"THE KUK A L. 
NEW-YORKER 
957 
Garden and Farm Notes 
Small Purchases at Auction Markets. 
In the new State markets will the pri¬ 
vate person be able to purchase one or 
two barrels of apples and other produce 
from the farm? a. e. p. 
New York. 
The auction markets will be open to 
anyone who wants to bid for the goods 
offered. They will, however, be wholesale 
markets, and it will be necessary in order 
to dispose of large bulk of goods to sell in 
lots larger than the usual family daily 
purchase; but there will always be oppor¬ 
tunity to buy in one or two barrel lots. 
In the auction market there are always 
odd lots and sample packages or barrels 
that give opportunity to the small buyer. 
Fitting Land for Fall Wheat. 
What is the best way to fit land that 
is gravelly loam, a little clay, for wheat 
this Fall? The land has not been plowed 
in about eight or 10 years. I expect to 
cut hay; it is not very good. H. K. 
West Henrietta. N. Y. 
Land not plowed for eight or 10 
years really ought to be planted to a 
cultivated crop for at least one and bet¬ 
ter two years before sowing to wheat, 
if the best results are to be obtained. 
If you are determined to sow to wheat, 
however, plow about seven inches deep 
just as soon as possible after hay har¬ 
vest. Work over this land at intervals 
of 10 days to two weeks, first with a 
spring-tooth disk harrow, and later 
with a spike-tooth drag to kill all weeds 
which may start, conserve moisture, and 
to firm the seed bed. All Winter grain 
demands a solid seed bed underneath but 
mellow in the upper three inches, for 
maximum results. m. c. burritt. 
Second-crop Grapes. 
Will you advise me about my grape 
problem? I have about .“100 Niagara, 
Concord and Moore’s Early, about half 
five years old, the rest three. Fruit had 
set when the frost of May put them out 
of business. They are leafed out again 
and some fruit set the second time, and 
being a month later unless we have an 
exceptionally late Fall, cannot mature, 
and will be a heavy drain on the vines. 
Would it be wise to remove the fruit 
buds? w. J. D. 
Crittenden, N. Y. 
It is not advisable to remove the newly 
formed blossom clusters as suggested in 
this inquiry, for the reason that although 
they are now a month later, the reduced 
number of clusters that is to be matured 
brings the ripening under average condi¬ 
tions earlier than the condition of the 
clusters now indicates. We have always 
advised that vines injured by frost should 
be left as they were before the injury. 
This procedure has worked out very well 
in numbers of large vineyards. 
F. E. GLADWIN. 
Alfalfa in Maryland. 
I visited this week one of the finest 
farms on the Eastern Shore. It lies on 
the eastern arm of the Chesapeake, 
known as Eastern Bay, and is in Tal¬ 
bot County, the banner wheat county of 
Maryland, where 70 years ago the famous 
crop of 64*4 bushels of wheat an acre 
was made. This farm has always been 
known as Rich Neck, and its fertility 
warrants the name. It is now the 
property of a wealthy New Yorker who 
came there for his health. The old Col¬ 
onial mansion, over 150 years old. has 
been renovated and improved, and the 
great old forest trees that adorn the 
lawn from colonial times are carefully 
preserved. The chief attraction of the 
place is the herd of Guernsey cows, one 
of the finest in this country, and kept as 
shiny as race horses. There are cows 
there which make over 772 pounds of 
butterfat annually, and the owner, Mr. 
IVarson, showed me a yearling bull 
which he had just sold for $500, and he 
said that he offered the buyer $100 to 
give him up. Every cow in this herd is 
in the Advanced Register. 
I did not wonder at the fine cows 
when I saw the farm. There are 50 
acres in Alfalfa of the rankest descrip¬ 
tion, and when I was .there the wheat 
harvest was being reaped, and I was sur¬ 
prised to see in the wheat stubble, a 
splendid stand of Alfalfa. Mr. Pearson 
says that he sows Alfalfa just as we used 
to sow Red clover on the wheat in Spring, 
and he now sows no clover, but always 
Alfalfa. In a long automobile ride in 
that beautiful county I noted fields of 
Alfalfa everywhere. In fact it was in 
Talbot County where I saw the first Al¬ 
falfa I ever saw when I was a small 
boy, and then they called it Lucern. 
What was rather novel was the fact that 
the Alfalfa there seemed to thrive either 
on limed or unlimed land equally well. 
In every waste place I saw rank growth 
of the so-called Sweet clover fully five 
feet tall. It has spread as a weed all 
over that section, and doubtless has had 
a good deal to do with the success of Al¬ 
falfa, since it will inoculate the soil for 
that crop. But no one seems to be sow¬ 
ing it, and it is regarded as a weed. In 
fact, as I have said before, we do not 
need it down here where we can grow 
cow peas, Crimson clover and Alfalfa so 
successfully. Wealthy New Yorkers are 
buying the fine lands in Talbot for Sum¬ 
mer homes on the salt water fronts, and 
the old places are being rejuvenated, and 
here and there in that county there are 
still some who make 40 to 50 bushels of 
wheat an acre. One field I saw which 
was sown on an Alfalfa fallow looked 
as though it would go into the 40 bushel 
c * ass - w. F. MASSEY. 
Handling Sweet Clover Seed. 
