5o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
January 25 
splendid class of fellows. Each one came because he 
was interested, and wanted all he could get in agri¬ 
cultural work. The majority of them were R. N.-Y. 
readers 'before coming, and all were while here. A 
somewhat remarkable fact is that no member of the 
class uses tobacco in any form, and the same thing 
holds true of the teaching force. These men come 
from a range of experience. One is a retired business 
man from New York City, who is looking toward a 
farm as a future home. One is a graduate of a liter¬ 
ary college, who has since become interested in agri¬ 
culture, purchased a little farm and wants to know all 
he can about running it. One is a large and success¬ 
ful farmer in Rhode Island, who already makes farm¬ 
ing a success, a man who might be supposed to find 
a course of this kind of comparatively little value, but 
his own statement was that he 'believed ne got more 
out of it than any other member of the class; certain¬ 
ly he was one of the most appreciative members. One 
man is a shoe worker from Haverhill, 'Mass., who feels 
tl. it the farm offers him a better opportunity than 
the factory. 'One is the son of a large farmer in New 
Jersey near Philadelphia, and another a farmer’s son 
from Cape Cod. Several of the others are men who 
have had more experience in other lines than in farm¬ 
ing, but whose love for the farm leads them in that 
direction; in more than one case against the expressed 
wish of their parents. It is an encouraging fact when 
such a class of young men can be brought in touch 
with college work. It is a help both to them and to 
their teachers.” 
MR. MAPES AND HIS HENS. 
Since the articles about Mr. Mapes and his poultry 
were printed we have been flooded with questions, 
some of which will be answered here. Readers will 
remember that Mr. Mapes started out to let his hens 
balance their own ration. He kept wheat, corn and 
skim-milk before them all the time. They helped 
themselves to what they wanted and by actual test 
consumed food which corresponded in composition 
with a “balanced ration.” 
How did it work? 
Well, while it lasted. When the milk famine struck 
Orange County the creameries began shipping milk 
to the city, and this cut off the supply of skim-milk. 
Mr. Mapes was satisfied that grain alone in Winter 
would not keep up the egg crop, so he started feed¬ 
ing the morning mash again, with wheat at noon 
and corn at night. The only reason the mash is fed 
is that it gives a chance to feed meat or protein. If 
the skim-milk could have been obtained there would 
have been no change. 
'Mr. Mapes has been asked whether the hens do not 
eat more food when left free to pick up what they 
want. He says they can make a cheaper egg from 
food of their own selection. • At one time he kept his 
balanced ration before them all the time for six 
months. It was wetted into a mash, and the hens 
had nothing else. The hens laid 5,700 dozen eggs and 
ate $255 worth of the feed. Last Winter a tenant 
who worked for him had a flock of 40 hens with corn, 
wheat and milk before them all the time. These hens 
laid well, but the owner complained that he could 
not make them eat enough to suit him. iMr. Mapes 
says that when a man starts this plan of letting the 
hens eat as they will he wants to “shut his eyes and 
throw the feed out for the first few days.” After the 
hens are “filled up” they will not eat so much. No 
one will be likely to claim that a hen or other animal 
will live as long or keep as well on a long stretch of 
such feeding. We know that many people eat them¬ 
selves to death when they get a chance to do so, and 
no one can expect a hen to show more sense than a 
human. The hen takes care of herself, and keeps well 
on a wide range in Summer, but the exercise she 
takes in hunting for her food has much to do with 
that. When the food is placed close to her so that 
she does not need to exercise for it the case is quite 
different. We feed hens for profit—not for the sake 
of giving them a comfortable old age. In a large 
flock it will usually pay best to force the hens at high 
pressure and feed enough so that no individual can 
go hungry. 
We have been trying to obtain expert opinion re¬ 
garding the plan of permitting animals to make their 
own selection of food. We have not yet -found any¬ 
one who has given the matter a full test. The fol¬ 
lowing note from Prof. C. F. Curtiss is interesting: 
Concerning the instinct of domestic animals which 
leads them to select a balanced ration where a variety 
of feed stuffs is available, would say that I have no 
personal knowledge that such is the case, and while it 
may be true with animals in the wild state, under natural 
conditions, I would be inclined to think that this instinct 
would be largely lost in domestic animals, by reason of 
being subject to long-continued artificial environment. 
