1184 
The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
.Tilly 10, 1920 
SPREADERS 
Manure Is Valuable 
—Use A Spreader 
A LARGE part of the value of manure is lost because of improper 
handling. Manure that has been allowed to stand more than a 
day or two begins to lose rapidly in fertility elements; and manure that 
is improperly spread loses much of its value to the farmer. 
The only way to overcome this—to put back into the soil as much as 
possible of what your crops take from it—to save the cost of expensive 
fertilizers—to reduce the time and labor required in spreading—is to 
use a manure spreader. 
Famous Ohio Spreaders are backed by forty years of successful manu¬ 
facturing experience and are made by one of the oldest farm implement 
companies in America, 
Your dealer will be glad to tell you about 
the many points which make Famous 
Ohio the truly built-to-last spreaders. 
These are the reasons why they are the 
best for you to buy. 
Made in two styles—Bellevue No. 10 
and Ohio No. 15. 
Transfer stocks at convenient 
points insure prompt delivery 
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c 
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SOON PAYS 
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v 0,1 numerous Agricultural Experiment Farms and at State Agricultural Colleges. 
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Not Expensive to Own and Run 
Write for onr catalog, tell us how much grain yon average and we’U gnggost 
a proper outfit and quote a price that will make you decide to have a Gray 
Thresher this year. 
A. W. Gray’s Sons, Inc., Box A-3, Poultney, Vt. 
Factory at Middletown Spring* 
Garden and Poultry 
. . . .. — . - - - 
Planting Potato Sprouts 
Would it be of any use to set out 
sprouts from potatoes? Mine have 
sprouted, and, of course, these are broken 
off as we plant. I have read of their 
being planted, but have no knowledge of 
bow it should be done. L. B. s. 
Oxford, N. Y. 
Yes and no. The ordinary long white 
sprouts which come on potatoes in cool, 
moist cellars are worthless for planting 
purposes. They are too soft or succulent, 
and are without the green coloring mat¬ 
ter (chlorophyl) which is necessary for 
proper plant growth. Short, stocky 
sprouts that are partly green and have 
roots started near the base will grow and 
produce small potatoes during the grow¬ 
ing season, under favorable weather con¬ 
ditions. With a hot, dry season no sprout 
will live through. It is not a worth¬ 
while proposition for any commercial 
grower to bother with the potato sprouts. 
T. H. T. 
Control of the Radish Maggot 
On page 1109 W. W. B. asks for a 
remedy for the radish maggot which is 
boring into arid destroying his radishes. 
This maggot is the larvae of a small fly, 
said by some to be identical with the fly 
'bat produces the cabbage root-maggot. 
This may be true, and I am not high 
enough in entomological science to dis¬ 
pute it. At the same time I do not be¬ 
lieve it. for the feeding habits of the two 
maggots are entirely different; but this 
does not matter so far as the gardener is 
concerned, for both are controlled by the 
same remedies. The adult insect is a 
small fly. much resembling the house-fly, 
but smaller. It deposits its eggs, usually 
upon the stem of the plants, burrowing a 
short distance into the soil in order to do 
so. These hatch in about a week, the 
time depending somewhat upon the 
weather, and in the case of the radish 
maggot, the little worms burrow into the 
root, thus forming irregular channels in 
all directions, but immediately beneath 
the skin. The cabbage maggot, on the 
contrary, contents itself with cutting off 
the feeding roots which radiate from the 
main stem. The cabbage plant shows in¬ 
festation by wilting and drooping to the 
ground, but the trouble with the radish 
is not easily discernible until the root is 
pulled. The mechanical methods of con¬ 
trol consist of an extra deep plowing and 
a complete rotation of crops. Also, in 
small plantations, the beds are sometimes 
screened with cheesecloth. The preven¬ 
tive method consists of the placing of 
some substance around the plants that is 
repulsive to the insects, and thus per¬ 
suading them to emigrate to a neighbor’s 
garden. For this purpose there is nothing 
better than fine, dry sand, well moistened 
with kerosene. Several applications will 
be necessary during the season. As for 
myself. I prefer to kill the maggots. And 
this I do by saturating the soil with 
tobacco water. 
My method is to steep a 10-cent plug 
<>f tobacco in several waters, or until its 
strength is fully extracted. Then I add 
enough water to make about 10 gallons 
of the decoction. Then I remove the 
strainer from a watering pot, fill the can 
with the decoction, and pour over each 
row in a solid stream, and in quantity 
sufficient to thoroughly saturate the soil 
as deep as the roots extend. Another 
remedy in high favor among the Canadian 
gardeners, but which I have not fried per¬ 
sonally, consists of corrosive sublimate at 
the rate of oue ounce dissolved in six 
gallons of water, and still another con¬ 
sists of an emulsion of one pint of car¬ 
bolic acid, one pound of soap and twp 
gallons of water, both applied in the same 
manner as the first. C. 0. ormsbee. 
Nut-grass as a Garden Weed 
Specimen of a weed sent you appeared 
to some extent in our half-acre garden 
two years ago. The plot was plowed with 
tractor in the Fall and disked very thor¬ 
oughly in the Spring. This Spring it cov¬ 
ers a very large part of the area and 
threatens adjoining fields. How can we 
fight this pest? S. p. P. 
Skaneateles, N. Y. 
