Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1888-11-21
FARM NOTES.

l.
will cut big figure in future farming.
Corn is the most profitable cereal
crop grown, as the value of the fodder is
sometimes more than equal to that of
the grain.
BY asserting the eggs, separating the
dark from the light, they will bring a
higher price, as the uniform appearance
will increase their value.
EVERY poultry-yard should have a
peach tree planted therein, as the peach
thrives we'll in poultry yards and is pro-
tected from the borer by the hens.
THE California Fruit Grower saws
grasshoppers can be destroyed by
mixture Of arsenic and bran, which they
will eat readily and die in their tracks.
KEEP full supply of fruit and vege-
tables for your own use. It is poor
economy to sell off and then be obliged
to purchase before the new crop comes
in.
THE best food for early Matched chicks
is granulated oatmeal, which should be
placed in little troughs, so that the
chicks can get all they wish, and at any
time.
CABBAGEs should not be stored away
until the weather becomes quite cold, as
they will not keep well should a few
warm days occur. 1t is best to use them
from the field as long as possible before
storing.
IT is claimed that if melons are packed
in sawdust and stored in the cellar they
will keep for several months. Squashes
may also be kept in the same way, but
care must be exercised, as bruising causes
them to rot.
In using wire netting for poultry
yards it must not be overlooked that the
fences will be very open, which some
times renders the yards useless on very
windy days. A space at least two feet
high should be boarded at the bottom
before beginning the fastening of the
wire.
DO not try to force young peach trees
by the use OF strong heterogeneous ma
nures. Too much liquid manure will
kill them. The best material to use as
fertilizer around young peach trees is
wood ashes. After they are two years
old an application of ground bone may
be given.
A VERY cheap way to fence poultry
from the garden is to stretch three No.
II wires quite tightly, and then weave
in common swamp willow, sharpening
the ends and sticking them in the
ground a couple of inches. This fence
does not cost over six cents rod and is
very effective.
BLACK knot on cherry trees may be
cured by an application Of kerosene oil
on the limb affected, but the work
should be done carefully, as the oil may
injure the tree. Ii the disease has
spread over several branches it is best
to cut down the tree rather than at
tempt to save it.
Go over the orchard at least once
month and search !or the borers, or
they will bore in too far to be reached.
Remove the earth from each tree and
examine the trunk carefully. The
borer may be known by the exudations
Of the tree where it enters, and also by
the "chips" it throws out
THE root crops are sometimes enor-
nous on rich land, and can be grown at
a low cost compared with their value
AS many as 1000 bushels of beets have
been grown on one acre, and at cost of
only cents per bushel. For mich COWS
they are invaluable, and should be
made special crop on all dairy farms.
DoN'T try to crowd fifty hens into
poultry house suitable for only twenty
five, as the larger the flock the fewer
the eggs, propOrtloliately, unless they
have perfect accommodations. AS a
rule small flocks give larger profit from
the same outlay than when numbers
are kept that cannot be properly pro-
vided for.
THE cluster of eggs that may be found
on apple tree limbs should be picked off
during open weather in the winter, and
thus prevent the Matching of the tent
caterpillar. The eggs appear to be
vanished, but such is not really the
case, since a light coat of varnish or oil
would destroy their vitality by exclud-
ing the air.
IT costs about cent per week up to
the age of ten weeks to feed young
chick, at which age, if properly cared
for, it should weigh two pounds. This
is equivalent to cents as the cost of
food for each pound of chick. The costs
are increased, however, by the value of
eggs used for incubation, labor, warmth
and interest on investment.
Now is the proper time to select the
seed potatoes for next year. They must
be carefully handled and stored sepa-
ratelv from the crop. Select those that
are well matured, even and smooth, land
particularly those that are free from all
signs OF disease, as disease is easily
communicated by seed. The small po-
tatoes may be cooked and fed to stock.
A WRITER in the Farm and Fireside
says that he has never found a surer
and more satisfactory way of managing
seed potatoes than spreading them thin
ly in warm, light loft or room, and
leaving them there until wanted for
planting Our homegrown seed thus
treated will sprout quicker than even
the best freshly imported plump North
ern seed.
IT is better to SOW Hungarian grass SO
as to have it thick. Five pecks Of seed
per acre may be used. If smaller
proportion Of seed be sown the stalks
may be rarer coarse. The crop of grass
should be cut often and as soon as it is
high enough, so as to have the hay
from it fine and tender. Being a gross
feeder, and shading the ground we'll, it
kills weeds, and is assisted in so doing
also by frequent moving.
PROF. SANBoRN, a first rate authority
says, in the Prairie Farmer, he believes
that at about the time the seeds pass out
of the dough state, timothy is richest
and heaviest Orchard grass should be