1913 . 
THE RUR.AI> NEW-YORKER 
1009 
Ruralisms 
PLUMS IN SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. 
For the first time in years plums have 
proved themselves a profitable crop on 
this local market. This appears to be 
owing chiefly to two things; the general 
increase in prices, and the increasing 
demand of the market. The drought 
cut short the berry crop, and a short 
supply and high prices left the pantries 
without much store of Winter fruit. 
As plums came on the market the 
housewife saw her opportunity to re¬ 
pair some of the shortage and forthwith 
became a liberal buyer. This time 
plums did not pour into town from 
thickets of Chickasaws and sell for 
MILTON PLUM (natural size). Fig. 403. 
whatever bid was forthcoming. Al¬ 
though the fruit was by no means a 
failure, the demand showed conclu¬ 
sively that there was no oversupply. 
From first to last the demand came in 
steady and persistent and with little 
cavilling at prices asked. Fortunate I 
counted ourselves that we were blessed 
with the largest crop the trees ever pro¬ 
duced; not the largest that some varie¬ 
ties had produced, but the largest they 
had all ever yielded at one time. Sales 
began at 25 cents per gallon, dropped to 
20 cents for the main crop and finished 
up at 17^4 and 15. It was a pleasure to 
sell plums. For one thing we felt that 
customers were getting good value for 
McCartney plumcnatuual size;. Fig. 404 
their money out of a fruit with no waste 
beyond the seed, and the fruit was 
picked and handled at a minimum of 
cost and attention. Most of the picking 
was done by boys, who worked for half 
a man’s wages, and there was little to 
see to except that the measure was cor¬ 
rect. There was little spraying to be 
done, for the drought effectually locked 
the door on the rot. We sprayed only 
once with Bordeaux, and it was appar¬ 
ent that nothing further on our pare 
was necessary. There was a little spo¬ 
radic rot, but the total was insignificant. 
Clifford Plum. —Our leader this 
year was the Clifford plum, originating 
CLIFFORD PLUM. Fig. 405. 
in Texas, and a seeding of the Wild 
Goose. It has qualities quite singular 
to it alone. It is as large as the Wild 
Goose, sometimes larger. It is hand¬ 
somer. A heavy bloom dulls its hue, 
but when this is rubbed off it fairly 
glows in a lustrous red set with minute 
specks. Its form is peculiar, being 
slightly necked or pear shaped. It is 
uncommonly aromatic and has a flavor 
quite individual. When fully colored it 
drops from the tree, but does not soften 
and acquire full sweetness till over 
night. With a carpet of grass under 
the tree there was nothing to do but 
pick up the fallen plums; no ladders 
and tree picking required. I must say 
of this plum that it has not been a reg¬ 
ular bearer, but overly rich soil may 
have had an influence. It is later than 
the Wild Goose, and should be a val¬ 
uable market plum. The tree is of a 
spreading habit with attractive foliage 
and grows quite large. 
Milton. —Considering all its qualities 
I should put the Milton at the head of 
all the native varieties for profit. This 
plum begins to ripen a little ahead of 
the Wild Goose and is quite distinct 
in size, color and flavor. It is resistant 
to the rot, one spraying having always 
been sufficient here. It is also immune 
to the curculio, a wormy specimen be¬ 
ing hard to find. It is not as brilliant 
in hue as the Clifford or Wild Goose, 
and only about two-thirds as large, but 
it excels all other kinds here in its per¬ 
sistence to the tree and in its keeping 
qualities. Only a few plums fall when 
ripe; the bulk of them hang on for days 
and days, until they literally begin to 
wither and dry up, as I have seen large 
plums do in the dry air of Colorado. 
Another valuable characteristic is its 
habit of regular bearing, a crop always 
setting when frosts permit any plums 
at all. The skin is so tough that it 
makes a splendid shipper and it has 
little of the watery texture of the Wild 
Goose. In flavor it is one of the sweet¬ 
est, but I did not like it as well as 
some others, though opinions here dif¬ 
fered. The tree does not grow large 
tut bears young and abundantly. 
Other Plums. —The varieties here 
formed a perfect succession here this 
year. First there was the Earliest of 
All, a Japan, then a fine yellow sort 
from Texas, the McCartney, then the 
Milton, Munson, Wild Goose, Clifford, 
Gonzales, local Goose seedlings and fin¬ 
ally the Newman, whose last fruit we 
picked during the first week in Septem¬ 
ber. As the Earliest came on in June, 
this made an uninterrupted succession 
of some 10 weeks. All these kinds 
have made good here, including the 
Japanese Red June, Abundance and 
Ogon. At the foot of the list for mar¬ 
ket sorts I should put the Munson and 
McCartney. The latter is as large as 
Wild Goose and a beautiful golden hue 
of yellow, with a specially attractive 
flavor. When fully ripe it soon goes 
to pieces, but the proper way is to pick 
it just as it shows the first color and it 
will ripen perfectly. Yellow plums, 
however, are at a discount on the mar¬ 
ket and cannot compete with the reds. 
