774 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
November 16 
^ ^ A. 
; Ruralisms 
i T’^'w ▼ ▼ y r ^ ▼ 
MOTES FROM THE RURAL GROUNDS. 
Clover and Cow Pea Benefits.— 
Reference has been made in these not«i 
to the usefulness of Crimson clover and 
cow peas as hen forage. We are able 
to report an increasing partiality for 
these nitrogenous foods among the two 
flocks of chickens kept on the Rural 
Grounds, and correspondingly good re¬ 
sults in the way of egg production. Hens 
readily take to clover in any variety, 
but they are often shy of beans, seldom 
eating them uncooked. An appetite for 
raw peas or beans may be considered 
an acquired taste coming on gradually. 
Our hens ignored the cow-pea seeds the 
flrst season they were grown here, and 
only developed the taste late in the 
Winter when scratching the pods open 
by chance in a sheltered part of the 
fleld. The example of contented old 
biddies coming in with comfortably ex¬ 
tended craws and an urgent thirst for 
water to complete the swelling process 
proved contagious, and they all now 
hurry to the fleld at once on being re¬ 
leased from the yard. There can be no 
doubt as to the beneficial effect of the 
exercise needed to get the pods open, 
nor of the high food value of the beans 
themselves. The Rural Grounds lie in 
a strip about 800 feet long by 200 wide. 
There are poultry houses near each end, 
and the flocks have but little ’chance to 
mingle, as they are necessarily kept 
yarded most of the time, yet the cow- 
pea habit, which we heartily approve, 
seems to have been communicated. The 
second flock has no access to the fields, 
but acquired the taste from scratching 
the gathered pods shelled for seed. An 
increase in egg yield was noted in both 
cases as quickly following the ripening 
of the Early Black cow peas, which is 
the variety best suited for us. Cow-pea 
seeds, when ready for market, are too 
costly for poultry food, but we are con¬ 
vinced that a patch of these hustling 
land improvers handy to the chicken yard 
is a good investment where practicable. 
Crimson clover has become a necessity, 
sown in August between bush fruits and 
after early crops to improve our soil and 
diminish washing by Winter rains, and 
incidentally as forage for the fowls, 
who keep the more accessible strips 
sheared as closely as with a lawn mow¬ 
er. The season has been favorable and 
the plants on early-sown strips are now 
seven to eight inches high, but we find 
such leafy plants do not, as a rule, win¬ 
ter as well as those closely picked by 
the fowls. Chickens are fond of green 
food, but eat very few weeds with rel¬ 
ish. If not provided with clover in this 
manner they are very troublesome on 
the lawn, when at liberty. These clover 
strips entice them away, and thus fit 
in all along the line. 
A New Habdt Peach. —Peach culture 
has been lately extended over an enor¬ 
mous area, this delicious fruit being 
grown from Florida to Canada, and from 
Texas to Washington. J. H. Hale says 
that there are now no “peach districts,” 
as peaches may be grown anywhere if at¬ 
tention is given to the wants of the tree. 
Residents of cold latitudes know, how¬ 
ever, from bitter experience how quickly 
the hopes of a crop may be blasted by a 
hard freeze, and are little inclined to 
plant southern varieties, or those sup¬ 
posed to be tender in tree or bud. The 
so-called hardy peaches, Crosby, Bok¬ 
hara, etc., while quite resistant to cold, 
are not altogether satisfactory in fruit, 
You have several neighbors 
and friends who need Thk 
B. N.-Y. We are going to 
help you to see that they get 
acquainted with it. For our 
part we will send the paper 
to them now 10 weeks for 10 cents - a cent a week. 
We ask you to call their attention to this offer. 
Perhaps you can get up a club. The 23 largest 
clubs will eaoh get a cash premium Janu -ry 1. 
Will you be one of them ? 
10 Weeks 
for 
10 Cents. 
and new sorts for northern culture are 
wanted. Stone & Wellington, Toronto, 
Canada, send us the peach illustrated in 
Fig. 350, page 771. They say that the 
tree has been bearing four years in To¬ 
ronto, and shows great hardiness, never 
having been killed back in any degree. 
It ripens in that locality about the first 
week in October. The flesh is yeliow 
and of good quality, though our speci¬ 
men was overripe. While not uelieving 
in the multiplication of varieties, the 
originators think that this one is 
worthy of propagation, and have named 
it Wellington. They say that the 
peaches happened to be smaller this 
year than previously, as the overloaded 
tree was not thinned. Good specimens 
should be one-third larger than repre¬ 
sented. If this peach should really prove 
as hardy as its present condition seems 
to indicate there is a great fleld for it. 
Fine Autumn Flowers. —November 1 
does not often find nasturtiums, mari¬ 
golds and geraniums in brilliant bloom 
outside, but these old favorites never 
showed to much better advantage than 
at this late date. A few nasturtium 
leaves have been nipped by frost, but 
the flowers are as perfect and plentiful 
as ever. Geraniums, marigolds and Ver¬ 
benas as yet show little deterioration 
from the lengthening cool nights. Bur¬ 
bank’s Elegance Verbena was particu¬ 
larly bright and sweet throughout Oc¬ 
tober. Cannas open many blooms, con¬ 
sidering the lateness of the season, but 
the foliage begins to show the effects of 
cold, while the brilliant clumps of Sal¬ 
via or Scarlet sage, always locally 
grown in abundance, are fading out rap¬ 
idly. Hardy Chrysanthemums, Cosmos 
and Japan Anemones remain to round 
out the gardening year. The daily bril¬ 
liant sunshine, almost continuous for 
the last six weeks, warms the soil so 
that a fair rate of growth is still main¬ 
tained on unripened plants. It is get¬ 
ting rather dry for celery, however, and 
there is a noticeable falling off in its de¬ 
velopment within the last two weeks. 
