26 o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
April 8 
Farmers’ Club. 
[Every query must be accompanied by the 
name and address of the writer to insure atten¬ 
tion. Before asking a question, please see 
whether it is not answered in our advertising 
columns. Ask only a few questions at one time. 
Put questions on a separate piece of paper.] 
Cannery Refuse for Fertilizer. 
E. W. E., St. Catharines, Out. — I have an oppor¬ 
tunity of getting all the tomato peelings, pea 
pods and corn busks, delivered free from a can¬ 
ning factory. Have they a value as fertilizers ? 
Last year I got a lot, and they were mixed with 
stable manure, and left in a heap till Fall, when 
they were drawn out on ground I intend to plant 
with early potatoes. 
A ns. —At many canning factories, pea 
pods and vines are dried and used as 
feed for cows and horses. In some cast s, 
they have been put into the silo, but we 
understand that they do not make first- 
class ensilage. The vines are spread 
directly in the furrows, and turned un¬ 
der as a fertilizer for corn. This seems 
to work well when the vines are per¬ 
mitted to wilt properly before plowing 
under. This refuse may be composted 
with manure or with muck in connection 
with dissolved phosphate rock and pot¬ 
ash, and thus make a first-rate fertilizer 
after being well fermented. Generally 
speaking, it would be better to compost 
them in this way than it would to apply 
them fresh. 
Some Bee Questions. 
A. B. W-, Newlin, Pa. —What distance must my 
apiary be located from the line fence which 
divides my place from that of my neighbors? 
What distance from the public thoroughfare? 
The bees are at present about eight feet from the 
line fence. Would the erection of a section of 
close board fence 10 feet high between the hives 
and line fence, change the flight of the bees ? 
Ans —We know of no law in this 
State that prohibits any one from plac¬ 
ing bees anywhere on his land. Many 
in the cities keep them on the roofs of 
buildings. The erection of a high fence 
will not change the fl : ght of bees. On 
leaving the hive, they will rise by circles 
until they are above all obstructions, 
and then take a “bee line” for their 
destination. If properly managed, they 
will not annoy the neighbors or passers- 
by, but will attend strictly to business. 
Pennsylvania w. b gibson* sons. 
Plants for a Cemetery. 
C. G. II., New Berlin, N. Y — I want something 
to set cut in a small cemetery lot, that will look 
nice all Summer without much care. The lot Is 
rather dry and exoosed to the sun; in fact, the 
whole cemetery looks dry and sunburnt. I had 
thought of making the lot rich by the use of fer¬ 
tilizers, and sowing lawn grass seed. Now I 
want something in the line of shrubs or plants 
that will be bright and pretty all Summer. How 
would Abutilon Savitzii with Crotons do ? 
Ans —By all means, first get the lot 
into good condition, sowing grass seed 
on the portion which is to be left as 
lawn. We infer, from the suggestion to 
use Abutilon and Croton (or Codiaeum, 
to use the correct name) that a display 
of Summer bedding plants is desired ; 
but the selection quoted does not seem a 
very good one to us. Sturdy, well-hard¬ 
ened Crotons make a beautiful display, 
but unless you know that they hold their 
beauty in your locality, it would be un¬ 
wise to depend on them. If chilled or 
suffering from an unfavorable locality, 
they drop their leaves, and look discon¬ 
solate for the rest of the season. Be¬ 
gonia semperflorens, or B Vernon would 
be excellent, or the so-called Madagascar 
periwinkle, Vinca rosea and its white 
form. These Vincas are admirable for a 
dry, hot, sandy situation; they will 
bloom all Summer, and their trim, 
healthy growth is very attractive. How¬ 
ever, we prefer hardy plants and shrubs 
for cemetery planting, as they give a 
permanent effect. Among suitable shrubs 
are some of the hardy roses, especially 
the old white-flowered Mme. Plantier, 
though its season of bloom is short; 
White Tartarian honeysuckle; Mock 
orange, White Wiegela (Diervilla); Chi¬ 
nese snowball, Viburnum plicatum; 
Deutzia gracilis; Spiraeas in variety. 
The little trailing Wichuraiana rose is 
very desirable for covering graves (which 
should not be mounded), and will succeed 
even in the undesirablelsoil and situation 
described. 
Bones on the Farm ; Clover. 
A. R. B., Dexter, Me —1. You say that, some¬ 
times, sulphuric acid is used to reduce bones 
suitable for the soil. How can I use the acid prop¬ 
erly on bones? 2. Is Crimson clover an annual ? 
I wish to know, if I sow Crimson clover among 
my buBhes to keep the fruit clean and as a mulch, 
whether the roots will all die out in the Winter. 
