362 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
April 27, 
; Rwralisms [ 
NOTES FROM THE RURAL GROUNDS 
A Good Garden Label. —Fig. 1G6 shows 
back and front views of an excellent per¬ 
manent garden label altered from a for¬ 
eign model and manufactured by Chas. L. 
Mann, 124 Farwell Avenue, Milwaukee, 
Wis. It is made of pure zinc, is 9 
inches long and has an oval writing sur¬ 
face V /2 by three inches. The angular 
construction and deep rim at back of 
writing surface give it great relative 
strength. We have about 200 in use in 
the Rural Grounds, and find they can be 
kicked out and trodden on with little in¬ 
jury, unless the soil is frozen. This is 
not proper treatment for labels, but it is 
satisfactory to know that they will endure 
knocks from stray animals and careless 
visitors that would destroy the ordinary 
wooden kinds. They may be thrust in 
the ground to mark bulbous or herbace¬ 
ous plants, or nailed to stout stakes for 
higher subjects. Frost gets very slight 
hold of the smooth metal surface. We 
scarcely found one overthrown this 
Spring, though used in clay soil where 
heaving was severe enough to pull out 
wooden markers driven in a foot or more. 
A common black lead pencil is used for 
writing, which may be done without any 
preoaration except to free the zinc from 
any chance coating of grease or oil. There 
may not be much contrast at first, but as 
the zinc oxidizes or whitens with age the 
writing grows more distinct. If obscured 
by mud or sand washed up by rains legi¬ 
bility is at once restored by rinsing in 
BACK 
FRONT 
\' ^-- * • 
fs W v 
I 
83 
y; 
1 1 
DV/.* 
MANN’S ZINC GARDEN LABEL. MUCH 
REDUCED IN SIZE. Fig. 1G6. 
water. Black lead marks on good zinc 
appear almost indestructible by exposure 
to weather. We have known pencil writ¬ 
ing on zinc tree labels to be perfectly 
legible after 22 years of exposure. For 
perfect work a solution of bichloride of 
platinum written on with a quill pen gives 
best satisfaction. It produces a deep 
black mark, indestructible by exposure 
as long as the zinc endures. By writing 
on the back or under surface as well as 
the top or front, records of plant breed¬ 
ing or fertilization experiments or other 
data may be made for permanent preserv¬ 
ation. 
Origin of the Label. —Mr. Mann 
writes thus concerning the label: 
After twice losing the names of a fine lot 
of Narcissus, consisting of typical species 
and rare varieties, some costing as much as 
$9 each, by dog? tearing up the wooden 
labels, I made iiiany inquiries and finally 
secured an English zinc label, the pattern 
of which suited me, but it was too light 
in material for good service, and too ex¬ 
pensive to import. I concluded to manufac¬ 
ture a quantity primarily to label my own 
collection and those of correspondents. The 
dies cost a considerable sum of money, and 
good thick zinc is expensive and tends to in¬ 
crease in price. I am obliged to charge at 
least two cents apiece in addition to freight 
or postage to recover cost. They are now 
used by several botanic gardens and experi¬ 
ment stations, the curators of which say 
they are so practical they should be put in 
the hands of dealers, which I have not yet 
done. My great interest has been in the 
thought of how many good plants can be 
saved from being treated as outcasts on ac¬ 
count of lost labels, and how much labor 
I may be saving the busy people who use 
them. 
The only practical way we have found 
to erase the writing when wanted for 
another plant is to scour it off with emery 
paper and expose to the weather until the 
new bright surface is dimmed by oxidiza¬ 
tion. 
Minor Uses. —Certain minor uses for 
these all but indestructible labels suggest 
themselves when not in use as plant 
markers. For instance, they make good 
pot cleaners for occasional convenience, 
and the handy spoon-like form of the 
head, not well shown in the engraving, 
makes it. an efficient tool for handling and 
distributing concentrated fertilizers such 
as nitrate of soda, sulphate of potash 
or Peruvian guano, about growing plants. 
The quantity held—about a tablespoonful 
—we find is usually sufficient for an ap¬ 
plication to two cabbage plants outside or 
four 12-inch pots of tomatoes, melons or 
cucumbers under glass. A spoon would 
serve as well, but the. label does not 
corrode and is more likely to be at hand 
when needed. 
The Grange Wins. —The advantage of 
combination among farmers is well shown 
by an occurrence in a nearby railroad 
shipping point of some local importance. 
