Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1883-10-31
FARM AND GARDEN,

canning factories, and the business is
still growing.
SUIPHURIo acid diluted with water is
said to De an excellent disinfectant for
use in poultry yards which havo been
visited by cholera.
PUMPKINS are excellent food for mich
cows, but care should be taken to re-
move the seeds, as by their action on
the kidneys they reduce the flow of milk.
MARYLAND and Virginia are winning
first place as peach-growing states.
One farm in Maryland, the largest in
the country, has on it 1875, 900 bearing
trees.
HE grape crop of Rhode Island was
SO plentiful this year that Concords have
sold as low as two cents per pound.
The potato crop of the state is also said
to be the best for years.
In laying out an orchard the trees
should not be planted less than two rods
apart each way, Fruit growers whose
experience makes their opinions valu-
able say that forty feet apart is still bet.
ter than two rods.
The best time for root-pruning fruit
trees is in the latter part of August and
the beginning Of September. Trees
which have been sterile for years have
been made to produce bounteous crops
of fruit by judicious root-pruning.
The yield of wheat throughout West
ern Europe is annually decreasing and
more rapidly than the yield of the same
crop increases III this country. There
fore no fears need be entertained of
lessening in the foreign demand for
American wheat.
A SUBSCRIBER asks for information
about Matching chickens by steam. The
stock of information at hand on that sub
lect just at present is indeed limited. It
is suggested, however, that perhaps the
best way would be to stick to the old
hens yet awhile.
Mr.. JONES, of Ontario, Canada, is the
owner of what is perhaps the largest bee
farm in the world. As this has been
good honey year in that country, he ex-
poets to take not less than 70, 900 pounds
of honey, the net value of which will
reach nearly $4,000.
ONE hundred million dollars annually
go to other countries for sugars to sup
ply the demand for that article at home.
With the present encouraging prospects
for making sugar from sorghum the
chances are that in the near future the
sum thus spent will be greatly dimin-
ished.
Few have just idea of the amount of
grain Oftimes wasted in thrashing
Where machine is fed by inexperienced
feeders, or when there is undue haste to
finish the job, and amid the rush and
hustle which always accompanies thrash
ing time, much of the grain is left In
the straw.
The Farm Journal says that all fruits
ripen better In the dark than in the sun
light. It should have said, all fruits
plucked before ripening on the tree will
ripen better In cool, dark place than
if exposed to q strong sunlight. Sure
ly it would not say that fruits on the
vine or tree ripen better without sun
shine than with 1t.
THE Wilson strawberry is likely to
long remain a favorite with growers of
the fruit, on account of its hardy char
acter. Although of not near so fine a
flavor as many other varieties, yet, ow-
ing to the fact that it can be shipped
long distances and yet reach the market
in good condition, it is the berry for
horticulturists to raise.
KANE COUNTY, Illinois, last year mar
keted 8l6, 822 pounds of butter, 676, 900
pounds of cheese, 10, 053, 565 gallons of
milk, and nearly million gallons of
cream. Commenting upon this remark
able array of dairy products, the Peoria
fTronGorIY0t Sc Ind no II
bered that this took nothing from the
land as the same value of grain crops
sold off the land would have done. The
more sold of this kind of product the
richer becomes the soil that raises it. !"
AN Ohio farmer, who lately took pains
to carefully watch the movements of a
large flock of blackbirds at work in his
cornfelds, discovered that instead OF
eating the corn the birds were industri-
ously hunting tor the corn-worm. In
every case where he examined an ear on
which blackbird had worked he found
marks of the worm, but no worm. This
he concluded was strong circumstantial
evidence that the birds were doing him
almost invaluable service instead of an
injury.
THE Holstein COW, Echo, owned by
Fred @. Stevens, the proprietor of
Maplewood stock farm, Attica, n. Y,
has just completed her years milk
record, which foots up Is, 1907 pounds,
which is 115 pounds more than the
record of the famous COW Aggie, which
has heretofore led all the bovines of the
world. Echo is ten years old and weighs
1,610 pounds, consequently has given
over ten times her weight in milk dur
ing the year. The largest yield in one
day is IS pounds; in a month 4, 1876
pounds.
This is the time of the year to save
seed bolls of potatoes for the production
of new varieties. Few kinds of potatoes
now produce seed bolls as plentifully as
formerly, and those which produce most
appear to have greater vigor in other
respects. It is fair to assume that new
varieties from seed bolls of these will
have greater vitality than others: By
starting the seed in the house In the
winter and transplanting in the spring,
some Of the characteristics of the new
variety may be known the following