The National tribune., 1885-11-12
OUR RURAL TOPICS.
Some Practical Suggestions for Our
Agricultural. Readers
HOG CHOLERA,

Hog cholera can, we think, be traced gener
ally to bad treatment on the part of the farmer
of his swine. The custom of leaving the hog
for months in wet, mud, snow, and all kinds Of
bad weather, sometimes with food and some
times without cannot fail to have its bad effect
OH the animal. Then, again, the way in which
their food is given them would indeed poison
anything but hog. 1t is the custom to throw
it into the pen where the animals have to eat il
covered with mud and filth. 1t is far more
economical to prevent disease than to cure it
and we believe that were hogs treated as well
as the generality of stock that they would be
no more liable to disease.
GATE FOR TEMPORARY USE.
An Iowa correspondent of the Germantown
Telegraph describes the way in which he makes
gate for occasional use in fence of barbed
wire: The farmer sometimes has need of a gate
in barbed wire fence, and which is used but
seldom; he must nevertheless put up substan
tial hinge or slide gate. have seen good gate
put in q barbed wire fence with very little
trouble in this manner: Build the fence with
out reference to the gate, then select the loca-
ton for the gate and staple the wire securely to
the two gate posts so ii cannot slip. Cut the
wires at one of the posts and fasten the ends to
a light piece of wood as high as the post. Set
one end of this piece of wood in q shallow hole
beside the post and place wire loop over it
and the post at the top, and your gate is fin
iShed. 1t can be opened in moment, and for
occasional use is as good as hinge gate.
FRUIT FOR THE FARMERS TABLE.
Farmers with plenty of land that can be
profitably devoted to fruit raising, at least to
the extent of growing home supply, should be
ashamed to sit down to single meal during
the whole year Of which liberal part is not
made up of fresh or cooked fruits. 1t is an I'M
accountable fact that country people, with
every facility for growing the finest fruits,
should actually cat less of these, and ten times
more of greasy, heating dishes than the inhab-
itants of the cities.
LIME FOR PLUM TREES.
farmer, the Boston transcript reports, in
an experiment with a hundred plum trees,
busted five trees with air-slacked lime just as
the blossoms were falling, and repeated the ap-
plcaton every two weeks for several times.
From the five trees so treated he secured good
crops of plums but upon the remaining 95
trees the curculio did not allow single plum
to mature. This is an important discovery to
plum-growers should the method prove effect
ual hereafter.
PREPARING POTATOES FOR MARKET.
be exercised in the selection Of that portion
that is to be held for market Select the very
best looking; under ordinary circumstances we
should say that the best products of the farm
were none too good for the use of the family,
but in case of potatoes there are those that are
not considered marketable that are equally as
good for family USE Do not sort too close; a
few small ones will not spoil the looks of large
quantity. Having large, smooth, nice-looking
potatoes, there is little trouble in finding sale,
even with full market.
NoTELETs.
- 1t generally happens, that the plow or the
harrow, i'll common with most machinery used
on the farm or in the garden, goes into Winter
quarters rather the worse for wear. This thing
or that is broken worn and needs repair.
The Winter is a time Of considerable leisure
among farmers, and some of this time should
be devoted to putting tools in proper order for
the next season work.
Let any farmer compute the sum which q
full annual crop of apples would produce, even
at a low rate per bushei. and he will be sur
prised to find how much more profitable his
apple orchard is than any part of the farm de-
voted to grain-growing. With good manage
ment and manuring, full crop of apples may
be grown every year, with as much certainty
as any grain crop and with less expense.
- Rendering wood incombustible, according
to Prof. Kedzic (good, sound authority, may
be accomplished with wash made of thor
oughly skinned milk, mixed with brine. He
says it is durable, cheap, waterproof, and
good for roofs and outbuildings.-Rural New
Yorker.
One recipe for making walk that will
prove firm and smooth in both wet and dry
weather, consists in mixing Portland cement
one part, ashes two parts make into a mortar
quickly and spread on the path and smooth
over with a trowel.-N. Y Times
The apple crop in England in favorable
years is large one, yet there is a good demand
for certain varieties of the American apple.
The Newton pppin is q favorite, and sound
red apples of good flavor always find a ready
market there.
"A writer in the London Garden, referring
to the well-known fact that new seeds usually
terminate more quickly than old ones says
that many old ones will terminate well with
heat that would perish in cold grOund-a fact
which should be borne in mind by those who
are testing seed this year i'll warm rooms.
Among those which may be kept two seasons
are named onions, satisfy, and some Others,
while lettuce, tomatoes, and artichokes will
continue good three seasons; cabbages, turnips,
spinach, kaleS, etc. four seasons, and melons,
cucumbers, and beets for five or six seasons.
A correspondent of the Michigan Farmer
tried painting his pear trees with rcd lead and
linseed oil, filling up the cracks, giving each
tree two coats of paint. He did this to prevent
blight, and the trees coated have been free
from blight, while trees not painted are dying.
Such remedies, however, should be tried with
caution. Kerosene oil will kill peach trees, and
some kinds of paint containing that substance
may be injurious to pear trees.
- Many are prone to allow their horses to
run out through all kinds of weather until late
in the Fall, and until their coats become rough
and shaggy. This is wrong. Frosty grass is
not good for horses that have been used to dry
feed and must yet do much hard work. They
should be stabbed as soon as the nights become
uncomfortably cool, and then they may be
turned out to grass again after the sun has dis
PEELED the frost
1t is claimed that per cent. of a horses
weight of good nourishing food is all that he
should be fed day. By this rule horse
weighing 800 pounds should receive 80 pounds
of food. So says the Lire Stock Record; but it
must be considered that Something depends
upon the amount of labor performed, as well as
tie digestive capacity and appetite of the ami
NAL.
One ounce of silk worm eggs, under favor
able circumstances, will produce from so to 40
pounds OF dried cocoons, which are worth from
20 cents to 81 per pound. A family can raise
the worms from one to three ounces Of eggs if
plenty of food is at hand The time required
for raising a crop of silk varies from % to 80
days, according to race temperature, quality of
food, etc. i4r ~