THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
;898 
75l 
Farmers’ Club Discussion. 
Continued. 
it was 25 years ago ? ” No. Other fuels 
prevent cord-wood from bringing the 
price that it formerly did. Given two 
acres—one well timbered and the other 
well cleared—which brings the higher 
price ? The one well cleared and tilled 
if the former is for cord-wood only. 
On the other hand, if the former is 
heavily timbered with building timber 
as hundreds of acres were in this locality 
40 years ago, the timber acre would sell 
first and bring the most money. I know 
of farms in this township that are under 
a very good state of cultivation and have 
had thousands and thousands of dollars’ 
worth of produce taken from them in the 
last decade, and have sent forth into the 
world strong and intelligent men and 
women, which, if put on the market, 
would go begging for a buyer at $0,000, 
but which, if well timbered with building 
material as they were 40 years ago, 
would not be on the market long at $20,- 
000. Now the question arises, which of 
t le two situations is the better for the 
country at large ? 
Scab Will Breed Scab. 
N. M. T., Rivekhead, N. Y.—I tried 
the zinc sulphate treatment this season 
on a small scale, as an experiment. I 
made the mixture by using one ounce of 
zinc sulphate to one gallon of water. 
The potatoes were soaked 1% hour. We 
have dug the crop and picked two rows 
from the soaked seed and two rows of the 
untreated, planted side by side, the rows 
of equal length and treated alike as to 
fertilizing and cultivation. After dig¬ 
ging, we sorted the potatoes into two 
lots, smooth and scaboy. The smooth 
potatoes from the soaked seed weighed 
337 pounds; the scabby potatoes from 
soaked seed weighed 142 pounds. The 
smooth potatoes from the untreated seed 
weighed 31G pounds; scabby potatoes 
from the untreated seed weighed 149 
pounds. The seed used in each case was 
large-sized, Early Hebron, and showed 
signs of scab. The ground was oat stub¬ 
ble, and potatoes were raised on it two 
years before. There were quite a num¬ 
ber of scabby potatoes in the former 
crop. It is my experience that if scabby 
potatoes grow on a piece of ground, the 
next crop of potatoes grown on the same 
ground will be scabby. 
Feeding a Peacb Orchard. 
J. S. Woodward, Niagara County - , 
N. Y.—In reply to J. A. H. Z., New 
Kingston, Pa., on page 684, I will say 
that if my land was in clover where I 
wanted to plant a peach orchard, I would 
simply let the clover grow until as late as 
possible and fit the ground for planting. 
In buying the bone for $28 at least twice 
as much phosphoric acid will be secured 
as with dissolved bone at $25. As, if the 
raw bone is fine enough, the trees will 
get all they need, I would advise using 
the raw bone as a rule. Muriate of pot¬ 
ash has about four times the actual pot¬ 
ash contained in kainit, and as the freight 
will be four times as much on the same 
quantity of actual potash, and as the pot¬ 
ash is what is wanted, by all means buy 
muriate. Either corn or potatoes may be 
grown in a young peach orchard without 
detriment to the trees. I have never 
seen a better growth of trees than we 
had this summer in a young orchard 
set last spring and the ground planted 
to Learning corn ; the latter was from 
10 to 14 feet high, and the trees have 
made all the growth that was desir¬ 
able, from three to five feet. But one 
thing must be remembered, two animals 
or plants cannot grow on the food 
required for one, so when planting a 
peach orchard to corn, beans, potatoes or 
squashes, be sure to give food enough so 
that the trees shall not lack. 
I think that bearing peach orchards 
should have an annual dressing of muri¬ 
ate of potash. We have so treated ours 
and our peaches have been the admira¬ 
tion of all; such high color and so sweet. 
All have remarked these qualities and 
wondered as to the cause. I think the 
answer should be, ‘‘Plenty of potash and 
phosphoric acid in the soil.” 
