1894 
28 i 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
succession (the beetles preferably seek sod land in 
which to deposit their egffs). Second, grow some crop 
on the infested land that needs frequent cultivation, 
the more frequent the better. A prominent straw¬ 
berry grower told me recently that he found that the 
grubs did much less damage in his beds that received 
frequent cultivation. The grabs very seriously object 
to being frequeotly disturbed, and if not killed by the 
hoe or cultivator soon leave for more quiet pastures. 
Let us suppose a very common case. A man desires 
to grow some other crop on meadow land infested 
with the grubs. I would advise the following pro¬ 
cedure : If possible, plow the field in the fall and thor¬ 
oughly pulverize the soil in some manner ; this will 
destroy many of the grubs and tender beetles. Do not 
try to follow with a crop like oats or wheat, or any 
similar crop that requires no cultivation during growth. 
But -put in some crop that requires frequent cultiva¬ 
tion or hoeing thoughout the season. The grubs will 
doubtless get part of this crop, but not nearly so much 
as they would of an uncultivated crop. If this plan 
be thoroughly carried out, by the second or third year 
the grubs will be so discouraged and their numbers so 
lessened that they will be of no further menace to fol¬ 
lowing crops. On limited areas and valuable crops, 
hand-picking can be profitably practiced. Never set 
a new strawberry bed on the overturned sod of an old, 
infested bed. Trap lanterns cannot be profitably 
employed to catch the beetles. Spraying the foliage 
attacked by the beetles with the arsenites does not 
seem to check their onslaught. In short, then, the 
most practicable methods I can suggest are to practice 
a short rotation of crops, and especially follow an 
infested meadow with a crop that requires frequent 
cultivation ; and this must be kept up for two or three 
years, at least, to reap the full benefit. I can suggest 
no method by which the grubs can be fought in a 
meadow if the land be kept in grass ; the grubs are on 
their native heath in grass lands. m. v. s. 
Insect Enemies of Clover. 
O. A. S., Ilubbardston, Mich. —Last June, the clover 
in this vicinity looked well, but did not blossom as 
heretofore ; the blossoms were one-sided, remained so 
for several days, and finally never gave perfect blos¬ 
soms. There were no midge in the heads, but I found 
a beetle in the root; the tap root was gone. The 
after-growth was small, and there was no seed. How 
long will this beetle remain with us, and what is the 
remedy ? 
Ans.—T he minute brownish-black beetle found in 
the clover roots is the Clover Root-borer (Hylesinus 
trifolii). The beetles appear in the spring on the 
crowns of the clover plants, where they eat out a 
cavity in which they lay four to six whitish eggs. 
The minute white grubs hatching in about a week 
from these eggs, soon burrow downward along the 
different root branches, filling their galleries behind 
them with brownish excrement. In the fall, these 
grubs change to pupae in a smooth cavity at the end of 
their burrows. Shortly afterward, the change to a 
beetle takes place, and the beetles remain in the roots 
all winter. Like many of our worst insect pests, this 
one is a native of Europe and was first observed in 
this country in New York in 1878. It has spread to 
several adjoining States and into Canada; I do not 
know that it has been before reported from Michigan. 
It has often proved a very serious pest, especially 
where clover is grown for seed. The beetles will re¬ 
main in a field just as long as clover is grown there 
continuously. In regions where this pest gets a foot¬ 
hold it will be necessary to rotate the clover crop more 
frequently, mowing the seeded land but once and 
plowing under the second growth. No other method 
of fighting the pest has as yet been suggested. I think 
the Clover-seed midge must have also been at work in 
the heads, notwithstanding the statement that the 
correspondent found none ; for the attack of the borer 
is not known to thus affect the heads. 
M. V. SLINQEBLAND. 
Facts About Crude Petroleum and Wood. 
A. O. E., Fulton, N. Y. —Some claim that it is desir¬ 
able to apply crude petroleum to exposed wooden 
surfaces as a cheap substitute for paint. The exceed¬ 
ingly and persistently offensive odor of much of the 
article is an objection to its use. Is it really a preserv¬ 
ative of wood ? If so, how freely should it be 
applied ? To what extent is kerosene suitable as a 
substitute for the crude oil to coat wood ? May various 
paints be successfully applied to the oiled surfaces ? 
Ans.—C rude petroleum has often been used as a sub¬ 
stitute for paint on rough, wooden structures, with 
satisfactory results. The refined kerosene is not used 
for this purpose as it lacks the thicker and more pro¬ 
tective substances of a tarry or bituminous nature 
which exist in the crude oil. These being absorbed 
by the wood, form a waterproof coating which also ex¬ 
cludes air and thus prevents decay. It gives the wood 
a resinous appearance something like that of pitch 
pine, and has the same antiseptic properties. Com¬ 
mon paint may be laid over the petroleum if so desired, 
but 'it will not adhere to the surface of the wood as 
well as if it had been applied directly. The petroleum 
serves an excellent purpose as a cheap covering for 
rough work, but the plain iron oxide paint with raw 
linseed oil is preferable, although it costs more. The 
petroleum is applied in the same way as paint and is 
quickly absorbed by the wood. A sufficient quantity is 
applied to saturate the surface. n. s. 
