i89o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
4oi 
us back again to the sugar pears and the Keiffer. Two 
dozen “ Evergreen Blackberries” (oneof the notable intro¬ 
ductions of Mr. J. L. Childs) planted some years ago, have 
cost me many hours of hard work in digging them out. 
Farmingdale, Ill._ B. B. 
DAIRY AND OTHER NOTES. 
Which is the best cow in your herd ? Do you know ? I 
doubt it. Here is one good for 20 quarts of milk a day. 
There is one good for 12 or 13 quarts; but while the 20- 
quart one goes dry eight or 10 weeks, the other never does ; 
besides, as soon as the 20 quart cow gets in calf, she drops 
down to about 12 quarts, while getting with calf seems to 
make little, if any, difference with the other. For years I 
weighed the milk of every cow I had, every milking, and 
kept a record of it, and I found that my best cow was not 
my “swell” milker; but a heifer that gave nearly the 
same quantity per month for eight months I sold a heifer 
to a Massachusetts man. She was to drop her first calf in 
his possession, so I had never seen her milk. I asked him 
this spring how she had turned out. He said she came in 
with a flow of eight quarts a day of very rich milk, but the 
quantity was so small I was much disappointed in her ; 
but, after she had been milking eight months and was five 
months in calf, I found she was giving nine quarts or more 
a day, and I look on her as the second best cow in a herd 
of 40. The cow that averages well, and sticks to a steady, 
even, moderate flow is in almost every case the “ best cow.” 
Watching Calving Cows.— I notice that a considerable 
difference of opinion prevails as to the advisability of 
watching cows close to calving. I always see a cow at least 
every three hours from the time she appears to be within a 
day of calving, until the calf has been born, has got on its 
feet and learned to suck the cow, especially in winter; for 
this is an awfully cold world to come into at that season 
from the little thing’s previous warm bed. I have always 
done so, because help is many times needed by the cow, 
especially by the finer bred animals, and I believe if a cow 
is worth having, she is worth caring for. Not as points 
which decided me always to watch, but to show that it 
pays, I will mention an incident or two : I have a brother- 
in-law who doesn’t waste anything—not even barn room, 
so his box stalls for calving were built so small that a cow 
had to stand with her head and tail in opposite corners to 
stand straight. In these stalls three of his cows dropped 
heifer calves, all registered Jerseys and valuable; in two 
cases the cows laid on their calves and killed them. This 
can be laid to the size of the stall or the absence of the 
owner when he ought to have been caring for the calf at 
its birth. I had a registered heifer that always turned on 
her calf like a fury as soon as it was bom, and would have 
tossed and surely killed it unless some one had instantly 
removed it. In several cases I have had to help out an extra- 
large calf where the cow, unaided, lacked the strength to 
give it birth. I don’t mean that it should be pulled out at 
once, but as the cow strains I pull, using judgment as to 
how hard, making the delivery as nearly natural as pos¬ 
sible. This is the case generally where a calf is pre¬ 
sented hind feet first. I have seen two cows drop their 
calves while standing— both right presentations and sound 
healthy calves. 
Stones in the Road.— Why is it that the powers “ work ” 
the roads twice a year and then leave them severely alone 
at all other times unless a “washout” makes some work 
“just there” necessary. Why is it that we must drive 
over hundreds of stones in the road, fast and loose, for 
months, or get out as I often do, and pick the loose ones 
out for sometimes a mile or more, when the road-master 
could send a man over the roads once a month or so, and 
at a cost of only two or three dollars, at least relieve us 
from the loose stones in a whole district. Again, why use 
the plow and scraper to make roads when a road machine 
will do it so much better, and make as nearly a perfect 
road as our country roads are likely to be, and the machine 
will put all the roads in a district in good order for half 
the cost of “working” the small proportion usually gone 
over and as I have seen it done. The machine can be hired 
out to adjoining districts for more than enough to pay for 
all labor in the home district. True, it will wear out 
quicker, but it is better to wear it out than let it rust out, 
and really it will be more “ money in” to wear one out in 
five years, than by too little use to make it last 10. An¬ 
other thing : a man should go over all the roads in a dis¬ 
trict after every storm, see that all gutters, etc., are free 
and doing their duty, or if not, a few seconds’ work with 
hoe or shovel will many times save dollars. At the same 
time all the larger puddles at least should have outlets 
scraped to the roadside, which would tend to keep the 
roads better, instead of being part dust and part mud, as is 
generally the case in most sections. 
