1901 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
659 
FALL WEB-WORM, MOTH AND EGG. Fig. 294. 
American species, and is one of the most general 
feeders among the caterpillars, as it has been found 
feeding on 120 different kinds of shade, ornamental, 
forest and fruit trees over a wide area of our country. 
Fall web-worms can be combated either by wiping 
or burning or cutting out the nests, one of which is 
usually practicable, but sometimes one does not wish 
to mutilate a plant by cutting or burning; then the 
second method of poisoning the worms may be prac¬ 
ticed. Remember that tne worms keep extending 
their web over new feeding grounds and, if the sur¬ 
rounding foliage be thoroughly poisoned, the cater¬ 
pillars will sooner or later get a dose of poison in 
their daily menu. m. v. slingerland. 
FARMING IN SOUTHWESTERN NEW JERSEY 
Fertilizers to Start Stock Farming. 
Part I. 
At Washington’s Crossing, a railroad station on the 
Delaware River about 10 miles above Trenton, N. J., 
stands a monument marking the place where Wash¬ 
ington’s army crossed the icy river on its way to sur¬ 
prise the Hessian soldiers. Across the cold water and 
up the steep bank came the ragged little forlorn hope. 
Desperate men, they cleared the river, shouldered 
their muskets, and trudged off to the south through 
the darkness and storm to surprise the Hessians. 
Every school boy knows what they did, and how that 
hard and desperate march changed history and put 
new heart into every lover of liberty. The special 
point of importance with us just now is the fact that 
Washington’s army marched through a farming sec¬ 
tion. The land was well cleared, farmhouses stood 
along the road; in fact, it had been even then for 
years producing its full share of grain and meat. To¬ 
day, 125 years after Washington’s march, this is still 
an agricultural section, producing meat and grain in 
large quantities. In spite of more than a century of 
continued cropping here are farms which produce 
larger crops than ever. Strange, too, is the fact that 
here and there one finds a farm which for one reason 
or another has been permitted to run down, so that 
it is no longer profitable, and has been restored by 
chemical fertilizers. That is an old story to many 
farmers, but this is a new version of it. These farms 
are naturally adapted to the raising of live stock. 
They have little potato land, such as we find in Mid¬ 
dlesex Co., N. J. They are stock farms, but so poor 
that they could not at first carry stock enough to pay 
expenses. By the judicious use of fertilizers on the 
proper crops the producing capacity of the soil has 
been so increased that the farms carry twice as much 
stock as formerly, and show a constant improvement. 
This use of fertilizers to start the farm into profitable 
live-stock keeping will seem like a strange thing to 
many farmers, yet it is a perfectly rational method 
when we come to consider it carefully, i went to 
Mercer Co., N. J., to see a farm owned by Ira J. 
Blackwell, on which this system is being worked out. 
The home farm of Mr. Blackwell is close by the fa¬ 
mous crossing. Some’of Washington’s soldiers doubt¬ 
less marched through the orchard on their way south. 
Mr. Blackwell’s father moved on the place in 1844, 
and hte descendants have lived there ever since. 
Naturally a farm held for so long in one family has 
witnessed some surprising changes of agriculture. 
Shortly after the Civil War, when prices for all kinds 
of farm produce were high, these Jersey farms were 
very profitable. That was before the days of western 
competition, and grain, meat and fruit founu ready 
sale in Philadelphia. Mr. Blackwell gave me some 
figures of old-time sales that will take tne breath 
out of a modern fruit grower. In 1869 he had an acre 
of Smith Cider apple trees which netted $1,000, and 
in 1870 the same trees netted $800. in those years 
apples were “out of sight,’’ windfalls bringing $4 per 
barrel, and hanu-picked fruit $1.75 per bushel at the 
railroad station. In 1878 12 acres or 600 trees of SmVh 
Cider netted $2,000, with apples then worth $3 per 
barrel in Philadelphia. No wonder that with this 
record Mr. Blackwell says there are few apples that 
pay better than Smith Cider. In speaking of that 
$1,000 acre crop Mr. Blackwell says that the hog was 
largely responsible for it. A drove of hogs ran in the or¬ 
chard, rooting up the sod and eating the cull fruit. 
The hogs still run in the orchard, and good crops are 
still grown, but the combination of big crop and high 
price is now seldom known—even with the favorite 
Smith Cider. There have also been some very 
profitable seasons with pears. The Bartlett seems to 
lead all others in profit for this section, though the 
vast quantities sent from California hurt the sale 
of home-grown fruit. Mr. Blackwell says that New 
Jersey is a better State for fruit than for grain, yet 
all through this section most of the farms are de¬ 
voted to hay and grain, which are fed to stock. The 
rotation followed on this home farm is probably typi¬ 
cal of the neighborhood. The crops are, corn, fol¬ 
lowed by oats or barley; then wheat and grass for 
two years, with corn again after the grass. 
