American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1879-09-20
AGRICULTURAL.

RABBITS AND FRUIT TREEs.-An ex-
change gives what it calls a sure pre-
ventivc for rabbits and mice destroying
fruit trees. During the year, save all
the paper bags and wrapping-twine- In
the fall cut the bags into strips a little
wider than the tree is large around; tie
the strips around the body of the tree AS
high up as you can, and down to the
ground; draw a little dirt around the
bottom of the paper and your trees are
safe from rabbits and mice. 1t is also
a good protection against cold and heat
in winter; do not-tie too tight.
ECONOMY OF PRODUCTION.-The
profit in producing any farm crop con
sists in growing the greatest possible
lowest possible cost. An acre of ground
will naturally produce, with fair culture,
II given quantity of corn or other pro-
duce. If that amount pays for produc-
ton any excess over that is profit above
extra cost in culture, and this excess is
centive for producing large crops. The
how to do it is the study of the intelli-
gent, progressive farmer. A poor man
can not afford to farm slovenly; yet how
often it is the case! If he has only
manure enough for one acre, he can not
afford to spread it over two acres;
neither can he afford to spread his labor
over a larger area than he can econom-
ically and thoroughly use it upon. He
can not afford to do work with his hands
which can well be done with the horse,
or hire work done while he himself is
less profitably employed. Economy
must be practiced in all things, especial
ly in small things, for all large ones are
made up of the smaller; and there are
few small farmers Cor any farmers) who
will not find that their profit lies in saw
ing in small things. 1t is these which
tell in these times.-C0untry Gentleman.
SAVING SEED CORN-A Kentucky
farmer gives his experience in saving
corn for seed A cold winter, like the
past one, always injuries the germina
ton of corn unless it has carefully dried
before the cold weather. This thing
has happened to us SO often that it is
rather surprising that our farmers do
not provide against it. Last fall the
corn seemed to be thoroughly dried in
the field, yet the bad condition of the
seed proves that there was yet much
moisture in it when winter came on.
The writer in the past has tried to inn
press upon his brother farmers the i'm
portance of carefully selecting and thor
oughly drying seed corn before cold
weather. His plan is to commence to
select and save seed corn when he be-
gins to feed his hogs. Every good ear
for seed is saved and laid upon a tight
floor over his cook stove, where it stays
until the following spring, when 1T is
shelled and kept in readiness for plant
ing. By this means he never fails to get
good stand of corn as far as his seed
thus saved will go. Sometimes he has
not saved enough for planting, and he
has found trouble when he had to go to
Tic cilD " iii oul Ills supply CoiH eiuS
placed on the floor under which a fire is
kept up through fall and winter will al
ways terminate. He has field of 40
acres now up and about ready for the
pillow, planted with a large, white varie-
ty, that is as fine stand as any one
could desire. The variety of corn here
alluded to has been grown by the writer
30 years upon the same farm without
change of seed, and it is better now than
it was when he first produced it.-Nash-
rifle american.