Mexican Progress in Agriculture.—I have a friend, 
a native Mexican, who was educated in the United States, 
but who now lives in Mexico. He told me how well he had 
succeeded in introducing modern tools and methods on his 
estate. He began years ago, so I naturally thought he 
had done considerable; but here is his answer to my in¬ 
quiry : “ I took down there plows, harrows, shovels, hoes, 
forks, etc., etc.; I showed them to my foreman, told him 
their uses, and that he was to use them. The hands came, 
looked at them, and ‘ struck’ in a body. They would not 
use, and never have used a ‘ Yankee’ invention, and it Is 
the same all over the country. I took down a bull calf to 
improve my stock. He was used, but even my foreman 
swore he was a ‘ sport’ born on the place. Their plow is 
of wood and only just scratches the ground, but the soil 
and climate are such that they get good crops even in this 
primitive way. But think of one ‘farm’ employing 600 
or 800 men, and 300 to 500 yokes of oxen, cattle, sheep and 
horses by the thousand, and the whole thing run as it was 
100 to 150 years ago. There is a little change for the better 
near the large cities, and the ports, etc., but there is an 
intense feeling against all foreigners, or anything they 
may have to sell. The owners hardly ever run their own 
farms, but leave them all to overseers who send the income 
to them while they live in the city, many in Europe, a few 
in this country. They see how much could be done with 
modern tools on their estates, but as their incomes are 
sufficient, and they know their people, they leave well 
enough alone.” r. H. c. 
MANURES FOR FLORIDA SOILS. 
In discussing the manures especially adapted to Florida 
soils, many things are to be taken into consideration. I 
doubt if there is a State in the Union where so great a 
diversity of soil exists as in this peninsula. We have the 
high, rolling pine land with black-jack ridges; slightly 
rolling pine land with occasional patches of saw-palmetto, 
and the flat woods, densely covered with saw-palmetto, 
and too wet for successful cultivation, especially during a 
wet season. Then we have high and low hummocks, as 
different in soil as one can possibly conceive. The low 
hummocks are vast deposits lof black vegetable mold 
underlaid with marl, very productive and especially 
adapted to the growth of corn, cane and vegetables. 
Orange trees thrive only when set on mounds or ridges of 
made land. Parallel ditches are cut, and on the ridges 
thus made I have seen trees grow nicely. This soil requires 
no fertilizing. The best groves in the State are found on 
the high hummocks situated so that the underdrainage is 
good. The large grove in Marion County, at Rock Ledge, 
Brevard County, and the celebrated Dummitt grove are 
all located on this kind of hummock land. The advant¬ 
ages of these lands are many, the two greatest being their 
healthfulness and the fact that there is no need of fertiliz¬ 
ing them until after several crops have been raised, so that 
the grove is self-sustaining from the first harvest. There 
is still another class of land—high scrub, with ridges of 
spruce pine, underlaid at a depth of 18 inches to three feet, 
with a subsoil of yellow sand. My individual experience 
has been confined to the high hummock and the spruce 
pine scrub. On these I have used fertilizers, both com¬ 
mercial and home-made, to a limited extent for several 
years, with very satisfactory results. 
The analysis of the orange gives us the ash constituents 
as follows: Potash, 38.7; lime, 23.0; soda, 7.6; magnesia. 
