(500 
tt'HEJ ftURAb NEW-YORKUK 
April 5, 
ANOTHER FERTILIZER ‘‘WONDER.’’ 
Enclosed you wil-l find a detached leaf 
from a booklet explaining the new (?) min¬ 
eral fertilizer made from metamorphic 
rock. Perhaps it may interest you, al¬ 
though it failed to interest me. Have used 
fertilizer all my life but this is surely a 
winner. How much is it worth, and have 
you run across it before? On asking the 
agent what the plant did for nitrogen he 
informed me that it got it from the air, 
adding that the air was four-flfths nitro¬ 
gen. I assured him that I was aware of the 
fact, also that the other one-fifth was 
oxygen on which I depended for life, but I 
also expected about three meals each day. 
He also stated that a plant was composed 
chiefly of silicaAsked if I cared to look over 
some of his testimonials I told him no, un¬ 
less perhaps he might have one from The 
Rural New-Yorker, to which he said they 
never bought any of their testimonials. I 
assured him that he probably wouldn’t get 
The R. N.-Y.’s that way. I should be very 
glad to hear what you think about this 
wonder. 
WALTER E. PRICE. 
Connecticut. 
This “mineral fertilizer’.’ is stated to 
contain 30 pounds of potash and four 
pounds of phosphoric acid in one ton. 
There are also thirty pounds of lime. 
We can buy this plant food in available 
form for $1.25, while the price of the 
“mineral” is $17 for a single ton or $24 
in smaller lots. The stuff also contains 
sulphur and Iron which, if needed, 
could be bought for less money than 
those people demand. We have often 
expressed our opinion of this stuff. The 
agents apparently need to be well fumi¬ 
gated with sulphur, and they are getting 
their dose. Here is a report from a 
New Hampshire man: 
The agent called to-day and wanted me 
to place an order. 1 told him I preferred 
to wait and let the experiment stations do 
the experimenting rather than do it myself. 
He told me it would be uselsss to pay any 
attention to the experiment stations, as 
“they had all been bought up by the chem¬ 
ical fertilizer companies.” I reminded him 
that The R. N.-Y. did not carry their ad¬ 
vertisement, and I told him I was quite 
sure his company could not place their 
advertising with that paper. Then fol¬ 
lowed a bitter tirade against agricultural 
papers in general and The R. N. Y. in par¬ 
ticular ; he declaring they also had been 
“bought up” by the chemical companies. I 
told him he would better guess again as 
far as The R. N.-Y. was concerned. Theu 
he said, “Well, The R. N.-Y. may not be ab¬ 
solutely under their control, but they are 
afraid to carry any advertising of this 
sort unless the chemical people give them 
their permission to do so.” I told him it 
was quite evident that his opinion and 
mine differed on the subject. Sufficient to 
say his stay at my place was very short. 
E. M. SMITH. 
There is little use arguing with such 
fellows. All they can do is to call their 
critics liars or grafters. Some of the 
poor things may actually believe what 
they say, while others are fakers pure 
and simple. No reader of The R. N.-Y. 
can have any excuse whatever for 
spending money on such stuff. If you 
want to buy fertilizer, pay a fair price 
for nitrogen, potash, phosphoric acid and 
lime and stop there. Let the stuff and 
dump dealers alone. 
Spraying for Tomato Diseases. 
A. H. H.j Lincoln, Del. —We grow toma¬ 
toes quite largely for cannery around here 
0 but do no spraying except in the seed bed 
before planting out in field. I grow six to 
eight acres annually. Would it pay me 
to invest in horse power traction sprayer 
(as used for potatoes, etc.) for tomato 
spraying? What pressure is necessary for 
best" results and how many nozzles for each 
row, so as to do-thorough work? We usu- 
allv plant 4x4 feet here, and vines are all 
interlacing before picking time. I could 
plant a little wider, say 5x4 feet, if using a 
sprayer. The vines usually die down here 
when first fruits are ripening, and for the 
remaining picking the fruit gradually de¬ 
creases in size until too small to pick. 
Verv little fruit growth after vines start 
to go, but the fruit already set ripens up 
whatever size it then is. Present yield, 
three to eight tons per acre, with about 
five tons a good average. If we could keep 
the vines alive a few weeks longer, it 
would make a vast difference in yield. Do 
you think this possible with good spraying? 
By adding poison to Bordeaux mixture we 
could also control the cutworm and large 
tomato worms. What Bordeaux formula 
is used for tomatoes, and is home making 
preferable to buying the concentrated mix¬ 
ture ? 
Ans. —I do not know that you can 
get a sprayer with nozzles wide enough 
apart for spraying tomatoes in rows 
four feet apart, but the manufacturers 
can arrange that for you I suppose. 
That it will pay there is no doubt, for 
the great difficulty with tomatoes on 
this peninsula is the leaf blight (Clados- 
porium fulvum) and regular spraying 
with Bordeaux will prevent this. I 
would prefer a sprayer drawn by a pair 
of horses. I use the 5-5-50 formula for 
the Bordeaux mixture and spray every 
ten days till the fruit is pretty well 
grown. The crop of tomatoes on the 
peninsula is entirely too small. I do 
not think the average here is over four 
tons, if that much, and there is very lit¬ 
tle profit in growing them at that rate. 
