Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-03-21
Farm. Garden and Household.
Farm Notes.

EoAn AoAcas
Low, moist land on which water does
not stand is best adapted to peppermint
culture. The land should be prepared
in spring as for corn, and the roots
placed in burrows and covered.
Selling fruits by weight has been
again and again recommended by horti-
cultural societies and fruit growers as
sociations, and yet the absurd practice
of measuring them or selling them in
barrels or crates or baskets that have no
standard measurement continues.
A little dry air-slacked lime, sprinkled
on cattle's backs and carded sinto the
hair occasionally; also sulphur, are
recommended as a remedy for lice.
1t is asserted that the best sugar fac
tories OF France are not at present in a
cheerful state, there being little de-
mand for the sugar outside OF France,
which produces 200, 900 tons more than
she consumes.
The Massachusetts Ploughman rec
ommends sowing lucern in August.
Thus it gains a good footing before
winter and the succeeding season yields
large crop.
1t has been asserted that good Usage
orange hedge can be made without
planting but an experienced Illinois
cultlvator says: "One thing is certain
that to make good hedge of the Os-
age it must be FLASHED and after that
have annual shearings in order to keep
the growth within bounds and COM
pact. ...r..-....
The reclamation of land and utiliz-
ing it, thus making waste places
productive, is one of the economical
modes farmerhas of reducing the pro-
portion of his taxes to production.
Thousands of acres of most productive
lands lie idle and taxes are paid on
them in almost every State, the netpro-
duct resulting from the reclamation of
which would pay the entire taxes of the
farmer.
On Surface Manuring.
A correspondent of the New York
Tribune, writing from Livingston coun-
ty, N. Y, on experiments in manuring,
says About nine years ago became
the owner of small farm near where
reside, and in one of the fields I discov-
cred side hill, or knoll, unproductive.
After blowing it for wheat, 1 scattered
over it thin coat of manure, then har-
rowed it, and drilled in the wheat. The
consequence was, that the wheat was
there as stout as it could stand. The
clover that followed was just the same,
and to this day, though no manure has
been added, 1t is the most productive
part of the field. have tried it in
other places with the same results.
This year, though we have not half a
crop of wheat, wherever surface manure
has been spread, there is full crop.
Hay has dwindled down to about one
fourth of the usual crop, but where l
scattered manure over the surface, dur
ing the winter, no better or abundant
grass ever grew. To this experience
will add, that I have several times
plowed under manure for corn and
beets, but have never discovered any
effect, except to get it out of sight.
This is the experience of farmer law
yer,
How to Make Grating Wax.
Thomas Matteson, Mexican county,
Penn, writes "Take two parts mutt
ton tallow, three parts beeswax !:
melt the tallow first, and put the bees
wax and resin into it. When it is all
melted, stir it all up and pour it into
cold water and work it over. If there
are Jumps in it, mash them with your
thumb and finger. The longer you work
it the more sticky it grows. When it
begins to stick to your hands put some
tallow on them. Work it till it is all
sticky as you want it. Put in q tin pan
with a cover to it, and it will keep for
number of years. L think It is as
good as sticking salve to put on any
sores. Some people put in more talloW
than they put in resin or beeswax, to
make it softer to work in cold weather
but if there is too much tallow in it, ii
will melt and run out in warm weather.
l have had about forty years expert
ence in grating, and used number of
sorts of grating wax. Some people
put in hot water, andmake more trouble
than there is need of. I wet my finger
with my tongue, and don't find any
difficulty in putting the wax on the end
of the graft"
Composition of Milk.
Preseason Boedeker has analysed the
milk of healthy COW at various times
of the day, with the view of determin
ing the changes in the relative amount
OF its constituents. He found that the
solids of the evenings milk (13 pei
cent? exceeded those of the morning.,
milk Il per cent while the water con
tanned in the fluid was diminished from
80 to sc per cent. The fatty matters
gradually increase as the day pro
crosses in the morning they amount
to 2.l7 per cent, at noon to 2.63 pc,
cent, and in the evening to $40 pei
cent; SO that if 16 ounces of mornings
milk will yield nearly half an ounce O
butter, about double this quantity cal
be obtained from the evenings milk
Tho casein is also increased in the even
ing's milk from 2.24 to 2.70 per cent.
but the albumen is diminished from
0.44 per cent. to OBJ per cent. Suga
is least abundant at midnight (4.19 pc
cent? and most plentiful at noon a.
per cent? The percentage of the salt
undergoes almost no change at any tim
of the day.
Grating the Grape Vine.
Mr.. Johnson, British cultivator O
the vine, has come to the conclusion
after trying all other methods known
that there is no better method for graft
ing vines than the one he very properl
calls dove-tail grating. The stoc
should be from one to three years ole
and the scion inserted opposite bu
or spur. Having selected the stoch
the wood should be cut out of it abou
two inooau II, 1apo,ib - n Jo,o+L oar,r