The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1881-03-18
AGRICULTURAL NOrrS

so large an amount of food and with so
little labor as Indian corn.
FARMERS in New Jersey and Pepnsyl-
vania are giving considerable attention. to
the culture of iute plants.
DECAYED grain of any kind ;s highly
injurious to stock It has noroIvZing
effect upon the animals fed with II often
times causing death.
SPENT tan-bark has been Moved into
a compact clay soil with the best results.
as 1t rendered the soil mellow and in
creased its warmth.
Ewes in lamb are very lialIo 70 take
cold, and when exposed to wet and cold
weather, or allowed to lie on fba Ground,
are likely to suffer abortion.
PASTURES that have been fod n few
seasons will generally produce more
milk, or make more fat, than those
which have been newly seeded down.
ASHES are, for many soils. a standard
fertilizer. Places where a tree or brush
heap has been burned off show the effects
of the manuring for years. IT is an old
saying 1.-The land never forgets ashes. "
A WISCONSIN farmer, twentv-three
years ago, planted a piece of land unfit
for cultivation with black walnut trees.
The trees are now from sixteen to twenty
inches through, and have been sold FOR
$4,000.
Snow melts away from drained lands
sooner than on those undrained hence
the drained soils are ready for blowing
much sooner. In Scotland it Is claimed
that the harvest is from ten to fifteen
days earlier on drained than on I'M
| drained lands.
The moisture in which me kind of
seed would flourish would bedestructive
to another class, causing then to rot IN
stead of forcing growth. The heat neces-
sary to start one class of seeds would dry
| up and utterly destroy tie gum OF an
other class. The application OF rules
/ requires a mixture of common sense and
| observation.
A LADY who has raised large number
! Of hens saws that after vamly Trying the
! recommended remedies for lice she has
| hit upon the plan of giving them once or
| twice a week large loaf made OF Gra-
| ham -four, in which handful OF sulphur
| has been mixed. The hens ike 1t, and
are freed from lice and kept healthy
through the season.
WE have noted. from time to time.
! the constantly decreasing area In Great
| Britain devoted to cereal crops. The
! agriculture of the country is gradually
| changing from grain growing to stock
! feeding and dairying. From the inval-
liable agricultural returns of Great Brit
! ian; published by Mr. Giffen, 1t ap-
pears that since 1870 there has been an
increase of =, 500, 900 of acres in perma-
nent grass.
No BRANCH of husbandry furnishes
more agreeable occupation than forest
culture. 1t affords pleasant diversion
| from the protracted labors of the field,
and employment for long winters that
without it might prove mOnotOous. In
diligently aud Systematically managed,
our forests viii yield profitable returns,
not only to our own, but to all succeed
ing generations.
FARMERS should be careful not to be
in too close competition with each other
and above all things not to compete with
| themselves. We once knew a farmer
who, not wishing to trust too much tc
one man, consigned three lots of par
| ticular product to each of three different
commission houses in the same city. il
happened TO be the only consignment OF
the kind offered. Unfortunately foi
him he proved to be his own competitor
In the market
PROPORTION OF CREAM N MILK. The
first fifth portion of milk from the COW
contains about one-twentieth part o
cream; the second fifth, one-twelfth; the
last fifth, one sixth. How impo.Vtn
then to get the last and richest drop
| even If it were not true that cows aT'
| quickly dried up by slovenly practice
| of leaving a small portion IN the udder
Cows will continue to give a flow of mill
at a much longer period when milket
/ dry Farmers, it viii be seen, receive
| double benefit by such a course. First
there is more cream in the milk ant
second, the flow viii continue longer
two requisites in all dairy countries.
Ewes in lamb should, as far as praeti
cable, be fed and sheltered separated,
from the non-brceding animals, as tn,
| crowding and more rapid movements Q
the latter are apt to result inJuriously
whilersuch separation makes more con
\ vcuicnt certain little attentions to which
breeding ewes. are entitled as the yearn
ing season approaches, and which ma.
be protitably accorded to them. Ad
vantage Will be found in subdivision O
the several ages and sexes into as man
smaller lots as circumstances viii ADM
of. as such course lessons the liability t
crowding and Overlooking of tn
stronger animals at the expense of tn
weaker ones. 1t also brings each anima
more directly under the eye of the at
tendant, who viii the more readily de
tect the first symptoms of deviatinl
from the desired thrift.
SELECTING SEED CoRN.-Professor A
f. Blount. OF the Colorado Agriculture
] College at Fort Collins, gives these view
on selecting seed corn: of the stock b
"a healthy one aud free from injury b
insects or weather, the tOpmost ear is 81
ways the largest, and best formed, an
has the best filed grain, provided tn
| parents from which it came were perfect
=. Every variety of standard corn produce
its best ear nearest the tassel for reason
that are quite evident Being nearest
receives the pollen first and in create
quantity than those below it; anothe
reason is that it is tho natural distanc
from the soil, etc. etc. A careful exam
nation Of the stalks in every stage {
their growth always shows that til
lowest ear has the longest shank, Tia
next has a shorter one, and so on to tn
topmost one, which sets close upon til
stalk. Itshows also that the lowest ga
is the smallest and the top ear the lare
est, rs above stated.
BEDDING FOR CATTLE. There is n
farm work, considering the outlay tbf
pays so large dividends as the procurin
l. of some sort of bedding for the cattl,
for it not only keeps them clean-a pref
point IN itsef-bnt also promotes 3be
growth and thriftness, and the addition;
/ accumulation for the manure nile wi
more than pay for the labor. There
usually large amount of litter tn:
} goes to waste that if thus utilized wouI
be of great service. Straw, oats c,
corn butts, etc, are valuable. AMI fir
sand Is not Objectionable, for in itself
Is one of the most Clearly of beds an
as 1t is large absorber of liquids and
of real benefit to clay land. there Is =
solid reason why few loads Of it ma
s not be judiciously used. A farmer
Q our acquaintance late in the fall tax,
his trucks, puts in long stakes an
: makes four-foot-deep box and osthe