants  were  grown  in  the  field  at  a  cost  of  50 
cents  per  thousand.  The  cleaning  and  marketing 
would  cost  about  $120  if  the  celery  is  sold  to  commis¬ 
sion  merchants  and  marketed  from  the  field  before  it 
is  stored.  The  water  used  was  from  the  city  supply 
running  through  a  half  inch  meter,  conducted  through 
pipes  in  and  through  the  field,  where  we  attached  a 
hose  at  convenient  intervals.  The  water  supply  was 
very  unsatisfactory,  especially  when  the  celery  was 
large.  In  dry,  warm,  spells,  the  supply  was  insuf¬ 
ficient. 
In  my  next  Rural  article  a  few  thoughts  in  regard 
to  the  great  importance  of  irrigating  will  be  given, 
also  the  testimony  of  successful  farmers  in  this 
vicinity  who  have  used  steam  pumps  for  watering. 
The  testimony  of  Mr.  Budlong  will  be  very  interest¬ 
ing.  His  manure  bill  amounts  to  $30,000  every  year. 
Our  little  State  of  Rhode  Island  is  small,  but  we 
boast  of  having  one  of  the  largest  and  most  successful 
farmers  in  New  England.  robt.  niven. 
Sour  Milk  in  New  York. 
A  representative  of  The  Rural  dropped  into  the 
office  of  the  Union  Milk  Company  at  95  Eighth  Avenue 
on  Tuesday  morning,  April  5,  and  in  response  to  ques¬ 
tions  as  to  the  status  of  the  milk  market,  Manager 
Macomber  said  as  follows: 
“  There  is  a  great  shortage  in  the  milk  market  to¬ 
day.  The  very  Warm  weather,  which  began  on  Sunday, 
has  stimulated  the  demand  very  largely.  I  think  the 
market  would  take  30  per  cent  more  milk  to-day  than 
it  did  a  week  ago.  The  shortage  is  made  all  the  more 
pronounced  by  reason  of  the  large  amount  of  milk 
which  has  soured  in  transit.” 
“  Is  there  much  of  that  ?  ”  said  The  Rural. 
“  I  think  it  would  be  safe  to  say  that  out  of  the 
whole  amount  received  this  morning — not  far  from 
20,000  cans,  at  least  1,500  cans — were  soured.” 
“  How  do  you  account  for  this  state  of  affairs  ?  ” 
“  Simply  because  the  shippers  were  not  prepared  for 
summer  weather  and  the  milk  was  not  properly  cooled. 
It  will  be  all  right  in  a  day  or  two.” 
“  What  becomes  of  all  this  sour  milk  ?  ” 
“  Part  of  it,  that  which  is  shipped  directly  by 
dairymen,  is  returned  to  them,  and  they  are  the  losers. 
The  milk  from  creameries  owned  by  New  York  dealers, 
they  of  course  cannot  return.  It  is  made  up  into  but¬ 
ter,  pot  cheese,  etc. — as  best  can  be  done,  but  gen¬ 
erally  there  is  a  loss  for  its  owners.” 
“  How  is  the  Union  Milk  Company  flourishing  ?” 
“  Oh,  we  are  making  progress  all  the  while.  We 
have  just  bought  out  the  business  of  Farley  &  Varney 
of  2275  Seventh  Avenue,  a  business  of  about  50  cans 
per  day — mainly  a  wholesale  trade.  We  shall,  for  the 
present  at  least,  maintain  a  branch  office  at  that 
place.” 
“  How  about  your  retail  trade  ?  ” 
“  It  is  in  a  very  satisfactory  conlition.  We  are  run¬ 
ning  five  wagons  now  and  our  prospects  for  the  future 
are  very  bright.” 
The  Business  of  Seed  Growing. 
“  What  are  the  prospects  in  the  seed  trade  for  the 
coming  season?”  saidTiiE  R.  N.-  Y.  to  Mr.  W.  W.  Tracy, 
a  representative  of  the  firm  of  D.  M.  Ferry  &  Co.  of 
Detroit. 
“  Generally  they  are  very  good  indeed.  As  a  mat¬ 
ter  of  fact,  there  seems  to  be  a  shortage  in  most  Amer¬ 
ican-grown  seeds  and  there  has  been  quite  an  advance 
in  prices.” 
*  ‘  How  many  acres  does  it  take  to  grow  your  seeds, 
etc.,  and  where  are  they  grown?” 
“We  shall  contract  this  season  for  growing  seeds  on 
between  16,000  and  17,000  acres.  I  have  just  returned 
from  Mattituck,  Long  Island,  where  the  business  of 
growing  cabbage  seed  is  largely  carried  on.” 
