7o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
February 1 
| RuralismsJ 
NOTES FROM THE RURAL GROUNDS. 
Sweet Potato Names Mixed. —Frank 
S. Newcomb, tbe sweet potato expert, of 
Vineland, N. J., writes that the descrip¬ 
tions of Big Stem and Early Golden 
sweet potatoes, on page 854, volume for 
1901, should be mutually transposed. 
They were grown under label just as 
we received them. He says the Big 
Stem is a characteristic Jersey Yellow, 
only much more vigorous in growth, 
and also more productive, while the 
Early Golden has the enormous thick 
vine spoken of under Big Stem, and the 
potatoes are very light in color, being 
nearly white. “I don’t know why it is 
called early or golden." This is plainly 
a case of a variety not living up to its 
name. We shall plant the Big Stem, to 
use the corrected name, to the exclusion 
of almost all other kinds next year, as 
in our soil it is everything a sweet po¬ 
tato should be. 
Confusion in Rose Names. —A com¬ 
mittee of the Florists’ Club, of Philadel¬ 
phia, Pa., has been investigating the 
identity of a fine new rose, sold under 
the names of Balduin and Helen Gould, 
and also described as Red Kaiserin and 
Columbia. They have reported that the 
four names have been used in this 
country for one and the same rose, 
which was raised in a German nursery 
and first sent over here in 1899. They 
regard Balduin as the correct name, as 
it was given by the German grower in 
honor of a bishop of local fame. Bald¬ 
uin is a handsome and quite hardy 
Hybrid Tea rose, of deep carmine-crim¬ 
son color, and with a marked ever- 
blooming habit. It has bloomed in a 
very satisfactory manner on the Rural 
Grounds for the last two years, but does 
not make much growth. The practice 
of renaming varieties already dissemin¬ 
ated has been frequently indulged in of 
late, and is strongly to be condemned. 
The splendid bright-red, ever-blooming 
rose, Gruss an Teplitz, was renamed, 
and is now sent out as Virginia R. Coxe 
by the same nursery firm that is respon¬ 
sible for substituting the name of Helen 
Gould for Balduin. This only breeds 
confusion, and brings loss to rose-buy¬ 
ers. It is well to fight shy of dealers 
addicted to such practices. 
The Salt Hay Crop. —One of the 
most certain if not most profitable of 
coastwise crops is the annual cut of salt 
or marsh hay. The growth is not af¬ 
fected by drought or storm, but bad 
weather greatly hampers the harvest¬ 
ing. The salt hay farmer does not sow 
nor cultivate, but he must perforce reap, 
and often under very trying circum¬ 
stances at that. There are several spe¬ 
cies of wiry grasses that grow thickly 
on the tidewater flats fringing the vari¬ 
ous estuaries along the Atlantic coast. 
They grow best on marshes only occa¬ 
sionally covered by the highest tides 
and well drained at ordinary times by 
natural or artificial channels, though 
the level must be such that the soil is 
nearly saturated by sea water at all 
times. The growth is seldom uniform, 
but good patches will cut nearly two 
tons to the acre, though the average is 
much less. Many productive marshes 
belong to nearby farmers, and other 
large tracts are owned by estates and 
corporations, and leased for haying pur¬ 
poses to parties equipped for securing 
the crop. Private marshes, especially 
along the New England coast, are often 
well cared for and drained by open 
ditches communicating with the tidal 
streams, which are bridged to permit 
approach of teams. Others are only ac¬ 
cessible by water, and hay-making tools 
and cured product are transported in 
scows or barges and by wagon over the 
frozen surface in Winter. 
A Brief “Cultivation.” —The only 
operation comparable to cultivation is 
the burning over of the stubble before 
growth begins. This is usually done on 
February or March, and effectually rids 
the surface of the tough stems which 
would clog any mower. There are some 
.large stretches of salt meadow in dis- 
tant»view of the Rural Grounds, and the 
annual burning makes a picturesque 
feature quite comparable to prairie 
fires in a small way. During the Sum¬ 
mer months the grasses grow rankly, 
but seldom reach a greater height than 
12 to 16 inches. The dark green waving 
surface is very attractive, but maturity 
comes with the cool nights of August, 
and the meadows rapidly turn brown. 
Cutting begins in late July, and is con¬ 
tinued, according to press of other work 
and the accessibility of fields, until mid¬ 
winter, but the well-cured products of 
the earlier cuttings are by far the best 
in quality, selling for $10 to $12 per ton 
when baled. It is chiefly used for pack¬ 
ing fine articles, but doubtless a small 
proportion is fed to horses and cattle. 
