1803 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
265 
The trouble was first noticed a year ago, but they got 
better in summer and now they are worse than ever, 
so that it bothers them to walk. 
Ans. —The personal attention of a competent veter¬ 
inary surgeon will be necessery to satisfactorily treat 
cases of this kind. It is very doubtful whether a cure 
can be effected at this late day; but relief may be 
afforded by proper paring and treatment. 
No Hope For Weakened Trees. 
G. H., Woodstock, Canada —Last fall I purchased 
from a nursery a number of plum and standard pear 
trees, and planted them carefully, banked them up 
with earth, and mulched. Now I find 18 of the pear 
trees dead, tops and trunks down to about a footfrom 
the ground; the bark is black and shriveled and can 
be rubbed off easily with the finger. The trunk wood 
near the ground seems to be green and fresh. The 
dead varieties are Bartlett and Anjou. The others— 
Howell, Louise Bonne, Early Wilder and Idaho—as 
well as the plum trees, appear to be all right yet. The 
trees have all had the same care, and all were planted 
on the same ground. What should be done—replant 
at once, or leave them this summer to see if they will 
sprout out above the buds ? Could it be possible that 
the varieties which are dead, had been kept over all 
summer in cold storage then sent out in the fall? 
Ans. —Trees weakened in this way we would destroy 
and purchase others. As to the cause of weakness we 
may scarcely conjecture. We have always considered 
the firm from which you bought the trees reliable. 
Making: Muck Into Plant-Food. 
F. H., Springfield, Mass. —In an old book published 
in the 40's I found a statement that by the use of 
proper chemicals, muck could be made as valuable as 
stable manure ; meaning by “ muck ” clear cow-dung 
such as was used in calico printing at Lowell. The 
author, who was a chemist at one of the Lowell cotton 
mills, says that by mixing the fresh muck with 92 
pounds of pot or pearl ashes per ton, or 01 pounds of 
soda ash, or one bushel of salt to one cask of lime, a 
fertilizing material may be made equal to good stable 
manure. Is that true in the light of modern expe¬ 
rience? How do pot or pearl ashes compare with 
high-grade sulphate of potash ? Is there any better 
way of manipulating muck without the use of stable 
manure ? Is lime alone sufficient to compost with 
it ? I have a bed of it about half a mile from my or¬ 
chard, which is situated on very poor sandy land. The 
muck analyzes as follows : 2 per cent of nitrogen, .09 
of potash, .12 of soda, .12 of lime, .14 of phosphoric acid 
and 05 per cenbof organic matter. How can I best use it? 
Ans. —The quotation is from Dr. Dana’s Muck Man¬ 
ual, a book well worth reading and digesting to-day. 
This muck may be considered as the raw material of 
manure, to which may be added, in the form of com¬ 
post, such matters as are deficient in it naturally, and 
these are the soluble mineral matters, as potash and 
phosphoric acid. The sample of the muck referred to 
has 40 pounds of of nitrogen to the ton, and is thus 
worth at least quite $4 per ton. Perhaps the easiest 
way of using this valuable raw material is to dig it out 
now or in the summer, and leave it to drain awhile 
when it should be composted in this way : A lot of it 
is to be carted to a convenient place and spread six or 
eight inches deep on the ground, and then covered with 
fresh air-slaked lime until quite white, then a few 
inches more of the muck are to be spread on this, then 
a layer of fresh manure, then more muck, then lime, 
and then muck again and then manure. Thus the lime 
is sandwiched between two layers of the muck, and 
the manure between two of the muck and lime. The 
mass will' soon begin to ferment, and heat, and in 
two or three months will appear as if it were all ma¬ 
nure. If desired, (and it is desirable) a quantity of 
potash salts, sulphate of 50 per cent actual potash, 
some fine bone, or superphosphate, and gypsum may 
be added to the compost, but it is just as easy to apply 
these by themselves after the latter has been turned 
under. Any farm having a few acres of as good muck 
as this should be easily made fertile, although it may 
consist of the lightest sand. The muck will soon change 
it to a dark-brown, rich loam, if treated in this way. 
