770 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
NOV 24 
vigorous vines. The only requirement about 
the management of the plum weevils is to 
“ boss ” them, and regulate their numbers. 
In many orchards they assist too much. There 
are too many workers. They have more 
eggs to deposit than the trees have plums to 
ripen. This is owing to gl oss neglect, for the 
insects should be kept in diminished num¬ 
bers for other reasons besides the plum 
crop. All methods of seeking to ward off 
their attacks by placing sweetened cobs and 
other devices iu the trees, burning tobacco 
under them, etc., are not on the right track. 
The grower should meet them squarely, and 
seek to destroy them partially or totally. This 
is effected by jarring the trees, aud killing the 
weevils, which fall on muslin frames made to 
carry or wheel from tree to tree, as recom¬ 
mended by Downing, Barry, and others many 
years ago, and many times since reprinted 
with improvements and full instructions. 
This method is followed by Mr. Willard, of 
Geneva, N. Y., and many other thorough-go¬ 
ing plum-growers. Thoroughly done, tri¬ 
weekly jarrings will be found sufficient from 
the middle of May, through June, making 20 
repetitions of the operation. 
The often-advised way of keeping the 
weevils down to small and hence beneficial 
numbers, by keeping swine in the orchard, is 
reliable, and requires the least attention. Mr. 
Downiug lias put it in this way: “This is an 
excellent expedient for the farmer who be¬ 
stows his time grudgingly on the cares of the 
garden.” New plum orchards should be ar¬ 
ranged and planted with this swine feature in 
view. The animals should be allowed the 
“run ” of the plum orchard only in the early 
part of the Summer. Where trees are in the 
garden or lawn, a coop of chickens under each 
or near by will do much in the way of thin¬ 
ning the weevil ranks, w. L. DEVEREAUX. 
A WALK AMONG MY PEAR TREES. 
Mr. I. J. Blackwell’s “ Walk Among the 
Apple Trees,” as published in the Rural of 
September 30th and October 23th, 1883, and 
Mr. R. J. Black’s u Notes on Apples” as pub¬ 
lished in the Rural of August 11th, 1883, 
proved to be very interesting to me, and 
doubtless to others also. As peara are very 
abundant the present season, and I have quite 
a number of varieties in fruiting, I have 
taken some notes concerning them, thinking 
perhaps that some of the readers of the 
Rural would like to have accompanied me 
in a walk among the pear trees. 
Madeline or Citron des Carmes is a 
pretty fair early pear, ripeuiug from the mid. 
die to the end of July, The tree is of vigor¬ 
ous growth, and is very productive, the fruit 
being of medium size, sweet and juicy. In 
order to obtain this pear in perfection, the 
trait should be gathered before the middle of 
the month, and ripened in the house; for if 
left too long on the tree it commences to de¬ 
cay at the core, and is then worthless. Some 
value it highly, but I consider it inferior to the 
Doyenne d’Ete, which excellent little pear 
ripens a few days later, and, like it. should 
be gathered and ripened in the house. The 
tree is of vigorous, upright growth, aud is 
very productive. The fruit is really very 
attractive, being of a bright, yellow color, 
shaded with bright red on the sunny side. It 
has a pleasant, juicy flavor, and the only ob¬ 
jection to it is its small size; but notwith¬ 
standing this drawback, it is an excellent 
dessert fruit. With me the tree casts its 
leaves early, usually about August 1st. 
Bloodgood is a pear that proves to be very 
variable with me; some seasons the fruit is 
very good, and others, worthless. It is a pear 
of medium size, the yellow skin having a 
russet-like appearance. It has a melting, 
juicy flavor, and should be gathered and 
ripened in the house. The tree is a moderate 
grower, and varies considerably as to pro¬ 
ductiveness. It is in season from the first to 
the middle of August. 
Manning’s Elizabeth is a very excellent 
dessert fruit, and the very best early pear in 
cultivation, ripening from the middle to the 
end of August. The fruit is of small size, 
having a yellow skin aud lively red cheeks, 
and a sprightly, saccharine flavor. The tree 
is of moderately vigorous growth, and is 
enormously productive, so much so, that the 
fruit should be severely thinned. 
Winship or Winship Seedling is apparent¬ 
ly a seedling from the Bartlett, which the 
fruit much resembles in shape, size aud the 
tree in maimer of growth. The tree is of 
erect, vigorous growth, and is enormously 
productive. The fruit is, however, of second- 
rate quality, and as the Kirtlaud and other 
excellent varieties are iu season at that time, 
it is hardly worth planting except for market 
purposes. Ripens about the first of Sep¬ 
tember. 
