240 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
den flowers. Some plants blossom for a few 
days as in tbe case of the Bloodroot. some for 
a few weeks: for instance, the Spring Beau¬ 
ty, and others for months, as is the case with 
Dicentra exiraia. 
A hardy water plant for Spring—providing 
its roots keep beyond the reach of ice and 
frost—is the Cape Pond Weed (Aponogeton 
distachyon). As soon as the ice has left the 
surface of the water the leaves and flowers 
(which are white and fragrant) appear quite 
numerous. 
Many trees and shrubs come into blossom in 
early Spring, before their leaves appear. 
The Box Elder and Silver Maple are familiar 
examples, but more noticeable is the Red Ma¬ 
ple. Among those that bear catkins may be 
mentioned the Smooth and Hoary Alders, 
White Poplar and American Aspen. American 
and European Hazle-nuts aud Larch, and sev¬ 
eral native and exotic willows. The Fragrant 
Sumac bears its yellow blossoms in clusters 
of catkin like spikes. The Buffalo Berry is one 
of the earliest of shrubs to bloom; its flowers 
are inconspicuous, small and yellowish. Tbe 
Cornelian Cherry is very early too; its flow¬ 
ers are bright yellow, borne in little umbels 
on the twiggy shoots, aud in their season quite 
conspicuous. In our illustration, Fig. 129, it 
is represented between the branches of pussy 
willows. Tbe Leatherwood bears a profusion 
of yellowish flowers, not at all showy, how¬ 
ever, in earliest Spring, This is the shrub 
whose branches sometimes tax the strength of 
boys to break them. The Spieebush. common 
by the margin of woods and way.6ides, is an¬ 
other shrub whose naked branches are deco¬ 
rated with little yellow flowers. But one of 
the gayest of all shrubs is tbe Forsycbia, or 
Doldeu Bell; its long, vine-like, slender shoots 
are wreaths of showy golden blossoms. The 
Mezereum dons its purple-rosy dress quite 
early in the Spring. Zautborhiza apiifolia. 
commonly kuown as Shrub Yellow Root, is 
indigenous to damp, ramtly shady, rich spots 
along the AUeghauies, and, although seldom 
seen in cultivation, is well worthy of a nook 
in our gardens; from March till late in April 
it is heavily bearded with compound racemes 
of chocolate-colored flowers. Few trees are 
so conspicuous as the Red-bud when It is in 
flower, but although it blossoms on tbe naked 
wood.the Spring is then so far advanced that 
many other treesare pushing forth their leaves. 
But one of tbe showiest of naked blooming 
is the Chinese Yulan Magnolia. 
Earliest among hardy evergreen shrubs to 
flower is the Japanese Andromeda, which 
bears its brouunas of white racemes contempo¬ 
raneously with the Snowdrops and Crocuses. 
Our native species, A. floribunda. soon sue 
ceeda it. Tbe Siberian Rhododendrons Da- 
uricum and ChrysaDthum, can scarcely 
wait until the snow has gone, before they show 
their purple flowers. The Mahonia or Ever¬ 
green Barberry of Oregon and the Rocky 
Mountains, displays its clustered racemes of 
yellow flowers as soon as tbe frost is past. In 
full bloom in the swamps (but perfectly amen¬ 
able to garden cultivation in ordinary soil,) 
we find tbe Leather-leaf in early Spring. And 
quickly following all of these in bloom, we 
have a host of trees and shrubs, for instance 
Japan Quince, Tbuuberg’s Spiriea, and June- 
Berry. 
3.fbonndtitral. 
POPULUS ALBA BOLLEANA. 
of six feet, yet 35° below zero has not browned 
the finest terminal points. 
1 wish to direct the attention of Eastern and 
Western propagators to this tree, as it is cer¬ 
tain to become a general favorite over a large 
part of tbecontiuent as soon as its merits be¬ 
come known. It is so unique and peculiar in 
habit and expression of foliage that the intro¬ 
duction of single specimens, here and there, 
will create a demand for the plants which our 
nurserymen must supply, as it is not easy to 
propagate from cuttings, except by skillful 
management. If put out in tbe Spring in th» 
usual way of propagating tbe poplars and 
willows, not one cutting in .'>00 will grow. To 
insure success, tbe cuttings must be placed in 
a propagating pit in Autunm, with bundles 
inverted, as w e manage the grape and mul¬ 
berry. J L. BOOT). 
