Vh  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
277 
THE  value  of  legumes  as  sources  of  the  most  ex¬ 
pensive  elements  to  feed  both  our  soils  and  our 
animals  has  been  written  about  and  discussed  from 
nearly  every  angle  during  the  last  few  years,  until 
we  have  all  come  to  the  conclusion  that  the  last 
word  must  have  been  said.  Every  farmer  realizes, 
if  he  stops  to  think  at  all.  that  these  wonderful 
plants  are  our  best  friends.  We  know  that  they 
furnish  a  source  of  protein  in  our  feeding  ration, 
and  of  course  that  is  always  the  most  expensive 
element  to  buy  on  the  market — cottonseed  meal, 
gluten,  oilmeal,  etc.,  being  more  costly  than  corn, 
hominy,  oats,  barley  and  the  like. 
We  also  know  that  these  same  plants  have  that 
peculiar  ability  of  extracting  the  free  nitrogen  from 
the  airy  of  which  four-fifths  is  nitrogen,  by  means  of 
the  nodules  on  the  roots,  and  adding  this  to  the  soil, 
thus  enriching  instead  of  depleting 
our  soil  fertility.  All  this  is  an 
old  story  in  these  days  of  experiment 
station  results,  and  the  teachings  of 
our  colleges  of  agriculture,  extension 
schools,  farmers’  institutes,  etc.,  until 
today  no  one  disputes  the  statement 
that  the  clover  plant  is  the  farmer’s 
best  friend.  However  much  this  state¬ 
ment  may  be  true,  it  is  interesting  to 
know  still  more  of  this  plant  that  is  so 
insidiously  working  itself  into  the  af¬ 
fections  of  the  thinking  farmers  of  the 
present,  and  to  know  by  comparison 
with  other  sources  of  nitrogen  just 
hoie  valuable  the  clover  plant  may  be 
to  us  in  our  farming  operations. 
Realizing  that  the  market  price  of 
nitrogen  is  not  a  fixed  item,  fluctuating 
-as  other  commodities  vary  according 
to  supply  and  demand,  as  well  as  the 
manipulations  of  those  in  greater  or 
less  control  of  the  situation,  the  best 
means  of  conveying  the  value  of  clover 
as  a  soil  builder  is  by  comparing  the 
amount  of  nitrogen  added  to  the  soil 
by  the  two  methods  i  one  the  growing 
of  the  clover  plant,  and  the  other  the 
purchase  of  nitrogen  in  the  fertilizer 
sack. 
Having  asked  many  times  in  many 
parts  of  New  York  State,  what  the 
nitrogen  content  of  the  average  “com¬ 
plete  fertilizer”  used  by  the  general 
farmer  of  this  State  might  be,  the  con¬ 
clusion  is  that  more  farmers  are  using 
a  fertilizer  containing  2  per  cent  nitro¬ 
gen  than  any  other  combination  or 
analysis.  This  is  a  fact  that  few  will 
contradict,  whether  they  approve  of  it 
or  not.  Granting  this  statement,  we 
will  also  have  to  agree  that  the  aver¬ 
age  application  of  commercial  fertil¬ 
izers  is  around  200  lbs.  per  acre.  As¬ 
suming  that  the  cost  per  ton  of  a  fairly 
good  mixture,  a  2-8-10,  a  so-called 
“leader”  by  one  of  our  large  fertilizer 
concerns,  to  be  between  $35  and  $10 
this  season,  can  a  farmer  afford  to  buy  nitrogen 
from  this  source,  or  might  he  better  secure  his  needs 
from  the  common  Red  clover  plant? 
1  he  average  amount  of  clover  seed  used  per  acre 
in  New  York  State  is  not  far  from  six  quarts,  and 
the  market  price  of  clover  from  our  best,  most  reli¬ 
able  source,  is  $16.20  per  bushel  at  this  writing.  Tn 
the  first  case,  using  the  nitrogen  from  a  2-8-10  fer¬ 
tilizer,  our  actual  cost  per  acre  for  a  200-lb.  applica¬ 
tion  would  be  between  $3.50  and  $1  per  acre,  since 
the  average  application  of  200  lbs.  is,  of  course,  one- 
tenth  of  a  ton,  quoted  at  $35  or  more  per  ton.  The 
actual  cost  of  seeding  our  clover  per  acre,  using  six 
quarts  of  clover  at  $16.20  per  bushel,  is  about  $3  pet- 
acre.  So  much  for  the  cost ;  now,  what  are  the  re¬ 
our  State  College  of  Agriculture  at  Ithaca,  we  are 
informed  on  the  best  of  authority  that  a  good  crop 
of  clover,  which  would  cut  two  tons  of  hay  per  acre 
if  harvested  in  the  usual  manner,  would  return  to 
the  soil,  if  all  plowed  under  shortly  before  haying 
time,  as  much  nitrogen  as  we  would  derive  from  a 
2,400-lb.  application  per  acre  of  a  2  per  cent  nitrogen 
fertilizer,  or  12  times  as  much  as  the  average  farmer 
is  applying. 
