News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1886-02-11
Farm and Garden Notes.

Oats and rye are very similar to each
other in composition. To make good
feed for horses corn should be mixed with
them A bushel of rye, two bushels of
oats, and five of corn, ground together,
will make excellent food.
A Missouri farmer who has been test
ing seed-corn from the butt, the tip and
the middle of the ears for three years
finds that the corn from the tips of the
cars will ripen first that from the middle
next, and that from the butt last.
If you have an old grapevine that yields
poorly and has seen its best days, cut it en-
tircly off close to the ground, manure
heavily and let it throw up two new
leaders, and the following year you will
see that it is as good as young vine
Every COW should be taught to lead
when she is young and tractabIe and the
convenience arising from such an educa-
ton in after life would more than pay
for the trouble. A COW that will lead
is worth $40 more than a COW without
this accomplishment.
A recent traveller in England reports
that fully one-half of the wheat and other
grain is cut with the sickle in many
localities. The British farmer is eX-
tremeiy conservative, and is less disposed
than his brethren on the Continent to adopt
Yankee inventions and improvements.
There is no more desirable vine for
covering trellises and porches than a
wistcria. 1t is strong and a rapid grower.
When well established it will grow twenty
feet or more in one season. 1t flowers
profusely-in long, graceful clusters. A
large plant in bloom is beautiful sight.
Lime slaked with salt water and then
properly thinned with skim milk, from
which all the cream has been taken,
makes a permanent whitewash for out
door work, and, it is said, renders the
wood incombustible. 1t is an excellent
wash for preserving wood and for all
factory purposes.
A horse IS not fully mature until six
years of age. Immature animals are
often overtaXed and their future useful
ness discounted. Young horses should
not be worked too hard if they are ex-
pected to live to green and useful old
age. A horse does not come to his full
intelligence until eight years of age. Nor
is it safe before this time to allow him
to remain unhitched, unless trained so to
stand.
There should be fruit trees near every
farm house, and the house slOps, espe-
cially from chambers, can be made most
useful in fertilizinG them. Ii the trees
are at incOnyenicnt distances, then a bar
rel partly filled with dry earth may be
used as an absorbant, and if little
fresh soil is put on it daily, no offensive
odor will arise. Every few months
quantity of valuable fertilizer will thus
be accumulated.
When pig is thoroughly fattcned it
gains in weight quite slowly in proper
ton to the food consumed This is espe-
cially the case on the approach of cold
weather. A further consideration in
favor of early Strengthening is found in
the fact that hogs over fed are always
more liable to disease, and even when not
absolutely sick their flesh is less whole
some than that Of animals which have
not been unnaturally forced.
If pork has ever soured or spoiled in a
barrel it is not safe to use it for pork
again, no matter how thoroughly it may
be clcansed. The cost Of new barrel
warranted to preserve the pork is much
less than the value of meat which it will
hold. 1t is true the fault may not origi-
nally be in the barrel but rather in the
modes of management, but having once
spoiled lot of pork the barrel had bet
ter thereafter be left to other uses.
During the winter, when nothing else
can be DONE a farmer handy with tools |
may fashion out various kinds of wooden |
implements, axe helves, whifletrees and |
the like, to replace breakage during the |
busy season. The use of tools in this |
way will acCustom the farmer to do vari-
GUS kinds of work, which after all is bet |
ter for mind and body than absolute in
activity. With too many farmers winter
IS Il season of such entire leisure that it |
units them for active duties even when
spring calls to work.
The horse and cow stables should be
near enough together SO that the manure |
from both kinds of animals NAV be
thrown in one heap. A still better
way IS to spread each indiscrimin-
'tely over the yard, mixing with
more straw, and allow stock to run over
it in the daytime. The horse manure is
much the most active, but if kept by
itself will burn away its volatile prop
critics. BY mixing horse manure with
COW manure each kind will correct the
deficiencies of the other.