1914. 
1 UU3 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
VALUE OF VETCH AND RYE. 
Plowing Under Stubble in Michigan. 
S to vetch anti rye—on June 29 I plowed an 
acre of vetch and rye .stubble and planted half 
of it in corn and half in potatoes, as an exper¬ 
iment.. I expected to get fodder and nubbins from 
the corn and a small yield of potatoes. We had a 
good season for sandy soil, and the frost has consid¬ 
erately held off; the result is corn from eight to 12 
feet high and ears from 10 to 12 inches long of fine 
corn. A neighbor who has farmed in Illinois, said: 
“That looks like Illinois corn.” In one hill there are 
seven stalks with an ear on each one. We haven't 
dug the potatoes yet, but from the looks of the vines 
they will pay for the planting. We used no fertil¬ 
izer, and that field has had nothing but rye and 
vetch grown on it for three years, but never a crop 
turned under. The vetch seed that shattered out at 
harvest last year, has come up between the potatoes 
and corn rows, so we will not have to re-seed that 
portion of the field. The corn planted was yellow 
dent. 
I notice you advise against putting in rye and 
vetch in Pennsylvania and New York after the last 
of August. We have sowed it as late as October 1 
in this latitude, and had it do well. The vetch grows 
enough in October and November not to Winter-kill 
even when the snowfall is light in December and 
January. Of course, our sandy soil is warm. Just 
keep on hammering rye and vetch as cover crops, and 
the doubting Thomases will yet bless you. Of course, 
it would be best to plow it under, but just growing 
vetch on soil improves it even if the crop is cut for 
hay or seed—for it adds nitrogen to the soil. Our 
each 50.000 feet delivered to mill. Here it was in¬ 
spected and graded, paid for as follows: 
Hemlock at .$12 per M, log measure—Scribner Ride. 
No. 1 Birch at $12 per M, log measure—Scribner Rule. 
No. 2 Birch at $8 per M, log measure—Scribner Rule. 
Hard Maple No. 1, $12 per M, log measure—Scribner 
Rule. 
Hard Maple No. 2, $S per M, log measure—Scribner 
Rule. 
Soft Maple No. 1, $10 per M. log measure—Scribner 
Rule. 
Soft Maple No. 2, $8 per M, log measure—Scribner 
Rule. 
Beech at $8 per M, log measure—Scribner Rule. 
Hemlock to be cut in 10 ft., 18 ft., 20 ft., 22 ft.. 21 
ft. lengths. 
Birch to be cut in 12 ft., 14 ft., 10 ft. lengths. 
Beech to be cut in 10 ft., 18 ft.. 20 ft. lengths. 
Hard maple to be cut in 10 ft. 0 in. and 14 ft. 0 in. 
lengths and be measured as 10 ft. and 34 ft. lengths. 
Soft maple to be cut in 12 ft., 10 ft. and 18 ft. lengths. 
Cutting in both contracts began in September; 
awaiting the first snow, piled on skidways. Noth¬ 
ing was cut under 12 inches in diameter. 
A FEW SUGGESTIONS—Always sell to a local 
man and cut out transportation, and in making con¬ 
tracts you are governed by the "custom of the 
country.” Lumbering is fascinating and sometimes 
profitable. Always have your own tools—cant hooks, 
planes, etc. When timber has reached its full growth 
it should be cropped, as grain is. and sold. This 
makes room for young, growing timber, and saves 
losses from wind, Hood and lightning. As a rule, 
beauty spots don't pay. I have 450 Sugar pine 
and Western Yellow pine seedlings, which I se¬ 
cured from my friend the State Superintendent 
of Forests, Clifford Pettis. They attain a height of 
250 feet, but I never expect to live long enough to 
sell them. I hope our readers will give Mr. Pettis 
After one week of showery weather the grass has a good 
start, and I cannot see any difference in the two. 
New York. f. n. t. 