In answer to Judge Peasley’s questions 
on page 843 I would say that Sweet 
clover in order to make first-class hay 
second to none must be cut during the 
fiist part of .Tune (second year of course) 
and at least two weeks Before blooming, 
when about 24 inches high, and should 
be cut with a reaper without a binder, so 
as to leave a stubble averaging about six 
inches. In gathering the seed cut when 
about three-fourths of the seed pods are 
a dark brown and remainder a yellow 
brown. When dry enough put a canvas 
on the hay-rack and lay it on very care¬ 
fully without anyone on the wagon. If 
to be stacked put a canvas under the 
stack and one over (in case of rain). If 
dry hot weather, for a few days a couple 
of men with three-tined forks can thrash 
it out very quickly bv throwing off the 
straw as fast as thrashed. This leaves 
the seed on the canvas unhulled. I put a 
canvas in the bottom of a bay in the barn, 
then draw in the clover and when dry 
cover the barn floor with a canvas, throw 
on the clover, and thrash with a flail. If 
he wants it hulled he can run it through 
a clover huller and clean with a fanning 
mill. If sown on top of the ground be¬ 
tween December 1 and March 1 (which is 
the best time to sow it) it is just as well 
to sow the unhulled, as the hull helps to 
hold the moisture, but sow 25 pounds per 
acre instead of 20. Care must be taken 
to put the seed on a tight floor after 
thrashing, and stir it thoroughly three or 
four times a day until perfectly dry. 
Judge Peasley’s Sweet clover is too far 
along for a good hay, and I would ad¬ 
vise him to let it stand until nearly ripe, 
and cut for seed. No matter how care¬ 
ful he may be, enough seed will always 
shatter off to keep up the stand. 
A. BLOOMINGDALE. 
Identifying Sweet Clover. 
Can you tell us how to distinguish 
Sweet clover from Alfalfa without any 
great knowledge of botany? s. b. k. 
As to the exact difference between 
Sweet clover and Alfalfa an amateur 
would see no difference at all between 
young plants of each. If. however, he 
would chew a leaf he would find a pecu¬ 
liar taste to the Sweet clover that is un¬ 
mistakable while the Alfalfa has simply 
the taste of any ordinary greeu plant. As 
the plants increase in size the Sweet 
clover develops a rather large center stalk 
which eventually will become the size of a 
lead pencil, and the plant itself will grow 
seven feet tall, if it is in the Alba va¬ 
riety. The Alfalfa plant develops a dozen 
stalks instead of one to each plant. They 
will grow say three feet tall instead of 
seven. These stems will be no larger 
than about three-sixteenths inch in di¬ 
ameter. Alfalfa has narrow leaflets, ob¬ 
tuse towards the top, toothed, the tip fur¬ 
nished with a tiny sharp bristle; short 
clusters of purple flowers. Sweet clover 
has toothed leaflets, blunt, without ter¬ 
minal bristle, and small white flowers 
strung along a slender stalk. The yellow 
variety is similar. chas. b. wing. 
Algae in Well Water. 
Will you inform me if there is any¬ 
thing that will destroy and prevent the 
growth of algrn in well water? a. a. s. 
I do not know of any practicable 
method of destroying algae in well water, 
though in ponds and reservoirs the addi¬ 
tion of an exceedingly weak solution of 
copper sulphate has been tried, with more 
or less success. Most varieties of algae 
do not, in themselves, appear to render 
water deleterious, though some of these 
growths give a disagreeable odor or taste 
and all probably indicate the presence of 
considerable organic matter in the water. 
M. B. D. 
Use of Old Grain Bags. 
I would like information concerning 
the uses made of empty grain bags. I 
wish to go out and buy these, but do not 
know where to sell them. In my home 
town there was a man who did this and 
sold to the onion growers in Massachu¬ 
setts. Here the ragmen buy them at three 
cents. g. b. H. 
Londonderry, N. II. 
Old bags are not used to so great an 
extent as formerly, particularly for 
onions, which are now largely shipped in 
bushel crates, baskets and very cheap new 
fibre bags. The names of several dealers 
in old bags have been sent to this in¬ 
quirer, but our judgment is that there is 
very little profit for the gatherer. 
Admission of Aliens. 
I have an Italian farm laborer who 
wishes to have his wife and two children 
come over here from Italy. What is the 
probability of their getting here under the 
present conditions? l. 
Pennsylvania. 
Several steamship lines are reaching 
Italian ports. It is not probable that 
the Italian Government will prevent the 
emigration of such non-combatants unless 
something wrong is suspected. No doubt 
they will be questioned as to their reasons 
for leaving. In order to make the ven¬ 
ture safe for the steamship company they 
will have to know that there is no danger 
of their having to take these people back 
to Italy free, because of being refused ad¬ 
mission by this government. As their 
support here is guaranteed, the points in 
question would be whether they are phy¬ 
sically and mentally admissible. They 
must be free from any contagious disease, 
including trachoma, the eye disease 
which has barred many immigrants, and 
they must be normally intelligent, that is 
not idiotic. No doubt the steamship 
company will look into these matters 
closely before taking them for passage. 
Our immigration authorities should also 
be consulted, especially as to the guar¬ 
antee that the woman and children are in 
no danger of becoming public charges. 
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POTATO 
DIGGER 
Gets all the potatoes. 
Result of 19 years’ Digger experience. 
A companion implement of the famous Eureka potato 
planter—made in same factory. Large wheels and main 
gears supply ample power. Largely malleable and 
steel, avoiding frequent breakage and lost time. High 
clearance under truck arch and over shovel prevents 
vines and weeds from bunching and dragging—rods and 
kickers place vines In row at side. The Eureka duplex 
shaker provides most agitation—potatoes are delivered 
/ clean. Rear extension elevator 
0 and 7 ft. I. f furnished when desired. 
,lle ’ *—• EUREKA MOWER CO. 
Box 1016, Utica, 
N. Y. 
Write for 
catalog 
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MICA 
AXLE 
Forms a film of ground Mica on the axle, thereby furnish¬ 
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Principal Stations 
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Buffalo 
Albany 
Boston 
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