1898 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
4oi 
The Farmers’ Club 
[Every query must be accompanied by the name and address of 
ihe writer to insure attention. 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.] 
Grafting Russian Mulberries. 
J. P. 0., Fond du Lac County, Wis. —1. Do Russian mulberry 
seedlings have to be budded or grafted to make them come true ? 
2. Which is the better way of working mulberry, apple, plum and 
cherry seedlings, budding or grafting ? 
Ans. —1. It will be necessary to bud or graft from 
trees of Russian mulberry in order to be sure of ob¬ 
taining young trees of a given variety. There are 
differences among the seedlings of this fruit, as with 
other fruits. 2. Mulberry and apple may be either 
budded or grafted, but plum and cherry are more suc¬ 
cessfully budded than grafted. However, the last two 
fruit trees may be grafted with fair success if the 
work is very carefully done early in the season. 
u. k. v. 1). 
Japan Plums in Washington State. 
A. A. P., Kerns , ll'ax/t.—I wish to raise some plums for sale, but 
if the Japan plums are sour when cooked, they would be worth¬ 
less here, because such plums as Bradshaw and Lombard cannot 
even be given away. 
Ans. —The Japan plums are remarkably well-flav¬ 
ored when cooked, and much better than Bradshaw 
and Lombard, according to my taste. Washington is a 
part of the paradise of the plum, and the Japan varie¬ 
ties do remarkably well there. As to their sale in the 
local markets in comparison with the European type 
of plums, nothing but experience will tell. The .Japan 
plums ship better than almost any others, either 
native or foreign. h. e. v. d. 
The Grape Leaf-Hopper. 
H. B. 8., Ohio. —There is an insect that is called the Grape leaf- 
hopper, that does great damage to griipe vines by injury to the 
leaves during the growing season. In some instances, it lias 
caused nearly all the leaves to turn brown and dry up before the 
fruit was ripe. It seems to be increasing in number every year, 
and is getting to be a great pest. Is there any practical way to 
destroy it, or prevent injury to the leaves of grape vines ? 
ANSWERED BY M. V. SLINGERLAND. 
There are several distinct kinds of leaf-hoppers that 
work upon grape leaves. All are minute, narrow, yel¬ 
lowish insects about one-eighth inch long, and some 
have their wings crossed by blood-red bands. Among 
vineyardists, these insects are known as thrips ; prop¬ 
erly, however, this name belongs to an entirely differ¬ 
ent group of insects. The Grape leaf-hoppers pass 
the Winter in the adult state, hibernating under dead 
leaves or other rubbish, the survivors becoming active 
in Spring, when they insert their eggs in punctures in 
the leaves of the vine. The yellow nymphs are hatched 
from these eggs during the month of June, and they 
resemble their parents except in size, and in having 
no wings. During their growth, they shed their skins 
(which are nearly white) several times, and although 
exceedingly delicate and gossamer-like, the empty 
skins remain for some time attached to the leaves in a 
very lifelike attitude. 
The nymphs feed together on the under sides of the 
leaves, and are very quick in their movements, hop¬ 
ping briskly about by means of their hind legs, which 
are especially fitted for this purpose. They have a 
peculiar habit of running sideways, and when they 
see that they are observed upon one side of a leaf, 
they will often dodge quickly around to the other. 
Each is furnished with a sharp beak or proboscis, with 
which it punctures the skin of the leaf, and then sucks 
out the sap ; this produces yellowish or brownish 
spots on the upper surface. At first, these spots are 
small, and do not attract attention ; but as the insects 
increase in size, the spots often involve the whole leaf, 
which appears as though scorched, and it often drops 
from the vine. Occasionally, vines become so far de¬ 
foliated that the fruit fails to ripen. 
With the full growth of its wings, the insect acquires 
such powers of flight that it readily flies from vine to 
vine, and thus spreads in all directions. It continues 
its mischievous work until late in the season, when it 
seeks shelter for the Winter. 