It is quite probable that you will have better re¬ 
sults using the clay and muck than the soil you 
mention; possibly not better results, but as good, 
provided the work is done properly. Several land¬ 
scape gardeners here have used the mixture on ter 
races, using three-fourths clay and one-fourth muck, 
but it must be mixed thoroughly. It is also advised 
mixing a small proportion of either pulverized sheep 
or other fine manure, and a fair coat of lime would 
also be beneficial. 
The experience of these men has been that this 
material should be thoroughly mixed and placed in 
the Fall, and made as firm as possible, then the seed 
sown very early in Spring, after all small gullies 
that wash out during Winter are filled. After sow¬ 
ing seed make as firm as it is possible to do it. 
The sod should be permanent if fertilized occasion¬ 
ally when appearances would indicate the necessity 
of it. 
I have had no experience in mixing seed, as seed 
used has been a mixture sold by seedsmen for special 
work, and feel sure that any good reliable seedsman 
will be able to make a terrace mixture that will be 
more satisfactory and lasting, than one not having 
their experience in this matter. e. j. w. 
THE SENSE IN “ OLD SAYINGS.” 
S to the moon, the divining rod and others of 
their ilk, I don't believe it is going to rain 
to-morrow just because the tin peddler passed 
to-day. Don't laugh. I had a man working for me 
once who did believe just that, and insisted that he 
horses prefer vetch hay 
had never seen it fail. 
their full support in his efforts to develop a strong 
forestry organization in New York State. 
New York. henry c. couse. 
who refused to take the 
shoes off a dead horse 
because to do so would 
surely cause the death 
of another horse. Non¬ 
sense, you say! Of 
course it is nonsense, 
and there are thousands 
of other old sayings 
just like these two 
which are evidently ri¬ 
diculous. On the other 
hand, it is only a few 
years, as time goes, 
since we laughed at the 
man who said “Lime en¬ 
riches the father but 
impoverishes the son.” 
How could the inani¬ 
mate lime distinguish 
between the two gener¬ 
ations? We have lived 
to learn what this 
means, and to learn 
that it is very true. It 
has been scientifically 
explained. 
As we were working 
in a meadow together 
one of my men said: "I see five-finger is coming 
into this lot. and if it does the grass will go out. 
Timothy don : t like five-finger.” Just another of the 
A FAMILY GROUP. TOPPING ONIONS IN SOUTH JERSEY. Fig. 523. 
to Timothy, and it is 
better feed and makes 
better manure. No more 
clover or Alfalfa for— 
F. B. 
Ottawa Co., Mich. 
R. N.-Y.—No doubt 
there are soils or fa¬ 
vored localities where 
vetch may be seeled 
late, but. as general ad¬ 
vice: we would not sow 
it after September 1 in 
this locality. We shall 
be glad to have further 
experience. As for re¬ 
ceiving a blessing from 
the doubting Thomases 
—it would, of course, be 
agreeable, and sound 
evidence such as “F. B.” 
gives us helps to pro¬ 
duce it. 
FACTS ABOUT 
HANDLING TIMBER. 
P ERSONAL EXPE¬ 
RIENCE.—The ar¬ 
ticle, “Marketing 
The Timber Crop,” by Chester L. Mills, on page 1121, 
Mimes closer to facts in disposing of timber than any 
I have seen in any other farm periodical or depart¬ 
ment bulletin. A few further facts may help those 
interested in solving this troublesome problem. I 
have been up against this proposition for three years, 
end have contracts to run for three years more, and 
(he terms and conditions may enlighten some who 
ere contemplating selling. 
WHITE PINE.—Our White pine was sold “on the 
stump.” "Scribner Rule to govern.” at $12 per thou¬ 
sand log feet. The buyer and my man kept tally and 
compared notes. My mistake was in not demanding 
“saw measure” or board measure, "sawyer s tally 
to govern settlement. This would have given me 
about one-third more feet. The buyer had three 
years to “cut and clear”—“right of ingress and 
egress,” and two mill stations and necessary piling 
station; 50 per cent was paid at signing of contract, 
and 40 per cent, a year from that date. When final 
settlement was made buyer was to pay seller, if tim¬ 
ber overran estimate, and if it underran, seller was 
to make good difference. As the timber market 
“went bad” last year, buyer's time was doubled, to 
help out. 
