1896 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
i97 
results in many ways. First, this sort of culture will 
tend to send the roots deeper into the soil, and the 
trees thereby will receive better anchorage. Second, 
it will set free a vast amount of plant food in the sur¬ 
face soil; the rains will wash this down and make it 
available for the plants. Third, such culture will go 
a great ways towards conserving moisture in dry 
weather, and since plants suffer far more as a rule in 
the summer from want of moisture than from want of 
plant food, nothing could be more scientific than to 
keep a fine earth mulch on the entire surface of the 
orchard, thereby forcing nearly all of the water 
which escapes upward to pass through the trees. 
About the first of August, sow Crimson clover, cul¬ 
tivate or harrow it in, and thereafter cease cultiva¬ 
tion for the rest of the summer. After this sort of 
treatment has been carried on for three or four years, 
should it be seen that the vegetative system of the 
trees is being stimulated and too much growth of 
wood is appearing, cease sowing Crimson clover, and 
sow rye at the same time in tne same manner. Both 
of these catch crops are to be plowed under or culti¬ 
vated to death early in the spring, and it matters not, 
in the case of the clover, if it freeze out, as it will 
have done a large part of its work before the winter 
begins. Sow about 10 pounds of clover, or 134 bushel 
of rye per acre. Do not try to raise anything in the 
orchard but fruit. Since there is danger of the trees 
being uprooted, keep them well headed back. Do 
not be afraid to cut off the ends of the branches, but 
take pains to cut them within an inch or so of where 
there is a side branch. Keep the orchard thoroughly 
sprayed, and report results from time to time. 
Some of “the Best” Small Fruits. 
E. C., Johnson City , Tenn. —1. What are the best three red cur¬ 
rants, white currants, gooseberries, and red raspberries ? The 
best two of each, early, medium and late strawberries ? The 
above are mainly for family use, and should be adapted to 
this locality. What are the best three Japan plums, and best 
three of the American plums? 2. What is the best low-priced 
work on small fruit culture ? 
Ans. —1. Currants : Fay, Cherry and Victoria for 
red; White Grape and White Dutch. Gooseberries : 
Columbus, Triumph and Red Jacket. Raspberries : 
Loudon, Columbian and Miller’s Red. Strawberries : 
Parker Earle, Brandywine and Gandy for late ; Sharp¬ 
less, Cumberland and Lovett for medium; Rio, Shuster 
and Beder Wood for early. Plums : Abundance, 
Burbank and Hale for Japan ; for natives, Cheney, 
De Soto and Robinson. 2. There are several good 
books on fruits, many of them devoted to a single 
fruit. Probably, Fruit Culture, by Strong, $1, will 
fill the bill for general work as well as any. 
Cleft-Grafting for Pecan Trees. 
S. II. J., Mound, La.—l. Many of my pecan trees bore last fall, 
and while some bore flue nuts, others did not please me; so this 
winter I have cleft-grafted all the latter with grafts from the 
finest tree in the State. I cut the tops out, and inserted two to 
four grafts on the old trunks. It will be some time before the 
union becomes perfect, and I wish to know the best thing to do to 
prevent the grafts from blowing out until then. In grafting big 
trees, about how long does it take for this union to become per¬ 
fect, so that there Is little dauger from ordinary storms ? 2. For 
the first time, we have found it necessary to use commercial fer¬ 
tilizer on our alluvial lands of the Mississippi Valley. A friend 
and I bought a car-load this spring, and I send the analysis. Is 
it an all-around good fertilizer ? I wish to apply it to corn and 
cotton. 
Ans. —1. We know of no better plan than to bind 
strips of strong oil paper around the stocks, letting it 
extend an inch or more above the stocks. 2. If the 
grafts take well, we would say that the union would 
be perfect the second year. 3. The fertilizer men¬ 
tioned is guaranteed to contain three per cent of 
ammonia, 10 of phosphoric acid, and two of potash. 
This is too low in potash, and we would use, at least, 
200 pounds of muriate of potash with each ton of 
the fertilizer. 
