1909 . 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
86 © 
Hope Farm Notes 
Farm Partnerships. —As you will re¬ 
call, a few weeks ago we mentioned a 
young couple who wished to tny a sort 
of partnership with some childless 
farmer. In response to this nearly sixty 
people wrote stating their .situation. 
There were of course all sorts of peo¬ 
ple. I stated distinctly that these young 
people did not want to -buy a farm, and 
that they did not pretend to know how 
to conduct one. Yet some of the replies 
offered farms for sale, while others 
wanted a tenant. The young people 
finally made what seems like an excel¬ 
lent arrangement, and- when I last 
heard from them the man wrote that 
he was getting to the point where he 
could milk a cow dry. This may give a 
farmer an idea of the preparation such 
people have had. I have had almost a 
dozen letters from other people who 
say they would like to try the labor end 
of such a partnership. One is a Baptist 
minister, two are city clerks, others are 
farmers or laborers. At first thought, 
one might call it an easy and good thing 
to bring such people together, but I am 
convinced that there are several sides 
to it. While •human nature remains as 
it fc, and I can see no indication of rap¬ 
id change, people will be guided largely 
by prejudice and self-interest. “Bear 
and forbear” is .a* good motto, but it 
does not mean to strip the other fel¬ 
low bare and then forbear to give him 
any return. I will help- these “farm 
partnerships” as I can, but will not be 
responsible for them. 
Alfalfa and Apples.— In the early 
history of this country the French es¬ 
tablished themselves on the coast of 
Maine. An English adventurer or 
pirate sailed out to find them and drive 
them away. He cruised along the shore, 
but could not find the French. One 
day he took on board a group of In¬ 
dians, and was astonished at their ac¬ 
tions. They kissed their hands at him, 
bowed with hand on heart, and went 
through the most extravagant gestures. 
The shrewd old fellow knew at once 
that the Indians had learned these ac¬ 
tions from Frenchmen, and sure enough 
these red men led him to •his prey. All 
men, I take it, will show evidence of 
association with stronger characters or 
powerful conditions. At the New York 
State Fair last week I could usually tell 
by his actions a farmer who had suc¬ 
ceeded with Alfalfa, or who had a good 
apple orchard. There was an air of 
solid confidence and power about such 
men. They acted as if they had some 
strong friend right back of them—and 
they certainly had. A man with 10 
acres or more of good Alfalfa on his 
farm has the same thing as a feed store 
and a fertilizer factory open to his 
hand. Think what that would mean to 
you and you will realize how independ¬ 
ent an Alfalfa farmer feels. Would not 
any man who has come out of the slav¬ 
ery of buying feed and nitrogen take on 
a new courage and show it in his ac¬ 
tions? That is why these Alfalfa men 
betray the resting place of prosperity as 
the Indians betrayed the French. As 
for apples, talk with a few men from 
the strip of land along Lake Ontario 
arid see what they say. During the 
past few years the apple business seems 
to have gained more rapidly than any 
other connected with farming. In sec¬ 
tions where fruit growing is made a 
real business and handled properly there 
is great prosperity. I came home to my 
farm more determined than ever to stay 
by my orchards and try to improve the 
Alfalfa. 
Big Things. —On Labor Day a gar¬ 
dener drove some miles across the 
country to see our trees. He pro¬ 
nounced the apple trees “all right,” but 
bluntly stated that the mulched peaches 
were a failure. I was away when he 
came, and I found later that he got 
into one orchard at the back of the 
farm which has been practically aban¬ 
doned. The trees were frozen hard in 
one of our worst Winters, the scale 
stung them and borers chewed them. I 
am ripping them out to try again. My 
friend did not see what I call the sod 
orchard at all. He has planted 400 
peach trees and given them fine culture 
so that they have made remarkable 
growth. I showed him a few mulched 
Elberta trees that we like the looks of, 
but he went home and sent the follow¬ 
ing report: 
Yesterday, September 15, we picked the 
last basket of peaches from a tree which 
this year has yielded 16 half bushels, which 
have sold for $22.85. This tree is in its 
eleventh year. Do j»ou think you could ex¬ 
ceed this under the mulch system? 
