der storms inside of four days, so I suppose 
Spring has come to stay, as April showers 
bring forth M y flowers. H. D. p. 
and Southwest, is and must be white. The 
tornado is at his work in the valleys of the 
northern portion of the State While they 
seem irresistible it is possible to lessen the dan" 
ger by building stronger tenements, and base¬ 
ments in every case. Our fruits give better 
promise than usual. Peaches are the size of 
beans. Dairy products and vegetables are in 
many cases higher than in New York. We 
shall see a change in two months. J. b. 
Michigan. 
Evart, Osceola Co., April 8.—We have had 
a very open Winter here—but little sleighing. 
We are now having fine Spring weather. 
Wheat and grass are looking well; feed has 
started, so that young cattle can get a living 
in the woods. Farmers are getting ready to 
start the plow as soon as the ground is dry 
enough. Prices are: — Wheat, $1 20@1 30; 
corn, 70c.; oats, 60c.; potatoes, 90c. @$100; 
butter, 32@85e.; eggs, 18c.; farm hands com¬ 
mand $18 to $20 per month and board, e. o. t. 
Evart, Osceola Co., April 5. 
mild Winter; we 
we fear the fruit is injured, and the tender 
plants that were not well protected have suf¬ 
fered. Very little seeding of Spring wheat, 
oats and barley has been done here, and it has 
been too wet Winter wheat and rye look 
well. Farm animals have wintered well, and 
are healthy in general. But little grain, etc., 
selling, or to sell, until after seeding. W. n. 
Rockford, Winnebago Co., April 3.— 
Farmers are very busy at Spring work, a few 
have commenced sowing oats. The weather 
for the last few days has been warm for this 
time of year, and if it continues, green feed will 
be plentiful for the stock. Butter was very 
high the past Winter; at the present time it. is 
38c. per pound; corn, 55c.; oats, 40c.; clover 
seed, $5 a bushel. Potatoes sell at $1 a bushel- 
The Beauty of Hebron is coming into general 
use hereabouts. The Burbank Seedling is 
raised to some extent, but the Snowflake is 
generally liked best for a late potato, w. d. 
Utah, Warren Co.— My W. Elephant I cut 
in sixteen pieces, one eye to the piece, and 
planted in sixteen hills about one foot apart, 
and dug 33 pounds of nice tubers. Peach- 
Solomon’s Seal (P. biflorum) and its larger 
relative—the Great Solomon’s Seal (P. gigan- 
teum), and more so when carpeted about with 
the little False Solomon’s Seal, Starflower, 
Wood Anemones and Gold-thread. 
At one time great medicinal value was as¬ 
cribed to the Solomon’s Seal, and although 
still used in medicine, it is not so highly es¬ 
teemed as it was a century ago. A medical 
author who wrote during the reign of Eliza¬ 
beth of England, writes of its potency in those 
days in a manner that we hope is uncalled for 
in any American family; he says:—‘’The 
roots of Solomon’s Seale, stamped while it is 
fresh and greene, and applied, taketh away in 
one night or two at the most, any brns*, 
blacke, or blew spots gotten by fals, or 
women’s wilfulness, in stumbling upon their 
hastie husbands’ fists, or such like.” 
[Every query must be accompanied by the name 
and address of the writer to Insure attention 1 
BUILDING A SILO, AND SELECTING ENSILAGE 
FODDER. 
A. M. B., Clifton N. What should be 
the dimensions of a silo for feeding 20 head of 
stock during the Winter 3 What materials 
should be used and how should it be filled 
Is salt needed; and, if so, how much ? 
ANSWER BY PROF. E. VV. STEWART 
The dimensions of a silo to carry 20 head 
through six months, allowing 60 pounds of 
ensilage per day, and the cubic foot to weigh 
45 pounds, should be (inside measure) 20 feet 
long, 15 feet wide and 16 feet deep; or what 
would be perhaps more convenient, there 
should be a double silo, each 15x12x15 feet. 
The two, placed side by side, would require but 
three side walls (two outside and a partition 
wall), would cost but a little more, and have 
one eighth more capacity; besides, each could 
be filled separately, with different kinds of 
green fodder in their season, and the ensilage 
would not be so long exposed in feeding. The 
walls of the latter, built of concrete, need 
only be 12 inches thick, especially if Portland 
cement be used. The best Portland cement is 
much stronger than common cement, and if 
sand, gravel and rough stone are used in the 
right proportion, it only requires about one 
barrel of this cement for 60 cubic feet of wall. 
But Akron cement makes a very good con¬ 
crete wall, using about one barrel to 30 or 40 
cubic feet of wall. The method of building 
the silo was particularly described in the 
Rural of April 2nd 1881. 
