Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1874-12-02
Agricultural.


that would well repay the owners to un-
derdrain. We say ,fnder-drdin. Open
bitches are nuisance anywhere, and
especially where sassafras, briars, and
ali kinds of foul weeds abound. The
advantages of draining are numerous.
We will speak of but three /: l. The
land is more easily titled. 2. 1t is more
productive. 3. 1t removes the cause
of malarious disease. Very many who
realize and acknowledge its advantages
are debarred by its expense. In many
places, at distance from factories, mar
row boards are being used instead of
tiles, and it is said they will last almost
a lifetime. Where wood is plenty,
farmers have but little excuse for work
ing around sntSightty and unhealthy
hog-holes year after year.
But it is not enough that dry melon
and clean seed-bed is prepared. The
good farmer will Eeep his land in good
condition. The main end with very
many farmers seems TO be to obtain the
largest yield with the least possible ex-
pense. Cheapness in obtaining pres
ent crop is not everything. The pru-
dent man will have an eye to the fu-
ture. He Will see that, if he always
takes away without adding, the richest
land will sooner or later become poor
and unproductive. For years and years
this exhaustive system has been fol-
lowed until a large portion OF the once
rich and productive soils are nearly
worthless and this exhaustion has
been largely aided of late years by the
use of the (so-called) concentrated fer
tilizers, stimulating the land to pro-
duce large crops. but always leaving 1t
poorer than before. Now, the man who
does this is like that one in the old IA
bic who killed the goose that laid him
daily golden egg. He thought there
must be many eggs, but of course
there was but one and he found when
too late that he had toOlishiy destroyed
the source of his wealth.
KEEP THE Som MELLOW AROUND
TREES. the surface of the
ground is mulched around young trees
over an area of six to ten feet in diane
ter, the ground should be kept clean
and mellow. Every farmer knows that
n hill of corn or potatoes Will not
amount to much unless cultivated, and
yet there are many who will neglect to
give the same care to a tree which is
worth hundred hills of either of the
former. In rich soils trees mey grow
rapidly without cultivation, and no
amount of grass or weeds will retard
them (; hut there are other things be-
sides growth to he looked after. If
the weeds and grass are allowed to
grow up around the stems of apple,
peach or ounce trees, the bark will be-
come soft near their base by being
shaded, and thereby be in a suitable
condition for the reception of the eggs
which will eventually become peach or
apple borers. Take any dozen young
apple trees in sections where the apple
tree borer is abundant, and allow a
portion to be checked with weeds and
watch the result. From our own expe-
rience we believe that the chances are
nine to one in favor of those cultivated
being exempt from this pest.
DRoPsY OF CRoP.-When fowls are
troubled with this complaint the crop
II VIII
the appetite fails, and the birds are
dull and disinclined to move about.
I'm such cases We have opened the crop
by making an incision about half an
inch in length with the points of pair
of sharp scissors, and after allowing
the liquid to escape, injecting with a
common syringe some water and carbo-
nate of magnesia, with which the crop
was well washed. The water was re-
moved through.the opening, the edges
of the wonnd in the crop were then
drawn together with a surgeons stitch,
after which the wound IN the skin
was closed in the same way.
The bird was then fed with soaked
bread and milk, in which little mag
nesia was mixed, for few days, and it
recovered at once. This disease may
be prevented by feeding the fowls occa
sionalIy with bread and milk, or easily
digested food, and giving some pre-
pared chalk or magnesia, or pinch of
copperas along with the food.
OLD AND New PAsTURFs.-The
Country Gentleman says the question
is worthy OF examination and close ex-
pertinent why is old pasture reputed
to be so much better than new? Would
not new be as good as old, if sown so
thick that the new shall be as thick as
the old, say with bushel of timothy
and clover per acre? If not, why is
the reason? Why is not course, thinly
grown pasture, better than old, thick
pasturage ? Some farmers of high re-
pute say that fine, thickly sown corn
fodder is of little value, and not to be
compared with the fodder of corn grown
in thin drills, with more space and un-
der the influence of air and slight ? IT
full grown well developed corn stalks
are, like well grown fruit, richer and
better than small and thickly grown,
why will not the rule apply to grass !?
As we understand the question, thin
grass is not poorer in quality, but there
is not enough on an acre to satisfy a
thrifty farmer. Hence the old idea of
making two spires grow where one
grew before.
PRUNING RosEs.-The time to prune
rose bushes depends entirely upon the
class or family of roses to be pruned.
Without going into a systematic con-
sideration OF the different species of the
roses, for which We have no time Just
now, we will merely say that they are
three grand divisions of the rose genus,
each of which requires a mode of pru-
ming peculIsr to itself For the first
class roses that bloom but once year
summer roses as they are called-we
have always found 1t best to prune
them pretty severely as soon as the pc
riod of blooming is over, unless it
should be very dry, in which case we
defer the pruning until just as the fall
growth begins. By this course We get
an abundance of young spurs or sheets,
for Towering the next season.
DRESSING BLACK HoGs.-A correspon-
dent says: The principal objection to
the Essex and Berkshire breed of hogs
/ find to be their color. Now, as You
att, justly observes, this is not skin
deep. The coloring matter will be
found to be secreted between the true
skin and the epidermis or outer skin.