OCT. 2 
THE RURAL 13 E W-¥ 0 fl HE B. 
8 
jurious when U6ed as bedding for animals on 
account of the readiness with which they heat 
wbeu packed closely. They are charged with 
making pigs scurfy aud mangy, and we believe 
the charge to have some truth from unfortu¬ 
nate experience. They may be composted with 
black muck aud lime very usefully. 2, Leather 
scraps and wool are rich in nitrogen, but require 
time for tliei r decomposition. They are best used 
by plowing them in under a shallow furrow. 
Wool waste is remarkably effective as a fei ti¬ 
ll zer for bops. 8, Lime, salt, and potash, may 
be used as well dry or separately, ne dissolved 
or mixed. Nothing is gained by mixing or 
dissolving them. Lime may be used at the 
rate of 25 to 40 bushels per acre; Potash, in 
the shape of potash salts, 400 to 000 pounds, 
and salt in the same quantity. 
Rendering ltones a quick Fertilizer. 
W. M. G., Glmwood, Utah, says that crude 
soda is plentiful in that section, and the bones 
of dead animals are a nuisance from their abun¬ 
dance, and he asks whether if they are boiled 
with caustic soda or potash—as is done in 
making home-made soap—the nitrogen and 
phosphoric acid in them can be rendered a 
profitable fertilizer. 
Ans.— liones cannot be prepared in a lit con¬ 
dition for a fertilizer by boiling them with 
potash or soda. The soda or potash here re¬ 
ferred cannot be caustic. Caustic soda or 
potash is free from carbonic acid, by combi¬ 
nation with which it is made mild. Soda or 
potash is made caustic by treating it with 
caustic or newly burned lime, which deprives 
it of carbonic acid, it doeB uot exist nat¬ 
urally, as it has an affinity for carbonic 
acid aud water which it draws from the atmos¬ 
phere, and returns to a mild or carbonated 
state. There is no practical way of reducing 
bone to a powder and saving the nitrogen, 
except by grinding. The bones may be soft¬ 
ened iu small quantities by placing them iu 
layers with fresh wood ashes and keeping the 
heap moist for some months; or they may be 
treated by sulphuric acid and made into super¬ 
phosphate. But this is troublesome and dan¬ 
gerous to unskilled persons. The best plan is 
to burn the hones aud reduce them to bone 
ash, which contains all the phosphate of lime, 
the nitrogen being lost. But of this very 
much can hardly remain after the long ex¬ 
posure to which the bones must have been 
subjected. 
The Rural Branching Korgtiuui. 
R. M. P-, Brockport, N, Y.. asks, 1, where 
can he procure enough seed of the Rural 
B ranching Corn to sow an acre; 2, how much 
seed would be needed for an acre; 8, will it 
mature in that section ; 4, where can he get 
roots of Prickly Comfrey. 
Ans. —1, You cannot at present pur¬ 
chase the seed of the Rural Branching Sor- 
ghnrn. Whether it will be offered for sale 
next Spring or uot depends upon the crop we 
are now having grown for us in South Caro¬ 
lina. 2, We have not estimated that exactly. 
A very small quantity will suffice for the rea¬ 
son that it should be sown iu drills one seed 
to every two inches, and the drills four feet 
apart. As soon as it appears above ground, 
the plants should be thinned out to 18 inches 
apart. It so resembles Finger and other com¬ 
mon grasses at first that the seeds should be 
sown far closer than they otherwise would 
need to be, to iusnre a good stand. 3, Seed 
matured with us last year, though quite de¬ 
stroyed by sparrows. We may say that it will 
require an unusually long and favorable sea¬ 
son in your climate, it seeds so abundantly, 
however, that, wheu generally cultivated, as we 
have little doubt it will be, 66ed should be sold 
as low as wheat, which, considering the small 
quantity needed per acre, would render the 
cost of seed a mere trills. 4, The sets (roots) 
are sold for 5(1 cents per pound by most of oar 
leading seedsmen. 
i\ew Seedling Grapes. 
