Omaha daily bee., 1883-03-21
FARM NOBrS.
Under Straw.

by Mr.. N. j. Shepherd, of Eden,
Mo-, which vi take from the Farmer
aud Manufacturer. Tho advantages
claimed are absence If weeds and but
little cultivation: For late pots oes 1t
Is economy to raise them under straw.
The crop, especially in o drought, will
do far better than If cultivated In the
usual manner, while the tubers will be
clearer and smoother, The ground
should be well plowed In the spring,
and laid off very shallow. With a
pillow the rows needs not be wei two
or three feet apart, as there is no need
of cLltivating. The potatoes can then
be planted in hills or drills, whichever
is preferred. BY drilling ono potato
In a place the ground can all be util
lied, and as no cultivation is necessary
they can, of course, be planted much
closer together. Cover very lightly.
1t Is best, II the work Is not too much
crowded, to wait a week before apply
ing the coat of straw, 30 as to allow
the potatoes to sprout we'll. Then sp-
ply q coat of staw, twelve or fifteen
inches thick, evenly over the bed. 1t
will settle down in a short time. The
potatoes need no further attention uu-
til digging. Sometimes u few imp
sen weeds or pok berry will force
themselves through the straw, but
they will be very few and far between.
When you come to digging, uncover
one row, throwing 1t over on the sec.
| ppI. npu do Tho Grat w. anl th,U
uncover the second row by throwing
the straw into the first. By using q
title care In throwing the straw into
piles 1t can be used two years after.
The best way to get rid of it Is to pillow
your pota o plot In the fall, and after
you make one round with the pillow
fill the furrow with the straw, then
pillow again and fill again until all the
straw is covered up In the burrows.
The next spring, when you come to
pillow again, it Will be rotted, and will
help enrich the soil to some extent.
W. much prefer this mode to planting
and cultivstipg, a, the crop Is surer,
and we find 1t more economical as re.
CARDS labor. And when the hot, dry
days In July and August come the
potato crop Is not 30 seriously injured
as Is often the case when cultivated In
the ordinary way.
Improving Production OF Fruit Treee.
Correspondence Prairie Farmer!
SIN three years." says a practical
fruit grower, II improved the produc-
tons of my fruit trees from fifteen to
200 bushels by treating them in the
following manner l first reduced the
top o%ne'fourth; then In the fall 1
plowed the soil as we'll as l could, it
being quite rocky, and turned a short
furrow towards the. trees. ASS I
worked from them 1 let the pillow fall
a little lower, and when between the
trees 1 allowed the pillow to run deep
80 that water would settle away from
them in the spring. I hauled a fair
quality of coarse manure, pulverized it
we'll, and marked out hills, manurlpg
each hill. 1 planted corn and beans
and pumpkins. The following spring
l repeated the same cultivation. My
trees began to grow very fast, and
that fall I harvested seventy bushels
of very good apples. The following
spring I manfred for the third time
and planted to potatoes, which were
very large, but rotted badly I made
up the loss, however, by harvesting
200 bushels Of large fruit. I changed
the production of a yellow Bell1ower
tree from three-fourths of q bushel to
seven bushels, and sold them for
81 25 per bushel, which I think q very
good return for my labor. From my
experience I am of the opinion that
most trees have too much top for the
amount of roots, and a deficiency OF
nourishment for producing q developed
fruit. I like fall or winter pruning
A Mnk-White Raven.
A milk. white raven with pale pink
eyes and red legs Is exhibited at the
Berlin aquarium, 10 the material aug
mentation of that admirable institu
tion's daily receipts, says the Fores'
and Stream. It received admission t.
thegreat central aviary, in which scorer
of beautiful birds autter and chirI
and build their nests In comparative
freedom, but his presence there spreat
such a general panic among the re
naming inmates that 1t was found nee
esssry to remove him to q saparat,
cage. Strange as 1t may seem, tn,
other birds instinotively recognized
that this corvine albino was abnormal
and therefore terrible. Many O
them became total abstainers from
/; food and drink through sheer frlgh
while he shared their quarters, ant
; huddled together, shivering, at a
, great q distance from the fearful
anomaly as the limits of their prison
/. would permit them to attain. In al
respects, save Its extraordinary hues
this raven is as other ravens. Hi
/ appetite Is apparently Unsuitable, an,
he ministers to it with a FORMIDABLE
peak. Neither In tone nor delivery |
there any unusual mellowness or ten
derness about his croak. His pin
eye could not be more steadfastly en-
gagged In contemplating the mai
chance were they as yellow as brun
. ished gold. He was found with q co,
q black brood of brothers and sisters,
Q a nest built by his parents, whose sui
prise at his peculiar appearance mus
we should think, have been consider
able, on the topmost branch of an OF
tree In the G~eorgenthal, q valley {
8 Thuringia, Germany. Doubly an ar
\ chorism, this snow-white raven IL 9
a present one Of the "lions" of the Gel
man capital.
d How to Succeed With Onions.
American Agricultural.
:, Onions differ from most other crol
In not requiring a rotation. In SON
places the land has been in onions al