What Is “Suckling Clover”? 
W. II., Clarksburg, Ont .—Can you give us a description of the 
“ Suckling clover,” Trifolium filiforme, as catalogued by P. Hen¬ 
derson & Co. ? 
Ans. —Peter Henderson & Co. make this statement 
about the clover : The Suckling clover (Trifolium 
filiforme) offered in our catalogue, is a small, trail¬ 
ing yellow clover, which succeeds well on dry, grav¬ 
elly or sandy soils. The whole plant is quite slender, 
and the leaves are small. It stands the hot sun, and 
is useful for sowing with mixtures for either lawns or 
permanent pastures, on such soils as we have described 
or in other dry situations. 
Crimson Clover for Central Illinois. 
G. A. B., Ashton, III .—Much is being said about Crimson clover. 
Some think that it is just the thing as a hay producer and fer¬ 
tilizer. I don’t know that there is one dissenting voice from that 
claim; but some say that it is a little too tender for some lati¬ 
tudes. Would it pay to sow it extensively 80 miles west of Chicago, 
in latitude 42, or would it be advisable to experiment only with 
it? For the above location, which would you recommend, Crim¬ 
son clover, or Alfalfa, where hay and fertilization botli are 
objects ? 
Ans. —We would experiment first, by all means. 
We never advise extensive planting of a new plant 
unless experimenting somewhere near shows that 
there is a fair chance for success. For hay, the Al¬ 
falfa is superior wherever it will thrive. It is hardly 
possible to compare Alfalfa with Crimson clover, as 
the former once started is kept growing for years, 
while the Crimson clover is an annual which is ex¬ 
pected to come in between two other crops in a 
rotation. 
A “Balanced Ration;" Sunflower Seeds. 
A. M., B. E. Island. —1. Can a balanced ration be obtained for a 
milch cow from the following feeds: Timothy hay, clover hay, 
oat straw, roots, consisting of carrots, turnips and mangels, oats 
and barley? If so, what are the proper proportions? 2. Can 
crushed sunflower seed be used instead of linseed meal to mix 
with skim-milk, to raise calves for dairy purposes ? 3. Would 
good, clean, sod land, plowed last fall, be a suitable place to 
plant strawberries this spring ? 
ANSWERED BY PROF. I. P. ROBERTS. 
1. A fairly good ration can be made by feeding to a. 
700 to 800-pound cow : 20 pounds of clover hay, 5 
pounds of Timothy, 4 pounds of oats, four pounds of 
barley, 15 pounds of roots per day. This will give a 
nutritive ratio of about 1 to 7.5, which is too wide. 
The ration would be greatly improved by adding one 
or two pounds of linseed meal. If the cow is a good 
feeder, she will take this ration ; if not, some of the 
Timothy hay might be left out. It would be more 
profitable to sell the Timothy hay at present prices, 
and invest the money received in oil meal, than to try 
to force the animals to eat it when, in doing so, they 
would unbalance their ration. Then, too, if the oil 
meal be fed, the oat straw may be utilized if mixed 
somewhat carefully with the clover hay, so that the 
animal cannot reject it. This ration for a fattening 
animal, would be well balanced. 
2. No attempts have been made to utilize, in any 
large way, sunflower seeds, except by feeding them 
to fowls. The linseed meal would be far preferable 
to the sunflower seed in every way. On general prin¬ 
ciples, skim-milk is an unbalanced ration, but often 
may be fed to advantage by allowing the calves access 
to unground corn. In masticating, they insalivate it, 
and if not allowed too much skim-milk, the bowels 
are not likely to be moved. If corn meal or other 
carbonaceous meals of a similar character be fed, 
spread them thinly over the bottom of large troughs, 
so that the calves will be compelled to eat very slowly. 
3. If reasonably fertile, and if it has not been in 
sod so long as to be infested with the White Grub, the 
product of the May Beetle, the fall-plowed land would 
be most excellent for the cultivation of strawberries. 
Cause and Prevention of Oat Smut. 