The Clinton, Delaware, and other thin-leafed varie¬ 
ties suffer more from the attacks of these leaf-hoppers 
than do the thick-leafed sorts like the Concord. The 
insects are sometimes quite abundant in a vineyard 
one year, and comparatively scarce the next. Their 
preservation, doubtless, depends much on favorable 
hibernating conditions. One should not wait until 
late in the season, when the leaf-hoppers are full- 
grown and can fly, before beginning active warfare 
against them. When young, they can only hop about, 
and are, also, more susceptible to insecticides. As 
they suck their food from the interior of the leaves, 
the poisons can have no effect upon them. Kerosene 
emulsion or whale-oil soap (one pound dissolved in 
six to ten gallons of water) thoroughly applied and 
aimed at the insects on the under sides of the leaves 
about July 1, will check these leaf-hoppers. It will 
require much more than ordinary care in spraying to 
hit these insects. The nozzle should be arranged on 
the end of a short tube bent at right angles so as to 
form what is known as an “ under-spray nozzle.” One 
or two thorough and intelligent sprayings about July 
1 will surely hold the pest in check. 
In New Jersey, where the insects are often very 
serious pests, and especially where the vines are trained 
on wires, some of the vineyardists report excellent re¬ 
sults from the following procedure: Very large palm- 
leaf fans are covered on both sides with gas tar, and 
these are then swung about near the vines as one walks 
along between the rows, and another person walks 
along on the other side and jars the vines, thus dis¬ 
turbing the insects, and causing them to jump or fly 
off for a moment. The result is that thousands of the 
leaf-hoppers are caught on the sticky fans. One 
authority states that, by repeating this operation two 
or three times a week for two weeks, practical exemp¬ 
tion for the rest of the season can be secured. Much 
of the success of this method will depend upon how 
thoroughly the insects are disturbed and made to leave 
the vines, also upon how actively the fans are oper¬ 
ated. In fact, the success of any operation against 
insects depends largely upon the intelligence and 
thoroughness one puts into it. There is altogether 
too much haphazard, guesswork kind of insect war¬ 
fare carried on by our fruit growers. 
English Varieties of Strawberries. 
S. G., Blaine, Wash .—Are English varieties of strawberries 
raised in England better than American strawberries raised in 
America, in quality ? It is claimed that American strawberries 
do not command respect in the Covent Garden market, yet the 
United States Pomologist says that American berries are the best, 
and that English berries do not succeed in this country. I do not 
care whether they succeed in the eastern States or not; that is 
no evidence that they will not succeed here. I do know that an 
English berry said to be called Golden Ball will bear immense 
quantities of beautiful, large berries, and has magnificent foli¬ 
age, but as to how it compares in quality with American straw¬ 
berries I cannot say. If English berries are better in quality 
than American, I want to try them, and will set out a good num¬ 
ber this Pall. If they are not as good as American varieties, I 
cannot afford to expend money, time and labor with them. Which 
are the Wood, Scarlet, Pine and Hautbois strawberries ? To 
what class do our cultivated varieties belong ? 
Ans. —Most of our varieties in cultivation are sup¬ 
posed to be crosses between Fragaria Virginiana and 
F. grandi flora. The Virginian strawberry is a native 
of the southern portions of Canada and the United 
States. This is the common strawberry of our fields. 
It was introduced in England, according to A. S. 
Fuller, in the Seventeenth Century, though it was 100 
years later before it received any pronounced atten¬ 
tion. It was then found that its seedlings varied 
greatly, which induced many to experiment with it. 
The berry is fragrant beyond any other species. The 
vine is a vigorous grower, and stands not only the 
severe cold of Winter, but the heat and drought of 
Summer. F. grandittora was later received in Europe 
with great favor. The berries being larger and, natur¬ 
ally, of higher quality than any other kind, they 
do not require so much heat, and hence are more 
prized in the cool, moist climate of England than here. 
