204 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
March 18 
HOPE FARM NOTES. 
Getting: Ready.—Winter hangs on this year 
like a bulldog. I was in hopes we could plant 
our earliest potatoes by the middle of March, 
but that dream is over. Unless the clerk of the 
weather get back from his vacation soon, we 
can’t do much with the soil until April 1, any¬ 
way. We shall risk it with the early peas, and 
start the plants of early cabbage. As soon as 
the ground is warm enough, we shall work the 
lightest field up for potatoes, plant them in deep 
drills, and take the risk of a late frost. Generally 
when the peach crop is a failure, melons pay 
well. They serve as a good substitute for peaches. 
One trouble is that most farmers know this, and 
they are all planning to plant melons, so they 
may overdo it. The old Hackensack melon 
used to be the favorite in our markets, but of 
late, the smaller Jenny Lind type has come to 
the front. 
Plant Food —Most of our manure has been 
hauled and piled in the field. Instead of spread¬ 
ing it over a large space, we shall crowd it on 
the lighter fields, especially where there is no 
Crimson clover. Farmers in our part of the 
country will soon begin hauling manure from the 
railroad. This New York manure comes out in 
car-load lots. I am sure that every car-load con¬ 
tains a ton or more of water, for I have often 
seen the railroad men running it on through a 
hose. We do not buy any of this manure, and do 
not need it while the farm is covered with Crim¬ 
son clover and cow-pea vines. We spent $10.25 
for clover and cow-pea seed last year, and I 
wouldn’t change the crop it made to-day for any 
$100 worth of manure that was ever hauled out 
of New York. The beauty of It is that all but 
one field of this is a second crop. That is, we 
grew a profitable crop first, got it off early, and 
then put in cow peas or clover to fit the land for 
the next year’s crop. 
Crops in Bush Fruits.—After picking the bush 
fruits last year, we broke up the ground between 
the rows with a small plow, and sowed various 
crops as an experiment. In one strip, we used 
cow peas, and in others oats r barley, millet and 
Crimson clover—covering all with the cultivator. 
They were sjwn about the middle of July. The 
cow peas grew until early in October, and ma¬ 
tured some seed. They grew so high that they 
nearly hid the currants. The millet lived a little 
longer, and the barley and oats were not killed 
until December, while the Crimson clover is liv¬ 
ing yet. We like the cow peas for this purpose, 
but in an ordinary season, they would hardly 
live until October. The barley has given a good 
growth, which will work under well. The trouble 
with the Crimson clover is that it makes a feeble 
growth early in Spring, and does not get large 
enough before the time for working the fruit. 
You don’t feel like working the little stuff under. 
It takes great courage to put clover out of sight 
before it reaches its best. Thus you are likely to 
let it grow, and neglect the early cultivating of 
bush fruits. That is one reason wiry cow peas 
are a better fertilizing crop for fruits The vines 
die in the Fall, cover the ground in the Winter, 
and it doesn’t hurt your feelings any to put them 
right under in the early Spring. 
Hens Are Paying.—Our hens laid 788 eggs in 
February. Eggs were worth with us on March 
1, 2)4 cents each, for the blizzard blew the hopes 
out of many a hen, and fresh eggs were hard to 
get. Our month’s eggs were worth, at regular 
market prices, $17.73, while the cost for grain was 
$8.70. In the first five days of March, the hens 
laid 209 eggs. The blizzard nipped the Minorcas 
and Leghorns severely. Several have died from 
the effects of this frosting, yet one pen of 30 
Minorcas were able to shell out 18 eggs on March 
4. They went through the blizzard in a house 
where the windows were broken so that the snow 
drifted halfway up the roosts ! In our experi¬ 
ence, the Leghorns are not as hardy as the 
Minorcas. 
Black Birds Profitable.—Our “Black Busi¬ 
ness ” bird? are quite satisfactory to us. As most 
readers know, these birds are Black Minorcas 
with a dash of Brown Leghorn blood on the male 
side. We now have three generations of them, 
and we notice an improvement with each new 
generation. The pullets are late in maturing, 
but when they once start laying, they keep right 
at it. By keeping pullets, yearlings and two- 
year-olds in the same flock, we can get eggs al¬ 
most every day in the year. Unlike the Leghorns, 
these Black birds are well satisfied to stay in a 
small yard. 'During the past two years, out of 
several hundreds of these hens, only one has 
ever offered to sit, and that one was discouraged 
after four days of incubation. For a small flock 
in town, I would certainly take these good- 
natured Blacks. On a fair business basis, our 
Black hens are worth $1.50 each In large flocks, 
however, the color is against them. In selling 
the young roosters, you will be docked at least 
two cents a pound on account of the black legs. 
