The Lake County star., 1876-07-27
AGRICULTURAL ITEMS.

in the West during the last quarter of a
century may be gathered from the fact
that in Minnesota. according to reliable
statistics, where in 1850 only 5000 acres
were under cultivation, and the produc-
tion was 1,400 bushels of wheat, 5000
of corn and 16, 900 of oats, there were in
1875 2,8l6,4l3 acres under cultivation,
and the products aggregated 3l,475
bushels of wheat, 1915 900 bushels of
oats, and 8, 500, 900 bushels of corn.
AMERICAN Agricultwist: A marked
improvement is noticeable in the quail
ity of sheep which come to the markets.
Whole focks of sheep, which will aver.
age over one hundred pounds, may now
be seen in the pens, in place of poor
animals weighing but sixty to seventy
pounds. This is the effect of the rapid
introduction of pure bred sheep of diff
ferent varieties, but chiefly the COtswold.
In good time American mutton will be
equal to that of England; it is nearly
SO now in weight of carcass, and will be
so in quality and flavor of the meat, if
farmers will raise roots upon which to
feed their sheep. One acre of turnips or
mangels is equal to ten of grass for fod.
der, and when fed with straw, and helped
out with little bran or oil.cake, roots
are certainly the cheapest feed that can
be produced.
JAMES WICK, in a number of his
Floral Guide, says about rust on celery:
There are two causes of rust. Celery
likes cool, moist situation, and if a
trife shaded, all the better. If it is
planted in an open situation exposed to
the sun, it sometimes burns, and this
causes rust. This, however, is not the
most frequent cause. Celery should nei-
ther be hoed nor earthed up when moist
ened with dew or rain, nor when the
ground is moist. 1t should be done
when air, and soil, and plant are dry,
If the soil is permitted between the leaf
stalks or in the heart of the plant at
earthing up, rust or rot, or both, is the
compensation. This is one reason why
we dislike celery of branching habit,
the work of earthing well is SO difficult.
A dwarfish plant of straight, compact
growth, is altogether the safest and best.
The following is receipt for making
Lefort's liquid grating wax, which is
highly commended in France, where it
was invented, and until lately kept Sc
cret: Melt one pound of common resin
over a gentle fire. Add to it an ounce
of beef tallow, and stir we'll. Take it
from the fire, let it cool down little,
and then mix with teaspOonful of
spirits of turpentine, and after that about
seven ounces of alcohol. The alcohol
cools it down so rapidly that it will be
necessary to put it again on the fire,
stirring it constantly. Still the utmost
care must be exercised to keep the alcohol
from getting infamed. To avoid it the
best way ia to remove the vessel from the
fire when the lump that may have been
formed commences melting again. This
must be continued till this is homo
genous mass, similar to honey. After
few days exposure to the atmosphere it
assumes whitish color, and becomes as
hard as stone, being impervious ts water
or air.
The Belgian official Journal referring
to the ignorant conduct of those who
destroy all kinds of birds and insects in
discriminatory, insists on the necessity
of children in primary schools being
taught to distinguish between useful
and noxious insects, and to exercise their
destructive facilities against the latter
only. The writer proceeds to say that
the ant, which is very disagreeable and
inconvenient in many respects, does ex-
cellent service in chasing and destroy
ing caterpillars with relentless energy.
A farmer who had noticed this fact, and
had his cabbage literally devoured by
caterpillars, at last hit upon the expedi-
ent of having an anthill, or rather nest,
such as abound in pine forests, brought
to his cabbage plot. A sackful of pine
points, abounding in ants, was obtained,
and its contents thrown around the in
tested cabbage plants. The ants lost no
time, but Immediately set to work; they
seized the caterpillars by their heads.
The next day heaps of dead caterpillars
were found, but not one alive, nor did
they return to the cabbages. The value
of the ant is we'll known in Germany,
and although their eggs are in great re-
quest as food for young lartridges, pleas
ants, and nightingales, there is fine
against taking them from the forests.
The ant is indefatigable; it climbs to
the tops of trees, and destroys an i'm
mense quantity of noxious insects.