Oi 
Btlir 
tops, 
ORCHARD AND BLUE GRASS. 
Should orchard grass be sown in the 
spring or fall, or can it be sown at both 
times? Can it be sown judiciously with Ken¬ 
tucky blue grass, and would they mature at 
the same lime? How much seed per acre 
of each, and bow much seed per acre of 
either, if sown alone ? I cannot find in the 
past columns of any agricultural paper par¬ 
ticularly any stated time of sowing orchard 
grass. About the 1st of May this year I 
sowed some land in orchard grass, and up 
to this time not one blade has started, and 
will not probably, though the season, until 
lately, has been unusually favorable for grass 
seed. Whether it is wrong to sow it in the 
spring, or whether the seed was worthless, 
I know not. One more query:—If sown, 
say in September, could it be mowed the 
following season ? By giving the aforesaid 
information, you will oblige several in this 
section. 11. H. Phelps. 
Delaware, 1870. 
Remarks. —Orchard grass may be sown 
in October, November, March, April and 
May. VVe prefer early spring. We know 
nothing practically of Kentucky blue grass— 
except that we have seen it growing—ai d 
do not know how the two Will grow to¬ 
gether. In any locality (limestone format 
lion) us far south as Delaware, we should 
not hesitate to sow orchard grass and blue 
grass together for pasture—we do not know 
in what proportion; hut with our present, 
.knowledge of the two grasses, we should 
sow one-third blue grass ancl two-thirds 
orchard grass. The blue grass, in regions 
where the winters arc open, will furnish 
winter pasturage, while the orchard grass 
will furnish an earlier spring and more 
abundant summer pasturage. If sowed 
alone, two bushels of orchard grass seed per 
acre should be used- We should not sow 
blue grass with orchard grass for meadow at 
all; nor, indeed, anything else except red 
clover. For meadow it should lie seeded 
very thickly. We ask our readers who have 
had experience with these grasses to give 
our correspondent detailed answers to his 
queries. 
-- 
WHEAT RUST AND BARBERRY. 
On the adjoining farm a field has been 
sown to wheat three years in succession, one 
corner of which adjoins a nursery where 
there are one or two barberry bushes grow¬ 
ing. During the harvest of 18(18 there was 
more or less rust prevalent throughout the 
country, but last year and this there is very 
little to be found; hut in this field, in the 
corner mentioned, red rust showed itself 
very early and almost entirely destroyed the 
grain for the three, successive crops, while 
lower ground in the same enclosure has 
been entirely free, and also an adjoining 
field of later wheat is yet clean this season. 
I do not recollect with certainty what the 
effect was upon former crops, as my atten¬ 
tion was not attracted to it until within the 
last three years; blit during these it has 
been so marked a feature—the rust being 
very visible to any passer by so much earlier 
than is usual to look for it—thill 1 could not 
help remarking it and trying to study the 
cause. 
•* 
This year it extends over about two acres; 
last year rather more, and the previous year 
there was some rust in other parts of the 
field, but not. so bad. The only difference 
that can he noted is that this corner is some 
what shaded by the nursery during the early 
morning, otherwise it. would be taken for 
the drye.st part of the field. It is a singular 
coincidence with the barberry prejudice; 
and, having noted it for three years, 1 shall 
watch succeeding crops of wheat on this 
field with renewed interest. .t. t. w. 
Springfield, Ohio. 
-- 
FIELD NOTES. 
Early Bouton Wlieut. 
S. D, Comfort, Knox Co., O., writes that 
this wheat has been tested for three years 
by the best farmers of that county, and has 
proved to be equally as hardy as the bearded 
varieties; earlier than any other wheat, and 
has, so far, escaped damage from the weevil 
and rust. Straw short ami stiff'; does not 
lodge on the richest land; berry white, and 
sells higher in market than the red wheats; 
heads bearing sixty kernels very common. 
When io Cm Hay. 
At a recent meeting of the Little Falls 
Farmers’ Club, Harris Lewis is reported 
as saying that he had found that to get hay of 
t he greati'Si value for milch cows, it should be 
cut just as the grass comes into blossom. But 
if the farmer waits to begin haying until all 
his grass is iu blossom, before his haying 
season is through, much of his grass will 
have become so mature as to make hay 
which will be of less value for milch cows 
than good oat straw. lie would, therefore, 
begin cutting his grass for making hay six 
or eight days before it comes into blossom. 
The earliest pieces should lie cut first., and 
in this way all the hay can be gathered be¬ 
fore any of it becomes hard and mature. 