Selecting Breeding Stock.—Most farmers in 
our part of the country keep 40 or 50 hens, and 
my belief is that, at the end of the year, the hens 
are in debt to the farmer. It is seldom that any 
new blood gets into these farm flocks. As a rule, 
I notice the hens are large and fat, and that 
there are six to eight roosters. Inbreeding is 
followed year after year, though now and then 
there will be an exchange of roosters with some 
neighbor. For my part, I am not so much afraid 
of inbreeding as many others are. A very suc¬ 
cessful breeder of Jersey cattle once told me 
that, with one of his best bulls, he was perfectly 
willing to inbreed for five generations. That is, 
he bred the old bull to his daughters, grand¬ 
daughters, etc. But, while he bred that way, he 
didn’t pretend to raise all the heifers. His test 
was a great width between the front legs, for 
this indicated good lung power and less tendency 
to tuberculosis. If a heifer had the marks of the 
old bull, but was too thin and narrow in front, 
he never raised her. The idea was that inbreed¬ 
ing with a standard for selection is a good thing, 
and I believe that is true. In most of these 
farmers’ flocks, you will find a dozen hens which 
are laying two-thirds of the eggs. It wouldn’t 
take long to pick them out. I would put these 
good hens in a pen by themselves with the best 
rooster in the yard, and use their eggs entirely 
for hatching. After getting all the eggs I wanted, 
I would let them run with the rest again. Another 
year, select as before, and by that time, I would 
expect to be able to screw my courage up to the 
point of buying a rooster out of some flock that 
had paid a profit on'eggs. A farmer will soon 
fix in his mind the type of hen he wants, and after 
a few years of this selection, he would have a 
yard of good, serviceable hens. 
Scraps.—As the snow melts, it is a pleasant 
sight to see the Crimson clover getting ready for 
business. It looks dull enough at first, but a few 
days of sunshine bring out the green. The 
clover roots have been at work nearly all Win¬ 
ter, now the tops will stir themselves. It is hard 
for a manure farmer to realize what Crimson 
clover means to a little farm like ours. . . For 
two years, we have kept from 50 to 90 hens in two 
small yards near the hogpens. These yards 
have been dug over so that the upper eight 
inches of soil are well filled with hen manure. 
This Spring, we shall dig off the upper soil in 
these yards, and throw the earth into the hog¬ 
pens with the stable manure. We shall replace 
this soil with sand from the poorest field on the 
farm. This will save good manure, also benefit 
the hens. In a larger chicken yard we shall car¬ 
ry the crops to the manure instead of carrying 
the manure to the crops. We shall move the 
hens away and work up the ground for early 
cabbage. On a small, run-down farm, one must 
pull every string that connects with fertility, or be 
tied up. . . I have been trying to explain to the 
children what a small proportion of the wood of 
a tree comes out of the soil, but they were pretty 
small for such a problem. They have learned a 
lesson from our great air-tight stove. They saw 
the great apple trees that were cut up and put 
into this stove, and the small amount of ash that 
came out. The Graft toiled and tugged for hours 
to carry the wood from one tree into the house, 
while he carried all the ashes out at one load! 
It has been a surprise to most of our folks to 
realize how little there is of a tree that is really 
indestructible. Well, well! there isn’t as much 
left of some characters when the fire of trouble 
and suffering is done with them! h. w. c. 
THE PENDULOUS NORWAY SPRUCE. 
If all things in the world were, accord¬ 
ing to the tastes of all people, perfectly 
beautiful, there would be no need of the 
word “beauty” at all, since perfection 
is perfection only by contrast with ob¬ 
jects more or less imperfect. Again, all 
people look at things differently—that 
is, tastes differ to the extent that what 
seems beauty to one seems ugliness to 
another. No doubt this is just as it 
should be, since all persons appreciate 
perfection only by contrast with imper¬ 
fection. For the same reason, variety is 
■enjoyed, and so it happens that certain 
irregularities and distortions in the 
animal as well as the vegetable worlds 
are looked upon as curiously interesting 
objects. 
We must place our Pendulous spruce 
in just this category. It assumes as 
many uncouth contortions as any other 
pendulous tree known to the writer, 
among evergreens or among deciduous 
trees, if we except the Pendulous beech. 
The tree shown in the photo-illustration, 
Fig. 74, first page, is about 26 years of 
age. It is now about 16 feet high, and 
about nine feet in diameter at the base. 
It is in a rose bed. To the left is a Cem- 
bran or Swiss Stone pine; to the right 
an apple tree. It has never been pruned 
or interfered with in any way. We regret 
that the engraving does not more dis¬ 
tinctly show its lawless growth. It 
would seem as though every part of the 
tree strove to be as different from every 
other part as possible. 