A Grist of Fruit Questions. 
W. C. L.,naverhill, Mass.—l. I have a thrifty Eldo¬ 
rado grape vine that blossoms full, but sets very little 
fruit; it is located between a Lindley and Moore’s 
Early ? 2. Would a vine set near a late variety like 
the Concord or Poeklington, be likely to bear better ? 
The quality of the Eldorado grape is so high that I am 
loth to part with it. 3.1 have noticed that the com¬ 
parative time of ripening of different varieties of 
grapes differs much in different seasons. Why is this ? 
4. Has The R. N.-Y tested the Early Ohio grape ? If 
so, how does it compare with Moore’s Exrly ? 5. vVhat 
is the value of the new Dwarf Rocky Mountain cherry? 
6. Are the dwarf or bush plums offered by sone deal¬ 
ers, identical with the sand or beach plum ? 7. Is the 
dwarf juneberry worth growing? 
Ans.— 1. We have never been able to get a perfect 
bunch of Eldorado. It is a sensitive, exacting variety 
that will succeed only under the most favorable con¬ 
ditions of soil and climate. 2. It has imperfect flowers 
and needs some other variety near it. The difference 
between the blooming of late and early varieties is 
not so great that either Moore’s or Poeklington might 
not serve Eldorado. This is our opinion. 3, Oh, the 
season regulates that. 4. Yes, but it has not fruited 
yet. 5. The Rocky Mountain cherry will fruit at the 
Rural Grounds this season. We do not think it will 
rank high as a fruit. Still it is very fruitful and bears 
early. 6. About. 7. It is an insipid fruit and the 
birds are more fond of it than those who cultivate it 
would be. 
Grafting: the Chestnut on Oak. 
II. G., Walnut, Kan.—R&a the chestnut ever been 
successfully grafted on any of the species of oak, or 
has any one ever made the attempt ? The chestnut 
will not grow on our soil, but we have more than a 
dozen native oaks. I would suggest that if the attempt 
were made, some of the species with entire leaves like 
Quercus Prinus, Q Castanea or Q Chinquapin would 
perhaps be the most suitable. 
Ans. —We think not, though we know of no trials. 
As a guess one would say that the chestnut would 
graft better ou the chestnut than upon any other 
genus of the oak family. Q Castanea is Quercus Prinus, 
and Q Chinquapin is thought to be a variety. 
Effect of Electricity on Plants. 
J. M. O., Upper Alton, III. —Do plants sleep? Do 
plants require rest ? My raspberry patch is where 
tue electric light shines on it at night. The plants 
were out in almost full leaf when our “ Easter ” bliz¬ 
zard struck us, and they were frozen and the leaves 
all dropped off. Nothing is left but bare sticks. These 
plants were f arther ahead than any others of the same 
kind. I believe that in place of getting their rest at 
night, the electric light kept them growing at night 
the same as during the day, which would naturally 
weaken them. Will the light cause the plants to 
overdo themselves and grow weaker ? I have read of 
claims that wheat can be forced ahead a week or more 
by placing electric lights in the field to keep it grow¬ 
ing at night. Have lights ever been placed in fields 
to keep crops growing ? If so, what was the effect on 
the crops ? 
Ans.—P lants do not rest at night. In the daytime 
they make food, or assimilate ; at night they use the 
food, or grow. The more light, the quicker the growth 
and maturity as a rule. The electric light does not 
weaken plants ; but as it gives them more light, they 
are able to assimilate more and therefore grow more. 
I do not know that any scientific experiments have 
ever been made with lights in fields; but electric lights 
in greenhouses exert great and sometimes very bene¬ 
ficial influence. (See Bulletins 30, 42, 55, Cornell Ex¬ 
periment Station, Ithaca, N. Y.) l. h. baieey. 
Prices of Milk and Butter. 
E. 0 , Union, N. Y.—A few of us own a creamery 
and make butter. Near us is a milk station. We 
cannot get as much money from butter as we could 
to sell the milk. Most farmers do not value the skim- 
milk, and look only for money every month. If we 
can buy their milk and make butter and cheese the 
creamery may live. What part of the butter can be 
taken out by a separator ? What will the product 
bring above the price of milk ? What per cent of 
solids does the milk contain ? We can sell the whey 
for five cents per 100 pounds. 
