1907. 
755 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
Hope Farm Notes 
Farm Notes. —The last half hour be¬ 
fore supper on September 28 found me 
beside the kitchen stove. That’s a good 
place for a wet man of my years—when 
there is no other fire in the house. There 
was a fragrant pot of baked beans in the 
oven, and a great dish of baked apples 
had just come out—filling the room with 
perfume. Amid such surroundings, with 
the rain at the windows and the trees 
shaking in the wind, I had envy for no 
man as I held out my feet before the fire. 
We had been cutting corn until the sud¬ 
den burst of rain drove us from the field. 
Most of my corn would have lost nothing 
by standing 10 days longer, but Jack Frost 
held up a warning white finger in the 
valley two nights ago, and October is no 
corn weather at best. So we went at it. 
I knew that corn which looks very green 
will ripen into good grain in the shock, 
while the stalks are much better than if 
left to become dead ripe. The rain caught 
us in the farther field. I thought it was 
a mere flurry, and I built a fire under a 
tree. I came home by the Stringfellow 
peach orchard to get some Mountain 
Rose peaches for supper, while Jack and 
the children stayed to roast an ear of 
corn. I was wet enough, but the children 
came back looking like drowned rats. 
They will eat more supper to pay for it! 
This wind will blow down more apples. 
Next week we shall have nearly 100 bar¬ 
rels of windfalls to ship. You wouldn’t 
recognize a windfall in our orchard as 
such. When an apple falls from one of 
our low-headed trees upon the soft mulch 
it is much like dropping it upon a sofa 
pillow, unless it hits another apple on the 
ground. In spite of the dry weather we 
never had better crops than this year. 
That patch of potatoes by the house 
where we were preparing for a new lawn 
yielded at the rate of 350 bushels per 
acre, and the potatoes grown between 
rows of bush fruits are nearly as good. 
Corn is a good crop, we never had more 
squash and pumpkins, nor did we ever 
obtain better growth on the trees and 
vines. As fast as a crop came out we 
have filled its place with a Winter crop 
of rye, vetch, Crimson clover, Cow-horn 
turnips and Alfalfa. So as October comes 
in we may feel that we have tried to do 
our duty by the farm. ... We sowed 
the last of our Winter vetch seed to-day. 
This was put in a piece of poor sod 
plowed in August. It had been harrowed 
five times since plowing. This morning 
we worked that soil with the Acme and 
then seeded rye with the Cahoon seeder— 
about five pecks to the acre. Then I put 
on the vetch seed by hand, at the rate 
of about 18 pounds per acre—and covered 
both seeds with a spike-tooth harrow. 
This is intended for seed. The rye is to 
hold up the vetch vines. I take what they 
tell me about this vetch on faith. About 
all I knozv about it is that the seed looks 
much like sweet peas. ... In addition 
to other good things for supper I should 
have mentioned melons. I selected what 
seemed to me ideal melon ground under 
the brow of the hill facing to the east. 
There we planted melons with great care 
—and never got one. Blight killed them 
all. On the top of the hill, where the 
wind has a full sweep, we got some fine 
ones, with practically no blight. The 
other place is sheltered, and barely feels 
the wind. Does the moving air help blow 
the germs away? I might argue so from 
mv experience if I did not have a small 
patch of melons in the garden near the 
house fully protected from the wind by a 
thick grape trellis. There we have the 
best melons of all. 
Alfalfa Advice. —This letter is much 
like a dozen others: 
Some months ago I asked your advice in 
regard to trying to grow Alfalfa In Rockland 
County, N. Y. I now ask further advice: 
On a plot of about four acres, which had 
not been under the plow for 20 years, I 
sowed about August 1, 1900, one-half to 
buckwheat, the other half in fodder corn 
in drills; plowed the buckwheat under and 
took off a fair crop of fodder corn—no ma¬ 
nure or fertilizer. Plowed the four acres 
and sowed, after a good preparation, to rye. 
Top-dressed the rye during the Winter with 
10 loads of good horse manure to the acre, 
and broadcast in the Spring of 1907 300 
pounds of fertilizer, 9-0-5%, to the acre. 
When rye was in blossom cut with mower 
and got an immense crop of line rye straw. 