W. V. F. 
17-YEAR LOCUSTS AND PEACH TREES 
In regard to the 17-year locusts I think 
that the probable danger from them is 
overestimated. I should not hesitate to 
set out an orchard or make improve¬ 
ments, provided on long-cleared land. 
Where forest trees or brush rows had 
been removed it might be different. It 
was my observation 17 years ago that 
the locusts confined themselves exclu¬ 
sively to wild thickets and forests, or 
where such growth had been. g. d. 
Whitehouse, N. J. 
I do not predict serious damage to 
fruit trees by the locusts next year in 
the rural districts except perhaps to 
young chestnuts, which they are very se¬ 
vere on. In boroughs or villages where 
other trees are scarce they may cut se¬ 
verely. I noted them closely in 1868 and 
1885. They fairly mowed the chestnut 
and oak thickets, but our orchards were 
not damaged much as a rule. I believe 
in thorough pruning, especially peach, 
and Kieffer pear trees. Less fruit buds, 
larger fruit; quality rather than quan¬ 
tity, therefore follow up the sawyers 
with clear-cut pruning shears, w. s. o. 
Collingswood, N. J. 
I have seen some injury done to young 
trees by the locust, but do not now re¬ 
call any instance where the injury was 
severe enough to ruin the trees. From 
past observations the locust is not gen¬ 
eral, but confines itself to certain locali¬ 
ties along sandy or high wooded ridges, 
and works more on forest trees than 
anything else. Still, if young trees are 
planted on or near such situations, 
which were infested by them the last 
time the locusts came, they would, no 
doubt, be severely injured, and I would 
not advise planting in such places, but 
as to the wholesale abandonment of 
tree planting I think it folly; I shall 
plant just the same as though no locusts 
were coming. If they ever are prevalent 
on level areas I have never known the 
fact. 1 would advise those who con¬ 
template planting to do so unless, as I 
state, they expect to plant near locali¬ 
ties that were infested 17 years ago. 
Mercer Co., N. J. chas. black. 
Near the river here we have never had 
any locusts. In 1851 on the upper end of 
our farm, or rather in the timber, they 
were plentiful, and their effect on the 
oak trees was very plain. Locusts are 
seriously injurious only near timber 
lands, that have been standing over one 
locust year, and where there were great 
quantities in 1851 there were very few 
in 1885 in timber land, and none where 
timber had been cut, so that I think, 
judging by the past, that locusts will 
only be an obstacle to tree planting near 
where there is timber or was timber 17 
years ago. I intend to plant some peach 
trees in the Spring, and do not antici¬ 
pate any serious trouble, although tim¬ 
ber is not very far off. The locusts are 
partial to oak trees, i. j. blackweia,. 
Mercer Co., N. J. 
When the locust brood was around be¬ 
fore I was fresh from college, and gave 
these matters but little thought. As 
soon as I received Prof. Smith’s warn¬ 
ing I at once talked with some of our 
older fruit growers, and failed to find 
wherein the brood did much harm be¬ 
fore. Wishing to plant about 4,000 or 
5,000 peach trees next Spring I wrote 
Prof. Smith for advice. He said he 
would “plant but not trim until June, 
planting only the largest trees.” To 
sum up, I expect to plant over 23 acres 
with peaches and run the risk. By the 
way, I dare not try the Stringfellow 
method, as my only success in peaches 
is from working the soil from May until 
August. I should think some of those 
back fields of Hope Farm, unless too 
much clay, would be a grand source of 
income when planted to peaches. 
Sussex Co., N. J. a. e. r. 
Stringfellow Method in Tennessee. 
I was glad to read your recent refer¬ 
ence to the Stringfellow plan of tree 
growing, and desire to give a little ex¬ 
perience of my own on the same line. I 
have an orchard of 2,400 peach trees 
here, six years old. It had been given 
intensive cultivation until last year, 
only to have the blooms killed by a late 
frost. In disgust I let it severely alone 
last year. As usual the late frost show¬ 
ed up, but the ground being compact 
the sun did not penetrate, my blooms 
were late and the result was a splendid 
crop of fruit. After picking the orchard 
being so weedy I cultivated it, with the 
same old result this year—no fruit; kill¬ 
ed by a late frost. I confess I had no 
patience with Mr. Stringfellow’s method 
before, especially his plan of setting 
trees, but in the future I am with him 
on after cultivation; 1. e., a pair of good 
horses and a mowing machine. 
Morristown, Tenn. h. l. d. 
The Alton Peach. 
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ESTABUSHEDTsTJ' 
Wood 
Saws 
Both Slid¬ 
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Send for 
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Sizes, 2, 2!^, 3, 4, 6 and 
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1025 Liberty Avenue, 
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FENCE WIRE AT WHOLESALE 
Send for price-list and free catalog of Wire Fences & 
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An ELASTIC Elastic 
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RIFE ENGINE CO. 
122 Liberty St., New York. 
On page 726 J, B. Rogers undertakes 
to tell ue all about the above peach, and 
how it got the name of Alton, wdiere it 
originated, etc. T. V. Munson, of Deni¬ 
son, Tex., originated the peach, and sent 
it to me under the name of Minnie. It 
was so good that I sent some buds to 
the Experiment Station at Alton, where 
Stark Bros, got it and changed the 
name to Alton. Names of fruits should 
not be changed without the consent of 
the originators. The tree Mr. Munson 
sent has borne 14 crops of peaches in 15 
years (the 1899 freeze was too much for 
it), and the 1901 crop was over 20 bush¬ 
els, so I think it a good one as a fruiter, 
but the quality is not as good as Moun¬ 
tain Rose. G. W. ENDICOTT. 
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