In 1879, Prof. Sargent published a trans¬ 
lation of the notes of Dr. Cbas. Bolle, of Ber¬ 
lin , in regard to the rare beauty and value of 
this upright form of the White Poplar. He 
said: “The bark, even in old specimens, is 
smoothed out, as if it were polished; it is of a 
clear, bluish green color, without spots or 
cracks. The ramification is strong and char¬ 
acteristic, The brilliant white of the lower 
side of the leaves, which remains unchanged 
throughout the Summer, makes a strong con¬ 
trast with the shining dark-green of the upper 
side, producing a striking effect and rendering 
this tree visible for a long distance. The wood 
• of this fastigiate poplar is of finer quality and 
more highly esteemed here than any of the 
other poplars. It is an ornamental tree of the 
first order, and I cannot too highly commend 
it.” 
When I first saw specimens of this rarely 
beautiful tree in South Russia, and was told 
that it was native to Turkistan, I was fearful 
that it might not prove an iron-clad in the 
Northwest, but we afterwards found grand 
specimens in the Volga region, and learned 
that its range was up to the 54th parallel in 
Central Asia. With a view to testing its 
capacity lo endure low temperature under the 
most unfavorable circumstances, we grafted 
it last Bpring on the crown of one-year Popu- 
lus Wobsty plants standing on very rich gar¬ 
den soil. The cions made an upright growth 
£kUj Crops. 
THE RURAL'S SYSTEM OF POTATO 
CULTURE. 
So many of our new subscribers are asking 
for the details of our system of potato culture 
that, at the risk of rej>etition, we give it quite 
fully. The best of all land to bo used is a rich, 
sandy loam, and if barn-yard manure is to he 
used, the more it is rotted the better. It should 
be spread broadcast and plowed in; from 100 
to 200 pounds of fertilizer should be applied 
and the ground harrowed and cultivated till 
it is fine. If no yard manure is used, the 
ground should be first plowed, then from 200 
to 400 pounds of some complete fertilizer 
should be spread broadcast., aud the ground 
harrowed and cultivated till as ‘‘mellow as 
ashes." This will incorporate the fertilizer well 
into the surface soil. Our l'rieuds will not ask 
us to specify whose make of fertilizer should 
be used; any one containing from three to five 
per cent, of ammonia, from seven to ten per 
cent, of phosphoric acid aud from six to nine 
pier cent, of potash, will be a good one. Mark 
the rows and make the trenches three feet from 
center to center. These can be made with 
the spade, two spades wide aud one deep, 
or with a plow and two horses making 
a “dead furrow.” Mellow the soil in the 
bottom with a one horse plow or a subsoiler, 
leaving the trench of a uniform depth of five 
inches,and uot less than one Toot wide. Drop 
tbe seed pieces cut to single eyes, one foot 
apart ; cover with two inches of soil; when 
chaff, eut straw, flue litter, forest leaves, or 
any thing else that will make a good mulch,is 
available, spread two inches in the trenches 
and oti this again apply su -h fertilizer as above 
mentioned, at the rate of 200to400 pounds per 
acre. Jr no mulch is to be used, apply ihe fer¬ 
tilizer to t he soil in the trench. Finish billing 
the trenches loosely so that the soil over them 
shall be a little higher than the general surface, 
as it will settle somewhat. Cultivate and hoe 
as often as necessary to beep the ground free 
from weeds, but in no case “hill up.” Should 
the potatoes protrude to any extent, they 
should be slightly covered with soil. Let all 
cultivation be done very shallowly, at no 
time more than two inches deep. 
We trust we have now made our system 
plain, and that all will try at least a small 
plot, and the mulch upon a part of it. As to 
whether the fertilizer should be strewn npon 
the two inches of soil raked upon the seed 
pieces, or upon the mulch, our readers should 
judge for themselves. We are not at all con¬ 
fident which would be the more effective way. 
In a wet season, it would perhaps be better to 
sow the fertilizer upon the mulch; in a dry 
season, upon the soil which covers the seed- 
pieces in the troneh. 
It is very plain that in a wet season, the 
mulch would be of no service. Probably it 
would have a bad effect But at tbe Rural 
Farm, the soil of which is a sandy loam, in 
nine cases out of ten, potatoes are chocked in 
their growth by drought, uud we can well af¬ 
ford to run the risk of injury by mulching. 
Let us repeat that the potato is over three- 
fourths water. No matter how fertile the land 
is, unless moisture is freely supplied, a great 
yield is impossible. Given, therefore, an 
abundance of soluble food, the Rural’s trench 
system is intended to supply moisture enough 
to carry the plants through ordinary periods 
of dry weather. 
able to the other kind, at any rate, for north¬ 
ern sections. It has done remarkably well 
with us every season; but as much cannot be 
said in favor of Queen of the Prairie The 
original stock of the latter was obtained from 
B. K. Bliss & Sons, aud that of the former 
from Sibley & Co., and each was warranted 
to be true to name. R. n. 