Probably the first grafts of the Idaho 
pear which the company sent out were 
sent to the Rural Grounds. Several were 
worked on the Keiffer, several on a late 
pear which rarely bears, and of which 
we have forgotten the name. This sea¬ 
son is the first we have succeeded in 
ripening the Idaho. We have now 
(October 24) several ripe specimens, much 
the size and shape of a medium-sized 
Anjou. It is of the same character of 
quality, if we may so express it, as the 
Anjou, though distinctly more acid. It 
is less buttery than the specimens which 
have been sent to us from Idaho. Still 
it is of high quality though the acidity is 
too pronounced. On the whole, we are 
disappointed in the Idaho as it grows 
and ripens at the Rural Grounds on 
Keiffer stock. 
We want to say a word about an old 
friend that every reader feels or should 
feel a friendship for. It is what is known 
as the California privet. Our garden is 
for the time, you know, Central Park. 
There this privet is employed to a fine 
advantage. It is planted on grassy hill¬ 
sides—the plants at some distance apart, 
say from 10 to 30 feet. Now that the 
leaves of trees and other shrubs are 
fading and falling, those of the privet 
seem greener and fresher than ever. And 
this color will be retained until from 
December to early February, as the frosts 
may be more or less severe. Those of 
our readers, if there are any, who are 
not familiar with the ways of this plant 
should set down these maiksto its credit. 
It will grow anywhere—under the drip 
of trees, in the shade, close to buildings, 
in clear or smoky atmospheres, in moist 
or dry soil. It is not hardy here or 
further north, and, strange to say, it 
should have another credit mark for this 
weakness. Its best looks are shown as 
a small shrub, never as a small tree. 
The spring growth is so rapid that it 
soon makes up for the injury which win¬ 
ter inflicts. It will stand any amount of 
cutting back. The roots are rarely 
killed by cold even though the tempera¬ 
ture fall to 25 degrees below zero. 
In the early days of the Rural Grounds 
(21 years ago) we planted many privets 
—close to the house, under the eaves, 
beside the lake. Their growth was rapid 
and we now prize them for the sterling 
qualities mentioned above as well as for 
their rapid growth which, 21 years ago 
induced us to use them liberally. 
The so-called California privet (ifigus- 
trum ovalifolium) is probably the best 
all things considered. Then there is 
a variegated variety with yellow leaf 
margins which is quite as hardy as the 
species. 
The Common privet (L. vulgare) has 
smaller leaves. Variety “buxifolium” 
has smaller leaves still. Besides these 
there are as many as 20 different species 
which, however, would be of little value 
except to make up a collection. 
The Pendulous privet (L. vulgare pen¬ 
dulum) is interesting and when grafted 
on a stem four feet high makes a beauti¬ 
ful little weeper. We had a fine speci¬ 
men at the Rural Grounds some 15 years 
ago. It was worked on California privet 
stock about four feet high. The pendu¬ 
lous branches grew almost directly down¬ 
wards giving it the shape of an umbrella 
just before it is fully open. A gale at 
length twisted the pendulous head from 
the stock and that was the last of the 
plant. 
Evidence accumulates that the Keiffer 
is a really excellent pear for many parts 
of the country south of an isothermal 
line passing through southern New York 
and westerly. H. M. Stringfellow, presi¬ 
dent of the Texas State Horticultural 
Society and residing in Hitchcock, sends 
us a box containing a dozen or more, 
reaching us October 23, in what seems to 
be the perfect stage of ripeness for this 
peculiar pear—a golden color rather 
deeper than any we have seen, with many 
cinnamon dots, often so close together as 
to make an unbroken russet. It has been 
said of the Keiffer as of Angouleme that 
the pears are never at their best unless 
of large size. But these Keiffers were 
of but medium size and were yet the best 
in quality we have ever eaten. The flesh 
was not so tender or melting as a Bart¬ 
lett, but the flavor was rich, vinous and 
equal to that of Anjou and perhaps even 
a little less acid and more spicy. 
Mr. Stringfellow writes as follows : 
As The R. N.-Y. has been rather rough on the 
Keiffer pear these many years, I send on a suit 11 
box of this fruit taken from a tree in my orchard, 
grown from a cutting and 10 years old last spring. 
