1904 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
3o3 
TOP-DRESSING FOR COLD FRAMES. 
How the Soil is Prepared. 
I wish to enrich the soil I intend using in my cold 
frames. Tn transplanting in the open ground I lift most 
nf the soil in the frames with the plants; hence must 
use a fresh supply, and usually enrich with well-rotted 
manure, but this Spring will have none of my own, and 
do not think it can be procured. What effect would fresh 
but rather rough horse manure have—say, put it in now 
and put soil on top. and let remain until time to trans¬ 
plant from seed bed? Do you think by proper manage¬ 
ment this could be made to answer the purpose? It 
not, could you tell me what would make a good substi¬ 
tute? I want it exclusively for tomatoes. What would 
be a good fertilizer to apply to land for final transplant¬ 
ing 7 What would be the best all-purpose formula of 
fertilizer for beets, onions, salad, radish, beans (bush 
varieties) and cucumbers, for a black loam, light, 
slightly sandy and gravelly; yellow elay subsoil? p. b. 
Greensburg, Pa. 
Top-dressing for transplant beds or cold frames as 
they are commonly called may be made in various 
ways. It may be done by incorporating with it old, 
well-rotted manure or night soil, or by using a good 
high-grade fertilizer, using from two to 2*4 quarts 
to each ordinary wagonload of soil. I have often used 
this amount, and even three quarts will do no harm 
if incorporated with the soil one or more weeks be¬ 
fore using. My custom when using fertilizer for this 
purpose has been to mix it with the soil when work¬ 
joints must be perfect, and when laid should be cov¬ 
ered with paper or some such matter; and thirdly, 
the grade or slope must be accurate and uniform. To 
secure the latter essential, I tried various means with¬ 
out true success, until I adopted the following plan: 
When the ditch has been dug to near its bottom, on 
each side, at its head and foot, stakes are driven, and 
to these boards are fastened with cheap quilting frame 
clamps, costing 10 cents each, the upper edges of the 
boards being seven feet above the tile bed or groove. 
Intermediate at intervals of from 50 to 75 feet similar 
stakes are driven, to which boards are similarly fast¬ 
ened. By sighting over the tops of the end or guide 
boards, perfect grade is secured. Now, over all the 
boards a strong twine is drawn taut, which, of course, 
throughout its entire length is precisely seven feet 
above the tile bed. The ditcher with a seven-foot 
measuring stick can bed his tile with perfect accuracy 
as to grade or slope. No engineer with his instru¬ 
ments can get a truer tile bed than my colored 
ditcher with his stakes, boards and twine. Running 
water has been recommended for finding bottom. This 
will do on stiff clay soil, but fails on my quicksand, 
for if the grade be, say 24 inches to the 100 feet, water 
will run freely, though there be a bump in the bottom 
of the ditch eight or 10 inches high. Any irregularity 
in the bottom of a quicksand tile ditch soon brings 
investment. Is there any book or pamphlet that you 
know of bearing upon the practical management of a 
telephone line? Suppose a stockholder should wish to 
run a wire from the main line and install a telephone 
in his house at his own expense, could the company 
object and claim that he must allow them to place in 
the “phone” and charge him rent? j. f. c. 
Maryland. 
The independent telephone business is tremendous¬ 
ly active, and enterprising men are trying to "farm 
the farmer” to the tune of .$12 to $18 a year for each 
’phone; while lines built, owned and operated by the 
people all over the country are securing “free ex¬ 
change” all over a county and even three or four 
counties, for about $3 a year after paying operators 
and other expenses of a large system which is made 
up of local companies built up mile after mile. Short 
lines are, of course, run much cheaper. Dry-cell bat¬ 
teries will last nearly a year. Two cells cost from 30 
to 35 cents and can be put in by anyone who has 
common sense. First-class rural lines with highest 
grade equipment and construction are cheaply main¬ 
tained. There is no more sense in allowing outsiders 
to own the local rural lines than there would be for 
the farmer to pay the price of a wire fence every 
three years in rent, or the price of a clock every year 
or two for the use of it, by allowing some one else 
to own them. Don’t lose the main chance. Every 
true farmer should stand out and work for owner¬ 
ERICA HYEMALIS. Fig. 129. See Ruralisms, Page 308. 
