Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1877-11-29
FARM.

MATURING GRASS LAND. = Twenty
years experience in farming on the
prairies of Illinois has changed some
what the peculiar notions entertained
by the early settlers that. manure was
not only useless on our prairie soil, but
was an actual damage to the land. Ma
nure is no longer given away, neither
are the autumn evenings Illuminated
by burning straw piles as of yore. Per-
haps the limited experience of the
writer in top-dressing meadow land
may benefit some brother farmer.
There is in my meadow partially
detached portion containing four acres,
that has been seeded down for the last
fourteen years, and cut for hay or seed
all the time, with the exception of two
years it was used for pasture, and then
allowed to grow again for hay Up to
the harvest of 1876 it had never been
MANFRED, consequently the yield had
got to be quite light, only four loads on
the four acres in 1S76-less than ton
to the acre, we thought by estimation.
After the hay was taken off,,we gave
this portion top-dressing of stable ma
nure, which was neither green nor well
rotted, but was what had accumulated
around the horse-stable during the sea-
son, and might be said to be in a half
rotten condition. The amount waanot
large, but liberal, ten or twelve loads
per acre, and the time September. Now
for the result of 1877 we cut from
these four acres twelve loads estimated
at ten tons, or two and half tons per
acre, and the hay on the other portion
of the meadow, where there was no ma
nure used, was not as heavy as in 1876.
Comment or argument is unnecessary.
Top-dressing has gained the case, in nv
estimation at least.
CONDENSED APPLE CULTURE. = Prof.
Beal, of the Michigan Agricultural Col
lege, gives the following admirable di-
rections for apple growing: A young
tree should be treated very much as
you would treat hill of corn. Hoed
crops will answer in young orchard :;
sowed crops will do much harm to
young trees. think it good plan to
keep young trees mulched, and | am
not sure but 1t is the best of all ways to
treat large or old trees as long as they
live. Mulch prevents the rapid evap-
Grafton of moisture from the soil, keeps
the surface mellow, prevents the soil
from often freezing and thawing in
winter and becoming overheated in
summer. Whether or not to cultivate
trees which have become we'll estab-
lished depends upon circumstances.
have never seen an apple orchard which
L thought was injured by too frequent
shallow culture, but this may be the
case IN some places, especially in warm
climates or where the soil is deep and
very rich. Whether to cultivate or not
can be told by the looks of,the trees.
If the color of the leaves is good and
the growth all right, and the trees bear
well of fine fruit, they are doing well
enough, even if in grass. But if the
leaves are pale, the growth of the an
nual twigs much less than foot in
length on trees set twelve years, and the
fruit small and poor, something is the
matter, and they are suffering for want
of pillow, harrow or cultivator, or a heavy
mulch or coat of manure, or two or
more of these combined. The upper
twigs of trees set twelve years ought to
grow SIX to twelve or more inches each
year. To judge of the condition of an
apple tree is much like judging of the
condition of sheep in q pasture. Look
at the sheep, and not at the pasture. As
long as the sheep are plump and fat they
are all right.
CORN AS FOOD.IThe Milwaukee lEH-
ing Journal thus compares the cost and
food value of corn and wheat, to the dis
advantage of the latter grain: "Wheat
is the dearest food consumed by man.
kind, and when the comparative value
and cheapness of the different grain is
more thoroughly understood, the singu-
lar fact will he developed that there is
as much caste in food as in the human
race that is supported by it. Scarcity
and high cost of wheat will eventually
force nations and individuals to learn
that the moral and financial elevation
of the masses depends, upon the substi-
tuition of some good material cheaper
than wheat and bearing nearer proper
ton to the reduced state of wages now
prevalent the world over. When the
conventional necessities of life increase
in cost, laborer's wages diminish, and
suffering and discomfort ensue. Phe
following comparison will show that
corn, as well as oats, is cheaper food
than wheat oats contain 1891 per
cent. nOurlshment corn, 1870 per
cent, and wheat, 14.06 per cent. Each
pound of nOusishment from oats at 5S4
cents per bushel costs 9.33 cents from
corn at 81 cents per bushel, each pound
81 cents, while, from wheat at 81 OF per
bushel, each pound of nourishment
costs 20.61 cents. The corn crop of the
United States equals the wheat crop of
the civilized world, while 40 per cent.
of the latter can not raise sufficient for
their own wants The deficiency inthe
United States wheat crop of 1876 ex-
ceeded the entire export of 1875, while
our exports of wheat in 1875 were TO-
100000 bushels less than in 1874. show
ing that wheat can not be claimed as a
sole dependence from the rapidly in
creased population of the world. Corn
must, before many years, be consumed
as partial substitute, at least, for wheat,
and the better the quality of the grain,
and the more perfect the process of pre-
pairing it for food, the quicker will come
the enlarged demand. This is in part
confirmed by the fact that our exports
of 1876 were 3 per cent. Of our whole
crop, while for the twelve preceding
years they averaged only per cent. of
the corn produced.
OATS VS.. Corn FOR LIVE SToCK.-Con-
corning this subject, DIR. James. the
Commissioner of Agriculture of Geor-
gia, writes as follows "Taking into