226 
March 25» 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
and will stick where it is put, and the eating insects 
will find sure death in eating, or they must starve or 
seek other feeding grounds. I would spray once just 
before the blossoms come out, then again just as soon 
as the bloom falls and the fruit has set. On account 
of the canker-worms I would make a third applica¬ 
tion about a week later to cover the new leaf surface 
that the new growth has brought forth since the 
other spraying. Ten days or two weeks later a fourth 
application should be made, and if there is any fear 
of Codling moth later or bitter rot I would spray 
again about the first of July. It may be that there 
are not fruit buds on the trees this year, or the pollen 
may be lacking in potency to fertilize the pistils, and 
then there can be no crop this year, but I would ex¬ 
pect a good crop next year if I didn’t get some fruit 
this year. u. T CO x. 
Lawrence Co., O. 
Taking it for granted that the orchard is in a fairly 
healthful condition, but greatly debilitated by neglect 
and the ravages of the canker-worm, I think the res¬ 
toration of the same to a profitable state a matter 
of proper methods chiefly. First and foremost the 
suggestion of removal of one-half of the trees is, in 
my opinion, the correct thing to do, when trees are 
so close that the limbs are interlocking. It is im¬ 
possible to obtain good fruit in such a crowded con¬ 
dition. If the trees are set equal distances apart each 
way, which is the general practice, I would cut so as 
to leave them in a hexagonal form, but if wider one 
way than the other an entire row cut out might an¬ 
swer the purpose, with some shortening in. At any 
rate, give the trees more space by the method that 
seems most practical. Room is needed for the culti¬ 
vating and spraying that will have to follow. In the 
matter of pruning I would thin out freely, without 
cutting any large limbs; better err in not taking out 
enough rather than overdo it, remembering that these 
trees are already enfeebled from neglect. I would 
then wish to give thorough but shallow cultivation, 
the shallower the better, and would keep up this cul¬ 
tivation until the latter part of the Summer, when 1 
could use a cover crop. Undoubtedly the soil is more 
or less depleted, probably more, and liberal manuring 
of stable manure or a high-grade fertilizer is unques¬ 
tionably needed. These trees need feeding without a 
doubt, and likely plenty of it. After we have done 
this our work will come to naught unless we bring 
the spray pump into service. I have had no personal 
experience with the canker-worm, but, like all leaf¬ 
eating insects, it can be controlled by arsenical poi¬ 
sons. In this case I would use at the proper time 
three pounds of arsenate of lead (paste form) and 
one-fourth of a pound of Paris-green to 50 gallons of 
Bordeaux Mixture, and if ,,he trees were thoroughly 
sprayed would expect no farther trouble from canker- 
worms that season. My experience has been that 
neglected orchards, if not in too bad shape, respond 
quickly to good treatment. On the whole, I do not 
see why there should not be favorable results the fol¬ 
lowing season, unless the trees are in worse condi¬ 
tion than I am led to believe from the description. 
New York. j. r. Cornell. 
A KERNEL Oh CORN. 
For Children, Young and Old. 
Part I. 
It looks like a very simple thing which we drop 
Into the ground when we plant a hill of corn. The 
botanist may discover a beautiful arrangement of 
cells within the kernel. He may make a careful study 
of the contents. He may even make a profound study 
of the parts of a single cell and attempt to determine 
their functions. To find out about these things calls 
for a good compound microscope of high power. But 
none of these things is necessary to learn something 
about the corn. We can see much with the naked 
eye, though a simple hand lens will aid us to see 
more. The only form of lens I ever carry is a “linen 
tester costing about 25 cents, and it answers the 
purpose as well as any. 
