I 
202 
provided with the necessary support. Its 
flowers are the purest white, of the most de¬ 
lightful spice or clove fragrance ; the indi¬ 
vidual flowers, on well-grown plants, are 
very large, many of the flowers being 2% 
inches in diameter, and pome we have meas¬ 
ured were much larger. With such varieties 
of the Carnation, we can afford to dispense 
with the shy-flowering florist sorts. 
Paterson, N. J. H. R Chittv. 
cdfield a[i|0|js>. 
FLAX CULTURE. 
In the Rural New-Yorker of March 0, 
there was an inquiry upon this subject which 
has been responded to by Mr. N. RUTJZY, 
Proprietor of the Hiawatha Kan. Dispatch, 
w ho sends us the folio wing as having a jjpeared 
editorially in his paper : 
Our experience and knowledge of flax 
raising, only goes as far as going through 
the process of raisiug it for the liber, and not 
for the seed, yet we shall venture the follow- 
lug suggestions. The ground should be 
plowed medium depth, say six or seven 
inches, and thoroughly pulverized before 
the seed is sown, and as good a plan for pul¬ 
verizing ground is to follow close up to the 
plow with a drag, that is, not let the ground 
lay more than a day after it is plowed, 
before you drag it with a heavy scantling or 
straight pole, or, (which is butter), two poles 
ten feet long fastened together, the one 
dragging two or three feet behind the other 
and as heavy us two horses can conveniently 
draw. This leaves the surface smooth and 
level, which will enable you to sow the seed 
broadcast evenly over the ground, and cover 
it a uniform depth—two very important 
points to be observed in sowing flax, as it 
then comes up, grows and ripens uniformly; 
whereas, if it is sown on uneven, cloddy 
ground, some of the seed^ will bo covered so 
deeply that they will not come up for a 
week or two (if ever) after the seed nears 
the surface; consequently will only be in 
bloom when that which came up first will bo 
ready Co cut. 
It should be sown as early as the ground 
beoomes suflieiontly warm, and there is no 
prospect for any more freezing. The latter 
part of March is late enough if the weather 
is warm and open, many sow it much later 
here, but early crops are almost always the 
best, hence, flax seed sown early, if not 
blighted by frost afterwards, will yield a 
better crop than that sown late. It should 
be brushed or harrowed very lightly, and 
there should be about three pecks of seed 
sown to the acre. 
Our fanners here who flrst went into rais¬ 
ing it, only sowed one-half bushel to the 
acre, but this was found to be too little. We 
believe the same mistake in sowing all kinds 
of small grain has been practiced by our 
fanners ; we scarcely over sea a field of 
wheat harvested but that a third more 
yield could have been secured on the same 
ground, if sufficient seed had been sown. If 
the ground is perfectly smooth sow a little 
less than three pecks of flax seed and you 
will not miss it. 
Almost all the ground in this part of the 
State is rich enough for flax, but it will not 
do to sow flux on the same ground two 
years in succession, as it will yield but little 
if any seed the second year, but after a rota¬ 
tion of other crops for a few years you may 
raise as good a crop of flax on the same 
ground as ever. 
The yield to the acre averages about from 
10 to 12 bushels, yet last year several fields 
here yielded 16 to IT bushels. A correspon¬ 
dent in the Lawrence Standard saysthe 
straw is worth from five to eight dollars a 
ton for feed ; regards it fully equal to clover 
hay for cattle, and the yield of straw is 
from one to two and a half tons per acre. 
It should be cut when two-thirds of the 
belers are blown, aud if cut with a reaper 
the bunches should lie from five to seven 
days, or until thoroughly' cured, when it 
should be stacked or threshed. Thresh 
right from the field, as it is very easy to 
shatter out, and every time you handle it 
you lose some seed. 
The expense of harvesting a crop of flax is 
not so great as that of wheat or oats, and it 
does not have to be bound or shocked. It is 
also free from the “pesky” chinch bug. 
It also leaves the ground in good condition 
for wheat, as it clears the ground of nearly 
all the insects that are injurious to this crop. 
A correspondent of the Kansas Farmer 
thinks that there could be more mode raising 
flax for the fiber than there is for the seed. 
If the seed is sown early in the spring (as 
MOORE’S RURAL fSEW- YORKER 
MARSH 27 
soon as there is no danger to be expected 
from frost) and gets a growth of a few 
inches before dry weather sets in, a good 
crop may' be looked for. And when the 
fiber goes through the process necessary to 
separate it froui the straw and is properly 
scutched, it should produce from four to 
six hundred pounds per acre, or even more. 