E VICK Y IIOYIE should 
be adorned with Pal him 
and other leaf and flower¬ 
ing Plants. We have 44 
greenhouses full. Also 
have hundreds of car¬ 
loads of 
Fruit and Ornamental Trees, 
Shrubs, Roses, Plants, Vines, 
Bulbs, Seeds. 
Rarest new, choicest old. 
X—MX Send for our catalogue to¬ 
day, it tdlls it all, an elegant book, magazine 
size, profusely illustrated, free. 
Seeds, Plants, Roses, Bulbs, Small Trees, etc., 
by mail postpaid, safe arrival and satisfaction 
guaranteed, larger by express or freight. 45th 
year. 44 greenhouses. 1000 acres. 
THE STORRS & HARRISON CO. 
Box 45 |, PAINE 8 VILLE, OHIO. 
Fruits for Market! Fruits for Home Use! 
The best varieties for both purposes are propagated in the rich soil of the 
Orange County Nurseries. We have had 25 years of practical experience. 
Write for our Free Catalogue, and for any information you need about 
fruit. The Catalogue and reply to your questions will be forwarded by 
s ,«. r . e „ t u, rn v“ a , i . L T. J. Dwyer & Son, Box I, Cornwall, N. Y. 
aDd especially Fruit Trees, should be grown with a 
view to Long Life and Fruitfulness, such are made 
Constitutionally Strong by guarding the Parentage 
in Propagation. Men of thought know this to be 
FACT, not theory. If you want proof, write us. Many 
of our customers after trial increase their orders. A trial order will make a lifetime customer of 
vou. We promise only best values. Among the new but weU-tested FRUITS we are offering the 
u pncrDr All Dl A rVDCDDV We also offer a whole Peach Orchard 
IVI LKoitKt A U D L. r\ IV D E i% *% I ■ f or | 5 ( an( j many other things that will 
Interest you. Free catalogue if this paper is named. Cash Premiums with Choice Seed Potatoes, 
ESTABLISHED 184 7. WILEY & CO., Cayuga, N.Y. 
DID YOU EVER GET DIT 
buying novelties or old varieties under 
new names? Ate you tired of catch¬ 
penny schemes? If you would like to find one honest catalogue, our 80-page 
book, Orchard Improvement, will help you. Better see it before you buy. No| 
fake who.esale (?) prices, but. BUSINESS TREES for business farmers; honest 
trees at honest prices. THE ROGERS NURSERIES, Dansville, New York. 
A First Rate Catalogue 
of fruits, large and small, forest and ornamental trees, roses, etc. Our new specialty, 
the October Purple Plum, is acknowledged the finest of all Japan varieties—color-plate 
picture of it, pretty enough to frame, with 64 -page catalogue, free. Write to-day. 
Established 48 years. STEPHEN HOYT’S SONS, Box 10 New Canaan, Conn. 
[iiiiiiimiiranmimiiiiiiiinmiiiiiiiiuiimiiiiiuiiiiiiiiKikiiuiiuuiuinniuinitiniuuiiiuiii 
Seeds Need Not 
Be Swallowed. 
CAMPBELL’S EARLY 
“First of all Grapes,” eavs Rural New-Yorker. Scaled 96 points in possible 100. “Will 
■hip round the world .’ 1 Early or Late. Insist on our Seals and get what you buy. 
Largest stock of other Grape Vines, Small Fruits. Elegant Catalogue FREE 
CEORCE S. JOSSELYN, FREDONIA, NEW YORK. 
niiiiiilinimiiniiiinniniiiiiiiiiiininiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinimmiiiniiiinimsMi—i——— — 
Every tree, plant or vine bought at Reid’s Is well, 
rooted, vigorous, and true to name. Every care lii 
taken in growing to insure absolute certainty to the’ 
buyer. Save one-halt on anything you need In the 
nursery line, by buying at Reid’s. 
We’ll help yon to choose by sending complete catalog, m 
mates, or any information yon may ask for, free. 
REID’S NURSERIES, BRIDGEPORT, OHIO. 
£S§iH)igger Fruit 
and better fruit will repay the grower who plants Black’s trees. Every 
tree vve sell is selected from the very healthiest, most vigorous stock, 
and is free from scale. Certificate of inspection sent with each order. 
The finest stock of l’each Trees it is possible to grow—the Mercer 
Cherry, the Japan Chestnut, and Japan Wnluut, are all de¬ 
scribed in our handsome, illustrated, 1S99 Catalog. Everyone who 
raises fruit, nuts or berries should write for a copv— mailed free. 
' JOS. H. BLACK, SON & CO., HIGHTSTOWN, N. J. 
MCf 
FRUIT AND ORNAMENTAL 
TRUS 
AT REASONABLE PRICES. 
