1895 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
8o9 
wash in which a little carbolic acid is mixed. In Feb¬ 
ruary and March, cut out and trim the surplus 
branches, being careful not to cut out too much so 
that the hot sun will injure them by sunscald. If 
they need much trimming, take two years to do it, 
and be careful to cover all large wounds with paint 
or shellac. Too much pruning in this Western coun¬ 
try, will sometimes so badly injure the tree that it 
never recovers ; therefore, take the middle course, 
and be on the safe side. A good spraying of the Bor¬ 
deaux Mixture about April 1, will destroy the fungous 
growth. Good attention and care will make the or¬ 
chard a valuable one yet. l. A. Goodman. 
Sec. Mo. Hort. Society. 
Don’t Be Too Free with Ax and Saw. 
One can never prescribe satisfactorily for a case 
diagnosed by another. Pruning in our climate 
(Michigan) is liable to be overdone. I have never seen 
an apple tree trained too low. T he body of the aver- 
age apple tree is its weakest point, and should be re¬ 
duced to its lowest terms. A compact top is not to 
be regarded as a misfortune with us. We need to 
have body and larger limbs protected. I am not at 
all in sympathy with the open-top method, and so 
might not think our friend’s orchard in so terrible a 
shape, after all. Cross limbs should be taken out, and 
it is a calamity to have a large tree with its leading 
branches out of place. But good judgment in a tree 
only 10 years old, will without difficulty secure a com¬ 
pact top, and remove its complexity. By all means, 
avoid overdoing the pruning business. Light and air 
are not so great a desideratum as protection. Main¬ 
tain the central axis if practicable. If growth has 
been too rapid, a shortening in of each year’s new 
growth is advisable. If fruit spurs are not formed, 
there is no, known method of getting a crop next 
season. 
I believe in thorough cultivation always. The great¬ 
est blunder made by orchardists in the apple belt, is a 
lack of clean cultivation. The spraying with kerosene 
emulsion entirely depends on whether there is any 
valuable work for kerosene to do. There is nothing 
in the diagnosis of the orchard that would indicate 
the necessity for the use of this remedy. My great 
fear is that our friend will be too free with ax and 
saw. In an old orchard neglected for a generation, 
the severe infliction of these implements of torture, 
may be permissible ; never in a 10-year-old orchard. 
Michigan. c. w. garfield. 
Spray, Prune and Paint the l/Vounds. 
If trees are growing rapidly, I would leave the 
orchard in clover sod a year or two in order to check 
rampant g’rowth, and promote the formation of fruit 
buds. I would spray with Bordeaux Mixture, five 
pounds lime, five pounds sulphate of copper and five 
ounces Paris-green to 50 gallons of water. Spray just 
before blooming, then as soon as the fruit is set, and 
again two weeks later. As to pruning, I prefer early 
spring ; but if one has time now, and will not have 
then, prune now. I would take the precaution, how¬ 
ever, to paint the wound where large limbs are re¬ 
moved. Do not try to bring the trees into perfect 
shape at one pruning. Remove part of the surplus 
now, and if you could spare time to trim again the 
last of June and early July, it would be an excellent 
time. Wounds made at that time heal quicker, and 
summer pruning has a tendency to induce fruitful¬ 
ness. Be especially careful not to open up the south¬ 
west side of a tree too suddenly, as letting the sun 
into the bare limbs too abruptly, may scald the bark. 
Ohio. w. W. FARNSWORTH. 
A Bank Barn With Balloon Frame. 
F. S., Liberty, Pa. —1. I wish to build a bank barn about 40x54 
or 60 feet, and I would like to know how to build it so as to have it 
as convenient as possible. It is to be a stock barn. About how 
many cattle could I keep in a barn of that size if they were all 
stabled ? 2. I wish a silo in it. Would it be best to have the 
foundation of it on the ground, or would it be all right to have it 
on the floor of the barn ? What kind is best ? 3. In The R. N.-Y., 
I saw something about a barn having a Shawver or balloon 
frame. Are such barns stronger than those built the common 
way ? Would they stand the wind as well, and do they require 
less timber ? How can I build one ? 
ANSWERED BY J. I.. SHAWVER, BELLE FONTAINE, OHIO. 
