1894 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
lOI 
could not be made to work on tomato blossoms in tbe 
horticultural greenhouses here last year; other ob¬ 
servers report very few or none on blossoms outdoors. 
As the tomato blossoms are so similar to those of 
potato, it would seem fair to infer that the bees do not 
work on the latter to any extent. Yet there are no 
definite observations which indicate whether they do 
or do not. Our knowledge of the insect visitants of 
our cultivated crops is very meager. 2. It is a very 
common notion that bees do not very materially aid 
in the fertilization of grape blossoms. And yet there 
are no definite observations, so far as I know, to prove 
it. It would seem that some of the non-self-fertiiiz- 
able varieties must have the help of insects. The pro¬ 
nounced fragrance of the blossoms would also indicate 
that insects are desirable visitants. The Cornell Sta¬ 
tion intends making some observations upon this point 
the coming season. m v. s. 
StrengrtheuinR' Cow Manure ; Potatoes With Fertilizer. 
J. V., Apponaug, II. I. —1. Would The R. N.-Y. 
advise using muriate of potash and nitrate of soda 
when forking over cowyard manure ? Loam, muck 
and seaweed are under this cow manure, and the 
liquids run into it in the open yard. I may add horse 
manure to start the heat. 2. I have a two-acre field 
from whicu I grubbed the trees and bushes two years 
since. In the spring of 1893 it was planted to fiat 
turnips, followed about June 1 with field corn, with 
about 1,600 pounds of fertilizers for the two crops. 
April G and 8, 1893 it was planted to early peas with 
800 pounds of fertilizer per acre. I picked about $90 
worth of peas besides having the vines for fodder. 
About July 20, I plowed and replanted to White Rock 
turnips for winter marketing, using 1,000 pounds per 
acre of fertilizer in the drill. In November, 1 harvested 
360 bushels. The soil is a dark, sandy loam with red, 
loamy subsoil, very level and clean, but not accessible 
with heavy loads of manure and therefore has never 
had any. Would it be safe to expect a good paying 
crop of Rural New-Yorker No. 2 potatoes with fertil¬ 
izers on’y ? Would it be better to try small melons or 
some lighter crop like beans to pick green ? I wish 
to follow with rye and clover. 
Ajjg — 1 . It is well enough to use the muriate in the 
manure, but we would not use the nitrate cf soda 
there. We should hold that to apply by itself in 
spring. A quantity of ground bone cr dissolved bone 
black or South Carolina ro.;k might well be added with 
the muriate. 2. We would have no hesitation in plant¬ 
ing potatoes with the fertilizer alone and would use 
the crop that promises to be the most profitable. 
Oats or Bariev to Nurse the Grass. 
U. B. L., LaceyvllLe, Ohlo.—l plowed down a sod 
and have taken two crops of wheat from it, no other 
crop. It was seeded to Timothy and clover, but the 
y mng plants were killed by drought last summer. 
Will it do to put this ground into oats or barky and 
harrow in Timothy seed in Sepiember? Wnat does 
TheR N.-Y. recommend ? How shall I sow barley? 
What variety should I use ? Is the Mansury barley 
of the catalogues the right kind ? 
Axs.—Certainly it will do to put this field to either 
oats or barley. I would plow it as early as possible 
in the spring, follow the plow closely with the roller 
and harrow and get a good first-class seed bed made, 
and then sow oats or barley, and at the same time 
BOW Timothy and clover seed mixed in the following 
proportions : four quarts of Mammoth clover, four 
quarts of Medium clover and four quarts of Timothy 
per acre. I would sow two bushels of barley per acre 
with a grain drill, at the same time app ying from 
200 to 300 pounds of strictly high-grade fertilizer per 
acre, using in preference a fertilizer that is very rich 
in photphoric acid. This fertilizer will impro/e the 
quality and quantity of the crop, and at the same 
time insure a catch of the grass seed if the season be 
not tco unfavorable. The Mansury barley of the 
catalogues is a good, heavy weight barley. We have 
grown it more or less for several years, but I do not 
recommend it for all purpoies as well as the genuine 
pure, Canada six rowed, and I would advise the six- 
rowed in preference to any ether variety. It is a 
good yielder and sells on the market for a tip-top 
price invariably. edvvabd f dibble. 
Oat Hay, Sunflowers, and Other Kansas Fodder. 
J. H., WMteCity, Kan .—1. Will oat hay fatten steers, 
and make as much gain at IK ton of hay per acre as 
30 bushels of corn per acre ? 2. What is the yield 
per acre of horse beans ? What is the habit of growth? 
Would they grow well in a dry climate like this ? 
Would they make good ensilage to fatten steers mixed 
with tame sunflowers or corn? 3. Wnat is The R. 
N.-Y.’s opinion of Crimson clover as a fall pasture ? 
What is the best time to sow it with this object in view 
only ? Will it germinate readily ? 
Ass.—1. Oat hay, yielding IK ton per acre, will not 
equal 30 bushels of corn per acre for fattening steers. 
