1903 
3oi 
Care of Greenhouse Azalea. 
B. R. W., Lockport, N. T.—l have a green¬ 
house Azalea. Can you tell me hew to care 
for It and how to propagate it? In what 
kind of soil do they grow best? 
Ans. —The greenhouse Azalea, A. In- 
dica, does well in any ordinary living 
room, unless the air is too dry, which, 
coupled with lack of water at the ro*t, 
causes dropping of foliage and flower 
buds, and encourages infestation by 
thrips and red spider, for which free 
syringing with tepid water should be 
given. During the Summer the plants 
should be put outside in a sheltered but 
not shaded place, the pot being plunged 
in the soil or banked with ashes to pre¬ 
vent drying out. A plan pursued by 
many florists is to stand the pots on 
boards, and then bank around them 
with ashes, because when plunged in the 
earth worms are very likely to enter the 
pots. The plants should be watered 
daily in dry weather. Azaleas are propa¬ 
gated by cuttings of half-ripened wood 
made in August, inserted in sand, with 
gentle bottom heat. Very few green¬ 
house Azaleas are propagated in this 
country, as Europe can grow them more 
cheaply. The best soil for Azaleas is a 
sandy compost containing one-half peat, 
one-half leaf mold, some fibrous loam 
and a little sharp sand. There must be 
very good drainage, and the plant must 
bo potted very firmly. Repotting is done 
after flowering. If the plant does not 
seem to be making healthy growth when 
outdoors, a top-dressing of old well- 
rotted cow manure may be beneficial. 
Barn for a Market Gardener. 
C. C. IVcs< Cheshire, Conn.—i expect to 
build a. barn in the Spring, and desire a 
plan. I am in the market garden business, 
and want a barn suitable for my trade. I 
expect to build the barn with a basement 
and want three horse stalls and one box 
stall, carriage room for two carriages, shed 
room for three wagons, harness room and 
room for about 10 tons of hay. The stalls 
must be on the floor, not in basement. I 
also want the barn floor suitable for 
thrashing. 
A.ms. —Fig. 108 will show the floor 
plan of a barn that is 26x50 feet, or 60 
feet, as the builder may desire. The 
space for wagons and carriages will be 
ample or the carriage barn could be re¬ 
duced in size so that the whole length of 
the building may not exceed 40 feet, and 
a shed cheaply built against one side of 
this barn for the wagons. The horse 
stable will be found quite convenient. 
B. B. B. represent horse stalls, and one 
box stall 10 foot square. A is a harness 
room, and C a granary, or these can be 
changed, whichever might be more con¬ 
venient, putting the granary in the 
corner and allowing it to project into 
the drive barn about five feet. The har¬ 
ness room will not necessarily be over 
two feet deep, with two doors into it. 
The basement, if upon a side hill, could 
be only half the full size of the building; 
probably 16-foot posts above the base¬ 
ment will be high enough. I would build 
the horse stable of narrow matched lum¬ 
ber, ceiling inside and ouside of the 
posts or studs; then put in a flue about 
eight inches square, made of double 
boards, for a ventilation flue, starting it 
near the floor and passing out near or 
at the ridge of the barn. I have figured 
the width of the horse stable 18 feet. 
Hay chutes can be put down for each 
horse, or build a double flue for each 
pair of stalls. A trap door will drop the 
manure below, if so desired, where it 
can easily be handled, which should be 
frequently, h. e. cook. 
SAWDUST FOR MULCHING, 
My first experience in using sawdust 
for mulching was about 40 years ago, 
when a boy in eastern Indiana. I was 
the oldest boy at home, and the garden 
work was my employment in Summer. 
We always tried to keep it in good shape 
and had paths running through it be¬ 
tween the rows of onion beds and other 
vegetables; the grass was very hard to 
keep down in these paths, and my fath¬ 
er advised me to try filling with saw¬ 
dust. This I did, as the sawmill was 
nearby and sawdust plentiful, I put 
about four or five inches of dust, and it 
was good-bye to grass and weeds. Straw¬ 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
berries were beginning to come into gen¬ 
eral use, and we had a small bed which 
was more trouble to keep clean of grass 
than all the remainder of the garden. 
