872 
IShe RURAL NEW-YORKER 
July 13, lOlS 
General Farm Topics 
Planting Beans Right Side Up 
There is a belief among some farmers 
that some kinds of seeds, like squash, 
beans, etc., will not germinate unless 
jilanted in a jiarticular position, a certain 
side uppermost. Will you give your opin¬ 
ion about itV M. c. l,. 
Westfield. Mass. 
Large beans, like the large Lima, will 
arow more readily if stuck in the soil eye 
downwards. The two halves of beans 
answer the place of seed leaves, and the 
large white Lima beans are so heavy that 
it is difficult for the bean to turn over in 
the soil and open its valves in the right 
position. But the small Lima bean and 
the potato Lima, of which the Fordhook 
is a good examide. will grow readily if 
dropped in any position. The broad seed 
of ('olxca scandens must be placed edge¬ 
wise in the soil to germinate readily. But 
all of our garden beans and squashes need 
no attention to the position in which they 
are placed in the soil. The depth in the 
soil is of far more importance. You can 
cover corn three inches in light soil, and 
it will grow readily, but if you cover 
parsnip seed in that way you will never 
.see any plants from them. While the size 
of the seed will often regulate the depth 
of cover, tlie large Lima bean needs only 
to be stuck in the soil, and will grow 
even if its back is not covered, while deep 
covering will greatly delay its appear¬ 
ance above the surface. Celery seed I 
sow in lines on the surface, merely pat¬ 
ting them down with back of shovel. 
Then cover them with gunnysacking and 
water on that. Thus the sui-face is pre¬ 
vented from crusting and moisture is re¬ 
tained, and the seed germinates (luickly. 
But celery seed sown in light soil and 
covered and merely left to chance will be 
very .slow in appearing in plants. The 
same is true of parsley seed. In fact, a 
long chapter could be written about the 
idio.syncrasies of seed. Sir John Lub¬ 
bock wrote two large volumes on seedlings 
which are very interesting to the student 
of i)lants. There are very few seeds 
which demand a special position in the 
soil: the chief thing to ob.serve is a 
proper temperature for the plant, mois¬ 
ture and an aerated soil. The extra 
early ))eas will grow at a temperature but 
little above the freezing point, while 
corn will rot at so low a temperature. 
The conditions of temperature, moisture 
and oxygen are the important things in 
germinating any seed. \y. f. massey. 
Killing Jerusalem Artichokes 
On page 7G9 R. W. B. says that he has 
a held badly infested with Jeru.salem arti¬ 
chokes, which he wishes to seed down, 
and asks for a means of destroying them 
before seeding. There are two practicable 
methods for doing this. (Jne is to turn a 
lot of hogs into the field, and let them 
root out and feed upon the tubers. Hogs 
will hunt for artichokes more readily and 
devour tlnun more greedily than if they 
were potatoes, and they will thrive fully 
as well upon them as upon jiotatoes. In 
fact, artichokes are a highly valuable food 
crop for all classes of stock, from pigs to 
•poultry, and even for the human family. 
I have often put several bushels into the 
cellar for Winter use. and have always 
regretted that 1 did not put in more. 
There are two varieties. One grows to a 
height of three or four feet, has finer 
leaves and small tubers, shaped somewhat 
like a peanut. The other attains a height 
of six or seven feet, has coar.se foliage 
and large tubers, shaped somew'hat like a 
pear, but w'ith deeply sunken eyes. Both 
are e<iually tasteful and nutritious, but 
the latter is much the more profitable to 
grow, since, -with equal cultivation, it 
will yield equally with potatoes. 
The other method is to mow them when 
the stalks have attained about half their 
noi-mal height. The tubers from -which 
the next year’s crop will be developed do 
not begin to form until the stalks have 
attained nearly their full height, and, by 
emtting off the stalks, and keeping them 
cut during one season, the plants will be 
destroyed. If cut and cured as hay, 
stock will eat the foliage during the Win¬ 
ter, though they may reject the w'oody 
stalks. (’• <>• oHMsnEE. 
Vermont. 
An artichoke came up in an aspargus 
bed. I received it as an old friend and 
let it grow’. In two years it was such a 
bunch that I thought a less com))lieated 
Iilace would be better for their growth, 
and so dug up the entire lot. In a few 
days there were as many tops as before, 
and I dug out every sprig, being careful 
to get the piece of root. The long and 
short of it was that several aspiiragus 
roots were destroyed, and as I did not 
follow' as faithfully as I should the first 
year, a second year w'as required, and I 
took the needed time about every week 
until no more appeared. f. t. .texcks. 
Rhode I.sland. 
When I was a boy on the farm in Ken¬ 
tucky w’e had a great deal of this, and 
the only w'ay we could keep it down was 
to j)asture it with hogs. They are very 
fond of the roots, which grow down deep, 
and the hog w’ill keep rooting after them 
until he pts all of them. It is impo.s- 
sible to kill them by cultivation, as they 
]'oot very deep below the plow line, and 
they will keep coming as long as there are 
any roots left in the ground. 
Harford Co., Md. c. E. lloyd. 