Plowed the land immediately after 12 inches 
deep, and kept disk and spring-tooth harrow 
alternately busy until time of sowing Al¬ 
falfa, at which time the field was as tine as 
a flower bed. On August 7. 1907, I sowed 
25 pounds of Alfalfa to the acre both ways. 
The seed was obtained from Kansas, and 
inoculated with bacteria obtained from the 
Agricultural Department, Washington, D. C. 
Before sowing, 200 pounds of basic slag and 
50 pounds of sulphate of potash to the acre 
were harrowed in. The seed was lightly 
covered with the spring-tooth harrow and 
rolled. The drought kept the seed from 
sprouting, and the field was a sorry looking 
dust heap. Then a light shower about the 
20th of August made things jump, and the 
field began to look green. When the Al¬ 
falfa was fairly well sprouted and about 1% 
to two inches high I applied, on August 
28, 100 pounds of nitrate of soda to the 
acre. Now I know I am not out of the 
woods by any means, but this field is to-day 
(September 21) a great mass of green, the 
Alfalfa measuring from six to 12 Inches, 
the larger plants stooling out to three and 
four stalks. Will it be advisable to clip this 
growth, and will It benefit it to top-dress 
with horse manure during the Winter? There 
are no weeds to speak of in the Alfalfa. We 
harrowed in 50 bushels of lime to the acre 
before sowing rye. I have pampered and 
coddled this field pretty well, and should 
the Alfalfa freeze out or for some other 
reason fail to make a good stand by next 
Spring, we will try it all over again on the 
same land, and try to profit by the experi¬ 
ence. We are keeping 30 high-class horses, 
and I wish I had 12 or more tons of good 
Alfalfa hay In my barns to offset the high 
grain prices. h. h. l. 
New York. 
It makes me a little nervous to have 
people assume that I am an Alfalfa ex¬ 
pert. This man’s crop is better than 
mine to-day, and I see that he gave the 
soil better preparation. He is a better 
Alfalfa grower than I am, and all I can 
do is to say how we expect to treat our 
crop. When the Alfalfa is a foot high 
I shall clip it and let the clippings rest 
on the ground. If it gets that high be¬ 
fore the ground freezes I shall clip again. 
When I trim trees severely I notice that 
both top and root spread out to repair 
the damage. I think the clipping will 
start new root growth and encourage the 
top to stool or spread out. The clipping 
left on the ground will help somewhat as 
a mulch helps a strawberry bed. If I 
had the manure to spare I would give the 
Alfalfa a good coat after the ground 
freezes. All the manure I have will be 
needed for strawberries. The one thing 
I am sure of is that this man will find 12 
tons of Alfalfa hay a great help in pay¬ 
ing his grain bill. Whenever I am tempt¬ 
ed to talk wise on a subject which has 
thus far mastered me I think of what a 
reader says about a blacksmith at Cornell. 
I understand that this man lays down the 
following truth: “Them as can does — 
them as can’t teachesl” 
Killing Quack Grass. —Here is an¬ 
other question which I might better pass 
up to some one who has tested it: 
I see frequent Inquiries how to kill quack 
grass. I have six acres of beautiful quack 
grass. I was told to sow peas and oats 
thickly; that they would smother quack. The 
quack grew almost as high as the oats, and 
they grew four to five feet high. Then I 
was told to pasture hogs on quack; sow a 
little corn, so they would hunt for that and 
get a taste of root stocks, and they would 
clean it all up. I have proved It on a small 
scale, but as nearly as I can reckon it will 
require about 1,000 hogs to clean the six 
acres. Then I am told to plow thoroughly 
and harrow at frequent Intervals all Sum¬ 
mer, rake and burn the roots. I doubt not 
the above will do it, but with 80 acres to 
work, largely in fruit, and three horses and 
myself only to do it, I can find no time 
for it except between dark and daylight. 
Now I am told to plant to corn and culti¬ 
vate thoroughly. It looks feasible, and I 
am going to try It. Will it be best to Fall- 
plow this quack late for corn, or would I 
better let it lie until Spring? n. l. 