The station has a considerable passenger 
traffic, being extensively used by Summer 
residents and visitors, and the railroad 
authorities have for years shown a dis¬ 
position to ignore requests from farmers 
and truckers to furnish better trackage 
in way of sidings and other conveniences 
for shipping farm products, of which sev¬ 
eral hundred carloads are dispatched each 
season. A local Grange was organized sev¬ 
eral months ago, and is in a very flourish¬ 
ing condition. One of the first things to 
do appeared to be to secure better shipping 
facilities, and a committee from the 
Grange armed with the necessary facts 
and figures accordingly waited on the 
railroad superintendent, stating the con¬ 
ditions and making their request with 
moderation, but with the necessary em¬ 
phasis. They represented 8,000 acres of 
highly productive land, shipping an im¬ 
mense aggregate of produce each year, 
and capital enough to equip and maintain 
a steamboat line for water transportation 
to the New York markets, if adequate rail 
facilities could not be had. The officials 
were so impressed by the showing that 
they ordered the immediate construction 
of a new 14-car siding for the farmers’ 
use during the season and promised day 
and night watchmen to protect shipments 
and guard the crates, barrels and other 
returned empties, the loss of which by 
thieving had long aggravated the ship¬ 
pers. The siding is now about finished, 
and a much better feeling prevails all 
’round. Individual shippers, no matter 
how important, might have appealed until 
doomsday without receiving satisfaction. 
1 he Amur Adonis. —One of the earli¬ 
est low-growing perennials to bloom is 
Adonis Amurensis, chiefly known by the 
double-flowering form introduced a few 
years ago from Japan. As the. name im¬ 
plies, this Adonis is native to Siberia, and 
.‘hould be perfectly hardy, but growth 
starts so early that the protection of a 
bottomless box, to temper keen winds 
and night frosts, is beneficial. The fine¬ 
ly cut foliage rises eight inches or more 
high, and the rich yellow flowers, nearly 
two inches, across, are freely borne, often 
opening quite early in April. They some¬ 
what resemble those of the dandelion in 
form, but are composed of three or four 
rows of yellow petals with a pea-green fea¬ 
thered. center. The whole aspect of the 
plant is graceful. The Japanese are said 
to have raised many varieties of this in¬ 
teresting plant, some with flowers of red. 
purple and white, but only the yellow 
ones, appear to have reached western cul¬ 
tivation. The nearly-related Adonis ver- 
nalis, sometimes called Ox-eye, from 
southern Europe, is well known among 
herbaceous plant lovers, and is freely of¬ 
fered by dealers. The foliage is finely 
cut and decorative, while the large yel¬ 
low single flowers come in May. Other 
species suitable for rock work or the 
border are A. Pyrenaica and A. Appen- 
nina, both having large orange yellow 
flowers in May. A. Davurica is sup¬ 
posed to be botanically similar to the 
Ox-eye, but at least one catalogue uses 
the name for the early-blooming Amur 
species. Adonis sestivalis (Pheasant Eye) 
and A. autumnalis (Flower of Jove) 
are popular hardy annuals, both with 
bright crimson flowers and neat foliage. 
They are readily raised from seed. 
w. v. F. 
Not All Manure Spreaders Pay 
The Idea of spreading manure properly is such 
a good one and the benefits derived are so great 
you are apt to think any spreader will give you 
these benefits— that a spreader is a spreader. 
There is where you may make a mistake, for 
some spreaders' are only trouble makers and 
the second season they are not taken out of the 
shed. To make them work takes too much 
time and costs too much money. 
If you get that kind of spreader you’re apt to 
conclude that spreaders are made to sell and 
not to spread manure. 
SUCCESS SPREADERS 
have 28 years' experience back of them— 
thousands of them are spreading manure on 
the best farms in the country and are giving 
no trouble. 
Twenty-eight years has eliminated the trouble 
making features—out of a hundred new de¬ 
vices and schemes that we have tried perhaps 
ninety have proved more harmful than helpful. 
They make good talking points but they don’t 
help spread manure. SUCCESS Spreaders 
are made to spread manure. 
When you get ready to buy a manure spreader, 
(and every farmer should have one) first write 
for our spreader book, it will help you; next go 
to your local dealer and see a Success Spreader 
but don’t buy one until you have asked a man 
who has used one. He knows. 
KEMP & BURPEE MFG. CO., SYRACUSE, N. Y. 
Also Distributors of the famous John Deere line of Plows, Cultivators, Harrows. 
THE DEYO 
Power Sprayer 
Mounted complete with mechanical agitator. 
Better than ever. New air-cooled engine. Other 
new features, all important to the man who 
sprays. Write for new catalogue 19—just out. 
R. H. DEYO & CO., 
BINGHAMTON, - NEW YORK 
Use Fairmount Brand 
Concentrated Bordeaux Mixture 
To one gallon add 49 gallons of water 
and it is ready for use. Only makers 
Fairmount Chemical Laboratory, 
N. W. Corner Broad St. and Fairmount Ave., 
Philadelphia, Pa. 