1. Build a basement rather than a bank barn. That 
is, instead of digging into a bank and walling up a 
cold, damp, unhealthful dungeon, build out from the 
bank, say, 10 feet, and bridge this space over. You 
can then have a well lighted, well-ventilated, health¬ 
ful basement in which to shelter your stock. Pre¬ 
suming that, in a barn 40x00 feet, you would have an 
“over jet” of six feet, which, however is more a 
fashion than an object; you may arrange two stables, 
each 13 feet deep and 00 feet long, with an 8-foot 
feeding alley between them, and space enough behind 
the cattle to drive the manure wagon or spreader for 
convenience in cleaning the stables. Some prefer the 
stables arranged the short way of the barn, and in 
this case more cattle could be housed ; but where 
ensilage is fed, it is preferable to have the cattle in 
long stables facing each other, with the track for the 
ensilage car between them. This plan is also prefera¬ 
ble in cleaning out the stables. About thirty head of 
cattle could thus be housed after allowing for the 
space occupied by the silo. 
2. Build the silo upon the basement floor ; you thus 
have a better foundation, and at the same time you 
gain eight feet in the depth of the silo, which is an 
important point. Where a silo is built inside a barn, 
a square frame made of 2x8 plank, with the corners 
cut off, and lined with two layers of matched boards, 
with building felt between, makes a satisfactory silo. 
No vertical timbers are necessary, except the sheath¬ 
ing which holds the several frames in place. 
3. The plank frame referred to, and which is some¬ 
times called the Shawver frame, is better, cheaper, 
stronger and more durable than a frame made of solid 
timber. It is better because there are no timbers in 
the way of handling grain or hay with horse forks or 
THE SHAWVER BARN FRAME COMPLETE. Flo. 261 
slings. It is cheaper because it requires only about 
one-half as much timber, takes only about one-sixth 
as long to frame, or get it ready to raise, thus saving 
wages and board. It is stronger, because almost all 
the timbers are made to answer both as supports and 
braces. The weight or strain is supported by the 
timbers endwise rather than crosswise. The figures 
are mostly triangles, in which no angle can be changed 
without changing some one of the sides. The braces 
are usually much longer than in the common frames, 
hence much more serviceable. It is more durable, 
because there are no mortises in which moisture can 
accumulate, and no tenons to rot off. To build one, 
you need first to see one, or send dimensions of ground 
plan, height to square, pitch and style of roof, etc., to 
some one acquainted with the system, and secure 
draughts or model and directions. 
A great many come to visit our barn, which is 
60x116, and thus far we know of only one who has not 
adopted the plan, and none has reported any dissatis¬ 
faction with it after the buildings are completed. All 
report a saving of from $100 on a small barn 28x46 
feet, to $500 on a barn 40x100. The addition which 
we built to our barn last year, is 60x60 feet, and it re¬ 
quired two of us four days to get it ready to raise. 
Had it been framed in the old way, it would have re¬ 
quired 20,000 more feet of timber, and taken the same 
hands, probably, four weeks. Count the cost of eight 
days’ labor and board at $2.50 per day, and you have 
$20. Count them for four weeks, and you have $120. 
A saving of $100 in one item. There is just one thing 
to remember, and that is that a plank frame, to give 
satisfaction, must be properly built, but being thus 
built, is preferable to any other. 
R. N.-Y.—At Figs. 261 and 262 are shown drawings 
of this frame, which give an idea of how it is put 
together. Of course, more detailed specifications 
would be needed if a barn is to be built on this plan. 
What Will Give a Hay Crop ? 
■J. 1). P., Fayette, 0 .—I have 15 acres of wheat stubble, upon which 
the clover seed sown last spring failed to grow. What can be 
sown the coming season that will furnish a crop of hay, and that 
will, at the same time, be a “ nitrogen catcher,” or which can be 
cut in time to sow Crimson clover upon the field ? The above 
named clover has not given the best of satisfaction in this 
vicinity. The field sown last fall did not contain a half dozen 
live plants last spring. The three acres sown the third week in 
August of the present year, are doing nicely. Would any of the 
various forage or fodder plants advertised by seedsmen, be of 
value in this case ? I could plant corn omitting clover from 
the regular four-years’ rotation of hay (clover), corn, oats and 
wheat; but the effect upon the land, I fear, would be deteriorating. 
Ans.—W e doubt whether any of the “ nitrogen 
catchers ” will prove satisfactory in such a case. You 
might try Crimson clover in the spring ; but the 
chances are against it. Early sown oats cut “ in the 
milk,” will make good hay, and may be followed by 
Crimson clover, or the two may be sown together. 
You can plant corn and sow Crimson clover at the 
last cultivating. Unless you are sure your land does 
not need lime, we would experiment with it to see 
whether the land is too sour. See Primer Science. 
Plums on Peach Roots. 
iV. II. S., Rocky Hill, N. J .—What is the objection to planting 
plum trees which have been budded upon peach roots ? Are they 
as long-lived, and equal in bearing qualities to those budded on 
plum stocks ? 
