The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1877-08-22
FARM, GARDEN AND HOUSEHOLD.
Questions md Answers.
TO DESTROY SUMAC.

AZ IL - 4NsA' 49,
sumac be killed by cutting, and if 80
what time of she year is best suited to
kill them? Or if they cannot be got rid
of in that way, is there any other way to
do it save by grabbing them? I have
nearly thirty acres that are more or less
covered"
Reply.-The present time is the best
to cut any sort of brush. Being in full
vigor of growth, the check given by close
moving with a brush Sc &c or hook is
generally fatal. A weak growth may
iprout from the roots, and a second cut
ting close to the ground next month will
kill all but the most persistent Of them.
These should be plowed up, and the
roots gathered with the harrow. No
better course could be pursued than this
in the ccse above mentioned.
REMEDY o FLEAs.
"Westchester" writes: "Is there
any remedy for feas, either to keep
them from swine, the house or the per-
son? If there is any exterminator or
means to keep them, especially from the
house or person, I would be very glad
to know"
Reply-Swine may be freed from heas
by keeping the pens clean, remov-
ing the bedding frequently, and by
s%prinkling the floor with kerosene oil or
a solution of carbolic acid. The swine
may be rubbed on the back and beneath
the legs and shoulders with a mixture of
four parts of sweet oil and one part of
kerosene oil. To free the person from
fleas is very easy by using perfect clean
illness in the clothing and bedding, and
by keeping dogs and cats out Of the
house. It is generally the case that the
source from which the Westinghouse is
infested, is the stables, pig pens or poul-
try house, or dogs, cats and small YER
min. As soon as the cause is removed
the pest will cease.
CULTURE OF CELERY.
W. T. W, Oswego, N. Y, writes: II
have a number Of celery plants set out,
and wish for some information as to the
proper time to keep the earth around
them. Some tell me to keep the earth
around them all the time, leaving only
the leaves above the surface, and some
tell me to let them get up a little and
then put the earth around them. I have
some trouble with the worms eating the
leaves off and even the stalks level with
the ground. The worm is about an inch
long and one-eighth of an inch in dame
ter, and striped, and seems rather dor
mant. Please tell me what will kill
them"
Reply.-The proper method of cul-
ture of celery is to set out the plants in
narrow trenches about six inches deep
and three feet apart. The plants are set
about siS inches apart in therows. As the
plants grow and reach above the surface
of the ground, the stalks of each should
be gathered together and the trench
filled with loose earth, care being taken
not to permit any earth to get into the
hearts of the plants. AS they are plant
ed pretty thickly, they Will grow mp tall,
and will need no more attention until
full grown, when they should be again
handled, the stalks gathered, and the
earth banked up against them, leaving
but six inches of the leaves above the
top of the bank. The stalks then under
go what is known as the process of
blanching, and need no attention
until the time for gathering them arrives.
If the plants have been set out different
ly from the above method, it may be
necessary to earth them frequently to
force an upward growth of stalk. The
only remedy for the worms is to pick
them off by hand, OF to water the plants
with a solution of quassia.
Farm Notes..
DRESSING FOB FRUIT TREES barrel
of ashes with eighty pounds of ground
bone, made moist with water, will dissolve
and constitute a good dressing for most
fruit trees.
CoL1c IN HoEsEs.-An officer who
commanded artillery during the late war
informs us of the following remedy for
collie in horses which he has tried with
perfect success in hundreds OF cases:
Rub the horse well between the fore legs
and around the girth with spirits of tur-
pentine. Immediate relief follows.
AsHEs.-Do not allow ashes of any
kind to be wasted. 1t will pay to haul
leached ashes several miles, when n
has his own team and a laborer at fair
wages Coal ashes when spread around
berry bushes of any sort, or around
grape vines, will aid materially in pro-
large and fair fruit.
A correspondent of the Pacific Rural
says: "The only effectual remedy
for wire-worm I know of is q Thorough
of the soil. Those that are
troubled with them will find by examin-
ing their soil that it is cold, and by STIR
it thoroughly it will get warmer.
so doing they will kill the wire-worm,
it cannot live in warm ground"
PREVENTION OF SwARMNG.-A CORE
spondent OF the Bee Keepers Magazine,
in relation to the swarming of bees,
says "'AfterI have had all the increase
I desire, when a hive shows an inclina
ton to swarm I move it to the place of
some weaker hive. In that way I make
all my colonies strong, and when I have
accomplished that object but still have
hive that threatens to swarm I change
with another, that may also show
signs of swarming. The change Of
workers destroys the propensity of
swarming for the time being, and by
them plenty of box room they
will store honey, and if they are again
inclined to swarm, you may owe back
again and it will have the effect"
KEEPING Down THE WEEDs.-The
London Garden remaks: Tho only
remedy for weeds is prompt destruction
in q young state. Weeds are easily
eradicated if neYerS allowed to advance
the seed-leaf. Once let their
roots run deep and wide, and their tops
rise high, and then the weeds are mas
tiers in the garden. 1t provokes one to
see the complacency with which some
allow weeds to establish
themselves in flower beds or borders, or
on roads and walks, and their subsequent
futile efforts to subjrgate them. Prompt
destruction will vanquish the very worst
Of them. Plantains, grass, thistles and
are perhaps the most difficult to
eradicate. But if by any neglect these
have gained q strong footing in any
garden, constant beheading alone will
them. No plant can live LONG if