Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1879-11-01

better. With eggs at cents each, II good hens
Will now return more than IS per month, and
next month more than that. The profit of keep
ing winter layers is obvious. In all farm work
our aim should be to produce that which sells
best, and at time when 1t sells for the highest
price. At odd times, stock of GOODS NAV be
made for use in the spring.
S sgS y, arsL general clearing up is
and cellars should be cleared OF rubbish, and the
rubbish burned. Gather up every tool and put
II into It's place; fix up wagons and carts clean
ana paint them; arrange the house for winter
and rough weather; now that lights have to be
carried about the barns and stables everything
snouid De Iully insured. and good responsible
company selected to insure In; fire-wood should
be prepared and put under shelter. and that
general family peace-maker, dry fuel. gener-
ously supplied and conveniently placed for use;
Where coal Is used, a bin under cover. with an
opening at the bottom for taking out the fuel
easily, will save trouble and loss. Finally, pre-
pare suitable place for disposing of all house
hold waste where it can be made available as
fertilizer and all risk of Infection from it be
avoided.
ORCHARD AND GARDEN WORK.
Whatever the season may have been, this
month brings work to a close over wide eSt,n
OF country. The orchardist or gardener finds
the beginning of another, and while he is oc
cupied with the sale, or the proper storing, o,
his crops. he must, in order to baSuccessful ais
plan. and In some things prepare, for the crops
of the coming year.
ORCHARD AND NURSERY.
APPLEs.-With the present short crop, fruit
that in years OF abundance would not be thought
marketable will SELL and should be sorted with
this in view, and put up in the best possible
shape. The rejected fruit can go into cider
which is better when made at this season, be
cause the process OF fermentation goes on more
slowly.
FENCES AND GATES of the orchard and nursery
should be in good order, especially at this sea
son. when stray animal may do serious dam
age.
RABBITS can do much harm If left to them
selves Ii the trees are few, they may be pro-
tected by bands of lath or tarred paper, tied on
with fine WIRE Rabbits have great distaSte
for meat, and may be kept away from the trees
by Smearing the trunks of the trees with blood
or rubbing them with liver or other refuse
meat. small bounty" on rabbits will make
boys active with their traps. The rabbit is at
its best In November, and fat young one is
most excellent.
A MOUND OF EARTH at the base of young trees
will serve the double purpose OF support to the
tree against the winds and storms, and also
prevent mice from gnawing the trunks and kill
ing the trees The mounds should be Is or 20
inches high, and OF earth free from weeds, so
that 1t may pack firmly.
DRAINING If necessary, should be done before
hard freezing weather. Surface water should
not be allowed to collect; few burrows in the
right place will be useful in carrying Off the wa
ter.
CIoNs may be cut as soon as the leaves fall,
when they should be put into SawduSt, or, in its
absence, sand, and kept in cool cellar. Only
healthy, thrifty trees Of wellknown varieties
should be selected from. 1t is better to buy
than to use poor stock.
STOCKS FOR Roof GRAFTING.-The grating is
done during the winter and therefore the stocks
should be In handy place. The stocks are
taken up before the ground freezes, assorted,
tied in bundles and put in boxes, with their
roots well covered with soil, and placed in the
cellar, ready for grating.
THE KEEPING OF FRUIT requires a uniform,
low temperature, just above the freezing point.
Fruit, in ripentng. gives off carOonic acid gas,
which is deleteriOuS, hence fruit should not be
stored in the house cellar If it can be avoidal
Where there iS other nl1cp for the fr1it
the ventilation of the cellar must be carefully
looked to, and If an opening can be made from
the cellar into the chimney, let it be done.
Open the windows of the cellar when the out
side temperature will allow.
DETACHED CELLARS should be provided where
there is much fruit. In such, ventilation is not
tards Tie iiir;ening, and, in fact tends to pre-
serve the fruit.
LABE1s-Those upon the trees should be
looked to. The old style, made of pine, marked
with lead-pencn while a coat of whitehead is
still fresh upon them, is about the best. Some
prefer zinc strips with the name written with
pencil Perhaps the best, most durable tree
label, was described and figured in the Septem-
Der number.
SEEDS OF TREES for spring planting are best
preserved by mixing them with sand, and plac-
Ing the boxes in cool and dry place, where
there are no mice.
MANURING.-n the results Of annual cropping
without any return to the soil could be seen In
an orchard as quickly as in a corn or potato
lions of the fact in unproductive orchards.
What manure shall be given will depend upon
circumstances, and the subject is too large to
discuss here. Stable manure, bone, ashes
green cropS-turned under, not taken off, as is
too frequently done-and lime, are all OF great
value, and should be freely used.
THE FRUIT GARDEN.
To those really fond of gardening, the prOpa-
CATION of plants is one OF its greatest pleasures.
Aside from the economy OF raising their own
plants, and the certainty of having these true
ff,fa
culttvating plants they have started from the
beginning-almost created-than with plants
purchased already grown. The case with which
many things may be multiplied will surprise
those who have never attempted 1t. In propa-
eating, it is OF great Importance to do it at the
right time, and In some cases the operation
the fruit garden, the propagation of the Cur,
rant, Gooseberry, Blackberry, Raspberry, and
the Grape, is best begun in the fall The very
simplest is
THE PROPAGATION OF THE CURRANT AND GOOSE
BERRY.-The material used is the pieces re-
moved from the bushes at the time OF pruning
We have advised pruning so soon as the leaves
fall, which is usually month or more earlier,
though many put it off until now, or much
later. In pruning the Currant, the aim should
be to have an open bush; remove altogether,
from the base those stems that make 1t too
crowded, whether young or old, and the present
years growth of stem should be shortened by
cutting off one-third or one-half. From the
pruningS
CURRANT CUTTINGS are made, using only the
growth OF this year Qodb by its much lighter
color, and cutting 1t into six-inch lengths. In
Localities where the ground is not likely to freeze
hard for some weeks, the cuttings may be
planted at once otherwise they may be set
quite close together in boxes OF soil; the soil
should be deep enough to allow them to BE-
pushed In for two-thirds their length. Place
the boxes in the cellar, see that they do not get
very dry during the winter, and set out the first
thing in spring. TO plant now, open a trench
with the spade, having one side of it perpendicu-
lar, and deep enough to hold the cuttings, leav-
ing an inch above the surface. Place the cut
tingS, inches apart, and carefully fill in earth
Success largely depends upon having the soil
well against the lower ends OF the cuttings, and
it should be firmly pressed down here using tie
end OF a board TO gently, but firmly, pound it
down. Cover the bed with straw or hay, ami
leave it until spring.
BLACKBERRY AND RAsBAERRY.-BOvh are sup
posed to have had the Old stems cut away as
soon as the crop was OF. II this was not done
then, do it now, and tie UP the canes for the
winter Those who cultivate the tender raSp-
berries must cover them this month. The canes
are bent down in the direction OF the row by one
man, while another throws enough earth upon
them to hold them in place; in a garden, the
work may be done with the spade or shovel COW
ering the entire length OF stem with a few inches
OF earth. In large plantations, the covering Is
done with plow, and very rapidly.
PR0PAGATING THE BLACKBERRY AND RASPBER-
RY.-In small gardens the demand for plants is
usually supplied by suckers, which come up
from the old stools, and are allowed to grow for