Kirtland: tree of erect, vigorous, sym¬ 
metrical growth, with dark-green leaves, 
3 hich are retained until late in the season. * i 
Remarkably productive of medium sized, 
obovate pears, the skin of which is of a fine 
yel low color, covered with bright msset, and 
in flavor juicy and sweet, and, on the whole, of 
excellent quality. The fruitshould be gathered 
early and ripened in the house, in order to 
have it iu perfection, for if it is permitted to 
ripen on the tree, it will prove to be perfectly 
worthless. Ripe about the flirt week in Sep¬ 
tember. 
Ott: tree of vigorous, erect growth, aud 
remarkably productive. Fruit small, but of 
excellent quality, being rich and sugary. 
Should be gathered before ripe, and ripened 
in the house. Ripe about the end of August 
aud the first of September. This pear varies 
considerably as to quality wheu grown in 
certaiu situations. 
Rostiezkr: tree of vigorous yet rather 
crooked growth, and a profuse bearer of py¬ 
riform fruit, having a dull-green skin and a 
curved stalk. Of medium size, juicy, rich 
and sugary. Best when ripened* inside. I 
have three trees of this variety, two being 
dwarf, and one being a standard, the latter 
producing the finest fruiu. The tree ueeds 
looking after in order to preserve it in a 
proper shape. In season the first week in 
September. 
Clapp's Favorite: tree of vigorous, up¬ 
right growth, and remarkably productive of 
very large, handsome fruit, having a beauti¬ 
ful ligbt-yellow skin, and a dull blush on the 
sunny side. The fruit has a melting, vinous 
flavor, and [is iu season about the end of 
August or the first of September. Should be 
ripened in the house. 
Osband’s Summer is a tree of moderate, 
erect growth and productive of medium-sized 
fruit, having a yellow skin, with a blush of 
red on the sunny side. Unfortunately this 
beautiful pear cannot be relied upon to pro¬ 
duce a crop, for, in most seasons, the fruit 
cracks so badly as to be utterly worthless. 
The tree also casts its leaves very early in the 
season. Ripens towards the end of August. 
Tyson: tree of vigorous and rapid growth 
but a very tardy bearer. My one tree, which 
was planted in 1854, never produced any fruit 
until last season (1882). The fruit is really 
very attractive, being of a moderate size, of a 
beautiful yellow color, with a bright red 
cheek on the sunny side, and having a rich, 
melting, juicy flavor. In season about the first 
of September. With me the tree casts its 
leaves very early in the season. 
Queens, Long Island, chas. e. parnell. 
ihtrm (topics. 
NOTES ON BACK NUMBERS. 
T. H. HOSKINS, M.D. 
Rural, Oct. 13.—Thanks for notes on water¬ 
melons on p. 660. How many times in a year 
you give your readers information “ worth a 
year’s subscription.” Regarding the Laurel- 
leaved Willow (p. 600), I have noted your 
descriptions several times, and wondered at 
its similarity to a shrubby native sulix that is 
quite common here, with conspicuous dark, 
glossy leaves. I do not know enough about 
botany to determine the species, but it is 
worthy of cultivation on account of its beauty. 
“ Stockman ” says (p. 671) that the Swiss 
cows have never had a boom in this country 
notwithstanding some good records. So 
neither has the Yankee cow, though she hus 
the same qualification. What Swiss cattle I 
have seen had a very common, not to say 
clumsy appearance, with very little indication 
of selection. They have thick, stout legs, de¬ 
veloped probably by the need of them, but 
otherwise seem less fitted for our mountain 
pastures than natives, Ayrshires, or even the 
Jerseys after 20 years of Vermont adaptation. 
Mr. Macaulay (p. 671) thinks that for all 
practical purposes the Guenon system is simple 
enough to be learned by half an hour’s study. 
I do not; nor by half a year’s. It is true that 
the mere size aud width of the escutcheon can 
be at once determined on sight. But if that 
alone is depended on. a multitude of errors 
will occur. This is what has brought the sys¬ 
tem into disrepute. Guenon professed to 
determine not only the quantity of milk by 
the escutcheon, but many other points of equal 
importance to the dairyman. When put to 
the test he made over 60 determinations with¬ 
out error in regard to the quantity and quality 
of the milk, and the time of holding out. Iu 
selecting calves, especially, a full knowledge 
of the syBtem aud much practice are necessary. 
