Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1866-07-14
AGRICULTURAL.
FARH, GARDEN AND HOUSEHOLD.
TIME TO OUT TIMOTHY HAY.


TIME TO OUT TIMOTHY HAY. -f'
G. s. Paine, of VT, writes to the New
York Farmers club: "The question
should not be, at what stage will it pro
duce the most weight or bulk, or per-
haps nntriment, if that nutriment is
turned to hard crusty shell of wood,
and cannot be made available to the
animal that consumes 1T. Such hay
may be best for city consumer, where
he cuts, and perhaps steams il to make
it tender, but L think not for the farmer
1 have noticed that animals are more
fond of hay cut at least before all the
heads are in blossom. L have noticed
that if, after feeding such hay, you
change to timothy cut after the seed is
ripe, they will look Mt the feeder, as
much as to say, L want something bet
ter. And then again, you will find the
mice will burrow in such hay, and you
will find it full of chaff and chankiDgs.
A man of my acquaintance cuts his tim
othy mostly before in blossom, and it
rs astonishing to see how much stock
the bulk of his hay will keep; the hay
looks almost like green grass; his sheep
biiu NdtblG ldb Ou IL, anu 81 buC
sod deteriorating, it is improved every
year, and he winters more stock on the
same number of acres than any farmer
L ain acquainted with. His crop of
rowen IS almost as good as the first
crop"
Alfred Young writes:- "My father cut
timothy when in full bloom, and I know
that he fatted cattle on that kind of hay
without grain or other feed. Also one
of the best dairymen in the township
says that cows will give much more
milk, fed on early mown hay than late.
] have always believed that ripe timothy
was not much better than straw. 1t is
what call grass straw, being woody
and tibrous, with but little nutriment. !"
HOW To HOE CORN. +s So.
When was boy, and first went into
the field to hoe corn, was quite puz-
zied to know what my father meant
when he directed us to be sure and shoe
where the corn wasn't" But after fol-
lowing him a few days, and noticing the
pains he took toIhave all the ground well
stirred as well as all the weeds cut up,
and particularly when j saw how care
full he was not to disturb the ground
deeply near the young plants, 1 under
stood his meaning. In long acquaint-
ance with corn have observed enough
to make me think he was right. The
weeds must be cut up, root and branch.
to have good corn, that's certain, and
the ground must be kept loose enough
to let the heat go in, and the moisture
TO pass up from below; and to allow the
spreading roots to make their way east
ly through The soil III search for good
picking. But I've seen good many
slash away with their hoe close around
the stock, when every cut there, if two
inches below the surface, must have
broken a number of growing roots. 1t
cannot be of much use to feed
corn well, if you then go right to work
to cut off is mouths; for the roots are
the mouths to the plant. So L always
cultivate lightly where the roots have
which is about the length that
the stock is above ground, and when
the corn is up breast high, wouldn't
let man go through my field with n
pillow, If he'd pay me wages for doing it
and find himself / do not believe in
killing commanding the field like
crop of young flag-staffs planted on
small pinnacles. The crop has grown
up into the air where it was intended |
10 stay, and it isn't natural to bury it
alive. People do it to prop it up, so
hat the wind will not levelit. But if |
{ be left alone it will do its own prop |
ping by sending out extra roots Just |
above the surface, which go out and |
anchor it all around. have seen afield
hat was laid flat by a storm while the
next to it, which grew naturally, stood |
up after the blow as straight as militia
captain on training day. When it is
lilled it will try to send out a second
growth of supporting roots, but neither
he first nor the second will then be-
come strong enough to be of much use.
i therefore try to leave the ground
nearly level, and thus also save the roots |
he trouble of diving down again to get |
below the gullies which are sometimes
eft after the first blowing. = american
4 gT'ieUlt,TiSt.
~. HARVESTING BARLEY.
The success of the crop de
bends very much on good start