RURAL NEW-YORKCR 
1317 
Different Methods of Seeding Alfalfa 
Good Results in Genesee County, N. Y. 
T IIKHK are several ways in which the fanners 
ill (lifterent sections go ahont it to start the 
growing of tliis most valnable of all forage crops. 
"I’iiose are governed very largely hy tlieir location with 
reference to the lime content of the soils. The more 
deficient a soil is in lime the more diflicnlt it is to 
secure a satisfactory stand. We might also add 
that the greater need there is for drainage the more 
ditncult it is to secure a permanent stand of Alfalfa. 
Otlier factors are also of consideraide importance, 
for Alfalfa appreciates a soil comparatividy free 
from foul seeds, and with plenty of organic matter 
or liumus. Where we have limestone soils or 
lliose in which liming is of lessor importance, it is 
far easier to secure a good stand of Alfalfa. 
In such sections we find that usually the seeding 
is done in the Spring with either oats or harley, 
lu-efcr.ihly the latter, because lairli'.v is not s<i heavy 
a fei'der on the soil as oats, it is not quite so h>ng 
ill maturing, and consequently the Alfalfa has a 
better chance to start. In either casts however, the 
l)rei»aratiou of 'the soil should he more than usually 
thorough, having as fine a seed bed as jiossilde. 
and as above stated the laml must 
he drained either naturally or arli- 
fi daily. 
.\t seeding time the oats or I>arley 
should be sown very thin as a 
nurse crtqi primariljq the yiehl of 
grain being of secondary importance, 
so we Avill not put in over one and a 
tjuarter or one and a half bushels 
of seed iier acre. This will protect 
the young plants from the scorching 
sun, and the hot winds, and we get 
quite a respectahle amount of grain 
besides, cutting it a trifle early to 
lessen the chances for it to become 
lodged, nniking it more difficult to 
cut with the harvester, and more 
danger of 'injury to the young plants . 
hy running the machine so close to 
the ground. 
Tlie Alfalfa seed is usually sown 
separately, immediately after the 
grain is in, .sowing on the .surface, 
and then going over the ground with 
a weeder or very light .smoothing 
harrow to cover the seed. It is a 
very good plan we thiidv to mi.v 
with the Alfalfa a little Medium and 
Alsike clover, also a little d’imothy 
seed, in ahont this proportion: .VI- 
falfa one Imshel, JMcdinm clon'r 
four quarts, Alsike two quarts, d’im- 
othy one ipiart, and then put on 
from 20 to 25 pounds of the mixture 
per acre. This insures us a better 
cr(q» of Imy the first sea.sou, while 
tile Alfalfa is l>ecoming establislud. 
and later till Init the Altai la will 
largely disappear. 
This is the method of seeding for 
a permanent lield of Alfalfa which 
has been followed successfully for 
tin' jKist 2.5 or .‘10 years, and seems 
to secure better results in this .-eetioii ihan any 
otlier system. 
In other jiarts of the State, however, where tlie 
conditions tin* le.ss favorable for ilie growing of Al¬ 
falfa it seems to be more desirnldo to work the land 
tlioronghly till later in tlie season, thus killing out 
the foul stuff, conserving moisture, and securing 
a little lietter tilth or texture in the soil. I’.ut we 
find we get splendid re.sults in tlcnesco Gouuty liy 
folhnving the tihove de.scribed practice, and gain a 
crop of Iiarlcy or oats be.sides, and tlic Alfalfa 
also gets a better, stronger stand to go into tlic 
Winter. i. ir. c. cook. 
