Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1873-06-12
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lil.Auyised Farming.

hdNsAoNsNtu ElFbstthS-
According to the recent monthly re-
port of the Commissioner of Agricui-
ture, derived from answers to circu-
lars sent out in March, it appears that
there is no systematic rotation of crops
in any considerable portion of the
United States. In the New England
States the high price of hay keeps
large area constantly i'm grass. and the
demand for garden products renders
rotation very difficult. In some Sec
tions wheat and tobacco have been
raised for twenty wears successfully on
the same land, which, however,, is highly
fertiilf"a every year. In Rhode ISL
and field crops of onions are repeated
from tive to eight years, or until the
smut kills them. LII the Middle States
systematic rotation is pursued to a
great extent, and with marked results.
In New Jersey, crop rotation is OBJ
served, though large areas of marshes
arc continually kept in eranbcrrics.
In Pennsylvania only three counties
are reported as ignoring rotation.
The usual routine is corn planted on
sod broken in the spring and thor
oughly manured, to be followed by
oats, wheat, and two crops of grass.
In Maryland rotation is general, but
but in some districts there is a de-
cided tendency toexcessive grain and
grass crops. Virginia, in one-fourth
of its counties, observes regular
routine Of corn, wheat, or oats and
clover. In the Southern States gener-
ally. every crop is neglected for cotton,
fields having been kept planted with
this bush for twenty to twenty-five
years. In the States bordering on
the Ohio some attention has been paid
to rotation, though in the alluyial bot
tom corn is sometimes continued for
fifty years, and on the uplalids wheat
is grown continuously for twenty
years. Rotation is little known west
of the Mississippi and the Pacific
States. The Commissioner, from the
answers OF his correspondents, draws
! the conclusion that home production
for home consumption is more profit
able permanent policy than the oppo-
site theory that greater profit can be
obtained from feeding hay and grain
| to stock than from selling them. and
that home manufactured manure is
more beneficial than commercial ferti-
lizers.
Balky Horse.
Your correspondent "S.' asks how
he shall treat his balky horse. have
| plan that seldom fails to start the un-
ruly animal i'm few minutes, and IL
persevered in, generally effects per-
| manent cure. but it is too difficult of
application to become generally use
| full. Have with you small quantity
OF whole corn, and go gently to the
horses head with handful, and coax
him with caresses while he eats from
the hand. Attempt to lead him, hold
| ing the corn little way before him,
and when he goes quietly and shows
that his temper has subsidized, leave him
with his mouth full of corn, get in the
vehicle and speak to him to 60 Oh,
using quiet manners just as If nothing
was wrong; and if he refuses apply
the same treatment again, and again If
necessary, until success attends. Per-
haps it may not be clear to the reader
what the difficulty is in applying this
remedy. 1t is in the worse than balky
disposition of the driver, who would
rather succeed once in twenty times by
passionately whipping, than nineteen
| times in twenty by gentleness. Only
q gentleman can manage balky horse,
and while there are plenty of gentle
men in society, there are not so many
| gentlemen i'm tie treatment of animals.
| A very little observation and reflection
will show that gentlencss is quite as
commendable as gentility, and is fol-
lowed by as good results, both upon
our own characters, and upon our
success in getting along" comfortably
with animals of all species, mankind
and scomon-kind included. - f. ii.
Chester, Pa.
CHESTNUT TREES In IowA.-How
many times have we heard men who
were brought up in western New York
and Ohio, regret, what they supposed
to be the fact that the Chestnut tree
could not be grown in this section
the soil did not suit it or the climate
exercised adverse influence over it at
any rate it would not thrive here. But
only day before Yesterday chestnut
tree only thirty-five feet in height,
with trunk fourteen inches in diam
eter, and still growing, with every in
dication of becoming an immense tree,
such as one sees of its kind i'm the
States above named, was cut down on
the place of Mr.. A. w. Bullard, on
Locust street. There was great regret
over the necessity that compelled its
sacrifice-but ii was in the way of
chesrihed improvements and fell. 1t
was planted on the place sixteen years
ago, as the rings show. For years il
has yielded nuts pfentifully. Suppose
that in 1857 an acre had been properly
fplanted with chestnut trees, and taken
care OF, what goodly income might
be derived from them now. This tree
came up without any special care be-
ing taken OF it; in fact it saw pretty
rough usage. In its ninth year, q large
spot was cut out of one side-but the
deep wound healed over, and the spot
where the injury occurred is plainly
marked in the section of the tree eX-
hibited to us. The chestnut will thrive
here as well as in any other parts Of
America.-Ddc. 1f0zette.
| BOTANICAL. LEARSING.-J. j. Smith,
i'm his address before the Germantown
Horticultural Society, mentions an
old gardener who, when asked after
his health, said he had no exact dis
case, but he was afraid he had little
touch of the complaint called Ann0
Domini' and that il was probably the
gardeners son, who said the only boz
tanical name he could remember were
Aurora Borealis and delirium tremens.
This was not so bad as Sydney Smith,
who was very caustic in a Joke on a
certain noble lady. who arrogantly
claimed that she had every cultivated
plant in her garden. .'IIave you
Psoriosfs9r asked Smith. Unwilling
to be found at fault, she promptly re-
piled: 20 yes, ! obtained ii of Lord
! A." Ut is the scientific name of the
itchy.
Tomato Plants.
A market gardener of Lake County,
Illinois, says that he has the most re-
markable success in the use of salt upon
his tomato plants. He applied it at
y IL.