If  this  seems  an  extravagant  waste  of  a  valuable 
feed  for  bur  animals,  we  may  cut  this  hay,  feed  it 
to  our  stock,  and  return  the  manure  to  the  same 
clover  sod,  using  it  as  economically  and  wisely  as 
possible,  and  we  would  still  return  as  much  nitrogen 
to  the  soil  as  would  be  secured  by  a  1,600-lb.  appli¬ 
cation  of  a  2  per  cent  nitrogen  fertilizer. 
But  how  about  that  other  part  of  our  “complete 
Top  View  of  Apple  (leader.  Fit/.  73. 
If oir  the  Apples  fjCavt  the  Machine.  Fit/.  80. 
fertilizer,”  the  phosphorus  and  potash?  Much  might 
be  said  concerning  the  value  or  the  need  of  these 
two  elements  in  New  York  State  farming,  hut  suffice 
it  to  say  at  this  time  that  the  organic  matter  or 
humus  derived  from  this  practice  is  of  as  much 
benefit  to  us  in  crop  production  as  the  nitrogen 
secured,  and  certainly  would  equal  the  benefit  de¬ 
rived  from  the  two  last-named  ingredients. 
The  conclusion  of  the  whole  matter  then  is  that 
we  can  pay  almost  any  price  for  clover  seed,  even 
as  high  as  $40  per  bushel,  as  was  the  case  three 
years  ago,  probably  the  highest  on  record,  before  we 
can  afford  to  omit  this  wonderful  plant  from  our 
program  and  turn  to  the  fertilizer  sack  as  a  source 
of  nitrogen.  i.  n.  c.  cook. 
REFERRING  to  a  recent  article  on 
the  use  of  glucose  for  automobile 
radiators,  permit  me  to  call  attention 
to  what  must  have  been  a  misprint  of 
the  figures.  Glucose  has  a  specific 
gravity  much  higher  than  that  of 
water,  and  therefore  1*4  pints  of  it 
should  weigh  considerably  more  than 
1  lb.  r  purchased  some  confectioners’ 
glucose  and  found,  with  some  rather 
crude  scales,  that  one  pint  of  it 
weighed  1  lb.  1)  oz.  On  this  basis  1 '4 
pints  would  weigh  about  2  lbs.  6  oz. 
Before  jumping  to  the  conclusion 
that  glucose  would  solve  one  of  my 
difficulties,  I  tried  a  few  experiments, 
with  results  as  follows:  The  experi¬ 
ments  were  conducted  out  of  doors,  in 
square,  4-oz.,  screw-capped,  glass  bot¬ 
tles.  A  20  per  cent  (1  :4)  by  volume 
solution  of  glucose  was  quite  stiff  at 
18°  F.,  so  that  it  held  together  when 
the  bottle  was  inverted.  At  2°  F.  it 
was  so  hard  that  a  tenpenny  nail  could 
not  be  pushed  into  it.  The  bottle,  how¬ 
ever,  was  not  broken  by  the  expansion. 
A  25  per  cent  (1 :3)  solution  of  the 
glucose-  showed  only  a  slight  improve¬ 
ment  over  the  20  per  cent  solution  in 
its  behavior  at  low  temperatures.  A 
solution  made  up  one  part  glucose,  one 
part  denatured  alcohol  and  four  parts 
water  (all  by  volume)  showed  a 
marked  improvement  over  the  two  test 
solutions  without  alcohol.  This  solu¬ 
tion  at  2°  F.  was  stiff  enough  to  hold 
together  when  the  bottle  was  inverted, 
and  had  about  the  consistency  of  or¬ 
dinary  ice  cream. 