The mule, however, furnishes an illustration of an animal 
in domestication that rarely, if ever, becomes foundered 
by reason of over-feeding nr eating or drinking when 
over-heated. 
The fact that the mule acts like a gentleman at 
the table does not help the theory that the more in¬ 
telligent the animal the more likely it is to balance 
its own ration. 
Regarding the hens that act as their own stoves 
Mr. Mapes says they are still bright and active. The 
ventilaters do not draw off all the moisture, but the 
air is kept pure. 'One critic thought that the hens 
would take cold when they got off the roost platform 
down on to the cold floor. Mr. Mapes says that when 
the sun shines the floor is warm enough. On dull 
days the hens do not stay there, but hop back into 
their warm room. h. w. c. 
WHAT FERTILIZER TO USE? 
In your issue of December 21, on first page, there is an 
article from Mr. Morse ‘on fertilizer farming. Being 
obliged the coming season to use fertilizers on about 40 
acres, I would like to have his formula for corn, pota¬ 
toes and cabbage. I have 100 tons of cabbage in storage 
that was grown on eight acres. I have had heretofore 
stable manure enough, so I only used fertilizer to start 
the crops. f. h. m. 
Waterford, Pa. 
I have used mostly ready-mixed fertilizers in my 
farming, as I think they can be and are better pre¬ 
pared at the factory than I can do it. Some of the 
materials need grinding, especially soda nitrate, 
which is an important ingredient in home-mixed 
goods, and I have no mill. I have not found so much 
saving by home mixing as is usually supposed. There 
is one point in favor of home mixing; it makes of the 
farmer a student of his occupation, which is a very 
strong point. I should not like to name formulas 
for use on land with which I am unacquainted, but 
on my farm I have used for corn a fertilizer analyz¬ 
ing about three to ZV 2 per cent nitrogen, six to eight 
per cent available phosphoric acid, and five to six per 
cent potash, the nitrogen largely from materials 
which require some time to render their nitrogen 
available, as tankage; but I want some c the nitro¬ 
gen quickly available, as in notrates or blood. For 
potatoes I should select a mixture having three to 3% 
per cent nitrogen, mostly from nitrates or iblood, so 
as to act quickly; about six to eight per cent avail¬ 
able phosphoric acid, and eight to 10 per cent potash 
in form of sulphate. For cabbage, I should use about 
the same as for potatoes, but would apply a supple¬ 
mental dressing of soda nitrate when the crop is well 
started. I always grow my cabbage by transplanting 
and use a small quantity of fertilizer m the drill 
when setting, but most of the fertilizer is sown broad¬ 
cast and well worked in. The soda nitrate is best 
sown between the rows, and worked in by cultiva¬ 
tion; 1,500 pounds of fertilizer with 200 pounds of 
soda nitrate is as little as will do on my soil. For 
potatoes, I use 1,200 to 1,500 pounds of fertilizer, au 
in the drill, and well mixed with the soil. Potatoes, 
especially the earlier varieties, grow quickxy and need 
their food near by and ready for use. For corn, if 
using 1,500 pounds of fertilizer per acre, I should ap¬ 
ply 1,200 pounds broadcast and work in well, and use 
300 pounds in the drill or hill. I prefer to plant in 
hills. The roots of corn and cabbage will extend 
through the whole soil, and would 'better be induced 
to do' so, but potatoes I think do better when ferti¬ 
lized in the drill. m. morse. 
ROCKY HAY BALES.—A few years ago it was an or¬ 
dinary thing to find rocks, sticks and other foreign 
things packed up in bales of hay, but in late years this 
deception does not occur. The writer remembers dis¬ 
tinctly a long time ago, upon opening up a 200-pound bale 
of hay, we found two rocks in the center of it, that 
weighed 65 pounds. We traced this bale of hay back to 
the farm that it was raised upon, and found that the 
balers had put them in there, thinking it would be a 
good joke on the old farmer, but he did not look at it in 
this manner, and felt very much put out about it. To¬ 
day we find very little fraud and deceit practiced in 
baling hay. We receive car after car of the finest quality 
of hay, equally as good as any loose hay hauled to the 
city by farmers. paniel m’caffrey’s sons. 
Pittsburg, Pa. 
PRUNING OVERGROWN BURBANK PLUMS. 
