Tht RURAL NEW-YORKER 
556 
Akron during their vacation iji an effort to secure 
more nearly wlmt it seemed that we ought to have 
for the crop. Accordingly we secured a temporary 
two weeks' lease of a small downtown store. A 
neighbor going f<> town with a large truck empty 
each day took in about 100 bushels at. a trip, charg¬ 
ing only one way. as he had a load coming back, so 
the hauling cost only from 5 cents to S cents per 
bushel. Mr. Cruikshank. of Columbus, who was in 
Akron, came over and helped arrange a nice window 
display, and the County Farm Bureau man. Mr. 
Hedges, gave us help. With a little advertising in 
the Akron papers, some lettering on the windows 
and our sign out. ‘The Apple Store.” we were soon 
sold out of apples, and got mostly around $2 per 
bushel, with no packages to pay for. as we charged 
extra for packages when the buyers failed to bring 
them, which they were advised to do in our adver¬ 
tisements. 
The business got so well started that we have used 
since tin* holidays around six carloads of New York 
apples and some purchased locally, and are now un¬ 
loading the seventh car. We have used up the culls 
very closely for eider, fresh made, by the gallon, and 
have also sold some potatoes, apple butter, maple 
syrup, etc. We made a little money ourselves, and 
our customers were mostly pleased, as we were sav¬ 
ing them a little money, and what is more, they soon 
learned that they Were getting good uniform grades, 
good varieties and liberal measure and weight if 
bought by the pound. There were scarcely a dozen 
bushels sold to dealers, for the consumers took them 
as fast as we could get them sorted up. The New 
York apples were far from being as satisfactory as 
our own. and whether bought in bulk or in barrels, 
it was necessary to sort carefully in three grades, 
selling at $2. $1.50 and a few at $1 per bushel, and 
below that for cider. Tn a later shipment we sorted 
out a good many extra nice Spy. selling at $1.50 
half bushel basket. It was necessary to do this to 
offset the cider grade we found in the middle of the 
barrels. I attribute a good deal of our success to 
this careful grading. If anyone wanted cheap apples 
we had them, but they were never mixed in with the 
better ones, and most buyers preferred the $1.50 and 
$2 grade, the baker using most of the cheaper grade 
Baldwins and Spy for pies, and later these have all 
gone for cider, as we get 50 cents a gallon for fresh 
cider, and that makes better than $1.25 per bushel 
for the apples. 
With all the apples going to waste in Western New 
York that I saw there after Winter had set in, I do 
not know what possible excuse there might he for 
sending out poor stuff. For a long time, after our 
own apples were all sold. I lacked a sufficient supply 
of fancy apples, and had to buy some Ohio Rome 
Beauty at $7.50 per barrel. Some fancy Western 
New York Baldwins and Spy would have been pre¬ 
ferable. but about three-fourths bushel on the end of 
the barrel was all I could get, as a rule, the rest 
sorting even down to cider apples. c. weckesser. 
Wayne Co.. O. 
Some Notes on Sweet Clover 
THINK the annual Sweet clover (“Hubam.” I 
believe), is undoubtedly a good thing for some 
purposes, but T think if a great pity that the biennial 
Sweet clover is neglected for the new thing that is 
• ' , 
supposed to redeem us from all our ills, like sacaline 
was going to do. The biennial Sweet clover will 
doubtless grow on any ground where the annual will 
grow, and is obtained so much easier, and with so 
little expense. With the annual a crop is lost, and 
a heavy expense is incurred in putting it in. while 
with the biennial it is simply sowed on top of Winter 
lye or Winter wheat, or with oats or barley. Then 
the next year the plant comes booming along, giving, 
I suppose, a much heavier yield in that year, because 
of its more substantial growth the year before than 
can possibly be had out of the annual. I know there 
has been a good deal of difficulty in raising Sweet 
clover in the East, but cannot see that there will be 
any less difficulty with the annual. The difficulties 
with Sweet clover are nearly all dissolved in lime, 
about two tons of lime per acre, in my judgment. 
