832 
TShe RURAL NEW-YORKER 
thi'po perks of rye, four pounds of Alsike 
<'lover, and a pound of turnip serd to the 
acre will a pood crop for turning 
under, and the rye and Alsike will come 
on next Spring, giving a good mass of or¬ 
ganic matter to be plowed under. 
Another combination would be half a 
bushel of rye, one bushel of buckwheat, 
and the same amount of Alsike and turnip 
seed as given in the other combination. 
The buckwheat will make a heavy growth 
until frost, when it will die down upon 
the soil, probably without making seed. 
The rye and clover will work up through 
it. and the buckwheat vines will give 
them protection through the Winter. The 
Hairy vetch Avill give a greater bulk as a 
legume than the Alsike clover, but it is 
more expensive, and not as sure a crop 
in your locality. The buckwheat, rye and 
turnips will add a large amount of or¬ 
ganic matter to the soil. 
Kiln-drying Onions 
Some time ago an inquiry was made as 
to a practical way of kiln-drying onions 
in small quantities on the farm. As the 
editorial reply stated lack of information 
as to where the practice is in usage, I 
would say that for some time this method 
of cai’ing for onions has been followed in 
Western New Ybrk, the largest single sea¬ 
son production being shortly after the out¬ 
break of the European war, when during 
a season of very heavy yield many thou¬ 
sands of bushels were dried for shipment 
across to be consumed by the armies of 
the Allies. The query speaks particulai-ly 
of handling small quantities. Here are 
methods for varying quantities, from a 
few bushels to di.sposition of a large crop: 
Tray—Make a framework from strips 
of lumber %-inch thick and two inches 
wide. To this nail laths t^-inch apart to 
form bottom. Galvanized wire screen % 
or 14-inch mesh, may be substituted for 
the laths. If laths are used tray should 
be four feet long; if screening, length de¬ 
pends on width of screening. 
Four-Tray Drier—Stiffen four trays 
with wire screening bottoms by nailing 
two laths across center. Attach an up¬ 
right, l^-inch thick, two inches wide, and 
18 inches high, to each corner of the 
trays placed one above the other. This 
may be su.spended above the kitchen stove. 
Trays to be Used with an Electric Fan. 
—Make a framework, 4x1 feet, from 
strips of lumber %-inch tkick and three 
inches wide. Across the bottom tack 
strips of half-round or dressed laths. Vs- 
inch apart. These trays may be filled 
about one inch deep with the slices and 
dried, .stacked four or five high before an 
electric fan. Bottom of tray .should be 
on a level with lower rim of fan. 
Kiln-Drying System.—In a commercial 
way the kiln-drying method has probably 
played the most important part in han¬ 
dling the crop in this section. The full 
process may be described as follow’s: The 
peeling is first removed. If the onions 
are large this is better done by hand, as 
this vegetable is the hardest of all to peel. 
If the stock runs small a potato peeler 
may be used, but even then it is advisable 
to have the help inspect every onion and 
remove all peelings that the machine fails 
to taTce off. Not only must the first dry 
husk be removed, but also all of the with¬ 
ered part of the layer next to the husk, 
flwing to the action of the onion on the 
eyes, the help should be cautioned to keep 
their hands away from their eyes for the 
first half-hour, after which the eyes be¬ 
come accustomed to the pungent fumes of 
the vegetable. After trimming, the onions 
are carried in bushel crates to the chop¬ 
per. They should not be chopped until 
they are ready to be placed on the kiln 
floor, and at the outside, they should be 
placed on the kiln floor in one-half hour 
from the time they are chopped. The 
slicer or chopper should cut into pieces 
one-sixteenth of an inch thick. A con¬ 
venient size for the slicer boxes is two 
feet long, one foot wide and eight inches 
deep, the boxes to be placed on trucks 
when filled and carried to the kiln floor. 
The kiln may .be of the type used in 
the general evaporator, described in this 
paper about one year ago, with the ex¬ 
ception that the floor is covered with 
burlap or wire screen of 12 mesh, the 
latter being preferred over the burlap. 
The prepared onions are distributed on 
the kiln floor .about four inches deep. It 
requires between Ifi and 20 hours to dry 
00 bushels on a kiln 200 feet square, and 
unless one is familiar with the drying of 
tl.is vegetable it will be better to place 
them on the floor not over two inches 
deep. The turning of the onions in the 
kiln should begin at the time the lower 
part of the layer begins to crust or shows 
about one-quarter dryness at the bottom. 
Thereafter the onions should be turned 
about once every hour for three hours and 
then every two hours until they have 
dried dowm to 15 per cent moisture or are 
bone dry, and break into small pieces 
when squeezed in the hand. The product 
may be shoveled w’ith a steel or wood 
shovel. 
