1895 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
§2? 
FARMERS’ CLUB DISCUSSION. 
(CONTINUED.) 
being allowed to smear over an argu¬ 
ment with that slovenly expression 
about the limit of production or some of 
its changes. When a man writes “ un¬ 
limited possibilities,” he seems to think 
that all opposition is squelched. Profit¬ 
able possibilities are limited ; decidedly 
so. And I think that even Mr. Grundy 
is limited in his ability profitably to com¬ 
bine skill and soil. There is such a 
thing as a natural limit. Beyond it, no 
man can go with profit. 
That Neglected Kansas Orchard. 
J. A. McK., Cynthiana, Ky. —I would 
not bother much about trimming this 
orchard. Cut away a few of the lower 
limbs as they become overlapped and 
smothered out. Limbs crossing each 
other do little injury. A full crop of 
apples on a densely headed tree will 
grow and mature slowly, are thus tided 
over the long, hot spells we have in 
Kansas and Kentucky, and come to the 
frosty nights in firmer, better condition 
for going into the winter. As to cultiva¬ 
tion and spraying, I would divide a large 
apple orchard and raise young or stock 
hogs on it. Cultivate half of it with rye 
and clover, and half with a small, solid, 
early-maturing corn, and let the pigs 
and shotes eat all on the ground where it 
grew. I would do the plowing with a 
reversible disc or cutaway harrow. 
On November 25, we received a box of 
Anjou pears from Ellwanger & Barry— 
the finest specimens we have ever seen ; 
as fine as the finest California pears in 
size and shape, and of far better quality. 
In vain do we look for such fruit in the 
market now—rarely do we see it at any 
time. Yet they were grown in the firm’s 
orchards at Rochester, N. Y. Such fruit 
reminds us forcibly that there is much 
room above where excellence is appre¬ 
ciated and well paid for. Taking four 
pears from the box without selection, 
we found that they weighed 3 pounds 234 
ounces. The average measurement was 
11 inches around the largest part of the 
lower portion, and 11% around the pear 
lengthwise, that is, around the stem and 
calyx circumference. The color is nearly 
all yellow with a reminder of a crimson 
cheek and russet about the calyx. The 
stems are obliquely set, three-fourths of 
an inch long, with a conspicuous head. 
We dare say that in quality these An- 
jous are scarcely equaled by any other 
pear now in the market. There is a 
wealth of quality about them that we do 
not find, even in the Seckel, which is 
still in the market. True it is that they 
haven’t quite the refined, feminine, ex¬ 
clusive, dainty quality of the Seckel, but 
there is a wholesomeness, hospitable 
profligacy about the ample, juicy flesh, 
which combines just the right propor¬ 
tion of acidity and sweetness, that re¬ 
minds one rather of a hearty welcome 
than of a finical exclusiveness. 
The Anjou (Beurre d’Anjou) thrives in 
many States. According to the list of 
the American Bornological Society, they 
are as follows : Maine, New Hampshire, 
Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, 
Connecticut, New York, Michigan, Ore¬ 
gon, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Mary¬ 
land, Delaware, Virginia, North Caro¬ 
lina, Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, 
Tennessee, Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, Ne¬ 
braska, Kansas, Colorado, California, 
South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mis¬ 
sissippi and Texas—besides Ontario and 
Nova Scotia. 
It was not until early October, our 
readers may remember, that we seeded 
several lawns at the Rural Grounds to 
Blue grass and Red-top. This seemed to 
us so late that we doubted whether the 
grass would get strong enough to stand 
the winter. We may now (November 
25) say that the stand is perfection, the 
soil being covered thickly and evenly 
with a velvety green carpet. For nearly 
20 years, the writer has insisted that 
these two grasses are the best for lawns, 
and that at one-third the price, they are 
much to be preferred to the fancy lawn 
mixtures sold by most seedsmen. If we 
could have the best of the lawn mixtures, 
therefore, at the same price charged for 
Blue grass and Red-top, we would choose 
the latter. 
The editor of Gardening recently vis¬ 
ited Forest Hills Cemetery, Boston, 
which is one of the most beautiful in 
the country and justly noted for its fine 
lawns. He says that the superintend¬ 
ent, J. G. Barker, uses Blue grass and 
Red-top, and never any other grass or 
clover. He pointed to an extensive new 
piece of ground which was being graded 
and prepared not to be seeded until No¬ 
vember. Mr. Barker says that he has 
excellent success sowing at that time. 
