Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1881-11-02
Homemade Fertilizers.

box placed near the castle into
which the sweep puts all the SCOT
from the chimneys and Aues IRON
time to time; this in the course Oh
the year amounts to an incredible
amount of manure, and very han
dy and useful we fird It. When Il
piece of ctonnd IS dug we give 1t d
dressing with SCOT, and then II ,
gardening phrase, break it down
for The crop. This really means run
ming harrow or rough rake over 1t,
aad it mixes the SCOT with the soil
nicely, aud tie result is always
satisfactory in the crop. Last year
our onion crop showed umistakaOie
signs Of the mageot. I,immedlate-
ly had the piaco dressed with SCOT.
Heavy rains set i'll just after and
soon tie onions were on their legs
and the lnaggots were gone. The
rain wafer from off the kitchen runs
into tank, and is heavily charged
with SCOT. This is handy to the
hower-garden, and VIC find it capital
for watering Aower~beds in summer
The park one autumn had a let OF
what the country people here call
old tour'-why [ know rot, but II
means lot OF old, coarse grass-a
good dressing of SCOT in the spring
and it soon gave place to fine
young, fresh grass. and ever since
the deer and highland cattle may
be found at pasture on this brow
While | am Oh this subject OF nome
made manurcs, allow me to men-
ton a few others, and the next
shall be ashes, more especially
wood ashes. This is invaluable III
! a garden if kept dry till used. We
all know what a terrible plague the
club is among the Brasslca tribe
well, if the seed is sOwn on the sur.
face and covered with ashes, and
at planting time a hole, with a
large dibber, is made IN the ground
and filed with the ashes, inserting
the plant into this, l have never
known the club to trouble one, anc
it is the best thing to dress lawns
and meadow lands, encouraging the
best grasses and clovers. In a
woody country like this there Is
plenty of charcoal dust at the bot
tom OF the heap, this is most use
Jul for potting and iruit-tree border
making; some say 1t makes grapes
extra dark in color-this | canuot
P ositiyely be sure Of, although
rather side with the belief. Lime
is not nearly enough used. Every
bit of ground should, in my opin-
ion, be lined once in five years. 1t
kills slugs and insects, and llchen
on trees, and acts chemically on tie
ground, and is often better than
manure for certain crops. | remem-
Der once seeing ground dressed in
the gray lime, produce barley fifty
seven pounds per bushel. Horse
hoof parings make most excel
lent manure for potting pines, vines,
pelargoniums, &c, and one can
easily make arrangements with the
nearest blacksmith to save them.
When one reads Of horn Shawn gs
icing run after, I often think there
are as good at the village forge.
Bones are most valuable in a gar
den; they decompOse but slowly
keep the ground open, and are in
valuable in vine border making
THE champion bunch Of grapes
shown at Edinburg some SIX years
ago, weighing over twenty SIX
pounds, did the clever gardener
who grew it great credit; but it
should also be known lhat theIe
were heaps of bone in the border. a
gardener whom l had gotten a good
situation for, took it into his head
to send me a couple OF geese at
Christmas time. The geese were
eaten, no matter when or where,
but the bones were saved these,
with some others, were put into the
bottom Of two vases on the terrace
wall, two good plants of Tom
Thumb pelargonium were planted
in them, and at the end OF Septcm-
Der they measured seventeen feet
and SIX inches in circumference.
So much Tor bones and plenty of