1907. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
639 
Hope Farm Notes 
Farm Notes. —We began sowing Crim¬ 
son clover and turnips in the corn Au¬ 
gust 10. This is a little Jater than I 
would like, but this season is all behind 
and all upset anyway. We are having a 
hard drought, and the ground is so dry 
that unless we have rain soon either corn 
or clover will suffer. The first of the 
Hint corn had come to the last limit of 
safe cultivation, and so 1 began on the 
clover. We mixed the seed by pouring 
both kinds slowly together into a large 
dishpan, while a boy stirred the mixture. 
As the turnip seeds are dark, while the 
clover seed is a bright yellow, one can 
easily see when they are properly mixed. 
I want them so that each handful will 
show the turnip seed all through it. The 
corn was cultivated with a deep-working 
cultivator east and west on August 5. 
What I wanted to do was to scatter the 
seed evenly all over the ground and then 
cultivate north and south, smoothing 
down the former cultivator marks and 
leaving the soil level. We took the light 
diamond-tooth cultivator (which is really 
a one-horse harrow) and wired a heavy 
piece of joist so that it dragged behind. 
Then the harrow scratched up the soil 
and covered the seed, while the joist 
dragging behind smoothed down and lev¬ 
eled the soil. I sowed the seed myself, 
for if there is any job at farming that 
appeals to me it is sowing seed like clover, 
which is not only to give us a crop, but 
which is to make the soil better. It seems 
as if there is an entire sermon in every 
handful of clover seed you throw out. 
You have worked through the season and 
conquered a tough old piece of weedy 
sod. Your corn has shouldered far up 
above you and now says: ‘‘Good day, old 
man, I don’t need you any more.” But 
you have an eye on other years, other 
crops and a better soil. The seed may 
not sprout, Winter and Spring may kill 
your clover, but faith and hope go with 
every kernel of seed! But if a man is to 
moralize in this way he would better do 
it on the walk, for there are some miles 
of corn rows to be covered. It is possi¬ 
ble to put a boy on a horse and have 
him travel tip and down the corn work¬ 
ing a broadcast seeder, but I prefer to 
sow by hand. I took two rows at a time, 
scattering the seed as evenly as possible, 
throwing out close to the ground, so as 
not to lose seed on the stalks and joints 
of the corn. Merrill followed with Jerry 
and the cultivator, going twice in a row. 
That piece of joist dangling behind 
scraped and smoothed the soil nicely. 
On the' whole it was as good a seeding of 
Crimson as we ever did, and if we can 
only have a soaking rain we shall have 
a good crop. . . . The corn has come 
on well. As I have stated, we are grow¬ 
ing flint corn entirely this year. We were 
late in planting, and most of the corn is 
grown among young trees. The flint 
makes a shorter stalk, and thus gives the 
trees a better show. I got some of my 
seed direct from a farmer in Connecticut 
—the rest I bought at a seed store. A 
blind man could tell the difference—in the 
crop—and it’s all in favor of the farm- 
grown seed which, I understand, has been 
selected for some years for a certain 
type. I think more and more of those 
flints for our kind of culture. After 
strawberries, peas and similar truck are 
harvested we plow and sow some crop 
for fodder or mulching. The cow pea is 
supposed to be a hot weather crop, but it 
lay in the soil as dry as a bone, while 
this flint corn sprouted and grew nearly 
a foot before a little shower waked up 
the cow peas. I wanted to sow Japanese 
millet through August, but this drought 
shuts just about everything but flint 
corn fodder off the list. ... As I 
write we are all ready to sow the Alfalfa 
except for the drought. The old field is 
now baked as hard as a brick. The third 
cutting is over six inches high, but it is 
impossible to get up the inoculating soil 
properly. These hot scorching days are, 
as I understand it, just the wrong time 
for digging and sowing that soil. How¬ 
ever, a few more harrowings will do no 
harm. . . . Our cabbage crop looks 
well in spite of the drv weather. It has 
already been cultivated five times and 
hoed once, and will probably be worked 
five times more. We used the Summer’s 
accumulation of chicken manure on the 
cabbage, and try with our tools to imitate 
the scratching of a hen around the plants. 