East Charlotte, Vt. 
SASKATCHEWAN WHEAT. 
In “ Brevities,” on page 170 of the Rural, 
I saw the question asking those who had tried 
the Saskatchewan Wheat to tell what they 
know about it. Here in Dakota Territory 
some few farmers have tried it, and,as far as I 
cau learn, not one of them has received a 
greater yield per acre than if he had sown 
the genuine old Scotch Fife Wheat, and in 
market it will not bring any more money— 
that is, for milling purposes. Now 1 have 
worked in mills here in the North-west, some 
of them the largest in the world, repairing and 
changing machinery, and the universal cry of 
the millers is that the old Scotch Fife is good 
enough, and can’t be beat. If the farmers 
would only take pains with their seed, aud try 
every year to grade it higher and higher, 
there would be less and less occasion for 
schemers to make high-priced new seeds out 
of old. DK WITT L. BOYD. 
Deuel Co., Dakota. 
In the Rural for the 14th inst. you ask 
“Who knows anything about the Saskatche¬ 
wan Wheat” Last Spring 1 sowed three 
pounds of it, with my garden drill, in rows 
14 inches apart, aud went through it twice 
with the garden hoe. The rows were 19 rods 
long, the time spent in sowing and cultivating 
twice did not exceed three hours: crop, four 
bushels after running through my fanning 
mill. The same day 1 sowed, mthesame way, 
ten ounces of Welcome Oats; they had the 
same kind of care, aud the crop was four-aud- 
one half bushels when cleaned up. I know 
these are uot large crops; but the experiment 
shows what a little paius will produce. 
Portage County, Wis. rev. c. smith. 
“pride of the north” and “queen of the 
prairie” corn, 
I notice that the Rural New-Yorker 
makes Pride of the North Corn the same as 
Queen of tbe Prairie. With me, the two va¬ 
rieties, us 1 have raised them and had them 
grown in different localities in Northern Ver- 
monttbe past three years, have proved quite dis¬ 
tinct. The Pride of the North is always much 
the earlier of the two; has a smaller stalk, 
narrower loaves and cob; longer and thinner 
kernel, and is, I think, in all respects prefer- 
JOHNSON GRASS. 
I called the attention of a very intelligent 
farmer to the article on Johnson Grass in the 
Rural, page 138. He said that he believed 
the Editor in his comments was right; “that 
by thorough cultivation it could be extermina¬ 
ted,” but tbo labor would be great. He had 
known of a small patch being destroyed by 
digging it up to the depth of about six feet, 
and sifting the dirt! e. l. s. 
Travis Co., Texas. 
% IjcrDsnuui. 
NOTES BY A STOCKMAN. 
would not become cynical when he considers 
how weak and frail and illusive the passing 
follies and prejudices of mankind are, and yet 
what a deep hold they take upon men’s minds. 
Col. F. D. Curtis and Mr. B. F. Johnson, 
both contributors to the columns of the Rural 
and men of excellent judgment and knowledge 
of live stock, are in exact accordance with me 
in regard to what both of them term the “fat 
craze” and “early maturity craze.” 1 am glad to 
have their help in this matter. It is a good thing 
sometimes in tbe course of an argument to use 
what is known as the vo.ductio ad absurdum, 
or,in plain English,to follow any question out 
to its absurd ending point. Then I mightsayif 
the forced feeding of cattleand hogs and sheep 
as well.toaso culled ripeness for the butcher,at 
20 to 24 months of age.is good for one class of 
cattle or profitable for one class of stockmen, 
it is good for others; and why should uot all 
cattle be put under this forcing system. If 
such meat is well flavored, nutritious and 
profitable to the consumers, then all meat 
should be of this kind. Now if wo were to 
find in the markets no other meat but pork 
with 10 per cent, of soft, flabby flesh under 90 
per cent, lard uud 50 per cent, of soft, weak 
beef muscle too weak to hold up the carcass of 
the over-fed heast, without tbe strength of 
muscle,which age gives to 50 percent of useless 
wasteful tallow, what a howl of remonstrance 
would go up from the butchers, aud what 
shrieks of opposition from the careful house¬ 
keepers throughout the land. 
Prof. Morrow is a friend indeed, because 
he is a friend in need, although he has said 
some hard things of me. I have just read 
with much pleasure an urticle which has his 
name above it. from which l will make a few 
quotations: “Sir J. B. Lawes says very large 
crops are more costly to raise and are inferior 
in quality to more moderate crops.” * * + 
“It is a rule without an exception, that the 
largest possible yield of vegetable or animal 
product is only gained at a cost greater thuu 
the value of the product " “The labor, care, 
skill or money expended in food aud care for 
the animal which produces the largest possi¬ 
ble yield of meat often overbalances tbe value 
of the product; always the cost of the last 
pounds is greater than their value.” 