L. L. I)., Ingleside, N. Y.—' What is the cause of smut iu oats, 
and a sure remedy if auy ? I have some flue oats, but they smut 
badly. If there is uo remedy, I shall quit sowing them. 
ANSWERED BY M. V. SEINGERLAND. 
Smut in oats is caused by a fungus known as the 
Loose smut (Ustilago avenas). The disease is widely 
spread, and is very destructive ; it is estimated that 
the average yearly loss of oats due to smut, equals, 
at least, one-tenth of the entire crop. From 1888 to 
1890, the estimated loss in Kansas and Indiana aggre¬ 
gated from $600,000 to $1,380,000 yearly ; it is thus one 
of our most destructive fungous enemies. The famil¬ 
iar black masses, or smutted heads, appear on the 
plants about the time they are in bloom. Each black 
mass consists of millions of microscopic seeds or spores 
of the fungus, and it is by means of these seeds, that 
the fungus reproduces itself. They are blown over 
the field, and many lodge on the inside of the chaff, 
which then envelops the growing oat kernel. The 
seeds remain here until the oats ripen, and are not 
dislodged in the thrashing, and they stay there un¬ 
changed until the oats are planted. Then the little 
brown seeds of the fungus germinate or grow by 
sending out little tubes which enter the young plant, 
and continue sending new threads all through the 
plant as it grows. These threads which thus per¬ 
meate all through the tissues of the plant, are known 
as the mycelium or vegetative portion of the fungus. 
Eventually these threads produce a crop of fruit—the 
spores or seeds of the fungus. Infested plants can 
rarely be distinguished from healthy ones until it is 
nearly time for the oats to blossom. Then the spores 
or seeds of the fungus develop rapidly, that is many 
smutty heads suddenly appear in the field; and before 
the plants are done blooming, the wind has distrib¬ 
uted millions of the seeds-from the dry, powdery 
masses all through the field. Thus the growing time 
for the fungus is only from the time that the oats are 
planted until they blossom ; the remainder of the 
year is spent by the fungus as a miscroscopic brown 
seed snugly tucked away under the chaff, and this is 
the weak spot in the life cycle of this most destructive 
disease. 
All that is necessary effectually to prevent next 
season’s crop from being smutty, is to kill the seeds 
of the fungus at any time between the time of thrash¬ 
ing and sowing ; and this may be easily and surely 
accomplished. The simplest and best method was 
discovered in 1887, by Prof. Jensen, of Denmark, and 
the method is now known as the Jensen process. It 
consists in simply soaking the oats in water heated to 
about 133 degrees F., for five or ten minutes. This 
treatment not only prevents the smut by killing the 
spores on the chaff, but it hastens the germination of 
the oats, and will increase the yield to such an extent 
as more than to pay for the treatment, even though 
there were no smut present. A copper sulphate 
solution is also recommended instead of the hot water; 
but it has been found that the solution retards the 
germination of the oats, and'decreases the yield. Oats 
may be treated with the hot water long before the 
time of sowing, with as good results, both as to pre¬ 
vention of smut, and increase in yield, as when 
treated just before sowing. 
The following method of treating the oats with hot 
water, is to be recommended : “ Have ready for the 
work, some coffee sacks, two ordinary washtubs, a 
good supply of hot water, and a clean barn floor. 
Partially fill tub No. 1 with water heated to about 130 
degrees F., and tub No. 2 with water at 140 degrees 
F. Then fill the coffee sacks with the oats to be 
treated, and, taking one sack at a time, immerse it a 
minute or two in tub No 1, for the purpose of par¬ 
tially heating the oats ; then lift it up, let it drain for 
a moment, and then dip it in tub No. 2, leaving it 
there for from five to eight minutes, turning and 
kneading the sack to get all the seed soaked. Then 
empty the oats on an airy floor—if possible, in the 
sunshine or a draft of wind, and on a dry day—and 
let them become thoroughly dry. A supply of hot 
water should be kept on hand, some of which is to be 
poured into the tubs at frequent intervals to replenish 
the supply, and keep up the temperature, which must 
be determined often by a good thermometer. In tub 
No. 2, the water should never get above 145 degrees, 
or below 133 degrees.” 
