KUKAL X JiW-VOJbiiviiti 
April o, 1015. 
Lima Beans in California 
Starting Lima Beans in California 
IIE ,SEED-BED.—I have often heard 
remarks in this neighborhood that if 
Lima beans would profit you 10 cents a 
hill there was money in growing them. 
Having an idea that I could grow them in 
cold frames I started with a few sods. 
This sod was taken from along a fence 
which bad been moistened the night be¬ 
fore. I started to cut the sods 8x12 inch¬ 
es with a spade, and left as much dirt 
on them as .possible. Putting these in 
the cold frames with the grass side down 
I left them there for about two days 
with the glass over them, so they would 
warm throughout before planting. This 
was done between April 15 and April 20; 
then before planting I took an old butch¬ 
er knife and cut each sod in four-inch 
squares, making six squares of each large 
sod. In 1913 I bad 70 hills for my first 
trial, which yielded me on an average 11 
cents per hill. 
Increased Planting. —Not being dis¬ 
couraged with my results I thought I 
would go into it a little heavier the fol¬ 
lowing year. On April 10, 1914, I start¬ 
ed to get the sods ready for my work, this 
time cutting enough sods to fill two cold 
frames. Having the beds filled I put the 
glass on them and on the 20tli of the 
month I began cutting the sods in four- 
inch squares. This done, I bega to 
plant the seed, which by the way was 
saved from pods that turned yellow be¬ 
tween the pickings of my preceding 
year’s crop. I only saved seed from pods 
which contained three .or four beans. 
There were only two beans placed in a 
four-inch square with the eyes down, the 
same as when planting in the field. 
When the beds were planted there was 
about an inch of good garden soil placed 
over the sods. Then the glass was put 
on and the temperature kept between 70 
and 80 deg. in the day, also giving suffi¬ 
cient ventilation. 
Care Of Beds. —About 4.30 P. M. I 
would cover the beds well with mats to 
keep the temperature as high as possi¬ 
ble, for in the evenings it would run 
down considerably. If stormy I would 
put shutters over the mats also. In 
about six to 10 days at the most the 
beans ought to begin to appear through 
the dirt. Sometimes the soil becomes a 
little dry, and to remedy this take luke¬ 
warm water and a sprinkling can. Do 
not moisten them too much, for if you do 
it is as bad as not enough. I always 
wet the beds in the middle of a nice 
warm day if needed. Soon after the 
beans began to appear, I cover them 
with a little more soil. Soon the leaves 
begin to show, and after this the beds 
are kept at/ as even a temperature as 
possible. These beans were kept in the 
beds until the scare of late frosts was 
over. On May 22 I thought they were 
large enough to transplant into the field. 
They were about seven inches in height 
and had a good growth of leaves. The 
place where they Were to be transplanted 
had been plowed, harrowed twice, and 
furrowed with a furrowing sleigh. 
Transplanting. —After this I used a 
one-horse plow to make the furrows deep 
enough to put in the sods. Then the poles 
were set four feet apart each way, and in 
the bottom of the furrows around each 
pole I put a handful of a high-grade fer¬ 
tilizer. In getting the sods out of the 
frames I found a mason’s trowel the best 
thing, putting it under the sods and lift¬ 
ing up gently. The squares came out 
nicely and I found that I had enough 
sods by placing one at a pole to make 
230 hills. Of course some of the sods 
had but one good bean, so I used two of 
these sods at a pole. The sods were 
placed in the furrow as near the poles 
as possible, but not directly on top of the 
fertilizer, this being worked in with the 
hands. After the sods were set I used a 
good compost around them which con¬ 
sisted chiefly of hog manure. This done 
I took a hoe and covered the manure 
thoroughly with soil so as not to dry out. 
The hills were kept free from weeds by 
use of a hoe and cultivator. They were 
cultivated once a week on the start, and 
about the fourth or fifth cultivation they 
were hilled up. Cultivation was kept up 
as needed even after picking began. 
