472 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
J.une 17, 
FARM ERS’ C LUB 
f Every query must be accompanied by 
the name and address of the writer to in¬ 
sure attention. Before asking a question, 
please see whether it is not answered in 
our advertising columns. Ask only a few 
questions at one time. Put questions on a 
separate piece of paper.] 
Treatment of Moss-Covered Field. 
P. S. It., St. Mary’s Pa .—I would like 
to know about a moss-covered field that has 
never been plowed. Would it raise buck¬ 
wheat? IIow can I get rid of the moss, and 
what fertilizer should be used? 
Ans. —We should take the moss as evi¬ 
dence that the field needs lime. When 
plowing we should use 20 bushels of 
slaked lime well harrowed in. For fer¬ 
tilizer two parts of ground bone to one 
part by weight of muriate of potash may 
be used with the lime for buckwheat. 
Early Blooming Baldwins. 
M. P. G., Kent, N. Y .—We have five acres 
of Baldwin orchard set out live years this 
Spring. Several of the trees are now in 
blossom, one tree having about two dozen 
blossoms. Is it possible for a Baldwin to 
blossom so young, or do you think the trees 
in question are not true to name? If they 
are not Baldwins I want to graft as soon as 
can be done. 
Ans. —Wc have had Baldwins begin to 
bloom three years from planting, but this 
is very unusual. With us trees in sod and 
kept mulched bloom earlier than cultivat¬ 
ed trees. We should want some better 
evidence than this before grafting these 
trees. Send samples of the foliage and 
wood to the Geneva Experiment Station 
for examination. 
Nitrate of Soda on Strawberries. 
F. IP. Macdonough, A. Y.—How do you put 
nitrate of soda on strawberries now so as to 
get the benefit this season? Is It any good 
to sow good phosphate on? 
Ans. —When this letter came, May 24, 
it was too late to put nitrate of soda on 
matted beds. It might be put on beds 
where the plants are in hills by making 
small furrows about eight inches from 
the plants, and scattering the nitrate there. 
On matted beds we would broadcast the 
nitrate in April before the plants are 
large. We must remember in using nitrate 
of soda or other fertilizers on strawber¬ 
ries that the fruit buds were formed last 
Fall. The use of fertilizers in the Spring 
will not increase the number of fruit, but 
may make larger fruit or more vigorous 
plants. It is much better policy to fer¬ 
tilize the strawberry when the plants are 
set out, and in the Fall when they make 
runners. 
Pecan Questions; Basket Apple. 
II. S. M., Canton, III. —1. Do some pecan 
trees never bloom or bear nuts? I have some 
obtained from a nursery In New Jersey 16 
years ago. These trees were listed as Texas 
softshell. They were said to bear at eight 
years of age; were small when planted, mail¬ 
ing size. They are now 16 to 18 feet high, 
four to five inches in diameter, and have never 
shown any sign of bloom. I suppose these 
trees were seedlings, as 1 don't think graft¬ 
ing the pecan had been thought of at that 
time. I am 15 miles distant from the wild 
pecan belt, the Illinois River bottom, where 
the native trees grow by the tens of thou¬ 
sands, but do not bear young. These trees 
bear a crop on an average of once in about 
five years, when they are old enough. The 
nuts are small, dark in color, and of good 
flavor. 2. Is there an apple called the 
Basket? At a local fruit show here not 
long since there were on exhibition specimens 
of an apple measuring 25 inches in circum¬ 
ference, labeled as above. These were iden¬ 
tical with an apple grown here 40 to 50 
years ago, known as Pennock. Its quality 
was poor and is not now planted much. 3. 
I have some young apple trees just beginning 
to bear, bought in Illinois. Some were to be 
Ben Davis, but none of the lot was of that 
variety. One is a large yellow apple, the 
shape of Maiden Blush; season, September; 
poor in quality. Another is large to very 
large, the color of Willowtwig; very high in 
quality ; season. October. The latter tree has 
a very thick, corky leaf. Could you name 
these from description? 