Prof. Johnson’s conclusion that three tons 
of ensilage are about equivalent to oue ton of 
hay agrees with my own judgment, as express¬ 
ed in the Rural some time since. Siloes have 
multiplied rapidly iu Vermont, and all seem 
satisfied with them, building more and larger 
ones, mostly above ground, notwithstanding 
our cold Winters. With ensilage the South 
might make a big thing of W inter dairying. 
Some learned physicians have but little prac¬ 
tical common sense, like the one that forbade 
you (p. 076) to swallow grape seeds. An enor¬ 
mous experience demonstrates how infinitesi¬ 
mal is the danger from this source. 
Rural Oct. 20.—That’s a mighty line 
“Rural Scene” on 685, and beautifully rc- 
engraved. The Rural is making progress in 
its pictorial embellishments, as in everything 
else, 
Mr. Bliss’s article on Dogs and Sheep (p. 
685) leads me to ask, as the killing of sheep by 
dogs so disastrously discourages sheep raising, 
why dog killing by shepherds would not have 
an equally discouraging effect upon dog hus¬ 
bandry. Let the farmers combine to exter¬ 
minate the curs. If there is such a thing as 
an outlaw it is a sheep-killing dog. 
“Uncle Waldo” recommends the Hub¬ 
bard Squash for farmers to grow (p. 686). It 
is a good squash, but the Essex Hybrid keeps 
as well, is much more easily grown, earlier, 
and far more productive. It is also quite as 
good in quality. 
1 am glad to see Mr. Yeoman’s article on 
“Onions as a Money Crop” (p. 687). Mine 
cost me, on au average, about 25 cents a 
bushel, one year with another, and are almost 
“legal tender” for one dollar. But in South¬ 
western Vermont, last year there were more 
than could be sold, and in Addison County a 
number of growers lost heavily. 
The only crooked thing about our new 
Vermont grape, the Vergennes, was the state¬ 
ment that it was as early as Hartford, as Mr. 
Burr says (p. 687). The place it is named for 
is fully as far north as it will ever mature. 
Why may we not put great, flaring kerosene 
lamps, with wicks large enough to make a 
flame that the wind will not extinguish, in our 
orchards in May and June, and thus destroy 
the Codling-moth, according to the suggestion 
of Mr. Hill (p. 688) ? 
Your potato experiments (p. 701) are worth 
studying. For several years my potato crop 
(Alpha, Beauty of Hebron aud Snowflake) has 
been increasingly scabby. This year, manured 
only with bone asb and wood ashes (un¬ 
leached), the crop has been very large and 
perfectly fair. 
How good it is to read an article so redolent 
of practicality as Mr. Hardin’s upon Soiling 
Cows (p. 703), It repeats the exact experience 
of everybody wiio has ever tried it. Though 
recommended so long, nobody but experi¬ 
menters try it, and they soon drop it. It is 
not impossible, but it is not practicable or 
profitable on any large scale. The best suc¬ 
cess 1 have had has been with green rye, 
Orchard Grass, Juae Grass, Orchard Grass 
(second cutting) and sweet com; but even 
with only three cows it made too much work, 
altogether, to pay. 
Thanks, Mr. Ferris (p. 702), for the idea of 
planting early peas between the rows of sweet 
corn. 1 have long planted cabbages among 
the set onions with success. But as the onions 
eaunot keep off their own root worms, are 
they likely to keep off those of the cabbage, 
which arc a closely related species ? 
I think Mr. AtJuns’ remarks on Volunteer 
Apple Trees (p. 705) are correct. For the last 
ten years I have so arranged my nurseries as 
to leave such trees as 1 wanted for orchard 
when the rest, were sold off. Such trees, beiug 
undisturbed, are much more thrifty, healthy 
and come sooner to profitable bearing than 
transplanted trees. 
Orleans Co., Vt. 
<£!)( ijnilsmati. 
LIVE STOCK TOPICS. 
JONATHAN PERIAM, CHICAGO. 
Stock intended for fattening during the 
Winter should not be allowed to shrink be¬ 
tween grass and fodder for want of feeding. 
Exposure to a cold storm will often cause 
shrinkage that two weeks of good feeding will 
not compensate for. If cattle are to be fed 
iu the stable during Winter, keep them there 
during stormy weather, even if they must 
subsist on dry food. The grass will keep for 
the next warm days, and the stock will have 
been saved much shrinkage. It is the loss of 
heat that tells upon stock of all k inds often as 
much as the want of food. No amount of stuff 
ing will fatten kindly, if animals are uncom¬ 
fortably cold. The rule will apply especially 
to fattening animals and milch cows; but it is 
a rule that works well with all farm stock. 