HARDWOOD.—Our hardwood was cut. skidded 
and hauled to local mill yard. 2*4 miles away, by our 
own timber crew. This cost us $5 per thousand feet 
Horn stump to mill as follows: For cutting. $1 per 
1,000 feet: for skidding, 81 ; for hauling. $3. We had 
to deliver 50,000 feet to mill before any settlement 
was made, and subsequent settlements were made on 
MAKING A SOIL FOR GRASS SEEDING. 
WISH to get a good substantial sod on an embank¬ 
ment which has a slope of two horizontal to one 
vertical. The loam in this vicinity is very shallow 
and stony, and, therefore, expensive to excavate and 
place. Some of this work has been completed and a sat¬ 
isfactory sod secured, but I desire to cheapen the pro¬ 
cess, if possible, in the following manner: Of the 25,000 
cubic yards remaining to be placed one foot deep on 
the slopes, I would like to substitute for the soil a mix¬ 
ture of swamp muck and clay. There is a conveniently, 
located swamp containing black muck, which was cov¬ 
ered with a small growth, but which now has been 
cleared and burned. This muck, averaging four to six 
feet deep, could probably be loaded by steam shovel, as 
would the clay from a nearby pit. and all hauled to the 
top of the embankment in dump cars, and cast down 
the slopes by hand, whereby the clay and muck would 
become mixed. Would you consider this a practical 
scheme, remembering the object is not a big crop of hay, 
but a good protective sod? What proportion of muck 
and clay would you advise? Have the ashes on top ot 
the muck had a tendency to sweeten or benefit it? 
Would the sod or grass so produced have a tendency to 
soon run out or would it be as permanent as though the 
poor quality of rocky soil were used? Would you ad¬ 
vise a fertilizer being used to give the seed a start, and 
if so. how much? In the work we have completed we 
have sown seed of the following proportion, at the rate 
of t‘>0 pounds per acre, and used 500 pounds per acre of 
seeding-down fertilizer or its equivalent: Red-top. 25 
pounds; Rhode Island Bent, 25 pounds; Timothy. 17 
pounds; Kentucky Blue grass, five pounds; While 
clover, one pound ; Red clover, one pound ; oats, three 
pounds. I made two mixtures of tin 1 above-mentioned 
muck and clay, one equal parts, the other one-fourth 
muck to three-fourths clay, and planted the grass seed 
without fertilizer on each plot about 18 inches square. 
old sayings. Let us see. Curiously enough it was 
only a few days later that one of my professional 
friends dropped in, and walking across the same 
meadow casually remarked: “I observe that cinque¬ 
foil is encroaching here. That indicates aeidity, and 
you cannot expect a good stand of Timothy in an 
acid soil.” Ah, ha ! I see! Then it was not a social 
antipathy of the aristocratic Timothy for the ple¬ 
beian five-finger, but was indeed a fact, crudely ex¬ 
pressed because coming down through hundreds, per¬ 
haps, of generations, but none the less true. 
I hold no brief for the moon. I am not in the 
least "looney." I do not believe that it makes a par¬ 
ticle of difference to a piece of potato whether it is 
planted in the dark or the full of the moon. But I 
do not laugh at the man who does believe it, because 
"He laughs best who laughs last,” and it is quite pos¬ 
sible that some clever professor of the future may 
find that it is true, and why it is true. We all know 
that the “line” is only imaginary, and the sun does 
not get a jolt in crossing. The fact remains that I 
was married during an equinoctial storm 22 years 
ago, and it has rained on every anniversary. If this 
happened just to spoil my celebrations how do you 
account for the hundreds of times it happened before 
I was married ? Is not it more reasonable to think 
that the position of the sun has something to do 
with it? I know absolutely that the tin peddler can- 
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