ORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
-§iiu|g of a Jjtontlisst. 
DAILY RUEAL LIFE 
— 
From tha Diary of a Gentleman Near New 
York City. 
PRUNING GRAPE VINES. 
Feb. 8.—Several of my correspondents re¬ 
siding in the Southern States assure me that 
one of the great merits of the Scupper- 
nong grape is that the vines require no 
pruning in order to keep them healthy 
and productive. Or, to use the exact 
words of one writer, “the vine primes 
itself." I am assured that the operation 
of self-pruning is performed somewhat as 
follows: Whenever the branches become 
too thick for health and productiveness, the 
tendrils on the strongest shoots twine about 
the weaker, effectually girdling them, caus¬ 
ing death and subsequent breaking off by 
the wind. Of course this is giving the Scup- 
pernong grape vines credit for possessing as 
much knowledge of their future wants as 
we do to the dog that buries a bone to be 
dug up when again hungry. But there is no 
telling what climate may develop even 
among grape vines, and perhaps it would 
not be safe to dispute the intelligence of our 
noted Southern species of vttis. 
If some one will only produce or discover 
a species of cotton that can plant, hoe and 
pick itself, I might be induced to emigrate 
to Georgia and there slide down tbo hill of 
life in one of the magnolia groves, the beauty 
of which cannot be questioned. 
But we are not so fortunate in the cul¬ 
ture of grapes in the Northern States os to 
have vines which prune themselves ; besides 
if the operation is delayed until winter it 
may have to be done when the temperature 
is anything but a balmy tropical breezo, and 
this is another disadvantage under which we 
arc obliged to struggle, or fall behind in the 
race for a “goodly inheritance.” 
Vines should be pruned before the sap be¬ 
gins to flow in spring, and if a while before 
the cold weather is past, the wounds made 
will become dried and thus prevent the exu¬ 
dation of sap. 
WHY 00 WE PRUNE VINES. 
First of all, to prevent our productive va¬ 
rieties from overbearing ; that is, unless the 
number of fruit buds are reduced, more 
fruit will “set” than the vine can possibly 
carry through to maturity. For instance, 
suppose a healthy vine produced six canes 
last season, each six feet long, or thirty-sir 
feet of bearing canes. Upon that length 
there will be, say, one hundred fruit buds, 
each representing three bunches of a half- I 
pound each, or one hundred and fifty pounds, 
provided all could be forced to blooip and per¬ 
fect their fruit. But we know that a vine of 
the size mentioned cannot possibly bear such 
a crop, and if left unpruned nature will 
make the attempt, but fail in the execution, 
and either the entire crop or the larger por¬ 
tion must fail to ripen. Now, to prevent 
exhaustion of the plant, as well as to secure 
fully matured fruit, about nine-tenths of the 
bearing or young wood Bhould be pruned off. 
and this is the general practice upon all pro¬ 
lific sorts. In performing the operation, the i 
largest and most perfect shoots of last sea¬ 
son’s growth are selected for bearing fruit, 
and the small and feeble cut entirely away, j 
These canes reserved for fruiting should then , 
be shortened to within a half-dozen buds or ] 
less of their base, unless some longer shoots , 
are wanted to fill up vacant spaces on the 
trellises. 
Of course those who follow some particu¬ 
lar system of training vines will prune ac- j 
cording to the rules laid down for their 
guidance. But for ordinary amateur grape 
culture none but very general rales can be 
given for pruning. But no one can expect j 
healthy vines and well ripened fruit if prun- c 
ing is neglected, especially with the im- t 
proved cultivated sorts. The old wild vines t 
of the wood, with their clusters of a half- r 
dozen or dozeu berries in each, succeed with¬ 
out the aid of man, but such fruit is scarcely c 
to be considered as edible by the side of our 
best improved varieties, s 
SOWING FLOWER-SEED EARLY. [ 
Feb. 0.—Almost everybody, “now-a-days,” t 
sows seeds of early vegetable plants either in i: 
hotbeds or in pots or boxes within doors, ii 
long before it can be done in the open s 
ground. The crop, or period of use and t 
ripening, can be hastened one to two months s 
by this forcing process, and this is worth v 
striving for in a cold climate where the sea- 'I 
sons are none too long for producing a satis- a 
factory crop of annual fruits and vegetables, to 
But while we are making preparations to 
satisfy the stomach, it is well to remember 
the organs of sight, and put in a few flower 
seeds at the same time. 
