Connecticut western news., 1872-10-04
Farm, Garden and Household.

Farm, Garden and Household.
 FLEAs.-BePs Life says: To destroy fleas or ticks in dogs you must dissolve half pound of saltpetre and half pound of soft soap in one gallon of water, and let 1t simmer on the fire for two hours, and when cold wash the animal with 1t, and the fleas will die immediatly they are touched. After which wash with warm water, when the dogs coat will become bright and glossy.
 FENoINe.-At the Orleans County (N. Y.) farmers meeting Mr. Smith said the laws of New York did not compel a farmer to fence his farm. He thought the appearance of the country would be much improved if fences were abolished. Judge Sawyer said if this were done and grass grown to the edge of the road, and mown the production of weeds would be reduced very much, if not altogether pre- vented. MT. Tripp thought in such cases the roadsides could be planted with fruit protitably, as cattle would not then de- stroy them. A. Onderdonk said it would pay farmer better to pasture COW for O POoA NAlASoI ASo tAdu nave lb Ou tue road.
 WHY ANIMALS NEED SALr.-Prof. James E. Johnson, of Scotland, says that half the saline matter of the blood (75 per cent) consists ot common salt, as this is partly dissolved every day through the skin and kidneys, the necessity of con- tinued supplies of it to the healthy body is sufficiently obvious. The bile also contains soda Gone of the ingredients of salt) as special and indispensable constlt- uent, and SC of all the carriages of the body. Stint the supply of salt and neither will the bile be able properly to assist digestion, nor the cartridges to be built up again as fast as they naturally waste. It is better to place salt were stock can have free access to it than to give it occasionally, in small quantities They will help themselves to what they need, if allowed to do So at pleasure, otherwise, when they become salt hungry they may take more than is wholesome.
 MILK AND BUTTER. Geddes, in an article on the cost of butter, says will quote from Transactions of the N. Y. State Agricultural Society for the year 1860, page 160," the Hon. Zadok Pratt's statement of the average quantity of milk required to make pound of butter for four years, in pounds, and in quarts as follows In the year 1857 it took 39 2O-100 pounds, measuring 20 quarts. In 1858 it took B 33- 100 pounds, measuring 16 16-1O0 quarts. In 1859 it took 29 pounds, measuring 14 5O- 100 quarts, and in 1860 it took only .23 30- 100 pounds, measuring Il 20-100 quarts,. I think I am now justified in saying that to begin with, 8 pound of butter costs 14 quarts of average milk. If, in answer to this estimate, some person shall state that by high feed and selection of the COWS that give the richest milk a pound of butter has been made from much less milk-even one-half this IA quarts-I shall not dispute the assertion, tut I shall remain of the opinion that the general average is as high as I have stated.
 ITEMS FROM "AMERIoAN AGRICULTURE IsT."-I wish something could be done to make dwarf apple trees better known, They cost but little, and if they were planted only as ornamental shrubs, their flowers in spring would be quite as satis- flying as these of many things grown for their flowers alone. Then they bear fruit, and it is very pleasant to pick a dozen or two apples from a little tree. One of my gordons not three feet long ripened 23 fine Duchess of Oldenburgs. The apples were almost as close as they could stick. Mind, I don't recommend these trees for profit, but as affordinp pleasure in fruit growing.
 Young lambs or calves may be pastur. ed if necessary, but it is a most costly economy to turn horses or COWS on to newly sown clover or grass, or to newly mown fields. But considering that the fields are in danger of becoming poached while ssdden with rain by even the light est hoofs, it will be found cheapest in the end to keep all stock off from the fields to be mown next season.
 Many of us must turn over a new leaf. We must make our land cleaner, dryer and richer. We must get rid of stagnant water, kill the weeds, and mellow the soil. We must keep better stock and feed il more liberally, and thus make more and better manure. We must grow more and better grass.
 In England, summer following AS f means ot enriching land has been pretty we'll abandoned. Land is high and meal in great demand, and it pays better tc keep large amount of stock, and bu, American oil-cake, cotton n-seed cake, ant corn, to feed out, and make great quan tity of rich manure, than to adopt the slow method of enriching the land by fal lowing. They have also another advan tage over us. They can buy artifcia manures at something like what they ar, worth. The time will come when we car de so here, and then we shall use then in enormsus quantities.
 If were dairyman, should not onl, feed all the grain and bran could affort to buy, but should keep sharp lookou to see if few tons of artificial manur could not sometimes be obtained at req sonable rates. Kainit (sulphate of potash and nitrate of soda ought to be sold her for about the same price as in England and do not see why mineral super phos phate (from the Charleston phosphate cannot be manufactured at such a pric that we can afford te use it.
 AN F,EFTcTENT TNcIP PANcT CrEpE