The Munson is about as early as Mil- 
ton, is larger and the most profuse 
bearer on the list, but the tree is brittle 
and breaks to pieces, and the plums too 
thin-skinned. The brown thrush will 
puncture them and then leave them for 
the bees to cluster over. They lack 
color and rot too easily. One thing 
noteworthy about plums is their extreme 
variation in susceptibility to the cur¬ 
culio and rot. I have heard it explained 
that a certain quality of sap prevented 
germination of the curculio egg. It 
would ooze out of the puncture and 
smother the life germ. We know that 
the rot follows the curculio and obtains 
entrance through the incision it makes. 
But this does not always follow in per¬ 
fect rotation. The Gonzales and Dam¬ 
son are very receptive to this insect, but 
resist the rot to a high degree. Nor is 
the rot dependent on the curculio for its 
ingress. It would appear that a new 
family of plums could be built up by 
scientific crossing, plums that would be 
immune both to the curculio and the 
rot. L. R. JOHNSON. 
Cape Girardean Co., Mo. 
SPRAY TREES NOW 
(While they are dormant) 
With SCALIME 
A perfect concentrated lime and sulphur 
spray that has stood the severest tests of the 
experiment stations. Strength guaranteed. 
Being scientifically prepared and always uni¬ 
form, it is far more effective than liomo-mado 
solutions. Stronger than other brands, it 
will stand more dilution—therefore cheaper. 
SCALIME used now will positively control San 
Jose and other scales; destroy eggs of Aphides 
and other pests that winter over on twigs and 
bark, as well as spores of fungus diseases. 
Sold by good dealers everywhere. Write 
for leaflet on Fall and Winter Spraying. 
HORTICULTURAL CHEMICAL COMPANY 
Save Your 
Horses 
Take them to the stable 
when their work is finished. 
Nine times out of ten you 
would not need to keep 
them on the road if you 
had a telephone in your 
home. But 
YOUR TELEPHONE IS A 
Western'Eketrfc 
trad* MARK 
Rural Telephone 
—the most valuable of all telephones. They can be depended upon, for 
they stay in working order without any bother or worry on your part. 
Insist upon having none but Western Electric telephones when 
making arrangements for telephone service. You deserve the best 
service—you get it with Western Electric telephones. 
''SAVE TIME AND FREIGHT*- 
Fill out the attached coupon—mail to 
our nearest house—and we will send 
convincing information regarding 
Western Electric telephones. 
The Western Electric Company 
Furnishes Equipment for 
'mmxii wrkuret mp. Electrical Heed. 
WESTERN ELECTRIC COMPANY 
EVEKV BELL miPtWNE U 
New York 
Chicago 
Saint Louis 
San Francisco 
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c/i 
Buffalo 
Indianapolis 
Manufacturers of 
Kansas City 
Oakland 
c 
4> 
Philadelphia 
Cincinnati 
the 6,0C0,000 
Denver 
Los Angeles 
CJ 
u 
"Q 
Boston 
Minneapolis 
"Bell” 
Dallas 
Seattle 
c 
Pittsburg 
St. Paul 
Telephones 
Omaha 
Salt Lake City 
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Atlanta 
Milwaukee 
Oklahoma City 
Portland 
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Montreal 
Antwerp London 
Toronto 
Berlin Paris 
Winnipeg 
Johannesburg 
Vancouver 
Sydney Tokyo 
41 oo 
3 
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Cl 
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SURE CURE FOR SAN JOSE SCALE 
CHEAPEST and BEST 
r Jarvis Spraying Compound has no superior. Buy 
from the manufacturers direct and save money. A 
gallon of Jarvis Spraying Compound makes 16 gal¬ 
lons of spray. Compound ready to mix with water. 
Sola in bbl. lots (00 gal.), 30c. per gallon. Refer¬ 
ences—J. H. Hale, the "Peach King.” or Prof. 
Jarvis of the Conn. Agricultural College. They 
will tell you there is nothing better. 
THE J. T. ROBERTSON CO., Box W. MANCHESTER, CONN, 
MONEY CANNOT BUY 
A BETTER SPRAYER 
'T'HEDEYO POWER SPRAYER is ready 
to use when it arrives at your station. 
There is nothing' to buy but your spray 
mixture and gasoline. Every part guar¬ 
anteed for one year. 