That most gorgeous autumn blooming 
plant, scarlet sage (Satvia splendent), may 
be raised very easily from seed to be found 
at almost any seed store. The price per 
packet usually corresponds with the number 
of seeds which they contain, those which I 
have counted averaging about twenty seeds 
for twenty-five cents. This is rather a high 
price for seeds of so old and long cultivated a 
plant; stiD, if they are good and sound, the 
plants therefrom will cost much less than at 
the florist’s if purchased in pots, In the ex¬ 
treme Northern States this species of sage 
seldom produces seeds, and those who desire 
plants for bedding out in summer must 
either purchase seeds or plants, else keep 
over a stock of old plants and grow cuttings 
therefrom in winter or early spring. But 
with me the plants seed very freely, and 
about this time I sow a quantity in shallow 
j boxes, and either transplant into small 
flower pots as soon as the plants are large 
enough, or into other boxes allowing room 
for growth until time for setting out in the 
garden. Of course 1 sow these seeds in my 
greenhouse, but a little later in the season 
the same may bo done in any room where 
there is light and sufficient heat to make the 
seed germinate and insure a growth of the 
plants. Verbenas, Petunias, Lantanas and 
similar bedding plants may be started in the 
same manner, and becoma large enough for 
planting out by the time all danger of frost 
is past. Every week gained in time by start¬ 
ing the plants early, gives one just as many 
more days of pleasure in summer. 
Length about 2 inches, nearly as wide as 
long. 
Cheeks.—Very apparent, and forming 
with the ear a fine red face, continued by 
the wtittles, close up to the black plumage, 
and with a little black down invisible at 
a distance. 
Tufts .—Black and very visibls. 
Beak .—Of the ordinary form, black at the 
base, and grayish at the end. 
Fj/e.—Deep red ; pupil black. 
Foot .—Of the ordinary length, from 3% 
inches to about 4 inches, circumference 3 % 
Figure 58. 
PLEASURE OF ANTICIPATION. 
I have just looked at my thermometer and 
flud the mercury down to zero and the wind 
blowing freshly from the Northwest. To 
talk of summer flowers under such circum¬ 
stances, even by the side of a red-hot stove, 
requires a powerful “draft” upon my imag 
Ination ; still there are pleasures in anticipa¬ 
tion, although I have had to spend a little 
time Ln my greenhouse among the blooming 
Pelargoniums , roses, and similar fragrants 
in order to get up courage enough to think 
of the better tiuie coming a few weeks 
hence. How we all will enjoy the Bpring 
when it does come I Yes, and mankind will 
not be alone in his rejoicing, for the shiver¬ 
ing animals in our barns and barnyards will 
welcome the unfolding leaf and green grass 
again. In imagination I can see the old 
robin singing to his mate in that oak near 
my library window, and the whip-poor-will 
in the chestnut tree down on my lawn after 
all the other warblers have gone to rest for 
the night. They arc coming slowly, but afar 
j off, and it is well that they are, else— 
Bless me ! the ink has frozen on my table ! 
Put on some more coal—shut the door I 
©ftp $)mtltt[g §nv£ 
THE POULTRY-KEEPER.—NO. 16. 
THE BRCOA—HACK, WHITE AND CUCKOO. 
The three varieties of this breed are known 
in Holland under the unique name of “ The 
fowl with a Crow’s beak.” 
•IACKSRE0A COCKS-OENERAL CHARCTERISTICS 
Well-shaped and large size. Body very 
flat, small tuft of feathers on the head ; 
comb like a goblet; hackle thick; breast 
large and wide ; feathers of the hock length¬ 
ened in the form of a spur ; foot feathered ; 
plumage black. 
Weight.— From 7% to 8% lbs. 
Flesh. —Excellent, very abundant, and 
readily fattened. 
Hones.—Light. 
Size.— 21% inches. 