Cows fed on hay cut at this stage of its 
growth, are more healthy than if fed on hay 
over-ripe. It has heat-producing properties 
enough to keep the skin soft and open. Cows 
give nearly twice as much milk when fed on 
such hay as when fed on more mature hay. 
At this stage of growth the hay retains all 
the properties necessary to produce milk 
that tl»e green grass has. It only loses water 
by the drying process. This he had been 
accustomed to supply by feeding roots. Ilis 
dairy bad been made to produce, during the 
foddering season, by being fed with early cut 
hay and roots, three pounds of cheese a day. 
May for horses and other work animals, 
where muscle-producing food is required, 
should be cut just as the grass gets out of 
blossom. But H allowed to stand until the 
seed is matured, it becomes woody and unfit 
for feed. Another reason why hay should 
lie. got early is the deleterious effect of late 
cut ting on the meadows. If the grass is al¬ 
lowed to stand until mature, a drouth im¬ 
mediately following cutting oftentimes com¬ 
pletely ruins the meadow, when it would 
not have been so injured had the grass been 
in blossom. The reason why pastures will 
endure continual croppings for so many 
years and still grow better instead of being 
run out, as meadows often arc, is that the 
grass iu them is never allowed to mature 
seed.” _ 
How io Destroy Canada Thistles. 
“ Novice” of Ohio asks;—“ Will you or 
some of your correspondents inform me 
through the Rural New-Yorker as to 
the best possible menus of effectually ex¬ 
terminating Canada thistles?” There is 
only one way—keep them from breathing 
fresh air. If in meadow or pasture, keep 
them cutoff at the surface of the ground as 
fast as they appear above it. If iu plowed 
land, plow and root them out. whenever they 
appear. Summer fallow the land if neces-nj 
wary, or plant in hoed crops two seasons suc¬ 
cessively, and do not permit them an hour’s 
growth after they appear iu sight. It is the 
only way we know of. 
Now Hind* ol' Wheat. 
An Illinois correspondent sends tis an ex¬ 
cellent advertisement of what purports to be 
a new kind of wheat, about which an effort 
to get up an excitement similar to that con¬ 
cerning oats is making. This correspond¬ 
ent asserts that, it is claimed that the said 
“ new kind” of wheat will produce sixty-five 
bushels per acre, and closes his article as 
follows:—“ Now 1 wiil say that to any one 
farmer who gets sixty bushels of wheat per 
acre, that will weigh sixty-five pounds and 
make fifty pounds of good flour per bushel, 
ninety-nine will get less than twenty-live 
bushels per acre, weighing sixty pounds 
each, producing from forty to forty-three 
pounds of flour.” 
Our correspondent is safe enough in his 
assertion. There is a great desire to get 
rich without labor; to get wheat that would 
sow itself and produce an enormous crop 
without extra preparation of soil and extra 
care of any sort. There is no use trying 
such experiments, gentlemen; and the less 
money a man spends for new seeds, and the 
more he spends in the thorough preparation 
of his soil, careful and systematic seeding, 
and in securing his harvest and putting ids 
product on the market properly , the better 
lie will be off. 
Improving Postures—Subduing J.nncl. 
A subscriber at South Adams, Mass., 
writes:—“ 1 am a young man, and believe in 
progress and improvement. I bought a 
farm this spring and I linil the pastures as 
good as they will average, hut 1 think they 
can still he improved to such an extent that 
they will keep forty or fifty cows us easily 
as they now keep thirty. Now what I want 
to know is this:—Will the Kentucky blue 
grass thrive in this latitude, and on soil that 
will bear good clover? What is your 
opinion of this grass for a pasture for dairy 
purposes? When is the best time to sow 
the seed, and where can the seed be ob¬ 
tained ? When is the best time to top-dress 
a meadow, just after the hay is got off or in 
the fall ? 
“ I have one piece of meadow which is 
wet and covered with crad I e-knolls and 
brakes, and what I propose to do is to drain 
it, plow it this bill, let it lay until next 
spring, top-dress it heavily, harrow it in 
thoroughly and sow it with buckwheat, and 
then keep it under lmed crops for two or 
three years, manuring it heavily each season 
before plowing. How will that work, and 
what kind of drains shall I put in ? There 
is considerable rise to the land,” 
We doubt if Kentucky blue grass is the 
best to sow in the locality named for pas¬ 
ture. We should rather try orchard grass; 
and we should prefer a mixture of grasses to 
any one we can think of. Let our experi¬ 
enced correspondents answer these inquiries. 
The proposed treatment of the meadow is 
good. Drain with tile if they can be ob¬ 
tained at reasonable rate ; if well laid they 
are, in the long run, the cheapest. 
WHAT CORRESPONDENTS SAY. 