And this iii the Irish market would be worth 
from ten to twenty dollars per hundred, 
according to quality. 
This correspondent says :—Now, so far as 
1 know from ©xperieuce, the United States 
are depending chiefly upon Ireland l’or a 
supply' of manufactured linen, whereas 1 
think Kansas especially' should be able to 
cope with any foreign market in producing 
her own linen goods. 
.- ♦♦♦ - — 
ABOUT ROOT CROPS. 
Mu. A. 13. At.i.en’s valuable advice, &c., 
at page lot, March 5th, has one line hi the 
fourth paragraph which, 1 think, is calculated 
to convey a very erroneous impression. It 
is this—‘‘the same as is done in the south of 
England”—in relation to roots. This would 
cause any one to suppose that in the north 
of England the winters are too cold to feed 
sheep, Sec., on the crop in the fields, whereas, 
instead of sueli being the fact, there is more 
consumed by sheep and cattle in proportion; 
and in Scotland, which is north of England, 
and where the days are very much shorter 
in winter than in the south of England, root, 
culture and feeding oil by hurdling sheep is 
conducted more extensively, aud Scotland 
hus always taken the lead in good cultivation 
for roots; so much so, that when I was a boy, 
on the ridge system being introduced it was 
called the Scotch system, and Noblemen’s 
Scotch Bailiffs always had the finest crops 
the tenants on the domain taking their 
method a < an example. My father asked a 
neighbor, who was farm bailiff for a peer, to 
show me, when 11 years old, and 1 was very 
proud of my first performance in that line. 
It would be the salvation of United States 
agriculture if this original Scotch system of 
root culture and eating the crops on the land 
could be brought to bear, for the sake of ar¬ 
resting the. exhaustion by crops which take 
away aud leave nothing for renovation. 
Pigs sometimes eat roots on the land, but 
seldom. Generally swine of all ago^ure 
kept in sties, and valued chiefly fo^the 
rich manure, which will form the finest 
crops of Swedes, &c. 
This communication from Mr. Allen will 
do good, aud, it is to bo hoped, will be fol¬ 
lowed by others, showing the great advan¬ 
tages of forage crops, and keeping sheep, as 
well as stock faiming, instead of the con¬ 
tinued drain by selling corn and grain. 
A. W. F. 
.- +++ - 
ORCHARD GRASS FOR RIVER BOTTOMS. 
1 would like to have some information 
about orchard grass. The land 1 wish to sow 
is river bottom ; have been trying timothy, 
but it does not last long enough ; it dies out, 
aud the swamp grass will root it out, and 1 
have to wait two years before 1 can out the 
timothy. Will orchard grass make good hay, 
aud when and how to sow it, with anything 
else, or by itself V What I am driving at is 
this. It takes a sight of money to be always 
buying seeds of different kinds each year to 
keep up a supply of hay for thirty head of 
horses and as many cattle. 
The land 1 wish to sow to grass is very wet 
during tin* winter season at times, and tim¬ 
othy does very well for two or. three years 
aud then gets so much of the swamp grass in 
it that 1 have to plow it up and put the laud 
in corn one year to kill out the wild grasses, 
aud then back into meadow again. Will the 
orchard grass be any better for me » 1 have 
never had any experience with it, but have 
hoard that it will root out anything else and 
never die out, and would like to have your 
idea about it before 1 try it. When to sow, 
in the fall or spring ; how to prepare the 
land ! I have about 75 acres I would like to 
have in some kind of grass for hay that 1 
would not have to buy seed and sow every 
year. 
Our river bottoms overflow very often, but 
it does not hurt timothy that I can see; but 1 
think that is the way we get our supply of 
everlasting swamp grass that plays the wild 
with our meadows. Our only remedy is to 
sow Hungarian and the millet more or less 
every year, and that is what 1 would like to 
stop if it eau be done so it would pay. 1 
would like to make a start this spring if I am 
not too late already. W. H. H. Truett. 
Nashville, Tenn. 
The reason your timothy dies out is be¬ 
cause it is a biennial plant and has a natural 
existence of but two years unless re-seeded. 
Of course, the w ild grasses come in when the 
tame grasses go out. Orchard grass is pe- 
rennial and will not die out every two years. 