He sows the seed, rakes it in and rolls 
the ground, and the seed lies dormant 
under the snow till early spring, when 
it comes up sooner than spring-sown 
grass, takes good hold of the ground, and 
makes a nice carpet at once. 
He has given up the use of stable ma¬ 
nure altogether as a top dressing for 
grass, and confines himself to chemical 
manures and unleached wood ashes only. 
The grass keeps in fine condition, a vast 
amount of labor is saved, and then he is 
rid of one of the greatest sources of 
weeds in lawns, namely, top-dressing 
with stable manure. He top-dresses with 
the wood ashes about the first of Novem¬ 
ber. 
Mb. Jabez Fisher, of Fitchburg, Mass., 
raised 1,100 bushels of Carman No. 1 
potatoes on three acres. We would be 
glad to hear how he did it. 
An Important Question—What is a 
Sport ?—Do potatoes ever, or is it possi¬ 
ble for them to, cross or “mix” in the 
hill ? Is one variety of potato ever 
changed in color, quality or shape by 
contact, during growth, with other varie¬ 
ties ? The li. N.-Y. has always contended 
that it is utterly impossible. 
Col. Pierson, a close observer and well- 
known horticultural investigator, com¬ 
municates to the Orange County Farmer 
an interesting case that would tend to 
prove that potatoes do change from such 
contact. A hill of Yellow Nansemond 
(sweet) potatoes gave white potatoes. 
Sprouts from these came true, that is, 
gave white potatoes. Red Bermuda 
sweets planted near these gave white 
tubers in some instances. Now, was this 
change due to contact or to a near prox¬ 
imity while growing ? 
As possibly throwing some light upon 
this question, let us allude to our work 
of crossing pelargoniums (geraniums) 
many years ago. It was, indeed, while 
the writer of these notes was a con¬ 
tributor to Moore's Rural New-Yorker— 
about 24 years ago. The crossing was 
conducted during three years under 
glass, and thousands of crossbred seed¬ 
lings were raised. Some of the crosses 
were with the silver and golden tricolors 
upon the ordinary green-leaved zonales, 
and vice versa. Some of the seedlings 
were all green, some partly colored, 
partly green ; some were tricolors in 
every part. Among the green-leaved 
seedlings, the largest leaved or strong¬ 
est growing were saved until they were 
found to be of no particular value as to 
bloom. It happened that in several cases 
these green plants while blooming, de¬ 
veloped variegated shoots, or a single 
white or tricolored shoot. Now it seems 
to us that we would just as reasonably 
attribute this variation to mechanical 
contact with the tricolored parents as- 
that the changes in the yams should be 
so attributed. Were we to have dissemi¬ 
nated these green-leaved seedlings prior 
to the appearance of the colored shoot,, 
those having plants and knowing noth¬ 
ing of the parentage would call the col¬ 
ored shoot a “ sport,” the word gener¬ 
ally used to designate such variations, j 
meaning a change which cannot be ac- i 
counted for. But our explanation of the . 
change was naturally this: The seed¬ 
ling began life as a green-leaved pelar¬ 
gonium. After arriving at the blooming 
age, the vigor of the plant was to an ex¬ 
tent lessened, so that a feebler blood 
asserted itself—a sudden exhibition of 
potentiality that had previously lain dor¬ 
mant. 
It is of comparatively recent years 
that varieties of white potatoes have 
been crossed by hand, and it is well- 
known that what was previously almost 
unknown, is now of frequent occurrence, 
viz., potato “sports”—that bud varia¬ 
tions which, owing to peculiar conditions 
of soil, weather, climate or culture, were 
enabled to assert a potency equal to that 
of other portions of the plant. The 
sweet potato is just as much an under¬ 
ground stem as is the stem above the 
ground. This is proved by the numer¬ 
ous little yams that grow in the axils of 
the leaves ; mere modifications of the 
stem itself. And it should be borne in 
mind that if we plant one of these bulb- 
lets or a large tuber or a root or a stem, 
we get yams all the same—the same in 
every respect. The closest sort of con¬ 
tact between different varieties of fruits 
or plants of any kind, is that which 
comes from budding or grafting. 
Here we have cambium layer to cam¬ 
bium layer, bark to bark ; but there is 
no well-authenticated case that the stock 
influences the scion or the scion the 
stock, except in the matter of vigor or 
hardiness or both. It is true that cer¬ 
tain variegated shoots have appeared 
upon green scions which were grafted on 
variegated stock. This, again, might 
better be attributed to a mixed parent¬ 
age and the bud variation caused by the 
growth of previously dormant buds— 
rendered potent by changed conditions... 