Ans. —Much depends upon the soil. Some prefer 
peach for light, loamy soils, and plum stocks for 
heavier or moister soils. In the North, we prefer 
plum stocks. The union, if suitable species are se¬ 
lected, is more perfect, and the tree longer lived. 
The Marianna plum is generally regarded as the best 
stock for plums. 
Potatoes for Butter Cows. 
J. G. If., Richborough, Pa .—Are potatoes suitable food for butter 
cows ? Potatoes are very plentiful and cheap this winter, and I 
hope that you can inform me whether they can be fed to cows and 
not have any bad effects on the cows, or upon the quality of their 
buyer. 
Ans. —Read what was printed on page 748, about 
feeding potatoes. It is reported that a heavy feeding 
of potatoes will produce a light-colored butter. What 
has been the experience of readers ? Our own opin¬ 
ion is that potatoes are better suited for feeding pigs 
and poultry than for other animals. We think 25 
pounds per day a large ration for cows, and would 
prefer to feed corn meal with them. 
Home Mixing of Manures. 
S. G., Blaine, Wash. —I wish a book that will tell me how to 
make my own fertilizers. I can get all the fish and fish scrap that 
I need, but the other materials mentioned in The R. N.-Y. to mix 
with the fish, I cannot afford to buy here. Is there any work that 
will tell me how to make fertilizers from the fish and materials 
usually found on a farm ? We cannot get any wood ashes here ; 
the wood we use does not make ashes. I think that I could hold 
all the ashes from a cord of fir wood on my hand. 
Ans. —The best book for you is Manures and How 
to Make Them, by Sempers. We sell the book for 50 
cents. Fish contains nitrogen and phosphoric acid, 
but no potash. For a time on strong land, it will give 
good results; but at last it will fail unless you can 
find potash in some form to add to it. The great 
weakness of many fertilizers used in the West, is that 
they are made largely of blood, bone or fish. Neither 
of these substances contains potash, and after a time 
these fertilizers are sure to prove disappointing. The 
only available supplies of potash are in wood ashes 
and the German potash salts. 
" Scratches ” on a Horse. 
C. E. E., Old Mystic, Conn .—How can I cure a sore on my horse’s 
ankle? It looks warty, like scratches. The horse is in good 
condition. I have had it washed often with Castile soap and 
water. 
Ans. —If discharging, apply finely-powdered sul¬ 
phate of copper, by dusting over the sore, and allow¬ 
ing it to remain 24 hours; then wash off, dry, and apply 
benzoated oxide of zinc ointment daily. Should this 
fail to effect a cure, it is probable that caustic or the 
knife will be necessary to remove the diseased growth, 
in which case you would better employ a competent 
veterinary surgeon to operate on the horse. 
F. L. KILBOBNE. 
Quittor on a Horse's Fetlock. 
J • W. If., Marion, Fa.—Last winter I had occasion to use my 
horses regularly by riding. Two of them contracted what I called 
scratches, and with some difficulty I got them, as I thought, cured. 
In the spring a sore about the size of a half-dollar, having the 
appearance of a wart, came between the fetlock and the hoof of 
one of them. I gave some attention to this, and pulled the seed 
from the wart. It seemed to be getting along fairly well until the 
cold weather set in last fall, and then he got a real bad case of 
the scratches in one foot. I have done all that I thought might be 
of any benefit, but all I do does not have any effect, and the hors 
is going from bad to worse. At times the horse is very lame. The 
sore is continually discharging matter. I have stopped the feed¬ 
ing of grain, and feed the horse nothing but dry hay. What is the 
trouble, the cause, and what must I do to effect a cure ? 
Ans. —From the description, I judge that the horse 
has a quittor, accompanied by swelling of the leg, and 
a condition resembling scratches. Caustic injections 
or a surgical operation will be necessary, if there is 
an opening or “ pipe ” from which the discharge arises. 
If, however, there is no opening, and the discharge is 
from a surface sore only, try the treatment advised for 
“ Scratches ” on a Horse, in answer to C. E. E. f. l. k. 
Trouble in Colt's Nose. 
II. L., Jersey, Tenn.— My 17 months’ old coR has something 
wrong with its nose. About four months ago, it got choked on 
oats, and we relieved it all right, but the right nostril is affected 
by bad matter. It does not cough. It seems like distemper from 
the running of the nose ; but only one nostril is affected. It eats 
a plenty of hay, corn and bran. 
Ans. —The discharge, is not due to “distemper,” but 
probably to the presence of a foreign body or diseased 
growth in that nostril. A difficult surgical operation 
may be necessary. Have the colt examined at once 
by a competent veterinarian. f. l. k. 