6.5; ferric phosphate, 1.7; sulphur, 2.9; silica, 6.2; phos¬ 
phoric acid, 14.1. By the above analysis we find that 
potash, lime, phosphoric acid, soda and magnesia are the 
most important elements likely to be needed for a fruitful 
tree. Nearly all Florida soils, except the low hummocks 
above referred to, are sandy, and more or less leachy, hence 
the more soluble of these—potash, soda and magnesia— 
should be more frequently applied. Bearing this fact in 
view, I have used fine ground bone, sulphate of potash, 
hard-wood ashes, phosphoric acid and soda. For a bearing 
orange grove on good high hummock, I have used pure 
fine ground bone and sulphate of potash in the proportion 
of three parts of bone and one part of potash, with good 
results. The amount of bone used is one pound for each 
year the tree has been set up to 20 years. Thus for trees 
15 years of age I use 15 pounds of bone and five pounds of 
potash. For young trees on the spruce-pine scrub, I have 
used a chemical fertilizer, of which the following is the 
guaranteed analysis: 
Ammonia. 5 to 6 per cent. 
Phosphoric acid (bone).in to li 
Actual potash (as sulphate).3J4 to 4)* “ 
Equal to sulphate of potash.6 to 8 “ 
I have also used well rotted stable manure, and both 
have given very gratifying results. For a pine-land grove 
where the soil is deficient in humus, I would use well 
decomposed muck, thoroughly mixed with wood ashes and 
lime, and then add ground bone for the phosphoric acid. 
I know of some persons who have used sea-grass and muck 
with very excellent results; but as both are valuable 
chiefly for their absorbing qualities only, I would supply 
the phosphoric acid and potash needed, by adding some 
fertilizer containing these two valuable ingredients. 
Many persons do their lands an irreparable injury by 
burning all the forest growth, thus destroying all humus 
or vegetable matter in the soil. The rule with the most 
intelligent growers now is to burn nothing on the ground, 
but to let all the wood decay, thus furnishing the plant 
food that the young trees require. The root of the saw 
palmetto is rich in potash, but unfortunately it is also 
equally rich in tannic acid, which is poison to citron 
growth. 
While the chemist in his laboratory can tell us what the 
orange tree and fruit is composed of, yet we, the growers, 
cannot tell what particular element our soil is deficient in, 
without having it, too, analyzed, which, of course, would 
be impracticable in a majority of cases. Hence we can only 
experiment, and by the growth and condition of the tree 
judge, to the best of our ability, what to apply. My own 
experience has been derived simply from a series of experi¬ 
ments, and the results are subject to modification and cor¬ 
rection, and I can only add that thus far I am well satis¬ 
fied with the results. h. s. williams. 
Brevard County, Florida. 
The Farmers Club. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must be accompanied by the name and address 
of the writer to insure attention. Before asking a question, please 
see if it is not answered in our advertising columns. Ask only 
a few questions at one time. Put questions on a separate piece 
of paper.J 
Parasites of the Cabbage Worm. 
F. IF. H., Warren, Ale.— In the report of the Entomolo¬ 
gist of the Department of Agriculture for 1883, consider¬ 
able space is given to the parasites of the cabbage worm— 
microgaster—and others. Have parasites ever become 
numerous enough iu any part of the country to be of any 
benefit to cabbage growers, and if so, where can I obtain 
the “seed.” 
ANSWERED BY DR. C. V. RILEY. 
It is only occasionally that the parasites of the Imported 
Cabbage Worm (Pieris rapte) become numerous enough to 
appreciably lessen the numbers of the worms, and it 
would be only when such a case is called directly to my 
attention that I should be able to have living specimens 
sent to a portion of the country where they are not abund¬ 
ant. 
Fertilizers for a Spring-Planted Strawberry Bed. 
J. M. T., Terre Haute, Ind. —Strawberries having been 
set this spring, when and in what quantities should ashes 
be applied on both clay and sand ? What is an average 
analysis of hard-wood ashes, and what fertilizer should be 
used with them, manure being objectionable on account of 
the noxious weed seeds it contains ? 
Ans.—T he average composition of unleached ashes—such 
as those known as Canada ashes—is about 5.5 of potash, 
1.9 of phosphoric acid, and 60 per cent, of lime. Nitrogen 
should be added in some form. There is little danger of 
applying too much ashes, so that the quantity may be reg¬ 
ulated by the price. Probably 30 to 40 bushels to the acre 
would be about right. Preferably we should use raw- 
bone flour with the ashes, adding, say, 150 pounds of 
nitrate of soda. We should wait until early spring to 
apply these fertilizers. 