Now 1 want to lay this thing on your mind and 
heart. Sweet clover for fertilizing purposes is in my 
judgment far better than Red clover, and 1 have had 
extensive experience with both, being the first man 
in North Dakota to raise Red clover on a commercial 
scale. It is hard to realize the great value of Sweet 
ciover when properly handled for pasture, for hay 
and for the soil. dattjs c. smith. 
R. N.-Y.—We are sure Mr. Smith is right in saying 
that this new “Ilnbam’' clover should not take all 
attention away from the old-fashioned Sweet clover. 
The latter is a very valuable crop, and never was 
fully appreciated by farmers. If it could be made 
to grow wild all over New England as it does, say 
around Onondaga County, N. Y., or along points of 
the Brand Trunk Railroad in Canada, it would have 
doubled the farm possibilities of that section. With 
lime and Sweet clover New England could be made 
nearly self-supporting. The chief argument among 
owners of small farms in favor of this "Hubam” 
clover is that it will make its full growth in one 
season. A large farm like Mr. Smith's, with many 
acres, probably does not realize that on the smaller 
Eastern farms we want quick action in our fertilizers 
and in our cover crops, and this the new clover seems 
ready to give. For it is true that the chief value of 
this “Hubam" in this section will be as a manorial 
plant, and not. as in the West, as a plant for hay or 
pasture. While our farmers are waiting for seed of 
this new clover to come down to a workable price, 
they may well seed all they can of the old-fashioned 
Sweet clover. 
Iowa Experience 
I could tell as big a story as you ever heard about 
the annual white Sweet clover, yet there are a few 
perplexing questions that come to me. I found at 
least a dozen different types of plants in this clover. 
The majority of the plants are late in maturing; 
some never bloomed at all. It seems to me that a 
A Family of Hand-raised Pigs. Fig . 221 
lot of plant breeding and selection will be needed to 
segregate and fix the desirable types for different 
sections of the country, and for different purposes. 
What are these little slow-growing plants going to 
do when the seed is sown broadcast, and they have 
to fight with weeds or a nurse crop? Will they come 
on and produce a seed crop? So far as I know, the 
plants have been coddled and nursed in the garden. 
Will we always have to do that to get a seed crop? 
Iowa. HARLOW ROCIvHILL. 
R. N.-Y.—We noticed the same “sporting” or 
mix-up of strains in our own crop. There seemed to 
be a dozen or more distinct types. Here surely is 
great work for the plant breeders. We want to know 
all we can about the behavior of this new clover 
when seeded under real farm conditions. 
An Old Subscriber 
A T Fig. 221 is shown one of our oldest sub¬ 
scribers, Mr. J. H. Whipple, of Chautauqua 
County, New York. Mr. Whipple did not know that 
the picture was being taken, so we have him in a 
perfectly natural position. The little pigs shown at 
his feet were raised by hand. The mother would 
not own them, and Mr. Whipple took them in hand 
and gave a very successful performance in the capa¬ 
city of nurse. These little fellows are now doing 
well. Had there been no one on the place to take 
special pains with them, they never would have lived. 
Mr. Whipple’s grandson stands nearby watching the 
pigs, and he appears to be a “chip of the old block.” 
April 9, 1921 
The Early Carrot Crop 
OW IT IS HANDLED.—Just as soon as the 
ground can be prepared we shall plant an acre 
of early carrots, not because carrots are a healthful 
food for the city folks, but because we usually make 
a nice profit from that crop. Furthermore, we can 
harvest that crop to advantage. It is ready for the 
market after strawberries and early peas, and before 
early tomatoes and early sweet corn. We have 
never bunched carrots, but have sold them topped, 
washed and neatly packed in bushel baskets. The 
yield is usually from 300 to GOO bushels per acre, de¬ 
pending upon the “early price.” That is. if the price 
is very high early the crop is harvested before it 
reaches its maximum growth and yield. Don't ask 
me the selling price. Like all farm produce, if you 
have a very small quantity the price is usually fine, 
but if you have a good yield you might have to feed 
several bushels to the horses, tops and all. 
