The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1880-02-12
AGRICULTURAL,
THE FIELD, THE FARM, THE GARDEN
ORCHARD MANAGEMENT.

proves a decided stimulus and benefit.
We have heard of trees that did not
bear, and the reason assigned was that
they grew too luxuriously. We never
saw the trees A cheap material to top
dress under orchard trees will pay. If
the farmer has no material for top-dress-
ing, he should run his harrow through
the summer to keep down weeds and to
permit the roots to have the benefit Of
what little food there may be in the
soil.
Orchard trees often receive too much
pruning, In young trcss OILY thin out
30 AZ not to have the main leaders cross
ing or interfering one with another; or
when few shoots are observed to be
growing much stronger than the rest cut
them away. BY long series o bearing,
branches will often get bark bound, and
stunted, preventing passage Of sap to
the leaves. In such cases the sap seems
TO revenge itself by forcing out vigorous
young shoots long way down from the
top of the tree. It is down to these
vigorous young shoots that it il recon-
mended to cut the bearing branches
away. OF course, much of this work
can only be left to the judgment of the
grower. If the tree bears as fine fruit AS
ever no such severe pruning necessary;
but if it fails to yield satisfactory crops,
now is the time to do the cutting.
HORTICULTURAL NOTES.
A pear tree, when it is bearing fruit,
demands great deal of water If pear
trees are watered daily with liquid ma
nurc, or water from the house sewer
and chamber Stops, the fruit will increase
in size and quality.
New York pear-growcrs regard the
duchcssc as the most profitable dwarf
pear that can be grown. They are
planted twelve feet by six In cult
waiting, the pillow is run between the rows
and the loose soil thrown upon the grass
under the trees, thus keeping down its
growth.
In trimming off branches they should
be cut close to the trunk 50 that no dead
stumps shall disligurc the tree, also that
the bark may readily grow over. Many
fruit trees become hollow or fall into
premature decay from the rain pcnc-
trating through old saw cuts made in
pruning. Scars should be painted or
tarred, or otherwise protected from the
rain.
An application Of lime, wood-ashcs
and old iron put around the roots
of fruit trees that are not doing well,
will restore the trees to n healthy con
ditiOn and improve the quality Of the
fruit. A good wash for nursery trees
Heat an ounce Of sal soda to rcdncss in
m iron pot, and dissolve it in one gal
Ion Of water, and while warm apply it
10 the trunk.
Apples, in addition to being n de-
licious fruit, makes pleasant medicine.
A raw, mellow apple, is digcstcd in an
hour and half, while boiled cabbage
requires five hours. If baked apples are
eaten frequently at brcakfast with coarse
bread and butter, without meat or flesh
Of any kind, it has an admirable effect
on the general system, often removing
constipation, correcting aciditcs an
cooling off febrilc conditions more cf-
fectually than the most approved mcdi-
cines.
FARM NOTES.
To keep the striped bugs from cucum-
bers saturatc ashes with kerosene and APP
ply handful in II hill.
Persons using nitrate of soda as a fer
tilizer ought to bear in mind that of all
fertilizers it is the easiest washed out
from the soil.
To destroy bugs on sQuashcs and GU
sumber vines, Dissolve n tablespoonful
~altpeter in pailful of water pm, apint
Of this around each hill sha; inc tn earth
30 that it will not spread much. 1t is
also good to kill grub in peach trces-us.
ing quart to each tree.
To prevent young pigs being killed and
eaten by the mother while lalrowing,
feed the SOW with plenty oil roots, raw or
cooked, and season them with salt An
other--Give the sow n slice OF lat salt
pork daily for the last few days previous
to narrowing. Bran mashcs saltcd are al |
80 good. Green clover might be fed daily !
and salt be put where she can Get what
shs wants
PLANTS AND FLOWERS.
We have one or two letters asking |
questions about certain plants and flow
ers. The writer's apologize for writing
by saying that they love flowers. Why |
should not everybody learn to love these
beautiful objects Of nature? an all
places and in all seasons, flowers expand
their light and soul, like wings, teaching
Is, by persua i've reasons, how akin they
arc to human things" From the
"wss modest, c,imson.tipped daisy"
Of Burns, to the magnolia who does not
lsve them2
The verbcna can be easily grown fir m
seed, and the flowers produced from seed
are nearly always fragrant, besides being
produced far more plentifully than ON II
plant raised from cutting.
To keep insects of of plants indoors,
Use tobacco dust freely.
The lantana is an easily cultivated
plant, growing freely in any good soil
the best compost is Il good light loan
and old manure or leaf mould with -thc
addition Of sand to keep the whole
spen.
By constantly removing dccaycd flow
ers before seed pod can swell, the
grswth Of tho plant and the continued
development of new buds and flowers
upon the new growth are matters of
course.
To destroy insects on roses. mix Il table
teaspoonful of white helleE Hca in arail
Of water, and apply it with a sprinkler.
This destroys the insects and the IT,
srs clear. Another ehcctual remedy is
whale oil soap, one pound of soap being
added to eight gallons of water. 1t is
spilled at night, the plants being thor
eughly drenched every two or threc ;;
days.
Fuchsias after being ex'" -.cd with