e24 
THK RUKAb NKW-YOKKER 
October 23. 
FARMERS’ CLUB 
IKvery query must he accompanied by the name 
and address of tlio writer to insure attention. Be¬ 
fore asking a question, please see whether it is not 
answered in our advertising columns. Ask only 
a few questions at one time. Put questions on a 
separate piece of paper.l 
PEACH AND CHERRY SLUGS. 
I notice in a recent R. N.-Y. a recom¬ 
mendation to spray pear and cherry trees 
with Paris green or arsenate of lead to 
kill the slugs. I consider it needless 
trouble and expense to use either of 
these. One good dusting of slaked lime 
or wood ashes will kill every slug it 
touches, and one can dust a score of 
trees in the time he is spraying one. 
Have the ashes or lime dust fine and 
sow it on liberally when dew is on, or 
after a rain. The ashes or lime can be 
applied at any time, as the slugs arc al¬ 
ways somewhat sticky, and as soon as 
the dust touches the slugs it will convert 
them into a bit of soap. But it is far 
less disagreeable to apply the dust when 
ihc dew is on and the air is damp, as at 
that time not half as much will come in 
contact with the person. One should 
keep a watch out for slugs, and apply 
the dust as soon as they begin to show, 
for it is severe on the trees to have the 
foliage seriously eaten. j. s. woodward. 
Fall Plowing of Peach Orchard. 
In regard to the Niagara County 
peach orchard with the great crop of 
Summer grass, page 908, I would say let 
it alone until next Spring and then plow 
it under or work it in with a Cutaway 
harrow. I would consider the grass a 
good cover crop, and desirable as pro¬ 
tection for Winter. w. T.. mann. 
Chemical Fertilizers on Strawberries. 
./. It. /*., Wappini/crs Falls, N. Y. —What 
time of year should chemical fertilizer be 
applied to the strawberry plnrits? In 
what manner should it be applied? What 
mixture would i< be best to use? 
A ns. —We make the soil rich with 
manure and fertilizer when we set out 
the plants. This gives a good growth 
of vine. Then in late July or August a 
good dressing of fertilizer is used— 
close along the rows and cultivated or 
hoed in. This is the best time to use 
potash and phosphoric acid, for the 
fruit buds for next year’s crop are made 
in the hall. We have not had such 
good results when the fertilizer is used 
in the Spring of the bearing year. We 
would use the fertilizer up to Septem¬ 
ber 15. A good mixture for all small 
fruits is 500 pounds each dried blood, 
ground bone, acid phosphate and muri¬ 
ate of potash. 
Litmus Test for Sour Soil. 
F. It. II., Kenduskeau, Me .—I noticed an 
article in Tub It. N.-Y. regarding litmus 
paper (o test sour soil. I would like to 
know what this is. how used, and where 
I could buy it. 
A ns.—T his question is asked at least 
300 times each year. Litmus is a dye- 
stuff extracted from certain lichens or 
flowerless plants which grow on rocks 
and trees. Thin blotting paper is dipped 
in this dye. When in contact with an 
acid the color changes from blue to red, 
and when put in alkaline substances it 
changes back to blue. In testing soils 
a fair sample of the soil of a field is 
collected and put in a cup or glass—with 
just enough water to make it stick to¬ 
gether. A knife is pushed into the soil 
and pushed hack and forth to make an 
opening, into which a piece of bine lit¬ 
mus paper is put. The soil is pressed 
around it and the paper is left for an 
hour or more. If the soil is “sour” the 
blue color of the paper will change to 
pink or red. light or dark according to 
the degree of acid in the soil. Most 
soils will change a little. This is called 
the litmus test. We should not rely 
upon one test for a field, hut make a 
dozen, using soil from different parts. 
Whenever the color changes to a perma¬ 
nent red the need of lime is surely in¬ 
dicated. We buy litmus paper at drug 
stores. Tt conies in small bottles—about 
40 small strips for 10 cents. 
White Clover and Hen Manure. 
It. IV'. It., Manchester, A 7 . II .—I set a 
piece of land to strawberries that bad been 
cultivated for seven years, and the second 
year If came into White clover, no seed 
having been pul on. using ben manure for 
dressing. How did it gel there? What is 
the analysis of hen manure? 
