The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1876-05-20
RUrGE Topics.
WRITTEN FOR THE "UNIoN" BY ONE or THE MOST
EXPERIENCED FARMERS. .GARDENERs AND
FRUIT GROWERS IN THE UNITED

LEARNING FARMING.

EXPERIENCED FARMERS, GARDENERS AND
FRUIT GROWERS IN THE UNITED
STATES.
LEARNING FARMING.
When intelligent young men are desirous Of
learning the business Of farming in the most
scientific manner, they are met with the diff
Guilty that no agricultural institutions exist in
this country, under the management Of sound,
practical farmers. Those that do exist are
managed by professors" who have had lit
tie or no practical experience in farming and
the consequence is, that their labers generally
consist in making experiments, which result
in nothing of much value to the world. Young
men who desire to learn farming must, there
fore, go somewhere else than to agricultural
Colleges" to learn the practical part OF the bus
iness-to some intelligent farmer who is noted
for the extent of his operations, and his skill
in his business, even if they work for their
board, or pay for the privileges of working on
such @ farm for year or two, after they have
acquired knowledge of agricultural chemis-
try to aid them in their vocation in after life.
The writer has very poor opinion OF the abil-
ity of professors of Scientific Agriculture" to
manage farm successfully, and in nine cases
in ten their theories will fail when they come
to practical test. The proof lies in the fact
that for 30 years we have had State and other
Agricultural colleges among us, and yet they
have not demonstrated their utility to practi
cal farmers in the least degree.
FEEDING MILcH COWS.
An experienced farmer says: 81 have prac
ticed feeding at 5 o'clock in the morning. Hay
first, and roots and bran after the hay is eaten.
Turn out and water about o'clock, and return
to the stable after short time out for drink
and exercise, but not long, unless the weather
is fine. | feed all the roots and bran for the
day at one feed" Once day to feed roots
meal or bran is enough, then feed on hay for
the rest of the day." This system, of course,
applies only to feeding in the fall, winter, and
spring before cows go to pasture. The same
man adds: My mowings are all cut twice in
the season. Would be glad to cut it before it
is fairly headed out Grass is never cut too
early, but mostly too late. Cut it early, and
cut the second time. The chea pest feed that
can raise is dried grass and fodder corn.-
Roots cost me most, but they are very valuable.
shall raise more instead of less. Bran is
worth all it costs for feed, and also all it costs
as fertilizer afterward.
SHORT HORNS FOR BEEF.
The best beef cattle in the werld are the
Short Horns. This does not admit Of doubt.
They require good pastures, as they will not
thrive on scanty pastures at all. Where the
Devons would keep in good condition they
would lose fesh rapidly. But with an abun-
dance of feed in winter and summer they
make JH0 DeSG DGel CdItlC huOWu. OOWS VI Ill iS
breed often reach from l, 800 to 800 lbs. live
weight, and sell to the butcher for $l0O to $3.50.
A five year old COW lately killed, on failing to
breed, contained 200 lbs. of tallow.
PRICE OF POTATOES.
Last season was singularly favorable to po-
tato growing in nearly every part of the coun-
try and the consequence was the price went
down very low. This season farmers may be
inclined to plant less seed than last year, but
they will make a mistake if they do, as the
probability is that the season will be less fa-
vorable than last year, and that the bugs will
be very destructive, which will put u p the price
next fall. Don't be deceived, farmers, by the
result last season but plant lust as many Pc
tatoes as ever and fight the bugs to the end
Suppose you lose half of your crop by this pest,
the other half will be worth enough more to
make up the less in quantity. Obtain your
Paris green before you need it, so as to be pre-
pared for the battle. 1t sold last season ia New
York by the single pound at 40 cents, and it
ought to be sold everywhere at about that
price.
TICKS ON SHEEP.
AT shearing time lambs often become infest-
ed with ticks. Dipping the lambs in a solu-
ton of tobacco water will kill the ticks. Take
the coarse stems of the tobacco plant for cheap
ness, steep in water and immerse the lambs,
excepting their heads, wetting their wool to
the skin. This will speedily kill the ticks
By having the lambs stand an inclined
platform connecting with the tub the tobacco.
juice can be squeezed from the wool and used
for large flock.
YARDS FoR POULTRY.
A dozen fowls would do very well in yard
so feet square, with little grass plot in one
corner, as fowls must have grass. This space
is as small as can be used for that number
and if one cannot give as much space he had
better buy his eggs and chickens, as fowls can
not be kept proftably without certain area of
yard room. A few fowls may be put into
much smaller yard, and will lay we'll for few
weeks; but after while, with the grass all
destroyed, the hens will begin to lay eggs, and
will be Improbable. OF course, large range
is always best, but in village one cannot do
as he could on a farm. Don't forget to supply
your fowls with gravel, old mortar, or ground,
or pounded oyster shells, as aids in the forma-
tion of eggs.
GROWING HOPS.
That there is money in hops, no man can
doubt who has watched the increasing wealth
of the hop growers of Central New York for
the last 20 years. Sometimes the price is low,
but the average price pays we'll. 1t is for the
interest of growers to cry the business down
and therefore we often see articles published
claiming that hop-growing is net profitable,
merely to prevent others going into the bust
ness. Hops can be grown at cost of eight
cents per pound and the price for twenty
years has run from IL to so cents. Probably
the average was 20 cents.
CLOSE BREEDING.
In breeding stock, moderate in-and-in breed
ing does not I'M ure their good qualities, as the
experience of hundreds of cattle raisers can
prove. A western stock grower says at is
70 hot L.
tain choice breed of stock is to keep up the
intercourse between them, regardless of rela-
tionship, so long as there are any good quail
ties worthy OF preservation. Any system of
breeding which is based on any other prnci-
pie is founded on error and is sure to fail, as so
many of our previous attempts at improving
western herds have failed"
CARE OF HORSES.
The following rules for feeding horses are
taken from London, (Eng.,) publication. 1t
is well occasionally to read the opinions of
English farmers on the subject: "When
horse is worked hard its food should be chiefly
oats if not worked hard its food should chief
ly be hay, because oats supply more nourish
ment and hesh-making material than any other
kind of foed hay not SO much. Rack feeding
is wasteful. The better plan is to feed with
chopped hay, from manger, because the food
is not thrown out, and is more easily chewed
and digested. Sprinkle the hay with water
that has salt dissolved in it, because it is pleas
ing to the animals taste and the hay is more
easily digested. A teaspoonful of salt to a
bucket of water is sufficient"
CHARCOAL FOR SICK ANIMALS.
Charcoal has good medicinal qualities, and
may be given to any sick animal, and often eff
fects relief and in many cases cure. In a
case where COW became sick from over eat
ing a spoonful of pulverized charcoal was
mixed with water put into a bottle, the cows
head held up, the charcoal turned down her
threat, and in few minutes relief was vis-
BILE; and in four hours she was able to 60 to the
pasture. In case of becoming badly bloat-
ed by eating green apples, a-half teacupful
of powdered charcoal cured her entirely in a
few hours.
HONEY BEES.
Every man who keeps bees should have the
honey boxes on bofore apple trees blossom
Put them on all your hives, to be ready when
the bees are numerous enough to enter them.
Small pieces of guide combs in the tops aid
greatly in causing the bees to commence comb
building in the boxes. Some families of bees
will be too weak to work in the boxes; but it
is always best to give them set in case they
may need them. Get your hives for swarms