<Iht RURAL. NEW-YORKER 
907 
Notes from the Mail 
Ouo of our readers says he bought 
what he supposed was a lot of seed oats 
and planted them as usual As they came 
up he fiuds about half of the crop is bar- 
lev. He wants to know if this grain is 
fit for horse feed. It certainly is; barley 
is one of the best grains for feeding stock. 
Many of the finer race horses are fed on 
barley and barley hay, as their owners 
find this best for their use. We should 
go ahead and cut the oats and barley to¬ 
gether, either green as. a hay crop or to 
be thrashed out as grain. 
# * * 
Several readers are starting a garden 
for the first time, and they seem to be 
puzzled over the fertilizer question. They 
want to know if nitrate of soda alone will 
answer. We should not depend on ni¬ 
trate only. One of the commercial mix¬ 
tures containing all three of the food ele¬ 
ments will be much better. Nitrate will 
force a heavy growth of stem a id leaf, 
but both potash and phosphate are needed 
to perfect the crop. We should use the 
mixed fertilizer rather than the nitrate. 
Several of these people also ask about 
the use of salt on asparagus. The chief 
reason for using it is the fact that the 
salt will destroy many weeds without in¬ 
juring the asparagus ; on most other plants 
the salt would prove injurious. Salt is 
not a necessity for the asparagus plant, 
as many seem to believe. Its chief value 
is as a weed-killer. The asparagus was 
originally a salt-water plant; therefore, 
it can endure an application of salt where 
other plants would fail. 
* * * 
A reader asked if a combination of ni¬ 
trate of potash and acid phosphate would 
not make an ideal fertilizer for all crops. 
It would be excellent for some crops, 'but 
not so useful for others. For grass or 
grain, fruit and garden truck this combi¬ 
nation would work well, as all the ele¬ 
ments would be soluble, and thus quickly 
available. For a crop like corn or pota¬ 
toes, or any other long-growing crop 
which continues all through the season 
a quantity of organic nitrogen in some 
form would be desirable. By adding dried 
blood or tankage to the nitrate of potash 
and the phosphate a better combination 
would be made, especially for those crops 
which make their largest growth in the 
latter part of the season, during the hot 
weather. 
* * * 
We have many letters from people who 
want to know where they can sell tim¬ 
ber, such as black walnut, birch, maple 
or oak. In many cases farmers have sev¬ 
eral acres of dead chestnut, and they 
think they can sell it as firewood. Gen¬ 
erally speaking, better figures can be ob¬ 
tained from local dealers. The big deal¬ 
ers in New York and other large cities 
handle a good deal of timber, but trans¬ 
portation charges are very heavy, and 
there is some risk in handling. As a 
rule, unless a man is a very good judge 
of timber and can finance an operation 
properly, he would better sell to some 
local dealer. As for dead chestnut for 
fuel, there is practically no demand for 
it here. During the war, when coal was 
scarce, some of this chestnut was sold. 
When thoroughly dried out and split fine 
it has a market for kindling wood, but 
generally speaking it is too soft for good 
fuel. Fence posts from dead chestnut 
will usually bring a fair price. 
* * * 
The old question about killing brush 
and small trees comes up again. Many 
farmers believe that this cutting should 
be done in the full of the moon. We 
never believed there was anything in 
that, but the best time to destroy or 
weaken such brush is to cut it in late 
August or early September. The theory 
(tf this is that the brush and small trees 
have made their full growth at that sea¬ 
son. Their roots are well exhausted. If 
left to themselves the brush will spend 
the rest of the season getting ready for 
next year’s growth by storing up nourish¬ 
ment in the roots. If they are cut right 
at that time nature forces them to make 
new growth in order to repair the dam¬ 
age. They do this at the expense of the 
roots, already about worked out. The 
result is that the brush or tree goes into 
Winter unprepared, and in the Spring 
they make only a feeble growth, or die 
out. It would be not unlike a woodchuck 
going into his Winter quarters thin and 
poor, lie never would survive. If you 
wanted to handle a man properly you 
would take him while he was exhausted 
and hungry. In like manner, by cutting 
the brush when the roots are low in vi¬ 
tality you are most likely to kill them 
out. 
