8i4 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
November 3, 
MORE ABOUT MELON BLIGHT. 
Noticing the articles on the “Melon 
Blight” and the “Passing of the Musk- 
melon” leads me to give you my experi¬ 
ence in raising melons. For many years 
I raised fine melons. Then came the 
blight. The vines would Look clean and 
thrifty until about 10 days or two weeks 
before the melons would ripen, when the 
blight came and ruined the whole patch; 
not a single melon came to maturity. 
Last year I did not have one good ripe 
melon. This year I tried again, thinking 
that perhaps the blight would not put in 
its appearance. The vines, as usual, 
looked thrifty and good all through the 
season. We sprayed them twice with the 
Bordeaux Mixture, but expected to see 
the blight at the usual time. It did not 
come. Why, I cannot tell, but we at¬ 
tribute it to the spraying. The vines 
were thrifty until they died in the natural 
way. We had plenty of fine melons. The 
variety was the Osage, or Miller’s- Cream. 
We shall try it again next year. 
Northampton, Mass. h. s. g. 
HOW TO BURN SAWDUST. 
D. K. C., Scottsboro, Ala .—What is the 
most practical way to bum hard-wood saw¬ 
dust in order to utilize the ashes? 
All of the sawmills that cut hard-wood 
lumber here burn the hard wood sawdust 
in the grates to their steam boilers, and 
the overplus they draw away from the 
mill and have no trouble to burn it. In a 
dry time fire will hold to it for many 
days till all is. consumed. I would have 
no hesitancy in firing it without any arti¬ 
ficial aids. i. H. f. 
Hart, Mich. 
The method practiced here is about as 
follows: The sawdust as it comes from 
the saw is green and too damp to burn. 
It is piled in this state in large piles, and 
allowed to remain until it heats and thus 
dries out sufficiently to burn. During the 
dry weather in midsummer is the best 
time to burn it. The only way I know of 
burning green sawdust is to use a large 
air-tight furnace, built so that it will have 
a very strong draught, and that would be 
too expensive to be practical. 
Canada. w. w. hilborn. 
List of Fruit for Maryland. 
C. B., Abingdon, Md .—Will you give me 
a full list of tree and bush fruits suitable 
for the Baltimore market, excepting peaches 
and grapes? I would like varieties of the 
latter suitable for family use. 
Ans.— For Maryland and other similar 
regions the following varieties of fruits 
will be found good for market purposes. 
Of apples, York Imperial, Winesap, Stay- 
man, Jonathan, Grimes, and if quality is 
no consideration, Black Ben Davis. If 
there is market for Summer apples, and 
there usually is a fair market for them, 
Oldenburg will pay. Of pears, the Bart¬ 
lett is the leader in all markets, but there 
are other good ones. Comice is one of 
them. Kieffer pays very well, but it has 
poor quality. Of plums the American and 
Japan types are the most profitable in that 
region. Wyant and Surprise are two of 
the former, and Abundance, Burbank and 
Wickson of the latter. As to peaches for 
home use the Triumph, Champion, El- 
berta, Frances and Heath Cling are good. 
There is no grape,* all things considered 
that is better for home or market use than 
Concord, but Delaware, Campbell, Brigh¬ 
ton and Niagara will all prove satisfactory. 
It is well in planting fruits for family use 
to have a succession of varieties in point 
of ripening, so that there may be some in 
season from first to last. 
H. E. VAN DEMAN. 
Sowing Tomatoes in Hills. 
E. B., Winchester, Va .—Can tomato seed 
be sown directly in the hills? I would like 
to know if anybody ever tried this plan, for 
planting the seed in beds raising plants, and 
setting them out by transplanting is an 
awful job when you want to set out 100,000 
or so. 
Ans.—P lanting tomato seed in the hill 
where they are to fruit instead of setting 
the plants is a method of culture tjjat has 
been repeatedly tried, and from a prac¬ 
tical standpoint it cannot be regarded as 
successful. Here in central . New Jersey 
and points farther south the method is 
frequently tried, and in favored localities 
it is sometimes a success, but one year 
with another it is very uncertain. If the 
weather is dry and cold when the young 
plants are about coming through the 
ground they will wither up and die in a 
few days, and again, sometimes when we 
have them up nicely they are attacked by 
the little black flies, and they soon use 
them up. But if it so happens that at the 
time they are about through the ground 
the weather becomes warm and moist, 
they will then often pull tlirough the criti¬ 
cal period and produce a large crop of 
late tomatoes. T. m. white. 
Storing Salsify. 
O. F. N., Peabody, Mass .—IIow do com¬ 
mercial growers store salsify through the 
Winter? You will find it on the market in 
the Winter tied in bunches with a part of 
the green top on. IIow do they keep it thus? 