A ns. —The White clover seed was 
probably in the soil, and had been lying 
there for some years. The cultivation 
and manuring fitted the soil so that 
the clover started and grew. It may 
he also that the soil used in drying out 
the chicken manure or the chaff used 
in the henhouses contained seeds of 
clover. We have had a number of cases 
where this dormant clover seed has been 
started. In one case a coat of coal 
ashes was put on a piece of sandy soil 
and Red clover started the following 
year. The farmer argued that there 
must have been live clover seed in the 
ashes, when it could not possibly have 
passed through the fire alive. Hen ma¬ 
nure varies in composition; a fair aver¬ 
age will contain 30 pounds of nitrogen, 
35 of potash and 40 of phosphoric acid, 
in one ton. 
Drains and Grades. 
J. C. It., Ulster, Fa. I believe that gen¬ 
erally a straight course for any line of 
tile is the right thing. Question arises as 
to (lie more unusual steep descent, of ter¬ 
ritory. Is a straight course correct for 
any angle of descent, or is a zigzag course 
indicated for greater angles of descent, and 
if so, about what is the angle beyond 
which a course of drainage or drain pipe 
should not be straight ? 
Ans. —The danger to drains from 
very heavy grades is that water getting 
out of an open joint might under the 
greater velocity with which it flows,cut 
the ditch bottom to let tile fall out of 
alignment, so with grades of one per cent 
and higher give the bottom of the joints 
the preference as to closeness, while on 
light grades the top should he made 
secure either by close joints or bats. 
Use large enough tile that they will 
never have to run under pressure. Of 
course we aim to dose joints as possible 
all around, but on light grades no barm 
will come to a drain in clay soil if there 
is a slight gap at the bottom. Tt is not 
advisable to make a drain crooked for 
llic sake of using up its grade, but I 
never hesitate to make them so when 
working to a “water course base” if it 
secures a better location. Make good 
joints where floods of water pass over 
them. j. F. VAN SCHOONHOVEN. 
a home market and away from a railroad, 
would start a co-operative creamery, and 
each man felt a personal responsibility in 
producing the very finest quality of cream 
for this creamery, would they not soon he 
heard from? And they could easily carry 
on in connection with this I lie ltreeding of 
dairy heifers to sell to the milk men. If 
we could only have the men to organize 
these things, but the task would be a hard 
one. 
Tell 
SHORT STORIES. 
Applying Lime. 
me bow lo put lime on 
NOTES ON “THE BASHFUL STATE.” 
I passed across it from south to north, 
though I saw the Champlain Valley north 
of ltutland through rain. From Brandon to 
Vergennes the Otter Valley is broad and 
level, but, badly farmed. There are no 
good sels of buildings visible, and every 
one seemed to cut wild bay. True, the 
Otter is a sluggish stream, but tile drains 
might help a good Ueu). It seemed to me 
that what was needed there was a brother 
lo the cow. With the Green Mountains 
guarding the eastern border and a level 
surface free from rocks, it would seem that, 
something better ought to greet the pass¬ 
ing fellow agriculturist. In regard to 
Grand Isle. I took the boat around by way 
of Platlsburg, and got off nl Gordons, on 
the west shore of the southern island. I 
walked about eight miles south around the 
end, and returned to Burlington. There 
appeared to be a good showing for apple 
culture, though the land ts higher priced 
than elsewhere, and not much for sale. I 
saw several hinders at work on adjoining 
farms—a rare thing in New England. I 
went 100 miles out my way to look at the 
Islands, and one thing is positive: there 
are no deer there. In lower New Hamp¬ 
shire and Vermont I wouldn’t advise any¬ 
one to set out an orchard unless lie can 
hire a watchman or fence It In with an 
eight-foot fence, and keep a kennel of dogs 
Inside lo hoot. T saw a deer skipping about 
a village street as I was driving along— 
In fael our team scared him away back info 
Hie fields. He was within 10 rods of a 
house and an equal disinnee from Hie rail¬ 
road, right at the edge of a place of 125 
houses on Main street. jr. D. 
Comment by a Vermonter. 
He surely sizes up many of the short¬ 
comings of this region. If (he farmers 
who are away from market could only co¬ 
operate and make a specially of one or two 
things, and develop a market for lliose 
lliings. they could do much hotter. Sup¬ 
pose, for Inslnnee. 20 farmers away from 
(lie land 
without endangering the eyes. F. m. r. 
The best way is lo use a drill and sow 
against Hie wind. We use a machine which 
puts the lime close to the ground. Where 
you must sow by hand we would work one 
way only, walking with (he wind. Wear a 
pair of goggles, such as auto drivers wear, 
and keep Hie Inside of Hie nostrils well 
smeared with vaseline. 
