AUG. 28 
THE R5JBAL fi £ W-¥ © F? K E E . 
juetwhat theweeds delighted in and the growth 
they made in a few weeks, where neglected, 
was sufficient to smother out any cultivated 
crop. As a whole the season of 1880 will be 
remembered as affording us crops above an 
average and as a season of encouragement to 
the farmer. R- o*. 
Canada, Fernhill, Ont., August 6. —Except 
a few patches of oats everything has been har¬ 
vested. Never was the harvest here got 
through in so short a time. Wheat Is turning 
out extra-good in this and the other ad¬ 
joining townships. A great deal of Winter 
wheat will be sown here this Fall. Wheat and 
stock-raising 6eem to pay beet. There isn’t 
much corn raised here, and no sorghum is 
grown. We raise only a small quantity of 
carrots or mangels, and not rnaDy beaDs. 
Peas are a good crop. Our seed is good, as 
we a*o carelLil not to use buggy peas. Sum¬ 
mer-fallowing is practiced here with good 
reeultB. We obtain better crops after it and 
it cleans the ground of all kinds of weeds; yet 
one of my neighbors never made a bit of sum¬ 
mer-fallow in his life, still he always has good 
crops. This is the third year in which steam 
thrashing has been practiced in this part of 
the world—nearly all the old horse-powers 
have been thrown aside. J, m. w. 
III.. Ludlow, Champaign Co., Ang. 13.— 
The first half of July was notaMe for high 
temperature. On the 10th there was a heavy 
rain, which is the last of any account up to 
the present time. Since the middle of the 
month the temperature has averaged low for 
the time of year, with cool breezes and cool 
nights, line for harvest work. Hay was saved 
in good c mditiou and yielded about one ton 
per aero of good quality, and in this locality it 
is mostly of clear Timothy; a good deal has 
been saved for seed. Oats had lodged some¬ 
what; the yield will measure well but will 
weigh light. Flaxseed was good, yielding 
from eight to 12 bushels of seed per acre. 
Thrashing is being rapidly finished. The eelf- 
propelliug s earn engine is the favorite power 
for thrashing. It is getting very dry tor corn, 
and without rain soon late eoru must be a light 
crop. Early corn would have been very good 
with timely rains, aud will still make a fair 
crop; it is beginning to harden. Eaily pota¬ 
toes are very good ; late ones have been injur¬ 
ed by dry weather aud the blister beetle. No 
Colorado beetles have made their appearance 
this year here. Corn is worth 28 cents ; oats, 
18 cents; potatoes, 30 to 35 cents; apples, 45 
cents ; hogs. $4 50 to $4.75. There is a good 
demaud for young cattle; calves four mouths 
old are worth $15 per head. Butter is selling 
at 12 to 15 cents per pound ; chickens, 82.00 
per doz. “ o." 
111., Naples, Scott Co., Aug. 9.—The weath¬ 
er here is very dry—no rain since July 3. The 
corn crop looked well up to the middle of July, 
but the dry and hot weather has about burned 
it up. The wheat crop this year in bushels Is 
the largest ever grown, but the quality Is not 
so good as last year. e. m. 
111., Champaign, Champaign Co., Aug. 15.— 
We have a severe drought aud nerd rain badly, 
which i hope we will get soon, and I think we 
shall, because it has showered south and 
showers usually work north, that is this way. 
B. F. J. 
Mich, North Branch, Lapeer Co., Aug. 11.— 
The wheat crop is being rapidly thrashed out 
in this county. Steam thrashers are in oper¬ 
ation in every direetiou, which do the work 
fast and well. One in eleven hours thrashed 
fitly acres of wneat with big straw, which 
yielded 917 bushels. It is not yielding at well 
as it was thought it would do before harvest, 
The weather was very ramy during the whole 
of the wheat harvest., therelore much of it 
was wasted in handling. Then again, somu 
fields grew badly. I thiuk there will be its 
much wheat in the county as there was last 
year. The number of acres harvested in 1879 
was 40,420 which averaged 18 37 bushels per 
acre. According to the supervisor’s returns 
there were 40,290 acres to harvest this year, 
but the average yield will undoubtedly be 
lower. Oats are heavy but badly rusted. Corn 
is doing well now. Potatoes are rotting in 
some localities. Fruits of nearly all kinds are 
very plentiful. Wild blackberries are so 
abuudaut that they are being sold at two cents 
per quart. In regard to fruit, this is surely a 
very favorable season for those on new farms, 
who have not yet had sufficient time to grow 
it. ». w. c. 