* * * 
Now comes the season when people 
are asking how to clean vinegar and 
cider barrels, some of them quite foul 
and very hard to sweeten. Probably the 
most practical way is to throw into the 
barrel about two buckets of boiling water 
containing a good quantity of lye. Make 
a strong solution, and with an old broom 
or scrubbing brush, thoroughly scrub the 
inside of the barrel. Then, if possible, 
put the barrel over a jet of steam and 
thoroughly steam it for 15 minutes. The 
combination of hot lye and steam will 
clean up most of these barrels. Where 
steam cannot be obtained, a thorough 
spraying with boiling water will help, 
or if you have no spray pump, rinse the 
barrel out thoroughly with water as hot 
as you can get, after the scrubbing with 
One of our readers asks what is the 
reason for sowing buckwheat on an as¬ 
paragus bed. There would be two rea¬ 
sons for doing this. The buckwheat is a 
quick-growing, rank crop, and it will 
smother out quack grass and many other 
bad weeds if it gets a good start. The 
asparagus bed will be cleaner if the buck¬ 
wheat makes a good growth. Then, again, 
the buckwheat, when plowed under, either 
in the Fall or in the Spring, will add or¬ 
ganic matter to the soil, and with the 
use of fertilizer in addition, partly takes 
the place of manure. These would be 
two reasons for seeding buckwheat. 
# * * 
Several of our readers have asked us 
about preparing a strawberry bed for 
Fall planting, which would mean putting 
in the plants in late September. Several 
of them want to know if vetch can be 
seeded now so as to make enough of a 
growth for plowing under in preparing 
this bed. Vetch will not make the best 
Summer crop. It will not make growth 
enough during the few weeks before the 
ground is fitted. We should prefer a 
mixture of buckwheat and turnips. We 
should seed at the rate of two bushels to 
the acre and about 1 Yj lb. of ordinary 
white turnips. Let these seeds grow up 
together. They will make a heavy growth 
and can be plowed under in early Sep¬ 
tember, so as to add considerable organic 
matter to the soil. 
Treatment for Poison Ivy 
Chestnut leaves boiled so as to make a 
strong decoction will cure a case of ivy 
poison quicker than anything else T have 
ever heard of. I am a fair, thin-skinned 
person, very liable to infection. In 1887 
was badly poisoned, in bed two weeks 
under doctor’s care, no improvement. I 
tried the above on a friend’s advice; went 
to work five days after first application. 
Since then poison ivy has no terrors for 
me, as I use the above promptly and 
never have to stop my regular occupation. 
Use as a wash. M. it. H. 
Franklin, Pa. 
For several years past I have read with 
considerable interest the various remedies 
for ivy poisoning, some of which seem 
to be of a doubtful nature. I have boen 
waiting for someone to send in the sim¬ 
plest, surest and most effective of all 
cures for this trouble, but am commenc¬ 
ing to think that it is not generally known. 
It is simply hyposulphite of soda crystals 
dissolved in water, about 50 per cent so¬ 
lution. or stronger will do no harm, and 
the affected part bathed in its several 
times a day until the poisoning _ disap¬ 
pears. Hyposulphite of soda is the 
“hypo” used in photography, which may 
be bought at any drug store for a few 
cents per pound. I have used the “hypo” 
solution several times myself, both for 
ivy poisoning and for that of poison su¬ 
mac fRhus venenata), also called poison 
dogwood, poison oak. poison elder and 
mercury, and have told many people about 
it. In. no case have I ever known it to 
fail. The relief is almost instant, and it 
will cure cases of several days’ standing if 
the bathing is kept up faithfully, provided 
it has not got into the blood. It seems 
strange that this simple remedy is not 
better known, but I have never yet found 
a doctor or a druggist who knows of it, 
although they all admit it is harmless, 
and some of them have tried it with suc¬ 
cess since. I know this is a good thing, 
and I would like to pass it on, as I know 
that ivy or dogwood poisoning is no joke, 
particularly to some people, and they 
want to stop it as soon as possible. 
Massachusetts. harry c. lake. 
The best remedy is not to be poisoned. 