ing it over in the Spring, as soon as 
frost is out of the heap. Personally, I 
object to using too much rotted stable 
manure w-ith top soil; it makes soil too 
loose, causes it to dry out too rapidly, 
and admits too much air. I have seen 
good results from using high-grade fine 
ground bone in connection with a mod¬ 
erate amount of old manure. 
If P. B. will pile his coarse stable ma¬ 
nure and let heat, turning it a few times 
before using, I think he will have better 
results than if he puts it in the beds 
now, and in its present condition; fur¬ 
thermore, making the beds any great 
length of time prior to setting the plants 
would, I think, be detrimental. I very 
often use just such manure as described 
by P. B., but would not make beds more 
than three days in advance of using 
them. In making, I would place at 
least three inches of this manure in bot¬ 
tom of frame; on this I would put four 
or 4% inches of top soil prepared as 
stated, and I think he will have no trou¬ 
ble to make his plants grow all right. 
I usually use about eight tons of well- 
rotted stable manure per acre for toma¬ 
toes. This may be placed in the hill or 
broadcast before plowing, as the grow¬ 
er thinks best. In the absence of this 
I would use a good complete fertilizer, 
applying at least half of it broadcast, 
and not less than 600 to 800 pounds per 
acre, according to strength and condi¬ 
tion of soil. As soon as plants are fair¬ 
ly well started to grow, I would side- 
dress with from 150 to 200 noimds of ni¬ 
trate of soda per acre, being careful not 
to use any of the nitrate while plants 
are making bloom. It is pretty hard to 
recommend an all-’round fertilizer for 
such a variety of crops as mentioned. 
In my own practice I would not use any 
one formula for crops named; in fact, I 
do not use a complete fertilizer at 
all. I use acid phosphate two parts, muriate of pot¬ 
ash one part; apply from 300 to 500 pounds of this 
mixture broadcast per acre, and then use nitrate of 
soda, tankage, dried blood, or ground fish scrap as I 
see the crop needs it, always using a small amount 
at time of seeding to assist the young plant to get a 
start and by so doing save some of the most costly 
part of our fertilizer, nitrogen that would be wasted 
if all applied at one time, and that before seeding. If 
P. B. cannot do this probably a fertilizer analyzing 
four per cent nitrogen, eight per cent phosphoric acid 
and 10 per cent potash would do; later in the season, 
as crops grow, side-dress with nitrate of soda. 
c. C. II. 
TRUE GRADES IN TILE DRAINAGE. 
The following article appeared in the Southern Planter 
of Richmond, Va., and is reprinted here in answer to 
several questions. 
The soil of my farm is decomposed, rotten Potomac 
rock, gneiss, schist, etc., which, under water, becomes 
quicksand and compels in the laying of tile extraordi¬ 
nary care and accuracy. In ignorance of this fact, all 
my first-laid tile ditches proved expensive failures, 
as they were put in as though my land was stiff Ohio 
clay, with which I was experienced. I found that I 
must ditch only when the ground was dry and solid 
in August, September and October; next, that the 
failure. Paper will last until the earth above the tile 
has firmly settled. The longer the twine the better. 
If the ditch be 500 feet long use a twine of that length, 
for then there can be no deviation from grade. 
Alexandria Co., Va. R. s. lacy. 
STARTING A LOCAL TELEPHONE LINE. 