Head (Jig 58).—Very strong, length 3)4 
inches. Aspect peculiar on account of the 
comb, which is rather a cavity than a prom¬ 
inence, and gives to the beak a character¬ 
istic depression. This absence of comb is I 
more remarkable, as the gills are of a good 
length, a contrast not remarkable in any 
other species. The comb should be in the 
shape of a small oval cup, rounded and 
rather projecting at the edge; being at 
the edge of the beak it covers the nostrils in 
the direction of the center of the head, and 
is not more than 6-10 inch in length by 4-10 
in width. The color is a blackish, and the 
substance slightly homy. The comb in some 
birds is transversal, and has little depres¬ 
sions on the outside edges, which do not al¬ 
ways mark degeneracy or mixture of blood. 
The regularly-formed comb, however, must 
always be preferred with the little oval cup 
to the regular edges. 
Ears.— Small. 
Wattles, —Very open, of remarkable size. 
, inches ; furnished with stiff feathers from 
i the top to the bottom, and laid one on the 
other like tiles. These feathers grow in 
rows placed above and by the sides of the 
sole, which they partly surround. They 
take in the heel and edge the toes without 
covering them ; color blackish. The top of 
the foot is covered by the feathers of the leg, 
forming a sort of spurs bent inwards. 
The plumage is a very flue, pure black, 
iridescent with metallic colors, reflecting 
green, bronze and indigo, especially in the 
covert feathers of the wings and the taiL 
The feathers of the sides, abdomen, and in¬ 
sides of the thighs are of a dull, brownish 
black, those of the shoulders of an intense 
velvety black. 
Ihe hen of the Black Breda is exactly 
similar to that of the Cuckoo variety, of 
which we shall give a description, 
The plumage of the Black Breda hen is like 
that of the cock, extremely brilliant and of a 
raven black ; briUant black and purplish. 
The cock and hen should have exactly the 
same characteristics in all three varieties. 
The Cuckoo or Flemish variety is the strong¬ 
est ; the White is moat tender, and is con¬ 
sidered merely a fancy bird. 
POULTRY N0TE8. 
f - 
Inquiries as to Breeds.—Will some one 
have the kindness to answer through the col¬ 
umns of the Rural New-Yorker the follow¬ 
ing questions: — Which are the two best 
breeds of hens to keep for eggs ? I mean, 
what two breeds will lay the most eggs in a 
year under good care ? What is a fair esti¬ 
mate, under good care, for the best breeds to 
lay in a year l What breed of good layers 
can be kept on the least food and what is the 
difference between layers and those raised to 
kCl ?—P. Boyce, Ithaca, N. V. 
New Way of Preserving Eggs.— It is stated 
by the Revue Induslrielle that the best 
method of preserving eggs iz to soak them 
for half an hour in soluble glass of a thick, 
pasty consistency. The material forms a 
chemical compound with the carbonate of 
lime of which the shell is composed, which 
renders the latter impermeable to air. After 
immersion, the eggs should be carefully dried 
and kept In oats or on perforated trays in a 
dry locality. 
Feathers Coming Out.—I would like to 
know if any of the readers of the Rural 
New-Yorker know of a remedy for a dis¬ 
ease in poultry where the feathers conic off | 
the heads and necks and stay out a long time. ' 
They do not die. They are fed mostly on 
corn, have a pretty good sized park to run in 
and have a real warm house to stay in with¬ 
out any floor. They are Silver-Spangled 
Hamburgs mostly.— H. J. Smith. 
Brahma Hen in Trouble.—What is the ' 
matter with my Brahma hen and what will 
cure her ! She throws her head on her back 
and rolls it backward and forward and sits 
so most of the time ; has been so about two 
weeks. Eats well, but don’t try to get on 
tho roost.—S idney Reekman. ’ 
We cannot explain ; never had such a case. 
Hag for Fowls is reported as a welcome 
substitute for vegetable food when the latter 
cannot be provided. It is asserted that they 
will eat clean, sweet hay with a relish. 
=58 
! 2 § ~ 
(Satl onto logical. 