S. V. 8 ,, Syracuse, N. Y., says: ‘•Fox- 
some years I have been engaged in the effort 
to improve the quality of our native grapes 
by raising new varieties from the seed. Out 
of several hundred Beedling vines fruited 1 
have selected two as possessing sufficient merits 
to entitle them to a place in the list of culti¬ 
vated varieties. At the suggestion of Messrs. 
Smiths and Powell, nurserymen of this place, 
I venture to send yon by express a sample of 
each kind aud to ask you for a candid expres¬ 
sion of opinion in regard to their merits. 
While 1 consider them very good, I fear I am 
naturally biased in their favor aud therefore 
not altogether a good judge.- The vines have 
proved themselves to be both early and hardy.’ 
AN8.~Wnan those who send us grapes or 
other fruit do not write their initials or names 
upon the boxes, we are not always able to iden¬ 
tify the packages they send. The box which 
we presume S. V. 8. sent to this office, con¬ 
tained two kinds of grapes—while and dark 
red. They are very much alike in size and 
quality. Tender pulp, sweet, rich—rather 
foxy ; Bkin a little soft. Unless these grapes 
are remarkably early or productive, we can 
hardly advise our friend to propagate them. 
There are too many others which are aw good. , 
ttuince Culture. 
O. W. F., Blackstone , Mass., askB for an ar¬ 
ticle on quince culture, telling the best manures 
to use, the time to set out the quinces the best 
location, and kind of soil, etc., with full par¬ 
ticulars from the time of planting to the gath¬ 
ering in of the fruit. 
Ans —It would be best for you to propagate 
by bendiug branches down in the Spring under 
the soil, leaving a few buds out. Such layers 
will usually root by Fall wheu they may be ent 
from the main etem, and be transplanted. Or, 
you may procure cuttings a foot long and plant 
them now. Cover with earth so that only a 
quarter of the cutting will be left aboveground. 
Press the earth closely about the cuttings and 
cover with manure until next Spring. If plants 
are purchased from nurseries, Spring for your 
climate would be the best time to transplant. 
The quince needs a deep, rich soil and it 
should be as well prepared as if corn or pota¬ 
toes were to be planted. Then an application 
of manure every two years should be given. 
An occasional light dressing of salt is thought 
by many to be beneficial. Cutout all suckers. 
Confine the trees to one stem. Plant them 10 
to 12 feet apart. The Orange and Rea’s Mam¬ 
moth are the best varieties. Theabove, though 
it might be elaborated so as to fill two columns, 
tells essentially the whole story. We are always 
pleased to furnish articles upon any rural 
topic to the order of our friends. 
Fertilizers for Wheat. 
I), J. A,, Moore's Station, Va., asks whether 
it would be advisable to drill with wheat 200 
pounds per acre of a mixture of slaked lime 
and kainit (German potash salts) in propor¬ 
tion of two parts of the former to one of the 
latter. In that section the best results are ob¬ 
tained by using dissolved South Carolina rock 
or bone, two parts to one of kainit; and he 
wishes to learn what difference it would make 
to use slaked or pulverized lime instead of the 
South Carolina rock. 
Ass.- The dissolved South Carolina rock is 
superphosphate of lime containing soluble 
phosphoric acid, no different from that made 
from bones, and it should be treated in the same 
way. if lime is mixed with it, or if lime is 
applied to the soil along with it, the lime com¬ 
bines with the excess ot phosphoric acid aud 
forms insoluble phosphate, thuB destroying 
the value of the dissolved phosphate. Kaiult, 
which is a mixture of salts of potash, magnesia 
and 6oda, will be useful and may be mixed 
with the phosphate without injury. So may 
plaster, which i6 sulphate of lime, and will be 
as useful a5 the slaked lime. A very good 
mixture would be 200 poupds of the rock 
superphosphate, 200 pounds of potash salts 
(high-grade muriate of potash is the best 
aud cheapest in the end), aud, if desired, 100 
pounds of blood guano to furnish the nitrogen. 
But at this season, the nitrogen may be dis¬ 
pensed with. 
Growing Seedling Apples and Grapes. 
M B., Newark, N. J., asks how should apple 
and grape seeds be plauted, and what soil is best 
suited to them. 
