Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1884-07-02
Farm, Garden and House.
USING POIS0NS.

USING POISONs.
A great many oppose the use OF
paris green, even on potato vines, some
going so far as to declare that there Is
danger from eating the tubers where it
has been used Now there is nothing
vet discovered so effectual in the de-
struction of the Colorado beetle as this
poison, and the best chemists have ut
terly failed to discover the slightest
trace of it in the potato where it has
been freely used. The distinguished
chemist of the United States Depart
ment of Agriculture, Prof. McMurtrie,
declares that ''an aggregate of 1864
pounds of paris green per acre must be
applied to the soil before any injurious
effects on the plant growth are appreci-
able (the ordinary application to po-
tato field is from a pound to two
pounds per acres). Arsenic cannot be
absorbed and assimilated by the plant
in the economy of growth. All of the
plants grown in the arsenic soil tried
by Marsh's test failed to indicate the
presence ofarsenic. Potatoes subjected
to the application Of paris green failed
to give evidence of the presence of ar
senic"
Paris green may be applied to pota-
to fields in several ways We use it
in water, tablespoonful to a large pail
-four gallons-of water. A less
quantity will answer. We use brush
broom for this work. 1t can be effect
ually applied mixed with plaster or
with cheap -four We prefer the lat
ter. One pound of paris green to
twelve to twenty pounds of -four. This
should be busted or sifted on the plants
when the dew is on so that the mix
ture will adhere; and it must be re-
newed if washed off by the rains. Two
applications, sometimes three, are
necessary during the season of the
bugs.
Hellebore is another poison but not
so dangerous as paris green. We use
it to keep the insects from injuring the
rose bushes and by it's use the foliage
can be kept perfectly clean and good.
We put large tablespoonful of the
powder to three gallons of water ana
apply it with small hand pump or
syringe. We apply it in the same way
to currant bushes to destroy the cur
rant worm or prevent its ravages We
use for currants a large spoonful for
every tlUo gallons of water. Before
the fruit is fit for use the hellebore is
81 pko1 0T hot s, do
ger from it's use. We have never known
of any harm from the use of hellebore
in this way, Taken in season the cur
rant worm can effectually kept down.
Formerly whale oil soap was used
for roses to keep off the insects, but the
hellebore does the the work equally as
well and is not so disagreeable.
LICE ON POULTRY.
Every poultry raiser knows how
offensive to him and dangerous to the
fowls are the small white lice that are
generated in warm weather. Usually
early in April the hens nests become
infested with them; and the young
chickens come out so full of them
that they are much weakened by their
attacks. SO very serious is the matter
in our climate, that it is generally i'm
practicable to set hens after the middle
of May or the first of June. After much
annoyance and fruitless trials of several
suggested remedies, we have found the
only preventative to be the use
of kerosene oil We made it
a. practice to feed all the poul-
try, once every five or six days, with
meal moistened with water and kero-
sene oil; iu the propar proportions of q
deserts-poonful of oil to pint of meal.
If more oil is put, the fowls will not
readily eat the food. With this treat
ment, the lice have been entirely
eradicated and we have been able
to set hens through the entire summer.
Last summer, in order to make sure
test of the preventive, we used some
permanent nests, and in two cases set
in each three hens in succession, with.
out making any change, or even CIV
ing fresh straw; the two nests being
occupied without days intermission
throughout the whole Of April and
May; and in no instance was single
insect to be seen The great advan-
tage of freedom from these pests will
be appreciated by all who have any
dealings with poultry.