T5he  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
After  the  seed  has  boon  scattered  in  the 
com  we  run  the  cultivators  as  usual — 
opened  wide  and  working  quite  shallow. 
It.  is  a  help  to  hang  a  flat  plank  or  piece 
of  scantling  behind  the  cultivator  so  it 
will  scrape  or  dangle  over  the  ground. 
This  scrapes  or  drags  the  ground  smooth, 
and  gives  the  seed  a  better  chance,  be¬ 
sides  making  a  smoother  surface.  If  the 
corn  is  in  hills  it  will  pay  to  go  once 
each  way — the  last  time,  if  possible 
using  a  small-tooth  cultivator  or  drag. 
If  the  corn  is  drilled  it  pays  to  scratch 
along  the  rows  with  a  rake,  so  as  to 
work  in  the  seed.  All  this  may  seem  a 
lot  of  work,  but  by  doing  it  thoroughly 
you  g«t  the  equivalent  of  eight  or  more 
Ions  of  manure,  to  plow  under. 
Potato  Fields. — I  think  there  is  even 
greater  need  of  a  cover  crop  after  pota¬ 
toes  because  most  of  us  use  more  fer¬ 
tilizer  on  the  potatoes  than  on  any  ether 
crop,  and  thus  there  will  be  greater  loss 
if  the  soil  is  left  hare.  Of  course  we 
cannot  seed  the  cover  crop  in  the  pota¬ 
toes  as  we  do  in  the  corn.  In  our  coun¬ 
try,  whenever  cultivating  and  lmeiug  stop, 
the  glass  and  weeds  rush  In  to  cover  the 
potato  fields.  Ragweed  is  worst  at  this 
piracy,  and  if  left  alone  some  of  these 
weeds  grow  shoulder  high — following  the 
rows.  Our  potatoes  are  mostly  Irish 
Cobbler,  and  are  ready  to  dig  by  Septem¬ 
ber  1  or  before.  It  Seems  like  poor  fann¬ 
ing  perhaps,  but  we  can  mow  off  weeds 
and  dead  vines  in  late  August,  rake  the 
stuff  and  haul  it  out  as  a  mulch  for  the 
trees.  This  is  like  feeding  them  potash 
which  the  ragweeds  have  taken  from  the 
potatoes,  and  how  the  trees  do  grow  as 
a  result  of  it !  Then  the  potatoes  are 
Now  an  engineer  will  run  levels  and 
block  out  a  full  system,  and  we  will  try 
to  follow  it  out  to  the  limit.  Our  pres¬ 
ent  plan  is  to  scoop  out.  a  hole,  or  pit, 
near  the  spring  for  a  swimming  pool,  and 
also  to  give  us  irrigating  water  for  the 
future,  and  ill  addition  work  in  a  full 
drainage  system.  We  ought  to  have  done 
this  long  ago.  Better  late  than  never, 
however. 
The  House. — Last  week  we  had  a  pic¬ 
ture  of  the  old  stone  house  at  Hope 
Farm.  This  is  used  as  a  sort  of  overflow 
now — the  newer  house  being  shown  at 
Fig.  450.  This  house  has  been  built  by 
snatches,  or  patches.  First  we  built  a 
small  cottage,  or  tenant  house.  Then  an 
addition  was  put  to  this  and  water  fix- 
lures  put  inside.  Then  came  the  porch 
at  another  time.  Then,  later,  we  found 
ourselves  crowded  once  more.  There  was 
a  wooden  addition  tacked  to  the  old 
stone  house — just  a  plain  box  of  a  build¬ 
ing.  We  moved  this  across  the  lawn  and 
tied  it  on  behind  the  new  house.  It  nev¬ 
er  did  look  like  a  perfect  graft,  so  this 
year  we  had  the*  connection  between  the 
two  parts  made  over  until  it  looks  more 
like  a  good  union  between  the  graft  and 
scion.  Though  put  together  in  this  patch¬ 
work  plan  the  house  is  roomy  and  com¬ 
fortable  and  suits  us  well.  It  was  start¬ 
ed  originally  in  an  old  pasture,  hut  by 
the  use  of  shrubbery  and  lawn  grass  seed 
the  surroundings  are  neat. 