This variety cannot stand the severity of our Winters, 
for which reason most of the varieties of strawberries 
which thrive best in England do not do well here. To 
F. grandiflora and F. Virginiana belong the Boston 
Pine, Brighton Pine, Burr’s New Pine and Pineapple, 
or Crimson Cone. The Wood belongs to F. vesca or 
Alpine strawberry, growing in the mountains of south¬ 
ern Europe as well as in New Hampshire. The 
Hautbois is F. elatior, a native of Germany. The 
fruit is roundish and of a musky flavor. Belle Borde- 
laise is, perhaps, the best of the Hautbois strawber¬ 
ries. Among the foreign varieties, probably Jucunda 
and Triomphe de Gand are the best. None of the 
foreign varieties thrives at the Rural Grounds. 
Amount of Liquid Manure for One Animal. 
E. A. II., Windham, N. Y .—Is the application of liquid manure 
as fast as produced, or at all seasons of the year, advisable ? If 
not, how much storage per 1,000-pounds of animal will be neces¬ 
sary to save what will drain from the solids to a lower level, no 
absorbent being used ? 
Ans.— The answer will depend upon circumstances. 
In our own case, we prefer to use absorbents and apply 
the manure in solid form. In most cases where the 
liquids are used alone, they are applied to grass or 
grain. We know one dairyman who puts them all on 
the clover as soon as possible after cutting. This 
starts up a very large second growth. Such liquids 
contain chiefly nitrogen and potash, in very soluble 
forms. As an average of four experiments, it was 
found that a cow of average size voided 19 pounds of 
urine in 24 hours, a sheep two pounds, and a hog 
three pounds. Probably an average of 25 pounds per 
day of liquids would be a safe allowance for each 1,000 
pounds live weight. In round figures, it will require 
about 170 cubic feet of space to hold the liquids of one 
animal for one year. 
The Care of Brooder Chicks. 
W. T. 8., Uwchland, Pa. —We are old-process chicken raisers of 
near a half century’s experience; but wishing to keep in touch 
with the progress of the age, we bought two Prairie State incu¬ 
bators, and with them can hatch chicks galore. But to raise 
them, that’s the unsolved problem. We have studied all the in¬ 
structions of the books, and tried to profit by them; but, despite 
ail our efforts, they die by the hundred, simply, it seems, from 
iuanition. They come out of the incubator full of animation, but 
in three or four days, begiu to droop, hang their wings, and soon 
pass to the home of deceased chicken infants. Not all, a per¬ 
centage, 83 perhaps, will forge along for two or three weeks, and 
fall to growing like everything. Will the editor of Hope Farm 
Notes give us some pointers to help us along, for we do not like 
to give up the machine if we can help it, though we are raising 
a much higher percentage with some hens which we are using 
for comparative tests ? The incubator manufacturers will send 
hundreds of pages of instructions for building brooder houses 
with all the details for heating and hygienic appliances, yet 
some old auntie with a few old apple barrels for coops, and 
cracked corn and garlic for diet, will beat us every time. 
Ans. —We have lost about 12 per cent of the chicks 
that were hatched in the incubators this year. Our 
hens have lost about the same proportion of the chicks 
they attempted to hover. Some of the little things 
seem doomed from the time they get out of the shell. 