A few of us in this community are contemplating con¬ 
necting cur little town with a neighboring town, three 
miles distant. We have no telephone or telegraph com¬ 
munication with a large city except by driving 12 miles— 
the nearest point bringing us in touch with Baltimore 
and Washington by wire. We have concluded that the 
best way in which to secure the conveniences of a tele¬ 
phone line is to begin in a small way locally. We have 
or, rather, are forming, a stock company for that pur¬ 
pose, having with little difficulty secured the money 
needed to build the first three miles. We are cutting 
our poles, and expect to have our little line up as soon 
as the ground will allow us to dig holes, etc. Two tele¬ 
phones, one at each end, will be the limit of our pocket- 
book to start with. We are exceedingly “green ’ on the 
points of how to adjust matters after we get the line up. 
Both telephones will be public. What is the practice 
with regard to stockholders? Do they usually have free 
use of telephones, or do they pay like the general pub¬ 
lic? If they do have free use of the line, is the free use 
of same confined to the individual stockholders or does 
it extend to members of his family? We are erecting 
our little line mainly for our individual convenience, but 
we shall surely grow. We are not looking for a paying 
ship and control by the people them¬ 
selves. "To begin in a small way local¬ 
ly” is just the right way to begin if only 
first-class construction and equipment 
with business management prevails, 
then it “will surely grow.” Experience 
has proven that rural lines must not be 
“any old thing” for a line, and cheap- 
John instruments to make matters 
worse. Use only genuine W. and M. or 
Roebling’s Best Best (“B. B.”), double 
galvanized iron telephone wire No. 12, 
and nothing but the best 1,600 ohm long¬ 
distance instruments. Metallic circuit 
is preferable and it is good economy to 
have the line surveyed and poles grad¬ 
ed; higher poles in low places, best poles 
in best places, etc., properly roofed and 
properly set, but do your best and own 
it yourselves. 
Experience, too, has proven that while 
many mutual companies have prospered 
the cooperative companies are most 
successful by allowing anyone to take 
stock in one or more shares of $5 or $10 
each in cash, labor, poles, etc. Free use 
is a wrong principle. It leads to dead¬ 
heading and other abuses. No one for a 
paltry five-dollar share should have un¬ 
limited use of the line for 50 years to 
come. No one who takes stock in a gold 
mine is allowed to visit the mine and fill 
his pocket with nuggets. All alike should 
pay the regular price, stockholders get¬ 
ting a liberal rebate in dividends. How¬ 
ever, all who help to build the line may 
be allowed toll tickets with a very gen¬ 
erous discount; for example, 150 five- 
eent tickets for a five-dollar share, 400 
tickets for two shares, etc.; these to be 
used by anyone who can secure them in 
any way. Indiscriminate use and loose 
business management, along with poor 
construction, etc., have been curses to 
the farmer lines. “The business farmer” 
should profit by these mistakes. Run all 
lines in a business way. “Hitching on” one’s own tele¬ 
phone is poor practice. The company should own 
everything, and the patron take stock which should 
be non-transferable without consent of the directors 
(four out of six) and non-assessable. Rents and tolls 
must pay expenses and be adjusted to fit conditions— 
high enough to stimulate nearly all to take stock, and 
not so high but that others will take ’phones. Some¬ 
times a company can afford to go more than half 
way to reach subscribers on branch lines. It is sim¬ 
ply a matter of business, as in running a creamery. 
Every subscriber added and every mile of line that 
pays makes the service more valuable as the neigh¬ 
borhood use is immensely more important than “long 
distance.” Leading manufacturers are putting out 
manuals on rural telephony and organization, others 
are in press. N * 
CORN VITALITY.—Most corn was planted late last 
Spring on account of the floods, and when the killing 
frosts came in the Fall there was hardly any corn at 
all around here fully hardened, and so the vitality ot 
the grain was killed. No farmer, no matter how sure 
he may be that his corn was not “soft,” should neglect 
to test corn that he intends to use for seed; and he 
should do this too in time, so that in case he should 
become convinced that the vitality of his was killed, he 
could look around in time for other seed. s. m. b. 
Kansas. 