ilcncsce f'o., N. Y, 
Killing Off Large Trees 
I (h-sire to kill a large number of nniimuotli sycamore 
trees, but lot tlicm remain standing. How can I jaeveiit 
their lealhig iie-vt Hjiriug? I am told to l)ore two or 
three inches into body of tree, and insert .saltpetre, 
although other authority claim.s yon must liore tlirongli 
the heart to be efloctive. Do you know if this is worth 
the time and labor required to ac onqilisii thi.s. or is it 
just gue.ssworkV v i. « 
Ohio. ■ “■ 
T he Simido.st way to kill the sycamore trees, and 
yet tillow tliem to stand, is to girdli^ them 
■this Winter. Thi.s should he done with a 
sharp ax or hatchet. Chop out a hand four 
or live 'inches wide and an inch or so 
deep below the bark, extending around the 
tree. 'J'his can he done at tiny height, hut for tlie 
.sake of appearances it is much lietter not to have 
tlic hand over eighteen inches from tlie ground. As 
a result of this operation the tree will he killed, hut 
there will spring up from the lower edge of the 
girdle a crown of leafy .shoots and vigorously 
growing water sprouts. These can l»e easily cut 
hack two or three times during the growing seu.son, 
and before anotlier Spring the trees will probably 
he dead,—root and hraneh. It is pos.s'ihle that the 
leaves will develoj) next year, hut they are not likely 
to last moi’e than a few Aveeks. 
Any attempt to kill the trees by boring into the 
liody or even the “heart,” and iu.sevting saltpetre, or 
any other poison is founded on pure nomsense. In 
fact, the cliances are that several of these sycamores 
will he found to liavo no hearfwood. Surely every 
reader of this article can romemher .some mammoth 
sycamore tree Avlio.se , trunk is filled Avith a great 
cavity large enough for a hoy to crawl int'A. Tiie 
tree .seemed quite healthy in tlie upper portions of 
the trunk and crown, in. spite of the fact that its 
heart Avas laiten out. Tlie fact is tliat the Avood 
of tlie stem is not the vital portion of the tree. Imt 
merely serves tlie meclianieal purpo.se of holding 
■tlie crown liigh up that the leaA'es may receive the 
light. The only growing living portion of the tree 
inink is a tliin more or less imioilagiiious lilni of 
liny groAving colls, knoAvn as the eamhinm layer, 
Ai'liich lies between the inner liark and tlie light 
colored sapwuod, and eomiiletely ein’ebqies tlie tree. 
Ivaw plant foods in the form of .a Aveak solution 
of certain mineral .salts are collected and ah.sorhed 
hy the I’oot liair.s, and are carried hy the trunk roots 
to tlie stem and up through the outer sapwood to 
the branches and tlience to the leaves. Jlmv in the 
presence of .sunlight goes on tlie process of a.ssimila- 
tloii and digestion, and the more concentrated .sap 
does its .share to carr.v on tlie life jirocesses of the 
tree. 'I’liis sap returns Ihrongli tin* inner bark and 
Ollier sapwood and Is absorbed and iniilt up by the 
I'ells of the eamhinm layer into Avood cells. The 
Avork contimios all throngli tin* growing season 
more rapidl.v in the ►Spring, so Hint tlie Cells arc 
large and comparatively coar.se, but in the .Summer 
the tree settles down to making thi‘ close finely knit- 
together cells Aviiicli give density and .strength to 
the Avuod. In the Winter all givwtli stops, and the 
tree remains dormant, which exjilaiiis the formation 
of a distinct ring for each year's growtli. Ail the 
sap is not immediately used, for during the .Summer 
iiioiitlis a poi'tioii is stored in the roots and stem to 
serve as a reserve upon wliich the tree may draAV 
to carry it pa.st that period of unusual exertion 
Avlieii it mu.st make its “Spring drh-e.” All in a 
few AA'eeks when the Spring comes on. the tree is 
called up'iii to awake from a sound sleep, clothe 
itself with leaves and iiroduce the Idossonis for 
another seed crop. It is this sap, already carefully 
stored in the tree’s roots, Avhich AAdll giA'e them 
the streiigtli to send fortli leaves and shoots at 
the edge of the girdle, hut the line of contact 
Avitli tlie eroAvn is out off Avhieh ultimately Avill die. 
'^riio host time to girdle is in the Summer, before 
the tree liegius to .store up food for the following 
year. g. h. c. 
A Fair With No Admission Fee 
OMMT’NITY FAIRS.—IlelatiA'c to tlie inqnirv 
of Lutlier T. (Jarretson. Cape May Co., N. .1. 
page 1240, as to a fair operated on the lines of 
uo admission fee. there are iiiimlreds of such 
fairs in tlie .Soutliern and Western United .Stutes, 
called community fairs, and mostly hold in .school- 
houses for the immediate small surrounding country. 
