Ihe RURAL NEW-YORKER 
463 
Horticultural Short Cuts 
Home-grown Potato Seed 
I notice very few farmers around my 
farm grow their own seed potatoes. T 
asked the reason, and got the answer, 
that potato seed grown on the same farm 
would not produce good crops. Assuming 
they have the best care, the finest hills 
marked off. and the good potatoes saved 
from those-hills, saved for the next sea¬ 
son's planting, should they not produce 
good crops under normal conditions? The 
district is Eastern Massachusetts, near 
New Hampshire boundary. I have been, 
like them, buying my seed. E. R. w. it. 
If you follow the plan outlined in 
your letter there is no reason -why your 
potatoes shouldn’t be just as good for 
•seed as any you can buy. Your climate 
is one which produces excellent seed 
potatoes, as they usually do not get too 
mature before they are dug. Farmers 
in New England who are careful to follow 
hill selection have no trouble with their 
potatoes. There is no reason why Maine 
potatoes should be any better, except for 
careful selection. E. i. F. 
Grafting Plums and Apples 
Can plums be grafted, and if so what 
time in the Spring can it be done? What 
time of the year do you graft apples? 
Milton, Pa. H. w. M. 
Plums can be grafted, and with suc¬ 
cess. Plum trees may be top-worked ex¬ 
actly as apple trees are. the new scions 
being set in the old tops, either as buds 
iii late Summer or as grafts in early 
Spring. Grafting must always be done 
before the leaves start on (he scions. 
Cleft-grafting, as described previously 
through these columns, is the simplest 
method to employ. If the grafting is to 
be done after the leaves start on the stock 
in the Spring scions should be secured 
previously and placed in a cool cellar to 
keep them dormant. The same is true 
when top-working the apple. The same 
time applies to the apple. t. ii. t. 
was very difficult 
would not adhere 
fingers and come 
Grafting Wax in Cold Weather 
I feel like helping C. ,7. C. on page 268. 
as well as others who read The R. N.-Y. 
In the Spring of 1610 here in 
Northern Ohio we were hit with many 
cloudy days and cold winds. Grafting 
; wood so chilled wax 
to the wood, stick to 
- — - loose from the limbs. 
This had to be overcome in some way. I 
took good strong muslin, tore it into inch 
strips, melted my wax to a boiling point, 
submerged a strip, took a burnt match and 
began to wind or roll up my tape, drag¬ 
ging tape over edge of pan. occasionallv 
scraping surplus wax off the upper side 
of the tape with a small paddle. With 
the warm tape I wrapped the stub or 
cleft w r ell, proceeding with the work. I 
had excellent success. Further I niav add 
I made a wire rig to fit over the top of 
lantern, holding a small pan in which I 
kept warm (from lighted lantern) about 
a half dozen small rolls of tape. Remem¬ 
ber tape should be cut with a sharp knife 
before it may cause damage, say the sec¬ 
ond Spring. w. s. c. 
Transplanting Native Laurel 
. Could you give me some information 
m regard to transplanting wood laurel? 
Some gardeners tell me it cannot be done 
with good results. e. j. t. 
The American laurel, scientifically 
known as Kalmia latrfolia. is a fine orna¬ 
mental shrub, and can be transplanted 
either early in the Fall or in the Spring. 
Be careful to get as much of the root as 
possible, and transplant to a sandy or 
Peaty soil. Both clay and limestone soils 
are objectionable to this species of plants. 
Mulch the newly set plants with decayed 
leaves the first season, as this will keep 
the roots from drying out in Summer and 
from the frost in Winter. We spade in 
well-decayed leaves around the plants, as 
that type of soil is found in its native 
habitat. j. H. T. 
WANT TO KNOW 
Taking a Houseboat Trip 
I am planning on a houseboat trip on 
the Hudson River this Summer, and de¬ 
sire some information. I naturally come 
to you for it. as you have helped me out 
before. I desire to start as far north as 
possible. Would I be able to buy a second 
hand boat? About what would one cost 
new, also second-hand? What power 
launch would it take to pull it. and about 
what that cost? Would I pass manv 
towns along the river that would have a 
population of f500 or less. Probably there 
is among your many readers a person 
who has taken this trip who can give me 
some good information. I have taken 
two overland trips and find them hard 
work, and desire to take a trip where I 
can get more rest. x. L. s. 
. —Taking our readers collect¬ 
ively it is safe to say that some among 
them have been everywhere and done 
everything. Houseboat trips are out of 
our personal line, but we have no doubt 
some member of the familv may be called 
an expert. If we are right' will they 
kindly tell us all about it? 
Look for the RED LINE ’round the top 
It’s a Goodrich Shoe, the Brown 4-buckle 
Gaiter, and it is All Rubber—no cloth top. 
Wear it right over your shoe, and whep you 
come in from the field or barn, douse a bucket 
of water over it and it’s cleaned. Then a click 
of the buckles and off she slips—and you go 
into the house clean and dry. But Wear is the 
big feature. It is Goodrich Rubber—and that 
means fifty years of experience backed by a 
square deal policy. 60,000 dealers sell it—ask 
yours for Goodrich next time. 
the b. F. Goodrich Rubber Company, Akron, Ohio 
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Dept. 34 45 W. 34th St., New Yorl 