GET THE BEST 
A Good Spray Pump earns big 
profits and lasts for years. 
THE ECLIPSE 
is a good pump. As 
practical fruit growers 
we were using common 
sprayers in our own orchards 
—found their defects and 
invented the Eclipse. Its 
success forced us to manu¬ 
facturing on a large scale. 
You take no chances. We 
have done all the experi¬ 
menting. Large fully illustrated Catalog and 
Treatise on spraying FREE. 
MORRILL & MOBLEY. Benton Harbor, Mich. 
7 k 
SPRAYING 
FRUIT TREES 
is no longer an experiment, 
but a necessity. Prevents 
wormy fruit by destroy¬ 
ing all insect pests 
and fungus diseases. 
Every farmer, gar¬ 
dener, f rui tor flower 
grower should write 
for my free cata¬ 
logue, describing 21 
styles of Spraying 
Outfits, and contain¬ 
ing a full treatise on 
spraying fruit and vege¬ 
table crops., and much 
,1 . valuable Information. 
WM. STAHL SPRAYER CO., Box 70 L Quincy, III. 
r The Spray that Kills ^ 
Knocks the life out of parasites that infest 
orchard and ornamental trees. 
Good’s c w‘ h , if.fo‘“ h Soap No. 3 
Cures the disease and fertilizes the trees. 
Nothing to injure plants—no sulphur, salt or 
mineral oils. Used and endorsed by U. S. Dept, 
of Agriculture. Order now. 
My valuable booklet of the cause, treatment 
and cure of plant diseases is freo. Write today. 
James Good, 945 N.^r^it Philadelphia. 
* * * • * * 
FUMA 
■ ■ kills Prairie Dogs, 
' 'Woodchucks,Gophers, 
and Grain Insects. 
“The wheels of the 
gods grind slow but 
exceedingly small.” So the weevil, but you can stop 
“ti‘£“ d “Fuma Carbon BisuIpbide’SSSS 
EDWARD R. TAYLOR, Perm Van, N. Y. 
FERTILIZER UMBJESSS 
WALTON QUARRIES, Harrisburg, Pa. 
VALUABLE BOOK FREE . 
In connection with our Hi-Grade Brand of Pure 
Paris Green we have issued a new booklet on Insecti¬ 
cides, containing many useful hints to the farmer, 
truck grower and gardener. It is authoritative and 
up-to-date. Better send for a copy to-day. It costs 
nothing and will tell you all you want to know about 
fighting insect pests. MORRIS HERRMANN & 
CO., 66 William Street, New York City. 
The Perfection Sprayer 
combines hand and ho^ie power, and has bo*b cart and barrel. 
It’s simple, reliable, practicable and durable. Sprays everything, 
trees, potatoes, vines. Catalogue telling how to spray aud con¬ 
taining valuable formulas, FKEE. 
THOMAS PEPPLER, Box 70, Hightstown, N.J. 
No Money in Advance—pay when 
I convenient. The “FITZ-ALL” flts- 
lon-any-barrel ortank. Sprays all so¬ 
lutions. Proven best and most dur- 
I able. Guaranteed Five Years. 
I Brass Ball Valves .Cylinder, Plunger , 
I etc. Strainer Cleaner and 3 Agitators. 
1200 lb. pressure.A. boy can operate it. 
I After trial if you keep it—pay when 
lyou can. Whole sa le price where no 
latent—Agents Wanted. Special 
I Free Offer for first in each locality. “Spray- 
ling Guide" and full information FREE. 
iH.L.Hufst Mfg.Co., g North St.Canton.O. 
For Rapid, Easy Spraying—The 
"AlltO-Pop” nozzle. 
Controlled by one finger, regulates spray 
from a steam to a fine mist. Doubles ca¬ 
pacity. Saves solution, time, labor. 
INCREASE THE CROPS 
by using the “Auto-Pop” nozzle on 
the “Auto-Spray” pump. 
Write if you want agency. 
E. C. Brown Co., 28 j»yst„ Rochester, N. Y. 
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 ns 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., 
85 Warren St., New York. 2S9 Franklin 8t., Borton. 
40 bear-born St., Chicago. 234 Craig St., Weit, Montreal, P. Q. 
40 North Jth St, Philadelphia. 22 Pitt St, Sydney, N. 8. W. ” 
Amargura 9«, ITarana, Cuba. 
99 
pratt s « SC ALECIDE 
WILL POSITIVELY DESTROY 
SAN JOSE, COTTONY MAPLE SCALE, PEAR PSYLLA, ETC. 
W ithout Injury to the Trees. Samples, Prices and Endorsement of Experiment Stations on Application. 
Grm JPTL-A.TT CO., Dept. iL, 11 Broadway, KTBW 
Soluble 
Petroleum 
CITY 
