642 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
September 20 
Pluralisms ; 
NOTES FROM THE RURAL GROUNDS 
The t)RsrisED Elder Bush, —The 
common elder of fence corners and 
waste places is heartily disliked by most 
neat farmers as an aggressive shrub 
hard to eradicate when a foothold has 
been gained, though valued by some as 
a minor fruit for culinary uses. It is 
very handsome in foliage, fruit and 
flower and a really choice subject for 
ornamental plantings, but is altogether 
too common to be appreciated. This 
has been impressed on the writer by the 
development of a strong plant in a 
vacant reclaimed lot, where nothing but 
a few coarse weeds have hitherto grown. 
We have watched the growth of this 
isolated specimen for the last three 
years during almost daily rides through 
an unattractive manufacturing suburb. 
It has now reached an apparent height 
of eight feet with a spread of 10 or 12 
feet, and is as symmetrical in outline as 
one could wish. The lot is strongly 
fenced so no marauders have marred its 
shapeliness in pursuit of the fragrant 
blooms or juicy ebon berries, which now 
sway the branches almost to the ground. 
Such a specimen would ornament the 
finest pleasure grounds, and could not 
fail of appreciation if so placed, but it 
is probable that few of the thousands of 
railroad, travelers that now pass it daily 
ever note its adaptability for ornamen¬ 
tal purposes. The yellow-leaved variety 
o:' the European elder, Sambucus nigra, 
is the only member of the genus largely 
planted in this country. It has been 
used much too freely for enlivening 
shrubberies, as its bright golden fo¬ 
liage, though very pleasing when 
healthy, often burns to a sickly brown 
in hot weather, making a blur on an 
otherwise harmonious grouping. There 
is also a handsome cut-leaved variety of 
another European or rather Asiatic 
elder, S. racemosa, with golden foliage. 
It is a recent novelty not thoroughly 
tested over here, but is said to be very 
handsome, retaining its color through¬ 
out the season. A very ornamental new 
green cut-leaved elder is now first of¬ 
fered under the name of Sambucus 
Canadensis acutiloba, it being a variety 
of the common native elder first referred 
to. It is claimed to be one of the best 
cut-leaved shrubs in cultivation. An¬ 
other interesting form of the common 
elder was introduced over 10 years ago 
as bearing berries nearly one-fourth inch 
in diameter. It was sent out as the 
Brainard elderoerry by D. Brandt, Bre¬ 
men, O., and other. Not much has been 
heard from it since, but it is probable 
that very superior fruiting varieties will 
in time be developed or discovered. One 
of the prettiest native species, S. pu- 
bens, bears red berries ripening in June 
when the common kind is in bloom, it 
is rather sparingly distributed through- 
out the mountainous parts of eastern 
North America, and occasionally its 
coral-red berries may be seen associated 
with the massive white flower clusters 
of the common kind, as one ripens its 
fruits just as the other comes into full 
bloom. 
Fertilizing the Lawn. —At first 
sight it would seem a simple matter in 
these days of accurately compounded 
chemicals to maintain the fertility of a 
lawn. Just figure out a “balanced ra¬ 
tion” formula for grass combining ni- 
tiogen, potash and phosphoric acid in 
due proportions and apply it liberally; 
the grasses should be stimulated, while 
nc- weed seeds would be brought in as 
with stable manures. This is all true, 
but the weeds—and they are legion in 
most American lawns—already estab¬ 
lished are also encouraged; the potash 
feeds the clovers and the phosphates 
are quickly appropriated by plantains. 
dandelions and other free-seeding 
plants. The lawn as a whole is helped. 
