Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1884-12-10

allow of the discontinuance of the man
ufacture of cider; and again, too, the
manufacture of apple jelly and the use
of little cider in the manufacture of
mince pies will ever give demand for
this article of farm manufacture.
PROF. WILEY says that the common
opinion that sorghum is very exhaustive
of the soil is mistake. Perhaps not
more than one pound in every hundred
of sorghum is soil-bIood. The rest, in
Guiding all the sugar and starch of the
seed, is taken from the air and water,
and not from the soil. Sorghum, it is
true, like any other crop, will exhaust
the soil, but he doubts whether il will
do it as rapidly as corn or wheat OF the
sugar beet
The growth of sorghum is getting to
assume considerable Importance, al
though it's manufacture is confined al
most wholly to the necessities of the
farmers family. A few square rods of
ground, If properly attended to, will
produce all the syrup that the average
family will require for year, and thus
furnishes an agreeable substitute for
all purposes where that syrup would be
used; and for the manufacture of can
dy and pop corn balls it is especially
the children's delight.
MULoHING is one of the most i'm portant
operations in horticulture, and it should
be more generally appreciated and
practiced. A mulch protects the ground
from scorching suns and from soaring
droughts. Where the pillow and hoe
cannot be used, good top dressing
each year will keep down the grass and
weeds, and will supply many of the
demands of cultivation. In the case of
strawberries and some other fruits a
mulch keeps the fruit clean. It is al
ways good winter protection. Almost
any coase material makes an acceptable
mulch-coarse stable manure, straw,
sawdust, brakes, flags, sedges, fine brush,
poor hay, coal ashes, etc.
A FARMER who has spent some little
time and money in draining q swamp
on his place that had become an eve
sore writes to the Ohio Farmer: l en-
joyed it hugely when l got that drain
through and saw the water run out, and
the frogs jumping about in the greatest
CONSERVATION; but the enjoyment was
far greater yesterday, when saw the
ground fairly covered with splendid po-
tatoes, worth almost a cent apiece.
This enjoyment was not all caused by
the dollars the crops would bring, al
though these will come very handy this
| dry season, but part of it came from the
fact that sinking. unhealthy, insight
ly hole, a birthplace for malaria and
frogs had been transformed by means of
little labor and skill, into a very fer
tilizing and productive piece of land.
1t was the enjoyment of conquest, with
no harm done except to the frogs,
flags and miasma.
A VERY common method of seeding
land to grass in the Connecticut River
valley is, to SOW the grass seed among
the growing corn at the last hoeing. The
method seems to be q very good one
when properly followed. The land
should be made rich enough, by heavy
manuring, to carry the two crops, or
partial failure must follow. The earlier
the grass seed is sown, the better the
catch will be, but a heavy growth OF
grass may somewhat iniure the corn,
particularly if the season proves too
dry. Thick seeding of grass, and wide
planting of the corn, will help the form
er, and give better ears in proportion
to the stover. The corn may be
topped" or cut up at the roots, and
stocked on the field, but the stocks
ought not to remain longer than is alb.
solutely necessary, as the grass may be
killed under the stocks, or, at least
badly injured by the smothering.