Ans. — 1 . Seedling pecan trees rarely 
bear before they are 10 or 15 years old, and 
some of them n*t before they are 20 or 
even older. It is all wrong to sell seed¬ 
ling pecan trees with the promise held out 
that they will bear at eight years old, and 
I would not have them at any price, un¬ 
less I could not get grafted or budded 
trees, or did not intend to bud or graft 
them. Illinois is rather far north to grow 
the really choice varieties of the pecan, 
but some of the earliest kinds, if hardy 
enough, may succeed there very well. Ef¬ 
forts are being made to find and select 
some of the northern varieties that are of 
superior quality, and propagate them by 
grafting, but as yet none of consequence 
has been found. Some such seedlings 
may be grown and sent out in time to 
come. All pecans are of good flavor, and 
most of them are of choice quality, com¬ 
pared with other nuts. 2. Basket is a 
synonym of the Pennock apple, but it is 
very rarely used. This variety was once 
quite popular as a market apple, but its 
poor quality has caused it to be aban¬ 
doned. 3. There are so many varieties of 
the apple to which the description given 
might apply that it is impossible for me 
to name the kinds in question. If I could 
see the specimens of the fruit 1 might 
do so. Specimens should be sent next 
Fall to the Division of Pomology, of the 
Department of Agriculture; they may be 
identified by the experts there. Boxes 
and franks for transmission will be sent 
upon application. H. E. van deman. 
Telephone Night of Way. 
We are building a local telephone line 
here, and in some places it will have to be 
built along roads on which there are lines 
already built, the poles standing about 15 
feet from the fence. I am told that we 
should get a right of way so the old lines 
cannot Interfere with us. If we place our 
poles In the line of the road fences can they 
Interfere with our line? What is the law 
regarding crossing other lines and railways? 
What steps should be taken to obtain the 
right to place poles past a farm owned by 
one who objects to the line being built there? 
New York. central. 
Under the transportation corporations 
law seven or more persons may organize 
a corporation for the purpose of con¬ 
structing, owning and operating telephone 
lines within this State. Such a corpora¬ 
tion may construct and maintain its lines 
over any of the public roads, streets or 
highways of the State, and also over pri¬ 
vate lands, subject, however, to the right 
of the owners to full compensation. Under 
these provisions Central and his associates 
may make use of the highway in question 
without regard to the fact that there is 
another line already in use. They may 
run the line along the highway past any 
farm or other property whether the own¬ 
ers object or not, and may cross other 
lines and railways, in a way not to in¬ 
terfere with existing rights, and sub¬ 
ject, of course, to such, reasonable rules 
and regulations as to the placing of the 
lines that may be made by the municipal 
authorities of the district. 
Opening an Obstructed Ditch. 
Tnere Is a pond on my farm which is 
caused by the running of water from a 
neighbor’s farm, and because the one lower 
down will not ditch a disagreeable pond of 
stagnant water stands all Summer. As it is 
good land, it is both a nuisance and a loss. 
Are the ditching laws of the State of New 
York such that I can compel the neighbor 
lower down to open up his drain, or can I 
do it myself if he refuses, and make him 
pay for it? e. 
New York. 
By Chapter 433 of the laws of New 
York, for 1904, it is provided that, if 
any person through whose lands regu¬ 
lar constructed ditches now run, fails 
to keep the same open through his lands, 
after a request in writing served on him 
for a period of 10 days, then any person 
whose lands are damaged by such failure 
may apply to the fence viewers of the 
town, in which such ditches run, to open 
the ditch, and on failure so to do, pro¬ 
ceedings may be taken, as provided in the 
act, to cause the ditch to be opened. The 
person complained of has the right to 
appoint a fence viewer on his part, who 
with a fence viewer appointed by the 
person complaining shall assess the dam¬ 
ages for closing the ditch. If the party 
complained of does not exercise this right 
the act provides for appointing the fence 
viewers without regard to his wishes. 
The expense of the fence viewers and the 
charges for closing the ditches shall, it 
is provided, be a charge and lien against 
the premises through which the ditches 
run. While this law fully meets the case 
submitted, its constitutionality is extreme¬ 
ly doubtful. This act is to take the prop¬ 
erty of one person to benefit the private 
property of another. Chapter 384 of the 
laws of 1895 provide a system for drain¬ 
ing agricultural lands. A person desir¬ 
ing to take advantage of the act can 
petition the court for this appointment of 
commissioners to proceed to determine 
the necessity for the drainage, and upon 
deciding in its favor, to cause the w’ork 
to be done, open the ditches in the lands 
of other owners, and assess the damages 
and expenses between the various land 
owners. The commissioners were also 
empowered to determine the benefits ac¬ 
cruing to the lands so drained, even 
though against the will of the owner. 