It is strange how men’s opinions differ. The 
old and valued friend who took me to task in 
regard to my views upon the “early maturity 
question,” will probably take sides with me in 
regard to that for which Prof. Morrow finds 
so much rault; while here is Prof. Morrow 
siding with me ill opposition to the old and 
valued friend. Jersey breeders think me a 
nuisance because I objected to the craziness of 
the now happily departed Jersey boom; a 
Short-horn man dislikes me because l said the 
Jerseys are the most valuable butter dairy 
animals in existence, amt says I have a pre¬ 
judice against Short-horns; the pure breed 
advocates haul me about by the hair because 
I defend tbe interests of our 42 million native 
cattle, and so I come to grief ui every way. 
But I remember when I used to read poetry 
which was not bound up in ox hides, I read 
words to t his effect. The man who has not an 
enemy has either truckled to deceit or false¬ 
hood, or he has uotsutfleient common sense to 
rise above the general low average of common 
men, while the man who is beset with opposi¬ 
tion has told the truth and opposed popular 
vices and prejudices. There is something 
cynical in this, but I would like to see the 
man who is clear-headed and honest, who 
There is little use saying any more. This 
style of feeding is uot a practical thing at all. 
It is written about a good deal by some pro¬ 
fessors who follow foreign ideas and consult 
German feeding tables, and is made use of by 
u few professional stock feeders to get large 
premiums at the exhibitions, aud that is about 
all. It is not a business affair. The only rea¬ 
son why it should be noticed at all is that the 
constant writing about it vitiates and misleads 
public opinion, and does harm in unsettling 
the tmuds of farmers who are misled to be¬ 
lieve they cannot profitably grow meat except 
in this fussy and costly way. 
Tbe Jersey cattle are getting the worst of 
it just now. Wherever a report of that night¬ 
mare of stockmen—pleuro-pneumouia—ap¬ 
pears, it is a Jersey which is the bearer of it. 
Aud now it is said this disease has at last 
reached Texas, earned there from Missouri 
by a Jersey bull. If the report is true, aud 
this veritable disease has got on to the l’exau 
plains, then the Jersey boom which has scat¬ 
tered this stock all over the country has done 
more mischief than there are figures to count 
it with. _ 
Now we are realizing the final results of the 
Jersey craze. By vicious breeding aud forced 
feeding this stock has been so weakened con¬ 
stitutionally that they are dying off on every 
hand by milk fever and scrofulous diseases. 
One farmer well kuown to me has lost his 
whole herd of pedigree Jerseys, and the last 
to go was a rtno cow, whose picture once 
graced the pages of tbe Rural. 
Booms are bad things in any shape or form. 
Prof. Sanborn of the Missouri Agricultural 
College, is doing some excellent work, his 
iecent report ou feediug meal made by grind, 
ing tbo whole corn ear, in comparison with 
clear corn meal, is of very great value for two 
things. It shows that when the ear is finely 
ground the cob maybe partly digested, or that 
it aids in the more perfect digestion of the 
meal. I think the latter is the truth, because 
the cob acts as a separator of the tnuul, just 
as powdered glass does in dissolving gums, by 
making the mass porous and causing the dis¬ 
solving action to go ou from a gteat mauy 
eeuters, while clear meal will form in the 
stomach a more solid mass. The second point— 
and it is extremely valuable and useful—is that 
range cattle, half wild, may be tied up aud 
fed iu stalls with profit. This sort of finishing 
has been often advocated iu these Notes as a 
profitable business for farmers. 
The conclusions of Professor Sanborn cer¬ 
tainly support my views, for he says the cob- 
meal fed cattle digested their food much 
better than tbo meal-fed animals, and that the 
corn ears made 50 cents a bushel, by tbe gain 
in weight of flesh. There is a moral in this 
result, w hich Is of surpassing interest to Wes¬ 
tern farmers, as well as to Eastern oues, who 
would not fail to take into account the manure 
made. _ 
I)r. Salmon says hog and fowl cholera is 
produced only by contagion and never by 
any other cause, and no amount of tilth or 
bad feeding can produce it. If this is the case, 
will Dr. t-almon explain how these diseases 
and all other contagious diseases originated, 
that is, how the first cases occured, when it was 
inqxissible there could have been any conta 
gion; aud how if the first cases originated 
