< 04 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
May 28, 
FARMERS’ CLUB 
[Every query must be accompanied by the name 
and address of the 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.] 
HAYING ON ROUGH LAND. 
Those who read “Nell Beverly, Farm¬ 
er,” enjoyed the description of the day 
in the hayfield, and the long scries of 
mishaps. The thing that struck many 
Western readers as remarkable was the 
picture of Grandpa Beverly, with a 
scythe mowing around the rocks, so 
that the mower could have a clear path. 
These men hardly know what a stone 
looks like, and the idea of a meadow 
well covered with “hardheads” seems" 
an impossible and ridiculous thing. Yet 
the scene was actually true to life, as 
found on hundreds of New England 
farms. The picture shown at Fig. 251, 
page 603, is taken on a New England 
hillside, and we may see the rocks which 
crop out. In many cases these rocks 
are close together, and to save time the. 
mowing machine is kept away from 
them—the hay being cut with a scythe. 
Much of this rough soil is natural grass 
land, and, in spite of the rocks, large 
yields are cut when the soil is well 
handled. .On the principle of “nearer 
the bone the sweeter the meat,” the hay 
grown over on these rocky ledges is 
superior in quality. Mr. Geo. M. Clark, 
the “Connecticut grass man,” started 
with old pastures very much worse than 
the field shown in the picture. This 
ground was a mass of rocks and stones, 
and covered with brush. The stones 
were blasted out and buried and the 
roots grubbed out. The soil was smooth¬ 
ed and fed, and as a result Mr. Clark 
grew five and six tons of hay to the 
acre year after year. 
Nitrate of Soda and Bone Meal. 
TV. n. R., ’North Ad-ams, Mass. —How does 
blood meal compare with nitrate of soda as 
a fertilizer? 
Ans.—A ton of nitrate of soda will 
contain, on the average, 320 pounds of 
nitrogen, while the ton of blood meal 
may run all the way from 160 to 240 
pounds of nitrogen and 20 pounds phos¬ 
phoric acid. The character of the nitro¬ 
gen is different. In the nitrate this nitro¬ 
gen is soluble and available'at once. We 
have put nitrogen on grass in a wet time, 
and notioed the effect in a greener color 
within 36 hours. The nitrate is ready at 
once to feed crops. The nitrogen in 
the blood is organic; that is, in some 
organized form, and before it can feed 
plants this organized form must break 
up through decay and pass first to am¬ 
monia and then to nitrates—like the 
nitrate of soda. The dried blood, when 
put in the soil, begins to decay as soon 
as the land is warm and moist. It de¬ 
cays faster than most other organized 
bodies, so that a good sample of dried 
blood ranks next to nitrate of soda in 
its power to feed nitrogen to plants 
quickly. A combination of the two forms 
is good, because in early Spring, while 
the ground is cold, the nitrate will act, 
while as the weather grows warmer the 
blood gives up more and more. 
Ton of Fertilizer for an Acre. 
R. M., Massachusetts. —On a field with a 
very old and very heavy sod, with only 
scatterings of clover, on an extra good 
clay loam with clay subsoil (it is inclined 
to be cold), what formulas would you sug¬ 
gest for field beans (Yellow Eye) grown 
for seed only, and for the home vegetable 
garden ? Please give also the number of 
pounds of each ingredient in a ton. Will 
use not less than a ton to the acre. The 
soil is very strong, in spite of years of 
mowing once each year for several years 
without fertilizer. From now on it will 
receive best of care. If I should buy a 
wheel hoe, how close should I plant the 
beans with fertilizing of at least a ton 
to the acre? I can get almost no manure 
at all. 
Ans. —The element most needed for 
beans is phosphoric acid. On many of 
the best bean fa-rms a clover sod is put 
under. This is figured to supply the 
nitrogen and on strong land acid phos¬ 
phate and a small amount of muriate 
of potash is used for beans with good 
results. The bean crop is supposed to 
obtain its nitrogen from the air, but 
for garden culture it would be a surer 
thing to use some of that element. A 
ton to the acre for beans seems an enor¬ 
mous dose. The following mixture 
would be sure to deliver the goods: 100 
nitrate of soda, 300 dried blood or fine 
tankage, 300 muriate of potash, 900 acid 
phosphate, 400 fine ground bone. We 
should not make the drills closer than 
18 inches. You will, of course, realize 
that you are blocking out a great job 
for yourself in this acre of beans. 
Corn After Buckwheat. —If S. S. B., 
page 510, plants that buckwheat stubble 
with corn I hope he will report the suc¬ 
cess he may have. I have tried coni on 
buckwheat stubble twice, and it was a 
failure both times. In one case, only part 
of the field was sown to buckwheat. The 
following season I plowed the whole field 
and planted it with corn, as I thought the 
part where the buckwheat was grown was 
fully as good soil as the other part of the 
field. The stalks were small and spindling, 
and there was not a good ear on the whole 
part where the buckwheat was grown. The 
crop on the other part of the field was a 
fair one. r. s. 
Pennsylvania. 
Greatest Efficiency 
Least Cost 
POTATO INSURANCE. You insure your buildings in the most re¬ 
liable Company; and you insure before —not during—a fire. Insure 
your crop against potato bugs in the same way, using the most 
reliable insecticide and using it early—for, as in life insurance, the 
earlier you insure the lower the cost. The smaller the plant, the less 
required to cover it; the smaller the bug, the less required to kill it. 
Pyrox 
Bowker’s 
for potatoes 
Kills Potato Bugs — Kills Potato Blight 
P YROX COMBINES the most powerful poison to kill potato bugs and the best form of 
Bordeaux Mixture to prevent fungous diseases, such as blight, rust and rot. Every 
farmer who mixes Paris Green in his Bordeaux uses this sort of double header but not 
this kind, because his mixtures wash off every time it rains. PYROX WILL NOT WASH OFF, 
but will stick like paint until frost; no re-spraying required except to protect new growth. 
Besides killing the bugs it increases the crop by increasing the secretion of chlorophyll; and 
by warding off blight it gives the potatoes two or three weeks longer to grow, at a time when 
every day means a larger and better potato. 
Because it won’t wash off; because it is death to both bugs and blight; and because it 
insures the crop by working night and day, rain or shine, it is the very cheapest combination 
that can be applied. 
C UT YOUR SPRAYING COST IN HALF BY SPRAYING EARLY. 
When the plants are small a little spray will cover a large area, and it pays to kill the tough old shellbacks 
which lay the eggs. Killing one of these old beetles does away with the necessity of killing 1000 or more 
slugs. They eat but little and are not easy to kill, but they can be given enough Pyrox to do the work, 
without burning the foliage. If eggs have been laid they will hatch in a few days and the little slug will get his 
Pyrox just when it will “ do him ” good. The small slugs are more easily killed than the large ones. Therefore, 
spray when both plants and slugs are small for it means less spray and greater efficiency :—the best insurance at 
the least cost. 
We want live agents where we are not already represented. 
Write today for prices or ask your dealer. Our free pamphlet 
shows how farmers succeed with Pyrox. Send for it today. 
BOWKER 
INSECTICIDE COMPANY 
43 Chatham Street, Boston, Mass. 