The first thing to attract attention in the kernel 
of corn is the hardened shiny covering. This serves 
to protect the seed within. Without it a single rain¬ 
storm might saturate and spoil the seed. Yet this 
co\ering is not so impervious as to prevent moisture 
from passing through. Here are some kernels which 
ha\ e lain in moist sand since morning. Already they 
seem larger and look as though they had begun to 
soften. They have absorbed moisture from the sand 
about them. Upon looking at this covering under 
the lens I am surprised to find how much it looks 
like a corn husk or leaf. The tiny veins run parallel 
to each other, lengthwise of the kernel, just as they 
do in the leaf and husk. At one side of every kernel 
there is an oblong depression. Upon cutting into a 
few of these depressions with the point of a knife 1 
find that there is a tiny plant just underneath the 
outside covering. To be sure it does not look green. 
like the corn plant we see growing, but there in min¬ 
iature is the tiny shoot which first pricks through 
the ground when the kernel is planted. Meanwhile 
let us look at the remainder of the kernel. What Is 
all this other material for? The plantlet occupies 
but a small part of the kernel. Let us think what 
must happen when the kernel is planted. This tiny 
plantlet must grow much larger. It must get its 
head out to the light and its root out into contact 
with the soil. Until all this is done it can get no food 
from the soil. The mother plant has provided for its 
food. A supply has been prepared and stored here 
within this covering for the use of the little one. It 
is this food supply which might be easily spoiled, 
without the protecting covering on the outside. The 
principal food of the plant is starch. 
In Illinois there is an association of corn breeders 
These men are trying to improve the corn they grow. 
THE SPROUTING KERNEL Fig. 82. 
Among other things, they are having a chemical an¬ 
alysis of the grain from different plants made, then 
planting the remainder from those ears which show 
the highest proportion of protein. In that way they 
hope to develop a strain which will possess a higher 
value for feeding purposes. There is no apparent rea¬ 
son why they should not succeed. Sugar-beet grow¬ 
ers have made wonderful progress in increasing the 
sugar content of beets by just that sort of selection. 
The same result should follow a careful selection of 
corn according to protein content. 
The kernels have now been in the sand four days. 
Most of them have simply swollen and grown larger, 
but here and there one shows more activity. The 
oblong depression at the side has become filled or 
even swollen outward. From the base has burst 
forth a stiff rigid white point of growth. On one ker 
nel this has grown to be seven-eighths of an inch 
long, but is still stiff and rigid, clear white, but 
slightly yellowish at the end. The tip is perfectly 
smooth, but a short distance back there begin to ap¬ 
pear tiny white hairs. These are the root-hairs. 
Their presence shows that this is the young root. 
Lpon them the plant must largely depend for mois¬ 
ture and for the mineral matter which it needs from 
the soil. The scale, which covered this depression 
THE KINDERGARTEN PERIOD. Fig. 83. 
in the dry kernel, has burst open its entire length, 
and another tip is pointing in the opposite direction. 
This one is slightly curved toward the kernel and is 
tinged a reddish color at the end. It seems as solid 
and firm as the opposite one, but is somewhat more 
blunt. The surface of this young shoot is a beautiful 
sight when examined under the hand lens or even 
with the naked eye. Fig. 82 shows the developing 
kernels. 
TWO DAYS LATER.—How the young plantlets 
have grown in two days! Half a dozen tips are above 
the sand. The first one lifted has a root 2% inches 
long, and a tip one inch long. Yet the kernel does 
not seem any smaller, though it is soft and has evi¬ 
dently lost much of the food which was stored up 
in it. Many of these kernels have now been in the 
sand six days. Some are just beginning to sprout, 
and others show no signs of sprouting. Of course- 
they have been disturbed, and the moisture conditions 
may not have been uniform in this clear sand. Per¬ 
haps they have not been watered just as they should, 
be. But some of the seeds are evidently stronger than 
others. These plants would have an advantage all 
their lives. If loosening the sand has any effect in 
retarding germination it only impresses the import¬ 
ance of firming the soil about the seed when planted. 
To grow the seed must absorb moisture. The soil 
must therefore be moist and in close contact with the- 
seed. If those conditions can be obtained, the nearer 
the surface the seed can be the better, so far as ger¬ 
mination is concerned, though it may not be best for 
the subsequent growth of the crop in all cases. 
I have cut open a germinating kernel and was sur¬ 
prised to see how soft and white it had become. It 
looks as though it were all ready to dissolve and be 
used by the young plantlet. I suppose that the starch, 
must change to sugar for that to be done. This ma¬ 
terial does seem to taste sweeter than the dry kernel. 