Ans. —Salsify or oyster plant, like the 
parsnip, is a hardy vegetable, and can be 
left out during the Winter in almost any 
locality without injury from frost; the 
flavor will be greatly improved by the 
exposure. The crop may be dug late in 
the Fall and stored away like other root 
crops, where it can be used at any time 
during the Winter. The most practical 
method, however, is to store it in trenches 
as recommended for celery; it is then of 
easy access, and can be marketed in a 
better condition than if stored in cellars. 
Select a dry southern slope; dig trenches 
running north and south the width of a 
spade, and the depth should be about 
two-thirds the length of the plants. The 
roots are then dug and stored closely in 
an upright position; the earth drawn up 
to the plants on either side so as to shed 
the water. Nail together two hemlock 
boards, forming a V-shaped trough; 
these are placed over the plants, leaving 
an open joint on the end where the 
boards join each other; this permits the 
escape of impure air. After the ground 
freezes cover the entire trench with salt 
hay or horse manure to exclude frost. 
The space above the roots and under the 
boards admits a free circulation of air, 
and the tops will usually keep green for 
a long time, if stored in this way and 
given ventilation occasionally. 
Monmouth Co., N. J. t. m. white. 
Preserving Surplus Strawberries. 
One of our readers lias a farm in the 
strawberry section of North Carolina. After 
they stop picking berries for the northern 
market they usually have quite a quantity of 
later berries, which are wasted, as it would 
not pay to ship them in the face of northern 
competition. These berries are usually plowed 
under when the fields are cleaned out. This 
fruit grower wishes to know if there is any 
profitable way in which they could use this 
surplus crop. They could probably be bought 
in large numbers for $1 a bushel or even 
less. It is said that the) make a good vine¬ 
gar, but we question whether it would pay 
to make that from such berries. Possibly a 
canning outfit to put up jam or preserves 
would be feasible. Do you know of any cases 
where this waste product has been used with 
profit? 
Ans. —The strawberry grower of North 
Carolina who wishes to dispose of a sur¬ 
plus of strawberries profitably is in much 
the same situation that many fruit grow¬ 
ers over the United States find themselves 
every year. Numerous attempts have been 
made to dispose of such surplus fruits by 
individual effort, that is, by packing or 
otherwise disposing of them on the farm. 
Bush berries are dried, apples are dried 
and pressed into cider, and the cider made 
into vinegar or into jelly. Sometimes this 
has been done profitably, but our belief 
is that when It is done in a very small 
way it is usually unprofitable where help 
is to be hired to do it. Favorable mar¬ 
kets for the disposition of the products 
after they had been made, such as local 
markets, where the producer could sell 
from fiouse to house, might determine 
whether there was any profit in it or not. 
But where the producer must make his 
market, perhaps hundreds of miles from 
his home, and do it by advertising or sell 
through commission merchants, lie must 
then immediately come in competition 
with those who do these things on a large 
scale with modern machinery, intelligent 
help and all the means that a modern 
business would have to prosecute success¬ 
fully what they undertook. From my own 
standpoint I say “don't,” because I have 
been through just that mill, and what 
was started just to save some waste 
products, small in comparison to those of 
the North Carolina man, has grown into 
a large part of our business, and as such 
ought to command our entire time, and 
my advice would be to induce some one 
to go into the locality in North Carolina 
to use these products in a modern factory. 
The suggestion that perhaps vinegar 
might be made from strawberries at $1 
per bushel would hardly seem practica¬ 
ble, when it is understood that wholesale 
lots of vinegar are sold as low as six 
cents per gallon, but even supposing the 
price was greater strawberries at a $1 
per bushel could hardly compete with 
apples at 10 cents per bushel. You see 
from the above that we have no sugges¬ 
tions to make for handling these products 
as a farm enterprise. My suggestion 
would lie entirely in the line of the North 
Carolina people interesting outside cap¬ 
ital, or for sopie of their own people to 
take it up and make a business of it. 
Delaware. _s. h. derby. 
Donkey Power.— The scheme, for cul¬ 
tivating pictured at Fig. 348, page 811, 
was tried on the carnation farm of J. D. 
Cockcroft, of Long Island. In outdoor 
culture carnations are planted so close to¬ 
gether that horse culture as given corn 
or potatoes is out of the question. The 
work is usually done by hand cultivators 
or wheel hoes. In this' case a trial was 
made of donkey power. A wide whiffle- 
tree permits the fastening of two wheel 
hoes, and with proper guidance the donkey 
cultivates two rows at a time. The plan 
would not be practical unless the animal 
were trained to walk perfectly straight or 
a small child could lead him. It is, how¬ 
ever, often a good plan to use these little 
animals with children to do light work. 
With a pony or a donkey a stout child can 
often cultivate strawberries, onions or po¬ 
tatoes so as to be very helpful. 
