The Douglas independent. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 187?-1885, 1882-03-18
AGRIgUL1UR4L.

| Winter Management of Cows.-The
value of milch COW during the milking
season depends very much ON the feed
and care given during the winter. We
| refer now to cows that s'come in" during
the spring, ana through the latter por-
tion of the winter at least are dry. 1t is
customary on many farms to very much
reduce the feed at least in quality, dur
ing this time, not giving an opportunity
to recruit the system from the taxing it
has undergone during a season of milk
ing. This is entirely wrong. With
reasonable amount of feed they will
| naturally gain in flesh at this period and
| they should be allowed to do SO.
Mixing Milk from Different Cows. 1T
is not good plan to mix the milk or
cream from farrow cows or those long In
milk with that of new milch cows, as the
former takes much longer to chuin, and
consequently when churnea together it IS
not churned long enough to become but
ter and is lost in the buttermilk. There
is more loss than is dreamed of in this
way. Another fact is that the cream from
the milk of some COWS churns much
quicker at any time than that from 9TH
ers. This is owing to the globules or
sacks containing the cream being much
larger and therefore breaking easily
Thisis true of the Jerseys as breed, and
for that reason their cream should be
churned separately if possible.
Sod the Cheapest Manure. no way
can manure be furnished so cheaply as in
sod; il simply costs nothing. With
green manuring there is the cost of the
seed and the expense of putting it in.
If the entire season is given to it, there
is the further loss of a crop, though
this is usually overrated, as land that
needs green manuring is not in condi-
tion to produce very profitable crop;
generally there is loss. Sod not only
enriches the land, but it improves it
mechanically, Its decay furnishing ex-
cellent material for further improvement
making new of it superior co its original
condition if of inferior quality As to
adaptability of manure to the soil, sod
comes as near perfection as any man
ure that can be applied. Its presence in
the soil which grew it is evidence of this.
No testing is needed as with commercial
manures, where at the best there is little
profit, though there may be considerable
growth, while sod is all gain, both in its
mechanical and fertilizing effects, the
commercial article being of little benefit
mechanically.
Seed Potatoes. undoubt-
edly favors the growth of the potato dis
ease, and therefore, where there is any
chance at all of the disease existing in
the roots. they ought to be stored as dry
as possible. Those which are to be kept
in this general way should be especial
ly seen to in the case of seed potatoes.
Since the potato beetle came among us
it is clear that we have had the very best
results from early planting, and by the
use of the earliest varieties. Now the
early ones are more easily affected by
warmth than the late ones. They sprout
easily, and GOODNESS is therefore more
essential for them. Some people think
that it makes but little difference whether
seed potatoes sprout or not before
planting. We have known people to
tear out sprouts several inches long, and
cut up the tubers in full faith that they
will sprout again and be none the worse
for it. They do gen 4rally grow, but
there is little doubt that they are consti
tutionally weaker and much more liable
to disease than those which do not sprout
until ready to go in the ground.-[ Ger
mantown Telegraph.
EXPERIENCE WITH MUcK.-As the atten-
tion of farmers is drawn to the necessity
of enriching their farms, I will give the
result of several years experience with
muck. My practice has been as follows:
In the fall when the muck beds are dry,
throw out into piles as much as / think
need for the coming year. At some
convenient time / draw a quantity near
the house, where can throw on 1t the
soapsuds from washing, night soil scrap.
ings from the hen house, and leached or
unleached ashes. / generally commence
this compost heap in the fall, but if any
one would commence in the spring he
would make O much larger amount. In
the spring shovel over the pile once or
twice; then it is ready for use. This ma
nure use in the hill for all hoed crops,
as phosphate is used. I consider it far
ahead of barnyard manure in the hill
and equal to phosphate. for the nature
of manure is to dry up, while the nature
of muck is to attract moisture. 1t 10
about one days work for man to put
this into one acre of corn or potatoes,
putting a good handful in each hill. I
have found this manure contains an
alkali, or something so that birds or
crows will not pull corn, and wire
worms will not eat the roots of corn.
White grubs will not gnaw potatoes that
are planted in it. It makes a corn crop
ripen about one week or ten days earlier
than without it. I have known farmers
to pay fifty cents load for muck to
make compost from to be used on to-
bacco, and they thought it paid them
we'll. l have noticed that the first crop
does not use up all the strength of one
application. 1t can be seen in the next
crop. It does not hurt seed corn or
potatoes to be dropped into this COM
post, for they will grow better than in
some advantage over phosphate. Itdoes
not cost any money if one has muck
bed, and it will keep insects away from
the roots of crops. I have drawn and
mixed barnyard manure and muck in
piles during the winter, in the proper
tion of two of manure to one of muck,
and consider it better than raw manure
from the yard for any crop.-[D. w. K,
Canastota. N. Y, Country Gentlemen.
High vs.. Low Farming. SO long as
the New England States raise larger
average crops per acre than are raised in
| the rich farming lands of the West, it
| will hardly do perhaps, to call New
England farming low farming, yet when
we compare what is done with what
might be, there will be found very
wide margin for improvement both at
| the East and at the far West. In the
description of the agriculture of the is
land of Jersey,it will be seen that in that
small island but little over two acres is
required for maintaining COW, while
here in Massachusetts,, twenty-five acres
are required for keeping single animal
of the COW kind, including oxen, steers,
| and calves, and there is but one horse
kept in the State for each ninety acres of
/ land. And with all our great cities and