It is a strong growing grass, well adapted to 
such a soil as you describe. Treat the land 
as you would to sow timothy, and sow in the j 
spring, or in July or August either. It makes 
good hay if sown thickly and cut when in 
bloom—a hay quite equal to timothy for 
stock. Sow it as you would any other grass 
seed, one and a half or two bushels per acre, 
Remember it does not make as rapid growth 
the first year us timothy, but be patient and 
you will find your reward. 
-♦♦♦-—■ 
TREATMENT OF SEED CORN. 
1 see in the Rural New-Youker a request 
for readers to tell their manner of sowing 
seed corn. As I gather my corn in husking, 
I endeavor to have all the fine, large ears 
thrown in the front end of the wagon, and 
as the wagon is uuloaded 1 select the largest, 
deepest grain on the coli, always picking one 
with a red cob Light on the cob, the grain 
smooth in the heart, and the very best of its 
kind. I then put in barrels or boxes, up 
stall's, over the fire-place, that it may get ^ 
perfectly .dry. Then in the spring, before 
planting, I repick the corn with more care 
than ever, shelling a few grains off of both 
top and butt ends, and 1 am sure it is sound 
and the very best of its kind. 
Corn that is thoroughly dried in this man¬ 
ner will withstand the cold, wet weather of 
spring, and come up a great deal better than 
corn selected from the crib us it is planted. 
Every few years 1 go from three to twenty 
miles aud get a new kind of corn to plant, 
and I think nothing pays better. The best 
corn raiser I eve.r saw broke his ground well, 
put in good condition by harrowing, laid the 
furrows deep and then ran a narrow, long 
bull .tongue in each row, then plauted his 
corn early aud cultivated it well. 
Livingstou Co., HU. A Farmer, 
- —- - — 
TURNIPS IN CONNECTICUT. 
At the Deerfield Farmers’ Institute the fol¬ 
lowing discussion occurred on turnips : 
E. Field will raise everything the farmer 
needs for his own use, as far as possible; and 
for specialties we should be governed by cir¬ 
cumstances of soil, taste and help. Had 
done well at, raising turnips—the Yellow 
Globe variety— and his cows did well on 
them, with hay, and he could not see as it 
flavored their (milk or butter when fed to 
them just after milking. Borne farms will 
do best with fruit, either apples or berries ; 
but we cannot raise grain here iu New Eng¬ 
land to sell at a profit. 
Myron Hawks had raised turnips at a small 
cost; but fouud they flavored the butter when 
fed to his cows, and after he stopped feeding 
them the price of his butter advanced five 
and seven cents per pound. Turnips would 
do well to feed to young stock, but not to 
cows ; it is all a loss. 
.J. M. Legate regards turnips very injurious 
to the soil, and doubted whether we can 
cheat butler dealers very much who can de¬ 
tect the taste of Hungarian grass when fed 
to cows. He would raise all that is wanted 
to consume on the farm, if it can be raised at 
a less cost than it can be bought. 
--■»-*-*■-— 
FIELD NOTES. 
Orchard Grafts.—A. B. Allen says, in 
Rural Carolinian “To get a good stand the 
soil should be rich, well plowed and har¬ 
rowed, and be clear of weeds. Two or three 
bushels of seed should be sown (to the aere. 
Rye is the only grain that should be sown 
with it, and this thinly. Wheat and oats 
grow too thick and choke the growth ol 
grass. It would be better to sow it alone, 
without grain or other grass; but if other 
grass is desired with it, sow clover, as that 
ripens about the same time. Bow at the 
South in September or October, or in Febru¬ 
ary or March, according to the climate. 
Drilling Corn.— One Indiana farmer, in 
Rural New-Yorker, Feb. 27, says to drill 
corn for a crop is a success. I take it that he 
means all over the State. I say it is not a 
successful way to try for a crop. To drill 
coru you get trash for your trouble. To plant 
in hills aud row's you get from io to 60 and 
100 bushels per acre. Work your corn both 
ways with a riding two-horae cultivator.— La¬ 
grange Co., Jnd., Farmer. 
Drilling Corn.— I should like to get the ex¬ 
pression of practical farmers who have tried 
both wavs as to the comparative nier.ts and 
profits of drilling and planting corn in hills 
on well prepared, clean ground. Who of the 
Rural New- Yorker readers will respond i 
c.-s.- - 
SJItc §ouIti[g §%. 
ABOUT GEESE. 
