1891 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
85 
scientiously; but to exercise that right might often be a 
“ perilous blunder” in view of their local surroundings. 
Political enthusiasts are easily touched if their cherished 
opinions are attacked, and such might withdraw their 
support. From this point of view, freedom of speech for 
the minister might seem a blunder, and yet the men who 
will at no distant day be in the greatest demand, are those 
who have crystallized thoughts on all social and poli¬ 
tical as well as religious questions, and who will consider 
it a duty to give free utterance to the truth on all subjects 
of interest or benefit to others. J. M. C. 
Five Corners, N. Y. 
The Farmers Club. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must be accompanied by the name and address 
of the writer to insure attention. Before asking a question, please 
see if it is not answered in our advertising columns. Ask only 
a few questions at one time. Put questions on a separate piece 
of paper.] 
Bee-moths In Hives, Etc. 
A. C. L., Blooming Orove, Ind. —How can I find out 
whether there are moths among my bees, and how can I 
best exterminate them ? 
ANSWERED BY PROF. A. J. COOK. 
At this season the bee moth is in its pupa state, and the 
chrysalis is in an oblong cocoon which is so long that it is 
easily seen. The cocoons are usually high up in the hive, 
generally in clusters upon or just beneath the top board of 
the hive. These are easily destroyed. Of course, in old- 
style or box hives there is no way to gain access to the 
hives, and so no way to find whether these cocoons or 
chrysalids are present or not. Indeed, for this and many 
other reasons no bee-keeper should use the box hive. The 
Langstroth. which is far better, is now free to all and 
should be used by all. When the moths come from the 
cocoons early next spring they lay their eggs about the 
hives, and as these hatch, the larvae—or so-called worms— 
commence to burrow through and feed on the combs. They 
now work in a silken tunnel, and the white lines can be 
p easily seen along the face of the combs and can be opened 
by use of a knife, and the larvae brought out and killed. 
Here again in case of an old box hive we can know noth¬ 
ing of the work of the larvae, and so are at their mercy. 
We see then that the way to manage the bee worms 
is to keep movable frame hives. Then we can note the 
presence of the comb destroyers, and easily rid our bees of 
their hateful and baneful presence. No good bee-keeper 
fears the moth. He will have only movable frame hives, 
and will always know if his colonies are thriving. Strong 
colonies never are troubled with the bee moth. We must, 
then, keep all our colonies strong. By doing this we shall 
escape this dread of the olden bee-keepers. In working 
with bees, whenever we see the glistening tunnels of the 
moth larvae we should dig them out, which is easily and 
quickly done. A. C. L. should get a good bee book, which 
would give all such facts as well as illustrations that would 
show just how the bee moth appears in all its stages. 
Drainage on a Wet Farm. 
D. C. S., Jasper, N. Y. —My farm is on rolling land 
with a clay subsoil, and on it are many small stones. It 
is springy in places, and lies so that most of it is kept wet 
by the overflow from the next farm, which is higher than 
mine, so that the soil cannot be worked until late in the 
season. In the middle of the farm there is a small creek 
running east The best land faces southeast; but one- 
third of the farm facing northeast is so wet that it can 
be used only as pasture. South of my place are a timber 
lot and hill. There is plenty of descent to insure easy 
„ drainage, but I can’t afford regular drainage. I am thinking 
of getting a large plow to be drawn by eight or ten horses 
in order to make deep furrows at intervals in the land. 
In the bottom of these a small plow would make smaller 
furrows over which flat stones would be laid. The furrows 
would then be filled up with small stones to within a foot 
of the top and then filled in with earth. Would this be a 
good plan ? Would such drainage be cheaply practicable? 
