The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1882-11-28
AGRlCUETURR.

VI NuscCt PoWucE VIII uoe Ant tno nuS4"A
toes by burning it in q room-that they
will hide away from the smoke and como
out all right-that to kill insects at all with
the powder it must come in contact with
their bodies, and not IS smoke, but in the
powder form, and that soon after opened,
as the essential oil of the powder does the
work, and this soon escapes upon expos
ure.
CHUFAs.-Mr d. W. Langdon has been
putting in a strong plea for chufas as su-
perior to corn, peas, &c, for fattening
swine. We have done the like several
times but don't know to what effect. The
chufa is certainly more starchy than peas
of any kind, and on rich land, which it
will rapidly exhaust, produces hay and
fruit wonderfully. The fowls also are as
fond of them as Of corn, peas or rice. Il
would be well for every farmer to have q
chufa patch.
SQUABs.-Breeding squads for the mar
ket is growing more popular, and after
a while it will be as common to have a fat
young pigeon for breakfast as it now is to
have fat young Shanghai, and great
deal more satisfactory because the squad
is not only the superior delicacy, but also
the cheapest, not requiring one-half the
food and care to raise him.
FRUIT CULTURE.-Instead of trimming
up trees to make them long-legged and
long-armed, trim them down to make even
and symmetrical. Instead of manuring
heavily in small circle around the root,
spread the manure widely out for all the
roots to feed alike. Instead of cultivating
close around the body of the trees, cult
vate far out beyond the outermost branch
es. 1t is better to set out few trees and
give them proper attention, than whole
orchard to be neglected.
DRAINAGE. Say what you will, but
proper drainage is the foundation of all
agricultural and horticultural success.
Plants must have the proper amount of
moisture for best results and no more.
Now if this cannot be regulated how can
success be expected 1t is true that crops
of some sort can be raised without regard
to this, and mostly are, but what differ
ence when intelligence masters the drain
age question. Try it in your kitchen gar
den where, ten to one, it is greatly needed,
and see for yourself. If your vegetables
lack moisture, or if their roots run down
into water, be assured you will never, in
that situation, raise tirst-class vegetables.
A PERFECT Son.-The perfection of
soil-conditions, a cotemporary truly re-
marks, for vegetable raising, would be
deep, rich mellow soil, well drained, with
an unlimited supply of water to be used
at discretion. In some sections the rain
supply is generally sufficient but there
are sometimes droughts, and he who de-
pends on his crop for a living cannot af.
ford to lose it on account of drought.
1t is best, therefore, to provide the water.
aud if not wanted for several years, all
the better. a very deep, rich soil, well
broken, is provision against drought as
well as promoter of great superiority in
size and flavor of vegetables.
A HINT ON ORANGEs.-A writer saws
Of the inhabitants of ST. Michael, they are
such epicureans that they cat only that
side of the orange which grows next to
the sun. They raise this fruit in great
perfection, layering the branches of the
trees to propagate them, and so pruning
as to let in the dewal through its foliage.
There is no question that it is very impor-
tant to have the sun to shine on all grow
ing fruit, whether oranges (the fruit of q
speciality sunny clime), apples, pears, figs
or persimmons. Fruit matured in the
shade is paler without and less nutricious
within.
The WAX PLANT.-This is one of the
most beautiful and satisfactory of house
plants. If it grows slowly it is for want
of proper treatment, for it will grow very
rapidly and cover large area with foli-
age. Well rotted stable manure, half and
half mixed with rich sandy loan, is the
best soil TO be kept moist, not wet, and
warm in winter.
WORKING FOR PRoFIT.-Every farmer
is supposed to be working for profit. If
this is true, the first lesson beginning op-
erations is, learn something about the law
of supply and demand or the producer of
a crop will never know from what source
his profits are to be derived. To plant at
a venture and merely run the risk of
profit will seldom turn out satisfactorily.
Know what you can plant with the great
est profit before you begin, and then see
whether you have the right soil and eli
mate, and finally, whether the cost of
getting to market will leave you sufficient
profit to warrant the venture. For this
purpose it will be necessary to choose q
locality as convenient to the market az
possible.
SALTPKTRK FOR CABBAGE WORMs-A.
b. Howard, of Mass ssachusetts, says: "a
friend Of ours, who grows cabbages extern
sively for market, has found that saltpe-
tire dissolved at the rate Of one and half
n