PLANTING.—The soil is usually prepared by ap¬ 
plying a broadcasting of manure, which is plowed 
under. The ground is harrowed and from 1,500 to 
2 000 lbs. of high-grade fertilizer (4-S-6) is broad¬ 
cast and harrowed in. Then the planker or smooth¬ 
ing harrow is run over the soil to smooth the surface 
for the seed drill. The seed is drilled in rows 20 in. 
apart, % in. deep, using 2 lbs. of Chantenay carrot 
seed per acre. 
FORCING QUICK GROWTH.—As soon as the car¬ 
rots are y> in. high the wheel-hoes are run through 
with the knives set “dangerously close” together, 
thereby reducing the laborious task of weeding. 
From this time on the tiny carrot seedlings must be 
kept growing rapidly if the crop is to be early and 
profitable. Early in the season the ground is cold 
and damp; the plant food, particularly the am¬ 
monia. is not in condition for use by the plants. 
Ammonia, or nitrogen, is the ingredient that forces 
growth when the soil is well supplied with phos¬ 
phoric acid and potash. Therefore, just before the 
first cultivation we make a side-dressing of sulphate 
of ammonia. 200 lbs. per acre. This material is 
easily applied broadcast by hand when the carrot 
seedlings are small and dry. 
THINNING AND WEEDING.—Thinning must be 
done before the seedlings crowd one another detri¬ 
mentally. Usually the best time for this work is 
when the seedlings are \y% in. high. At the same 
time the first weeding is done. Right here I must 
warn any prospective carrot grower that the inex¬ 
perienced operators are likely to take too much time 
in trying to do a careful job. Do it carefully, but 
do it quickly'. Simply grab out the weeds and extra 
carrot seedlings, leaving a stand of carrots “three 
fingers” apart. Some of the carrot seedlings re¬ 
tained may look weak and battered, hut they will 
recover quickly and start merrily on rheir way to 
perfection. More cultivation will be needed and a 
few scattering weeds may have to be pulled. How¬ 
ever, if the soil is in the right condition the carrot 
tops will develop so quickly that they will shade the 
ground and prevent weeds from getting started. 
HARVESTING.—At harvesting time a one-horse 
plow stripped of its moldboard is run under the rows 
to loosen the carrots. Then they are quickly pulled 
and ranked in windrows with all the tops to the 
right. The operators usually work with their knife 
in their right hand. As rapidly as they can grab 
each carrot with their left hand and sling it into the 
basket, the top is instantly cut off without bothering 
to turn the carrot. Usually the basket is laid down 
close to the left, so that each carrot can be flipped 
into it with a slight turn of the wrist. If you want 
to see speed, have each one pull* his own carrots and 
you keep account of the number of baskets each one 
harvests. Of course, you know who the fastest, 
workers are beforehand, but this scheme will make 
them all hustle. Furthermore, it is a good plan to 
give the slow workers the Best rows; then it will be 
a more even and interesting race. The foreman in 
charge can go from one to the other, keeping his eye 
on the quality of the work and help those that are 
behind. It is easy to keep account of the baskets 
when each one has definite rows and stands the 
filled baskets in line. 
BACKING FOR MARKET.—The carrots are 
washed in big tanks that hold about 25 bushels at a 
time. All split, broken or miserable shaped speci¬ 
mens are sorted out. Just as the employes are going 
home at night give each family a generous supply so 
that they won't be tempted to smuggle away the per¬ 
fect specimens, and then give the remainder of the 
culls to the horses. The hampers for market are 
filled nearly full and shaken down. Then carrots are 
laid all around the top with the big end against the 
rim of the basket. Two or three carrots are then 
laid in the center and the basket is ready for the 
cover. R. w. de baun. 