Ans.— The only remedy for this case is drainage, and the 
first work should be to cut off the flow of the water from 
the higher adjoining land. This may be done by an 
open ditch, most of which can be plowed out and the rest 
finished with the shovel. An open ditch on the upper border 
of the land will be no particular impediment. It may be 
made in this way: With a swivel plow run a furrow three 
feet below the fence and plow furrows back and forth 
until close to the fence. Then begin at the first furrow 
and turn that over and so on with the rest, and so con¬ 
tinue until a ditch is made as deep as possible. Then run 
back and forth in this with one horse, and plow and 
loosen the ground and throw it out with a shovel on the 
lower side, thus making a bank there. The ditch should 
have an outlet into the stream. Then do the same from 
every springy place in the nearest line to the creek and dig 
out the bottom, which may be filled in with stones, 
covered with the flat ones and these with sods, when the 
- earth may be plowed back again. To plow a big furrow 
with 10 or 12 horses would be more labor than this. 
All About Mustard Culture. 
L. M. S., Rensselaer County, N, Y— Will The Rural 
New-Yorker tell us ail about growing mustard as a field 
crop ? 
Ans.— Mustard is of two kinds, the black variety and the 
white, and one differs somewhat botanically from the other 
in the shape of the leaves and the size and color of the seed. 
Moreover, the essential quality of the seed of black mustard 
—viz., the mild, volatile character of its oil—is wanting in 
that of the white variety, consequently the black seed is 
the more valuable. In the manufacture of mustard for 
table use, however, the flours of the two varieties are 
mixed, while the black alone is used for the preparation 
of the oil of mustard, which is used medicinally, and the 
flour of the white kind is used for the common mustard 
plaster. In growing mustard seed for sale this distinction 
is to be considered. The two varieties are cultivated alike. 
Any good soil is suitable. As the plant is biennial, the 
seed is sown late in the summer—about August—and the 
seed ripens early the next season. About four pounds of 
seed per acre are sown, preferably in drills 18 to 24 inches 
apart, to give room for the plants to spread and make 
numerous seed-bearing branches. The yield of seed is 
about 15 bushels per acre. The only enemy of this plant 
is the turnip or cabbage fly (the flea beetle), which eats the 
young leaves and so destroys the crop. A dusting of fine 
air-slaked lime, or of soft coal soot, will keep off these 
little pests. The crop is mowed down, and after two days 
of drying the seed is thrashed out in any ordinary manner. 
Mustard may be grown after early potatoes and taken off 
the ground the next season in time for a late crop of corn, 
thus filling a gap to some profit. White mustard is a valu¬ 
able feeding crop, especially for sheep, and as it grows very 
quickly it affords fine feeding in the fall. Cows eat it 
eagerly and it is excellent for horses. For these animals 
it may be cut and fed as soiling. The great objection to 
the crop is the danger of stocking the land with the seed, 
which is apt to shell out from the earliest-ripening pods, 
but spring plowing, after the plants have started, will 
destroy them. The seed may be obtained at any seed- 
store. When it is grown in the garden it makes a very 
healthful and agreeable salad. It might be stated as a 
rarely known fact, that the pungency of mustard is only 
developed by the action of water, the water dissolving a 
substance known as myrosin, which acts as a ferment on 
another substance, sinigrln, and develops the volatile 
essence to which the acrid vapor and flavor are due. Boil¬ 
ing water does not produce this effect and hence should 
not be used in mixing the paste. 
Trouble With Blackberries. 
J. B. W., Charlton, Mass. —My neighbor and myself 
have a small plot each of Wachusett Blackberries. His 
yielded a good crop in 1888, a poor one in ’89, and none at 
all in ’90. Something seemed to cut off the flower about 
a quarter of an inch below it, so that it would hang as if 
almost severed from the stem. His are earlier than mine 
and I saw the enemy at work in time to spray mine with 
London purple, and had a good crop in ’90, though I found 
a good many of the blossoms on mine cut like those on his 
plot. We can’t agree as to the cause of the trouble; and he 
insists that mine will be a failure next year. What does 
The Rural say? 
Ans.—The R. N.-Y. has no information as to the cause 
of this difficulty, and the question is submitted to its 
readers. 
Green Manuring: Treatment of a “Poor” Field. 
J. S., Cleveland, N. Y. —I have 10 acres under rye on 
rather poor land. Will it pay to plow it under to enrich 
the soil ? 
ANSWERED BY PROF. I. P. ROBERTS. 