In your section, with a somewhat 
heavier soil than here, you should get 
fully 15 tons an acre. I made more than 
that in Kent Co., Md., many years ago 
with the Trophy tomato, and there are 
growers there now who made nearly 
that many tons last Summer. Growers 
should be very careful in getting plants 
from elsewhere, for the Southern bac¬ 
terial wilt was reported in Caroline Co., 
last year, and if it becomes common 
over the peninsula it will end tomato 
canning, for no amount of spraying will 
have any effect on it. In Central North 
Carolina, about Raleigh, I would not 
undertake to grow tomatoes for $50 a 
ton, such is the uncertainty in some 
soils there. When I was living in 
Raleigh I usually planted about 500 
plants in order to get enough for the 
family table during the Summer, and 
had to keep up a succession of plant¬ 
ings to take the places of those that 
succumbed to the wilt. But the leaf 
blight and most of the rots can be 
controlled by regular spraying with 
Bordeaux mixture. By adding a pound 
of lead arsenate to the 50 gallons of 
Bordeaux you can ward off the boll- 1 
worm and the big green worm, but I 
rather expect the cutworm would get in 
ahead of you. The best thing for cut¬ 
worms is a mixture of 70 parts of bran 
to one of Paris green, the bran being 
dampened before mixing. This scat¬ 
tered around the plants will take care 
of the cutworm. Then I have found 
that when the plants get full of the 
first crop of fruit a small handful of 
nitrate of soda scattered around each 
hill will put new vigor into the plants. 
Certainly if the plants are allowed to 
lose their leaves from the blight and 
get weakened they will die and the re¬ 
maining fruit will color up and be small 
and poor. In our climate the vines should 
remain vigorous till frost, and they will 
if properly fed and sprayed. 
Maryland. _w^f. massey. 
Peach Trees Do Not Bear. 
E. L. 8., Central Islip, N. Y. —Our peach 
orchard has not done any good since we 
have been living here (two years). Pre¬ 
vious to that time it bore a great deal of 
■esxdellent fruit. We have sprayed and 
taken proper care of it. The result is beau¬ 
tiful, healthful trees and no fruit. The 
former owner used a great deal of chicken 
manure on it, and we think it has made a 
great growth of foliage and no fruit. Is it 
too late now to help the conditions this 
year? We have not pruned. Will pruning 
help, and how should it be done? Is it too 
late to prune this year? The orchard has 
been under cultivation, with vegetables 
growing in it. 
Ans. —Probably this orchard has had 
too good care. The heavy use of hen 
manure and the high culture has made 
a heavy wood growth. The trees went 
into Winter tender and open and the 
fearful cold of last Winter probably 
killed the fruit buds. You cannot make 
the trees bear this year unless there are 
fruit buds on them. You will find these 
fruits buds plump, light-colored and in 
pairs along the woodgrowth of last year. 
If these buds are there do not use 
more hen manure but use wood ashes 
or a fertilizer containing potash and 
phosphoric acid without any nitrogen. 
Prune these trees reasonably, but do not 
give them high culture. Remember that 
the fruit buds for this season were 
made last Fall. You cannot expect 
fruit this year unless you find these 
buds now. 
STRAWBERRY PLANTS 
We have selected eight out of a hundred kinds, so 
we have eight of the very best. Get our 1913 cata¬ 
logue of all kinds of plants and seed. ROMANCE SEED. 
PLANT AND TRUCK FARM, Caleb Bonos & Son, Cheswold, Del. 
MYRTLE MURRELL 
A new strawberry. Real early, large, firm, prolific; 
great plant maker. Catalogue free. 
S. 8MDKRKLL, sole owner, - MARION, MD. 
lant 7 to 10= 
m daily. One horse 
MJL enough. Acts auto* 
matically. regu¬ 
larly dropping seed 
and fertilizer at just the distance you set it. 
Importantt None of the working parts 
movo while drivo wheel revolves except at 
the time of planting. It’s accurate and pos¬ 
itive every time. Kightly is this great 
machine named 
‘‘KING OF THE 
ZZHs CORNFIELD” 
CORN PLANTER 
And Fertilizer Sower 
Will stand the rough, continuous servico which such 
tools get. Nothing complicated. Simple, strong, reliable. 
Our sixty years arc behind it. 
Dealers sell it. If none near you, write us. Catalog 
free— 64 pages of tool talk that you like to road—a tool 
for evory need. 
Belcher 
Taylor 
Agri¬ 
cultural 
ToolCo. 
Steel 
Kanneberg Shin . 
We Pay the Freight 
A building roofed with Kanneberg Shingles is protected from such dan¬ 
ger. They are fire-proof, weather-proof, lightning-proof, heat and cold- 
proof. Can be laid more quickly than wood shingles and last longer, look 
better all the time and require no repairs. They do not curl, rot, crack 
nor fall off like wood or slate. Many Kanneberg roofs are still in use after 15 
or 80 years’ service. 
