The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1881-09-01
FARM NOTES.

PooR butter or cheese II always the
first 10 feel the effects Of dull market.
The best products are always inquired
for, even on the poorest market
To prepare night soil for use on land,
mix it thoroughly with any dry absorb
ent, a. powdered charcoal, dry muck,
road dust, or sifted coal ashes, SO that
nll Jumps may be broken fine, and then
apply it as any other manure.
CABBAon In best given TO poultry
whole, hung up by the stalk. At first 1t
may not be touched, but when one fowl
begins TO peck at IL, the rest Will be
tempted to keep on until little remains.
Being suspended, it does not waste or
become polluted, and it will remain In
good condition to be eaten at will.
The NATIVE Cow.-Occasionally the
agricultural press puts in q good word
for the native COW. Too long she has
been neglected, and the fancy or high
bredcows, withlong names aud pedigrees
running back into the dark ages, are
puffed and praised, and - carefully
handled as If they were 80 much gold,
while the poor native In often allowed to
shift for herself; is Kicked and cuffed
about; put upon short allowance OF
feed at times, and then because she does
not yield large amount of milk, she is
denounced a. a scrub or scalawag. IL
she had the care of her more fortunate
high-bred sisters, she would as often do
as well as they do; give the native a
chance, and she will repay your kind
ness, with less trouble than the other
kind.
CULTIVATION on STRAWBERRIES UN-
DER GLAss.-Miss H. B. Trimble, OF
West Chester, Penn, who has been very
successful In the production Of hot house
grapes for q number of years, met with
the loss Of her vines last summer from
the ravages Of the phylloxern. With
extensive green house and forcing facili-
ties at hand, she decided TO engage In
the raising Of strawberries and tomatoes
during the period necessary TO grow new
grape vines, and has the past winter
been remarkably successful in her new
venture. The varieties of strawberries
selected were the Sharpless, Charles
Downing and Cumberland, the plants
being placed in boxes, five or six inches
in depth, which were arranged on the
shelving Of the hot houses. The tomato
vines were planted on the floor and care
fully trained up the sides Of the build
ing. New York furnished the best mar
ket, the strawberries bringing an aver
age Of S6 per quart, while the tomatoes
realized fifty cents per pound The
prices were well maintained throughout
the winter, the severity Of the winter pre-
venting Southern fruit from getting into
the market as early as usual.
SHEEP HusBANDRY.- heephusbandry
is one Of the most remunerative
branches of farming there is, for, a. q
rule, there In but little expense attached,
and besides the profit which they bring
in their increase, the land upon which
they have been running has been very
much enriched thereby. Many Of our
rundown pastures could, in few years,
be brought up TO their original fertility
by turning upon them focks Of sheep.
As the droppings Of sheep are distributed
more evenly than any other Of animals,
increased fertilization would be more
general. Mich COWS remove consider.
able amounts Of phosphoric acid from
the soil in their milk, while sheep would
return large percentage Of this valuable
material In the droppings, even should
they have no other food than that OBJ
tanned from the pasture alone. Large
areas Of light sandy soil could be made
quite fertile by first sowing a crop o.
winter red, say as early as September
and turning sheep on it, say in Novem
Der. You are thus saving land, of which
no use could otherwise be made, and a
the same time raising focks of sheep fo
market at little or no expense Some
varieties Of sheep. require heavier anc
richer soil than others, for instance. tn,
Cotswold, Leicester or Lincoln, thei
carcasses being larger than any of th,
Down breeds. The Merino require Lit
tie care In the pasture, and yet it pay
well to take good care of them, as it in
creases the length of staple and tn
weight Of fleece; they form the bes
There is, In fact, no species of ive-stocl
well cared for than If allowed to look on
for themselves, and sheep is an anims
that will return larger percentage OF re
ward than most any other for receivin
attention at the hands of its owner.
ENsILAaE.-The short time which ha
elapsed since the first silo was built i
this State renders it very difficult t
gather up many well-established facts
but there are some which we think {
sufficient importance 10 place before OF
readers, and also some points worthy {
attention. First-It is q well-demol
strated fact that the walls of o silo shoul
not be built with brick unless faced wit
cement. The brick absorbs the moi
ture from the ensilage, which leaves
IN a state to rapidly decay. For Il
same reason wood is an unfit materia
And above all things the farmer shoul
avoid building with wood and GOVERN
1t With zinc or lead to keep the moistul
In, as the act of the ensilage coming
contact with these metals will form
deadly poison. Brick may be faced wit
cement, but where rocks are plenty the
are the cheapest and make the best wal
The walls should be perpendicular an
straight, and made smooth with cemen
Second-r win be demonstrated tn
the more compact the ensilage is, If Il
water is not pressed out, the better
will keep. For this reason it should
cut fine, not less than q half inch
length. 1t should also be well trampe
down as fast as put into the silo. tn
is important. The whole mass shou
be made compact, and kept so vii
heavy weights, or other means OF pre-
sure. Third-There Ii no longer al
doubt but that cattle, horses, sheep, al
swine will readily eat ensilage made
corn, rye, and other green crop
Fourth-There In but little doubt th
ensilage well kept produces good swe
milk. Fifth-It il well settled ia
that twenty-four tons Of green corn TO
der can be grown on an acre Of Ian
Sixth-It is the testimony of several tn
have tried it that daily ration of fro
fifty to seventy pounds Of ensilage, al
one or two quarts Of grain, will keep
good-sized milch COW in o thriving CO
dition. On this point our observati'
teaches us that we need more tim
more exact measurements, and mo
care to keep the cows from the haymo'
before we settle down to just how mu'
each cow needs. for every tMsntY-fo