C»c RURAL NEW-YORKER 
What Ails the Apple Trees ? 
What ails my young apple orchard? The trees are 
dying off gradually through some disease or insect. I 
can see nothing that ails them except that some of 
them are nearly girdled around the trunk close to the 
ground and a little beneath it also. I cannot find any 
worms or insects that are eating them. The girdled 
parts are rotten. A. n. 
Jamesburg, N. .1. 
I AIM not quite certain Avhether the hark is com¬ 
pletely gnawed from the trunk of the trees close 
to the ground, or Avhether it is simply dead. If 
the bark has been gnawed away and the trees gir¬ 
dled in this manner, it is due to either rabbits or 
mice, probably the latter. If the bark has been 
destro.A’ed by Winter injury or fire blight, it would 
remain in a decaying and dead condition upon the 
trunk. Complete girdling of the tree in .any ot 
these forms Avould result in certain death aftcu- a 
time. To prevent damage by mice or r.abbits it is 
Avell to keep all grass and weeds from growing close 
about the trunks in late Summer and Fall, and if 
mice are Hkel.v to bo troublesome it is well to dig 
the soil away from the trunks of the trees to a 
depth of about six or eight inches, and to si)ray 
them with a thick whitewash containing about two 
or three gallons of concentrated lime-sulphur to 50 
gallons of Avhitewa.sh. The application of this ma¬ 
terial should extend to a depth of six or eight 
inches beloAv ground, and to about a foot or 18 
inches above. Just before freezing Aveather it is 
well to spray the trunks above ground and to 
mound up the soil to about 12 to IS inches. Mice 
Avill not Avork aboA-e the snoAv during the Winter, 
and the mound of .soil Avould also tend to i)rotect 
the trees from Winter injury. The AvhiteAvash and 
lime-sulphur Avould be just as effective against the 
rabbits as the mice. The object of using this mate¬ 
rial upon the trunk beloAV ground is to prevent dam¬ 
age by mice Avhich often Avork underneath the sur¬ 
face of the soil. Sometimes during 
a more or less oi)en Winter, the 
freezing and thaAving of the soil 
about the trunk causes damage to 
the bark, Avhich later dies. This is 
a form of collar injury, or collar 
rot. as it is sometimes called. The 
mounding of the .soil about the 
trunks in the late Fall, as i)re- 
viously described, Avill generally pre- 
A-ent .such damage. Occasionally 
apple trees are so badly affected by 
tire blight that an infection of this 
di.sease occurs Ioav upon the trunk 
near the surface of the ground, and 
results in d.-image similar to that 
caused by Winter injury. A more 
detailed descrii)tion of the injury 
Avould enable one to identify the 
trouble definitely. Your county 
demonstrator avouUI be glad to ex¬ 
amine the trees and make a decision 
as to the exact cause of the trou¬ 
ble if you Avill Avrite him. 
Any of your young trees that are 
so seriously girdled so as to be in an 
enfeeliled condition and dying are 
hardly Avorth .saving. About the 
best that can lie done is to jirovide 
good cultiA'ation and snflicient fer¬ 
tilization to cause a good groAvth of 
the other tree.s, and to pi-event fur¬ 
ther damage to them the coming 
Winter. m. a. blake. 
a ring and a grab hook. Jab the sharp end AV'ell 
under the roots, attach a.team to the other end of 
the hook, and pull the hushes out of the ground. 
Civilizing the Lawn. Fig. 396. (See Page 913) 
T.et them lie a feAv da.A’s to Avilt and lighten, and then 
(IraAV them into pile.s. Better make the piles small 
and conical, rather than large and Hat, since, in 
the latter instance, the bushes may take root and 
groAA'. When dry enough to burn, set fire to the 
jiiles. Do not be disappointed at the result, for only 
A Formal Gateway. Fig. 397. (See Page 913) 
Brief Farm Notes 
Cleaning a Pasture of Hardback 
R EITiYIN'D to the inquiry on 
'page 85.2, in regard to this 
matter, I just Avant to say that 
nur.scrymen are listing hardback, 
under .several different names at 
prices ranging from 25 to 75 cents 
a bush. Po.ssibly the iinpiirer might get in touch 
AA'ith some dealer in ornamental shrubbery and clo.se 
out the entire lot. For though it is a nuisance in 
Massachu.setts and .some parts of ^’'ermont, it is a 
highly prized ornamental in many other States. If 
he Avishes to clear the field in time to .seed to rye 
the coming Fall, he has a job before him, but his 
best i)lan is to liaA'o the blacksmith make a large, 
strong s'teel hook Avith a circle 1.5 or 18 inches in 
diameter. Pos.sibly it may need to be larger, since 
the bushes are larger in Massachusetts than here. 
The one I u.sed in clearing half an acre Avas but 12 
inches, but that Avas hardly large enough for con¬ 
venience. Have the short arm draAvn to a sharp 
point and let the long arm be tAA'ice the 
lengtli of the .short arm, and equip it AAuth 
Well Kept Drive with Stone Posts. Fig. 398. (See Page 913) 
the tops Avill burn, but the heat will dry the roots 
sulliciently so that the soil Avill drop off, and the 
roots can then be made into other ])iles and burned. 