This act was declared to be unconsti¬ 
tutional in Matter of Tuthill, 163 N. Y. 
133, upon the ground that it in effect 
authorized the taking by one person of 
another’s land for purely private pur¬ 
poses, and was, therefore, in violation of 
both State and the Federal Constitution. 
The act of 1904 above referred to seems 
to us to come within the terms of the 
decision in Matter of Tuthill, and to be 
equally objectionable upon constitutional 
grounds to the case there presented. The 
law, however, remains upon the statute 
books, and can undoubtedly be taken ad¬ 
vantage of until this point is raised. 
Illinois Fruits. —We had a very fine 
warm March here, and some of the Japan 
plums were in bloom about April 4, when a 
cold wave, with the mercury at 27 degrees, 
came along and pinched some of the pre¬ 
cocious blossoms. Gooseberries were cut out, 
and the early blooming fruits generally much 
thinned, Kieffer pears, etc. But I never saw 
apples in better shape, and I have noted date 
of bloom on nearly a thousand varieties. I 
hope, if the curcullo will be decent about it, 
to be able to give you some notes during 
Summer, Fall and Winter on some of the 
new and little known varieties. 
Central Illinois. bexj. buckman. 
Steamed Apples Esteemed. —The Apple 
Consumers’ League makes me want to tell 
your readers how much better an apple is 
when steamed than when baked. I tired of 
baked apples last October but when my daugh¬ 
ter began to serve them for breakfast, fresh 
steamed in 10 minutes, they were so much 
better than baked that I have eaten from one 
to three every morning since, and often two 
to three before retiring for the night (when 
One horse equals two on other presses. Leads In speed, 
clean work and right working. Self Feed, Large Feed 
Opening, Modern. Many styles horse and power presses. 
ELI 
99 
HAY PRESS. 
Collin* Plow Co., 1111 Hampshire St., Quincy, III. 
FARMERS 
HANDY 
WAGON 
Low Bteel wheels, wide tires, make 
loading and handling easier. We fur¬ 
nish Steel Wheels to fitany axle, to 
carry any load. Straight or staggered 
spokes. Catalogue free. 
EMPIRE MFG. CO.. Box 70 F Quincy, III. 
ELECTRIC 
Metal Wheels 
will give you a new wagon and a 
lifetime’s service out of your old 
running gears. They are the 
modem great service wheel. 
Made to III any wagon, adapted 
to every duty. Straight or stag 
gered oval steel spokes, broad 
tired, any height desired. You 
will be through with repairs and save money, fields 
and labor of horse and man. Write at once for our 
catalogue. It’s free for the asking. 
ELECTRIC WHEEL CO., 
, BOX 88 Qulnoy, Illinois. 
GREATLY IMPROVED FOR 1905. 
Especially designed for handling Bor¬ 
deaux and other heavy mixtures 
used in spraying for blight. 
HIGH-PRESSURE PUMP 
Brass-lined Cylinder, 
Brass-ball Valves. 
Syphon agitator constantly in motion in¬ 
sures an even solution of mixtures and 
prevents clogging of screen. 
Bug* Destroyed A Blight & Rot Prevented. 
Fifty-eight tests conducted by the New 
York agricultural department in 1904 show¬ 
ed an average increased yield of 58 bushels 
per acre on sprayed fields as compared 
with unsprayed. Wo are the only concern 
In the world making a complete line of 
potato machinery consisting of Cuttors, 
Planter*, Sprayor*, Diggers and Sorter*. 
Write for our free Catalogue. 
Asplnwall Manufacturing Co., 
67 Sabin St,, Jackson, Mich., U. S. A. 
I could find any loft over from breakfast), 
and last night I found and ate five, with 
plenty of cream, which made them “fit for a 
CELERY AND CABBAGE PLANTS $1 per 
1.000. CRIMSON CLOVER SEED, $4 a bushel. List 
free. SLAYMAKER & SON. Dover, Delaware. 
king.” Now, some one will say, how are they 
steamed? After the core is punched out and 
the opening filled with sugar, they are barely 
covered with water in an earthen dish or 
porcelain-lined vessel, covered in some way to 
FOR SALE 
—CRIMSON CLOVER Seed, $5.50 
2nd growth Seed Potatoes, $3.00 to $3.50 barrel; Onion 
Sets, $3.00 bushel JOSEPH E. HOLLAND, 
Milford. Delaware. 
keep in the steam as much as possible and 
boiled as violently as the fire will permit for 
about 10 minutes for small, and possibly 15 
minutes for large apples. Baldwins prepared 
in this way are beautiful, as well as delicious, 
and I expect to eat them until strawberries 
come. Meat has no charms for me at break¬ 
fast time when I can get fruit. 