Another crop that promises well is the 
squash and melon outfit planted along 
the rows of young trees. We could not 
provide mulch enough for these trees, and 
so we plowed five or six furrows on each 
side of the row and planted vine seeds 
in line with the trees. A good forkful of 
manure was put in each hill. They have 
made a good growth and promise a large 
crop in spite of the dry weather. But 
how the weeds do grow through this 
scorcher! When will our scientific men 
discover the germ of energy in a weed 
and let us use it to inoculate corn or 
potatoes? 
Vine Frienus.—A picture of the end of 
our old stone house is shown at Fig. 316, 
page 635. We do not live in this old 
house now, though some of the boys sleep 
in it. Like most of the old Jersey 
houses of Revolutionary times, this house 
is jammed up close to the road; in fact, 
when our new road went through the end 
of this house was cut off. Six years ago 
I planted Boston ivy at the left hand cor¬ 
ner, and as The R. N.-Y. sent oiit the 
climbing rose bushes they were planted 
at either end. They have all made a good 
growth and add much to the beauty of 
the old house. Needless to say, that no 
ordinary sum of money would induce us 
to let anyone come and cut these vines 
down. We try to add a few vines and 
flowers about the house every year, and 
it is astonishing how much such things 
add to family life. Why, this ivy, the 
rose and our big grapevine are just like 
members of the family. I wish farmers 
would realize what it means to have these 
permanent vine friends growing about 
them. They are the sort of friends that 
stay by you with beauty and cheerfulness 
that never fade. 
Green Apple Cider. —Here is a ques¬ 
tion from Illinois: 
Will the Hope Farm man please tell liow 
to make vinegar and cider out of windfall 
apples Snow and Russets? I have tried it 
for four years, and the vinegar smells all 
right but has a flat taste. The cider will not 
keep without getting too hard to drink. I 
have tried all kinds of ways, but have no 
success. w. E. N. 
I am no authority on cider—we never 
made a quart of it at Hope Farm. I 
have consulted one of the best experts in 
the country, and he says the trouble is 
that the green apples lack sugar. It may 
not be generally known that the sugar in 
apples produces true vinegar. Some of 
the sourest apples when ripe contain more 
sugar than so-called “sweet” ones. The 
sour varieties also contain a strong acid 
which gives the sour taste. Very likely 
the green apples do not contain enough 
sugar.- Most likely the cider gets too 
hard because you do not stop the fer¬ 
mentation soon enough. Stop up the bar¬ 
rel before the alcoholic fermentation is 
completed and you can probably stop the 
formation of too much alcohol. The 
Geneva Experiment Station at Geneva, 
New York, issues an excellent bulletin on 
cider making. 
Hard Ci.ay Soil. —The following ques¬ 
tion from Pennsylvania interests me: 
I have about three acres of clover sod 
which I intend to plant to corn next year, 
and about one-half of it is flat, a hard clay 
soil ; cannot be put in nice condition for 
seed bed, as in the Spring it stays wet very 
long, and as soon as a dry spell comes it 
bakes. Do you think it would he any advan¬ 
tage to plow it this Fall? If so, when should 
it be plowed, and would you put manure on 
before plowing or wait until ground is frozen? 
All I can do is to give my own opinion 
and experience. I have found three 
things that help fit hard clays, manuring 
with coarse manure, rough Fall plowing 
and lime. The manure helps by loosen¬ 
ing up the soil and decaying in it. The 
Fall plowing gives the frost a chance to 
work the soil over, and lime breaks up 
clay by drawing the little soil particles 
together and thus making coarser grains, 
so that air and water work through more 
easily. I would, therefore, give that sod 
a coat of manure in late Fall, and just 
before freezing weather plow it roughly, 
leaving the furrows standing up well. Do 
not harrow, but leave it so that there 
will be as much freeze and thaw as pos¬ 
sible. This action of the frost will help 
the soil. In the Spring put 1,000 pounds 
of lime per acre on those rough furrows 
and then harrow smooth. This is not 
enough lime to “sweeten” the soil, and 
for some other crops T would use more. 