'I'o the best of m.v knowledge tliere are oid.v four 
fairs in the AA'liole couutr.v Avitli .sizable ]>remiiim 
lists operating Avitliout an admi.ssion fee, and ns T 
have been oonuected Avitli one of the four since its 
start, I will tr.v to tell IVIr. (Jarretson and .A'onr other 
iiitei'csted readers something of its Avorking.s. 
WII.VT LIME I)ll>.—This town, Farinvillc, 'V’a., is 
located near the break between 
middle and Piedmont Virginia, 
Avhere the Creator was might.v gen¬ 
erous witli climatic and health con¬ 
ditions and water supply, gaA'o ns 
a long growing sea.son, reasonabl.v 
good soil, hut neglected to give ns 
an.v linit.stone in The land. For 
years the peculiar soil Avater and 
climatic conditions hound onr farm¬ 
ers to the oiic-cnqi Avliecl. Then 
came cheap lime, and avc found 
that h.v adding four, live or six 
dollars to an acre of ground in the 
.shape of limestone aa’o could make 
Alfalfa, clover, grain or any crop 
that goe.^ to make tip a diversified 
croj) i-onntiy, and likewi.se a country 
that Avants a county fair. 
FAfi.rUE AND SUCCES.S.— 
First Ave tried the fair on old- 
time lines — Avith entry fees, ad- 
mi.s.sioii. horse race.s, ot<'., and Ave 
have a monnment just outside of 
onr toAvn sacred to tlie memory 
of onr liojies and lust dollars. 
The monument is a one-time colos- 
.^al fair ground. Tlieii came the 
County Agent, aa'Iio is the fore¬ 
runner of better things socially as 
well as agriculturally. He and our 
County Superintendent of .Scliools 
sired the puny infant Avhicli tliey 
proudly siiOAved icnir Avoidd in a 
L'OxSO sU)r(‘ building, the first annual 
Farmville Farm and Scliool Fair. 
That fiiAst annual Avas several years 
ago, and last Aveek Ave had an cx- 
hil.iit of farm and seiiool ]irodacts 
wliich ]iaid out to the exliibitors 
about J}:2<KiO in money. AVe do not 
ii.se mercliandi.se premium.s. q’lie 
ino.s't agricultural iii.stitutiou in this 
agricnlniral section is the Farmville Farm and 
School Fair, ami tlie afore.said fair is nothing 
in tlie Avorld hut a eommnnity fair grown u]) and 
the rongli polnt.s tiled away. We are operating on 
the idea tliat a fair Avhich is held for the heiietit 
of fanners and seliool elilldreu .slionld be for tlieir 
benefit alone, and not for liorse jockey.s, stock- 
holder.s, .salaried officer.s, concessionaires and the 
like. The receipts are all coiitrihutions, and come 
from three sources, the coimt.v of Prince EdAvard, 
the town of Farmville and the Inisiness intcre.sts in 
the community. 
I’RKMIUMS. — The Jiusiness lion.ses contribute 
in units of .$15. which sum Avill divide into five 
premiiimns of $5, $4. .$2, .$1, AA'liich is the series 
offered on most all the exhibits. The money that the 
business house contributes is all used for the paying 
of premiums in the .section and class that he 
Avislies. ';i’lie cla.ss, premium list and description 
occupies about oiic-.sixth of a catalogue page, and he 
may use the rest of the page for advertising space 
gratis. This ]>lan seems to Avork out very well. 
For instance, the firm with Avhich I am connected 
jiays tin* premiums oii 10 ears of white corn. The 
head of the page carries the announcement that 
our firm is paying the premiums otYered lielovv 
for tlie five best lots of 10 ears of Avhite com; 
following that is our advertisement. That particular 
part of the fair is our individuai fair; and Ave 
feel that we arc responsible tor the size, at least. 
A Vine Arranceiiient to Hide an Old Cistern. Fig. 603 
Apples Ready for Shipment in an Orleans Co.. N. V. Orchard. Fig. 604 