They inherit weakness from their parents that cannot 
be overcome by the best care and feeding. Our losses 
have been due chiefly to chills, overheating by crowd¬ 
ing too many into the brooders, constipation and kero¬ 
sene fumes—due to poor ventilation. The chicks re¬ 
main in the incubators about 36 hours after hatching, 
and are then moved to the brooders which stand out¬ 
doors. We use the old-fashioned homemade under¬ 
heat brooders. They are mere boxes with circular 
pieces of iron at the bottom, with lamp placed be¬ 
neath. The upper side of this iron is covered with 
coal ashes and planer shavings, and the little chicks 
huddle over it. We keep the temperature in the brood¬ 
ers close to 90 degrees when the chicks first go in, and 
gradually reduce it as they grow older, and as the 
weather grows warmer. They do not usually run on 
the ground for two weeks, but have a little canvas 
frame on which to exercise. They have no food for the 
first 24 hours, and then they have what they will eat 
of oat meal fed dry. As they grow older, they have 
at least one good feed each day of the mash which we 
feed to the laying hens. This mixture contains 25 
pounds of animal meal, 100 pounds of wheat bran and 
100 pounds of wheat middlings. It might be better to 
bake this mash into a cake, and then crumble it, but 
our chicks eat it well as a mash. It is well to mix a 
little sand or grit with it, and a small amount of char¬ 
coal will help the chicks. We feed considerable cracked 
corn, and alternate with crushed oats for the smallest 
chicks. The water should be kept pure and fresh. We 
give the chicks all the green grass they will eat. Some 
authorities contend that earthworms convey the 
dreaded Gape-worms, but our chicks have eaten num¬ 
berless worms with not a single case of gapes among 
them. Many chicks are killed by kindness. Give them 
plenty of fresh air, only be sure that they know how 
to get back into the brooders before they are chilled 
or soaked. We have had no lice this year. The 
brooders are carefully wiped with kerosene before 
putting in a new brood, and the chicks are dusted 
occasionally with tobacco dust or insect powder. Feed 
charcoal and give plenty of grit and green food. Avoid 
overheating, and do not put too many chicks in one 
brooder. 
MISCELLANEOUS. 
Seed Stalks on Rhubarb.—W. S., Richfield, N. J.—In pulling 
rhubarb, it is better to pull out the seed stalks. If you do not 
break them out, you will find that the other stalks are likely to be 
tough. 
□ Cow Reas for Manure.—J. B. K., Parsippauy, N. J.—As be¬ 
tween cow peas, Soy beans and Velvet beans for greeu manuring 
on a sandy soil, we prefer cow peas. We think that they will 
make a larger growth without manuring, and will, probably, 
make a surer crop than either of the others. 
Spraying Before Blooming.—F. O. L., Alfred, Me.—There is no 
particular danger in spraying apple trees just before or while in 
bloom, except that you would, probably, kill bees by such prac¬ 
tice In Vermont, Michigan and other States, laws prohibit such 
spraying, as beekeepers found that many bees were poisoned by 
such practice. While such spraying may destroy caterpillars, 
you would not be likely to kill the Codling worm effectively until 
after the blossoms have fallen and the little apple has begun to 
form. 
Cutting Oat Hay.—B. W. S., Thomasville, Ga.—We use a good 
deal of oat hay for feeding horses. We sow the oats a little 
thicker than they are ordinarily sown for grain, and cut them 
the same as we would Timothy, when the first heads are in the 
dough state, or when they will easily crush between the finger 
and the thumb. We watch the field carefully, and do not wait 
until any large number of the heads are formed, but begin work 
when the first of the heads are in the condition stated; then cut 
with a mower and cure in the ordinary way. We find this oat 
hay excellent for horses, and would as soon have it as Timothy hay. 
Hen Manure for Potatoes.—A friend in Black Hall, Conn., 
says that he has found hen manure an excellent fertilizer for 
potatoes. When mixed with dry soil, enough to handle, and ap¬ 
plied at the rate of two or three handfuls to each hill, he has had 
tine results from its use. Our experience with hen manure de¬ 
cided us that it is better for sweet corn, cabbage, or crops that 
make the most of their growth above ground. If used for pota¬ 
toes, we would want to use some form of potash or phosphoric 
acid along with it. Our friend says that the farmers have been 
shipping 1,500 dozen eggs per week from their small railroad sta¬ 
tion. He thinks Hope Farm must lie near the gates of Paradise 
when we can obtain 18 cents a dozen when they have been get¬ 
ting only 10 cents. We notice that eggs are selling in Havana at 
10 cents apiece. But we think, after all, there would be more 
satisfaction and a sounder skin in selling them at 10 cents a 
dozen in Connecticut. 
