The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1877-07-18

= - w..
advantage Wien an old pasture
field fails in lis grass, and becomes
infested with noxious weeds. it must
be plowed and reseeded, or it will be
of little or no valoe at eli to its owner.
Suppose such q field receive as large
q dressing of stable manur as Q
be afforded, which would not be
much In most cases, and is plowed as
fast as the manure is applied the
frst week in September, then har-
row it. aud apply a01 to 500 lbs OF
super phosphate, or finely ground
bone meal, to the acre; then SOW the
grass seed, and harrow in the seed
and fertilizer at the same time; and
the result would be that q fair crop
of hay could be cut from this land
the next season, and it might be
safely pastured in the following Au-
gust or September, and it wouldbe q
very productive pasture for six or
eight years.
SHADE TREES.
The setting of shade trees along
both sides of the roads in the farm
ing districts is often advocated by
the rural press, as a means of increas-
ing the value of farms, in conse-
~quence of the pleasantness Of such
street when the trees become large.
There is no mistake in this opinion;
and farmers would do well to club
together and set naples, elms. &c,
along their farms, and then see that
no cattle are allowed to run in the
highways. Suppose that a farm ex-
tends on the road 500 rods, fifty trees
would suffice for that distance; and
the trees can be procured in many
places for SO cents each, about three
inches in diameter, and ten or IL
feet high. None smaller should be
set. as trees of the size of walking
canes, as are often planted, grow
very slow, and seldom flourish 10 the
highways. Set none but those that
are of good size and straight, and
trust no man to set them by the job,
unless you want half to die and the
remainder to drag along a sickly
life. The trees should be set in the
spring, the roots well preserved 10
digging them up, the tops cut back,
holes dug large, and good rich soil
filed 10 around the roots, fit has to
be brought from another locality, as
it doesn't pay to slight such work.
ERRORS IN POULTRY KEEPING.
In confirmation of what / said in a
previous article, in regard to keeping
0 n but one year old fowls for lay
ers, | annexth the following: Although
there are many widely different
breeds of fowls, edapted more or less
to the varied wants of the farmer,
there are some general rules Tor their
management which are applicable
everywhere; and many fragrant err
rors are made by most farmers. One
serious error ia the common custom
of keeping hens until they become
too old for profit, because they were
choice birds and good layers when
young. A hen of any breed will
lay only about half as many eggs
the second year as the first after she
commences laying. All fowls kept
by a farmer after they are two years
old are kept at a losa. as far as
money ia concerned. When Q whole
flock is allowed to run without kill
ing off the old ones and replacing
them by pullets, disease is sure to
attack them. They become liable
to cholera &c, after they become
aged. If the practice of keeping on
ly pullets is once followed, / am sure
that no farmer will ever abandon
it.n
sHEEPIN SMALL NUMBERS.
There are many farmers who keep
no sheep, owing to their farms no;
being large. In 1870 the number of
sheep id the State of New York was
2,lsl,57s; and it is estimated by a
good judge that the aocks do not
average over ten to fifteen sheep, or
ranging from FIVE to twenty-five, The
lambs and fat sheep are sold to
butchers in the vicinity of the farms
where the sheep are kept. A farm
er in st. Lawrence county says; II
do not claim that there is q very
large amount of profit to be made in
the course of a year from a dozen
sheep, bHt their is, on all farms, gra-
zing in summer and rough feed in
winter that can be converted into
mutton and wool, aud which would
not make butter, beef or pork. 1t is
impossible for weeds to grow in q
field where sheep are kept, aud for
this purpose they are Invaluable.
Like poultry they ere the scavengers
of the farm; their keeping costs but
little, and this is the eassn why
they are profitable in the hands Of
even a careless farmer. To the far
mer sheep are stock that pay diyi-
deuds semi-annuaily. In the spring
there is a return of wool that would
render the investment in sheep snfi-
GENTLY profitable if there was no
other source ofpro6t, and In the fall
there is an equally profitable return
in lambs, or rather the lambs are
ready for market at that season.
From the returns Of 1870 we find
that the average clip per head was
IS lbs. A sheep will clip nearly
FIVE pounds Of washed wool, worth
say thirty cents per lb.lit has been
considerably higher during the past
few years.; this amounts to $l.55.
Sac also produces q lamb, which
should be worth four dollars when it
is 6t for the butcher. This makes
$3.50 as the amount realized from
one sheep for the year. We have to
feed the sheep and care 70 her q year,
but We have the sheep herself left at
the end Of the season, her manure
also. and tae fact that this was &C.
comphshed on rough feed and an
outlay of very little capital"
RE1aTPE PoR BUTTER.
In a small work, describing the
method of making butter in Penn
sylvania, nea Philadelphia. celebrs-
ted in the market of that city, I find
the following: Take of saltpeter one