Ans. —The best way would be to procure the 
apple seeds now and preserve them iu boxes 
of sand during the Wiuter. The boxes may be 
buried or kept in the cellar. In the latter case 
it would be necessary to keep the sand slightly 
moist, or the seeds would become dry aud 
germinate slowly or not at all. Prepare a 
little plot the same as for lettuce, radishes or 
beets. Make it mellow and tolerably rieh. 
Plant the seeds a few inches apart. The young 
seedlings should be protected the following 
Winter aud transplanted in the Spring either 
to nursery rows or w-here they are to remain. 
If you have glass, or even a sunny window, 
grape seeds may be plan Led now. Flower¬ 
pots will answer. Plant the seeds half an inch 
deep aud cover with glass. The seeds should 
be plauted as soon as taken from the grape, 
in which case many will germinate in a month. 
The young vines may be plauted iu the open 
ground next Spring, when they will have 
made a growth of from one to three feet. We 
have frequently urged our friends to raise 
seedliug grapes. 
Income Iron) Sugar Cane Culture, 
C, P., Cinnaininxon, N. J., referring to a 
statement in the Fair No. of the Rural, to the 
effect that a Louisiana planter sold his crop of 
sugar last year from 3,287 acres for $565,000, 
asks for further information on that head. 
Ans. —The result is by no means remarkable. 
The possible product of the sugar lands of 
Louisiana is twice as much as this, and if the 
machinery were capable of extracting the 
j uice, the production would be eq lal to nearly 
6,000 pounds of sugar per acre, which, at only 
five cents a pound, would realize $300, and in 
addition nearly 4,000 pounds of molasses, 
worth, at two cents a pound, $S0 more. But 
the defective processes waste a large part of 
the product. Sugar cane contains 10$ per cent, 
of sugar and an average crop is 60,000 pounds 
of cane per acre. It is an example of what yet 
remains to be accomplished in this direction 
by the invention aud employment of improved 
processes iu the manipulation of the cane. 
Lung Trouble in Lambs. 
L. 0 . JR., New Geneva, Pa., says the lambs 
there are dying with a disease resembling ca¬ 
tarrh ; they run at the nose and seem to have a 
difficulty in breathing, and he asks for a 
remedy. 
Ans.— This is evidently a disease of the lungs, 
which has not yet progressed so far as pueu- 
monia, but may very soon take that form, if 
not prevented. It is probably due to cold 
taken in consequence of overheating and sud¬ 
den cooling. The treatment iu such a case is 
to keep the lambs in a dry, shady yard for a 
few days; give them pine tar in the drinking 
water and half a drachm of saltpeter once a day 
for three or four days. To prevent this trou¬ 
ble, both sheep and lambs should be provided 
with shade in the pasture in the hot weather 
and shelter from sudden showers. Exposure 
to a shower, on a hot day, when the animals 
burdened with their warm woolen coats, are in 
a state of profuse perspiration, wiil produce this 
trouble with the lungs, which if neglected may- 
soon change to pneumonia or pleurisy. 
“ Cassava.” 
E. W. K., Glen’s Falls, N. Y., sends the leaf 
of a vine which produces a slim root and is 
sometimes called '• Cassava" along the Hudson 
River, and asks whether it is the cassava or 
mandioca 6poken of in the Rural of Sept 4, 
in the Domestic Economy Department. 
Ans. —We cannot identify this vine from a 
single leaf; but itcarmotbe the cassava referred 
to, which is the meal or bread made from the 
roots of several species of mauihot which 
grow in the West Indies, South America and 
Africa. The chief species—Manihot utilissrra 
—from whose root* nearly all the cassava and 
tapioca come, is a shrub from six to eight feet 
high, with large tuberous roots often weighing 
30 pounds. There are two other epeeies whose 
roots are also utilized for the same purposes, 
but these are not nearly so common, and none 
of them grows along the Hudson. 
Keeping Choice Seed Potatoes till Spring. 
W. B A., New Milford, N. J., asks the best 
way to keep a few choice seed potatoes in the 
best condition until Spring, regardless alike of 
consequent trouble or expense. 