From the kiln the onions are delivered 
into a store room, and it is a good plan 
not to store them near other food prod¬ 
ucts, as the odor will be absorbed by the 
other foodstuffs. If properly dried the 
onions will la.st for a good many years, 
especially if placed in tin cans or can¬ 
isters. The usual custom is to seal the 
finished product in five and 10-pound con¬ 
tainers. If not packed in .sealed tins, they 
should be placed in cold storage in order 
to hold them from year to year. Dried 
onions will also keep a long time if packed 
in wax paper cartons. 
A particular caution is given that the 
furnace of the kiln in which onions are to 
be dried mu.st be inten-sely hot when the 
onions are placed on the kiln floor, and 
that the kiln should be covered within 
\ 
one-half hour; otherwise the product will 
turn dark. This danger of souring is 
the reason that the onions should be 
taken as quickly as possible from the 
slicer to the kiln, and subjected to as 
great a heat as possible. The onion is 
also injured if packed in a barrel or deep 
box after being chopped or sliced, as the 
weight of the .slices will cause the juice 
of the onions in the low’er part of the 
barrel or box to be pressed out. Onions 
always lose their strength rapidly after 
being cut up, and so the quicker they are 
dried the better the fini.shed product. 
From a bushel of onions, weighing 57 
pounds, an average of five pounds in dried 
form may be obtained. During the early 
jtart of the European war a Canadian 
firm, co-operating with growers between 
Sodus and Batavia, received the product 
from over 90 kilns in that district. 
A. H. P. 
Some Texas Surprises 
We have here this season several very 
agreeable surprises that may interest your 
readers. 
When our fir.st potatoes (white) showed 
above ground there were potato beetles 
everywhere waiting for them; in fact, 
they were more numerous than was ever 
known before. As soon as well above 
ground, clusters of the yellow eggs 
■showed up on about every plant. Yet, 
strange to say, these eggs disappeared 
and but a very small number hatched ; so 
much so, that it was a rare thing to see 
any of the regular, slick fellows at all. 
AVhat became of the eggs remains a puz¬ 
zle. I rather suspect, however, that it 
was the horned frogs (which of late years 
have greatly increased here) that made a 
feast of them. 
Our .second surprise was the entire ab¬ 
sence of the codling moth on the pear 
crop. While two years ago every pear 
had at least one worm in it. none is 
seen this season. Last year being a total 
failure, may likely account for this. 
Another surprise was the sudden dis¬ 
appearance of the great amount of lice 
on the early cow-pea crop. The.«c lice 
were .so numei-ous that they totally cov¬ 
ered and killed many plants. Lady bugs 
helped reduce numbers as much as they 
could, yet but little effect was seen until 
another wingless bug. something similar 
to the lady bug in color and .size, ap¬ 
peared. In a few days .all the lice were 
gone. These are now clinging fast to 
some parts of the plant and are drying uj). 
We are having in these parts this .se.a- 
son a magnificent crop of pe<aches. I 
have had ripe May Beauty and Early 
Victor since middle of May; have now 
the Swan, tvith the Carman beginning to 
swell. Nearly all trees set too full apd 
had to be thinned. This makes 13 years 
of regular fruiting for the Frank peach 
wthout a single miss. Our season to date 
having been favorable, crops of all kinds 
promise well. 
My experience with the wild peach of 
China as a stock for others proves them 
unsuitable. While the buds Avill grow, 
they are, however, much dwarfed and do 
not appear so healthy as do trees on their 
own or on stocks of the Indian or Spanish 
race. The gopher or salamander, as some 
call them, seem also to have a special 
fondness for roots of the wild peach, since 
they destroy them much more than or¬ 
dinary peach roots all about them. 
J. W. .STCBEXKAUCII. 
Limestone Co., Tex. ' 
Globe Artichoke in North Carolina 
Will you give me information relative 
to the growth and cultivation of the 
French artichoke? Do you think it could 
be grown successfully ai-ound the Beau¬ 
fort, N. C., .section ? e. m. 
8ealevel, N. C. 
The culture and adaptability of J:he 
French or globe artichoke in your .sec¬ 
tion is not thoroughly understood, due to 
the fact that it has seldom been attempted 
by people, who thoroughly understood the 
special needs and requirements of the 
plant. It requires a deep, rich sandy 
loam with a liberal sir ply of well-rotted 
manure. The plants are usually started 
from the seed, and as nearly as con¬ 
venient, are set outdoors in rows about 
three feet apart, and two feet apart in 
the row. The plants do not produce the 
first year, and in cold climates they need 
protection over the Winter. Beginning 
with the second year the plants should 
produce a good crop of fine artichokes. 
New beds are established by removing the 
side .shoots or suckers from the ba.se of 
the old plants. The first few seasons in 
which the plant bears, the product is 
larger and of better quality than plants 
that are too old. The artichokes should 
be gathered before they are too old, de¬ 
teriorate in quality, and weaken the vi¬ 
tality of the plants. It is very possible 
that the climate in your section would be 
adapated to the growing of this crop. It 
should certainly be worthy of a careful 
test. B. w. D. 
