The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1874-05-14
FARM AND GARDEN,

HAY TEA FOR C~ALvEs.--A farmer VIII,
had n calf Of value and no milk to Civ
il was advised TO give it hay tea. He dit
30 and the calf is reported as doing fine
ly, though it has neither received ha,
nor meal since he got it. He cuts tn,
best and finest hay he has, about tw'
inches long and pours boiling water owe
II; let's it stand until cooled to abou
the heat Of milk from the GOV, when thu
tea is given to the calf and the hay t.
the COW. Both calf and COW thrive OF
their feed. We have fed n great deal 0
hay tea to calves, with good results
-Hmai NeW Yorker.
GRowTNG THE SUNFLowER The cul
tivatiOn Of tho sunhOwer is said to NEE.
with great favor from the planters il
British Guinea. These flowers, which
flourish in marshy places, yield from
eighty to one hundred bushels Of seeC
to the mere and each bushel furnishes
from five to seven quarts of an oil whicl
is excellent for Illuminating purposes,
beside being Of use in the mixing Of
paints. It's flavor gives it n value il
cooking, also. As food for poultry, the
dried seeds are said to be very ~fattening.
From the stalks n fiber is obtained that
may be substituted for hemp the leaves
are relished as n food by cattle and
the flowers furnish n supply of rich hon,
cY for bees. II will thus be seen that
those who choose to undertake the cX'
pertinent of growing sunflowers start
mt with every promise of n rich return
with little labor.
SCRArINd FRurr TREES. Perhaps DC,
toDer ana November are the two best
months Of the year for scraping
and washing fruit trees apples and
pears. There is nothing better as a
&C wash" with which to scrub the trees
than Il preparation of one pound Of
whale oil soap to a large bucket of wa
ter, we'll dissolved. There is nothing
more nauseous to insects than this. 1t
will lay "cold" everything that we
have tried it on but the curculio that,
however, care' no more for the mixture,
even though accompanied with sulphur,
lime water and tobacco juice, than if it
were II Ringerly dose Of pure spring
water. But rOsc-bugs and the steel
blue grape.bugs surrender to its power
incontinentIy. Every farmer and gar
dener ought to have q supply of this
soap IN hand for use whenever nccessa-
ry. Apple and pear trees, well scraped
and then washed with the preparation,
will not only be freed from some of the
chief insects proving upon foliage and
fruit, but will sensibly feel its invigor-
ating effects.
RoLLING THE GRoUND.-On dry or
wet ground the effect of the roller is
found to be salutary. Plowed and pre-
pared for sowing, dry land is much
helped by the roller. The blades of
grass spring mp sooner and retain n
iirmer hold in the earth. In a season
drought, rolling has saved the crop,
when without it the seed would have
never sprung from the ground. In wet
and heavy ground it is believed the
smoothing and hardening the
surface, will have the soil Immediately
beneath the surface in u better con H.
ton to generate the seed. On grass
ground that has been heaved by the
frost, the roller has an excellent effect
fixing the roots. Rolling the ground
is also good when the land has been
laid down %unevcnly the previous year.
the land is too dry, wait till just af-
ter II soaking rain, and it will work cap
1t is a good idea to roll plowGd
sOwed ground before narrowing, as it
presses down the burrows that would be
turned back, and makes the surface less
uneven, and the harrow pulverizes it
much.
BUTTER WoRKING.-Tho drudgery of
butter. working, which falls 50 heavily
upon farmers wives in dairy districts,
is in a fair way of being done away
with, if a western example shall be
generally followed. An establishment
has lately been started near Beloit, Wis,
for putting into marketable shape I'M
washed and unsalted butter. The but
ter is purchased from the neighboring
farmers Just as it comes from the churn.
in quantities OF from 500 to 100
pounds, is put into n vat made of two.
inch PLANK, eight inches deep, twenty
four il chcs broad and eight feet long.
With n wooden instrument the butter is
then separated into small pieces, when
moderately cold water is let in to cover
it, and then n wooden hoe stirs the
whole thoroughly together. Then the
butter is put into another box with n
wire screen bottom, through which it is
by means of n lever, at the rat.
Of 1000 pounds in less than five min
ltes. Winter butter being white is
colored the salt is added, after which
it is put through another machine, by
which the salt is evenly distributed;
and thus two men can handle and pack,
ready for market, from 5000 to 5000
pounds n day, and the butter is of uni
form quality, sound and sweet.
SENDING PLANTS BY MAm.-The
c~heapness and readiness with which
plants may be s mt through the mail
prompt these suggestions from the Ag-
riculturist Is to the best method of
packing: Many c]ontrivances have been
made for packing, but mono are better
than sphagnum and oiled paper when
they can be had. Lay down a pieco of
oiled paper of the proper size, spread a
thin layer Of dry moss upon this re-
move all the earth from the roots of the
by washing, lay them upon the
moss, and roll the whole tightly then
enclose in a strong wrapping paper with.
out sealing. Plants sent in this way
will remain i'll good condition for two
weeks ut least. Where oiled papcr can
not be had, the next best thing is a CT
gar-box, as it is light, and may be had
almost anywhere. The moss must be
happened as for sending by express, as
evaporation will be more rapid than in