H. STEWART. 
Canker Imported From a Neighbor’s. 
W. F. R., Shell8burg, Pa .—My turkeys went off to 
a neighbor’s place; when I brought them home the 
gobbler and one of the roosters got to fighting. A 
few days afterwards the gobbler’s head began to swell. 
Yellow scabs appeared at the sides of his mouth and 
under his tongue. The rooster was affected in the 
same way. I took them away from the rest, and find¬ 
ing they were getting worse all the time, I killed and 
buried them ; but the rest are getting the disease. 
My turkeys got the disease from my neighbor’s tur¬ 
keys. My flock has the run of the barnyard and gets 
mashed feed, corn, oats and wheat, and their house 
is clean and wholesome. What is the trouble and 
how should it be treated ? 
Ans.—P robably the turkeys have a form of roup 
known as “ canker,” which is contagious, the cause 
being contact with the neighboring flock, exposure to 
cold and dampness, especially at night, influencing 
the disease. It is difficult to cure except by laborious 
handling of the turkeys. Anoint the heads with a 
mixture of one part of spirits of turpentine and five 
of sweet oil, once a day, and at the same time sprinkle 
a pinch of chlorate of potash down the throats and 
on the walls of the mouths. p. h. jacobs. 
A Fertilizer Comparison. 
C. W., Malone, N. Y. —1. I inclose the analyses of two 
different brands of phosphate ; which is worth the 
more ? Agents here make a difference of $5 per ton. 
How do they compare with Bradley’s superphosphate ? 
2. Would it be cheaper for me to use a celery special 
for celery at an additional cost of $8 per ton ? 3. 
Where can I get a book on celery culture by the new 
method. 
No. 1 .—Guaranteed Analysis. 
Nitrogen. 2 to 3 per cent. 
Ammonia. 2^ to 3^ “ “ 
Soluble phosphoric acid. 8 to 10 “ “ 
Total phosphoric acid.10 to 12 “ “ 
Potash K20. 2 to 3 “ “ 
No. 2. 
Phosphoric acid. 716 to 9 per cent. 
Available phosphoric acid. 5>4 to 7 " “ 
Insoluble phosphoric acid. 1 to 2 “ “ 
Nitrogen equivalent to ammonia. 2 to 3 “ 
Potash sulphate. 8 to 10 “ “ 
Ans.— 1. We should figure these analyses as follows : 
No. 1. No. 2. 
40 pounds nitrogen at 16c... $6 40 33 pounds nitrogen at 10c... $5 28 
100 “ phos. acid at 8c .. 12 80 110 “ phos. acid at 8c .. 8 80 
40 “ potash at 4}jc— 1 80 80 “ potash at 4>6c .... 3 00 
$21 0) $17 08 
This is a fair comparative statement of the two 
values. The “sulphate of potash” in No. 2 is liable 
to deceive the farmer Remember that sulphate of 
potash is only half actual potash. Again, “ nitrogen 
equivalent to ammonia” must be unde stood : in two 
per cent of ammonia there is but 1.65 per cent of 
actual nitrogen. Bradley’s superphosphate contains 
at least 2% per cent of nitrogen, 11 per cent of phos¬ 
phoric acid and 2)4 percent of potash and is valued 
at about .1529 per ton. 2. Yes, we think the celery 
fertilizer will pay you. 3. The Rural Publishing Go., 
will send “ The New Celery Culture ” for 20 cents. 
Best Fertilizer for the Money. 
G. S., Chautautfua, N. Y .—I am using per acre 400 
pounds of raw bone meal (analysis four percent nitro¬ 
gen, 20 per cent phosphoric acid) and 200 pounds of 
muriate of potash (50 per cent of actual potash) in my 
vineyards at a cost of $11.50 for the “chemicals.” A 
company is offering here a special vine mixture with 
this analysis; is it cheaper than my old mixture ? 