but obtrusive weeds are forced into 
prominence rather more rapidly than 
the desired narrow-leaved grasses. Close, 
clipping with the mower, alternated 
with heavy rolling, will do much to dis¬ 
courage the more aggressive weeds, but 
does not greatly check the spread of 
White clover, which mars a first-class 
lawn, though useful enough on those of 
less pretensions. It has been demonstrat¬ 
ed by many trials that soluble nitrogen 
is the ingredient most needed in ordi¬ 
nary lawns and that it is best and most 
economically applied in the form of 
finely-ground nitrate of soda or sulphate 
of ammonia when the grass is wet with 
dew or rain. These chemicals, affording 
nitrogen in its most concentrated avail¬ 
able form, are quite caustic in their ac¬ 
tion on tender foliage and burn out the 
clovers, plantains and other broad¬ 
leaved plants, but have little effect on 
the desirable narrow-bladed grasses, 
covered with their tough epidermis. The 
fertilizing effect is very quickly shown. 
Within a few days after the dissolved 
chemicals have reached the roots in- 
ci eased growth and deepening color are 
noticeable. Possibly the best result is 
attained when a mixture of equal 
weights of soda nitrate and ammonia 
sulphate, in as fine condition as can be 
secured, are sown at the rate of 200 
pounds to the acre or five pounds to 
each 100 square feet for smaller areas. 
This is a liberal application and will 
make the grasses on a poor lawn fairly 
jump after a rain or two, provided suffi¬ 
cient available potash and phosphoric 
acid are present, which is usually the 
case. If one or both of these necessary 
sunny window. When planted out they 
soon grow into showy blooming plants, 
making a veritable blaze of gold in late 
Summer and Autumn. w. v. f. 
IS THE ROBIN A x ROBBER? 
Michigan Man Says No!—What is the 
matter with The R. N.-Y. that you have 
started a crusade against the robins, the 
most useful birds we have? Do not your 
correspondents know that robins are about 
all the protection we have from the cut¬ 
worms? Eet them go and sit down near 
a robin’s nest when the old birds are feed¬ 
ing the young, and count the cutworms 
that are brought in in one hour. I have 
a small fruit farm that I operate success¬ 
fully, and many robins build their nests 
among the shade trees. They do eat 
some of all kinds of berries, but I have 
watched their habits too long to feel like 
killing them for what little fruit they 
eat. They are the first bird here in the 
Spring, and are the last in the Fall. They 
begin work at daylight in the morning, 
and continue until nearly dark at night, 
and in the whole Summer do not live one 
day on fruit alone. If the robins could be 
exterminated your correspondents, who 
only see what fruit and earthworms they 
eat, would soon cry for help from cut¬ 
worms and other insects. When a farmer 
kills a robin he kills one of his very best 
friends, and never would do it if he knew 
their habits as he should. e. t. m. 
Reed City, Mich. 
A Jerseyman Says Yes!— The robins are 
a great pest on my place. They usually 
destroy great quantities of strawberries, 
but this year they kept to the woods 
through June, and did not bother them 
much. We think they were living on the 
17-year locusts. The locusts were gone 
when the raspberries ripened, however, 
and the robins attacked the berries in 
flocks. I had about V/z acre on the hill 
field, having a fair crop, but after one or 
two pickings 1 had to stop. The birds took 
them all as fast as they ripened. I am 
sure they took no less than $100 worth of 
In Olden Days 
men were broken on the wheel, 
now they buy 
Electric Steel Wheels, 
and save money. They fit any 
wagon. Made with either stag, 
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tell you how to make a low down 
wagon with any size wheel, any 
width tire. Catalog tells. It’s free. 
Electric Wheel Co., Box 88. Quine*, w 
ARROW BRAND 
Ready Rooting 
can be laid on 
top of old 
shingles with¬ 
out tearing off 
the old roof. 