As soon as practicable start the ploAv and folloAV 
AA'ith a cutaAvay harroAv until the ground is in a 
good condition for the seed. In spite of all he can 
do a great many bii.^hes Avill appear in the rye. so 
his best plan Avill be to re-ploAV and .seed to a sec¬ 
ond crop as soon as the rye can be ha!• vested. In 
my exiierience the bushes Avere pulled early in May, 
Avlien the ground AA'a.s soft, and a rather light team 
had no difiiculty in pulling them. 
Ridding a Premises of Rats 
Too much credit for cunning and slyness has been 
given to the rats, for they are neither more cunning 
915 
nor sly than the majoi'ity of animals, and a few 
may he caught by almost any old ilevice that is ucav 
to them. But they are ob.serving, haA'o good mem¬ 
ories, and are quick to rea.son from cau.se to effect. 
Moreover, their method of communication, Avhatever, 
it may be. is highly deA^eloped, and so, when a feAV 
of their tribe have been trapiied or jioisoned, the.v 
reason b.ack and ascertain rhe cause, and then spread 
the information among all their friend.s, and there¬ 
after (he dangei'ous locality, or the unhealthy food 
is c.irefully avoided. And Avhen hundreds, or thou- 
.sands of rats infest a .set of huilding.s, the destruc- 
lion of a dozen or more amounts to nothing. So that 
the best method of disposing of them is to Avork 
.some suiqu-ise on them that Avill destroy them by 
the Avhole.sale, for the .same surprise can never be 
Avorked again. 
Rats are A'ery fond of grease, and more e.specially 
of t.alloAv. Taking advantage of this a good Avay 
to fight them is to soak a thin slice of bread in 
melted talloAV. Then, sAveep the barn floor clean, 
break the bread into fine crumbs, and, just before 
dark, .scatter them oaxm* the floor. Rats Avill find 
them tAvo slice.s, skip another night and give them 
the mtAvo slices, skip another night and give them 
still more, and so continue, feeding them every al¬ 
ternate night, and giving them more at each feed 
until the time comes Avheii they Avill not eat it all. 
Then make a loaf of break purposely for the rats, 
and, at the last kneading, work in a good big dose 
of .some good poison, either arsenic or arsenate of 
lead, or “Rough on Rats,” or Paris green, or any 
other tasteless poison. Do not use strychnine, for 
that is bitter and the rats Avill not touch it, but get 
the poison thoroughly incorporated with the dough, 
bake it. dip it in the talloAV, and crumble it upon the 
floor as before and the rats Avill disappear. Should 
they return after a fcAV month.s, try baiting them 
again, using meat scraps instead of 
bread, for it Avill be a cold day when 
any survivors of that colony of rats 
Avill touch a crumi) of bread that 
has been diiiped in tallow. 
Seeding a Steep -Clay Bank 
On page 855, is an inquiry re¬ 
garding the best variet.v of grass 
seed to soav on a steep bank made 
of clay dug, from the cellar and 
foundation of a hou.se, it not being 
proposed to mow the grass very fre¬ 
quently. q’he reply states that it 
will be a Ava.ste of money and labor 
to SOAV seed of any kind in that .soil, 
for no kind of gra.ss can be pro¬ 
duced on it. If this soil is sun¬ 
baked, and hard and dry, the reply 
is correct. But, if the .soil contains 
enough moisture so that seeds can 
germinate, or if AA’ater can be aji- 
plied when needed, in the form of a 
tine mist, a .satisfjictory stand of 
grass ma.v be olitained by seeding 
heavily with a mixture of one part 
Timothy, one of Red-top and tAvo of 
Red clover. The Jhinothy and Red- 
top Avill lie dormant, Init the clover 
will germinate, send its roots deep 
into the clay, druAv its nouri.shinent 
largel.y from the air, and die Avithin 
a fcAV years, having, in the mean¬ 
time prepariMl the soil for the other 
gras.ses Avhich Avill take its iil.ace. 
Bear in mind, hoAveA'er, that it must 
have Avater in abundance and 
in such a form that it Avill 
not wash the soil aAvay. Or, the 
bank may be .sodded Avith turfs of 
any kind, taking care to cut them 
thick, saturating them aa'cII aa’Iioii 
placed, and giving them Avater 
thereafter Avhenever the grass 
shoAvs any signs of becoming dry. If turfs are 
available, this Avill be a better AA'ay than to cover 
Avith loam, since a heavy shoAver, coming Avithin tAAo 
months from the time the loam is applied, Avill Avash 
it all to the loAver side of the bank. c. c. okmsbek. 
Silage for Poultry 
H A\ E any of our readei’s had experience in 
feeding silage to poultry? What did they 
make out of it? In connection with this what is 
the smallest .size of a silo that will prove practical? 
We are on the track noAV of a number of small silos 
holding from four to 12 toms. They are apparently 
filled Avith a combination of crops to provide bulky 
green food for poultry. There may be a chance 
here to help on the poultry ration, rersonally, we 