A  solution  of  two  parts  glucose,  one 
part  alcohol  and  six  parts  water  be¬ 
haved  very  much  like  the  previous  so¬ 
lution.  While  a  20  per  cent  (by  vol¬ 
ume)  solution  of  glucose  might  not  rupture  a  radia¬ 
tor  at  a  temperature  as  low  as  2°  F.,  there  is  the 
possibility  of  its  damaging  a  rotary  pump  system, 
even  if  the  temperature  were  quite  a  little  higher. 
My  inclination  would  he  to  use  glucose  in  an  auto¬ 
mobile  radiator  with  caution,  and  to  use  alcohol 
with  it  in  very  cold  weather.  r.  c.  l. 
Wellesley,  Mass. 
R.  N.-Y. — The  figures  referred  to  were  taken  from 
a  report  sent  out  by  the  Pennsylvania  Board  of  Ag¬ 
riculture.  Other  reports  indicate  that  glucose  and 
water  will  not  freeze  quickly,  but  that  the  mixture 
clogs  the  pipes.  Yet  some  of  our  readers  say  the 
mixture  has  proved  quite  successful  with  them. 
poor  specimens,  which  might  through  accident  be 
mixed  with  the  others.  The  central  part  rotates, 
and  as  it  moves  around  the  notches  or  fingers  at 
riie  center  take  the  apples  gently  and  carry  them 
until  they  reach  the  opening  through  which  they  can 
drop. 
Of  course  the  smaller  openings  come  first.  The 
little  apples  pass  out  first  and  the  larger  ones  are 
carried  along  until  the  proper  sized  opening  is 
reached — then  down  they  roll  into  a  canvas  basket, 
ready  for  the  barrel.  Everything  the  apple  touches 
is  soft  and  well  padded.  It  is  like  handling  the 
fruit  with  gloved  fingers,  There  seems  no  chance 
for  bruising  except  as  the  apples  gently  touch  each 
other  in  rolling  down.  It  looks  like  a  simple  and 
effective  machine.  Mr.  Ballou  says  that  this  ma¬ 
chine  will  handle  300  to  800  bushels  in  eight  hours 
and  quickly  separate  them  into  six 
sizes. 
Glucose  For  Car  Radiators 
turns  per  acre,  or  how  much  nitrogen  may  we  rea¬ 
sonably  expect  to  receive  from  our  two  investments? 
It  is  easy  to  see  that  from  the  fertilizer  sack  we 
derive  2  per  cent,  or  two  units  per  100  lbs.,  and  con¬ 
sequently  from  200  lbs.  per  acre  we  would  derive 
four  units  or  pounds  of  nitrogen  per  acre,  which  is 
certainly  “spreading  it  thin.” 
It  is  not  so  easy  to  conclude  just  how  much  nitro¬ 
gen  we  would  secure  through  the  medium  of  the 
clover  plant.  But  very  fortunately  we  have  scien¬ 
tists  who  make  it  their  business  to  investigate  along 
these  very  lines,  and  upon  taking  the  matter  tip  with 
A  New  Apple  Sizing  Machine 
OER  obi  friend,  F.  II.  Ballou  of  Ohio,  has  invented 
an  apple-sizing  machine  which  promises  to 
be  of  value  to  apple  growers,  particularly  those  with 
medium  sized  orchards.  It  is  called  the  “Rotary 
Apple  Sizer,”  and  a  good  idea  of  what  it  will  do 
may  he  gained  from  the  two  pictures.  As  we  see, 
the  apples  move  down  through  a  chute,  slowly  and 
without  bruising.  The  operator  lets  them  in  through 
the  gate  as  needed,  and  can  throw  out  any  evidently 
Brevities 
“Whkx  you  can  buy  a  ton  of  cottonseed  meal  for 
the  price  of  1<H>  bushels  of  corn,  then  it  pays  to  use 
the  meal  along  with  the  corn  in  fattening  steers.”  That 
is  what  they  say  at  the  Ohio  Agricultural  College. 
Electric  lights  are  making  American  hens  lay  more 
eggs  in  Winter.  In  the  waters  off  Norway  lights  are 
used  to  draw  bristling*  or  sardine  fish  up  from  the  deep 
water  to  the  surface. 
Now  it  appears  that  the  Japanese  are  to  raise  bull¬ 
frogs.  A  consignment  of  American  bullfrogs  have  al¬ 
ready  been  sent  over.  4' hey  will  he  let  loose  on  the  rice 
fields— providing  food  and  also  keeping  certain  insects 
down. 