THE BATAVIA NURSERIES 
believe in tlie higher standard and 
better quality of both tree and 
fruit. To get them we propagate 
extensively from selected bearing 
trees of greatest excellence on 
the best imported stocks. Some 
of the best and largest young 
orchards in the United States 
are set with BOGUE’S TREES. 
We offer a choice assortment 
of extra size Fruit and Ornamen¬ 
tal trees, of Evergreens, 
Shrubs, Roses and Hardy 
Plants. Can you afford to plant 
any others ? Write for catalogue. 
NELSON ROGUE, - - Batavia, N< w York. 
Lightning Rods 
•Vineh Soft Copper Cable for 10 cents 
per foot 
Send for samples and particulars to 
T. THOMPSON, 
1102 So. 6th. St., Burlington, Iowa. 
Afts. WE’LL PAY THE FREIGHT 
//^j\and tend 4 Buggy Wheel*, Steel Tire on • $7.75. 
Robber Tire*, $14.20. I mfg. wheel* % to4iu. 
rHRNJroj tread. Top Baggie*. $28.76; Sleigh*, f 10.75. Write for 
t/wXTSk catalog. Learn how to bur direct. Repair Wheel* ffi.OO. 
XtESS® Wagon Umbrella FREE. W.B. BOOB,Clneinnat!,0. 
KEEP OUT THE COLD 
Arctic Felt Weatherstrips keep out the cold and 
storm, makes the home comfortable in coldest 
weather and saves 10 times the cost in fuel. Can 
be put on by the house-wife. Three sizes. No. 1 for 
windows, No. 2 and 3 for doors. Price 2. 3 and 4c. ft. 
NOVELTY MFG. CO., Asbnry Park, N. J. 
AGENTS 
WANTED 
For Mend-a-Rip 
Greatly improved. Better than ever. 
Pues all kind* of light and hear? 
rivetlngand 
stitching. 
Saves Its 
cost man j times a year. A per* 
j fact Hand Sewing Machine and Riveter 
“ combined. Notice the Automatic Spacer 
which makes neat, even stitching. To 
f show it means a sale. Agents make 
$3 to $15 a day. Ono agent made $20 first 
day and writes to hurry machines to him. Write forapeo- 
Istsgta. price. 3 B. Foote Foundry Co.Dep 41$ Fredarlcktown.O 
(The Great Agents Supply House) 
Why is the fflar/e'/i 12 gauge take-down repeating shotgun the best all- 
around shotgun that money can buy ? 
fltarfln shotguns are made of the best material obtainable for the purpose. 
They are strong and sure, and work under all conditions. Tlie breech block and 
working parts are cut from solid steel drop-forgings; the barrels are of special rolled 
steel or of “Special Smokeless Steel.** 
The lines of fflar/i/i shotguns are pleasing the balance is perfect. They 
pattern perfectly and have wonderful penetration. , , 
The solid top and side ejection assure safety and comfort. I his is the gun you 
Send six cents for our catalogue, which explains every Zftarfol in detail and 
is full of other valuable gun lore. „ 
77?ar///Z /firearms Co. » W New Haven. Conn. 
9 CORDS IN 10 HOURS BY ONE MAN 
RUNS EASY; NO BACKACHE. 
Springs can 
he adjusted 
to suit a boy 
12 years old 
or the 
strongest 
man. 
Easily 
Carried. 
Folds 
Like a. 
ft cket 
Knife. 
With our Folding Sawing Machino. Saws any kind of timber. Instantly adjusted to cut log square on rough or level 
ground. Operator always stands straight. One man can saw more with it than two men can in any other way, and do it 
easier. Saw blades 6,6}^ or 7 ft. long. Champion, Diamond or Lance Tooth, to suit your timber. GUARANTEE. 
—If any part breaks within three years, we will send a new part without charge. Send for Froo Catalog showing latest 
Improvements, giving testimonials from thousands. First order secures agency. 
FOLDING SAWING MACHINE CO., 158-164 E. Harrison St., Chicago, Illinois. 
is dangerous business. There’s the widest difference in the 
design and uses of gasoline engines. We never, under any 
circumstances, sell an engine unless welinow the require¬ 
ments of the man buying it. We want to know the condi¬ 
tions and uses. No man can sell you 
A Power Sure To Be Right 
unless he knows these things. That’s why we wRntto“talk it over”- 
why we have experts go out. and investigate—why our powers al 
ways give satisfaction, ts e not only sell the right power for the 
work but we keep track of it and see to It that It does satisfy We 
count it our business to bo and to keep power experts. You will nee l 
our kind of pov er and our service. Let us get together. Write lor 
our free Farm Power book. 
THE FAIRBANKS COMPANY, New York. 
Albany, Baltimore, Bangor, Me,, Boston, Buffalo, Hartford, New Orleans, Phil’a.,Pittsburg, Syracuse, London, Kng. 