Ans —1. We do not advocate the use 
of sulphuric acid on the farm. It is dan¬ 
gerous stuff to handle, and unless the 
bones are finely .crushed, so much acid 
will be required that the process will 
not be economical. The following ac¬ 
count is taken from the last report of 
the Connecticut Experiment Station : 
“ A farmer had a quantity of raw, wet 
butcher’s bones, which were cut up as 
poultry food. Those who have used 
bone cutters know what this means, for 
such bone is damp, coarse and full of 
grease. Forty pounds of concentrated 
sulphuric acid were poured into an oil 
cask over 265 pounds of this raw, wet 
bone. The whole mass became hot and 
boiled up, the sulphuric acid drawing 
water from the bone. The whole thing 
was stirred and mixed as well as possi¬ 
ble, and allowed to stand for several 
days. Then it was weighed and sampled 
by the Station: The 305 pounds of bone 
and acid lost 35 pounds in weight; there 
were left 270 pounds of practically dis¬ 
solved bone. An- analysis of the raw 
bone and of the acidified bone are given 
as follows: 
Raw bone. 
Acidified bone 
Pounds. 
Pounds. 
Nitrogen. 
7.6 
9.5 
Watpr-solnble phos- 
phoric acid. 
.8 
7.7 
Citrate-solu ble 
phosphoric acid.. 
27.4 
34.8 
Insoluble ph acid.. 
2L3 
8.7 
Total phos. acid 
49.5 
51.2 
This shows that more than half of the 
insoluble phosphoric acid in the raw 
bone was converted into soluble forms, 
and the whole material was made finer 
in its mechanical effect, and putrefac¬ 
tion was checked. This method may 
answer for cut bones or those that have 
been crushed Into small pieces, but it 
would not answer for large, coarse bones, 
which give but a small surface to the 
action of the acid. It must be remem¬ 
bered, also, that sulphuric acid is dan¬ 
gerous stuff to handle, for it will eat 
up one’s fingers just as quickly as it dis¬ 
solves cut bone.” 
2. Crimson clover is an annual; after 
developing seed, the plant dies. Hot 
weather seems to drive the plant to seed¬ 
ing. We have seen it, when sown in the 
Spring, develop a flower or small head 
when only two or three inches high. If 
sown in the Fall, so that it may grow 
through the cool weather, it makes a 
growth of 18 inches to two feet. If you 
sow it in the Spring, you will not be 
satisfied, for it will make a feeble 
growth, seed when hot weather comes, 
and thrn die. If sown in the late Sum¬ 
mer, it will cover the ground usually be¬ 
fore Winter, and in the Spring make a 
fair growth before the last of May. In 
Maine, it may not live through the Win¬ 
ter. We think a better way would be to 
sow either cow peas or ordinary white 
field beans among bush fruits, say about 
the first of June. They will make a good 
growth through the Summer, will die 
down with frost, protect the ground dur¬ 
ing the Winter, and be ready to work 
under early in the Spring. 
Cow Manure vs. “Phosphate Powder " 
G. W., Clarkson, Ontario. —I am in the market- 
gardening and small-fruit business, on a farm 
of 22 acres. Soil a light sandy loam, in fairly 
good fertility. I can get cow manure from a dis¬ 
tillery, delivered 1 Yt mile from the farm, at 18 50 
per car-load. Considerable water is used in 
cleaning the stables, requiring the use of tanks 
to haul it from the cars. I can get what I con¬ 
sider a good fertilizer, “ Albert’s Thomas phos¬ 
phate powder,” for $25 per ton. Three car-loads 
of manure equal in price one ton of fertilizer. 
Which, in your judgment, would give the better 
results, and be the cheaper—the manure, or the 
fertilizer ? 
Ans. —We buy plant fdod of any sort 
in order to obtain nitrogen, potash and 
phosphoric acid. In ordinary farming, 
all these elements are needed ; we should 
assume that they are, unless we know 
by experiment that we need only one or 
two. With us, a car-load of such manure 
would average about 12 tons. It is hard 
to give a fair analysis of cow manure 
containing so much water, but the fol¬ 
lowing estimate is safe. We figure $25 
worth cf each, viz., one ton of the phos¬ 
phate and 36 tons of the manure. 
Pounds in $25 Worth. 
Phos 
Nltrot-en. Potash, acid. 
36 tons manure. 200 225 100 
One ton “ phosphate ”.. 0 0 350 
The phosphate powder contains only 
pbospboric acid, as was explained on 
page 157. Our eastern experiment sta¬ 
tions figure nitrogen at44cents a pound, 
potash at 4%. and phosphoric aci^ at 4. 