*** 
Reports from the Western ranges and also 
from the Southwest, show that, feed is plenti¬ 
ful and, as a rule, cuttle and sheep are fat and 
horses in good condi tion. TbeprOGpeet is good 
for Winter grass, since in the mountain ranges 
snow has fallen in many places, preventing 
the Indians from burning the grass, aud in all 
sections where India ns are not, the Fall rains 
have improved the grass wonderfully; hence 
the loss of calves early in the season, as shown 
at some of the round-ups, will be amply com¬ 
pensated for by the improved condition of (he 
herds. 
*** 
I notice that some Far-west live stock 
journals are advising the cutting out from the 
herds of all bulls that have been on the range 
three years. I should advise just the contrary 
course, unless the bulls were unsatisfactory in 
their get. In a wild state, among gregarious 
animals, the strongest males take the herd for 
a time, sometimes for three generations. Then 
they give way to younger aud stronger ani¬ 
mals. From this has come the idea of two in- 
crosses and one out-cross. It costs money and 
mortality to acclimate catt le in Texas and the 
Plains region; hence, hold to your bulls as long 
as they are doing w ell for your herd. In-and- 
in breeding never yet did harm in the raising 
of grades, even to the third generation, if the 
males were vigorous, of strong constitution, 
and had the points to fix upon the stock. M hen 
stock becomes fine enough, then indeed, care¬ 
ful study and discrimination are necessary. 
Three consecutive crosses of a Short-horn or 
a Hereford will not hurt a Texas herd or, 
indeed, a herd of any of the Plains region. 
*** 
Fifty thousand cattle have already been 
shipped from the Dodge City (Kansas) stock- 
yards this season, and 20,000 head remain to 
be shipped before the close of the season. This 
will give some indication of the immense 
stock interests of the great Plains region of 
the United States. If we add to this the state¬ 
ment of the Red River (N. M.) Chronicle, that 
choice beeves are selling for $4 40 per 100 
pounds live weight, and the bulk of the sales 
are at $3.00 to £-4 10, an idea of the value 
of the cattle interests of the Far West will be 
at once apparent. Another point as to the 
relative value of cattle West and East is seen 
by the sale of three-year-olds from one Kansas 
ranch for $40 per head, and another lot of 
three and four-year-old half-breeds and Tex¬ 
ans, the first for an average of $50 aud the 
Texans for $40 on the ranch. This was on the 
Medicine Bow River. 
Herefords now seem to take the lead as 
sires, polled cattle coming next, aud then 
Short-horns as stock getters on Western 
ranches. Short-horns, of course, outnumber 
all other’s; but this is because they are easier 
to get and cost less money, on an average, 
than the other rarer breeds. 
*** 
The rage for style in the show rings at fail’s 
has probably reached its culmination. Here¬ 
fords, with their meaty frames, and the polls 
with their compact smoothness, are fairly 
winning more honors year by year. The time 
may come when the strong Seventeeus (des¬ 
cendants of the Short-born importation of 
1817), may again be acknowledged to have 
some value for beef. Many of them have great 
value at the pail, as well. The result of the 
competition at the Fat Stock Shows, at Chi¬ 
cago, between thB Herefords and the Short¬ 
horns is becoming more and more interesting 
year by year. The Short-horn men must add 
somewhat to the quality of their leef, even at 
the expense of style. It does not win on the 
butcher’s block, that crucial test for all meat- 
producing animals intended for human food. 
*** 
As the demand for mutton increases in city 
markets, those who have heretofore been herd¬ 
ing small flocks of M^jnos on their farms, 
are looking about for a cross that will improve 
the flesh of the fine-wools. The South-Down 
will do it, but the Shropshire-Down* will make 
nice mutton, and the resulting wool from the 
cross will bring more money than that of the 
average Merino. The Oxford-Downs would 
also make an excellent cross. If a longer wool 
for combing is wanted, Cotswold, Leicester 
or Lincoln sheep would be indicated. The 
only objection to this cross would be that it is 
violent ; that is, the sheep are too large pro¬ 
portionally' for the Merinos. Study the capa¬ 
bilities of your flock, and from those hintsyou 
may easily decide as to the relative value of 
the first and subsequent grades aud cross¬ 
breeds in the selection of the sires. 