.Tune 29, lOl.S 
Muskmelons Under Glasa 
What distance would you advise plant¬ 
ing muskmelons on a center bench five 
feet wide and 30 feet in length? Vine to 
grow on bench same as outdoors. 
I,oretto, Pa. n. s. 
Muskmelons ’"’hen grown in the green¬ 
house must he trained upon some .sort of 
sui)ports to keep them off the ground. 
They can, therefore, be planted much 
clo.ser together than when planted in the 
open ground. This five-foot bench will 
accommodate two rows, and they may be 
planted 2i/^ feet apart in the rows. Unless 
you have had experience in the forcing of 
muskmelons under glass, you will find 
this one of the most difficult and trying, 
if not the most disappointing experiments 
you have ever been up against. It re¬ 
quires much training and practical ex¬ 
perience before one is proficient in this 
branch of greenhouse work. k. 
Propagating Willow 
I wish to start a row of willows along 
the roadside, on the border of a pond. 
When should the sticks or cutting.? be 
put in and what is the best variety to 
use? w. 
Worcester Co., Mass. 
Willows strike very readily from cut¬ 
tings of mature wood, when put in in 
early Spring, April being usually the 
best time. The cuttings may be made 
in any length from a foot to two or three 
feet long, the .shorter length being most 
commonly used, and should be set at 
least eight inches in the ground. The 
A-arieties Babylonica and Salamonii are 
both well suited for planting on margins 
of running streams, or ponds. The 
Babylonica is our common and well- 
known weeping willow; it is perfectly 
hardy, and a rapid grower, particularly 
in the vicinity of Avater, where it soon 
makes a large and handsome tree. Sala¬ 
monii is a pretty tree with dark green, 
rather narrow leaves, and is also of. a 
drooping or Aveeping habit. K. 
Durability of Government Whitewash 
On page 72 there is an inquiry for ex¬ 
perience in regard to the use of govern¬ 
ment AvhiteAvash as a substitute for paint. 
A few years ago I spent several weeks in 
a village Avhere this substitute hatl been 
used extenswely, for both inside and out¬ 
side work, for a period of six or eight 
years, and I made a careful study of it. 
Many experiments had been tried to get 
the best results, and I learned that the 
formula that gave the best satisfaction 
was as follows: 30 lbs. lime. 10 lb.s. 
salt. 3 lbs. rice flour, 12 lbs. glue, 1 lb. 
whiting, together with various coloring 
materials, if desired, to give the required 
shade. These ingredients were mixea with 
five gallons of boiling water and stirred 
till cool, and stirred frequently while 
using in order to prevent the heavier por¬ 
tions from settling to the bottom. The 
ingredients in this paint are the same as 
in that about which the inquirer asks, 
though the proportions vary somewhat. 
They make a paint costing approximately 
about 25 cents a gallon, at prices that 
then prevailed. Since it can be applied 
with a wide Avhitewash brush, the cost of 
application is only about one-fourth that 
of oil paint, and this is still further re¬ 
duced by the fact that less skilled labor is 
required in order to do satisfactory work. 
The quantity required, I w’as told, is a 
little more than is required of oil paint. 
For outside Avork it gives a neat, clean 
appearance, and is indistinguishable, from 
a distance, from oil paint; but, on a closer 
inspection, it seems a little too glossy and 
it has a hard, stony appearance, instead 
of the softer shade Avhich characterizes 
lead and oil. If applied during cool or 
cloudy weather it will last for about five 
years Avithout showing signs of wear, but 
goes rapidly when once it begins to go, 
and. in another year, it becomes unpre¬ 
sentable. If applied during hot, sunny 
weather, it will crack and peel off in large 
flakes during the following season. Two 
coatings are necessary, and, in the former 
instance, if a fresh coating is given as 
.soon as the first coatings begin to wear, 
the buildings may be kept in good con¬ 
dition. perhaps, indefinitely. But, in the 
second instance, tin; surface must be 
scraped before applying a fresh coating, 
or the peeling off will continue. 
For inside work it is much superior to 
lime Avhitewash, though not as good as 
alabastine or muresco, when applied to 
pla.ster. But it is much better than 
either 'vhen applied to wood, though it 
shows scratches and bruises much more 
than oil paint. If not subjected to abra¬ 
sions. it Avill last indefinitely, though it 
becomes unpresentable by reason of dirt 
fully as quickly as lime Avhitewash. The 
greatest difficulty in connection Avith its 
use is the fact that stock of any kind 
will lick the boards clean, wherever it is 
applied. Presumably this is on account 
of the flavor that the salt imparts. 
c. o. o. 