Best and most inexi)ensivo way to clear 
land of artichokes is to fence and turn in 
sliotes or hogs, and they w’ill get their 
living by rooting and eating same, grow¬ 
ing fine and paying well for use of land 
ami fencing. It will be thoroughly done. 
< )r cut every stalk and put kerosene in 
(he stalk until killed. c;. n. 
Laconia, N. II. 
Remedies for Poison Ivy 
At this time of year when people are 
likely to get into bad company by asso¬ 
ciating with poison ivy, I wish to call 
attention to a remedy which I read of 
about 30 years ago. Sugar of lead, lime 
water, salt W'ater, Rhus Toxicodendron, 
taken internally, and a host of other rem¬ 
edies h.ave their advocates, but in the 
Ix'st of them the itching continues for an 
indefinite period, but I have yet to find 
the individual who did not obtain almost 
instant relief by .sopping on the place 
affected a tea made of bean leaves. Any 
kind of beans seem to do. .lust pull a 
bunch of leaves and scald them or let 
simmer on the stove. Apply hot or cold. 
I do not claim this to be infallible, but 
in some years’ experience not only on the 
farm but in building telephone lines, I 
have not found any other remedy that 
W'ill compare. Another thing which may 
be appreciated by the person at Hope 
Farm w'ho has to clean the garden walks; 
clean them, spread on some old news¬ 
papers, and cover with sawdust. This is 
an invention of my own, and we are just 
trying it out, but indications seem that 
it is going to be a great success. 
Pennsylvania. ir. B. B. 
Re-seeding Winter-Killed Alfalfa 
On page 82.3 L. P. A., ^Yayne Co.. X. 
A'., asks someone to give experience in re¬ 
seeding Avinter-killed spots in Alfalfa 
meadow. In Siu’ing of 1917 my renter 
sowed Alfalfa with the oats. It came up 
nice and was a good stand. The oats 
gi’ow tall and were blown down by the 
wind and rain. When they were shocked 
we could get no thrasher until October ; 
in the meantime the shocks killed off the 
.Alfalfa and the severe cold weather froze 
out several strips that were a fair stand 
last Fall. I needed the Alfalfa, so this 
Spring being quite windy for several 
weeks I waited for the wind to quit blow¬ 
ing. and one calm evening I got my fiddle 
seeder and sowed the vacant places quite 
thick with Alfalfa; in a few days we got 
a nice rain and I now have a good even 
stand all over my field. After the first 
cutting the new seeding is now as tall as 
the old. An experienced man might not 
try the method I did, on account of no 
protection for the new seeding. I am not 
an experienced farmer, this being my first 
year as a farmer, because I could get no 
renter on account of the war. c. ii. B. 
Wood Co., Ohio. 
Disadvantages of Sweet Clover 
'Lo show the advantages of Sweet clover 
is so easy that it has been done iii a way 
that is satisfactory. The other .side, the 
disadvantages, in so far as I tnow, have 
not been presented. Here are some, as I 
see it: I look at a picture of cows in a 
field of AVhite clover, and I can see the 
hoofs of the cows ; it is no trouble to find 
them. In a field of Sweet clover I sowed 
in 191.5, and not since, if you were now 
to take a photograph of the field if it 
were full of cows they would not show in 
the photograph. If the fields were the 
same size as are used for Red clover, you 
would need bells on the milch cows to lo¬ 
cate them. If the cows were not near the 
border you would have a job reaching 
them. When you did, it is at the cow’s 
option whether .she comes out or not. If 
you differ with the cow about milking time 
she is liable to use her own judgment, .ind 
you have it to take, right or wrong. It is 
the same way with sheep or hogs; when 
they get in it they are lost. 
W. B. ARNOLD. 
“With onr new machinery, we’ll get along all right. I have shifted 
the engine from the Iron Age Sprayer to the Iron Age Potato 
Digger, and we can get those spuds out in a jiffy. You go ahead 
and show those fellows over there how an American fights, and we’ll 
see that you are supplied with food and the other things you need. 
We are .going to miss you mightily back here, but with a little extra 
thinking and the right machinery we old fellows left at home will 
show you boys a surprise!” 
D?GGERS 
a.s real labor-s.aviiig machines, have taken their places in the front-line 
trenche.s with hundreds of farmers who arc re.sponding to their Country’s 
call for bigger crops in spire of a great labor shortage. 
The IRON AOF Engine Digger enables nne man with one team to dig ix>ta- 
toes quickly and e.asil.v. It rolls them out in long rows read.v to gather, 
clear of dirt, weeds, a!id tops. The engine digger has a H. P. “New 
Way” engine which can he easily taken off and u.sed for man,y other pur- 
l)oses. e:>pecially f 'r furnishing high iiressure for the Iron Age Power 
Sprayer. 
IRON AGE Diggers are u.sed in all the great potato districts of this country 
and abroad, and are Known wherever potatoes are grown. Made in many 
styles, either with engine or traction power; there is an IRON AGE Digger 
to meet your cond’tions. Made by a compan.v that has been iii Imsiness 
for S2 year.s—speci.ilists on potato machinery. 