Ammonia, 1 to 2 per cent; available phosphoric acid, 
8 to 10 per cent; equal to bone phosphate of lime, 17 
to 22 per cent; insoluble phosphoric acid, 1 to 2 per 
cent ; sulphate of potash, 9 to 11 per cent. By com¬ 
parison I find my mixture of 400 pounds of bone and 
200 pounds of muriate of potash will contain 2% per 
cent of nitrogen, 13% per cent of phosphoric acid and 
16% per cent of potash. With nitrogen worth 16 cents 
per-pound, phosphoric acid at eight cents and potash 
at 4% cents per pound, a ton of the mixture would be 
worth $44.86%, while we buy it for $38.33%. The 
same figuring applied to the special vine fertilizer 
would make it worth only $28.30 and the price asked 
is $30. Besides, a pound of nitrogen is worth more 
than a pound of ammonia. Am I in error in my 
position ? 
Ans.—Y our figures are right except that nitrogen in 
bone is figured at 12 cents a pound, as it is more slowly 
soluble than that in nitrate of soda. We think also 
that you put the value of the special mixture too high. 
All they guarantee is one per cent of ammonia or .82 
of one per cent of nitrogen, eight per cent of available 
phosphoric acid and 4% per cent of potash—this “sul¬ 
phate of potash,” as we have explained before, should 
be divided by two to get at the actual potash. Thus 
the fertilizer contains : 
.82 per cent nitrogen = 16H pouudB at 16c. $2.64 
8 per cent phosphoric acid = 160 pounds at 8c. 12 80 
434 per cent potash — 90 pounds at 4J6c. 4.05 
Total.$19.49 
This, we say, is all the fertilizer maker guarantees. 
The farmer has no business to buy on any basis except 
the lowest figures in the guarantee. 
Some Questions for Your Opinion. 
./. U. B., Afton, Wyo. —1. Is hen manure good for cab¬ 
bages and onions? How should it be used in a grav¬ 
elly soil, which has been plowed only twice and on 
which garden truck has been raised ? 2. Will cutting 
the horns of calves when they are in the button state 
stop their growth ? 3. Will cows take the bull sooner 
if the calves are taken from them, and will they be 
more sure to get with calf ? 4. I want to wean all my 
calves as soon as they come ; what should I feed with 
skim-milk ? I raise oats, wheat and barley and live 
40 miles from a railroad. 
Ans.— 1. Yes, hen manure is excellent for such 
crops. We should crush it as fine as possible and broad¬ 
cast it on a plowed ground, to be raked or harrowed 
in. 2. Yes, if done thoroughly ; but a better way is 
to use a caustic of some sort. See Mr. Wing’s article 
on page 217. 3. We do not think so. Who have had 
any experience in the matter ? 4. If you can get oil 
meal or ground flax seed, boil to a jelly and mix with 
the skim-milk. If not, we should feed sweet milk en¬ 
tirely or in greater part until the calves are three 
weeks old, and then make a gruel of oat meal or bar¬ 
ley meal thoroughly cooked, and mix with the warm 
skim-milk. This ought to keep them thriving until 
they can eat whole oats and hay or grass. 
Another Misrepresentation. 
W. M. A., Todmorden, Canada .—What does The R. 
N.-Y. think of the inclosed clipping from the Toronto 
Globe ? 
The following fertilizer compound, containing nitrogen, phosphoric 
acid and soda, In place of potash, has proved destructive to all grubs 
and worms that either live In the ground or go Into It In order to pass 
through the pupa state, and come out as full-tledged files to work 
their devastations on fruit and foliage, and there to lay their eggs for 
the perpetuation of their kind: 500 pounds air-slaked lime; 300 pounds 
common salt; 300 pounds fine ground phosphate of lime; 100 pounds 
nitrate of soda. These ingredients should be lntlmatoly mixed, with 
enough water added to prevent any dust, and then shoveled over 
three or four times within 20 days, by which time chemical changes 
and combinations will have taken place In the Ingredients. 