II.  w.  c. 
Destroying  Canada  Thistles 
Can  you  give  me  a  sure  method  to 
rid  ground  of  Canada  thistles?  I  have 
been  lighting  them  in  one  or  two  fields 
for  years,  blit*  they  are  there  yet,  and 
The  Home  of  the  Hope  Farm  Family.  Fig.  459 
1132 
HOPE  FARM  NOTES 
Chops, — By  the  middle  of  August  we 
can  tell  about  where  we  stand  on  the 
season's  work.  There  are  still  high 
winds,  brown  rot  and  early  frost  to  he 
reckoned  with,  hut  the  year's  production 
is  about  over.  We  have  more  hay  in 
the  barns  than  ever  before,  and  most  of 
it  is  of  line  quality.  Our  trees  of  all 
kinds  never  made  a  finer  season’s  growth. 
There  has  been  practically  no  disease, 
and  the  foliage  is  dark  and  rich.  Pota¬ 
toes  are  above  the  average.  We  shall 
have  a  large  crop  for  us,  and  prices  are 
ruling  high.  Corn  is  poor,  and  we  are 
in  for  a  light  crop — well  filled  with 
weeds.  The  long-continued  rains  made  it 
impossible  for  us  to  keep  the  grass  and 
weeds  down,  and  they  grew  so  fast  that 
they  got  away  from  us.  I  find  that  we 
are  not.  alone  in  this,  for  I  should  judge 
from  letters  that  some  of  the  silos  this 
year  will  contain  from  15  to  20  per  cent, 
of  ragweed,  smartweed  and  other  trash. 
It  is  easy  to  say  “poor  farming’’  and 
“shiftless  methods,”  yet  many  of  us,  if 
we  are  honest,  must  admit  this  year  that 
the  weeds  have  beaten  us.  We  have 
plowed  up  several  weedy  places,  and 
broadcast  clover  and  turnips.  T  know 
of  several  cornfields  that  have  been 
treated  that  way,  and  it.  is  good  practice 
sometimes.  Our  apple  crop  will  he  fair 
and  of  good  quality.  All  through  this 
section  the  earlier  promise  for  fruit  has 
not  made  good.  I  do  not  know  just, 
what  happened,  hut  the  crop  has  somehow 
faded  away.  We  shall  have  a  good  lot 
of  fruit  to  sell,  and  the  orchards  never 
looked  hotter.  Peaches  will  be  light,  and 
brown  rot.  is  troubling.  With  dry,  bright 
weather  from  now  tin  we  shall  get 
through  with  what  we  have,  hut  n- con¬ 
tinuation  of  the  rain  will  about  clean 
out  the  peaches.  Our  side  lines,  like  gar¬ 
den  crops,  poultry,  etc.,  are  rather  above 
the  average,  though  rather  late.  .So  take 
it  as  a  whole  August  finds  us  a  little  be¬ 
hind  what  we  planned  for  and  expected. 
If  we  could  estimate  tree  growth  as  a 
future  asset  we  could  not  complain — and 
•we  will  not  complain  anyway,  but  start 
in  to  get  ready  for  another  year. 
Cover  Crops. — Of  course  there  must 
he  no  hare  spots  on  the  farm  this  Win¬ 
ter.  The  corn  and  potato  ground  must 
all  carry  a  cover  crop.  Probably  before 
this  is  read  most  of  our  corn  ground  will 
he  seeded.  We  stick  to  rye  as  tlie  founda¬ 
tion  for  our  cover  crops.  This  tough  old 
plant  is  quite  sure  to  grow,  no  matter 
what  happens  to  its  companions,  and 
while  it  does  not  odd  any  plant  food  to 
the  soil  it  does  add  a  great,  lot  of  humus. 
So  we  shall  seed  about  three  peeks  of 
rye  to  the  acre  at  the  last  cultivation. 