Most of the farm manure is put on the corn, and 
A FALL WEB-WORM COLONY. Fig. 29.5. 
fertilizers are usually put in the wheat and often on 
the grass. The wheat is sold or traded for bran and 
other feed. The straw, hay, stalks and corn are fed 
to stock. This is naturally a good dairy section, but 
the Blackwells do not keep many cows—preferring 
siock that can largely itake care of itself. Beef cat¬ 
tle, they think, would under their system of farming 
pay about as well as dairy cows. Ten to 12 Berkshire 
sows are kept, and all the pigs they can raise are fed 
for pork. These pigs run in a large orchard, and are 
well fed on grain, so that they average 200 pounds at 
seven months. The feed is wheat bran, middlings and 
whole corn while nursing. When the pigs are about 
four months old linseed oil meal is fed; a fiock of 100 
Southdown sheep is kept. The lambs come either 
very early or rather late—the latter being kept for 
sale in the Winter. With all this stock to consume 
the hay and grain, and fertilizers in addition for the 
wheat, it is quite easy to keep up the strength of the 
farm, and sell tons of pork and mutton and large 
quantities of fruit. It is all the easier because the 
farm has been for years in the hands of good farm¬ 
ers, who have taken good care of it. Mr. Blackwell 
has another farm which was to begin with “so poor 
that crows would fly over it without lighting.’’ How 
can such a farm be saved and put into a thorough 
and systematic roiaiion? I will try to tel'l next 
week how it is being done. h. w. c. 
FIXING THE WALKING PLOW FOR BUSINESS 
There are many plows used year after year that are 
not properly adjusted. Many farmers declare their 
plows are good for nothing, and blame the manufac¬ 
turer for their troubles in trying to do a good job of 
plowing. However, these plow troubles can be very 
largely obviated, if a few sensible rules or directions 
for operating are closely observed. In purchasing a 
plow, select one that is adapted to your soil. The 
local dealer seldom looks after this matter, unless he 
is a farmer, and knows what the farmer needs in this 
line. The dealer or agent usually sells the plows that 
bring the highest commission, or one that the aver¬ 
age farmer will buy because it is cheaper than other 
plows. The dealer looks out for himself, and the 
farmer should do likewise. The leading plow manu¬ 
facturers make all sorts of plows for all kinds of soil. 
It is a good plan for the farmer to write each of the 
plow manufacturers who advertise in The R. N.-Y. for 
complete illustrated catalogues. From the illustra¬ 
tions and accompanying descriptions it is a compara¬ 
tively easy matter to select a plow properly adapted 
to your own soil. The style and size of bottom, size 
and curvatui-e of moldboard, and width and depth of 
cut must be considered. 
Many farmers select a so-called two or three-horse 
“general-purpose” plow. This has been my plan when 
purchasing a walking plow. Then one can use two 
horses in plowing oat or wheat stubble, or when 
necessary in heavy soil, going slow or stopping often. 
When using three horses, one can keep the plow mov¬ 
ing constantly all day long. Do not try to make a 
plow cut wider or narrower than it will naturally run 
when properly set up and adjusted. No plow will 
work well otherwise. When set up, the general-pur¬ 
pose plow is naturally adapted to two horses, with 
the evener center hitching clevis at the end of the 
plow beam. If three ihorses are attached, walking 
abreast, the center clevis must be moved toward the 
left or land side a certain amount, until the center 
line of draft balances the plow when cutting the full 
width. I prefer the steel beam for a general-purpose 
walking plow, as there is no need of changing or 
swinging the beam and wheel, no matter whether 
two or three horses are attached. Such steel beams 
should have a combination clevis that will allow 
necessary vertical and horizontal adjustment to make 
the plow balance and run in its natural channel. 
The small wheel under the beam should always be 
set to run exactly parallel with the land side of the 
plow. The hitch should be just high enough on the 
clevis to ailow the wheel to run lightly and steadily 
on tne ground, 'there sihould be just enougn pitch to the 
plow point and share constantly to hold the plow down 
to its natural capacity, and no more. More pitch can 
be given to a plow, when necessary, in very dry, hard 
soil, by putting a thin wedge in between the top of 
the plow standard and beam, but it is seldom advis¬ 
able, as it makes the plow run harder, and with a 
greater tendency to wear off the point and share. 1 
have seen plowmen in the furrows, walking in a 
braced attitude, so as to push the plow handles to 
the right or left, to prevent their plows from tipping 
over, and keeping up this unnecessary “exercise,” as 
a sort of “side issue,” all day long. There is no need 
of this, as, with a proper adjustment of the beam, 
evener and clevis hitch, with lines correctly arranged, 
any standard walking plow, if not worn out, will work 
nicely and balance to suit the most exacting require¬ 
ments of soil or locality. 
I have properly adjusted more than a dozen walk¬ 
ing plows that were bothering farmers whom I met 
in traveling in various portions of the country. It 
usually took but a few minutes to make each plow run 
properly. In several instances the three-horse evener 
was too long, and the horses spread out too much. 
The three-horse evener, including singletrees, should 
be of just the right length, so that the draft clevis 
of each horse will be exactly behind, and on a line 
running midway between each pair of hind legs. Any 
deviation will cause more or less side draft. The ma¬ 
jority of two and three-horse eveners are too long 
for use on a walking plow. In the next article I 
will illustrate these various adjustments. 
Calhoun Co., Mich. j. h. brown. 
WEB-WORMS IN FOREST TREES. Fig. 296. 