Our patent lock joint is absolutely water-tight and allows for expansion. 
Nail heads are protected from weather. 
Kanneberg Shingles prove the most economical roofing for all buildings 
because of their long life and freedom from maintenance charges. f 
Kanneberg Steel Shingles are 28 gauge steel, painted or galvan- f 
ized, and come singly, eight on a sheet, or in clusters on one sheet S 
5 ft. by 2 ft. We send special nails, free. Every shingle is t Kannaber 
backed by a money-back guaranty to be up to sample. /■ Roofing i 
Send for Catalog showing sizes and designs of shingles and S 
tfemi lur Vdldiug ou C p rrugated roofing and siding. Get / 34 Douglas Stree 
our rock-bottom prices before you buy. Ask for sample f Canton, Ohio 
shingles. We sell direct to you, saving you middleman’s S c * , 
profit. We pay the freight, and ship orders day received > Send catalog ant 
jr sample shingle to 
KANNEBERG ROOFING & CEILING CO. / 
34 Douglas Street 
Established 1886 
Canton, Ohio f 
y Name. 
Address. 
Nine out of Every 
Ten Fires Start on the Roof 
A brand from a burning building, sparks from the 
chimney or lightning quickly set a wooden roof afire. 
RAW GROUND LIME 
Good for all Crops. Quickly available. 
Order now. 
F. C. CONLEY LIME CO., - - UTICA, N. V. 
SOY BEANS 
Choice Ito San seed grown on the College Farm. 
Special price on lots of fifty bushels or more. 
Address IRVING L. OWEN, Manager 
College Farm, New Brunswick, N. J. 
Stiff POTATOES 
The vino is a giant among potatoes. Stood up 
without spot or blemish (comparatively) while 
others were dead and dying all around it. Yielded 300 
bn. while Mountains on either side of it yielded 200 
bu., same conditions. Price: bbl., $3; 10 bbls. $2.75. 
I. L. WARE, - - - Gardinor, Maine 
PLANTS-Over 75 Varieties 
Strawberry, Raspberry, Blackberry, 
etc., etc. Our complete catalog 
quotes lowest prices, tells allaboutthe 
culture & describes in an honest way. 
A. G. BLOUNT. Box 121. Hastinos, N. Y. 
flATQ—Reg. Swedish Select and Imp. American, 
UHI4 Two best yielders. Also SEED CORN, Seed Po¬ 
tatoes, Clover, Timothy and GARDEN SEEDS. Samples 
and Catalog free. THEO. BURT & SONS, Melrose, Ohio 
STRAWBERRY PLANTS ££; p $£ 
over 30 years. New and standard sorts at reasonable 
prices. Catalog free. SLAYMAKER & SON, Wyoming, Del. 
POP SALE — Seed Potatoes, New 
, & York State growth. 
Large, white and mealy. Sir Walter Raleigh’s, 
uniform in size, free from defects. $1.50 per 
bushel in sacks. Address Mrs. C. R. CASKEY, 
No. 9 Bursley Place, White Plains, N. Y. 
Roof Capri Pntatnp^— Illustrated Catalog70 
Deal oeeu ruidiueb popular varieties free. 
A. G. ALDRIDGE, Fishers, Ontario Co., N. Y. 
n= 59th ANNUAL =n 
STRAWBERRY CATALOG 
of June and Fall bearing. A large stock 
of “Superb” and Pan-Americans and 
other varieties. //. waRREN, 
Aubiirndale, .- .- • ; Mass. 
0 , 000,000 
Strawberry Plants 
Earliest, Latest, Largest, Most Productive Varie¬ 
ties, including Fall-Bearing. Also Asparagus, 
Raspberry. Blackberry, Currant, Gooseberry, Grape, 
Rhubarb, Horseradish, Cabbage Plants, Onion Sets. 
Seeds, Fruit Trees. I guarantee good stock, shipped 
in good shape. Prices Reasonable. CATALOGUE KltEE. 
HAKKY L. SQUIItES, liemsenburg, N. Y, 
1913 Crops 
Every progressive farmer is planning 
NOW for this year’s crops. No in¬ 
dividual or farm can stand still . Your 
Farm will go Forward , and the lands become more and more produc¬ 
tive—or they will deteriorate and produce less bountiful and less 
profitable crops. Which will it be in YOUR case f 
Make This a FORWARD Year 
Use Hubbard’s B°SE Fertilizers 
They are the result of Scientific Research, and contain a Maximum 
amount of Plant Food per dollar invested. Let us co-operate with 
you, to the end that the Science of fertilizers may be applied to the 
Business of Farming. 
Write today for our booklets, ‘‘Soil Fertility,” “The Gras* Crop,” “The Apple” 
and Hubbard’s Bone Base 1913 Almanac, which contains much valuable infor¬ 
mation about soil, fertilizers and other farm subjects. Sent free to any address. 
THE ROGERS & HUBBARD CO., Department A, Middletown, Conn. 
