106S 
Farmers’ Institutes in Ohio 
An Appreciation of Their Value 
TTOCESSFUL RESULTS.— The li. N.-Y, raises the 
question of the reoreanization of farmers' insti¬ 
tutes in New York State. It might he of sojue value 
to make a few definite statements relative to the 
tthio plan, which lias jiroved to he effective to tin* 
extent of having an attendance of i )01,2.'15 in the 
season of 1016-17, and last season, under almost im¬ 
possible travel and furious weather conditions, of 
over 85 per cent of the attendance of the previous 
year. Formerly the institute department was under 
the management of the State F.oard of Agriculture, 
said board having full power of control over all the 
agricultural interests of the State. 
CONTINUOUS rROORF-SS.—T'nder this plan 
our institutes were conducted for a series of years 
with a continuous progress ami solidarity. If poli¬ 
tics ever played a game it was not strong enough 
to lessen the intei’est and the contidence of the 
people in the system. Under the auspices of the 
State Hoard of Agriculture not only real farm lu-ac- 
tlces were given h.v the speakers, hut em]>hasis jiliiced 
upon the endeavor of societ.v in a 
large way, educntional. social, civic 
service. While this plan was 
populai’ three years ago a law was 
passed by the I.egislature transferring 
the institute department from the 
State Board of Agiiculture to the 
Ohio State Univer.sity. It -is highly 
creditable to the univer.sity how they 
i-eceived this additional work, and 
carried it on without a ripple, making 
it jirst a little stronger hero and 
tliere. For instance, how plainly the 
University saw the necessit.v and 
Itracticability of appointing a re.al 
farmer as director of institutes in the 
personage of F. I/. Allen. ^Ij*. Allen 
has operated a farm in i)erson for 
yeai’S. For a number of years a strong 
lecturer on -the force, in his insti¬ 
tute work he h.as covered the entire 
State. He knows the peojile. 'Their 
life is his life: his life is their lifi‘. AYhy sliould not 
such a farm representative he made 1 drector of 
Faianers’ Institutes? 
PLANNIXU THE WORK.—Dining the institute 
season the director visits each count.v, calls in the 
Itresidents and .secretaries of the institutes, and an 
advi.sor.y session is held I’elative to next season’s 
demands. In this form the university puts its hoiio. 
.and as well places a direct responsibility on the 
officers of each institute. The institute speakers 
are divided into two clas.ses. known as two-daj- 
speakers, and one-day .specL-ilists, the latter con¬ 
sisting of women speakers and specialists, altermiting 
between two nearh.v inslitutes. 
THE INSTITUTE FORCE.—The force is made 
lip in part from the staff (>f the Ohio State Uni¬ 
versity, and of the Wooster Experiment Station, the 
greater number being men Avho are engaged in 
f.arming in the rough. In other Avords, our insti¬ 
tutes come out of the real lives of our people. An 
exceptionally strong feature of the Ohio plan is the 
exening .se.ssion which has found favor Avith all 
classes, one lecture in .general being given then, and 
local talent rendering a literary and musical 
programme. 
■ AN EDUCATIONAL BASIS.—One outstanding 
p(dic.v of the Ohio plan, constituting in a lar,ge sen.se 
its base, is that it seek.s to Iniild up a sound societ.A', 
so the institutes as an institution c.an see above the 
mere thing of increasing production, to make mone.v, 
important :is it m;iy ho. Tlmice a fr.-ink discussion. 
Zjhe RURAI^ NEW-YORKER 
AA’hich .always evolves a reform programme of such 
j.rohlems as the church, the school, moral and social 
values, insidrational moA'enients in society, sale and 
disfriluition of farm products relath-e to profit and 
loss. This has had something, at the least, to do 
with the progress of our peojile in Ohio. Our ma- 
tciaal environment h.as radicall.v altered on the 
farm, and oiir ideals of environment have changed 
I er<a>pi iidy, and now Avhether or not we can ad.apt 
ourselves to the nexA' situation is a problem. The 
Slate th.at can .see far enough in the establishment of 
.a farmers’ institute as a real help to the soundness 
of our race, and our institution has a telling vision. 
Y.an Wei t Co., O. ,t. av. xicodkmcs. 