Then  I  shall  make  up  a  combination 
about  as  follows — 25  pounds  of  Alsike 
clover,  10  pounds  of  Mammoth,  10  of 
Sweet  clover  and  five  pounds  of  turnip 
seed — -well  mixed.  From  four  to  five 
pounds  of  this  combination  per  acre, 
with  the  rye,  ought  to  give  results.  I 
would  not  use  the  Sweet  clover  hut  for 
the  fact  that  wc  have  some  seed  left,  over, 
and  I  do  not  want  to  carry  it  until  next 
Spring.  I  should  never  buy  Sweet  clo¬ 
ver  for  Fall  seeding — it  is  not  adapted 
for  such  work — hut.  should  be  used  in 
Spring.  As  I  have  the  seed  on  hand  I 
will  throw  it  in.  The  Mammoth  clover  is 
a  now  one  to  me.  I  have  not  tried  it  as 
a  cover  crop,  hut  it  is  highly  praised  and 
we  give  it  a  trial.  Alsike  is  our  old 
stand-by,  and  it  has  always  paid  us  to 
use.  turnips. 
How  Seeped? — Every  year  we  arc 
asked  to  tell  how  we  do  it.  That  is  easy. 
When  the  corn  is  ready  for  the  last  cul- 
tivation  one  man  walks  through  the  corn 
and  scatters  on  the  rye  by  hand.  After 
a  little  practice  a  man  of  good  judgment 
can  put  i-t.  on  just  about  right,  so  as  to 
have  an  even  seeding.  Then  the  same 
man.  or  another  following  him,  scatters 
the  mixed  clover  and  turnip  seed  in  the 
same  way;  this  takes  more  time  and  re¬ 
quires  more  skill,  for  the  seeds  are  of 
differing  size  and  weight,  and  of  course 
some  carry  further  than  others  if  just 
thrown  out  carelessly.  That  is  one  rea¬ 
son  why  a  broadcast  seed  sower  does  uot 
work  first-rate  in  the  com,  as  when  the 
seeds  are  whirled  out  in  this  way  the 
heavier  ones  arc  thrown  far.  while  the 
lighter  Alsike  goes  into  certain  rows  by 
itself.  Hand  seeding  iH  slow  work,  but 
we  get  the  best  distribution  in  that  way. 
dug  and  the  ground  can  be  chopped  up 
with  a  disk  and  seeded  to  rye  and  clover 
or  to  grass.  This  will  seem  like  high  old 
fanning  to  some  of  our  people  who  never 
permit  a  weed  to  grow  on  their  farms, 
but  we  have  been  led  by  our  experience 
in  mulching  trees  to  have  some  little 
respect  for  weeds,  and  (his  way  of  han¬ 
dling  Hie  potato  weeds  certainly  helps  the 
orchard.  At  nn.v  rate  plan  to  have  the 
ground  covered  by  some  living  crop. 
Drainage. — This  past  season  has 
taught  me  my  final  lesson  on  the  folly 
of  trying  to  make  wet  soils  do  their  duty. 
Some  four  to  five  acres  of  our  best  land 
lie  halfway  up  the  bill  in  u  little  “poc¬ 
ket,”  or  valley.  At.  the  southwest,  corner 
is  a  spring  which  supplies  the  house  with 
water,  and  sends  an  overflow  straggling 
away  in  a  little  brook.  There  are  other 
hidden  springs  which  contribute  water, 
and  evidently  more  water  comes  down  the 
hill,  along  the  face  of  the  underground 
ledge,  and  seeps  into  this  pocket,  of  soil. 
The  result  is  that  this  soil  is  naturally 
the  richest  spot  on  the  farm,  but  so 
miserly  with  its  over-supply  of  water 
that  in  a  wet  season  we  cannot  get  onto 
it  to  plow  or  plant,  while  in  a  dry  sea¬ 
son  it  bakes  so  hard  that  we  cannot  open 
it.  This  season  has  been  a  clincher.  We 
have  been  unable  to  get  on  this  rich  soil, 
and  it  has  remained  a  crying  eyesore  all 
Summer.  Fully  capahle  of  producing 
100,  or  more,  bushels  of  potatoes,  or  400 
bushels  of  corn,  it  has  given  only  weeds 
and  a  little  Red-top.  So  we  now  intend 
to  reform  that  land  and  put.  it  at.  work. 