Write for Bulletin 3-C 
DEYO-MACEY ENGINE CO. 
BINGHAMTON, N. Y. 
'SELF-RAISING GATES 
raise themselves—you don’t have to 
1 lift them up. They spring up free 
and clear the moment'they are un¬ 
latched. No more sagging, dragging, 
cumbersome, unwieldy gates. 
PEERLESS GATES 
are perfectly reliable —they always 
work—no springs or toggle to get out of 
order. Pilled with the famous Peerless 
fencing of all No. 9 wire, crossbars 6 
inches apart; a heavier filling than is 
used on any other gate made. 
Every part heavily galvanized. Cost 
no more than the common kind, and 
you get your moneys worth of gate. 
Your dealer caa supply you. If he will Dot, 
write us direct. 
Peerless Wire Fence Co. JI&Emn* 
“No Hunting” 
Signs FREE 
I want to send every Farmer 
reader of this paper enough 
fine, large, “No Hunting 1 * 
signs to cover his whole farm 
All I ask in return for this 
favor is your name, address 
and the number and kind 
of farm gates you are now 
using. Then I want to 
send you my Special Money 
Saving 1912 Proposition on 
Iowa Farm Gates 
You will be under no obligation to me! re¬ 
member, by accepting the Free “No Hunting’* 
Signs. I Want you to have them, anyway. 
Later, I want a chance to convince you—as I 
have thousands of farmers—that I can save 
you $50 to $250—at least $10 on every gate you 
buy from me. I can do it all right! 
But don’t bother about that right now- 
just send for your signs and tell me how 
many and what kind of gates (wood or metal, 
etc.) you now have on your farm. 
AS I have only 10,000 of these signs, it 
might be a good thing to let me hear from 
you right away. I don’t want to disappoint 
any of my Farmer Friends, If I can help It. 
Address me personally— * 
JOSEPH B. CLAY. Manager 
KITSELMAM FENCE 
Sold direct to you at factory 
prices on 30 day. trial. Save 
the dealers profit Farm, Hog 
and Poultry Fence at from 
1 1 H CENTS A ROD UP. 
All wlreBare heavily galvanized 
80 rod spool of Ideal galvanized 
Barbed Wire 01-66. Write 
today for large free Catalogue showing 
15 different sty les and helgbtsof fencing. 
Box 230 KITSELMAN BROS. MUNCIE, IND. 
CPM p For Lawns, Churches, Cemeteries, Pub- 
rbllVb lie Grounds. 100 Patterns. Write for 
special offer and our free handsome Pattern Book. 
THE WARD FENCE CO.. Box 94S Decatur, Ind. 
131 S. Fourth St., Philadelphia, Pa, 
V ILLAGE TRUCK FARM —24 acres—excellent market, 
good buildings: early, rich soil; opportunity for 
greenhouse; $6,000. Crystal Springs Farm, Union, N. Y. 
FfiR Q AI E— If y°u want the best farms for the 
i uii OnLL money, send for our large free catalog. 
HALL’S FARM AGENCY, Owego, Tioga Co.. N.Y. 
FARMQ Circular free. Dept. 151, Beland’s 
I HIIIVIO Farm Agency, 31 Milk St., Boston 
Virginia 
Farms 
Buy a farm in Virginia. We have 
many excellent bargains in Grain, 
Stock, Fruit, Trucking and Poultry 
Farms. Write for list, describing 
kind of farm you want. 
VENABLE & FORD . . . LYNCHBURG, YA. 
DISTINCT 
FUNGICIDAL 
PROPERTIES 
Circular No. 7 of the Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station, March, 1910, speaking of San Jose scale, says: “Tha 
Lime-Sulfur Wash, either home-made or commercial, and the soluble oil sprays are the most satisfactory remedies for 
this pest. The soluble oil sprays, either home-made or commercial, are probably best for treating the apple, because 
the oil spreads better on the downy twigs of the apple.” “Scalecide” is the acknowledged leader of all soluble oils—the 
only one containing distinct fungicidal properties; standing the test for the past six years on all kinds of fruit trees. 
“Scalecide” has no substitute. There are other reasons. A postal request to Dept. N will bring you by return mail, 
free, our book, “Modern Methods of Harvesting, Grading and Packing Apples ” and new booklet, “SCALECIDE, the 
Tree-Saver.” If your dealer cannot supply you with “SCALECIDE” we will deliver it to any It. R. Station in the United 
States east of the Mississippi and north of the Ohio Rivers on receipt of the price; 50-gal. bbls., $25.00 ; 30-gal. bbls, $10.00: 
10-gal. cans, $6.75; 5-gal. cans, $3.75. Address, B. G. PRATT CO., 50 Church Street, New York City. 