Ans.—W henever we have valuable seed pota¬ 
toes we place them in boxes of dry sand, and 
keep the boxes in a room or dry cellar where 
the temperature is low. Probably a potato 
packed iu a box in sand and buried 18 inches 
deep in a dry place would keep until needed 
for planting in the Spring. If any of oat- 
readers know of better plans we would be glad 
to hear from them. 
Miscellaneous, 
E. G., Menard, Texas, asks, 1, for the name 
of a reliable dealer in seeds iu the North : 
2, the name ef a good practical work on sheep 
husbandry suitable for Western sheep owners; 
3, the name ot an English work on sheep hus¬ 
bandry in Australia and New Zealand. 
Ans. — 1, All the seedmen who advertise iu 
the Rural are trustworthy; we admit the 
advertisements of no other. 2, The Shepherd's 
Manual by our contributor Henry Stewart, is 
the latest and most complete work on Sheep 
Husbandry published iu this country—price 
$1 50, to be obtained through the American 
News Co., N. Y. City. 3, A Treatise on the 
Australian Merino by J. R. Graham, Melbourne, 
Australia (1870) is the only work known to us 
and we believe the only work relating to the 
subject. The work eau propbably be obtained 
through any of our large book-dealers. 
>7. S. (address mislaid ) asks how much pot¬ 
ash should be used with a ton of bone dust; 
what kind of potash is the best, aud how 
should it be mixed with the bone dust; which 
is the better—sowing it broadcast or drilling it 
in with the grain. 
Ans. —There is nothing gained iu mixing 
anything with bone-dust, and if potash should 
be mixed, It would be dangerous to drill it 
with the seed. Bone-dust is best drilled with 
the seed because it is placed where the young 
plants can reach it at once and make imme¬ 
diate use of it. If potash is used, it would be 
best to sow that broadcast and harrow in be¬ 
fore the seed is sown, or sow it on the loose 
soil immediately after the harrow. The high- 
grade muriate of potash, containing 50 per 
cent, of actual potash, iB the best form in which 
to apply potash, that is, iu the absence of un¬ 
leached wood-ashes, which are always the best. 
Geo. IF. Strong, Davenport, la., writes us — 
“ In the list of premiums offered In the Rural 
of April 26th 1879, is an offer of Dickens’s 
works, made by the Farmers' Publishing Co., 
as the second prize for the greatest weight of 
shelled Blount’s corn obtained from the Rural’s 
free seed distribution, three months after har¬ 
vest. Now I won the second prize for iny 
yield of corn, and got the feed mill all right, 
but did I not win Dickens’s woiks also? I 
have never seen anything said in the Rural 
about the winners of the book prizes, and 
hence rise for an explanation." 
Ans.— Will Conrad Wilson, who offered 
these premiums lu the qsiu: of the Farmers’ 
Publishing Co., please explain. 
G. E. N., Afton, N. Y., asks for an analysis 
of sour milk. 
Ans. —Milk contains when fresh about the 
following constituents: 
Caseine or cheesy matter.- 
Butter. 
.4.60 per ''ent. 
.3 13 
Milk sutfar.. 
..4.75 
do. 
Saline matter (phosphates, &e.).. 
. 0.60 
do. 
Water. 
.87.02 
do. 
100.00 
When the batter is taken out, the remaining 
substances are, of course, left. When the milk 
is sour the sugar has been changed to lactic 
acid, by the action of the caseine aud no other 
change occurs, so that sour milk if the cream 
has not beed taken, differs from fresh only in 
the change of the sugar of the latter into acid. 
J. M. McL., Okolona, Miss., asks what he 
should do for a sick peach tree. It has stop¬ 
ped bearing for two years, or l-atber the fruit 
shrivels and drops off while small, or becomes 
so worm-eaten as to be worthless. The tree is 
slowly dying, probably half of it is already 
dead, 
Ans. —This is no doubt the yellows. It is 
incurable. The best thing that eau be done is 
to dig up the tree, root and brauch, and burn it. 
Be careful not to set another near the place, 
as this disease is highly contagion s, and may 
be communicated by the buddiug knife. 