On this basis, the manure is worth $42 12, 
while the phosphate powder is worth $14 
Of course, these are only comparative 
figures. You must consider the cost of 
hauling 36 tons of soft manure. You will 
see that the “ phosphate ” cannot take 
the place of the manure, since it contains 
neither potash nor nitrogen. Here is a 
case where it would be of advantage to 
use both. The manure is relatively de¬ 
ficient in potash and phosphoric acid. In 
a well-balanced fertilizer, there should 
be more of these minerals than of nitro¬ 
gen. You might well use the ton of 
“ phosphate ” with the three car-loads 
of manure, and also buy 400 pounds of 
muriate of potash to go with it. 
"Spring Unlocks 
The Flowers 
To paint the laughing soil.” Nature and 
people are much alike; the former must 
have sunshine, the latter require pure blood 
to have perfect health. Hood’s Sarsaparilla 
cures all blood troubles. It is to the 
Best Seeds 
that Grow! 
Thousands of Dollars 
in CASH PRIZES for 1899 
and many other New Features, 
of particular interest, presented in 
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URPEE’S 
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Write a postal card TO-DAY 1 
W. ATLEE BURPEE & CO., Philadelphia 
JOHN A. 
99 — 9 — 
FOR 14 CENTS 
We wish to gain this year 200,000 
new customers, and hence oner 
1 Pkg. 13 Day Radish, 10c 1 
1 Pkg. Early Ripe Cabbage, 10c I 
'* Earliest Red Beet, 10c 
" Long Lightn’g Cucumber 10c 
' Salzer’s Best Lettuce, 16c 
1 California Fig Tomato, 80c 
* Early Dinner Onion, lOo 
* Brilliant Flower Seeds, loc 
Worth $1.00, for 14 cents, iJsi.uO 
Above 10 pkgs. worth $1.00, we will 
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upon receipt of this notice A 14c 1 
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a Bb!. Catalog alone 6c. No. Ill 1 
8 ALZKK SEED CO., I.A CROSSE, IVIS. | 
human system what sunshine is to Nature. 
Never Disappoints ^ 
Seeds! Seeds! 
75th Anniversary Catalogue of 
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Is now ready, and mailed free to all applicants. 
BRIDGEMAN’S SEED WAREHOUSE, 
37 Bast 19th St., New York City. 
COW PEAS 
The Famous Forage Crop 
and Soil Improver. 
WE ARE HEADQUARTERS for these and all 
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Beans, Pearl or Cattail Millet, Teosinte, En¬ 
silage Corn, Spanish Peanuts, Chufas, Sorg¬ 
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giving full information about these crops. Prices 
quoted on request. 
T. W. WOOD & SO AS, 
Seedsmen. Richmond, Va, 
ESTABLISHED 1850. 
Try Batchelor’s Seeds. 
Everything for the Garden and Farm. Catalogue 
of Vegetable Farm and Flower Seeds mailed free 
to all applicants. Our Seeds are all first-class, 
no old seed. 
BATCHELOR'S SEED STORE , 16 KkT 
fl. ul Early Black, $1 bushel. 
uOW read o. o. gwathmky, Ayiett, v 
Thirty-Eight Tons 
EXCELLENT QUALITY OF ENSILAGE per 
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telling all about it mailed free. ROSS BROTHERS, 
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BEST SEEDS ON EARTH ! 1 
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To Introduce my superior Northern 
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1,000,000 Packets of '■ 
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HARRY N. HAMMOND, 
Seedsman, 
Box 12, Flfleld, Mich. 
FORMERLY. DECATUR. 
_ | _—Japanese Barnyard Millet 
P Of ^wCal6 Seed. Address 
Prof. WM. P. Brooks, Mass. Agr.Col., Amherst,Mass 
DANISH BALL-HEAD CABBAGE. 
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price in market. Imported seed. $2.25 per pound, 
postpaid; home-grown seed, $2 per pound. Orders 
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Edgewater, Onondaga County, N. Y. 
FADER RARE FLOWERS 
mil 11 A flfirftss TCLLIft BROS.. 
jene. N. H. 
* choice only. AddressELLis Bros.. 
It will astonish and please. JjgfKKEK 
PANSY GERANIUM AND 
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The latest, detailing newer and best methods of 
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Dreer’s Garden Calendar^ 
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the cream of the standard varieties of 
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A handsome book of 168 pages, profusely illustrated, mailed FREE to 
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HENRY A. DREER, 714 Chestnut St., Phila., Pa. 
A Weeder for $5.00. 
The New CHAMPION WEEDER 
la an attachment for any one-horse cultivator. Cul¬ 
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The weeder cultivates the row, kills all the weeds and 
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the cultivator takes care of the middles. 
Can Be Attached to Any Make 
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_ _ AND SECURE ONE AT ONCE. Remit by MONEY ORDER or 
REGISTERED LETTER. First order from your locality gets agency. We Want Agents 
Address, Chamtilon Weeder Co., Friedens, Pennsylvania. 
Send us $5 