Most of the best authorities agree that there is very 
little danger of infecting oats with smut, by spreading 
on the soil manure fi-orn animals fed upon smutty 
seed. 
Don't Subsoil; What to Add to Ashes. 
B. T. E., Pittsburgh, Pa. —1. My farm is an island in the Alle¬ 
gheny River. The soil is a light, sandy loam, very easily worked 
and the arable area is about 40 acres. The land has been sup¬ 
plied with horse manure every year for 15 years, at least, except¬ 
ing 1894 and 1895. The ground has never been touched with a sub- 
soiler. By digging down, we have found a rich, black soil about 
a foot below the surface, evidently made by the leaching of the 
accumulated manures through the top soil. Should I use a sub¬ 
soil plow that will lift this rich subsoil, and turn it over on top of 
the present top soil, or should I use one that will simply loosen 
the subsoil, without lifting it? 2. I have about 40 cords of drift¬ 
wood on the island which I intend to burn for the ashes, as it 
cannot be useil in any other way. Would the ashes be beneficial 
to ordinary market garden crops, such as corn, tomatoes, melons, 
celery, etc., if applied alone ? If not, what would be the best sub¬ 
stance to mix with them to supply the ammonia that is lacking 
in the ashes, and in what proportion should it be used ? I have 
seen an analysis which states that “woods earth” is rich in 
ammonia, but contains no potash or phosphoric acid. If I mix 
woods earth (of which I have a limited quantity) with the ashes 
in the proper proportion, would it make a complete fertilizer ? 3. 
What is the address of the government experiment station near¬ 
est me ? 
Ans.— 1. We would not subsoil that land ; in fact, 
we would never use a subsoil plow on any “ light, 
sandy loam.” It would be about the worst thing you 
could do. We would plow the surface soil deep, and 
depend on clover and cow peas to lift the fertility in 
that black soil to the stir face. 2. A ton of ashes con¬ 
tains, in round figures, about 100 pounds of potash 
and 30 pounds of phosphoric acid. They are excellent, 
so far as they go, for any crops ; but nitrogen in 
some form should be added. For small fruits, equal 
parts, by weight, of ashes and fine ground bone make 
an excellent fertilizer. This will also answer for 
the corn. For the vegetables, we would add 200 
pounds of nitrate of soda to the ton of ashes and 
bone. Do not attempt to mix the ashes and bone. 
Broadcast them separately, and harrow in, and then 
add the nitrate around the plants. We would spread 
the “ woods earth ” over the lightest portion of the 
soil and harrow it in, or compost it with manure. 3. 
Your State Experiment Station is at State College, 
Center County, Pa. 
To Increase a Cow's Yield. 
D. W. C.. Smithsburg, Aid. —My cow lost her calf six weeks be¬ 
fore her time. Her milk came in about one (lay’s time, but she 
does not give so much as she did with her last calf, only about 
1*4 gallon a day. When fresh the last time, and always before, 
she gave from four to five gallons a day. What will bring up her 
milk to the standard ? I am feeding her bran and mill feed, with 
some crushed corn and fodder for long feed. 
Ans.— It will be difficult, if not impossible, to feed 
this cow so that she will give the normal quantity of 
milk, since the period of gestation was cut short, and 
Nature had not provided the system fully for the 
work of producing milk Something may be done by 
feeding liberally on grain foods, and especially will it 
be beneficial if some oil meal, say, one pound a day, 
and some cotton-seed meal, two pounds per day, be 
added to the bran, increasing the ration until the 
cow receives 10 pounds per day in all. Since the quan¬ 
tities fed are not given, the nutritive ratio of the 
ration cannot be determined; but the chances are 
that it is entirely too wide for a milch cow in a warm 
stable, so by putting in some foods that are rich in 
muscle-makers, and adding some succulent food, such 
as roots or ensilage, considerable improvement in the 
milk production might be secured. 