Taxation on Ginseng. —Recently we 
gave a New Jersey court decision that 
strawberries are personal property because 
they are not permanently rooted in the 
ground. Now a Wisconsin court decides 
(hat ginseng is taxable property. A law 
In tlial Stale exempts growing crops from 
taxation. The court holds that ginseng 
cannot como under the exemption of grow¬ 
ing crops as the term growing crops means 
only annual crops; that ginseng is taxable 
as part of Hie real eslate the same as 
growing timber. 
Potato Beetles in Colorado. —The crop 
of bugs this year was more limn satisfac¬ 
tory. They came early and stayed late. 
There was a shortage of poison all the sea¬ 
son. Wiien the first hatching of slugs made 
their appearance there was not poison 
enough to go all over the crop; consequent l,v 
many of them went into the ground and 
came out later ready to do business with 
us. Under our system of irrigation the 
vines grow very heavy, practically cover 
the ground. When the second hatching 
came out we could only reach a part of 
I he foliage with our spray. The result was 
bugs all the season. They have kepi us 
growing vines instead of tubers. We also 
had grasshoppers to contend with. The 
damage to the potato crop in the Greeley 
section has l>oen estimated at 40 to 50 
per cent of the crop. In my vicinity 1 
think 60 per cent nearer the truth. 
C. L. AUSTIN. 
Selling Gold Bricks. —It is claimed (hat 
western farmers are making money and get¬ 
ting rid of it, too. Here is a sample : 
“I stood on the corner of a little town 
of 1,200 population and saw four able- 
bodied men working grafts. One was sell¬ 
ing Htock in a patent fence-making machine, 
another was selling shares in a Mexican 
land scheme, a third was interesting a group 
of farmers in some irrigated land in Col¬ 
orado, and the other had a plan for getting 
rich oat of Florida fruit. A banker told 
me that this was only the usual programme, 
and that probably $100,000 had been taken 
out of that county in the last year for in¬ 
vest ment of various kinds. How much of 
it will ever come back?” 
Very lit He of it will ever come hack from 
any such schemes. If only a small part of 
it could be used lo beat and light and 
paint and furnish farmhouses the family 
would lie better off, and so would every 
legitimate trade in the country. 
When you write advertisers menlinu Tim 
if. N.-Y. and you’ll get a quick reply and 
"a square deal.” See guarantee page 10. 
BANK YOUR 
SAVINGS 
WITH A 
SAFE 
COMPANY 
IN 
CONSERVA¬ 
TIVE CITY 
Philadelphia is the most 
conservative city of the 
country—it never goes to 
financial extremes. It 
weathers panics that few others can. 
Gov. Leslie M. Shaw. Secretary of the U. S. 
Treasury under President Rcoscvclt, President of 
our Company, gives his great and conservative knowl¬ 
edge of finance lo the protection of every deposit. 
THE FIRST MORTGAGE GUARANTEE & TRUST CO.. 
OF PHILADELPHIA 
Thus stands at the head of safe conservative Sav¬ 
ings Institutions. 
flov. LpkIIp H(, SIijut 
4 % 
Compound 
Interest on 
Saving Accounts 
Vh 
Your savings will 
lie safe: your com¬ 
pound interest sure. 
Our free IkioIc ” How to Save by Mail ” ex¬ 
plains Gov. Shaw’s monthly saving plan and what 
comixiund interest will do to a few dollars a month. 
For example. $10 a month will grow lo $1473 in 
10 years. Enough to send your boy or girl to 
college or buy a home in any state in the Union. 
The First Mortgage Guarantee 6 Trust Co., 
Leslie M. Shaw, President 
Dept. A-10 927 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia. 
CAUSTIC LIME 
removes soil acidity and benefits nearly all crops. 
lent 
Use in Fall or Winter and get full benefit the next 
season. Circulars and prices. Address 
CHAS. S. PHELPS. -:- General Agent, Salisbury, Conn. 
FERTILIZER LIME 
WALTON OUAKHIK.N, Harrisburg. I'a. 
A FEW CARS of fine, dry, screened, unslacked .Massa¬ 
chusetts Agricultural Ijime ; must he moved this 
month. Special price. W. L. Mitchell, New Haven, Conn. 
APPLE BARRELS 
— Car lots or less. 
1 COBT. HI 1 , 1 .IKS, 
Medina, N. Y. 
Killing Dandelions.— On page 865, I 
saw an article on destroying dandelions. 