Gathering The Crop. —The first pick¬ 
ing of beans was on July 20, these real¬ 
izing 40 cents per quart. I made three 
pickings in July, eight in August, seven 
in September and the last picking was 
on October 2. Then the frost came and 
killed the vines. The heaviest picking 
was on September 2, which was the 
twelfth time over them, consisting of 20 
quarts of shelled Limas. On these 230 
hills I gathered nearly 147 quarts at an 
average of 18 cents per quart, or to be 
exact $29.33. making an average of 12% 
cents per hill. This is not counting the 
beans which went to seed. As to the 
marketing of these beans, they were all 
sold to private customers obtaining the 
highest market prices. This year, 1915, 
T intend to have six cold frames of Limas 
to be grown by the same methods. 
E. I. MESEROLL. 
Use of “ Black Oil.” 
OME one asked about painting chick¬ 
en houses with “black oil” for roup. 
We use black oil by the barrel; it is a 
very cheap oil, used among other things 
to lubricate certain parts of engines, and 
other machinery. It is black, dirty-look- 
ing and very greasy. You know some oils 
seem more greasy than others. It is 
made from petroleum, in fact is tlie resi¬ 
due after some of the lighter oils have 
been taken out. Probably it is the cheapest 
oil on the market, exhept the “crude,” 
wholesale worth probably four cents a 
gallon, and obtainable from any mill sup¬ 
ply house. 
What is it good for? As a poultry- 
house paint, to keep out mites and lice, 
I doubt if there is anything better, it 
being greasy and staying that way. You 
can neither paint nor whitewash over it. 
I should judge it was a good disinfectant, 
doubtless retaining a little phenol, but for 
use as a preventive of disease, I would 
put no faith in it, though it is harmless. 
I have cured several pet dogs of the 
mange by rubbing them with black oil, 
then shutting them up where they could 
not come in contact with civilization for 
a few days. It has a very soothing ef¬ 
fect. For several years ago I had a lit¬ 
tle fox terrier who had the mange. He 
scratched and scratched one night until 
it got on my nerves, so I took the bottle 
of black oil and gave him a soaking on 
the mangy places. In about 15 minutes 
the scratching stopped, the dog evidently 
went to sleep, and in a few days he was 
cured of scratching, and in a couple of 
weeks the mange was gone and new hair 
growing. I have tried all kinds of mange 
dope, but now use black oil, as it has 
proved a positive cure. I just soak it in 
without washing the place, and it seems 
to be absorbed by the scabs and held on 
until they drop off. I have never used 
it internally, except on chicken houses, 
and it did not hurt them. I doubt if it 
is any good whatever for the interior 
decoration of animals. M. a. p. 
Alabama. 
Appraisement of Real Estate for Taxation. 
Some time ago one of your correspond¬ 
ents in New Jersey, in a statement re¬ 
garding the appraisement of real estate 
for taxation purposes, declared that the 
assessed valuation was only about one- 
third of the true cash value in his locali¬ 
ty. Here in Southwestern Ohio, real es¬ 
tate is in many cases appraised for more 
than its full cash value. This is espe¬ 
cially the case in townships and munici¬ 
palities where there is a bonded indebt'd- 
ness. The tax rate being limited by law 
to 15 mills on the dollar makes it neces¬ 
sary to raise the valuation in order to 
get funds enough for all purposes. 
Preble Co., Ohio. m. n. a. 
Drilling Canada Peas. 
Iu reference to the article “Failure of 
Canada Peas” by J. L., Wallingford, 
Conn., page 291, would suggest that in 
my opinion the reason bis peas would not 
grow to maturity may have been that 
they were not drilled in. I had the same 
experience with peas which I sowed with 
oats, but did not drill them in. These 
peas came up, but did not grow to be 
above three or four inches in height, and 
soon dried up. I was informed that the 
peas should have been drilled in to a 
depth of about six inches, and after do¬ 
ing so that the oats should have been 
sown. \v. B. D. 
New York. 
R. N.-Y.—Plowing the peas under 
would answer. 
Grades Roads. Digs 
DITCHING'S 
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farm ditcher and 
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f r Ten 
days 
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Price only one-fifth of big machines. Does same 
work. Soon pays for itself. "Write for free book 
and factory prices. Owensboro Ditcher & Grader 
Co., Incorporated, Box 629 Owensboro, Ky. 