From Independence* Montgomery Co.* Kan. 
1 LEFT Beloit, Wis., February 2d for Kan¬ 
sas; March 1st, camped on Elk River, five 
miles from Independence. This place (In¬ 
dependence) had hut one cabin in October 
last; it has now sixty buildings going up, 
and Dr. Boom, told me tliat lie counted 
seventy-three cabins outside of the town 
site. They claim between four and five 
hundred inhabitants. Emigration is coming 
in very fast, and there is not a claim to he 
had in the county, unless you buy or jump 
it. There are three small saw mills here. 
Black walnut, and oak lumber sell at the 
mills for $35 per M. feel; other kinds, $30. 
This is the finest location for a town tliat 
I have seen—all things considered. It is 
located on the: Verdigris River, with plenly 
of timber and water, and as fine farming 
lands about it, as any one could ask for. The 
town site is high, and has a beautiful view 
of the country on the South, West and 
North; the river runs on the East, and 
about one mile from town. The Town Com¬ 
pany are offering to settlers business lots 
free, if you build a bouse 20 by 30, 10 feet 
ceiling; and residence lots 00 by 140, to 
those who build a house 10 by 21, one 
story oi 1 its equivalent. Price of business 
lots 23 by 140, cash, $20 to $50; residence 
lots, $10 to $50, depending on location. 
They arc quite positive the county seat will 
be located here, as it is near the center, and 
the largest, town in the county. 
This county is Indian land; people make 
claims of 100 acres of land, put up a cabin 
and go to work, and when, government 
makes a treaty with the Indians they will 
get it at $1.25 per acre. Claims are worth 
here from $150 to $2,000, and you have the 
land to buy of “ Uncle Samuel” afterward. 
The soil is clay loam, and continues clay 
from three to twenty feet. Timber—oak, 
sycamore, hackberry, black walnut, hickory, 
&c. Rivers—Neosho, Elk, Fall, Verdigris; 
these are running water on rock bottom. 
The banks of the rivers are high, this clay 
soil being so deep the water has washed it 
out down to the rock, and that is why the 
Kansas streams rise so quick. The people 
look healthy; stil^hey talk some about 
ague. 
The Osage Indians are camped at differ¬ 
ent places, a few miles from us. Lumpa- 
walla, Cbetopa, Hard Rope, White Hair, 
and others, with their camps, are a few 
miles out of town. They are friendly, and 
do no harm, and there will bo no trouble 
with them if the Indian Quaker agent 
docs not make it. He is not liked by the 
whites. He told one of the settlers that if 
the Indians should beg, steal, or take life, 
there would he no redress, as we were on 
their lands; this he said in a wigwam, be¬ 
fore a half breed. The chiefs call on every 
one who builds a bouse for $5 for settling 
on their lauds; the trader is the agent’s re¬ 
lative, and the whites think be has a share 
of the profits. There are about 8,000 In¬ 
dians, and the agent told me there was 
about 10,000 settlers in the county. Will 
Government remove the whites or the In¬ 
dians ? 
The climate would be mild in Wisconsin. 
We have lived in a tent since February 23d. 
There are no houses finished here ; the 
town has grown so quick that there was no 
material to build with, and they put up any¬ 
thing to get into. There has been no frost 
to speak of, in the ground, since I have been 
in Kansas. There Inis been about two inches 
of snow and some very strong wind ; these 
winds are predominant, 1 should think. 
The settlers say March is the hardest win¬ 
ter month in Kansas. There has been one 
inch of ice since we have been here.— r. e. l. 
From Watervillei Kansas. 
"Waterville is the present terminus of 
the 0. B. U. P. R. R., and at this lime is 
quite a business place, os it is the point from 
which goods and merchandise have lo be 
shipped by wagons to all points west and 
north for a hundred miles. The country 
around here is very rich and productive; 
timber and lumber are quite plentiful for 
this country, and quite cheap. Lands are 
yet cheap, but with the present rate of im¬ 
migration, will not be very long. Crops in 
this section, aud particularly corn, look re¬ 
markably well. There has been an abun¬ 
dance of rain so far in this region, although 
it is rather dry ninety miles west. 
1 have just returned from a tour of inspec¬ 
tion along the Solomon River, and must say 
that it. is as fine a faced country as I have 
ever seen; except the lack of improvements, 
it would remind you of the Cumberland Val¬ 
ley. There is but one drawback to that part 
of this country, and that is its liability to 
drouths. 