ASPHALT READY R00FIN6C0. r™ 
136 Water St., New York._ samples. 
ingredients are in too small quantity, 
which may be ascertained by trial on a 
small area, the potash is best supplied 
in the form of wood ashes, which also 
brings in a substantial percentage of 
lime, and the phosphorus in ground 
bone, thus adding more nitrogen, as 
good bone should contain over five per 
cent of the latter; but these chemicals 
will surely encourage the growth of un¬ 
desirable plants, in proportion, more 
rapidly than of the useful grasses, so 
they are best applied in rather small 
quantity. A ton of wood ashes is a full 
agricultural application and may be cut 
in half for this purpose, while not more 
than 300 to 400 pounds of bone to the 
same area should be needed for a single 
application. For small areas the bone 
and ashes may be separately applied, 
sowing them thickly enough to make a 
fair showing, as one would sand a floor. 
The main idea is to encourage the lawn 
grasses while repressing weeds and 
broad-leaved plants. Nitrogenous chem¬ 
icals applied as above will greatly aid 
this attempt and may be used repeated¬ 
ly in a good growing season, until the 
lawn is rehabilitated, and at longer in¬ 
tervals afterwards. 
The most Decorative Sunflower.— 
Fig. 255, on first page, shows a cluster 
of blooms of the Dahlia sunflower, a va¬ 
riety of Helianthus decapetalus, though 
usually sold as H. multiflorus flore 
pleno. It is a very handsome plant not 
grown as widely as its merits deserve, 
because of its doubtful hardiness. It 
usually winterkills in the Middle States, 
though established clumps occasionally 
thrive for many years in protected situ¬ 
ations. It is a handsome plant in all 
stages of growth, beginning to bloom in 
late June and increasing in size and 
beauty until frost. The blooms are as 
symmetrical as Dahlias, borne on long 
stems and produced in the greatest pro¬ 
fusion. They are so double as to be 
completely sterile, propagation being 
effected by division of the clumps or 
root stocks. It should be given good 
soil, as if starved the blooms come only 
partially double. Although the foliage 
soon drops, the flowers are very lasting 
when cut. If made up with some other 
durable green foliage they will last a 
week in water. The plant itself grows 
three or four feet high and makes a 
very shapely bush seldom needing stak¬ 
ing except in very exposed situations. 
The rich golden yellow blooms are al¬ 
ways attractive either on the plant or 
in a vase. Although unreliable when 
left out over Winter the clumps may be 
raised after the tops are killed by frost 
and wintered in a box of earth in the 
potato cellar. Growth is likely to start 
before it is safe to plant outside when 
shoots may he taken with sufficient 
roots and placed in a pot or box in a 
raspberries alone. I have cut down all 
my sweet cherry trees. I had been unable 
to get any cherries from them for years. 
The robins took the crop. The robin is the 
only bird to which 1 object. It is lu times 
worse than the English sparrow, and does 
more damage than all other species put 
together in this neighborhood. 
Mercer Co., N. J. thos. r. hunt. 
A New Yorker Says "Amen!”— In the 
Spring one really likes to have the robin 
come, and how busy he keeps killing in¬ 
jurious (?) worms! His diet is mostly 
earthworms! As I understand it, they are 
our friends, but he does not eat nasty 
worms one minute after any fruit gets 
half ripe, and by the time cherries are 
ripe he and the crows have “gathered them 
in.” 1 have seen enough crows and robins 
in a cherry tree in one day to eat as 
many cherries as a dozen hungry boys. 
After they have eaten the cherry crop 
they eat berries, and how they do enjoy 
luscious dead ripe blackberries! By this 
time they are "like folks” and run the 
risk of being sick; eat pears and apples, 
and would not go back to the “diet of 
worms” for anything. He is so fat now 
he does not try to sing, but just stuffs. I 
have counted 25 at an early pear tree at 
one time in less than five minutes. I have 
seven trees of early apples, Yellow Trans¬ 
parent, Sweet and Sour Bough. Astrachan 
and Early Harvest, and they were full of 
fine fruit. It is now almost impossible to 
find a good ripe apple that is not pecked 
badly by robins, and these dear robber 
robins stay until we have cold weather. 
Orleans Co., N. Y. c. a. 
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