The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1884-10-10

1t is fortunate for the farmer if the
beet patch is near his pig-sty. A few
beets fed daily to either growing or fat
tening hogs will be eaten greedily, and
by keeping the digestive organs in good
condition. will enable fattening hogs,
especially, to get more benefit from other
food than they otherwise would
1t is a wise provision which makes the
animal most used for mans service and
therefore most likely to be tied by halter
or chain, the one whose hoof is not di-
vided. If the hoof were parted, as is
that of the COW, the horse would often
throw and perhaps kill himself, where
occur.
1t is a great task to change the char
acter of a soil from light to heavy, or
the reverse, by bringing new material
on. 1t will rarely pay except on land
near valuable markets and where i'm
provements in productiveness can hardly
be procured at too dear rate A light
land may however be often changed in
its character by blowing under green
manure grown on the soil itself
There are few fields of such uniform
fertility that the same amount of manure
can be safely and prohtably applied to
all. AS a rule, the farmer should know
where the poorer spots are, while his
help, hired by the month or season, can
not be expected to DO so. Hence, draw
ing out the manure should so far as posi-
BILE be done by the farmer himself
If left to others, its value will be
much less, and of all farm operations
manuring the soil is one that the farmer
can least afford to have lily done.
Some kinds of land are so full of water
most of the year that undertaking is
only possible after the summer has dried
out the soil. But on ordinary fields, not
excessively wet, the soil is now too hard
to underdrain properly unless machinery
is used which works better when the
ground is firm for horses to walk on.
Drains dug in the fall will, however, do
better service next season than those de-
layed till next spring. The frost in
winter deepens the soil and makes water
courses through which the drains are
reached.
No other grain crop, and possibly no
hoed crop, can be grown on orchards
With more advantage than buckwheat.
ltdoes not exhaust the soil as other grains
do, and if rye is sown after the buck
wheat is harvested, to be plowed under
the following spring, the amount of
vegetable matter in the soil will increase.
Buckwheat alone has tendency to make
the soil porous, possibly from the fact that
it requires blowing in midsummer, when
the soil is free from water, and the crop
ho Oh oil Il
hottest weather
A late English horticulturist saws that
after trying all sorts of plans he is thor
oughly convinced that there is nothing
equal to the little and often system of
pruning, or rather pinching The soft
young shoots can be readily removed by
the finger and thumb, which is the easiest
way To which we may add that any
owner VINO is really interested in his
garden will be likely to pass among his
trees and shrubs quite often, and if he
sees any want or defect he will at once
supply or remove it. With this view a
well known cultivator remarked that his
season for pruning is all the season
through.
The greatest objection to growing corn
fodder is the difficulty in curing it.
which is obyiated for those who put it
in sios. AS ordinarily cured, a large por-
ton is so nodded as to be nearly
worthless. The difficulty with corn is
twofold. Its harvest is after the hot
weather of summer has passed and when
frequent rains may be expected. AS we
cannot expect much sun heat to cure
corn fodder, we make artificial heat by
leaving the stalks few days in piles
large enough to heat slightly. When
taken out, they are much dryer than
they seem, and moved away without in
jury.
Many farmers and farmers boys have
wondered or some have perhaps occa-
slonally used language more emphatic
than polite because of the pertinacity OF
horses in keeping their foot on rope OF
halter when they once set it down