Ans. —It will have no more effect to kill insects than 
any high-grade complete fertilizer or ashes. Probably 
800 pounds of kainit alone would kill more of the 
insects. 
Medicine for Girdled Trees 
W. J. D., Greece, N. Y .—What can be done with 
peach, pear and plum trees girdled by mice ? 
Ans. —If the trees are young and not gnawed off 
below the graft (or bud), cut off all the gnawed part, 
and new shoots will spring up. Be sure that the new 
shoots that form new trees are not below the grafts or 
buds, and cut off all shoots but one—the one that 
starts the highest. For trees six to ten years planted, 
put in grafts that connect the lower with the upper 
part of the gnawed bark. Put in four or more scions 
n each tree. If not gnawed too closely, bind up with 
canvas and possibly the trees will null though, but not 
if the bark is off seriously. c. a. green. 
Doable Opening: In Cow’s Teat. 
G. L. P., Boonville, N. Y .—In the case of a two-year- 
old heifer that came in about a week ago there is 
about half way up in the side of one hind teat a hole 
so large that all of the milk comes out of it in milking, 
and scarcely any out of the end. A milking tube put 
in at the end full length will not start the milk. What 
can I do ? 
Ans. —The opening midway up the teat should be 
closed and caused to heal over. With a small knife or 
lance slightly cut or scarify its opposite edges to form 
a fresh, raw surface which can unite in healing. Then 
take two or three stitches through the skin so as to 
bring the edges together and effectually close the 
opening. Use strong white silk for the stitches and 
tie each with the double or surgeon’s knot. The silk 
can be carefully cut and drawn out after a week or L0 
days, if there has been no leakage during this time 
and the edges appear to be firmly united. If the milk 
does not flow freely from the end of the teat, the 
opening should be enlarged with a teat slitter, or by 
tying in a milking tube or lead probe until sufficiently 
dilated to allow the milk to be easily drawn. 
[DR. | F. L. KH.BORNE. 
MISCELLANEOUS. 
D. B., Ansunla, (J .—By all means cover the asparagus 
beds with well rotted manure this spring. 
Leached Ashes. —W. C. F., Plattsburg, N. Y.—We 
should consider $4 a ton too much for leached ashes. 
W. T. C., Albion, lnd. —The address of the Rural 
Experiment Grounds is River Edge, Bergen Co., N. J. 
A. G. L., Seneca Castle, N. Y.—Corn and beans 
raised in 1891 will not germinate so sooo, but the seeds 
ought to be good. 
Currants. —Mrs. M. W. E., Three Rivers, Cal.—Fay's 
bears a larger currant than Moore’s Ruby, and is to be 
preferred. We have not seen Childs’s Ruby. 
Alfalfa in Western New York. —E. J. W., Orleans 
County, N Y.—Alfalfa requires a deep, rich soil with 
porous subsoil, refusing to thrive in wet, cold places. 
It stands dry weather admirably. Sow in spring after 
settled weather has come, on well prepared ground. 
The seed may be obtained from J. M. Thorburn & 
Co., New York, at 20 cents per pound. 
Peaches and Blackberries. —B. C., Sterling, N. Y.—At 
present we should choose between the varieties of 
peaches mentioned for market. Early Crawford; 
Elberta ripens after it. The Crosbey ripens between 
Early and Late Crawford, or about with Oldmixon. It 
is valued beyond many other varieties because of the 
exceeding hardiness of the tree. Minnewaski black¬ 
berry is the equal of Kittatinny in every way except 
in quality; it is not so sweet, but the plant is hardier. 
Erie is too much like Lawton. 