I understand this correspondent to ask 
the best fodder for ensilage. This is a very 
important question, for those who have 
studied the system of ensilage see the necessity 
of making it much broader than the preserva¬ 
tion of one crop, and that corn. Corn has an 
important place in the system of preserving 
green fodder, but the aim should be to pre¬ 
serve all the grasses, that the ensilage ration 
may be as varied, rich and complete as the 
feed caitle get at pasture. One most impor¬ 
tant result hoped from this system, is that it 
will enable the farmer to carry a larger 
stock on the resources of his own farm. It 
is abundantly proved that cattle fatten and 
cows yield milk most acceptably on good 
pasture. The gain in beef or the yield of 
milk is never higher than on the best grass, so 
let the ensilagist aim at filling his silo with a 
variety of grasses approximating to those 
found in an old pasture or a perennial mea¬ 
dow. Corn is good as far as it goes, but it is 
I a more partial food than any other of the 
•We had a 
___, had over four feet of snow, 
I but it came r a little at a time and soon 
went off. Wheat went in fine last win- 
,, ter, and is looking pretty fair now; 
M about one fourth more sown than the 
last season. Lumbering has been pretty 
'i act ^ ve > about 75 per cent cut compared 
with last Winter. Times are pretty 
JPP good. c. C. VAN H. 
(jap" Missouri. 
|ia| Pleasant Mount, Miller Co., April 
A va 2.—We are having more rain than we 
actually need, retarding to some extent 
oat sowing. Quite a number of farm- 
ers are plowing for com with the inten- 
tion of planting as early as possible. 
Peaches are blossomed out. All kinds of 
■ 2 * 5 ^ stock are picking up rapidly, as the 
pastures are starting up very green and 
qj fresh and already furnish considerable 
picking. Stock hogs scarce and high. 
Farmers want to purchase to keep until 
jvSjj Fall and then fatten. N. J. s. 
jbM Pennsylvania. 
DERRY Church, Dauphin Co., April 
MjpH 5 — Havo had very fine Spring weather 
M for the last week. Fanners are about 
finishing sowing oats. Fruit promises 
to be abundant, especially peaches. 
Winter was mild with the exception of 
a few cold snaps, the ground being 
covered for not more thau about three 
weeks with snow. Winter wheat looks very 
fine; no Spring wheat is raised. e. e. b. 
Derry Church, Dauphin Co.—The W. E. 
l otato did very well, taking the drought into 
consideration. The W. Oats smutted badly, 
though there were a few fine pauicles. 
Asparagus a failure on account of drought. 
Most of the flower seeds came up nicely, but 
they also suffered by the drought. b. 
New Lebanon, Mercer Co., April 5.—This 
time last year we bad sleighing but now we 
have as beautiful Spring weather as one 
would wish for. Farmers have their oat 
ground mostly plowed, and some are seeding. 
Wheat looks well. Although I cannot tell 
such fabulous stories as some about the 
Rural seeds, yet the W. Oats did so well 
I shall try them again. My little W. Elephant 
vielded nearly a peck. w. D. 
RURAL SPECIAL REPORTS. 
Arkansas. 
Altus, Franklin Co., April 5.—Corn all 
planted in this part of the country. Cotton 
planting will bo all done in a few days. These 
Southern farmers, for their own good, will go 
too strong on cotton to the neglect of other 
crops. Some of the improvident oues are now 
mortgaging their prospective crop of cotton, 
and paying $1.25 per bushel for corn shipped 
from St. Louis, and I should add Betsy Jane 
and Sally and Pink all have to pay for a new 
hat, bonnet and calico pattern just 50 per 
cent, more than the provident farmer who di¬ 
versifies and is ahleto pay cash. For instance, 
the cash purchaser gets 20 yards of good 
printsl’or $1, while the poor, unfortunate wife 
of a credit cotton grower pays #1 for 10 yards 
of the same goods. Land dealers and immigra¬ 
tion societies tell of one of the finest countries 
in the world both as to its climate and pro¬ 
ductiveness, statements which in the main I in¬ 
dorse; yet so disproportionate is the acreage of 
com and cotton that only a half of a drought 
such as wo experienced last season brings 
actual suffering among the poor classes. This 
season the same old starvation plan is being 
repeated. Boil that will yield one bag of cot¬ 
ton per acre (440 pounds of lint), will produce 
fifty bushels of corn. Milikms of acres of 
Arkansas laud will do this, yet we have al¬ 
ways a scarcity of breadstuffs. Newspaper 
men, especially those who are editing agri¬ 
cultural journals, are continually thundering 
these facts into the deaf ears of the yeo¬ 
manry of the country with as much success 
as the parson who beats the air and stamps 
the rostrum before an audience of deaf mutes. 
Comparatively few farmers read an agricul¬ 
tural journal. One-fiftieth perhaps of our 
population read such, and the rest criticise 
“ book farmers.” The above remarks do not 
apply alone to “ old settlers,” but also to im¬ 
migrants from Ohio, Indiana and the North¬ 
ern States. A majority of these drop into freezing, 
the same groove. Our crop prospects are now work soon, 
up to ICO—perfect. Wheat pushing out its 
heads with a promise of an unusual yield. 
More acres under it than for many previous 
years. Fruit prospects were never so prom¬ 
ising. Apples, grapes, peaches and straw¬ 
berries flourish here as well as in any part of 
the Union. I am in that line of business, and 
will begin the strawberry picking in a few 
days. The grape and strawberry never fail 
here to produce well. The peach on elevated 
places does not fail more than once in five or 
six years. In fact, within sight of where I 
now sit there has been but one total failure in 
a peach crop in 19 years. If a young man 
desires to live in ease and luxury after ten 
years, let him invest his labor in this crop and 
the grape and small fruits in this Western 
Arkansas and he will have achieved his ob¬ 
ject. “Gregory.” 