If we had that “beautiful crop” in Flor¬ 
ida we would cut it for hay. I have now 
an acre of cabbage in which this quack 
grass is very bad. We fought it with cul¬ 
tivator and hoe until the cabbage grew 
too large. Now the grass is as large as 
ever. I shall now wait until just before 
the ground freezes for Winter, and then 
plow that field so as to leave rough fur¬ 
rows standing up straight. On any other 
field I should harrow and sow rye, but 
here I will leave the field rough so as to 
let the frost work all through that soil. 
I think this will kill out some of the 
quack. If the field could be plowed now 
with our wet Fall I think we would only 
cultivate the quack and give it a better 
chance. By leaving it exposed over Win¬ 
ter you can kill some of it out, and then 
by early Spring plowing and thorough 
culture you can get the corn along so that 
it will shade the soil and help finish the 
quack. This is one of the cases where I 
would not sow any Winter crop to occupy 
the land. h. w. c. 
Live 
Harness 
Don’t allow your 
harness to dry up 
and die. Once 
thishappensit can 
never be remedied. 
Save the harness, save 
expense, prevent accidents by using 
EUREKA 
Harness Oil 
Nourishes the leather and keeps it 
soft and strong. Preserves the grain- 
fibre. Makes leather proof against all 
weathers. Gives best tanner’s finish. 
Boston Coach Axle Oil 
smoothes the way to good wheel- 
action. Better and cheaper than 
castor oil. Will not gum or corrode. 
Lightens the load—eases the road. 
Sold everywhere—All Sixes. 
MADE BY 
STANDARD OIL COMPANY 
Incorporated 
The Neatest Thing on the Farm 
Makes Stable Work Lighter, 
Saves Time and Labor, 
Soon Pays for Itself. 
The Climax 
Feed and Litter 
Carrier. 
Can go anywhere by curves and switches. 
Hook the same car to our large ensilage 
pan and feed the stock in one half the 
time. Cars made to run on steel channel 
track, heavy wire, or cable, as desired. 
Positive chain hoist. Pans will rest on 
floor and not tip over; made of galvan¬ 
ized iron. Can be installed for special purposes in works or factories. 
Send a sketch of your requirements and we will send you full description 
and an estimate of cost. 
Warsaw-Wilkirvson. Co., 50 Highland Ave., Warsaw, N.Y. 
Manufacturers of Climax Pneumatic Ensilage Cutters, Climax Feed and Litter Carriers. 
WITH GROOVED TIRES 
4 in. wide. The Groove protects 
the heads of spokes from wear, 
which makes wheel good and 
strong till tire is worn out. We 
make plain tire wheels in other 
widths. We make wheels to fit 
any thimble skein or straight 
steel axle. Getour free catalog 
of Steel Wheels and Low Down 
Handy Wagons. 
HAVANA METAL WHEEL CO., 
Box 17 Havana, HI. 
COIL SPRING FENCE] 
Made of high carbon Steel Wire 
Horse-high, Bull-strong, Chick¬ 
en-tight. Sold direct to the 
Farmer at lowest manufac¬ 
turers prices on 30 Days Free 
Trial, freight prepaid. 100 page 
Catalogue and price-list free. 
KITSELMAN BROS., 
Box 230 MUNCIE, INO. 
FENCE 
'Made of High Carbon Double Strength 
IColled Wire. Heavily Calvanixed to 
prevent rust. Have no agents. Sell at 
'factory prices on 30 days’ free trial. 
We pay all freight. 37 heights of farm 
[and poultry fence. Catalog Free. 
[ COILED 8PRINQ FENCE CO. 
Box {63 Winchester, Indiana 
FIX YOUR ROOF 
Rl» Pop Cnnara —We will guarantee to put 
uu rcr oqudrei any old leakyi worn -out 
rusty, tin, iron, steel, paper, felt or shingle roof in 
perfect condition, and keep it in perfect condition 
for 5c per square per year. 
The Perleet Ro.f Preserver, makes old, 
worn-out roofs now. Satisfaction guaranteed 
or money refunded. Our fr«« roofing book 
1 tells all about it. Writ* for it today. 
the Anderson Manufacturing Co.. Oept. 35, Elyria, Ohio. 
Roof-Fix- 
COOK YOUR FEED and SAVE 
Half the Cost—with the 
PROFIT FARM BOILER 
With Dumping Caldron. Empties its 
kettle in one minute. The simplest 
and best arrangement for cooking 
food for stock. Also make Dairy and 
Laundry Stoves, Water and Steam 
Jacket Kettles, Hog Scalders, Cal¬ 
drons, etc. *9“ Send for circulars. 