Under only exceptional circumstances will it be best to 
plow under any crop for manure, much less rye. It 
should be kept in mind that the object of raising plants is 
to secure a harvest, and unless it can be shown that if a 
crop is plowed under the following one will be so far 
benefited as to pay for the labor and the loss of the first, as 
well as interest for the use of the land, etc., and leave 
a profit, then it will not be best to sacrifice one crop 
already raised for the uncertain prospect of a better one in 
the future. I would as soon think of plowing under a 
crop of corn or wheat as of clover or rye, if the crop was a 
fair one and conditions were normal. We all like to have 
an abundance of fertility in the soil, but, after all, what 
we are all striving after is to get it out of the soil in order 
that it may be made useful. If J. S. should plow his rye 
under and go to the expense of sowing another crop, take 
all the chances of failure and wait the best part of another 
year for returns, how much will he have made ? Will he 
succeed in raising a more profitable crop than the rye on 
his “rather poor land,” even though the rye be plowed 
under ? Most likely not. Would it not be better to 
apply some commercial fertilizers early in the spring 
and harvest the rye, now that most of the expense 
of producing the crop has been incurred ? Green 
manuring should be practiced more than it is, but it 
should seldom be used to the exclusion of the regular 
annual harvest. All stubble ground that is not seeded, 
corn, bean and potato ground that has now no cropgrow¬ 
ing upon it, should have been seeded to rye last summer 
and fall. None of this ground need to be plowed before it 
is sowed, except possibly some of the stubble. All that is 
necessary is to sow from one to two bushels to the acre as 
soon as the regular summer crop has been harvested and 
harrow with one of the improved implements. If the corn 
stands up, rye may be sowed on horseback about Septem¬ 
ber 1 (it can be better distributed in this way), and covered 
by cultivating shallow once in a space each way. Some 
pasture is frequently produced in fall and spring, some 
plant food is digested by the rye and made more available; 
but the chief benefit is in conserving the plant food—chiefly 
nitrogen—and in improving the physical condition of the 
land. If the land is poor and does not produce a paying 
crop and no farm manures are at hand, then sow rye 
after the land is cleared in summer or fall, and give it a 
“starter,” by an application of 50 to 200 pounds of phos¬ 
phate, containing a good percentage of potash, and little or 
no nitrogen, per acre ; plow in the spring and plant or sow 
and treat to a light dressing of phosphate and potash and 
one half of the nitrogen that it is proposed to use. In from 
two to four weeks apply the other half of the nitrogen; for 
if a large quantity is applied at one time some of it will go 
to waste. It will be seen t hat this provides for a liberal 
dressing of plant food, it also provides for making the 
best possible use of the idle land and the rye plant in 
order that all possible factors of success may be put to the 
best use. If but a few weeks intervene between crops, the 
land should be covered with a “catch crop” for manure in 
summer to shade the ground, in the winter to protect from 
cold, and always tocon-ierve fertility. Make use of plants 
first, farm manures when they can be procured, and a 
starter of some commercial character, if required, so that 
the farmer may concentrate fertility, labor and capital, 
and thus keep pice with other concentrated industries. 
Potatoes an Exhaustive Crop. 
L. B. H., Landis Valley, Pa —Are potatoes a more ex¬ 
haustive crop than wheat or corn ? Some farmers claim 
that potatoes are the most exhausting crop. 
Ans. —Assuming that all the wheat, straw, potato tops 
and corn stalks go back to the soil in the form of manure, 
the following figures show what would be sold from the 
farm in each crop : 
200 bushels potatoes, 
50 bushels corn. 
30 bushels wheat.... 
Nitrogen. Potash. Phos. Acid. 
Pounds. Pounds. Pounds. 
47 75.4 24 1 
52 8 2 13.7 
33 9.7 14 2 
It will be seen from this that potatoes take from the 
farm far more potash and phosphoric acid than the other 
crops, largely because they leave less surplus in the form 
of stalks and straw. 
Seed Grain From Poor and Rich Land. 