The analysis of clean salt hay shows a 
theoretical feeding value almost equal 
to high-grade Timothy, but it is so 
tough and lacking in savor that it is 
only eaten with reluctance. Later cur¬ 
ings are more brittle, and bring less, 
but the greatest point of difference in 
grade comes in the conditions under 
which it is cured. If clean and free 
from sand and trash brought in by 
storms and high tides, the price of $10 
a ton will be approached, while for 
lower grades and Winter cuttings the 
value drops as low as $4 or $5 per ton. 
These cheap graaes are used for coarse 
packing, stable 'bedding and Winter 
mulching, for which purpose the coast 
region affords nothing better. It lies 
thick and warm when used as plant or 
soil covering, and is not easily blown 
about nor beaten down by rains, while 
it is very durable, lasting two or three 
seasons, with care in cocking up when 
not in use, and, last but not least, is 
practically free from seeds of noxious 
weeds. 
Harvesting Salt Hay. —The lot of 
the marsh haymaker cannot be said to 
be a happy one. The footing Is often 
treacherous, mosquitoes are llikely to be 
over-plentiful, and the grasses tough 
and remarkably heavy, often straining 
tools and teams to the utmost. The 
mowing machine and horse rake are 
used whenever practicable, but the haul¬ 
ing is done largely on sledges, and only 
steady old horses, or often mules and 
oxen, may be used. The salt grasses 
cure slowly when cocked, but do not 
easily heat or “burn,” and the effort is 
made to get the cut grass into heaps as 
soon as wilted sufficiently to handle. 
Rain does not affect it much, but high 
tides while in swath seriously lower its 
value. It is often difficult to find suf¬ 
ficient elevation on these level marshes 
to keep the stacks above high water, 
and foundations are usually made on 
rails laid over piles driven in the soft 
soil at convenient locations. The marsh 
haymakers in our vicinity are more for¬ 
tunate in this respect, as there has been 
so much dredging in the various steam¬ 
boat channels that sand piles of suf¬ 
ficient height may usually be found. 
After the hay is securely stacked all 
danger of loss is not over, as wild gales 
may blow them over, and from their iso¬ 
lated condition they are occasionally 
burned by irresponsible fishermen or 
skaters. We have never seen any state¬ 
ment of the output of salt hay on the 
New Jersey coast, but it must be con¬ 
siderable, and represent much value. 
Late in the Fall, when thoroughly dried 
out, the hay is graded, baled and trans¬ 
ported to market, by any means by 
which it can be got out of its locality. 
w. v. F. 
For the land’s sake, use Bowker’s Fer¬ 
tilizers. They enrich the earth.— Adv. 
PRICES GREATLY REDUCED. 
POSrSTffSAP SPOUTS 
THE AIR TRAP 
does it. 
GIVE 
More Sap 
every day 
for 
More Days and make 
More Moneythanlny 
other, and there lea scientific 
reason for it explained In our 
free Catalog or with 
samples of each 6 cents. 200 
delivered at any B. K. station. 
No. 1. Length, 3 l 4 in. 
Genuine has signature 
on each label. 
No. 3 length, Ins. 
No. l .11.65 
No. 2,$1.40 
per loo. 
AGENTS 
WANTED. 
C. C STELLE. 81 Fifth Avenue, Brooklyn, N Y. 
V ^ v - 
. -T /-i• . 
Ut 4 
■Mm 
a< ( ijp M 
Corn 
removes from the soil 
large quantities of 
W§ik 
Potash. 
/ * rJkinNn 
Sly 
1:1 
The fertilizer ap¬ 
plied, must furnish 
enough Potash, or the 
land will lose its pro¬ 
ducing power. 
Read carefully our books 
on crops —sent free. 
GERMAN KALI WORKS, 
93 Nassau St., New York. 
If you grow BERRIES, 
PEACHES, GRAPES 
OrMELOKS, name 8 J a°n d 
address on a postal, and secure a 
1 
'copy of our latest catalogue and 
price list of Berry Boxes and Fruit Baskets. 
THE riKRCE-WII.LIAMS CO. 
Kouth Hu veil. Mich. 
Best Fruit Paper. 
Read a paper devoted solely to fruit culture" 
monthly, illustrated, 16 to 48 pages, 50 cents a year, 
10 cents for three months, trial subscription. 
Western Fruit Grower, Box 3, St. Joseph, Mo. 
American Gardening 
10 Sample Copies, separate issues, 10c. 
Published at 136 Liberty St, New York. 
Fresh Burned Ground Lime 
for '“Bordeaux Mixture,” Bug Exterminator. White¬ 
washing. Disinfecting purposes and for Lime Fer¬ 
tilizer. For full information, address 
THE SENECA WHITE LIME CO., Fostoria, O. 