“  Why  at  Mattituck  any  more  than  at  any  other 
place  ? ” 
“  That  is  a  question  not  easily  answered.  We  have 
found,  as  a  result  of  long  observation,  that  certain 
localities  are  best  for  certain  kinds  of  seeds,  and  we 
try  to  profit  by  that  knowledge.  Efforts  have  been 
made  elsewhere,  but  as  yet,  except  at  Puget  Sound, 
the  business  has  not  been  successful.  We  tried  it  and 
others  have  also  in  Jefferson  County,  N.  Y.,  on  some 
of  the  peninsulas  jutting  out  into  Lake  Ontario,  but 
the  business  was  not  as  successful  as  on  Long  Island. 
Cabbage  seed  was  formerly  largely  grown  on  the 
north  shore  of  Long  Island  Sound,  but  it  is  no  longer 
largely  carried  on  there,  the  business  being  more  suc¬ 
cessful  in  the  region  of  Mattituck.  We  also  grow  some 
turnip  seed  there  and  others  of  the  cruciferous  family. 
It  is  safe  to  say  that  for  many  years  to  come,  the 
bulk  of  these  seeds  grown  on  this  continent  will  be  on 
Long  Island  and  Puget  Sound.” 
“  Where  do  you  grow  your  pea  seeds  ?  ” 
“Principally  in  Jefferson  County,  N.  Y.,  and  in 
Canada.  There  is  an  erroneous  impression  among 
many  that  we  grow  peas  in  these  sections  because  of 
the  absence  of  the  pea  weevil,  but  such  is  not  the 
case.  There  are  plenty  of  these  pests  in  Jefferson 
County,  and  they  would  at  times  almost  destroy  crops 
if  the  planters  did  not  destroy  the  bugs  in  the  seed 
before  planting.” 
How  do  they  accomplish  this  ?  ” 
“  They  generally  subject  the  seed  to  the  fumes  of 
bi-sulphide  of  carbon,  which  does  the  work  effectually. 
Others  use  the  fumes  of  turpentine  and  think  it  quite 
as  good.” 
“  Do  these  pests  prevail  in  Canada  also?” 
“  Not  to  so  great  an  extent.  There  are  parts  of 
Canada  where,  for  some  unknown  reason,  the  weevils 
do  not  appear.  It  is  not  a  question  of  latitude,  for 
they  are  found  both  north  and  south  of  the  exempt 
sections.” 
“  Where  do  you  grow  your  melon  and  squash  seeds 
and  those  of  the  curcurbitse  family  generally  ?” 
“  As  far  north  as  they  can  be  grown  and  thoroughly 
mature.  Texas,  Georgia  and  other  Southern  States 
are  large  melon  growing  sections,  but  we  do  not  grow 
our  seeds  there.” 
“  Why  ?  Are  seeds  grown  further  north  better,  or 
earlier,  or  hardier  ?” 
“  Not  at  all — it  is  for  an  entirely  different  reason. 
Kansas  is  about  as  far  south  as  we  ever  attempt  to 
grow  melon  seeds.  The  reason  we  grow  them  further 
north  is  because  the  further  north  we  get,  the  larger 
proportion  of  seeds  are  yielded.  This  proportion  is  so 
much  greater  that  growers  can  produce  them  at  prices 
at  which  those  living  further  south  could  not  afford  to 
do.” 
“Then  the  locality  does  not  affect  the  melons  at  all?” 
“  No.  We  had  seeds  of  melons  which  were  grown  for 
five  years  in  Michigan,  planted  side  by  side  with  some 
that  were  grown  for  five  years  or  more  in  the  Gulf 
States.  There  was  no  difference  to  be  seen  in  either 
earliness,  hardiness  or  productiveness.  ” 
“  Do  you  have  much  trouble  with  hybridizing  in  case 
of  melons,  squashes,  etc.  ?” 
“  But  little.  We  have  to  guard  very  carefully  against 
the  crossing  of  different  varieties  of  the  same  species 
and  never  allow  them  to  be  planted  near  enough  for 
crossing  to  take  place.  There  are  yet  some  unsettled 
questions  or  problems  about  the  ease  with  which  dif¬ 
ferent  members  of  the  curcurbitse  family  hybridize  ; 
at  present  there  is  much  difference  of  opinion.” 
“  Do  all  reputable  seedsmen  take  the  same  methods 
that  you  use  in  contracting  for  seed  ?  Do  they  not  buy 
more  or  less  of  job-lots  about  the  country  ?” 
“  So  far  as  I  know,  I  think  all  honorable  dealers  use 
the  same  methods  and  refuse  to  buy  the  job-lots  of 
seed  that  are  offered.  Last  year  the  melon  crop  in  the 
South  was  so  large  that  in  some  sections  it  was  not 
marketed.  In  these  places,  they  simply  gathered  the 
seed,  and  almost  every  seedsman  in  the  country  has 
had  this  seed  offered  him  at  prices  much  lower  than 
seeds  grown  under  his  own  supervision  had  cost,  but  I 
do  not  know  of  a  single  case  where  a  sale  was  made. 