D. R. SHERRY A CO., Batavia. IR 
Make 
By 
Using 
Wonder 
Plow 
Trucks. 
This truck will fit any beam, 
right or left, one or two horse, 
wood or steel plow. A boy can 
handle it with ease, most of the 
time without his hand on the 
plow. Regulates perfectly, 
depth and width of furrow. Will balance plow in 
hard, dry, stony soil, and save a third of draft on 
horses. The plowman does not need to hold plow 
handles. Works perfectly in tall grass or weeds, 
turning them completely under. Thousands in use. 
If it does not do all of these things, you can 
send it back and we will not only return your 
money but pay the freight both ways. 
Write for our booklet “Progress in Plowing.” Agents wanted 
everywhere. Retail price $5. Get special agents proposition. 
Wonder Plow Co .,327 Factory St., st. Clair, Mich. 
CUTAWAY TOOLS FOR LARGE HAY CROPS. 
DOUBLE ACTION 
£ 2 ' 
NO , 
CC MORE 
§ USE 
FOR ; 
PLOW. 
Clark’s Reversible 
Bush & Bog Plow 
Outs a track 5 ft. wide, 
1 ft. deep. Will plow a 
new cut forest. His double 
action Cutaway Harrow 
keeps land true, moves 
1800 tons of earth, cuts 30 
acres per day. 
'JOINTED POLE CUTA 
** SENOFOR 
circulars™ mt 
CUTAWAY 
HARROW pQ! 
,* CO... Q 
'hiccanum 
'CONN. US. A 
Jointed Pole takes all weight off Horses 
and keeps their heels away from the Disks. 
His Rev. Disk Plow cuts a 
furrow 5 to 10 in.doep, 14 in. 
wide. AH Clark’s machines 
will kill witch-grass, wild 
mustard, charlock, hard- 
hack, sunflower, milk weed, 
thistle or any foul plant. 
Send for circulars to the 
CUTAWAY HARROW CO., 39 Main SL, Hlgganum, Conn. 
BUCKEYE DRILLS 
F 
FREE 
Do 
you want to save 
money? Do you want to 
_ 1 be absolutely sure when 
I von are mttimr.tnni _... ; 77- you buy a Drill or Cultivator that 
write "this ver^minnto^fnr *?*£?*, value and satisfaction for your money? Then 
making theso y imn?eiLe^?5 £? r di atest Dr j 11 and Cultivator eata og. It’s free. We’ve been 
savers^fortho y ® ar8— improving them every year—no wonder they are money 
S«nrt fn? r.oLi^ J l -„^. heiradvan . taKe8 an<1 economy In time,labor a. 
aena ror catalog right now, and see 
the proof with your own eyes. 
„ . _ V. P. MAST & CTO. 
Dept. K . 
■ and cost will surprise you. 
Springfield, Ohio 
a* p CULTIVATORS 
WE BUY OLD BAGS 
Don’t throw away your second-hand bags. Perhaps you do not know you 
can sell them. YOU CAN. We will buy all the old sacks you have or 
can get. We pay top-notch prices for them. 
wepay T pi^gh¥ 1 ch k arges. ouhaveaudwe wineladlyauoteprIces - 
St. Louis Bag & Burlap Co., 327 N. Main St., St. Louis, Mo. 
A Never Failing Water Supply, 
with absolute safety, at small cost may be had by using the 
Improved Rider Hot Air Pumping Engine and 
Improved Ericsson Hot Air Pumping Engine. 
Built by us for more than 30 years and sold in every country in the world. Exclu¬ 
sively intended for pumping water. May be run by any ignorant boy or woman. 
So well built that their durability is yet to be determined, engines which were sold 
30 years ago being still in active service. 
Send stamp for "C4” Catalogue to nearest office. 
RIDER-ERICSSON ENGINE CO., 
SS Warren SL, New York. 2S9 Franklin 8L, Batton. 
40 Dearborn St., Chieago. 234 Craig SL, Went, Montreal, P. 0. 
40 Nortli 7 th SL, Philadelphia. 22 Pitt St., h,d—r S. W 
kjnargura 94, Havana, Cuba. 
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