In answer to Miss Anna Hayward :—The 
pair will require no change if they have a 
comfortable coop where pigs cannot approach 
and where they can have access to grass on a 
roadside or iu a close or paddock. They will 
do better if there is a pond for them to re¬ 
sort to at pleasure. If there is uo danger 
from pigs or dogs the eggs will be sufe, as 
geese generally make a very nice nest and 
cover the eggs over every time they lay an 
egg. A goose lays from ten to fifteen, ac¬ 
cording to the living, during winter, Sec. It 
is usual in the beat geese raising districts to 
have throe geese with a gander, for when all 
are used to each other they will lay and sit 
about the same time and the broods will all 
go about together the same as turkeys do. 
The gander should never bo kept away 
from the goose or geese, for he protects them 
wlulu sitting aud will defend them with his 
life. Should two geese want one nest one 
should be watched, and when she wants to 
lay put on another nest and kept there till 
she has laid. If this is done a few days she 
will take to It, and thus prevent quarreling. 
The nests can be made, before the geese lay, 
with boards in the different corners of the 
eoop and fixed in such a way that they can 
bo fastened in front in ease of it s being neces¬ 
sary to shut one up; but if they carry straws, 
&c., iuto a corner at liberty, they will fill up 
all the space and have a nice round nest 
which, a day or two before they sit close, 
they will line with down by taking it from 
their own breast with their lulls. 
Borne cruel, mean people pick geese when 
living ; but it would be a just punishment to 
have every hair on their head pulled out by 
the roots, for it is real “cruelty to animals” 
and a despicable practice, for three nice geese 
aud a gander will, if taken care of, bring 
about thirty young ones, and they can be 
picked when they are killed, and it any one 
cannot allow the poor old ones, who produce 
thirty youug ones per year, to wear their 
feathers in a natural way, the same as all re¬ 
spectable farmers do. they ought not to be 
allowed to keep geese. These unfeeling 
wretches never have any luck, for I have 
seen their miserable, ragged looking geese 
and ducks without broods, aud a disgrace to 
any [civilized [community. After the gos¬ 
lings are hatched the geese and gander will 
take care of them if there is grass to be eaten. 
A Working Farmer. 
.-- 
BEST HENS FOR EGGS. 
F. Boyce, Ithaca, N. Y.:—I have observed 
in the Rural New-Yorker, of Feb. 30th, 
your inquiries in reference to the best breeds 
of hens to keep for eggs. I will offer my ex¬ 
perience, which may aid you in making a se¬ 
lection. 
I think the [Black Spanish fowls are the 
best breed we have for producing eggs. If 
well fed and properly eared for, they will lay 
a greater number of eggB in the course of a 
year than any other breed we have yet tried. 
They are not considered as good for the table 
as many other breeds, I would not keep 
them for that purpose. 
Next to the Black Spanish I would recom¬ 
mend the ordinary game fowl. I have found 
them to be excellent layers; for the table I 
regard them as superior to all others ; they 
are also easily fattened aud moderate eaters. 
My hens are a cross by a Black Breasted 
Game Cock and Light Brahma hens. See 
article on gum© poultry in Rural New-York¬ 
er, Jan, 23d, page 61, 1871. 
In reference to the number of eggs which 
either of these breeds would lay in the course 
of a year I am not able to tell, having never 
kept an accurate account. AY hat 1 have 
; stated above may be relied upon. 
It. M. Ludlow. 
Oakburn, near Hudson, N. Y., Feb. 20,1875. 
--♦♦♦■- 
POULTRY NOTES. 
} tel alive Profits of Po ultnj.—l would like to 
have our friend, the Ohio poultry dealer who 
compares the different breeds, weigh his eggs 
and calculate the value of them at twelve 
cents per pound (which is the only correct 
and fair way). Unless l am much mistaken 
in my observation, he will find Brahmas will 
come out ahead. I would like to hear from 
the. Ohio geutleman again.— N. W. Rikkr, 
1 Vest field, iS. J. 
The Best Laying Hens—l see an inquiry 
for the best breed of laying fowls. 1 have 
been a poultry-keeper a number of years and 
have tried all kinds of crosses and thorough¬ 
breds ; but I find none to equal the cross be¬ 
tween a Golden Bpaugled Hamburg cock aud 
Black Spanish pullets. They are small eat¬ 
ers, non-sitters aud excellent layers,— Joseph 
Greenwood. 
$• ' nj. 
...- 3b 