My experience is, however, that corn does 
not respond to lime; in fact, a heavy 
dressing of lime will give you less corn. 
If you are to seed down after corn I 
would not use lime at all in the Spring, 
but wait until the seeding crop. 
Timothy for Mulching. —A New 
York man comes up with this question: 
T wish to know what age or stage of ma¬ 
turity Timothy grass should be to mulch 
young fruit trees? f. d. 
I do not know of any cast-iron rule. 
I go by the season, the field and the 
trees. In a wet season and on low ground 
T let the grass stand until it is fully in 
seed. There is too much water for the 
trees alone, and the growing grass relieves 
them by using a good share of the water. 
The mulch in such a season is not so 
necessary. By letting the grass stand we 
help reseed the land. In a dry season or 
on dry soil, where the trees evidently 
suffer from drought, T would cut even 
before the grass is in head, and keep 
clipping at least three times. This not 
only makes a mulch to hold moisture but 
prevents the grass from taking it out of 
the ground. h. w. c. 
the Greatest of all Musical Inventions—The TWO HORN 
DUPLEX 
FREIGHT 
PREPAID 
PHONOGRAPH 
FREE 
TRIAL 
I T is the one phonograph that 
gives you all the sound vi¬ 
brations. It has not only 
two horns,but two vibrating 
diaphragms in its sound box. 
Other phonographs have one 
diaphragm and one horn. The 
Duplex gets all the volume of 
music; other phonographs get 
the half. Not only do you get 
more volume, but you get a bet¬ 
ter tone—clearer, sweeter, more 
like the original. Our 
FREE CATALOGUE 
will oxplain fully the superiority of The Duplex. Don’t 
allow any one to persuade you to buy any other make 
without first sonding for our catalogue. 
Save all the Dealers’ 70% Profits 
The Duplex is not sold by dealers or in stores. Wo are 
Actual MunufftcturerH, not jobbers, and sell only direct 
from our factory to the user, eliminating all middlemen's 
profits. That is why we are able to manufacture and deliver 
the best phonograph made for less than one-third what 
dealers ask for other makes not so good. 
Each horn is 30 in. long with 
1 7 in. bell. Cabinet 18 in. x 
14 in. x to in. 
NO MONEY DOWN 
Seven Days’ Free Trial 
We will allow seven days' free trial 
in your own home in which to decide 
whether you wish to keep it. If the 
machine does not make good our 
every claim—volume,quality, saving, 
satisfaction—just send it back. We'll 
pay all freight charges both ways. 
All the Latest Improvements 
The Duplex is equipped with a mechanical feed that re¬ 
lieves the record of all the destructive work of propelling 
the reproducer across its surface. The needle point is held 
in continuous contact with the inner (which is the more 
accurate) wall of tire sound wave groove, thus reproducing 
more perfectly whatever music was put into the record 
when it was made. 
The Duplex has a device by which the weight of the re¬ 
producer upon tile record may be regulated to suit the 
needs of the occasion, thus greatly preserving the life and 
durability of the records. These are exclusive features of 
the Duplex and can not be had upon any other make of 
phonograph. Plays all sizes and makes of disc records, 
Our Free Catalogue explains everything. 
DUPLEX PHONOGRAPH Co., 370 Patterson St„ Kalamazoo, Mich. 
IT MAKES A , 
“It BALE THAT 
ft, every HAY 
>ii giMft buyer 
r# WANTS 
THE “NEW WAY” PRESS 
I Is a horizontal press. 11 bales 1 % to 2 % tons per hour. 
Peed hole 40x50 inches—easy to feed; no tramping, 
fork only used. Revolutionizes the loose baling- system. 
Makes the very desirable eastern market bale. Beats ] 
ail Box and Upright Presses by doing 100 per cent 
more work. Stands at work j ust as you see it in the cut. 