We  must  be  sure  of  the  varieties — we  cannot  afford 
mistakes.” 
“You  have  a  seed  farm  at  Detroit,  have  you  not  ?” 
“We  have  two,  containing  800  acres,  one  near 
Detroit,  and  the  other  near  Pontiac.  These  we  use  for 
growing  our  stock  seeds — that  is,  the  seeds  we  furnish 
to  those  with  whom  we  make  contracts  for  growing 
our  seeds.” 
“  Are  there  any  novelties  in  your  line  this  season  ?” 
“We  are  not  much  given  to  talk  about  novelties. 
We  have  a  new  pea,  the  Admiral,  which  promises  to 
be  a  very  desirable  variety  for  the  canning  trade.  It 
has  a  long  pod,  completely  filled  with  small  peas. 
These  can  be  picked  when  just  the  size  of  the  French 
canned  peas — petit  pois — and  very  much  resemble  them, 
but  they  are  more  productive  than  any  we  have  before 
had.  We  have  also  the  Speckled  Wax  Bean,  of  which 
I  think  very  highly.  It  has  a  yellow  pod,  round  and 
succulent,  is  a  very  strong  grower  and  is  late.  Being 
late,  I  think  it  is  less  liable  to  be  troubled  by  anthrac- 
nose  on  the  pods.  While  on  the  subject  of  beans,  I 
would  like  to  call  your  attention  to  a  new  pole  bean, 
which  we  received  from  J.  L.  Childs,  of  Floral  Park, 
N.  Y.  It  is  called  the  Horto-Lima  and  I  believe 
originated  in  Vermont.  I  think  it  a  very  valuable 
acquisition.  In  shape  it  is  like  the  Lima,  but  is  mot¬ 
tled  like  the  old  Horticultural  or  Wren’s  Egg  bean. 
The  vine  looks  more  like  the  Horticultural  than  the 
Lima.  The  bean  is  much  of  the  Lima  flavor,  is  very 
productive  and  is  earlier  than  any  of  our  other  pole 
beans.  We  shall  put  it  on  our  list  another  season. 
Business  Bits. 
A  Hint  to  the  Wise.— Will  some  one  In  New  York  or  Pennsylvania 
who  has  Canada  stock  peas  and  rape  seed  to  sell  at  farmers’  prices, 
advertise  In  The  Rural  that  we  may  know  where  we  can  get  a 
Supply  ?  SUBSCHIBKll. 
The  catalogue  received  from  A.  W.  Stevens  &  Son,  Auburn,  N.  Y., 
describes  other  machinery  besides  their  excellent  grinding  mills.  It 
Is  unique  In  design,  and  we  suppose  would  be  sent  on  application. 
There  are  few  articles  introduced  into  the  dairy  that  have  rendered 
so  much  service  for  the  expense  as  parchment  butter  paper.  It  is 
both  cheaper  and  better  than  any  other  covering.  We  order  a  supply 
every  spring  as  regularly  as  we  do  our  salt.  A.  G.  Elliot  &  Co.,  Phil¬ 
adelphia,  Pa.,  manufacture  and  send  samples  to  any  one  sending 
postage. 
The  Field  Force  Pump  Company  of  Lockport,  N.  Y.,  sends  out  a 
catalogue  of  its  spraying  pumps,  that  every  progressive  farmer 
and  fruit  grower  should  have  It  describes  every  thing  needed  for 
spraying.  The  farmer  who  neglects  to  spray  his  fruit  trees  loses  much 
more  money  than  he  pays  in  taxes. 
Hawkeye  Grub  and  Stump  Machine.— The  catalogue  sent  by 
James  Milne  &  Sons,  of  Scotch  Grove,  la.,  is  very  interesting,  because 
it  tells  the  actual  experience  of  practical  men.  The  Hawkeye  stump 
puller  is  a  powerful  machine.  When  it  hitches  to  a  stump  and 
the  horse  starts,  the  stump  has  to  come  ;  there  is  no  help  for  it. 
It  can  pull  all  the  stumps  on  an  acre  without  being  moved,  and  can 
also  be  used  to  move  houses  or  other  heavy  objects. 
Pay  the  Goat’s  Board,— Here  is  a  question  we  must  submit  to 
our  readers  :  “  What  is  a  fair  charge  per  day  for  pasturing  a  herd  of 
40  Angora  goats?  My  next  neighbor  has  them;  no  fence  will  keep  them 
at  home;  they  are  on  my  farm  all  the  time  and  have  eaten  as  bare  as 
a  barn  floor  half  an  acre  of  very  luxuriant  rye  which  I  Intended  to 
cut  for  my  cows  and  then  plow  down.  They  have  also  eaten  two  acres 
of  growing  clover  and  every  blade  on  two  acres  of  oats.  My  neighbor 
drives  them  home,  but  in  a  few  hours  they  return.  cedar  croft 