Ask your dealer to show you the IRON AGE Diggers, Sprayers and Culti¬ 
vators. Find out what real labor-saving machines they ai*e, and do not 
delay placing your order. Freight shipments are uncertain now. AVrite 
us for descriptive booklet. 
BATEMAN M’F’G CO. 
Box 2 P Grenloch, N. J. 
Special 
Contains 55 
ll91rV Per Cent of 
j Cane Sugar 
Molasses 
It is as nourishing as it is appetizing. 
The admixture of this molasses with 
inexpensive feeds will reduce your 
cost of feeding and at the same 
time increase the flow of milk. It 
will also put your herd in the pink 
of health. 
This molasses will preserve your 
silage and give it a fine taste. Add 
one pound of molasses to every ten 
pounds of stuff you run into your 
silo. 
We make prompt shipments from 
New York, Philadelphia, Norfolk, 
Mobile and New Orleans, 
By orderinn your supply now, you 
will avoid paying nigh prices 
later on, and you will be sure of 
getting your shipments in time. 
Sugar Products Co. 
314 Walnut Street Philadelphia, Pa. 
VEGETABLE PLANTS 
Celery, Cabbage, CauliHower, Brugselg 
Sproutg, Tomato, Pargley Plants 
STRAWBERRY PLANTS 
and runner plants that will bear fruit next summer. Also Raso- 
berry. Blackberry, Gooseberry, Currant, Grape plants, 
lit Trees, Shrubs -r.. _ 
Fruit Trees, 
HAKIIY 
Shrubs for fall plantinsr. Cataiojrue free. 
L# SQHIKES, Good Ground, N, V, 
RaelAIHIfa *13, or Scftiified Sweet ClB..r,$18. Sow Peck 
DB5I Hlldlld peracr, row. X. BLOOMIN8DALE. Scheneeledr, N.Y. 
PFI FDV PI SIITC‘^®'’"E‘'*Aki-pbleachlng,«iiite 
htut n I rLftH I d PI.CME and (iUNT PASCAL. 300 for 
$1, Post paid. Catalogue free. W.S. FORD S SON, Herlly.Oeliwire 
HdUdldSUh beets, ONION PLANTS, LETTUCE, TOMa! 
TOEI EGG PLANTS, PEPPERS and CAULIFLOWER PLANTS 
Send for Price List. J. ti. Schmidt, lirigtol, Pa. 
Plonfc 300 tliousand. Golden Self-Blanching. 
y Tluillo ASUMEAO, Williamson. New York 
Standard Apple BARRELS 
Prompt shipmeut. Robt. Gillieg, Medina, N. Y, 
Dry Your Fruits and Vegetables 
The Peck Household Dryer 
Uses the Heat E'kom the Kitchen Stove 
CO.NVE.ME.V r ECONOMICAL RELIAKLE 
PRICE, - - $S.50 
Send for Lcajiet 
THE BLOWER AGENCY. 149 Broadway. N. Y. C. 
ALFALFA 
AMERICAN NORTHERN GROWN 
For fifteen years our advice concerning the'seedintf 
and care of Alfalfa meadows, end our seed for so-wind 
them, have been standard—the best that was to be 
had. The catalog tells how, and prices Che seed, 
not Turkestan, “Dwarf Alfalfa,’’ which we refuse to 
handle, but the best of American tfrown seed, in- 
ejudin^ usually Montana, Idaho, and the £reat 
"Dakota 30,’’ which rivals the Grimm itself. 
Ml FHI TR Next to Hansen’s Siberian, 
HUrMUrii tJje greatest variety grown 
in America. We have the genuiae; also limited 
amounts of the Siberian. 
Sample and prices on request. 
Wing Seed Co., Box 2^3 Mechanicsburg, o. 
Th0 House of Quality and Moderate Prices, 
Unite Economy and Patriotism by Planting 
Lovett’s Pot Grown Strawberries 
They save AVheat, Meat and Sugar; they are so prolific 
and .sweet. Dimes paid for them quickly turn into dol¬ 
lars; dollars to eagles. Many kinds, adapted to all soils; 
ripening from earliest to latest, including the invaluable 
Van Fleet Hybrids and seven superb Everbearing vai le- 
tles. Sure to live and succeed. 
Our Booklet No. 2 gives full instructions for planting 
and culture, illustrations and descriptions. It is EKEE. 
Strairberrij Specialists J. T. LOVETT, Inc. 
for iO years. Box 162, Little Silver, N. J. 
Books Worth Reading 
Animal Breeding, Shaw. 1.50 
Breeding Farm Animals, Marshall.. 1.50 
Principles of Breeding, Davenport.. 2.50 
Cheese Making, Van Slyke. 1.75 
Business of Dairying, Lane. 1.25 
Clean Milk, Winslow. 3.25 
Dairy Chemistry, Snyder. 1.00 
Dairy Farming. Michels. 1.00 
Handbook for Dairymen. Woll. 1.50 
Milk and Its Products, Wing. 1.50 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
333 WEST 30th ST., NEW YORK. 