One of our readers in Massachusetts asks the following 
question: “My Burbank plum trees, which have been set 
eight years, have never been cut back to any great ex¬ 
tent. Their branches are now almost interlocking and I 
cannot spray or cultivate them closely. They are headed 
about four feet from the ground. How can I prune them? 
Would it do to cut back some of the longer branches two 
or three feet, or would that be too severe treatment?’’ 
If he is afraid to prune them with a saw take a 
Rockdale pruner. It is a wonder they have not died 
already from overbearing with so much fruiting sur¬ 
face. I should cut two or three feet off all the 
branches and then cut six to ten feet more off most 
of them. g. s. butler. 
Connecticut. 
In my opinion it is a great mistake that the planter 
of the Burbank plum trees has not cut them -back 
before this. If they set fruit as luxuriantly as with 
me, the result will be a breaking down of the branches 
sooner or later. I understand that the branches are 
interlocking. These should he thinned out and put 
in proper shape, and then the growth of last year 
should be cut back one-half. I think if they were 
mine I should cut back some of the longer branches 
of the previous year’s growth. s. d. willard. 
New York. 
If the trees were mine, I would trim them with a 
stump puller, as I know of no good reason why any¬ 
one should grow Burbank plums. However, this 
doesn’t answer the question. If a Burbank plum tree 
has grown eight years without pruning it must be in 
pretty bad shape, and I would have no hesitancy in 
cutting back any or all branches two or three (or 
more) feet; there will probably still be left more fruit 
room than the tree should have. If trees are in good 
health no serious results will follow’. 
New Jersey. wm. h. sicillman. 
The Burbank trees can best be brought into shape 
by sawing out the strong leading branches to within 
three or 3 y 2 feet of the trunk, and then thinning out 
any others that may crowd, leaving all small branches 
alone for the coming year’s fruiting. Paint over with 
thick white lead, paint tne end of all large branches 
saw’ed off. If this pruning is done any time between 
now and April 1, when the trees are in dormant con¬ 
dition, it will tend to stimulate strong w’ood grow’th 
another year, and to prevent this I would defer the 
heaviest pruning until just about the time the trees 
are forcing into bloom. j. h. hale. 
The Burbank is a sprawling grower, and for best 
results needs annual pruning. By this it is possible 
to keep it in a shape that it may be sprayed and cul¬ 
tivated with little difficulty. As the fruit buds come 
on the old w’ood, as w’ell as on that of the last sea¬ 
son’s grow’th, a severe pruning will not destroy a 
prospective crop. Therefore, if the trees are still 
vigorous, and it is desirable to keep them in their 
present locality, quite a severe pruning is a necessity. 
I don’t think cutting two or three feet from the ends 
of the longest limbs will injure the trees in the least. 
Doubtless many strong branches will start from each 
of these old, shortened ones. These young, vigorous 
shoots will need thinning and shortening 'back the 
next season. Yet the fact remains that careful an¬ 
nual pruning and thinning is best for all kinds of 
fruit trees. w. d. b. 
Orange Co., N. Y. 
As the Burbank is a vigorous sprawling grow’er we 
find quite severe pruning necessary to keep it in good 
shape. As the trees have never received much prun¬ 
ing I should cut off the lower 'branches where they 
interfere with cultivation or spraying, and cut back 
the others enough to bring the trees into good shape, 
as they will stand severe pruning (if properly done) 
without injury to the trees. Should the land be in good 
condition and the trees now making a good growth, 
no fertilizer (nitrogen at least) should be applied 
the coming season. In the future each season cut out 
all surplus growth and cut back all others from one- 
half to three-fourths of previous season’s growth. 
This is better done when the trees are in a dormant 
state. Follow this with fertilizer and cultivation 
enough to make a medium growth of good stocky, 
well-ripened wood, and a crop of fruit should be se¬ 
cured each season, provided the inquirer is located 
where the rot does not affect the plums too serious¬ 
ly, but the quality of the fruit as put on the markets 
here is so poor I see little reason for setting Bur¬ 
bank except as a sauce plum. u. o. mead. 
Massachusetts. 
COMFORT IN CALIFORNIA.—Thermometer standing 
80 and we are sitting on the porch. Orange trees are 
now beautiful with highly colored fruit. Sunshine nearly 
every day for the past three months, and driving out 
through country towns is most enjoyable. An ideal 
climate for old people and children. We have the best 
school facilities, no severe storms or mud or cold school 
houses. w. g. 
Pasadena, Cal. 