Don’t Guess-KNOW 
How much lime is in your soil? How 
much more will be needed to grow 
ALFALFA, CLOVER, SOYS,PEAS, 
—all other crops? 
We Analyze Soils 
Our Free Booklet Tell, about soil and its c rtB 
analysis; giveslime requirements for all _ v r 
crops. Tells how to grow legumes. Write today. 
EGGERT CHEMICAL CO 634 Rcnkert Bldg Canton, Ohio 
4 Empire 5,//75c 
that’s the cost per year on basis of ser¬ 
vice. They last 20 to 25 years. Average 
cost $13. Save labor, time, horses, roads, 
money. Put a set on your wagon at our 
risk. Write for catalog and prices. 
Empire Mfg. Co., Box 996 Quincy, III. 
Official Denial 
NO WAR TAX on HOMESTEAD LAND in CANADA 
The report that a war tax is to be placed on Home¬ 
stead lands in Western Canada having been given 
considerable circulation in the States, this is to ad¬ 
vise all enquirers that no such tax has been placed, 
and there is no intention to place a war tax of any 
nature on such lands. 
(Signed W. D. SCOTT, 
Ottawa, Can. Mar, 15, 1915 Supt. of Immigration 
TRY IT FOR IO DAYS--FREE 
CHANGE TOUR WALKING PLOW INTO A SULKY PL0W_ 
Use it 10 days. Then if you^V 
don’t think the best invest- ’ 
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WINNER 
Plow Truck 
return it at our expen se 
We wiU return your 
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Plows ANY ground. Easier 
on ynur horses. All weight 
y on wheels. More even furrows. Instantly adjust- 
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^ LEWIS MFG. CO., 61-77 Owego SI., Cortland, N.Y. 
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CROWN MANUFACTURING CO . Dept 17. PHELPS. N. Y. 
Cr.’s Home-House~Barns-Hennery 
3 acres land, in a small Railroad Town. Big Prac¬ 
tice. No other I>r. within 4 miles. A money-umber. 
Old age—must sell. Needs good Dr. to attend this 
practice. Price, for all, $2,500. Part cash—Balance, 
time, at 6 percent. Good will of business goes. 
Hall’s Farm Agency, Owego, Tioga Co., N.Y. 
V ERY DESIRABLEGO-ACRKFARMin Had¬ 
ley, Mass. All tillable land.good buildings, runn¬ 
ing water, elect He lights, stock and tool*; Apply to 
S. A. PHILLIPS, Agent, - Amherst, Mass. 
RIDDLE PATENT CULTIVATOR GANGS 
Approved by U. S. Dept of Agr . A’rr 
Papers, Agr. Colleges. Adopted t>\ 
farmers and nurserymen since 1905 
No roots cut. Moisture held through 
severest drouth by fine dirt mulch. 
Ground kept clean. Better crop, 
guaranteed. Have increased.from 20 
to 33/> over old way. Stop cutting 
the roots the old way. .Order now. 
l it anv cultivator. Price $8.50, 2 see 
$16.50. One-horse $6.50. Check ot 
Money Order W. H. RI0DU, fork. Mr, 
HEAT YOUR HOME WITH STEAM HEAT for S65 
I will send you a Douglas steam boiler with five radiator*, five 
radiator valve*, five air valves, pipe and fillings ior $65: larger 
plant* at equally low price*. THOMAS A. DOUGLAS, 
160 Millburn Avo., Mlllbum, N. J. Established 1893. 
Write or eall for full particulars. 
Re-Cover Your Umbrella or Parasol~ e ° 0 s v i e !y 
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samples. Edgar B. Murdock, "Webster, Mass. 
Handy 
Binder 
J UST the thing for pre¬ 
serving files of Th* 
Rural New-Yorker. Dura¬ 
ble and cheap. Sent post¬ 
paid for 25 cents. 
The Rural New-Yorker, 
333 W. 30th St., N. Y. City. 
■ 
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Farm drainage needs durable tile. Our drain tile are made of 
best Ohio clay, thoroughly hard burned. Don’t have to dig ’em up 
to be replaced every few years. Write for prices. Sold in carload 
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