As sawdust had succeeded so well in 
smothering the grass in the paths I 
concluded to try it between the rows of 
strawberries. I put it on about two 
inches thick, after clearing the patch 
of the largest grass and weeds, that was 
the last of the grass, and the ground 
was always moist even in the dry weath¬ 
er. I let the sawdust surround the 
plants but not deep enough to smother 
them, and when the berries came they 
were kept clean from dirt or sand, the 
sawdust making a clean carpet that rain 
did not affect on level ground, but the 
moisture was all retained unless an ex¬ 
tra heavy rain came. I was in the habit 
of mulching with coarse strawy manure 
in Winter to protect plants from severe 
--1 - J 
GROUND PLAN OF BARN. Fig. 108. 
weather. I tried the sawdust later on 
raspberries, currants and gooseberries, 
also under the grape arbor, and it was 
a success. This was poplar dust, I did 
not try oak dust. I did not try it ex¬ 
tensively in the orchard, but around 
some cherry trees it did much to keep 
grass down and hold moisture. Since 
some have condemned it as bedding for 
horses and other stock in the stables I 
must say that I have used it as bedding 
for 40 years, and have no fault to find 
with it, considering it equal te planer 
shavings and almost equal to straw, and 
much cheaper where it can be had at 
all. When we clean our stables, which 
is only twice a-year generally, we find 
it much easier to handle, and on clay 
land it acts as a loosening factor; when 
rotted it is the same as a rotten log or 
chip dirt. I have watched it as a mulch 
and in our driest weather here it will 
only dry for about three Inches; below 
this depth is plenty of moisture. This 
proves it a good clean mulch. The only 
place where I thought it proved fatal to 
trees was by banking it for three or four 
feet deep around Post oak forest trees 
near a sawmill; the trees died, but they 
might have had some other help. 
Tennessee. il l. Reynolds. 
Horse Owners! Use 
QOMBATJLT’S 
Caustic 
Balsam 
A Safe, Speedj, and PosItWe Core 
The safest, Kest BLISTER ever used. Takes 
the place of all llnaments for mild or severe action. 
Removes all Bunches or Blemishes from Horses 
and Cattle, SUPEBSEI>KS ALL CAUTERY 
< > R FIRING, Impossible to produce scar or blemish 
Kvery bottle sold Is warranted to give satisfaction 
Price SI.60 per bottle. Sold by druggists, or sent 
by express, charges paid, with full directions for 
Its use. Send for descriptive circulars. 
THK LAWRKNCK-WILLIAMS CO.. Cleveland. O. 
STONE BOAT HEAD- 
A jfreat thing. Writ© for 
free catalogue and prices. 
Agonic Wanted. 
KI01IAR]> HATES, 
ISJamepSt. Portland, Slicll. 
THE MOWER 
that will cut your short grass, 
your tall grass and weeds, 
and will do all the trimming 
along fences and walks. 
Send for catalogue and 
prices. THE CLIPPER 
LAWN MOWER CO., 
Norristown, Pa. 
THE “INVINCIBLE” 
Potato Plantei* 
is the most practical and successful hand potato 
planter made. Will not clog, but under all conditions 
does perfect work. Only planter made with rpen 
wire sleeve. A boy can plant from four 
to six acres a day with an luvlnclbl ! 
Planter. Strongly made. Handles un- 
br jakable and adjustable. 
Read these unsolicited letters: 
Gextlkmkn: I am very highly pleased 
with thelnvinclblePotatoPlanter Would 
not take $10 If I could not get auoih r. 
Not every farmer can afford to buy a $U0 
two-horse planter to use only for a day or 
two and stand Idle the rest of the year. 
L. A. SNOW, Phcenixvllle, Conn. 
Read this: 
Gentlemen: l bought one of your In¬ 
vincible Potato Planters as a trial sample 
last year, and think it equal to an extra 
man, besides being agood hack saver. 
C. W. GRIGGS, Rose Valley. Pa. 
Reliable Agents Wanted. 
Any farmer can sell Invincible 
Planters on sight. Write lor 
terms. Circulars Free. 
H. H. WABERS MFG. CO., 
Racine, Wls. 
Presoirre Your Fences 
sills, planking and ail other woodwork that Is likely to rot, by treating with 
Conservo Wood Preservative. 
It will pay you to use it on every stick of timber. Costs but a few cents a stick, and 
saves dollars in repairs, by preventing decay. It also kills germs and insects, and foul 
smells. We have studied wood preservation for twenty-five years, and believe Conservo 
is the best preservative that can be made. We knozv it is the best now m.ade. 
Send for circular, it costs nothing, and may save much. 
SAMUEL CABOT, Manufacturing Chemist, gi Kilby St., Boston, Mass. 
ClIMiX ENSIIAGE and FODDER GURERS 
“The Complete Machine.” 
wind delivery. No more trouble with carriers. The 
CLIMAX can be set up, ready for work, at a 3.5-foot 
silo, in 20 minutes. Takes less power to operate than 
any other make. The CLIMAX is guaranteed to ele¬ 
vate any fodder in any condition.s—we make no excep¬ 
tion. Eight years of success bear out our statements. 
Don’t piit off getting your machine until the season is 
on. Write us for information and get our catalogue— 
it’s free. 
THE WARSAW-WILKINSON CO., 
WARSAW, N. Y. 
They are the best and most economical power 
for all farm w^ork—pump water, saw wood, 
run separator, ensilage cutter, feed mill or any 
fpm machinery. “Fairbanks Junior” is de¬ 
signed especially for farm work—gives two 
applications of power: vertical with walking 
beam, and belt power with pulley attached. 