The parts of the kernel separate easily now. I can 
understand the depression which appears on the out¬ 
side of the dry kernel a little better. It seems to be 
a part of the germ itself, distinct from the food stored 
in the rest of the kernel. I am astonished at what 
a different taste it has from that of the starchy part 
of the kernel. The taste gives the impression of ac¬ 
tive growing plant-life, rather than of stored plant 
food. When separated it forms a little shield or hood 
at base of young shoot. The shoot and root seem to- 
take their rise at about the center of the kernel, un¬ 
derneath the little hump which was noted on the 
kernel just starting. The delicate parallel veining 
on the tiny shoot is becoming very apparent and 
some green color is beginning to appear. A little 
later, the kindergarten stage shown in Fig. 83 is 
reached; then there is a vigorous growth until the 
tassels shown in Fig. 84 are developed. At one 
time in lifting kernels one became disturbed, so that 
the root started out into the air and grew more than 
an inch above the surface, curving gracefully over 
it, but not pointing downward again. I wondered it 
it would find its way back into the soil. I did not 
have a chance to see, for I accidentally broke the tip 
off. Even this did not discourage the young plant, for 
it promptly threw out branch roots from near the 
point where the main one had started and continued 
to grow. __ FRED W. CARD. 
A NO THEN HAPPY FARMER. 
The Happy Farmer scores some points on page 143. 
I do not disapprove of his aim to cut down the run¬ 
ning expenses; in fact, the majority of people should 
be encouraged to economize more and cut the gar¬ 
ment according to the cloth. But there are always 
two sides to a question. Happy Farmer advises grow¬ 
ing or producing everything we need as far as pos¬ 
sible. The question is, can we afford to do that at 
the present time? The drift is toward specializing, 
even in farming. We all know many farmers who 
devote their time to but few things. They make a 
success of them, and this puts them into a position 
to purchase what they need in other lines; thus they 
can live very comfortably and with comparatively 
little worry. Then, again, my mind wanders to some 
of my neighbor farmers. They cannot see any man 
make a few dollars in any enterprise but what they 
will rush into the same thing, be it raising berries, 
capons, grapes or honey, only to make a failure oi. 
all of them. They purchased a feed mill, a corn 
shredder, stalk cutter, hay press, buzz saw, sawmill, 
etc., and they contemplate doing other great things 
in the near future. With all of that they are head 
over ears in debt. I cannot see wisdom in such 
management; I believe in specializing. The fewer 
things we concentrate our energies upon the better 
we shall succeed with them. 
I am a bee keeper and fruit grower. I am perfectly 
contented to purchase horse and cow feed and other 
things needed from my neighbors, and let them make 
a dollar if they can. I would not make my own gar¬ 
ments if I could. I feel happy to let the tailor live; 
let the blacksmith do the same. Even to the grocery- 
man I do not deny the privilege to be on the earth. 
I want to let other people live and live myself, and 
thus be happy. In his bill of fare the Happy Farmer 
omits one of the wholesomest sweets the earth brings 
forth, namely, honey. He should substitute it for the 
candy anyhow. An accomplished jack-of-all-trades, 
I should think, would also keep bees and produce 
honey to save paying out money for sugar and candy. 
Otherwise Happy Farmer’s table is well supplied, and 
it would seem his good wife would have to slave her 
life away cooking, mixing and fixing; his stomach 
would wear out in a short time, without it was of 
iron, and his family would become a lot of dyspeptics.. 
The constant tickling of our palate with a great va¬ 
riety of fancy dishes cannot fail to have a detrimental 
effect upon our system. It induces us to overeat. I 
believe that a simpler diet would be far better for 
rural people, or city people either. The Happy Farm¬ 
er’s bill of fare cut in twain, and the extras and 
knickknacks left out entirely would be sufficient. The 
best class of farmers hereabout do not indulge in any¬ 
thing as elaborate as that even. The man who is con¬ 
tent with, and enjoys his dish of bread and milk or 
mush and milk for his evening meal—Happy Farmer 
styles it dinner—or relishes his oatmeal and milk for 
his breakfast, will also go away from the dinner table 
(rather luncheon, I believe), satisfied if there should 
not have been anything else but pork and beans upon 
it. Such a meal as Happy Farmer describes does 
credit to a Thanksgiving occasion, but is altogether 
too elaborate for ordinary occasions. Besides, I like- 
to see our women folks live, too. f. g. 
Naples, N. Y. 