Mich., Cleon, Manistee Co.. August 9.— 
Crops of all kinds are good here—so good 
that I hear 6ome asking, " What shall we do 
with the surplus ?" limy think there will be 
no sale for much of it at any price. Both 
Winter and Spring wheals are raised here; 
Winter generally does the best. It is now 
harvested aud many have thrashed. It will 
average 15 bushels to the acre. Clawson and 
D.ehi for Winter aud Canada Club and Golden 
D.op for Spring aie mostly raised. We had 
much rain in July, and considerable damage 
was done to hay aud a few fields of wheat 
sprouted, because, having too much to do for 
the amount of help to be had, the wheat 
could not be cut at the proper time and in a 
pioper manner. Wild berries of nearly all 
kinds are very plentiful this and nearly every 
year. Young orchards are coming Into bear¬ 
ing. Apples, plnms, cherries and the hardy 
kinds of grapes do well. Peach trees in the 
neighborhood bore well last season and this. 
j. s. a. 
Mich., Ovid, Clinton C".— Crops are looking 
well here. We have had plenty of rain this 
Summer. Fruits will be plentiful; but wheat 
is much poorer thau was expected before the 
yield was tested by thrashing. M. a. s. 
N. Y., Pitcher, Chenango Co., Ang. 10.— 
Take the season through, we have had dry 
weather, except a little while in July, when 
the weather was “ catching.” Prospects for 
Fall crops are uot as promising as they were 
some weeks ago. If this community ever suf¬ 
fered more in one season with swarms of 
grasshoppers than they have this Summer, I 
have failed to find any old settler that could 
tell when. It seems almost impossible to shade 
the picture enough. The hay crop is reduced 
about one half, and although there was a heavy 
growth of oats, and prospects were never better 
than a few weeks ago, still the plague of grass¬ 
hoppers has cut off a large percentage, a great 
many pieces being cut green which never will 
be thrashed. Many pieces of corn were cut as 
soon as the ears had fairiy commenced grow¬ 
ing. Fruit trees in many places have been strip¬ 
ped of their leaves, and hard Wiuter apples 
have been partly eaten. Many farmers in this 
valley arc buying corn from Syracuse, by the 
ear load, and are feeding cows now. Potatoes 
bid fair to be a fair crop, though but few are 
dug as yet. Apple trees are loaded to the full¬ 
est extent—(he largest crop, I think, 1 ever 
saw. There is but very little wheat grown in 
this section. Farmers are selling good young 
dairy cows from $10 to $15 each. Butter crop 
will be very much reduced in quantity in this 
section. l. w. s. 
i N. Y., Royalton, Niagara Co., Aug. 11,— 
Wheal, oats and barley are good. Corn and 
potatoes are growing finely. There will be a 
good many apples, pears, plums, grapes and 
peaches in this county. Blackberries, straw¬ 
berries and raspberries were very good and 
plentiful in their season. There were also 
cherries of several varieties; in fact, there is 
seldom any lack of fruit here, as this is a noted 
fruit county. The Beauty ol Jlebrou is a first- 
rate potato, but not much earlier than Early 
Hose with us. Mold’s Ennobled Oats yielded 
splendidly, but rusted badly. They and the 
cow-peas (which are growiug luxuriantly and 
full of bJot6om and pods) were sown in the 
garden, aud manured with rotted barn-yard 
manure aud phosphate. The maugels are 
flourishing. None of the flower seeds germin¬ 
ated, excepting the aquilegias, which are 
growing nicely. a. s. b. 
Ohio, PilehvUle, Huron Co,, Aug. 9.—We 
practice mixed husbandry here. Crops of all 
kinds are good; wheat good; oats lair; corn 
very good: potatoes good; stock of all kinds 
look well, aud there is plenty of feed for even 
a long, cold winter. h. o. m. 