Growing Cabbage Seed 
■Will you tidl us luxw cabbage seed is groxxm? Would 
it be i>ossible to start early cabbage iu the Spring from 
s('ed and produce a seed crop the same siaisonV 
II. L. .T. 
KLTURAL METHODS.-The eahhago is a hi- 
ennial, and ordinarily produces its seeds the 
second year, from plants groxvn the previous se.ason, 
and ennioil throii.gli the Winter in cold frames, or 
in ])its made for the purpose, or in ordinary cellar 
storage. Tn the South they m.iy la* left iu tlH> open 
fields. Tn the North, lioAAex'er, it is extremely dilli- 
ciilt to carry OA'cr the matured he.ids in such .a con¬ 
dition that they Avill continue their groxvtli the fol- 
loAving sea.son, and I doiiht if it is possible to do so 
xvith the early crop of early A'arieties. The common 
method of groAvin.g cabbage .seed is to soxv tlie seed 
some time betxxeen tlie first of .Tune and the middle 
of September, according to variety and latitude, hut 
associating tlie.se txx-o f,actors in such a m.aiiner that 
the plants shall have their hiaids axtII formed, hut 
not devoloiiod, by the time th.at killing frosts may 
lie expected to appear. Nltr.ate of soda is largely 
used iu fertilizing them during this period. After 
the first seA-ere frosts come the plants are taken np 
carefully and either set iu the cold frames, Avhere 
they are protected by tlie sashes, and by straxv or 
matting, if necessary, or set iu trenches, banked to 
their heads Avith earth, and further protected from 
sex'ero freezing bj' a coA’cring of straxA-, or other m.a- 
terial Avhlcli will not pack .so heavily as to siilfooato 
them. Or they are sonietinies set upon a cold, d.-irk 
cellar bottom and their roots well coA’ered with 
earth. This method, hoxvever, calls for a good deal 
of collar space, and is not often practiced except on 
a small scale. In the Siiring the plants are set in 
the open field or garden, iu xvell-prepared soil, and 
fertilized heavil.v AX’ith hnth iiul.-ish ;ind phosidinric 
;ichl. The potash gix-es strength to the .seed stalks, 
and the iihos])hnric .acid jinunutt's tin* gruxvth uf the 
fioxvoi's and the development of the seeds. More 
nitrogen than is contained in ordinary garden .soil 
is not needed at this stage of the game. 
THE FLOWERIND riORTOD.— Each plant should 
h(' alloxvod from VJ to 20 .siiunre fe<»t of space, accord¬ 
ing to size of variety. This calls for roAvs from 
four to tlA'e feet apart, Avith plants from three, to 
four foet a]iart in the roxvs. IMammoth IMarblehe.ad 
xvill need even more room. If the plants have xvin- 
tered well, growth Avill soon begin, and seed stalks 
will soon appear. With the late, hard-headed A'arie- 
tie.s, it is often adA’is.ahle to split the heads into 
quarters, to :ilh>w the siK'd stalks to emerge more 
readily. But. with tlu' o.trly and soft A’arieties, 
splitting is .seldom practiced, .•ind I helieA'e th.at it 
is never absolutely neees.sary. Great care should bo 
taken not to injure the buds, .and the novice will do 
bettor not to attempt splitting the heads until he 
has observed the liahits of groAvtli of the seeil stalks 
that develop naturally. Stakes, similar to bean 
poles, and from five to seven foiT in length, should 
be .set. one at each corner, and. as the .stalks make 
grexvfh. strings should be AX’onnd around the stakes 
in .such .a innnnor as to inclose ih(> stalks. Later, it 
m.ay ho necess.ary to cover Avith 
mo.s(inito netting, to protect the seed.s 
from the sentimentally protected 
lurds. 
ITARYESTTNG THE SEED.—Cab¬ 
bage seeds do not develop or rijien 
evenly, and it Avill be nece.ssary to go 
over the ])huit.s soA-eral times aa-Iiou 
harvesting. When half or tAX-o-thirds- 
of the pods upon a hr.ancii have be- 
conu' xvoll hroxvnod and partially 
yelloxA’, siieli branches or stalks .should 
be cut and Laid upon sheets to ripen 
further. When thoroughly ripe and 
dry, they are thrashed, Avitli a ma¬ 
chine designed for the purpose, if 
groxvn on a siiffieiently large sc.ale, 
and xvilh a flail or ixonnder if groxvn 
iu less (piantitie.s. 'fhe seeds separate 
e.isily from the hulls, and may he 
laihlxod out by hand, if the quantity 
is not too great. They are then xviii- 
noxved to si'par.ate them fi-om the chaff, and should 
he run ox-er a fine meshed screen to remox-o the 
small .and inferior seed. The .aA’erage yield is not 
far from a quarter of a pound of Avell-sereened seed 
per ]»hnit. Sometimes it is more, but often, and 
jierhaps more often, it is less. But this aA'crage 
xvill give a yield of ahoA’o 500 pounds of .seed per 
acre; the retail price of cabbage .seed during the 
]iast season has been from .‘?2.,"0 to .$:! per pound, 
.and a good deal more for some of the highly adver- 
ti.sed A'arieties. 
CROSS-BOT;LTN.VTTON. — Cabbages Avill cros.s- 
liolloiiizo readily among the different varietie.s, and 
the.v Avill hybridize readily AX'ith tiirniiis. canlitlower, 
Brussels sprouts, mustard, kale. and. in fact, Avith 
all species of the same f.amily, and these hybrid 
seeds giA’O AA'orthle.ss ])hints, or none at all. Hence, 
in sotting Iho ]ilants care must ho taken that the.v 
.are pl.anted by tliem.selves. and. in ciiltiA'.ation. no 
xvlid mustard must he alloAA'e*! to blossom in the 
vicinity. 
EARLY Y.VRTETTES.- It is iiossible that the early 
varieties of cabbage, if planted early enough, and 
set in the field soon enough, may ripen seed before 
the frosts come. The doA-elopinont of seed may bo 
considerably hastened by refraining from cultiva¬ 
tion. and further by ]ilantrng a cover crop of radishes, 
or other quick-groxving A'egetables around the idants. 
This xvill interfere Avitli the xx'ater .supply, and thii.s 
checlv tin' growth of tin* c.ahhage pl.ants. and c.anse 
tliein to throw their stnuigth into the iirodui-rion of 
A Good fitart Toward Handlhif/ the Fuel Sitnatioii. Fif/. 5S0 
Tractor in a New ifampnhire Cornfield M'orkinf/ a (Uirn Harvester. Fif). 531 