There  is  only  one  way  to  do  it.  and  that 
is  by  thorough  draining.  We  have  tried 
draining  parts  of  It,  but  something  went 
wrong,  aud  the  soil  would  not  dry  up. 
my  patience  is  exhausted,  but  I  do  not 
want  to  be  beaten  by  them.  Perhaps 
someone  can  give  me  a  sure  method? 
St.,  John,  O.  .J.  s.  ii. 
The  usual  practices  recommended  for 
the  destruction  of  Canada  thistles  arc  all 
good,  yet  all  fail  unless  perfect  and  per- 
sislent  work  is  done.  'File,  laws  of  plant 
physiology  apply  to  this  plant  as  well 
as  ethers,  hut  the  large  fleshy  roots  just 
below  plow  depth  store  so  much  food 
that  methods  of  eradication  that  suc¬ 
ceed  in  most  cases  fail  here,  unless  ap¬ 
plied  very  carefully  and  persistently. 
The  failure  is  not  with  the  method  but 
with  its  application.  The  principle  that 
a  plant  cannot  live  without  a  top  in  the 
sunshine  to  feed  it  surely  applies  here, 
and  whatever  will  keep  the  top  from 
growing  and  feeding  the  plant  will  sure¬ 
ly  kill  it.. 
Lot.  me  suggest  this  most  profitable 
way  of  getting  rid  of  Canada  thistles. 
The  writer  once  had  a  most  vigorous 
patch  of  several  rods  in  extent  in  the 
middle  of  a  field  which  he  had  been 
fighting  (?)  for  years  with  seeming  bene¬ 
fit  to  the  thistles.  This  field  was  seed¬ 
ed  to  Alfalfa,  with  the  result  that  within 
two  years  the  thistles  entirely  disap¬ 
peared.  never  to  return.  The  Alfalfa 
made  such  a  dense  growth  early  in  the 
season  as  to  overtop  and  smother  the 
thistles,  and  the  three  cuttings  in  mid 
and  late  Summer  were  too  much  even  for 
Canadas  and  they  succumbed  completely. 
Smothering,  as  with  Alfalfa,  frequoift 
cutting,  killing  the  tops  with  oils,  salt 
sprays,  <ir  chemicals,  if  done  thoroughly 
enough  to  keep  tops  from  growing  and 
feeding  the  plant  for  a  season  or  two, 
will  surely  turn  the  trick.  The  easiest 
August  2C,  191G. 
way  for  me  is  to  enrich  the  ground,  use 
plenty  of  lime  and  inoculation  and 
smother  the  thistles  with  Alfalfa. 
Ohio.  F.  L.  ALLEN. 
The  New  Farm  Loan  Law 
I  desire  information  about  the  TT.  S. 
Farm  Loan  Act.  I  want  to  borrow 
$2,000  or  more  his  Fall  or  next.  Spring 
to  use  in  pa, yin,  for  a  farm.  Can  I  get 
the  money  at  five  per  cent.,  <u‘  shall  I 
he  obliged  to  pay  six  per  cent.?  If  I 
obtain  the  loan  how  shall  I  go  about  it? 
Any  other  information  will  he  appre¬ 
ciated.  f.  v.  e. 
New  York. 
We  have  had  many  letters  like  this 
one,  and  there  seems  to  be  some  mis¬ 
understanding  about  this  loan  law.  The 
land  banks  have  not  yet  been  established. 
President  Wilson  has  appointed  four 
commissioners  who,  with  the  Secretary 
of  the  Treasury,  will  decide  where  these 
hanks  are  to  he  located.  It  is  doubt¬ 
ful  if  the  banks  will  he  ready  to  loan 
money  before  next  Spring.  We  have 
given  a  synopsis  of  the  law,  but  those 
who  want,  to  borrow  should  send  to  the 
Treasury  Department  at  Washington  and 
obtain  a  copy  of  the  law. 
In  order  to  obtain  a  loan  10  or  more 
persons  may  form  a  loan  association. 
