Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1886-01-09
THE RANCH.
MATTERS OF AGRICULTURE AND
HORTICULTURE.
Information Concerning Various
Pests-A Useful FIy-Foothill
Fruits-General Notes.

A few years experience in farming on
the Santa Cruz mountains proves the ne
ccssity of adopting another method of
cultivation than the present. The settler
found the north side of the hills the most
productive The soil was deeper, and at
the same time the hills were sleeper and
more denseiy covered with brush or tim
Der. These conditions were owing to the
shade and retention of moisture, which IA
yored the growth of shrubbery. which in
turn retained the soil and prevented il
from being washed down the hills while
the opposite conditions prevailed on the
south hillsides, exposed to the action OF
the suns rays. When the brush and roots
which held the soil in place have been re-
moved, the soil becomes subject to move
ment by slides, washing and cultivation.
This is especially true on the redwood
lands, where the soil is deep and Ioamy.
the soft rock giving away to slight pressure.
Nearly every farm on the redwood land has
one or more of these movable tracts Near
Lexington there is one tract nearly a mile
long made up of slides. Some years ago a
hotel situated on it was crushed 10 pieces.
cations. The heavy rains also sweep i'm
mense quantities of the best soil into
the creeks. Los Gates creek, in every
ram, resembles a mining stream OF
the Sierra Nevada, carrying down a vast
quantity of mud which comes from the
vineyards and orchards above, which are
1urrowed in some places four or five feet
deep and irreparably iniured-in some
cases ruined. In addition to washing and
fh..r g
rapidly removes the soil to the valleys
below. No one plows the soil up hill ali
move 1t downwards. In few years there
Will be a constantly widening strip of serile
land along the upper side of each field. In
Europe, where il is deemed incumbent on
each generation to leave the soil as it was
found, the soil on mountain sides is always
terraced, sometimes with rod OF sod wall
and sometimes with soil only, provision
being made for carrying Off the surplus
water. Where the terraces are properly
constructed there is little water that is not
absorbed by the soil. a terrace should be
nearly on level the part near the hill
being the lowest, TO retain the water, the
vines or trees being in the center of the
raised part, so as to admit the blowing of
the earth both towards and from them OF
course cross -plowing would be impracti-
cable. Experience will determine the
vent its breaking or caying down. Our
German and French settlers will probably
be the first to adopt this style of cultiva-
tion.-[San Jose Mercury
COOKING FOOD FOR DAIRY COWS.
Some twenty years ago there was a
strong movement in favor OF feeding cooked
food to stock of all kinds, and particularly
to dairy cows. The report of the Agri-
cultural Department for 1865 contained a
very able article on the subject from. the
pen of Professor +. w. Stewart. which had
decided influence on the public mind
Large numbers of enterprising and pro-
gressive farmers perfected arrangements for
steaming or otherwise cooking the food for
their dairy and other stock. The move
ment in favor of cooking food for stock.
however has refrigerated rather than ad-
vanced. Twenty years have now elapsed
since the period first mentioned and less
food is now cooked for farm animals than
then. The practice involves labor, which
is expensive, to save feed, which is cheap.
The Farmers Club, of Elmira, n. Y.
several years ago took some pains to
gather statistics from several dairy
y farms where cows were fed steamed
hay and grain, the food cooked and fed
in warm stables. A like number Of dairy
farms were visited where the cows were fed
on uncOoked pTovender of similar charac-
ter-hay and straw. From all these farms
were obtained the records of milk produc-
ton and figures approximating accuracy
relating to amount OF hay and grain, hav-
ing reference also to value. When these
figures were subjected to ANALYSIS it was
found that in every instance quart of
milk obtained from uncooked iuoa was
produced at less cost than quart from
cooked food, and in thu latter case no
charge was made fer the labor OF cooking
and cutting the fodder. which are items Of
some importance. Il vii De bornein mind
that lalnr IS more abundant and fodder
highe. iced IL New York than IN States
farthc- Wes,. In addition 10 other causes
the inrr asing practice of preserving coarse
feed hy Esi!ase has doubtless contributed
to briu; cooking feed Tor animals into dis
use Prairie Farmer.
THE PHYLLoxzRA
We hear! = conversation the other dav
in reference to phylloxerated vines which
has many points ofinterest As every one
knows the upper valley, near Putah creek,
was first devoted to vineyards. There the
phylloXeTa first appeared As the industry
spread southwark, and the soil became ex-
hausted, the pest appeared From these
facts the deductions is necessarily apparent
that the vineyard curse shows itself in
vineyards OF some age, after the constant
Nldiliasst u pun Tue SOIL ilau weakened IL.
Again, on the ranch of Senator Buck is
one vineyard which has been in bearing
for years 1t lies back Of the main valley,
snug up in the Hill It's quite isolated in
deed. This vineyard has phylloxera to-
day, with the exception of small patch
OF, say, half an acre, which was heavily
manured several years ago. While the rest
OF the vineyard is wrecked the half-acre
patch continues to bear luxuriantly, though
.f-.1 Ill III
vines. From this Il becomes evident thar
the phylloxcra gains foothold only in ex-
hausted vineyard lands, and that resiora-
ton 10 the earth of the rich elements
drawn from 1t Is the remedy Vacayille
Judicion.
USEFUL FLY.
The Florida Agriaatiiria speaks of new
species OF fly that has made its appearance
in that Stale, which is a deadly enemy of
the destructive scale bug and cotton insect.
II IS said to be sort of ichneumon flv. and
Is aided IN its good work by 4 syphus Or
ange trees which We're about to die have
oeen 50 relieved that they are bearing heav-
lily. The syphns fly is particularly deslruc-
tive to the cotton bug. The Ag-iciilt,trist
states that they can be sent by mail to in
fected districts and there be bred in sufli-
Gent numbers TO eXterminate the pests.
Probably enough flies could be sold to per
sons whose orchards are troubled with YER
min, says an exchange, to pay for cost of
raising and become remunerative indus
try. Ii they can only be tanned andltaught
to confine their good work to the orchard
and locust trees of their owners, nothing
more viii be needed, and we shall have a
better solution of the cotton bug problem
than to cut down all the trees in the county
Tor fear they may be killed by bugs.
SCALE PEST ON APPLES.
On Wednesday two apple peddlers came
up from Santa Ana, each with a wagon
load of choice apples to sell to the River
side people to assist them in making their
winter stock of mince pies A lady down
in Arlington examined the apples and be-
came convinced that they were infected
with the scale. She sent word to the office
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