No, we have nothing to touch it. We 
have one five-year-old Elberta in sod— 
over a rocky ledge—which gave this year 
a little over six baskets of fair-sized 
high-colored fruit. That is our best 
showing thus far, and it is far above 
the average of our orchards. Many of 
our trees gave less than a dollar’s 
worth. Of course this tree cost little 
or nothing to care for outside of spray¬ 
ing, and one man could handle at least 
three times as many trees as of those 
fully cultivated. I say frankly however 
that I am not bragging about mulched 
peach trees—or anything else for that 
matter. I think mulch or sod better 
adapted to apple culture than to peach. 
At the same time our peaches cost us 
but little, their care does not interfere 
with other farm work and the quality 
and color are superior. Of course my 
friend .will not claim that he can plant 
200 trees in an acre and pick $4,570 
worth of fruit. 
Farm Notes. —On September 18 the 
best of the Criinsoa clover was about 
four inches high—30 days after seeding. 
I consider that this clover is ’already 
worth more than the cost of the seed 
and the labor. Any further growth be¬ 
tween now and next May will’ be clear 
gain. I have reason to expect as such 
gain the equivalent of eight tons of 
good manure. It was so dry when we 
seeded the clover that I was afraid the 
corn would suffer, but there has been 
rain enough for both crops. I do not 
think we ever seeded our Fall grain in 
better shape than this year. The soil 
was worked thoroughly and the grain 
well covered. I am often asked why 
we use so much Alsike clover. I have 
found that the Alsike is more likely to 
start with us than the Red. I have 
seeded the two kinds together and had a 
fair stand of Alsike with only a few 
scattering plants of Red. While liming 
would give the Red a better start I 
think the Alsike is more hardy. It also 
gives better hay, as we grow it, although 
a smaller yield. . . . Does it pay to put 
lime on an old meadow without work¬ 
ing the soil? This question is often 
asked, but I am obliged to say that I do 
not know. I am trying it this Fall. 
My belief is that it is better to work 
lime freely into the soil. When put on 
top of the soil it works down in time 
but does not seem to do as much good. 
One argument against the use of burned 
lime is _ that it acts upon the organic 
matter in the soil to set free nitrogen. 
When put on top of the soil I should 
think the damage from this would be 
greater, for when this nitrogen is set 
free under ground the soil will hold 
most of it. If lime will operate well 
as a surface dressing there are many 
sour old pastures which would be helped 
by it. I notice that when the weeds 
and brush on these old fields are cut 
and burned over there is a better 
growth of good grass. h. w. c. 
Paint is as 
Necessary as 
F ertilizer 
Everyone knows that a field must be fer¬ 
tilized to produce a good crop. Everyone 
knows that farm buildings must be painted to 
preserve them. It is not a question of whether or not you shall 
paint, but which paint will be the best investment. 
We know as well as you how many cheap paints there are 
offered, and we know perhaps better than you how little good these 
paints will do you. You must have the name and reputation of a 
manufacturer of standing because you do not claim to be an expert 
Judge of paints. You cannot afford to experiment by testing paints 
in actual use to determine their value. 
Sherwin-Williams Paints 
are time-tried and time-tested. They are the net result of years of 
experience in producing just the right paint for every purpose. There¬ 
fore the paints we recommend for painting farm buildings, barns, 
agricultural implements, etc., have just the right quality, consistency 
and ingredients to produce the best possible results in every instance. 
Before painting, no matter what paints 
you use, it will pay you to talk with the 
Sherwin-Williams dealer in your town about 
what you want to paint. Meanwhile it will 
be money in your pocket if you will write 
today for our little booklet, “Paints and 
Va-nishes for the Farm.” It's free. 
Sherwin-Williams 
Paints & Varnishes 
Address all inquiries to 635 Canal Rd.,Cleveland.O. In Canadato639 Centre St., Montreal 
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Write for particulars. 
If you live within 200 miles 
our expert will call on you 
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Water Supply Systems for Country Homes. 
D. DUNNING, Gas Engine Dept., sYVlcuVi'f n?y. 
Iradc 
Mark 
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