G. K., Litchfield, Mich., asks what is the best 
time to sow Red Top ; how much seed should 
be sowed per acre; should it be sown by itself 
or mixed with timothy. 
Ans.— Sow Red Top in the Spring. Prepare 
the ground well and harrow until fine, then 
sow the seed, one aud one-half bushel, or 20 
pounds, per acre, with eight pounds of Timo¬ 
thy, and cover with a light brash harrow 
very lightly. 
J. E. M., South Bend, Ind,, asks which of 
these addresses is proper: John Smith, New 
York City, N. Y., or John Smith. New York, 
N. Y. 
Ans. —The first is the proper way of address¬ 
ing a letter to Mr. Smith, so far as the name of 
the town is concerned; but a letter addressed 
either way would not reach the gentleman, as 
the city directory shows there are 168 men of 
that name in the city, to say nothing of the 
large number of juvenile and other sorts of 
John Smiths that are not mentioned therein. 
T. B. IF, Roselle, N. J., sends a branch of a 
lilac bush covered with what he thinks either 
a fungus growth or an insect pest, and asks 
what is it. 
Ans. —It seems to be a bark louse. We would 
advise the application of equal parts of linseed 
oil and tar applied warm early in Spring. This 
forms a varnish which will crack off as the 
stems expand in the Spring. 
L. D., Belmont, N. S. wants to know the 
best apples for his country. He would also 
like to analize soil, and asks if it would be 
necessary to study with a chemist. 
Ans.— 1. Gravenstein, King of Tompkins 
County, Large Yellow Bough, Northern 8py, 
Red Astrachan, Ribston Pippin, Yellow Belle- 
fieur. 2. Yes. 
M. A. P., Sterling Station N. Y., sends some 
flowers of a weed which is greatly injuring a 
meadow, and asks how to get rid of it without 
plowing the meadow. 
Ans. —It is a Golden Rod. Without plowing, 
you can ouly exterminate it by persistent mow¬ 
ing. an almost impracticable remedy. 
C. S , Fayette, N. Y., asks what shall she do 
wilh her magnolias, two of which germinated 
in July and are still iu pots; would it be well 
to transplant them this Fall and cover them 
duriug the Winter. 
Ans. —No, it would be unsafe to plant them 
out this Fall. Wait until Spring. 
G. S-, Fayette, N. Y., asks what kind of beet 
seed will give most dark red inside, not on the 
surface merely, as the blood beet. 
Ans. —Loug red mangel. It is not so dark 
red as the blood beet either inside or outside, 
but is dark red and some roots are quite light 
red. 
A. H. IF., liioer Falls, Wis., says he sends 
two specimens of grass for name. 
Ans. —The box had been opened in the mails. 
We received butoue specimen and that was not 
marked. It is Setaria glauca—Bottle Grass ; 
of no particular value. 
, T. R., Huntington, Pa., sends a bunch of 
grapes for name. 
Ans. —The specimens are so crushed that 
we cannot identify the variety positively. The 
fruit resembles Iona, however. 
-«. » 
Communications received for the week end¬ 
ing Saturday, Srft. 25. 
G. W.—G. A. G. Jr.-J. R.-G. H.—L. H.-G. W. 
T.—R. M. S.—T. K.-M. O.—W. L. H.—.T. R. B.— 
S. H. M.—R. H. R —L. S. S.—W. T-—B. S.—T. R. 
H —A. B. A.—W. W. \V.—Syracuse.—no name.— 
B. C. D —C. D.-J. D—,A. A. P.—G. W. P.—A. G. 
N.—H. O —M. K. S.—A. O. E.—G. L. P.-N. A.— 
G. D. C.—A L. R —P. X.—G. J.—J. C. E.—D. B.— 
F. E. L.-G. C. D.—S. McO.—A. E. B., thanks.— 
J. L. P.—A- B. A.—L. B. II.—T. T. L.—J. C.—G. 
G. —S. B. P.-J. C. L.—G. H.-J. R.—F. D. P.— 
Ermengende— N. J. S. 
Dyspepsia, Biliousness, Nervousness and miser¬ 
ableness all cured with Hop Bitters. 