The oat hay would make very good coarse fodder, but 
the nutrition it contains would not equal a crop of 
corn yielding at the above rate. In the case of the 
corn, the f odder, as well as the grain, should be util¬ 
ized. Cat and shock it while the leaves on the upper 
half of the staik are still green. Steers averaging 
1,200 pounds, in fair condition, when put in the feed 
lot, will requirj about two acres each to put them in 
first-class condition, and the corn would go still far¬ 
ther if each be fed about two pounds of oil meil daily 
during the last 100 days of the fattening period. 2. 
Horse beans (Vicia faba) are not grown successfully 
in the dry climate of K insas, and I would not advise 
tleir being planted except on a sm ill scale as an ex¬ 
periment. Their value for ensilage has, so f ir as I am 
aware, never been tested in this country. Bat, being 
a leguminous plant, they will doubtless make a nutri¬ 
tious fodder if properly handled. Their use in ccnn’c- 
tion with tame sunfiowers is a new idea, and conj !C- 
tures as to the fattening capacity of such a mixture 
must be based wholly on our theoretical knowledge of 
the plants. Sunflowers, although a native of Kvnsas, 
have never been considered to have any agricultural 
value in this country. There is, however, no good 
reason why they should not be tested as a farm crop 
They are grown extensively in Russia for their seed 
and the “ sunflower cake,” made from the seed after 
the oil has been expressed, is largely exported from 
Russia as a cattle food. It is used more particularly 
in the dairies of northern E arope. Wbile the sun flo wer 
may prove to be of value as a firm crop in this coun¬ 
try, the fact yet remains to be demonstrated. 3, Crim¬ 
son clover has persistently been a failure here at the 
Kansas Experiment Station. It does not stand our 
dry, hot summers, and I cannot recommend it forKin- 
sas. According to report, it is a valuable plant in the 
Eastern part of the United States. Here it does not 
yield feed enough to justify its culture. 
[I’BOF 1 C, C. GE0RGE8ON. 
Clover Straw; Feed Wet or Dry. 
M. C. R,, Quincy, Mich —I would like to know the 
difference in value between wheat or oat straw and 
clover straw after the seed is taken out. Which will 
give the most milk, ground feed fed dry or wet ? 
Axs.—It is difficult to compare the feeding value of 
clover straw or culm with the feeding value of oat straw, 
for ti;e reason that compiratively few analyses of 
clover straw have been made and because it is a prod¬ 
uct that varies greatly in its feeding value ; one or two 
analyses may not give a true value of the product in 
question. Not only would the fodder analysis va'y 
greatly, but its feediag value would also be more vari¬ 
able thin the analysis. I flad iu Soewart’s Minual of 
Feeding a table which gives the digestible constitu¬ 
ents of clover straw to be : albuminoids, 4 2 per cent; 
carbohydrates and fiber, 23.05 per cent; fats. 1 per 
cent. Oat straw contains, of albuminoids, 14 per 
cent; carbohydrates and fiber, 40 01 per cent; fat, .06 
per cent. Applying to these ana yses the prices that 
were determined a few years ago by the Connec’.ieut 
Experiment Siation to fairly represent the value of 
these constituents in our market, we find that the oat 
straw is a little more valuable than the clover straw ; 
bearing the relation to each other as seven to eight. I 
do not mean to say that this computation will give the 
exact feeding value of either of its pfoduets, but at 
present it is the best means that we hive at hand for 
determining these values aside from actually feeding 
them to animals. 
It is generally understood by feeders that dry food 
to cattle is better digested than wet food for the rea¬ 
son that the food when fed dry is better and more com¬ 
pletely mixed with the saliva in the mouth. As diges¬ 
tion really commences at this point, this is an import¬ 
ant factor in complete digestion ; so we ex oect better 
results as a rule from feeding the grain ration dry. 
GEORGE 0 WATSOX. 
Bark for Fertilizer ; Tomato Bliffht. 
N. A E , The Dalles, Ore —1. I can get bark, such as 
pine, fir and oak, two years old, for hauling it. It is 
nearby; would it be worth while ? 2. Wnat can I do 
for my potatoes? L ist year they died from blight, 
and what did not die had the rot. 
Axs —1. We would not use the bark direct. The 
acid in it should first be neutralized. If the bark be 
fine and well rotted, it could be used in the stable for 
bedning or absorbent. A go:d plan would be to put 
it on the m mure pile, using plaster or kiinit with it 
and mixing well with the manure. 2 Read the article 
by Prof. B. D. Halsted on page 7i9 of last year’s 
R. N.-Y. 
To Keep Moths From Wool. 
C. W. H., Susquehanna Depot, Pa —How can I store 
my wool so that it will take no harm, from moths or 
otherwise, for two or three years? 