Blood Poisoning in a Calf. 
Subscriber (address mislaid). — I castrated my four- 
weeks-old calf when five days old. He did well for a few 
days, and then became sick. His legs swelled at the joints, 
and also became stiff, and he can’t get up without help. 
Blood and hard matter come from him at times, and then 
he grits his teeth. He eats heartily, however. What is 
the trouble ? 
Ans. —Blood-poisoning has set in either because the 
wound closed too soon or the operation was improperly or 
carelessly performed, or there has been neglect after it. 
The condition is one to be avoided rather than treated. At 
this stage of the disease treatment is rarely successful; 
and if undertaken would require the personal attention of 
a skilled veterinary surgeon. 
Harness Blacking. 
W. D., Greenwich, Conn. —What will keep harness 
looking black and fresh—something that will not soil 
everything that comes in contact with it f 
Ans. —We know of no substance that answers the pur¬ 
pose completely. One of the best articles sold is Harris’s 
English Oil Black. This is used first on the harness, and 
Harris’s Liquid Polish is then used over it. The two ar¬ 
ticles answer the above purpose better than anything else 
we know of. Directions for using them come on the bot¬ 
tles, and the goods can be purchased at any harness store. 
Feeding Value of Pea Hulls. 
J. M.. Marlette, Mich. —What is the feeding value of 
pea hulls taken from peas in a split pea mill f I can buy 
them for $4 per ton, while bran costs $10 per ton. Which 
is the cheaper feed for pigs and cattle ? A sample is 
inclosed. 
ANSWERED BY PROF. I. P. ROBERTS. 
The sample sent proves to have the following composi¬ 
tion. The average composition of wheat bran, as published 
by Dr. Jenkins, is also given for comparison: 
Pea Hulls. Wheat Bran. 
Water. 
12.38 
Protein . 
15.36 
Crude fat. 
3.83 
Crude fiber. 
9.34 
Nitrogen-free extract. 
58.50 
Ash. 
5.59 
100.0J 
100.00 
Allowing protein to be worth 1.6 cent per pound; fat, 
4.2 cents, and carbohydrates, .96 cent, and excluding the 
fiber which would be of some slight value, we get the fol¬ 
lowing results: 
Protein. 
Crude fat. 
Carbohydrates.. 
Pea Hulls. 
83 
.... 1 44 
.... 7 25 
Wheat Bran. 
$4 91 
3 a 
10 25 
Total.*10 52 
*18 40 
If we assume that these products are equally digestible— 
and I can see no reason why they should not be—it is found 
that if bran costs $18.40 per ton, then pea-hulls would be 
equally cheap at $10 52 per ton, or pea-hulls are worth ten- 
eighteenths or five-ninths or a little more than half as 
much as wheat bran. 
MISCELLANEOUS. 
J. B. W., Charlton, At ass. —In the spring of 1889 I used 
London-purple on apple-trees; very soon afterwards the 
leaves began to fall off. This spring I have applied noth¬ 
ing to the trees; but the leaves have just begun to drop 
off. What is the trouble ? 
Ans. —We should think either that the tree is infested 
with borers, or that the roots are being injured from some 
cause. 
B. F. S., Fargo, N. Dakota. —What are the names of 
several of the largest wholesale dealers in house-furnish¬ 
ing goods in New York f 
Ans.— Sheppard Knapp & Co., Sixth Avenue and 18th 
Street, New York; B. W. Cowperthwait & Co., Park Row, 
New York ; Simpson, Crawford & Simpson, Sixth Avenue 
and ISth Street; H. O’Neill & Co., Sixth Avenue and 20th 
Street; Gregg & Co., Fifth Avenue and 14th Street. 
J. K., Union, Mo. —Will the wheat and oat louse injure 
Timothy and corn ? How long do the pests stay, aud do 
they appear every year ? 
Ans. —It is reported as having done decided injury to 
wheat in Michigan. Our own wheat, rye and oats are 
badly infested. Still it is not observable that any serious 
damage has been done so far. We do not think this louse 
(aphis) will damage corn or Timothy materially. We can 
pot give any opinion as to its increase or decrease. 