C. H. E, Avoca, N. Y. —In selecting seed grain, if the 
land is not very rich, is it best to get grain grown on very 
rich ground, or perfect grain grown on poor soil ? I prefer 
the latter. 
-A- Ns -—On page 744 of The R. N.-Y. for 1888, we gave the 
views of a number of authorities on this point. The result 
of the discussion seemed to be that the care of the plant 
and the condition of the soil in which it is grown are far 
more important than the soil in which the parent of the 
seed was grown. Both a very rich and a very poor soil 
were considered objectionable, a soil of medium quality giv¬ 
ing the best satisfaction to seed growers. It is an interest- 
ing question, and we shall be pleased to hear what others 
have to say. 
Mortgages on Animals with Young. 
S. T. M., Mason County, Mich. —Among other articles 
mentioned in a chattel mortgage Is the following: “ One 
black mare (with foal) about six years old.” In foreclosing 
the mortgage can both the mare and colt be taken? 
Ans.—U nder the legal rule that the incident follows the 
principal it is held that the mortgagee has a claim upon 
the products and natural increase of the property mort¬ 
gaged, as accessory to the original security and for the 
same purpose. Accordingly where domestic animals are 
mortgaged their young born during the period of the 
mortgage, are covered by the lien. If the animals remain 
in possession of the mortgagor, the mortgage of the parent 
animal is notice of the lien upon the young, so long as 
it is under the nurture of the mother. After this, the 
mortgage still covers the young as between the original 
parties, but the offspring may be sold to a bona Jlde pur¬ 
chaser without notice, so that the lien will not be available 
against him. 
Fertility from Crops Decayed in the Ground. 
R. B., Montreal, Canada.—Is my land richer in plant 
food on account of a considerable amount of rotten po¬ 
tatoes left In the ground? Will the fertility from them 
equal that in the manure applied to them? 
Ans.—W hatever the crops took out of the soil goes back 
to the soil when the crop decays where it grew, and 
what the plants took from the atmosphere. If plowed 
under, it is again all made available to succeeding crops. 
If there is any loss, it is of the carbonic acid, of which 
there is always an abundance in the atmosphere and the 
soil water. Probably some organic nitrogen becomes un¬ 
available; but there can be little doubt that land from 
which no crop, or feed, is taken, goes on increasing in fer¬ 
tility, at least up to a certain point. When that point is 
reached, a balance seems to be established which Is prac¬ 
tically unchanged. This normal balance differs in differ¬ 
ent soils, and under different conditions. Experience on 
American soils shows that it takes from 5 to 50 years to 
bring the land down where it can no more be tilled with 
profit, without artificial enrichment. As pasture, a soil 
may be used indefinitely; but overstocking makes its re¬ 
sults manifest, very distinctly, in the course of years. 
Irrigated soils endure under cultivation much longer than 
unirrigated, but longer in proportion to the constitution 
of the water used. Water like that of great rivers is usu 
ally so rich in plant food as to make the fertility practically 
perpetual. 
Destroying Smut in Grain Seed. 
A. J. B., Youngstown, N. Y— Will soaking seed in vit¬ 
riol water prevent smut in corn ? If so, what quantity of 
each should be used per bushel of corn ? 
Ans.—S mut is a microscopic plant that starts from a 
minute body called a spore. The spores, when in consider¬ 
able numbers, make up the so-called smut of the corn as 
seen in the affected ear or other parts of the infested 
plant. These spores may fall to the ground and remain 
there for a long time, and when the field is planted to corn 
the smut will make its entrance into the young plant. 
The smut pores may become lodged in the folds of the 
grain and remain there until planted with the corn, when 
they may germinate and attack the corn plant. It is on 
this account that it is important to plant clean seed. The 
grain can be freed from the smut spores by killing them 
while upon it, and this may be accomplished by soaking 
the seed in a strong solution of blue vitriol or blue-stone 
(sulphate of copper), using one pound to a gallon of water, 
and leaving the corn in the solution only long enough to get 
thoroughly wet over all the surface. A better way now 
recommended by many is to let the grain lie in hot water 
between 130 and 135 degrees Fahr. for a few minutes, then 
let it be spread out and dried. 