Texas, Waco, McLennan Co., Aug. 6.—Cot¬ 
ton picking has commenced to a limited ex¬ 
tent, but it will not become general for ten 
days or two weeks. During the latter part of 
July and up to the present we have had a su¬ 
perabundance of rain, and many fears were 
expressed that cotton worms would be the re¬ 
sult, but the fears seem to have subsided with 
the rapid maturing of the cotton and continued 
absence of worms. This seems to have been 
tbe most remarkably season tide year in Texas 
for a long time, and if no severe casualties oc¬ 
cur to the eropB from now forward, there will 
not be forces enough within the State to 
gather and save what has been made. 1 
6ee it stated m some of the State papers lhat 
many counties are already preparing to send 
to Kansas aud elsewhere for hands to pick 
the cotton. The corn crop Is matured and 
ready tor housing, and it is simply immense. 
a. s. s. 
Wash. Ter., Walla-Walla, Walla-Walla Co., 
August 5th.—This season has been dry and 
crops of all kinds are light. Grass-hoppers 
have been here lor the first time, and they 
have done some damage in places—principally 
to gardens. White Club Wheat is grown 
here by everybody, and is sown any time. 
Fall-sowed wheat, with a good season, will 
produce 40 to 50 bushels per acre; Spring- 
sowed, 20 to 30 bushels. Last year we ex¬ 
ported about 50,000 tons; this year we shall 
probably have not more than half that amount. 
Oats aud barley yield well; but. are ouly raised 
for home consumption. We have no use for 
rye. Corn does not do well. Potatoes and all 
vegetables do finely ; usually we have a large 
surplus. Sorghum is not raised to any extent 
though it will grow very well. Fruits of all 
kinds do well. All the favorites of the North¬ 
ern States are grown here—only there are no 
worms or diseases to hurt fruit here. The 
Winters are generally warm to that a severe 
frost will injure fruit here more than in colder 
climates, and this is the only trouble we have 
with fruit. J. v. w. 
Wisconsin, Bellefontaine, Columbia Co., 
August 9th. — Crops hereabouts are fair. 
Wheat is not quite an average. Oats are 
heavy. Early Amber Cane is grown quite ex¬ 
tensively, and forms an important item in our 
farm products. Hay is short of an average 
crop. All roots and vegetables are good. 
H. F. H. 
®1it Querist. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must bo ucoompanted by the name and 
address of the writer to insure attention.J 
Velvet Gross as Fodder. 
B. ./. A., Cornvallis, Oregon, referring to 
that one of our “Brevities" in issue of July 3, 
which says:—“There are few grasses which 
are prettier in bloom thau Holcus lanatus (Vel¬ 
vet Grass) ; it is a pity it, is not as valuable for 
lawns or for cattle as it is beautiful and tena¬ 
cious of life,” inquires why Velvet Grass is 
not valuable for cattle. 
Ans.— Comparing Holcus lanatus (Soft 
Meadow or Velvet Grass) with Timothy and 
Orchard Grass, wu have : 
> 1 
as 
Q*£ 1 
cd a 
5' 
Fatty 
Matter. 
1 Scs 
1 
1H 
S3 
cro 
®o 
ri u 
• 
Holcus. 
11.62 
3.66 
39.26 
39.80 
Timothy... 
11.38 
3.65 
d3.#5 
28.43 
Orchard Grass. 
13.63 
3.14 
44.32 
33.70 
Stock are not particularly fond of it. It is 
too coarse and rampant for lawns, soon taking 
possession of the soil. 
lfny Sheds. 
to your location. The others, of course, would 
not fruit unless In close proximity to kinds bear¬ 
ing perfect flowers that bloom at the same time. 
Illue Stem Wheat. 
M. l). B., Bennett's Mill, i a .asks whether there 
Is a variety of wheat called Blue Stem; it so, 
whether it Is a Wlni er or Spring sort, and where It 
can be purchased for seed. 
Anb.—Y ea, there Is a variety of wheat called 
Blue Stem, as might have heeu ?ecn trom Its name 
occurring often In our crop reports. It Li known 
by many different local names, such as Purple 
Straw, Flint., New York Hint, Durst, Oennessee, 
etc. It. la a Winter wheat, with white chair and 
smooth head. The straw Is tall, hut stands well. 
Near the head It Is blue, hence the name. The 
grain Is short, but plump, wltu very thin skin. 