1 found a goodly number of “Yorkers” 
along the valley, and they all seemed well 
pleased with the country. The soil on the 
valley seems to have the property of retain¬ 
ing the moisture the longest of any land I 
ever saw'. Although the grass is drying up 
badly, the corn looks fresh and green and 
scarcely shows any signs of dryness. There 
is plenty of land of the best quality still'cpen 
to settlers under the pre-emption and home¬ 
stead acts, lying in Mitchell, Smith and ad¬ 
joining counties; and it is being taken up 
by as enterprising and intelligent a class of 
people as the Northern and Eastern States 
afford. 
There seems to be such a Kansas fever all 
over the country that any facts in relation to 
the subject are eagerly sought after by all 
who arc thinking of coming to this country, 
(and a great many who are not,) is all the 
excuse 1 make for troubling you with this. 
—s. w. H. 
From Greensborouarli, Caroline Co., Md, 
I think many of the readers of the Ritual 
New Yorker would he profiled by learn¬ 
ing something concerning the Eastern Shore 
of Maryland. In view of its mild and 
healthy climate, the cheapness and fertility 
of its soil, it is unsurpassed by any section of 
our broad expanse of country. 
To persons engaged in agricult ure I would 
say, come and settle here where your indus¬ 
try will he amply remunerated. To the 
manufacturer and capitalist, an opportunity 
is here offered, seldom to be met with. We 
want, mills and factories erected on the 
banks of tbe Choptanlc river, which now 
flows unobstructed through this village on 
its way to the Chesapeake Bay, hut whose 
waters affords great facilities for manufactur¬ 
ing purposes. 
There are vessels plying between this 
place and Baltimore, and tw r o trains daily 
to Philadelphia and Baltimore on the Mary¬ 
land and Delaware railroad. This is decid¬ 
edly the best Peach growing district in the 
State, and good farms can he purchased here 
at $20 to $50 per acre.—j. v. f. 
n 
orsmm. 
a? 
NOTES FOR HORSEMEN. 
Hooks in Horses. 
A correspondent of South-land had a 
horse treated and cured of hooks by a Mex¬ 
ican in the follow ing way :—“ The head of 
the horse was ivcll besmeared and rubbed 
with tallow about twenty-four hours be forex 
aud again just at the lime of theo^TefaVfonl 
which consisted in bleeding with a lancet or 
sharp pointed knife, in the veins about two 
inches below the eyes, and promoting copi¬ 
ous bleeding by a cord around the nock. It 
is well to tie the horse’s legs and throw him 
so that he may hold still. In a few days the 
inflammation will disappear.” 
Shoeing Horses, 
Having read in the Rural New-Yorker 
of June 25, page 410, a discussion on “ Shoe¬ 
ing Horses," by the Farmers’ Cllih of St. 
Louis, in which Col. Col.man is reported as 
saying, “ Keep dry straw in the stall,” I wish 
to say tliat T think if farmers would keep the 
straw' wet or dampened, at or near the front 
feet, it. would lie better; for 1 have shod 
horses for twenty-five years, and I never 
have scon a dry, hard hind foot; they are 
always in good trim. If horse owners would 
throw water OR the horses’ fore feet every 
time they water them, 1 think it would be 
better. Col. Colman states also that Bon¬ 
ner levels the horse’s foot on a marble block. 
I think 1 have read the same statement in 
the Rural before. 
Dr. Spaulding objected to the use of the 
buttress upon his horses’ feet. If he knew 
how to shoe a horse, he would not have 
said so. 
Mr. Page said he thought a shoe might be 
made in sect ions, in two pieces, so as to ad¬ 
mit the expansion of the foot. 1 have been 
thinking on that a long time, but it never 
will be accomplished; it will cost too much, 
and it can’t be made durable. If made at all, 
it must ho made in the shape of a hinge at 
the toe of the foot, so as to throw the shoe 
outward, and moveable caulks inserted on 
the shoe. 
Horses’ shoes should he set level with the 
foot; should beset back as far as possible; 
never should be applied hot; frog let alone; 
the shoes should be removed as often as from 
thirty to ninety days; and as often as the 
first of April or May comes, pull off the 
shoes, if it is dry weather, for tw T o or three 
weeks; use them without shoes, if they do 
cripple at first. The heel of the foot will ex¬ 
pand and the horse go better (lie rest of the 
year. All of the spring’s work can he done 
in that way. The horse can be driven some 
on pavements without injury, if driven 
carefully. 
I have set shoes on horses that stayed on 
three, four, fi ve and six months; but "I don’t 
approve of it. Keep a horse’s shoe on tight, 
and it cannot move at tho heel where it 
ought to. 
Some persons are never satisfied if we nail 
on the shoes so that they stay on six months. 
Keep horses shod six months out of twelve, 
and they will never cripple with founder, 
sweeney or corns; the feet, will always be 
soft, will wear good, and the horses be always 
willing’ to work. John XI. Miller. 