Axs —If the wool be stored in the unwashed condi¬ 
tion, it is doubtful if any insects will disturb it. I 
have inquired of several wool growers who have thus 
stored their product, and none had any trouble except 
in one or two in >tances when bumblebees made their 
nests in it. I kno w of nothing that could be put into 
the wool that would surely protect it from the attacks 
of insects. If the amount to be stored is small, it 
would be practicable and effectual to put it in paper 
sacks. If the wool were stored in a large box cr bin 
which could be made nearly air-tight, it could be kept 
free from all animal life by treating it from time to 
time (when there were any inlications that anything 
was at woik in it) with carbon bisulphide, as I recom¬ 
mended for grain insects in The R N.-Y. *or July 22, 
1893, page 493. One pound of the liquid will be 
sufficient for a ton of wool. m. v. s. 
An Apple Disease That Beats Us. 
B. B., New Russia, N. Y .—I have a young orchard 
that is the picture of health, and vigorous, but the 
fruit is worthless. Just before ripening, dark colored 
spots appear in the fiesh ; the apples drop and decay 
from the inside. The fiesh of the apples does not seem 
to be firm, but loose and spengy, although of good 
size. The Fameuse seem to be the most affected. The 
soil is a light, warm loam. What treatment would be 
the best to overcome the diffi julty ? 
Axs.—I do not know what this trouble is, It is 
evidently not apple scab, nor the ripe-rot disease. I 
would like to see some of the diseased apples. It may 
be the water-core disease, for which, however, no 
remedy is known. L. H. b. 
What Ails the Peach Trees P 
F. C , Lewiston, III. —Wnat is the matter with peach 
trees set last spring, the bodies of which are very 
nearly covered witi a white-looking wax that has 
oozed out of the bark? They are about three feet 
high, and two feet of the trunks are covered. What 
ia the cause and the remedy, if any ? 
Axs.—It is imnossible to answer this question. I at 
first thought that the “ waxy substance ” may have 
been woolly aphis; but it is more probably a tree 
gum, which oozes out of the tree because of some in- 
ju’y to it. Very likely the trees were injured by the 
preceding winter; or the bodies may possibly have 
been attacked by the tree-borer. l. h. b. 
What Happened to the Tomato P 
D. M. B,, Wooster, 0. —In the spring of 1893, we 
raised tomato plants from choice seed of our own rais¬ 
ing. The plants grew nicely and blossomed well, but 
when the fruit ripened, three-fourths of the plants 
bore a smill, yellow tomato, while tue seed was from 
large, red ones. Wnere did the little, yellow tomatoes 
come from ? 
Axs —One of two things happened : either the seed 
of the small yellow was sown, or the fruit of the pre¬ 
ceding year was crossed with the small, yello ?v variety 
growing near by. 
Kubblng: the Melon Crops in. 
J. M, Sm'thlaud, lad. —Can I grow two crops of 
watermelons on tne same land witiout any fertilizer? 
I sold last year something over $700 worth of melons 
from 4 acres and 39 rods 
Axs.—Now you ask us too much. Never having seen 
the soil, we cannot tell anything about it. As a ‘‘guess,” 
we would say. *• no, we don't believe yoi can.” 
Wanted, a Waterproof Board Koof. 
R M , Smlthfleld, Ky .— I have a rough-board roof on 
my tobacco barn. Will the com non peroxide of iron 
do, or is there something better to make it water¬ 
proof ? 
Axs.—It is difficult to make a board roof watertight. 
Bat if the pitch on it be at least oue-half, covering it 
with a coat or two of the iron oxide paint mlgnt pre¬ 
vent the leaking. It is the roughness of the boards 
by which the water is diverted from a direct down¬ 
ward flow to a sidewise scattering, so that it runs in 
at the joints that causes such a roof to leak. It is a 
poor roof at the best, and never will be satisfactory. 
The most satisfactory roof is one male of shingles 
dipped in crude petroleum, which is a very cheap pro¬ 
cess, and not oa y makes them turn the water per¬ 
fectly, but adds to the durability of the roof. 
Ashes from a Garbag-e Crematory. 
W. M, A., Todm)rden, Oat. —I can get ashes for the 
sifting and hauling two miles, from a crematory 
where the city garbage of Toronto is burned. Would 
they be worth hauling for a very light, sandy soil ? 
Would they be good on an orchara ? 
Ax’S,—We would certainly use the ashes. We have 
no analysis of the ash from garbage, but would esti¬ 
mate them as nearly equal to wood ashes. We 
consider them most valuable on grass, grain and 
orchards. 
MISCELLANfiOUS. 
Nitrate on Cabbages — A. S , St. J ohn, N. B. — It is not 
necessary to dissolve the nitrate of soda in water in 
applying to cabbage. Scatter it around the plant— 
not nearer than four inenes—and work' it into the 
soil with hoe or cultivator. 
Seeds of Evergreens. —W. H. C., Sumner, la.—The 
best way to treat evergreens and deciduous tree seeds 
is tersely given in Tho-burn’s catalogue, page 63 Bai¬ 
ley’s Nursery Bock, 300 pages, which we supply in 
paper for 50 cents, clotn $1, treats tne subject exnaus- 
tively. The Rural rarely allows a year to pass that 
it does not at one time or another give due attention 
to the subject. 