GRASSHOPPERS IN KANSAS. 
t A correspondent asks, in Rural New- 
Yorker of Jan. 2d. What the Grasshoppers 
destroy and what is left by them ? There 
e are some people among us, who have enjoyed 
their presence, wonder what His that they 
, don't destroy, As to their appetites, they 
\ are like the king’s fool; “they like anything 
» that’s good.” They first tako the corn ; if 
that was plauted late and Is small they eat 
stalk and blades to the ground ; if planted 
ewiy and has become large, hard, and dry, 
they take the blades top and lender part and 
leave part of stalk standing up, nice as a 
toothpick. The leaves and small twigs of 
young apple trees are taken about the same 
time. The leaves, twigs and peaches of the 
peach tree come next; also beet tops and 
cabbage, watermelon, nmskinulon, cueumbtr 
pumpkin and squashes. The fruit was pre¬ 
ferable to the vine, but either was good. 
Tomato vines they did not relish as well as 
they did the fruit, but would chew the vine 
sometimes, when the fruit was not there. 
Late planted, and small potato vines, they 
eat; the lower part of large ones they left. 
I never saw them digging after the tubers, 
young walnut trees they left alone, and did 
not trouble much. Broom corn t hey did not 
like, and left it mostly. Sugar cane they 
left, it. was too sappy, too much of a laxative, 
I think, for them. Our wheat, rye, oats&c., 
had matured before they came and were not 
hurt any by them in this country. The 
trees in the groves and the nativo grasses 
were not disturbed. They eat what they (could 
and then left, hungry apparently, as when 
they came. I do not think they even left us 
an egg.—T. M. Clark, Dickinson Co., Kan, 
In answer to Correspondent in your Paper 
of Jan. 2d, the grasshoppers have taken 
everything here bub broom corn, sorghum 
and tomatoes. I am told they will not eat 
flax ; this last is a crop wo have not tried 
yet to any extent; but there will be a largo 
amount sowed this coming spring. The 
small grain being nearly out of their way 
they did it but little damage.— g. w. h. 
--♦♦♦-- 
THE SENSE OF SMELL IN INSECTS. 
Fernand Papillon, in Popular Science 
Monthly, says :—Entomologists maintain 
that scout is very delicate in most insects, 
and rely on plausible conjectures on this 
subject, but they do not as yet know what 
the seat of the sense of smell in insects is. 
When meat is exposed to the air, in a few 
moments flies make their appearance in a 
place where none had before been seen. If 
refuse matter or bodies of animals are left on 
the ground, insects flock to them at once, 
feeding on such substances, and depositing 
their eggs in them. Scent alone seems to 
guide them, exclusively of sight even, for, if 
the object of their desire is hidden, they 
easily manage to find it. A curious fact 
as to the scent of insects is furnished by 
those kinds that prefer decaying substances. 
A beautiful arum is found in our woods, the 
cuckoo pintle, whose white flower diffuses a 
disgusting odor. Now, the inside of this 
flower is often filled with flies, snails and 
plant-Uee, seeking the putrid source of this 
fetid smell. We may see the little creatures 
in quest of their food or of a fit place to lay 
their eggs, move about in all directions, and 
quit most unwillingly the flower whose 
scent has misled them. 
--- 
ENTOMOLOGICAL NOTES. 
Protection from Pea Weevils.— A corres¬ 
pondent of the Rural Sun has tried this 
metlyid with success :-Some years since I 
had occasion to set a couple of barrels of 
white peas, such as we used on the table, 
away in our kitchen. To my astonishment 
they remained free from the attacks of the 
weevil until peas were housed again. Since 
that time, if I desire to protect a few peas 
from the ravages of the weevil, I put them 
into an empty flour barrel, and store them 
near the cooking range or stove. The 
warmth of the room, the glare of the lamps 
or candles, the attraction of the Are, the stir 
of the family, or some cause there existing, I 
find perfect protection against the pea 
weevil. 
Crows and Potato Beetles.—A member of 
the Potomac Fruit Growers’ Society says, 
“the crows are doing a great work in quick¬ 
ly and completely killing and cl :aring away 
the potato bugs—making clean work of 
them.” Either there are fewer “bugs” 
to the acre or more crows to the “ bug” on 
the Potomac than any other spot on the con¬ 
tinent. 
■2»J 