BEE NOTES AND QUERIES. 
Inserting Virgin Queens. 
Amos Jones asks if a virgin queen will 
fly earlier from a hive full of bees than from 
a nucleus of only a quart. Let such as have 
experience answer. 
Do Bees Mix Honey? 
Mr. Benson also asks if bees mix the 
honey gathered from different varieties of 
flowers, (if they simply gather it,) or do they 
gather from only one kind of blossom at a 
time ? He asks for light on the subject, if ob¬ 
serving apiarians have satisfied themselves. 
Mr. Flanders* Address. 
C. S. Porter, Berlin Center, O., asks us 
for the address of a Mr. Flanders, apiarian, 
who once resided in Shelby, Ohio, but is not 
there now. TVe do not know his address. 
If our readers do, or if this meets Mr. Flan¬ 
ders’ eye, let him respond. 
Lining for Hives. 
Erastus Major writes:—“I have seen 
it recommended to line hives with flannel 
or some similar substance. I should like 
some one having experience to tell why they 
should be so lined, if they should. 1 always 
wash mine with salt, and water. I don’t 
know any reason for so doing, except that 
my father did it. I should like to know if 
this practice is essential. Wliat is the best 
mode of ventilating hives ?” 
Do Dec* Outlier nr Make Honey? 
Hamilton Benson writes the Rural 
New-Yorker I have a nut that 1 have 
never seen cracked to my satisfaction. It is, 
do bees gather or make honey from flowers? 
Will not some of the savans answer?" We 
reply that we know that wc have gathered 
honey from clover blossoms; and we know 
we never made any. But we know that some 
people assert that bees make honey from mo¬ 
lasses if they have access to it. We don’t 
believe it; hut we cannot say that we know 
they do not. 
Tlir Best Cop Boxes for Mnrkef. 
Mrs. S. F. P. asks:—“ Are glass caps, or 
caps half glass the best form in which lo 
send honey to market? Are they not too 
easily broken and insecure? I use round 
boxes that hold about a pound and a half, 
but I should like to use tho beet." We be¬ 
lieve some of our best apiarians are now 
using the centrifugal honey extractor to take 
the honey out of the combs and send it to 
market in jars. Wliat form or character of 
jar is most used we are not informed The 
combs, after the honey is extracted are re¬ 
placed iu the hives or caps and again filled 
with honey by the bees. We shall be glad 
to have our correspondents inquiry an¬ 
swered. 
Bees and Fruit Blossoms. 
E. Gallup, in Western Pomologist, says 
that “ the facts of the case are, that instead 
of the bees injuring the fruit blossom or crop 
in any case whatever, they are an absolute 
assistance. Bo much so, that in tbe imme¬ 
diate vicinity of an apiary in some seasons, 
there will he an abundance of fruit, whereas 
in localities where no bees were kept, there 
was comparatively little. Bees are a great 
assistance in fertilizing blossoms that other¬ 
wise (or left to nature) would not become 
fertilized, and tho clover or buckwheat patch 
that produces the most honey, produces the 
most seed, invariably. The honey in the 
blossom, if not taken out by the bees aud 
other insects, would be dried up by the sun 
or washed away with rain, consequently 
would be a dead loss; but if we have bees to 
gather it, it is so much gain, not only to the 
owner of the bees, but to the fruit grower 
aud the farmer.” 
IIow Far Will Bees Go for Honey? 
P. R. J., Ithaca, N. Y., asks, “ How far 
will bees go for honey; and how far ought 
they to go in order to secure the. best re¬ 
sults ?” Pettigrew says“ Our bees drop 
and die within, four miles of rich pasture, 
although we have read of their flying four, 
seven and twelve miles for food. I am of 
the opinion that few bees go from home 
more than two miles in search of food. 
Short journeys are not only a saving of 
labor, but a protection of their lives. When 
compelled to fly far for honey they are often 
caught in showers and destroyed. Hives 
containing eight to ten pounds of bees have 
lost two-thirds of their ranks by sudden 
showers in warm honey weather. Bees 
driven to earth by showers do not die at 
once. If the following day he warm and 
fair, the. rays of the sun sometimes re¬ 
animate those storm-beaten creatures, en¬ 
abling them to return to their hives with 
joy and gladness.” 
--- 
Inquiries for Apiarians. — I would like to ask 
some experienced bee keeper how it will answer 
to place surplus honey boxes at the side instead 
of the top of the hive. It is a bother to lift off a 
dozen or two pounds of honey while examining’ 
the breeding chamber.— Bee Keeper, Concord. U. 