I have had a successful experience with 
them, hy using a half-gallon oil can, by 
having a piece of iron in the shape of a 
knife blade projecting one inch from 
the underside of pipe of the oil can. 
{raid blade must be firmly soldered 
on to pipe. You press the blade into the 
top of the dandelion, slightly twist the 
blade to the right and left. The gaso¬ 
line in the can drops into cut at the 
same operation. Gasoline makes sure of 
killing them, and evaporates without bad 
results to soil. j. j. L. 
St. Elmo, Tenn. 
Hauling Muck. —Intending to clean 
a pond of muck, I have read, with in¬ 
terest the answer to II. D. W.’s query 
(page 703). I consulted a practical man, 
who related his experience. His method 
of cleaning a pond of muck, seems to 
me very good; at any rate it is not ex¬ 
pensive. He advises drawing all the 
water off before freezing sets in. When 
the surface is sufficiently frozen to bear 
the team, drive on. With a spud remove 
the ice from about as much muck as 
you will he able lo haul out in one day. 
T intend using a cart, as it is easier to 
dump, but a sled is more easily loaded. 
The muck in the frozen condition is 
more easily handled. The work can he 
done at a time when other work is not 
pressing. h. m. b. 
“For the Land’s Sake, use Rowker’s 
Fertilizers; they enrich the earth and 
those who till it.”— Adz>. 
APPLE BARRELS AND PEAR KEGS 
C. I>. BOSTWICK, Ithaca, New York. 
fXTfc fTfqp SO per Cent Saved liy drilling 4 A- 
r |\ I I I I with the growerH ut wholesale ■ If•. 
*"*-'** iirioes. rrvlght paid. 8en.i iih a _T 
fflirfC Bit of .vour wunts to price. 
i IVJLjIjiJ OATAI.OOUK P RKK. 1 Me InloHll LdLlI 
Apple Tree postpaid for 10 eta. 
Maloney Bros. & Wells, Box j <; , Dansvillc, N. Y. 
DON’T BUY any Nursery Stock or Hampshire Sheep 
until yon have onr Catalogue, 
We are headquarters. 
VV. F. Kupert & Soil, Box 15, Seneca, N. Y. 
FRUIT TREES 
AND PLANTS 
All the most desirable varieties for home ami 
commercial orchard planting. Shade trees, hardy 
shrubs, roses, hedge plants. 
Free descriptive catalog. 
BARNES BROS. NURSERY CO., 
Box 8, Yalosville, Conn. 
20,000 BARTLETT AND CLAPPS FAV. 
Pear trees. Also large supply of Montmorency 
and English Morello Cherry. Apple, Plum, etc. 
Satisfaction guaranteed. Strawberry plants. 
L’AMOREAUX NURSERY CO., Schoharie, N. Y. 
IIAIiltlSON’S NUKSKUIKS, Berlin, Sid. 
1I0II acres trees and plants. Catalog free. 
TRY KEVITTS SYSTEM 1910 Xi,^, K TT: 
FAR <(AI F- Fine sto,, k of Ruby Raspberry plants 
I Ull OHLL Wilder and Fay Currant Bushes. Also 
cuttings. 
ay * 1 
.1. F. WYGANT, Marlboro. N. Y. 
C HOICK Cl.O' 
dl rect to the 
OVKH AND <1 RASSSKLDS sold 
choice Hungarian and Millet seeds to the present 
market value. Write for samples and prices at 
once. N. WERTHEIMER A SONS. Llgontcr. Ind. 
LittleTrees&Plants 
will bear fruit almost as quickly as the large ones. 
Some of you are a long distance from a nursery. 
We can send them mi finest condition to any part 
of the country by mail postpaid. 
PKACHI5S and APPIJE8 at $1.00 per doz. 
Other stock at proportionate prices. 
JOS. II. BLACK, SON & CO., Hij;litstown, N. J. 
Save Your Trees. 
Order Protectors now and save your 
young Fruit Trees from being destroyed 
by Rabbits and Mice during the winter. 
Call’s Nurseries, Penw, O., can furnish 
you the best Tree Protector made for 
less than one cent each.— Ad<v. 
IDEAL 
Tree Pruner 
Beet tool made. Someth in# new. 
H.R. Kogeni, 31 return Ic* hurt:, Ohio. 
HANDY BINDER 
IUST the thing for preserving files of 
" The Rural New-Yorker. Durable 
and cheap. Sent postpaid for 25 cents. 
<lhc RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
409 Pearl Street, New York City. 