New York. a. c. worth. 
Propagating Currants.- —In the Spring of 
1902 I had a little piece of ground, between 
two rows of trees, where I had berries 
the year before. I hoed up the straw¬ 
berry vines, raked them up and plowed 
the ground to get it ready as early 
In the Spring as I could, before the ground 
had really settled. I drew a line where I 
wanted the rows, the rows five feet apart, 
the bushes four feet apart. I then cut from 
thrifty Red Cross bushes as long year-old 
shoots as I could, from 14 to 18 inches in 
length. They were cut with a long slanting 
cut so as to be as easy as possible to stick 
Into the ground. Then I stuck one cutting 
into each place where I wanted a bush, and 
as far down into the ground as I could, from 
eight, to 14 inches. After tills. I put my 
feet on each side of the cutting and pressed 
the dirt down hard. There were 34 cuttings 
and every one lived. Just as soon ns the 
ground settled I put on coating of manure 
plowed in with a hand garden plow, and 
planted one row of potatoes between the rows 
of bushes. In the Spring of 1903, I put on 
a good coat of potato fertilizer plowed in. 
and planted dwarf peas between the rows. 
The bushes had grown well, had from three 
to five branches, from 18 inches to two feet 
long. The crop of currants that year was 
30 quarts. In the Spring of 1904, I sowed 
on a heavy coat of fertilizer, worked in with 
a garden n]ow, and the crop was over 70 
quarts. I think I have saved over two years’ 
time In setting the cuttings where I wanted, 
in getting the bushes to bear. 
Deep River, Conn. c. p. k. 
CELERY and CABBAGE PLANTS 
FOK SALE— Leading varieties, carefully packed 
with moss in baskets, t. o. b. here. Write for prices. 
Cash witli order. Plants ready about June 15. 
WOODLAND FARM, Canastota, Madison Co., N.Y. 
D Q A I E? 200 bu. Whip-poor-will; 
■ IV AA, La E* 100 bu. Clay Cow Peas; 
100 bu. Soja Beans; 20 bu. Stowell’s Evergreen 
Sweet Corn; 3 bu. King of the Garden Lima Beans; 
4 bu. Henderson's Dwarf Lima; Quality Very Fine. 
Prices right. Address, W. F. Allen, Salisbury, Md. 
Potted Strawberry Plants 
List Free. T. C. KEVITT, Athenia, New Jersey. 
TREES 
SHRUBS 
ROSES 
The largest and most com¬ 
plete collections In America, 
including all desirable nov¬ 
elties. Illustrated descrip¬ 
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Medal—Paris, Pan-American, 
St. Louis. 102 prizes New York 
State Fair, 1904. 
ELLWANGER & BARRY 
Mount Hope Nurserleo* 
Drawer 1044— I, Rochester, N.Y* 
Established 
K FRUIT BOOK 
shows in NATURAL COLORS and 
accurately describes 216 varieties of 
fruit. Send for our liberal terms of distri¬ 
bution to planters.—Stark Bro’s, Louisiana, Mo. 
FRUIT TREES 
A full list of all kinds. Small Fruits. Strawberry 
Plants a Specialty. Ornamental Stock. California 
Privet and Fancy Stock. We will send a fully illus¬ 
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JOS. H. BLACK, SON & CO., Hightstown, N. J. 
CRIMSON CLOVER 
price of seed on request. 
The great soil improver. Valu¬ 
able also for early green food, 
grazing and hay crop. Special 
circular free, also sample and 
HENRY A. DKEER, 714 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Penna. 
Pear, Plum, Cherry, Peach and Carolina 
Poplars, healthy, true to name and fumigated. 
All kinds of trees and plants at low wholesale prices. Remember we beat all other reliable 
Nurseries in quality and price. Catalogue free, Reliance Nursery, Box 10, Geneva, N.Y. 
TREES 
$5 PER 100, FREIGHT PAID 
