Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1888-01-12

| the paSturlnR season, ana with the mar
kets at their lowest for the year. While
this is true, a great deal of butter must
be packed or in some way kept and car
ried over for sale or use some months af-
ter making.
Among the methods which have found
favor for preserving butter, is that of
"pickling" or keeping in brine. Some
have successfully practiced keeping but
ter in granular form, which has simply
been well washed from the churn and
never sailed. In this form it may be
kept in brine, and sailed and worked into
shape TO suit the taste, whenever wanted
But while this will do for small quantities,
using glass jars as for canned fruit, it has
seldom been found satisfactory when IN
dertaken on large scale. The more US
ual and better plan is to finish the butter,
getting it as free as possible from butter
milk, sailed full ounce to the pound, and
left IN large compact mass, or made in
/ to rolls of a pound or two each in weight.
| prefer the rolls, and would wrap each in
well fitting piece of cheese cloth. Then
! the Jumps or rolls are to be immersed in
brine, in a clean, sweet cask of any con-
Venient size. The process resembles in
every respect the keeping of fat pork, in
the fats are the same in both cases; all
the little spaces in the mass or maearial
to be filed with brine as a preparation
and then all submerged in brine, exclud-
ing the air.
| The brine should be as strong as pos
sible, as much salt being used as the
water will hold in solution, and should be
carefully prepared, that it may keep
sweet and pure. It is much better to do
this than to be obliged to change the
! brine. IF the brine before use is boiled
and clarified, slowly cooled to a temper
allure of 800 to 600, and then kept with
out much change, it will remain sweet
| long time. Even temperature through
out the season is very desirable, and can
usually be secured in good cellar.
Care must be taken that none of the
butter is exposed at the surface, and if it
can be arranged so as to touch the sides
| of the cask, so much the better.
A good proportion of brine to butter is
desirable, and while the size of the cask
is immaterial, as long as all goes well,
prefer several small vessels to one large
one, as a precaUtiOn against accident
which may cause impurity IN the brine
Glover as a Weed Destroyer.
Most of the weeds complained of are
ANIMALS, and grow each year from the
seed of the previous year.
| These may be destroyed by making the
conditions such IS to cause the seed to
! sprout In the fall, and the winter will kill
| the growth. This may be accomplished
/ by shallow blowing in early fall so the
warmth and moisture will cause them to
! sprout. & narrowing and rolling will
greatly assist the termination.
| A fact that ought to come to the under
! standing of observing men is that seeds
will terminate from depth in proper
| ton to the size of the seed; but few seeds
will sprout and make growth if turned
! five inches deep, but will remain dormant
for years, until turned up by the blowing
/ of succeeding years. Consequently the
Importance of blowing only so deep as
! that the air, moisture and warmth can
reach the eed, and thus cause germina-
ton.
1t is a slovenly policy to SOW foul seed,
| such as cookie, ETC., lille the shallow plow-
ing would kill the cookie ia the fall, if of
the spring variety, and nearly all other
ANIMALS. Still, if the seed is sown with
with the seed grain, it ,sill grow SIS surely
as the grain.
the grain will caBse thick mat of vege-
! tation all over the surface of the ground,
and that, too, will take the place Of the
weeds. But if the seeds of the weeds should
be left on the ground, the thick mat of
clover shading the ground, keeping it
moist, and enough exposed to the air, will
cause the seed to terminate in the fall, or
| if not in the fall then in the spring, when
| the clover, being the stronger grown, will
overshadow the weeds, and they will die,
or if they should live, the moving of the
clover, if of the medium variety, will cut
the weeds before the seed is matured.
There is nothing so effectual in my ex
perience for the destruction of weeds as
a good seeding of clover and moving
twice in the succeeding year after seed
| ing.
There are other weeds of a more dan
gerOus and destructive nature, particular
| ly Canada thistles, daisy and quack grass,
and they are much harder to destroy. All
vegetation produces seed, either from
| tops or roots or both, but more from She
| tops. Consequently the destruction of
the weed before the seed is perfected will
in great measure prevent their spread.
| With Canada thistles, the cutting of the
| stalks, after in full bloom, will prevent
| seed forming. aud the stalk or weed is
left IN a weakened condition, and
if it does not die, it will live in
greatly enseebled manner, and by COL
! tlnulng the operation each succeeding
year, they may by subdued. Or a thor
| ough plo wing, with a very sharp pillow,
not more than two inches deep, if posi-
BILE, so as to completely cut of all roots,
and then frequent cultivation after, so as
to thoroughly stir the ground TO the
depth pIowed, will almost surely kill the
thistle. Still it will be well to watch
closely the succeeding year tor any
| stray sprouts.
Qaack grass can be subd1ed in much
the same manner; but constant vigilance
is necessary. But Quack is not an I'M
mitigated nuisance, for iG makes good
pasture, but it is a most terrible scourge
to all cultivated crops, and other grasses
are better for pasture or hay.
/ Sorrel may be classed as a biennial, and
may be kill I'd by thorough cultivation.
In short, Mr.. Editor, there is nothing
so effectual for eradicating weeds as a
good seeding of clover. And then, too,
the clover is the most profitable crop the
| farmers can raise, not only for feed, but
as a reuovator of the land in fertility, and
lastly, but by no means least, the eradi-
cation of weeds and all foulness incident
TO continued grain growing.
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