The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1882-05-31
Farm and Agricultural Notes.

The best of the Jerseys are being
brought to this country.
Geese will do we'll on grass diet dur
ing the greater part of the Summer.
Salt mixed with the earth above the
roots of pear trees is good to prevent
blight.
One hundred and fifty to 400 bushels
of awberries may be raised from one
acre of land.
Common salt is special manure for
asparagus beds when used with rich
barnyard compost.
| Sweet corn is very valuable for con-
verting into ensilage. 1t is also one of
the best kinds of fodder to raise for mich
! COWS.
BY planting sweet corn early supply
of food can be obtained that win keep
| hogs in good condition till the common
corn crop ripens.
Sheep fed on dry feed are frequently
| troubled with sore lips. An application
of sulphur and lard once or twice viii
generally effect a cure.
Fewer ducks and geese, it is said, are
raised in the United States according
to the number of inhabitants than in any
civilized country in the world.
1t has been discovered that common
pine posts, if saturated with coal-oil and
then boiled in coal-tar, viii remain in
the ground ten years perfectly sound.
1t is mistake to allow sows to breed
before they are at least year old, as
they are not then sufficiently matured,
and PIGS from such are sometimes too
weak to live.
1t is generally best to hatch the eggs
of water fowls under hens, though ducks
and geese that exhibit signs of broodi-
ness may be allowed to sit on their own
eggs.
Red raspberries should be set two feet
apart in rows, and when kept well work
ed the first year viii fill up and form a
continuous hedge of plants good for ten
Years or more.
Castor oil is largely used for oi1ing
aNletreeS, the bearings of grindstones,
mowers, etc. A small proportion of
kerosene added to the castor oil and
thoroughly shaken up with it renders it
less liable to gum.
The following formula is good one
for a tobacco fertilizer: Ammonia, per
cent; phosphoric acid, s per cent; pot
ash, s per cent; plaster, SO per cent.
Plaster may be put in in any desired
quantity.
If our fruit raisers will in years of
abundance turn their attention to con-
verting the surplus fresh fruits into dried
products, a large market for the same
may be developed in Europe. Already
millions of pounds of dried apples are
exported annually.
In the management of live stock it is
safer and better to give water before
feeding than after. In the latter case
the feed is liable to be washed out of
the stomach prematurely, while in an
imperfectly digested state, and thus
occasions intestinal irritations and dis
ease.
Sweet corn is a very desirable crop to
raise for cattle. The stalks are small and
the amount of foliage large. The stalks
and leaves contain almost as large
proportion of sugar as the grains. Most
kinds of stock will eat.eyery portion of
the plant above the roots.
There are many raisin vineyards in
Southern California that do not pay for
pruning and cultivation, and the owners
are seriously thinking of either changing
them to other varieties by grating, or of
digging them up and planting some
other tried variety that will do well in
that particular locality.
A gentleman in Rapids Parish, La,
cultivated l 600 acres of cotton last year,
and 400 acres in Bermuda grass. The
cotton yielded him net return of about
81 900 less than the grass. The cotton
was cultivated with severe manual labor,
while the grass was handled entirely by
machinery.
Give fowls variety of both dry and
cooked food; mixture of cooked meal
and vegetables is an excellent thing for
their morning meal
Apples placed among the ensilage in
a certain soil were well preserved. Cat
tie food may thus be varied by preserved
fruit placed in the soil.