Small Fruits, Grapes, Shrubs, Climbing Plants, 
Roses, Evergreens, Hardy Plants, Patonies. 
Largest and choicest collections in America. 
BEST NOVELTIES 
Descriptive Illustrated Catalogue free. 
ELLWANCER & BARRY. 
MOUNT HOPE NURSERIES, Rochester, N. Y. 
Fifty-ninth Year. 
UM, EVERGREENS 
i f&Mfi&SlOO, 6 to 8 in. $1; 13 to 18 In. $3.60. 
t M9K.KIO, 3 ft. $10 prepaid. 100, 1 to *> ft. 
^varieties, $15. 45choice Fruit trees, 20 
tjSgjgtgUgiEfe* varieties, *10. Ornamental A- Fruit 
B4*i'rech. Catalogue and prices of 50 
great bargain lots SENT FREE. 
tSC Good Local Agent* Wonted. 
D. HILL, Dundee, III. 
Japan Plums 
All varieties. Also peaches,mammoth sweet chest¬ 
nuts and berry plants, cheap. Free catalogue. 
J. 11. HALE, South Glastonbury, Conn. 
KGRAPEVINES 
1OO Varieties. Also Small Fruits, Trees, Are. Best root¬ 
ed stock.Geuuine, cheap. 8 sample vines mailed for lor. 
Descriptive price-list free. LEWIS KOKStll, Fredunla, S.T. 
NUTandTnrrO 
Ztfik FRUIT Intto 
300 ACRES-61 YEARS 
Superior stock of all desirable 
■frimni varieties of Chestnuts, Walnuts, 
Apples, Pears, Peaches, Plums; 
®hade and ornamental trees ;small 
fruit plants, etc. Catalogue free. 
I’ARRYS’ POMONA NURSERIES 
CHINQUAPIN, Parry, New Jersey. 
TREES. 
BISMARCK Apple, October Cherry and Japan 
Plums very cheap. Catalogue free. 
C. F. MacNair & Co., Dansville. N. V. 
APPLE SCIONS Fr0m T r B ee e s aring 
SUTTON BEAUTY, Maiden Blush, llubhardston. 
J. S. WOODWARD. Lockport. N. Y. 
THE READING NURSERY 
and its illustrated catalogue, to be appreciated, 
should be patronized. Price-List Free. 
JACOB W. MANNING, Prop., Reading, Mass 
The President 
Wilder Currant 
beads the list as a producer and 
a money-maker. Plant no other. 
Prices given on application. 
S. D. WILLARD, Geneva, N. Y. 
■ .nr~» ■ - P TT« ILLUSTRATED 
M m. ■ CATALOGUE. 
Choice Evergreens, Shrubs, Fruit and other 
Trees. Roses. Water Lilies, etc. Prices low. We 
also lay out grounds when desired. 
ifi. S. PETERSON & SONS. Montrose. N. Y. 
Dm Mm ANDREWS, 
Boulder, Col., will send free an illustrated catalogue, 
offering seeds of Hardy Perennial Plants, etc. 
OCTOBER FRUITING CHERRY 
Mr. Spaeth’s greatest creation, $4 per 12; $30 per UK). 
NEW BUSH CHERRY, Japanese Novelty, only four 
feet high, wonderful fruit; $3 per 12, mailed. TWO 
SURE TWICE-BEARING STRAWBERRIES: 
St. Joseph, red; perpetual bearer, immense crops. 
L. Gauthier, or Mammoth White—berries weigh 4 
ounces ! two crops yearly, $1 per 12, mailed, $0 per 100. 
- BISMARCK APPLE-- 
our introduction. Bears 2nd year from graft. Send 
for photo. $1.50 per 12: $10 per 100, by express. 
ALL RED APPLE: bark, leaves, flowers, fruit, red. 
$4 per 12. GIANT “WHITE-BLACKBERRY." lir- 
berg. a 2,500 dollar berry, $1.50 per 12 , mailed. $8 per 100. 
NEW GOLDEN A.\I) PURPLE STRAWBERRY- 
RASPBERRIES. Immense fruits, Immense crops, 
$1 per 12, mailed. $0 per 100. 
All the Novelties n Plants. Send for Catalogues. 
A. BLANC & CO., PHILADELPHIA, PA. 
VOUR GROUNDS 
^ and GARDEN..... 
Will have fresh interest when our Garden Manual has been 
read. Sent free. We offer practical and skilled aid to those 
who want beautiful grounds and success in gardening, with 
economy. Our prices admitof no competition. For instance, 
sixty best varieties Shrubs and Trees, ten 
for a dollar. $8.00 per lOO. 
THE SHADY HILL NURSERY CO., 
102 State St., Boston, Maas. 