The weed in question is the yellow nut- 
grass. an extremely troublesome member 
of the sedge family. It does not usually 
spread in well-drained land, so that drain¬ 
ing is advised as one method of control, 
but it often appears in low cultivated 
ground that has recently been drained. It 
spreads by little tubers ou. the under¬ 
ground roots, as well as by seed. Frequent 
hoeing throughout the season is a remedy, 
and where possible thick seeding with 
clover or Timothy. Fence rows and cor¬ 
ners should be kept clean. The spread is 
rapid if this plant is undisturbed. 
Leg Weakness in Chicks 
I have 500 White Leghorn chicks three 
weeks old, and they seem to have weak 
legs. I have a double brooder, oue side 
dirt floor, and it has never been over 90 
degrees in the house. I have been giving 
roup remedy and white diarrhoea remedy 
in the drinking water. I have been feed- 
in on buttermilk, growing feed and have 
added a little beef scrap to (hat, also give 
them hen scratch feed, as little chick feed 
did not fill them up. They eat the feed 
up clean. Do you think that would cause 
leg weakness? The chicks that have 
weak legs eat well. What could I do for 
them? J. w. M. 
Virginia. 
Chicks that are long confined to a 
brooder-house will develop leg weakness, 
no matter how fed. The best preventive 
that I know of is to get the chicks out 
upon the ground as soon after hatching 
as possible; not later than two weeks at 
the furthest. There seems to be some¬ 
thing needed for the development of the 
chick and the maintenance of its vitality 
to be found only in contact, with the 
earth, and earth brought to the chick in¬ 
doors does not seem to supply the need. 
If a grass run can be provided, this should 
by all means be given; but the chicks 
should at least have access to clean, un¬ 
contaminated soil upon which to run and 
in which to dig. and that as soon as prac¬ 
ticable after they leave the incubator. 
M. B. D. 
Feeding Pullets and Ducklings 
What kind of mash should young 
pullets three months old be given? 
We expect a batch of young ducklings in 
about a week or so. How should we keep 
them, go about thorn, and feed them? 
Tuckahoe, N. Y. g. e. 
Pullets at three months of age should 
have the same mash given laying hens, 
a good formula for which is as follows: 
Equal parts, by weight, of eornmeal. 
wheat bran, middlings, ground oats and 
beef scrap. 
If to be kept in a brooder, these duck¬ 
lings should not be allowed to become 
chilled or overheated and should have 
plenty of clean, dry litter at all times. 
They should have shade, an abundance 
of fresh air and fresh water before them, 
but not enough of the water for swimming 
purposes before they are fully feathered 
at eight or ten weeks of age. After 36 
hours they should be fed four times daily, 
and stale bread squeezed from sweet milk 
may be used for the first few days. After 
that a .mash similar to the following is 
suitable': Two parts wheat bran, one 
of middlings, one of eornmeal. to which 
five per cent of sand or chick grit and 
five per cent of sifted beef scrap is added. 
Green stuff should be added to this mash 
to the extent of one-third of the whole. 
One breeder uses for the first two or three 
days two parts wheat bran, one-half part 
middlings, one part eornmeal and five per 
cent sand. Cracked corn and wheat may 
be fed after six or seven weeks. Over¬ 
feeding should be avoided and plenty of 
opportunity for exercise should be af¬ 
forded. M. B. D. 
Diarrhoea in Chicks 
What are the causes of looseness of 
bowels in very young chicks? O. H. 
New Jersey. 
Looseness of the bowels in young chicks 
may be caused by digestive disturbances 
from improper conditions in brooding; 
overheating, chilling, dirt and dampness 
in quarters, etc.; by disturbances of di¬ 
gestion due to improper feeding, moldy or 
otherwise spoiled food, food containing an 
excess of indigestible matter, improperly 
prepared food, sloppy mashes, excessive 
and irregular feeding or the feeding of 
foods not adapted to the needs of the 
chick, and. finally, by disease. Most se¬ 
rious of the causes in the latter class is 
bacillary white diarrhoea, a contagious 
germ disease introduced into the flock by 
transmission through the egg from in¬ 
fected breeding stock or by transmission 
through contact with other diseased 
chicks, or utensils or quarters used by 
such chicks. When diarrhoea appears in 
a flock of voung chicks, the cause should 
be looked for among the first mentioned. 
Failing to find it there, the presence of 
white diarrhoea should be considered as a 
possibility and an investigation to deter¬ 
mine its possible presence and source 
should be conducted. If present it may 
be expected to cause a considerable num¬ 
ber of fatalities within the first. four 
weeks of the chicks’ lives and to seriously 
deplete the strength and vigor of thp sur¬ 
vivors. M. B. D. 
Creosote Paint for Henhouse 
What do you think of painting the in¬ 
side of a poultry-house with creosote? 
Would it he proof against lice and mites, 
and would it be offensive to rats? Would 
it be offensive to chickens? G. C. c. 
Kansas. 
Painting or spraying the interior of a 
poultry-house with creosote would cer¬ 
tainly destroy all lice and mites with 
which the liquid came in contact, and it 
would make the premises very unpleasant 
for them for some time afterward. The 
fumes, however, would be irritating to the 
fowls for some little time, unless the 
house could be kept well opened. Prob¬ 
ably no rat would be sufficiently disturbed 
by the odor to forego any trip that prom¬ 
ised him a good meal. M. B. D. 
“Are you the plumber?” asked Mrs. 
Cooke. “Yes. ma’am. I’m the plumber, all 
right.” “Well.” she replied, “I just want 
to caution you to exercise care when do¬ 
ing your work. All my floors are highly 
polished and in perfect condition.” “Oh, 
don’t worry about me slippin’, lady. 
I’ve got nails in me shoes.”—Everybody s. 
