The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1846-11-13
AGRICULTURAL.
PRAIRIE TfR Es---CATT1.E IN CJ;sN
FsELDs---fsA BIlyS.
nj O.. rLsGC

.untssrs. Editors As The time vii
arrive when tie formers Of Illinois are I,
meet with their annual large losses-fir
by the prairie fires destroying their fen
ces, wheat stacks, &C.: secondly by turn
ing their cattle into dry corn-stalk tield>
where there is no water, thereby killing
many of their cattle, and lastly by sui, r
ing The rabbi 10 destroy lIeir young
fruit trees, | wish to inform your reader,
of my method of avoiding all these DIS
asiers. My plan to prevent fences from
being bunl is this: | commence glowing
where l. wish to have The lence stand,
aud turning the iuIrovs to the centre.
break up the prairie three rods wide.
harrow il thoroughly, and seed il well
with blue grass. lhen lag up my fence
on the ridge in the centre of the powed
ground with blocks the size of large
rail under each corner As soon as the
frost kills the prairie grass, So that it Is
entirely dry. the blue grass being ye,
green, the cattle aud horses in the prairie
will gather along the fence, and will eat
clown tue grass go close, and leave the
ground so bare, that fire will not burn
over il. In this way | am douhly paid
for myialpr; it not only keeps ont the
sSfres, 5al "a fence will last one-IIrd Ion
ger when KEEP, entirely clear Of weeds
and bushes, than il will when the bushes
are thick on each side of the fence. If
by any means weeds or prairie grass
should get in on the outside the fence, |
renew the blowing. have followed this
plan fifteen years, and have lost no fence
by fires. would advise all those who
have fences standing on the prairie grass
TO forthwith pillow the land on the outside
the fence from ole 10 two rods wide and
seed it with blue grass. No other grass
will keep green so late in the fll and
none is SO little liable 10 be rooted up by
the hogs.
TO prevent cattle from being killed by
filling their stomachs with dry corn husks,
/ for the first three or four days after
turning them IN, do not let them stay
more than two hours lhen turn them
all out, and drive them to water.
have seen several cattle die roaring mad
by being two days in dry weather IN a
stalk field, where there was no water.
opened and examined The cattle, and the
cause Of their death was so obvious, that
no person could misunderstood il.
have turned cattle into stalk fields in
Illinois for % years in the way men
tion, and have never lost single one.
To prevent rabbits from killing young
fruit trees, cut up the long coarse prai-
rie grass, which grows about six feel in
height in all the bottoms aud low places
in almost all parts Of Illinois bind il in
bundles at each end, and with an axe cut
it in two in the middle. Each part will
be three feet long, which is as high as
rabbit can reach. Take enough of this |
grass TO cover the tree well on all sides
tie string around near the top of the
grass after ii is put around the tree, aud
tie il again about half way down; hoe a
little earth around The grass at the bottom,
and tread it down. This covering will
remain firm until grass grows in the
spring, when the rabbits cease eating the
barks Of trees the grass should now be
removed. This will not njure the trees,
and is cheaper than any other plan that
have tried. | hav, used grease, tar, to-
bacco, aloes, sulphur, &c. but find that
grease and tar njure the trees, and every
thing of the kind becomes useless before
winter is over--frosis, sun, rain, sleet,
and snow wear them all away and |
have often seen where the deer have
peeled trees when covered with tar or
sulphur. Should deer, sheep, calves,
colts, cattle, rats, or nice, by any means
got into a young orchard, they will not
disturb the coarse dry grass. have fix
ed my young trees in this way for the
last twenty years, and have not lost a
tree.'
And now, Messrs. Editors, if every
farmer in Illinois could be induced to put
the above methods into practice forthwith
il would be a saving of half million of
dollars 10 the people Of the State in ten
years.
Paddock's Grove, Ill.,, Oct, 1916.
The above communication commends
itself strongly TO the interests of all farm.
ers. During the las, winter, scores of
cattle died in the corn fields within 80
miles of this city, and hundreds in the
State. Let il be remembered then, tina,
cattle turned into corn fields in the fall
and winter must have wafer.
Ii an animal is taken with tho mad
itch, or whatever the disease is called,
administer 10 him copious quantities of
EPSON al,s.-Prairie Farmer.
USEFUL IEcEIPEs.
Hogs are frequently taken sick, and
sometimes die without exhibiting any
symptSps by which the animated in such
matters, can either inie, the nature of the