LIME FERTILIZER 
Special preparation giving splendid satisfaction. 
Correspondence solicited THE SNOW FLAKE 
LIME CO., Bowling Green. Ohio. 
Use Nitrate of Soda 
CORN, WHEAT, FRUIT and VEGETABLES. 
You get your share of profit when you use 
this Standard High-Grade Ammoniate. 
Formulas and other valuable information free. 
WILLIAM S. MYERS, Director, 
12 John Street. Chilean Nitrate Works, New York. 
For Money Crops 
HIGH GRADE FERTILIZERS 
OUR PRICES LOW. QUALITY PURE. 
Write for Memorandum Bock, Prices and Samples. 
The Scientific Fertilizer Co. """'^tsbuSg.pa. 
Send for Caia og 
Describing our 
Full 
Line. 
SEE THE SEED DROP. 
In plain sight ol the operator. 
MATTHEWS' 
New Universal 
(Improved for 1902) 
HAND SEEDERS 
AND 
CULTIVATORS. 
Uned by the mostbuccess* 
ful gardeners. They do 
perfect work. Open fur¬ 
row, drop seed, cover any 
desired depth. Cultiva- 
tingaltachments. Latest 
and best. Popular prices. 
AMES PLOW CO., 
54 Market St. BOSTON. 
DO YOU SOW 
SEED? 
If you do you need 
the most practical 
hand seeder made, 
the 
GAHOON 
BROADCAST SEEDER 
saves one-third the seed; four-fifths the 
labor. Ask your dealer and take no 
other. Send for circulars. 
Goodell Go.,14 Main St., Antrim, N. H. 
with the “incomparable* 
BORDEAUX NOZZLES 
and our world’s best outfit you are abso ’ 
ilute master of the situation. Insects and dis*f 
lease fall before this all conquering outfit, y 
|S#“> the book. It is free. Write for it now.] 
THE DE3UXG CO., SALEM, OHIO. 
Western Agta., Henion & Hubbell, Chicago. 
SPRA Y 
UfP WITH THE 
EMPIRE KING. 
This is the only hand pump hav- 
- jng a mechanical automatic agi- 
tator with a brush for keeping the 
suction strainer clean. This Co. 
also make the Garfield knapsack and 
Orchard Monarch, and can furnish 
the New Process Lime, which requires noalack- 
ic£ or straining. Valuable book seat Dree. 
FIELD FORCE PIMP C0„ 
2 Market St., Loekport, N. Y. 
PROF IT or LOSS? 
That’s the Question 
THE ECLIPSE 
SPRAY PUMP 
Will settle that in your 
orchard. With it you 
CAN make a profit, with¬ 
out it what do you get ? 
Send for Catalogue. 
MORRILL & MORLEY, 
BENTON HARBOR, MICHIGAN. 
Agents and Dealers Wanted 
i to sell Rlppley’* 8 und 5 Gallon Com-* 
^.*1 1 P r e**£d Air b prayer*, also large orchard 
,sS.L era. We have the best, and sell them under a guaran¬ 
tee. A card will bring catalogue and terms. 
Rlppley Hardware Co., Boi 223 , Grafton, Illinois. 
irrayerFREE 
Write for fun details. For the 
garden, farm, poultry house, barn, 
I orchard, etc. Self-operating. You hold 
the hose—the Sprayer does the work. 
Exterminates Inserts from Vegetables, 
I Sprays Trees, Showers Gardens, Washes 
Carriages, t leans Windows. Our new 
“Kant-Klog”» Nozzle 
IS A DANDY. CAN BE USED ON ANY SPRAYER 
SPECIAL OFFER: For next 10 days to introduce this 
wonderful new nozzle we wlU send sample and take 
yourold nozzle as part pay. Agents make big m.ney. 
Rochester Spray Pump Co., 16 East Axe., Rochester, H.T. 
Tliislseasy todo ifyou spray your treeB. 
Now a word about sprayers. Get 
the best when you buy. 
THE HARDIE 
,, SPR.AY PUMPS 
are the best, because they have Iiraas 
ball valves, patent agitator, an adjust¬ 
able plunger that will never leak. No 
leather nor rubber about them. 
That’s why they work so easy, 
give such a fine spray and cost 
nothing for repairs. We make 
them all sizes,to supply from one 
to eight nozzles. Our catalog tells 
the whole sforv. Itlsfr#e. Ask for it. 
THE HARDIE SPRAY PUMPMFG. CO.. 
74 Lamed Si., Detroit, Mich. 