Canada. 
East Williams, Ont., April 6.—We had a 
very open Winter with very little snow and 
no sleighing at al l. Wheat looks splendid, ex¬ 
cept late sowing There was not much maple 
sugar made here this Spring. Hired help is 
very scarce here, a great many are going to 
the Northwest. Grass has begun to grow, 
plowing and all Spring work have started. 
Some will be sowing in a few days. m. w. 
Illinois. 
Baileyville, Ogle Co., April 12.—The past 
Winter has been mild and wet; very little 
snow. March came in "lamb-like,” but soon 
turned "lionish,” and was blustrous by spells 
until near the close of the month. The first 
week in April was very warm—72 deg. in the 
shade at noon on the *2d and 3d insts. Fre¬ 
quent heavy showers, with thunder and light¬ 
ning. Changed to cold on night of 9th; 
snowed a little and froze on morning of 10th— 
still colder on 11th—22 deg.; this morn¬ 
ing (l2th), 24 deg. Fair now (noon), 44 deg., 
and calm. During the recent warm weather 
vegetation grew rapidly and buds swelled, but 
this cold spell has been a severe back-set and 
Solomon’s Seal and Herb Paris —(After Rob¬ 
inson’s Wild Garden.)—Fig. 131. See p. 272. 
blows planted by the side of them were an 
entire failure; I did not dig them at all. 
Pinks were lovely, and are now looking very 
nice. Asparagus did well. The Washington 
Oats were sown in good order, but my turkeys 
did the harvesting the next day after I sowed 
them. J. a. 
Iowa. 
Ionia, Chickasaw Co., April 3.—Last Winter 
very mild—no sleighing. Spring very back¬ 
ward with occasional rains, most of the time 
the days are pleasant, but the nights cold and 
No prospect yet of starting Spring 
. The end of last Summer and all 
last Fall were so unfavorable that w'e couldn’t 
do our Fallplowipg. Owing to the excessively 
wet weather a large acreage of flax was lost, 
as it could uot be dried when cut. Two 
patches of 19 acres each rc tted on the ground 
here owing to the damp weather. J. n. 
Kansas. 
Clifton, Washington Co., Kan., April 7.— 
We had a very open Winter here, and farmers 
are well advanced with their Spring work. 
Corn-planting began about April 1. Fall 
wheat and rye bid fair to make splendid crops. 
Stock of all kinds are in fine condition; plenty 
of feed to carry us through the Summer unless 
too much corn is shipped out of the State. 
Com is worth 65c. per bushel, hay (prairie), 
$2.75 per ton. A few more Eastern meu with 
capital would find a warm welcome, w. C. R. 
Norton, Norton Co., April 5.—Our Spring 
was dry till yesterday, when it rained a 
“ di-izzle-drozzle ” nearly all day. It cheers 
us, however. Many have begun to plant 
Grass is starting finely. Most teams as wel 1 
as other stock are quite thin owing to 
scarcity of feed. A majority of the teams in 
this part of the country have no grain for 
Spring work—all they have is Buffalo Grass 
with a little hay or fodder. d. e. s. 
Parsons, Labette Co., April 9.— Season 
very early and propitious. Beans and corn 
are up all over the country. Wheat is looking 
fine, though acreage is short. Chinch- 
bugs are thick everywhere, but don’t seem to 
Pastures were injured by 
last year’s drought and badly tramped by the 
early Spring rain. Everything that grows is 
green. Large quantities of oats and corn are 
up aud Castor beans are planted. Have had 
experimenters with ensilage, said, at the late 
Ensilage Congress, that he preferred Red 
Clover to any other single plant, but that he 
found it best to mix in many kinds of green 
food in the same silo. This must be consid¬ 
ered the true end to be sought. Let the silo 
contuin a perfect ration for the production of 
meat, milk, or wool. Then stock-feeding on 
a farm becomes independent of purchased 
grain. A crop of Winter rve will be ready 
to go into tbe silo with the first crop of clover. 
Early-planted corn will be ready with the 
second crop of clover, and later com can be 
preserved with millet, oats and peas or with a 
late crop of clover. Newly seeded meadows 
containing many weeds or thistles, should be 
cut and ensilaged whilst the weeds are green 
and succulent; and it all makes excellent fod¬ 
der ; and, more important still, this practice 
will soon destroy all weeds. The ensilage 
system, properly carried out, must be the 
great weed exterminator. The finer grasses 
pack more solidly iu a silo than corn, and thus 
exclude the air more perfectly aud ferment 
less. 
Salt is not necessary to preserve ensilage, 
but a small amount may appropriately be 
used, say, not over one quart to the ton. 
rendering fence-posts durable. 
D. S., Dundee, N. F., intending to build a 
Virginia worm fence, asks, l, how best to ren- 
nosts durable; 2, if coal tar is used 
very 
occasion alarm. 