IN writing to advertisers, please always mention 
Tub Rural New-Yohkkr. 
Experience 
has proven conclusively that 
better grapes and peaches, 
and more of them, are produced 
when Potash is liberally ap¬ 
plied. To insure a full crop of 
choicest quality use a fertilizer 
containing not less than 10% 
Actual Potash. 
Orchards and vineyards treat¬ 
ed with Potash are compara¬ 
tively free from insects and 
plant disease. 
Our pamphlets are not advertising circulars boom¬ 
ing special fertilizers, but are practical works, contain¬ 
ing latest researches on the subject of fertilization, and 
are really helpful to farmers. They are sent free for 
the asking. 
GERMAN KALI WORKS, 
oa Nassau St., New York. 
5z Bowker’s Fertilizers. 
SOLUBLE — ACTIVE — SURE. 
d RflWKFR fertilizer CO., 
DUIIIvLri BOSTON * NEW YORK.—^ 
vhummmatmmiiwuhiu 
MAKE MONEY) 
Large and profitable crops can be L 
grown by fertilizing with \ 
i NITRATE OF SODA ; 
Nearly all fertilizers are ineffective because ^ 
they contain too little nitrogen. Add a little V 
nitrate of soda to these and the result will 
be astonishing. 
A Valuable Pamphlet telling how 
to save $io to $15 per ton on fertilizers, and 
how to fertilize most economically and ef- q 
*¥ fectively, sent FREE. Address 
y S. M. Harris, Moreton Farm (P. 0.), New York. " 
The 
Farmers 
Wife 
knows all there is to know about §* 
hard work. With her it is scrub, sj 
clean and scour from morning §» 
’till night and then her work is §* 
never done, unless she takes ad- 
vantage of the help that modern §» 
science has placed within every §f 
woman’s reach. That help is ^ 
Golddust 
Washing Powder. 
“ Woman’s work quickly done” p 
is the motto of this king of cleans- ^ 
ers. Cheaper and better than any 
soap. A large package for 25 cents. 
At all groceries and general stores, fcf 
Gold Dust Washino Powder has 
an additional value to the farmer for 
destroying insects. Send us your name 
and address and we will mall you an 
important booklet containing recipes 
for making kerosene emulsions, for 
spraying crops and trees and livestock. 
THE N. K. FA 1 RBANK CO 
Chicago, St. Louis, New York, 
Boston, Philadelphia. 
CHAMPION EVAPORATOR 
Somalia ivh for maple, 
SORGHUM, CIDER, AND FRUIT JELLIES 
Write for 1896 Catalogue. 
Till-: (1. II. GRIMM MI G. CO., Hudson, Ohio, or Montreal, P. Q. 
Older Machinery.—Send for catalogue to Boomer & 
Boschert Press Co., 118 West Water St., Syracuso.N.Y. 
Buckeye Wrought Iron Punched Bail Fence. 
AIbo manufacturers of Iren Creating, Iron Turbine and 
Buckeye Wind Engine., Buckeye Force I'uiiiim, 
Buckeye, Globe and Champion Lawn Mowers. Send 
for Illustrated Catalogue and Prices to 
MAST. FOOS & CO. SPRINCFIELD. O. 
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“’Tis Love that makes the world go round” 
But 'tis Page Fence that makes things In the 
world go round, or go through the gate. (We make 
gates also.) 
PAGE WOVEN WIRE FENCE C0. : Adrian, Mich. 
w!b l Picket Lawn Fence 
8 teel Posts, Steel Rails and Steel Gates; Steel Tree. 
Flower and Tomato Guards; Cabled Field and Hog 
Fence, 24 to 58 i n. high; Poultry, Garden and Rabbit 
Fence; Steel W1 re Fence Board ,etc. Catalogu e free. 
DeKALB FENCE CO.. 17 High St., DeKalb, III. 
THE BOW E N 
Cable Stay Fence Machine. 
ONLY #10.00. 
No Farm Rights or Royalties to pay for. More ma¬ 
chines sold at State Fairs of Ohio. Indiana, Illinois 
and Missouri than all other machines combined. 
Send for Circular. Agents wanted In every County. 
BOWEN CABLE STAY FENCE COMPANY, 
Norwalk, Ohio, 
WOVEN W!B§ FENCE 
Over50 Styles 
The best on Earth. Horse high, 
;BuU strong, Pig and Chicken 
tight. You can make from 40 
[to 60 rods per day for from 
K1TSELMAN BROS., 
Ridgeviile, - Indiana. 