A^s.—The relative profit of selling milk, butter or 
cheese depends upon the relative prices at which the 
three sell in the market, with the exception that, 
where butter is sold and the skim-milk and buttermilk 
returned to the farm, considerable less fertility i 
sold, and in so far it is an advantage to sell butter. In 
selling the milk, all of the fertilizing constituents are 
so’d from the farm, and in selling cheese, nearly all of 
the nitrogen of the milk and a considerable proportion 
of the phosphoric acid and potash are sold in the 
cheese. Disregarding this, the relative profits, of 
course, depend upon the relative prices ; but an 
approximate computation can be based upon the fol¬ 
lowing data. With the closest kind of factory man¬ 
agement, it is possible to make a pound of butter from 
.85 of a pound of fat in the milk, but to make the com¬ 
putation a safe one, let us assume that .88 of a pound 
of fat in the milk will make a pound of butter. The 
experiments of Dr. Van Slyke, continued for about 
three years and with a large number of herds and 
factories, have shown that each pound of fat in 
the milk will make 2,72 pounds of cheese; assum¬ 
ing then, that we have four per cent milk as a 
standard, we should have in 100 pounds, 47 quarts of 
milk, 4 5 pounds of butter or 10.88 pounds of cheese. 
In the following table are given the comparative prices 
that these products should bear in order to realize the 
same amount from 100 pounds of milk. The computa¬ 
tion has been based upon varying prices of milk from 
80 cents to $1.50 per cwt.; 
Butter. Cheese. 
4.5 lbs. 10.88 lbs. 
*0.2'4 2-y $0.0»l-5 
.17 7-0 .071-8 
.2(5 2-8 .111-84 
.33 1-8 .13 8-4 
That is to say, four per cent of milk at $1 per 100 
pounds should bring cents per quart and the butter 
should sell for 22 2-9 cents per pound and the cheese 
made from it at 9 1-5 cents, and so with the other 
prices. If the milk contain less than four per cent 
of fat, the batter and cheese would have to be 
sold at higher prices; and if it contain more than 
four per cent of fat, they might be sold at a less 
price in order to maintain the parity. Roughly 
stated, a pound of butter should bring 10 times as 
much as a quart of milk, and a pound of cheese rather 
more than four times as much as a quart of milk. 
Prof, of Dairy Husbandry, Cornell. H. h. wino. 
Milk. 
Comparative quantity... flOOlba. 47qts.'l 
Comparative price. 11.00 $0,02 1-8 
Comparative price.80 .01 7-10 
Comparative price. 1.20 
Comparative price. 1.50 .03 1-5 
How to Handle Alfalfa. 
Webb, Albuquerque, N. M.—Will some clover expert 
give the very best method of handling and curing Al¬ 
falfa ? Is it well to use salt in the stack ? I have been 
told that air-slaked lime used in the stack will prevent 
heating and retain the fresh green color. Will some 
of The R. N.-Y. readers enlighten me ? 
Ans—T hree or four times a year—as the season 
may allow—we stack the Alfalfa that grows on about 
150 acres. We never use salt or lime in the stack. 
When the weather is clear, there is no trouble in cur¬ 
ing the hay so that it is of a fresh, green color. The 
Alfalfa makes the best feed for milch cows when it is 
cut in early bloom ; for horses, many wish it to grow 
a little longer. We generally rake our Alfalfa into 
rows the second day after it is cut, and stack the fourth 
day when the weather is bright and drying. The little 
handling helps retain the leaves on the stems. Treated 
in this way, it comes out of the stack bright and green, 
and tempting to the herd. s. k. h. 
Greeley, Col. 
Fertilizing: with Lye. 
H. A. B , Petersburg, Fa.—I bought a case of lye 
cheap, and wish to know how to use it as a fertilizer 
to the best advantage. How much water will it take 
to Teduce one can of 98-per cent Lewis lye to a ferti¬ 
lizer that will not injure vegetation ? How strong 
can I use it diluted with water to put on freshly 
plowed soil before planting? Would it be best to 
dilute it with water or mix with something else ? 
Ans—I f this is a potash lye, I would recommend 
that the lye be simply dissolved in water and absorbed 
in coal ashes or dry earth and spread broadcast. If 
absorbed in this way and spread evenly at the rate of 
200 pounds of lye per acre, there will not likely be any 
injury to growing crops. I would not attempt to put 
it on in a liquid form. [prof. | e. r. voobhees. 
A Twisted Horn; Blackberries. 
W. P. H, Rayersford, Pa. —1. I have a cow whose 
crooked horn grows into her head ; how much can be 
cut off without injuring the cow ? Or, what is the best 
treatment ? 2. I have some blackberries of good qual¬ 
ity and very productive. I think they are Wilsons, 
but they are worthless, as they winterkill. Has The 
R. N.-Y. had any experience with Lovett’s Best black¬ 
berry ? 3. Or the Eldorado blackberry ? I desire a 
blackberry productive, hardy, extra fine quality and 
sweet. What would The R. N.-Y. recommend ? 4. Of 
whom can I obtain plants ? 
Ans. —1. We would cut both horns off close up to 
the head. 2. Wilson is a comparatively tender variety. 
Lovett’s Best is promising according to our trial of it. 
3. Eldorado is highly commended for its hardiness 
and general excellence. The R. N.-Y. is trying it. 
Our friend might well try Agawam, Taylor, Snyder 
and Kittatinny. 4. Of any of the nurserymen adver¬ 
tising in The R. N.-Y. 