These  persons  must  own  and  cultivate 
land  qualified  as  suitable  for  a  mortgage 
loan,  or  they  must  be  about,  to  own  and 
cultivate  such  land.  In  order  to  ob¬ 
tain  a  loan: 
A  member  of  a  national  farm  loan  as¬ 
sociation,  before  obtaining  a  loan,  must 
first  fill  out  an  application  blank  sup¬ 
plied  to  the  loan  association  by  the  Fed¬ 
eral  Farm  Loan  Board.  This  applica¬ 
tion  blank  and  other  necessary  papers 
will  then  he  referred  to  a  loan  Commit¬ 
tee  of  the  association  which  must  ap¬ 
praise  the  property  offered  as  security. 
Such  application  as  is  approved  by  the 
loan  committee  is  then  forwarded  to  the 
Federal  land  hank  and  must  be  investi¬ 
gated  and  reported  on  h.v  a  salaried  ap¬ 
praiser  of  the  bank  before  the  loan  is 
granted.  This  appraiser  is  required  to 
investigate  the  solvency  and  character  of 
tlie  prospective  borrower  as  well  as  the 
value  of  his  land.  When  a  loan  is 
granted  the  amount  is  forwarded  to  the 
borrower  through  the  loan  association. 
The  money  must  be'  used  for  certain 
definite  purposes — to  buy  land  or  equip¬ 
ment  or  provide  buildings  or  improve 
farm  land.  It.  may  be  used  to  pay  off 
a  mortgage  now  oil  the  land  so  as  to  re¬ 
place  it  with  a  new  oue.  The  interest 
rate  must  not  exceed  six  per  cent,  and 
may  be  less,  though  we  think  for  a  while 
at.  least  it  will  not  he  likely  to  go  under 
six  per  cent. 
Tims  it  will  he  seen  that  there  is  no 
prospect  of  obtaining  any  loans  before 
next  Spring  at.  least.  There  is  consider¬ 
able  “red  tape”  connected  with  the  plan 
— more  so  than  in  borrowing  from  a  hank 
or  from  a  building  and  loan  association. 
’I’lie  advantages  arc  that  a  lower  rate  of 
interest  may  he  obtained,  there  arc  no 
extra  charges,  such  as  the  banks  usually 
paste  on,  and  the  loan  is  paid  off  in 
full  .so  that  at  the  end  of  20  years  both 
principal  and  interest  are  settled. 
What  is  a  “  Brush  Burner” 
What  is  the  “brush  burner”  referred  to 
on  page  810  by  one  of  your  correspond¬ 
ents?  F.  R. 
Maine. 
We  have  had  a  number  of  notes  about 
those  brush  burners,  and  one  or  two  pic¬ 
tures  of  them.  A  brush  burner  is  a  de¬ 
vice  for  burning  up  the  trimmings  in  the 
orchard  as  fast  as  they  are  cut  from  the 
tree.  Usually  a  big  piece  of  iron  or  tin 
is  taken,  and  curved  into  ft  long  shallow 
tank.  Sometimes  half  of  an  old  boiler  is 
used  for  the  purpose.  The  iron  or  tin 
sheeting  from  a  roof  may  be  used  for  tlie 
purpose.  It  is  mounted  on  a  low  truck 
and  driven  through  the  orchard,  the 
horses  being  attached  four  or  five  feet 
away  from  it,  so  as  to  be  in  no  danger  of 
fire.  A  flame  is  started  in  this  tank,  and 
as  the  t  es  are  trimmed  the  wood  is  cut 
up  and  thrown  in,  thus  being  consumed 
by  a  slow  fire  as  fast  as  they  are  cut. 
Handled  in  this  way  the  trimmings  are 
quickly  burned  up,  the  ashes  are  kept  in 
the  burner,  and  may  he  dumped  wherever 
needed,  and  there  is  no  necessity  for  haul¬ 
ing  and  piling  the  brush  and  burning  it 
later.  It  is  sometimes  necessary  to  carry 
along  a  little  light  fuel,  or  even  a  small 
amount  of  kerosene,  to  keep  up  the  lire, 
hut  usually  there  is  no  trouble  about  that, 
and  the  brush  can  be  burned  in  such  a 
metal  burner  about  as  fast  as  it  is  taken 
from  the  trees. 