We have picked to date (October 17), 19 45-pound 
boxes and there are 10 or more yet on the tree. The 
ground was used for the Hrst live years as a market 
garden, and fertilized annually at the rate of one 
ton per acre with cotton-seed meal, and the hull 
ashes. Since then with annual applications of 500 to 
1,000 pounds per acre. This nocounts for an extra¬ 
ordinary growth and yield T u e fruit Is small, but 
I think you will admit that the quality Is good. The 
Keiffer should hang until the middle of October, and 
then be packed In tight boxes while cool, to mellow, 
which It always does here In a week or 10 days. If 
not perfectly mellow wait until they are before 
eating. h. m. stringfklt.ow. 
The R. N.-Y. has editorially condemned 
the Keiffer only as it behaves at the 
Rural Grounds. There, and in that part 
of New Jersey, it has no merits except 
for cooking or canning. We were among 
the first to fruit it after its introduction 
and though the pears grow to a large 
size, the flesh is always hard and of low 
flavor. The R. N.-Y. was among the 
first to show the inferiority of the Keiffer 
in the North, and by so doing prevented 
many from planting it. It has all the 
while printed the evidence it has re¬ 
ceived that it is a desirable pear for more 
southerly localities. 
All that is claimed for the Country 
Gentleman sweet corn is that the ears 
average larger than those of the Ne Plus 
Ultra, Shoe Peg, etc., as the variety is 
variously called. It has at least six 
names already. Improved Ne Plus Ultra 
would have been a less misleading name. 
Mr. W. C. Barry regards the compar¬ 
atively new Grand Duke plum as one of 
the best for market. It is as large as 
the Bradshaw, of the same color and 
ripens in late September. It is entirely 
free from rot. 
The Connecticut Experiment Station 
says that in ordering meal to use as a 
feed or as a fertilizer, purchasers should 
require decorticated, upland cotton-seed 
meal containing at least 6.5 f.er cent of 
nitrogen, unless they are willing to use 
the other greatly inferior meal, which 
cannot be economically done unless it 
can be got for a greatly reduced price. 
There is no evidence that the undecorti¬ 
cated meal is in any way injurious to 
stock; indeed, some feeders prefer it to 
the clear decorticated meal on the ground 
that it is less likely to cloy cattle if fed 
in large quantity. But both its man- 
urial and its feed value are much less 
than those of decorticated meal. 
Our respected friend, Mr. F. K. Phoe¬ 
nix, of Wisconsin, makes this pertinent, 
forceful and (to .us) altogether unobjec¬ 
tionable suggestion: “Why not thou¬ 
sands of well-to-do subscribers each 
gladly pay for two copies of The R. N.- 
Y.; one to read, lend or mail to others, 
and one to keep for binding ? ” 
Another excellent suggestion of Mr. 
Phoenix is made in the query : “ Why do 
not temperance grape growers offer 
premiums for the best new temperance 
methods of utilizing grapes now so ruin¬ 
ously cheap ? ” 
Again, “why not utilize the ashes 
from our burned buildings ? ” 
The R. N.-Y. never wearies of such 
queries and suggestions, good readers. 
Favor us, please, with more, and more 
—and more, 
Mr. Frank Barnes, of Middle Hope, 
Orange County, N. Y,, prefers the fol¬ 
lowing potatoes : Crown Jewel for early; 
Monroe Seedling for medium and the R. 
N.-Y. No. 2 for late. He considers the 
No. 2 the most profitable of any he has 
yet grown. We do not like the Monroe 
Seedling because it is too long and un¬ 
shapely. 
If you name The rpral New-Yorker to our 
advertisers, you may be pretty sure of prompt 
replies and right treatment 
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RIVER FRONT FARMS 
—153 acres, $2,000; 200 
acres, $3,000; farms 
$000 to $2,000. Book free. 
H. P. CHAMBERS, Federalsburg, Md. 
your own Bone, 
Meal, Oyster 
Shells, Graham 
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(F. Wilson’s Patent) 
100 per cent more 
made In keeping 
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Mills and Farm Feed 
Mills. Circulars and 
testimonials sent on 
application. Wilson 
tiros. Easton, Pa. 
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For Descriptive fiD AD£C General Fruit Cat- 
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