Very portable. Adapted to bank barn work. We also 
make Horse and Belt Power Presses. Write for catalog. 
SANDWICH MFG. CO.. 157 MAIN ST., SANDWICH, ILL. 
The WAGON to BUY. 
The life of 
Dederick’s 
' Baling Presses 
r gives them many 
times the value of 
the ordinary press. 
Furthermore, their 
freedom from break¬ 
age delays and repair 
bills is in itself an impor- 
' tant source of profit. 
Do not buy a haling press 
without knowing how haling 
presses differ and why 
Dederick’s Presses will save you 
work and profit. 
For every baling purpose, 
there’s a Dederiek Press. Valu¬ 
able catalogue sent FREE. 
P. K. DE1)EKICK’9 SONS, 
69 Tivoli St., Albany, N. Y. 
Properly con¬ 
structed. haves labor, annoy 
auce and expense of repairs. 
STEEL WHEELS wagon L s! 
Your address on a postal will bring you free catalog. 
The Geneva Metal Wheel Co., 
Box 17. Geneva, Ohio. 
Hay Press 
HORSE and BELT 
POWER. 
3S styles and sizes ol 
Presses. 
For many years the stand¬ 
ard. Lead In character 
of work, speed, easy 
and safe operating.i 
Don’t buy until you 
see the Eli catalogue. 
Mailed free. Write 
for it today. 
COLLINS PLOW CO.. 1111 Hampshire St., Quincy, tils. 
Mid-Season 
Sheet ol 
WIBIIS 
BIGGIES 
TAer 
Buggy Bargains Ready 
Columbus Buggies—the trade-mark brand—famous the 
world over for quality and appearance— row Sold Straight 
From Factory To You At Manufacturers’ Prices. 
ONE MONTH TRIAL 
on every Columbus Vehicje— 
your assurance of satisfaction. 
Vehicle may be returned after 
the test if not satisfactory, at no 
expense to the buyer, as we bear all the freight. 
Send for Mid-Season Sheet of Buggy 
Bargains. These are real values in 
'Jf f high-grade vehicles—sold while 
last at extremely low prices. 
jr The Columbus 
. / M Carriage & Harness Co. 
k , _ 2026 South High St. 
| yyy/ 7 /y Columbus. 
r/ Ohio - 
With the 
sheet we’ll 
send regular 
catalogFree- 
Write for it 
today. 
%ook : 
G ct, T his 
; msd 
MOM m 
It will tell you how to get all your potatoes. 
Do you know how to get all your potatoes!—Every last one from the big pink two pounder, to the small 
and few lu a hill! Do you know how many dollars difference It makes whether you get all or leave a 
lot In the ground! Send for the Dowden Book. It-’sFree—It will tell you how to gather In every potato 
your field has produced. If you are a potato grower you want to know about the 
Dowden Potato Digger 
The Digger that works where other diggers fall— the digger that takes every potato out of stiff lands, 
clay, grass, mud, weeds and stones, as well as clean lands. One enthuslaBtlo owner of a Dowden writes 
us about Its perfect work In grass and weeds four to six feet tall. Wohavehundredsofsuch reports on 
file. Let us show them to you. In some crops the Dowden digger actually pays for Itself In the potatoes 
It saves. Write for the Dowden Book. It will tell you how tnis machine is made so strong that a break 
need never be feared, and eo simple that a boy can run it. 
Drop us a postal to-day. The 
book will come right back. 
k Dowden Manufacturing Co. 
222 Clm st. Prairie City. lab 
Tout Digger has 
given very good 
satisfaction. Our 
I loll U a deep rieh \ 
| black loam with a I 
deep ©lay •ubuoll.l 
I Many Diggers w«^ 
havo tried fuiled. So 
wo stick to yours. 
Hoyt Plant and 
good Co., St. Paul, Minn. 1 
Isold six I 
Dow deni 
Diggers Ml 
a result of I 
' a contest of I 
the Dowdeol 
With two I 
Others hero. 
C. A. Newberry, 
Allisnoe. Neb-1 