The flour Is of the very best quality, and the 
wheat always commands a good price. It, Is late, 
however, and, like all lato wheats, liable to rust. 
It originated in Virginia, was thence taken to 
Pennsylvania, and again propagated throughout 
the South, frequently under tho name of Pennsyl¬ 
vania Blue Stem. Auy large seedsman In Rich¬ 
mond, Washington, or Baltimore should be able to 
supply seed. 
Queries about Peach Tree*. 
O. 8. B,, liurmt, -V. r., asks, l, are seedling 
peach trees hardier and better bearers than 
budded trees; % which are the hardiest and most 
profitable of the budded sorts; 3, what causes the 
leaves of some kinds of trees to curl up badly, and 
what is the remedy; 4, the leaves of some of his 
peaches turn yellow one year, and next year the 
trees usually die, and he Inquires whether this 
disease, is “the yellows." 
Ans.— l, Not necessarily, i, See separate an¬ 
swer next week. 3, it is thought to be a small, 
Internal fungus. The remedy Is a strong growth 
induced by good soil and cultivation. 4, Yes, the 
disease Is very contagious and sooner or later the 
second tree would show the same disease. 
Miscellaneous. 
.r. !/., lUehvumd,, lna.. intending to put from 100 
to iWO acres under Timothy for hay for market, 
asks what would bo tho best sort of sheds for pre¬ 
serving it, and tho best kind of presses. 
A ns.—F or 100 to ZOO acres of Timot hy for hay the 
sheds should have a capacity for 400 or r>oo tons, 
which would require about 400,000 cubic feet. A 
shed 100 feel long, 25 feet wide, and 20 feet high 
would hold about 10 tons of aew hay, and It would 
too most convenient to build these in different 
parts or the farm: for Instance, one on each 40 
acres. It would bo caster to take the hay press to 
the hay t han to bring the loose hay to the sheds. 
There are several kinds of hay presses made, but 
those, which bind with wire and use no sticks are 
to he preferred. The sheds may bB made as fol¬ 
lows: Posts of sufficient size and strength are 
planted in tho ground, or morticed Into blocks 
sunk Into the ground; plates and cross-beams are 
fltted t o the posts to support the root. To prevent 
tho side thrust against tho posts of a large mass of 
hay a3 It settles, It would be best to support the 
roof upon truss beams which would bold the plates 
from being pressed out. A suitable form of trass 
may be made of plank 2x0, as shown In the draw¬ 
ing below. The beam is made of two pieces bolted 
together, so that It Is four Inches thick; or It. 
BARN TRUSS.—FIG. 275. 
may be made of shorter pieces spliced and fastened 
with iron bolts, If long strips or 25 or 27 feet could 
not be procured. Tho whole Is put togetner with 
bolts, and a strap of li on is bolted to both post 
plate and roof trass to hold the whole together 
and prevent spreading. The root may be made of 
boards nailed to laths laid upon girths from one raf¬ 
ter to another, and if the boards are quite dry 
when used, tho Joints will need no covering, as 
the water will run down the edges and off irorn 
the eaves, and not pass through the close joints, 
sheds ol this kind may lie made ol any desired 
length, and may be added to at any lime at either 
end by putting up more postB and roof. There la 
a sheet-iron roof which is much lighter aud greatly 
more durable than boards which can be procured, 
and i his is absolutely water-proof. No walls are 
required, and It Is obvious that 1 be wider the eaves 
tho more hay the roof will cover. The truss is 
stiffened and strengthened by the three stmts 
shown, and a few spikes may be used lu addition 
to the bolts, to fasten the Umbers together. Braces 
of plank (Zxti) may be used to connect the trusses 
which rest over the posts to the latter, to make 
the Bhed stiller when It Is empty, and when ex¬ 
posed to the force of the winds. The co3t of such 
hay sheds will bo paid In a few years by the saving 
of hay that would be damaged 1( It were stacked. 
Strawberrleit from Seeds. 