This suggestion, like the cure, will be con¬ 
sidered radical by many persons, and will 
probably be taken with the proverbial 
grain of salt. My good fathor-in-'aw, be¬ 
fore handling this weed, ate one or two 
small, young leaves, then handled the 
ivy with bare hands with impunity. Ilis 
father before him did the same thing. The 
ivy never troubled me or members of my 
family; otherwise I would eat the leaves 
without hesitation. This suggestion is 
based on facts, and is offered in good faith 
without a guarantee. 
New Jersey. Nathaniel butler. 
It. N.-Y.—We have heard this sugges¬ 
tion before, but hesitate to print it. If 
any reader wants to experiment with it, 
he must know that we do not advise it. 
Cleansing Spray for Cellar 
Can you advise me what spray material 
to use on cellar walls as a germicide 
and mosquito killer? I want something 
that can be sprayed on with pump hav¬ 
ing a nozzle suitable for spraying fruit, 
but not suitable for spraying any liquid 
with sediment in it, such as whitewash. 
Swarthmore, Pa. N. s. i*. 
The best way to keep mosquitos out of 
the cellar is to screen the windows and 
door, provided the . mosquitoes are not 
breeding in water within the cellar itself. 
The use of kerosene on the. walls of the 
cellar would make it uncomfortable for 
the mosquito, but would increase the fire 
risk. T. J. H. 
Will \bu Have A'Lift’ 
If you have reason to oelieve, as 
many have, that a change from 
coffee or tea would be wise, try 
Postum Cereal 
You’ll find what thousands of 
others have found—complete sat¬ 
isfaction to taste, and freedom 
from harm to nerves or digestion 
When coffee or tea disturbs, it’s 
easy to get up where you belong, 
with Postum 
Theres a Reason ” 
99 
it 
Sold by grocers 
everywhere 
Made by 
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Battle Creek,Mich. 
*“*‘"•sawa■-—» 
x r Study your wheat 
»\ ^'”*1 threshing time ., 
/■iii, 
A 
O F course, you lire very busy 
then but it will pay you to 
take tim© to find out not 
only the yield but the real 
quality. 
Is the weight per struck bushel 
up to the standard? 
Does it grade high enough to 
bring the top price in your mar¬ 
ket? 
Is the weed seed box free from 
light chaffy wheat grains? 
Hag the clover and grass made a 
Rood get in the stubble? 
If not, why not? 
Six years of potash starvation 
lias had ita effect on wheat lands. 
Enough German Potash has now 
come forward, so that those who 
wish can buy wheat fertilizer 
with 4 to 6 per cent, of potash. 
Potash prices are now much 
lower. 
Tell your denier now what you 
want and insist on having it. 
Potash Pays 
SOIL AND CROP SERVICE, POTASH SYNDICATE, H. A. HUSTON, Mgr. 
42 Broadway New York 
Wagon and Hay Covers with eye. 
lets, Medium and Heavy Weights 
Plain and Waterproofed, made 
of a superior grade of Canvas. 
Best workmanship. Prompt de¬ 
liveries to all parts of (J. S. We 
prepay the charges. Money re¬ 
funded if not satisfied. Send 
postal for prices and samples. 
AMERICAN SAILMAKING CORP. 
Dept. R, 49&51 Fatten St., Brooklyn, New York 
>«tt 
CavatoC 
THE front clave 
TWB GRIFFIN SILO FAME! 
Continuous Open Door Front. Per¬ 
manent steel ladder attached. 
Size 8 x *0.$131.00 
“ 10 X 24. 191.28 
“ 12 X 26. 246.50 
Other sizes in proportion. 
GRIFFIN LUMBER CO. 
liox II 
HihImoii Fulls, N.Y. 
Roofing Products 
Best protection obtainable from fire, lightning, 
and storms. Made from A Polio-Keystone Sheets. 
Apollo-Keystovk Copper Steel Galvanized Sheets are the most durable 
rust-resistant sheets manufactured. Unequaled forCulverts, Silos.Tanks, 
E'lumes, Roofing, Etc. Sold by weight liy leading dealers. Look for tho 
Keystone added below regular trade mark. Keystone Copper Steel is also 
superior for Roofing Tin Plates. Send for “Better Buildings” booklet. 
AMERICAN SHEET AND TIN PLATE COMPANY. Frick Bide.. Pittsburgh, Pa. 
