The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1877-12-13

80 - - IL III AAAS
tine md energies to better adyan-
tag duripg the fine weather Of late
lall and early winter than BIZ turn
ING Ms attention 10 making and
sang fertilizers. There i an
abu1iance Of material usually at
haId in the shape Of muck. weeds.
leaves, ETC., which. If used for lit
Ter and incorporated with the pro-
On on Of the barn-yard. will add
e stly 70 it bulk and value.
Mr.. ID. b. SanderSon. of Lewis
to- Maine. gathered in his garden.
from one vine, fourteen pumpkins.
"l oh averaged eighteen and one
half pounds in weight, the smallest
VI ching eight pounds and the larg-
est twenty-sIN pounds. The vines
We're measured and found IN all to
* q! feet in length. Last sum-
n 10 keep from running. he cut
from it ninety feet of vines, on
winch vert quite anumher Of small
p pkins. This was the result Of
OIL seed, planted but not cultivated.
To show the possibilities Of Gull
tlyation and the variations that NAV
be produced. we find the difference
between the Tuscan wheat. which
IS cultivated exclusively for its
straw. of which fine Leghorn hats
are made, and the pedigree wheat
Of Mr.. Hallett Of England. is in
some respects as great as between
two entirely different plants. Thus
the hat wheat has a short, loose,
bearded ear, containing not more
than a dozen small kernels, while
the ''pedigree wheat" has shown
beardless Ears Of 81 inches in length.
closely packed with large kernels,
to he number of 100.
After the field work is done.
lock to the house. and make that
ami all about 1t comfortable. with
u delay. Where water lodges.
grade the surface, SO az to carry it
away from the building. Fit caves
troughs and leaders to the house.
Double sash IN the cellar windows
Will keep out frost and admit light.
Never heap manure about cellar
windows, bundles Of corn stalks
arc best for this purpose. Provide
a place for ashes, house Stops, and
other waste. Remove heaps of rub
bisl and everything that will cause
snow drifts.
-Schubant. through patient and
careful investigation, found that
the roots of peas and beans presen-
ted Il mat or felt of white fibres. to
a depths Of four feet from the sur
face of the ground. The roots Of
Winter wheat be observed as deep
as seven feet, in a light subsoil,
foltv-Seven days after sowing. The
average depth of the roots of Win
ter wheat and rye, as well lis Of
clover, was three to four feet. The
roots Of clover, one year old, were 81
feet long; those two Years old were
but four inches longer. He also
found the quantity of roots in per
cent. of the entire plant IN the dry
state to be as follows: Winter wheat
examined last of April, 40 per cent,
III May p per cent; Winter rye,
last of April, 81 per cent; peas,
four weeks after sowing, fl per
cent. at time of blossom, 24 per
cent. These facts are very sugges-
tive to the intelligent cultivator.
The season for b%utchering hogs
has arrived. Farmers who have a
number of heavy hogs to kill will
find it will pay to make a large box
in which to do the scalding rather
than to use a cask. We have used
such a tank for several years. 1t
should be made just a little longer
than the largest hog to be scalded,
and wide enough to permit turning
the hog IN the water readily. 1t
should not be larger than necessary,
for the less water used, beyond what
is required, the less the work of
keeping it hot. The most impor-
tant point in dispatching the work
of butchering is securing a "good
scald." The water should be neither
too warm nor too cold. By testing
it with a thermometer, the right
temperature can easily be ascer-
Mned. If our memory serves us
rightly, from so to So degrees is
the proper temperature. We always
use IA thermometer for guaging the
temperature of the water. Help
enough should be provided for strip
ping off the bristles as soon as the
hog is drawn from the water. One
minute then is worth five after the
hog is cooled a little. With good
fnrnn Of Snrnn az