The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1877-08-09
FARM, GARDEN AND HOUSEHOLD.


lNSECTICIDE.- Hot alum water is the
best insect destroyer known. Put the
alum into hot water and let it boil till nll
the alum is dissolved; then apply it hot
with brush to all cracks, closets, bed
steads and other places where any in
sects are found. Ants, bedbugs, cock
reaches, and creeping things are killed
by it; while it has no danger of poison
ing the family or iniuring property.
To REMOVE IRON RUST OR INK SPoTs.
-Moisten the spot and apply salts of
lemon until it disappears, and rinse well.
Salts of lemon are made of equal parts of
oxalic and tartaric acid and any person
can make them for their own use.
Another way is to moisten with lemon
Juice, sprinkle on salt, and lay in tie
sun. If ink is spilled on colored goods
that will not bear acids soak them imme-
diately in sweet milk; boiling hot Hot
melted tallow poured through ink stains
will remove them.
On STAINS OUT OF WHITE CLOTH. -
Make strong solution of borax water
one tablespoonful powdered borax to a
pint of boiling water; place the cloth on
clean board OF table and rub the oil
stains well, using clean brush dipped
into the solution; if the spots are of long
standing very little soap may be used
with the borax water; rinse well with
clean hot water, using the brush for that
purpose, then rub dry with a clean soft
cloth.
To CLEAN SILvER.-Table silver
should be cleaned at least once or twice
week, and can easily be kept in good
order and polished brightly i'll this way
Have your dish-pan half full of boiling
water; place the silver in, so that it may
become warm; then with a soft cloth
dipped into the hot water, soaped and
sprinkled with powdered borax, scoul
the silver well; then rinse in clean hot
water; dry with clean, dry cloth.
To PREVENT MoTHs.-If small piece
of paper or linen, moistened with tur.
pentine, be placed in wardrobes or draw.
ers, two or three times a year, it will eff
fectually preventany damage from moths
When furs are packed away in the
spring, they should be beaten well will
n rattan, in order to dislodge any eggs O
the moth; afterward brush thoroughly
and sew up carefully in a linen pillow
case; over all pin newspapers, leaving
no crevice where an insect could insinu
ate itself. It would be well to paste th,
edges of the paper together. If wei
done, you need not fear for the mos
valuable furs.
How to Manure Orchards.
I have read with interest the notice il
your issue of the nineteenth by FIRE,
Talker" of one of the meetings of tn
Pathological Society when the necessit,
of system of fertilization of orchard
was broached, especially of the orchard
of the Michigan Lake Shore, where tn
soil is Of a silicious character. Thi
matter of enriching orchards has beel
for some years subject of some though
with me. At length came to the con
clusion to make an attempt in that di
rection on about ten acres of appl
orchard. In the spring of 1876 I plowe,
the ground as deep as I could, the
sowed one bushel Of clover seed; an
dragged it in both ways; this was i
April. We had an abundance of rain o
the time the seed was sown, snd, after
ward, the consequence was a good catch
The clover grew all the season withou
pasturing. At this time of writing,
would be called heavy crop. L al
having it moved with scythe. AS 500
as it is cut have it raked under eac
tree as far as the limbs spread. This
leave as a mulch; the second crop il
tend to let grow the balance of the seG
son, ripen the seed and thereby restoc
the land. In 1878 think there will b
heavy crop of clover. If so, sha1
pursue the same course of moving an
mulching. The second growth of '7S q
proper time in the fall L shall plo,
under Thus / shall return to the Ian
two heavy crops in the shape of mulcl
and one, green, plowed under. Thi
will be a cheap and durable way t
enrich our orchards. j. IVhittlesey, 4
Michigan Farmer.
Apples Every Other Year.
One year ago the country was foode
by an immense apple crop. They wei
not worth the cost of picking and hou
ing in many places. Farmers havin
large orchards were tempted to give Il
raising apples as farm crop, becaus
when they ere plenty the price is so 10
that there is little profit from the crol
and when the price is high there are L
apples. Why it is SO I shall not atteml
to explain, but it seems to be a fact thu
apple-trees bear about all their fruit
even years. In few orchards i'll Ne
England the trees bear in odd years, an
in some of the extreme Western State
the habit of bearing only in even veal
does not seem to be as yet fully estal
ished The tendency, however, seen
to be all that way. Now we wish eve,
farmer and every farmers son wou]
make the experiment of picking off a
the fruit from at least one apple TIRE
this year, as soon as the fruit is as lare
as acorns /; and from another tree pic
off the larger portion of the fruit at IL
same stage, and note the result
Whether the bearing years can |
changed by this course, we are unab
to say with certainty. 1t has been oftt
claimed that the change might be MAJ
in this way. At any rate the object
well worth working for. The tre
should be manured and the ground Gu
tivated to stimulate growth and IL
formation of fruit buds, as the crop
fruit is always determined the year pr
vious.-Rans0s Farmer.
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