V. K. //,, RyersHUe, N. Y., says:—“One year ago 
I saved some seed and sowed It in the nicest place 
In my garden, but no plants came up. l sowed 
the seed as I would onion seed, only that I did not 
cover It so deeply. The past Spring I thought 
surely I would hit, the mark by sowing the seed In 
my hot-bed In drills, tho same as tomatoes, etc., 
but I got no plants. Not discouraged yet, on the 
first of July 1 sowed more seed In two tin pans. I 
leveled the top smooth and sprinkled my seed on 
and covered it with a piece of old factory, did not 
put any dirt on the seed and kept It partly in 
the shade and watered well by pouring witter on 
the cloth. The result I have so long looked for 
came at last. 1 have perhaps &ooor 1,000 plants, 
with leaves about the size of an old three-cent sil¬ 
ver piece. So much for perseverance." And our 
friend asks how to treat the plums until Spring. 
ans.—S et them out it the op>n ground at once. 
Some will bear next year - all the year after. Y ou 
should note those which grow feebly, those which 
sun-scald, those which bear pistils only. The first 
and second class may be oast out as not adapted 
Ii. F. T., Clover dale, Kan., being greatly 
troubled with asthma, and noticing in the 
Bubal the advertisement of Drs. Starkey and 
Pal*m asks whether we think the compound 
oxygeu treatment they recommend, worthy of 
a trial. 
Ans.— In our Southern trip last Spring we 
met three persons at Aiken, S. C., who were 
using the above remedy for weak lunge. They 
spoke of it as having benefited them. We 
should not care to advise in such matters. We 
believe the gentlemen to be entirely respect¬ 
able. The writer of this has had at odd times 
asthma (or emphyzema, which is nearly the 
same) for years. He has taken all sorts of 
medicines and received attendance from not 
less than six doctors—all without auy perman¬ 
ent benefit. He has experienced relief by the 
use of one remedy only, viz : a powder the 
smoke of which is inhaled after the powder is 
Ignited. It is sold by many druggists under 
the name of Himrod’s Asthma Remedy. We 
do not know Himrod, or that any 6ach person 
exists. It Isa downright "quack medicine,” 
but we have more than once blessed it, when, 
during paroxysms of hard breathing, this has 
afforded relief in five minutes, in consideration 
of which we freely give Himrod, whoever he 
may bo, this bit of free advertising, 
L. ft., Paris, N. Y. No, 31s Clchorlum In- 
tybus. No, 5, is probably a Pyrethrum—not 
worthy of cultivation. No. 7 is Panicum 
Banguiuale, common Grab or Finger Grass. 
No, Hibiscus Moscheutos needs no pro¬ 
tection. ThiB is herbaceous. H. Syriacus 
is sometimes harmed. But we have never 
known it to be killed by winter. We have no 
experience with the other Hibiscus men¬ 
tioned. Iris Lievigata is hardy. Glad you 
have succeeded in raising plants. It is a 
charming fiower at its worst. There is no tell¬ 
ing when the magnolia 6ceds may germinate— 
possibly a year hence. We regret having 
placed them in our Distribution. The Ipomcea 
leptophylla seeds should germinate in less than 
a month. 
O. 8. B., Schuyler, Co., N. Y., asks which 
are the hardiest and most prolific varieties of 
peaches for that section. 
Ans.— For Southern central New York, to 
give a succession running through the astral 
peach season, we would recommend Mountain 
Rose, Early Crawford, Foster, Richmond, Old 
Mixon Free, Jacques’ Rareripe, Stump the 
World, Late Crawford (on heavy soils). Hill’s 
Chilli, and Smock Free. We assume that they 
are to be planted for market. If for home use 
our selection would be quite different. 
H. E. B., Auburn, N. Y., has an apple graft 
one year old, that bore seven large apples this 
season. The graft is about 18 inches long, 
and our friend asks whether it is likely the 
bearing of fruit so early will Injure the graft. 
Three other grafts of the same age bore three 
apples each. 
Ans.—S o much weight is liable to break the 
clou where it joins the stock. Probably they 
will bear sparsely for several years to come. 
J. T. H., Tabo , Mo., asks, 1. the best and 
cheapest way of preventing ants from troub¬ 
ling flowers aud plants ; 2 the beet and cheap¬ 
est manure for flowers and house plants. 
Ans —1. Flooding their holes with lime or 
carbolic water. 2. The liquid manure from the 
barn-yard so diluted that it is hardly colored. 