Write for free booklet, “FARM HELPS,” which 
gives full information i*egarding Fairbanks 
Gasoline Engines and Farm Scales. 
THE FAIRBANKS COMPANY, 
416-48U Rroome .St., New York, N. Y, 
Baltimore, Md. Buffalo, N.T. Philadelphia.Pa. Boston, Mass. 
New Orleans, La. Albany, N.Y. Pittsburg, Pa. Montreal,P.Q. 
FAIRBANKS 
(jasoline Engines 
A f! M F fsiverizing Harrow 
fl la IWI k Clod Crusher and Le 
Sizes 
3 T013 1-2 Fkbt. 
Agents 
Wanted 
Levelor 
SENT ON TRIAL 
To be returned at my expense if not satisfactory, 
The best pulverizer—cheapest Riding Har¬ 
row on earth. We also make walk¬ 
ing Acmes. The Acme 
emshes, cuts, pulverizes, 
turns and levels all 
soils for all pur¬ 
poses. Made en¬ 
tirely of cast steel 
and wrought iron 
_ ^ ^ —indestructible. 
Catalog and Booklet, "An Ideal Harrow" by Henry Stewart, mailed free. 
I deliver free on board at New York, Chlcafo, Colombao, Lonlsvine, Kinsu City, Minneapolis, San Francisco, etc 
Addreoa DUANE H. NASH. 50LB MANUFACTURER « MILUNQTON. NEW JERSEY. 
TELEPHONES 
For Farmers’ Lines, 
Organize an exchange In your 
community. Full i)articularsfur¬ 
nished. Catalogue free. 
THE NORTH ELECTRIC CO., 
152 St. Clair Street, 
C. N. 301. CLKVELAND, O. 
POPULAR GOODS—POPULAR PRICES. 
S^lYfo’aNew Universal 
HAND SEEDERS AND CULTIVATORS. 
Sullablo for eiprr 
UllH JM/J) ela»aof 
work. 
All styles. Only combination 1 and 2 wheei cultivator 
and drill made. Everyway adjustable, Allourtools 
nave tough oak bent handles and are made of best 
nniterUl thronghoat. 1903 catalogae now ready; fre«, 
Ames Plow Co., 54 Market St.,Boston. 
A Great Planter 
A machine distinguished for perfection and variety 
of duty. Plants Corn, Peas, Beans, Beets, Buck¬ 
wheat, etc. Corn and Beans or Corn and Pumpkins 
at the same time. Plants either In drills or In hills 
lli. 9,12, 18, 24, 36 or 72 inches apart. Distributes 
uniformly all commercial fertilizers, wet, dry, 
lumpy, etc. 25 to 700 lbs. per acre. Improved row 
marker. Strong and durable, easily handled, fully 
guaranteed. Agents wanted. Catalogue free. 
Belcher & Taylor A, T. Co., 
Box 76 Chicopee Falls, Mass. 
Com Planting 
must be well and carefully done, as the fu¬ 
ture crop depends upon It. For all purposes, 
in any soil, on all kinds of 
ground nothing equals the 
SPANGLER 
CORN PLANTER. 
It saves time, labor, money and Inaareotbo crop. Yon 
know when it is working; you can see the corn on Its 
way to the ground. Made with or without fertlllisr 
attaebmoaL Mew device for sowing peaa, bean., eail- 
luce, corn, etc. We also make the famous Spangler Low 
Dowa Grain and Fertillier Drill. Writ, fur catalog and clio. 
SPAMGLEB WANUFACTURINB CO., 505(Juten Sf., York, Pa. 
_ NOTE THE “A” SHAPE. 
I € admits of widest adjustment— 7 1.2 feet wide 
for field work and can be narrowed down to 30 In for 
work between rows. Front wheel makes it run easv 
tndateady. Fiiml.taed cither vith round teeth or with flat to eult 
the different sollo. aa wo are liconaed by the Hallock Weeder Com¬ 
pany to nao their flunoua flat tooth. Wo mall Weeder Booklet Free. 
Wo alao make a fun line of Corn Plantera, Cultlratora, Uarrowa, 
Rollon, etc* Ask for CaUtloguo On 
KEYSTOHE FARM MACH. C0..1547 M.BeaverSt.,York. Pa. 
Roderick Lean 
FARM 
Implements.! 
BIad« 
Since 
1868. 
Made by experlencedl 
workmen of special ma-' 
terial. Acknowledged by 
farmers superior to all others. 
Sold on 'Their merits. 
Spike Tooth Harrows. Spring Tooth 
Harrows. Disc Harrows. I 
Land Rollers. Hand Carts. I 
^^rite for catalogue. 
[RODERICK LEAN 
MFG. 
COMPANY. 
or ShoM Mansfield, Ohio. 
I on Reor. 
