The Penn's Grove record., 1888-05-05
FARM NOTES,

Mr.. E. Martin Smith, Delhi, N, Y,
has had forty years of successful hus
bsndry, from report Of which we CLEAR
the appended items Of practice tested
by time: HE hauls out the manure
daily and spreads 1t on top of the SNOW
In winter, which plan he thinks give.
best results. Places stress on the ad,
vantage of running pigs in orchards
producing strong, healthy growth O,
pigs, and at the same time beneHtine
The trees. Has frequently saved con
siderable sums by the practice of keep.
ing a cash account in connection witt
his diary. In the way Of avoiding the
repayment Of small accounts once paid,
where credit had failed to be given.
Condemns the drawing off of small
stones so closely as is sometimes done,
Believes that on his land there is an ad.
vantage in retaining heat and moisture
in the soil. Would not remove these
small stones from any land except such
AS might be termed stony land. Thinks
1t might pay on sldehilIs when blowing
the last time preparatory to seeding
Town, to follow after the pillow and
throw them In the furrow and thus
Leave them below the surface, Has
Dractised this some during the past few
years, and is pleased with the result,
WEARING OUT Cows.-It is some-
times said that the COW is q machine for
the manufacture OF milk and butter.
This is true, with some important limi.
~tations. The COW Is q living mechan-
ism, and therefore requires more care
full management than an insensats ma.
chine could need. There is such a
thing as wearing out cows by injudicl-
Gus feeding. Good cows have enormous
appetites, and demand abundant and
nutritious food. But they should not
he forced or tempted to eat more than
they naturally will. While the coarser
and less palatable ration should be
given freely, yet grains and meal must
be limited. Some Of the great milk
and butter records for short periods
have been made by stimulation with
food, which for animals Is almost as
destructive to health as stimulation BY
drink is to men. The only correct test
of cows is their yearly product.
Another way In which good cows are
spoiled is by deficient nutrition during
those times when they are not giving
milk. The owner thinks that less and
poorer feed will do them, and SO the
cow while bearing her calf Is fed largely
on straw and becomes poor.
FARM PRICES OF AGRICULTURAL
PRoDUCTs.-In the December report
Of the department Of agriculture occur
the following statements in relation to
farm prices Of agricultural products:
The average value of corn is 43. 8 cents
per bushel, against So 6 cents last year,
and 1913 cents 10 1885. In 1881 it was
63.S cents. The average value Of
wheat is 10 cents, only three mills
higher than the average last year. 1t
Is 50 in New York, 81 In PENNSYLVANIA,
"a in Michigan, 70 in Ohio, 70 in In
diana, 10 IN Illinois. 81 In Wisconsin,
G2 in Missouri, u in Iowa and Kansas,
80 in Minnesota, So in Nebraska and
81 in Dakota. The average for oats is
3o.7 cents, against 29.S last year.
Barley average 50 2, instead of 50 last
year. Buckwheat, Sc l., or IL cents
Iigher than last year. The value of
potatoes is greatly enhanced, being
~ D cents, against As last year. 1t is
higher than for eve years. except In
1881. The value of hay Is much in
creased. 1t averages 1914 per ton,
against S7.36 last year. The advance
has been in the drought area OF the
west.
RAISING GEESE AND DUCKS.-
Geese are not profitable unless one has
a suitable place for keeping them. A
strip of low, moist land affording green
grass all summer and adjacent to a
pond, or with a small brook running
through it, will just suit them. When
raised On the bank Of a river or a
smaller stream subject to sudden
freshets they need watching, else they
may take a ride and go so far as never
to come back. Many persons T quite
fond of fat young geese, and when
maj keted in that condition they usual
ly bring a good price, but tough, old
geese are hard to sell at any price.
They may commonly be picked twice a
year, and the feathers will about pay
for their keeping. Ducks are more
profitable than geese, as they mature
earlier, lay more eggs and sell better
in market. They are the greatest
sc%avengers of the feathered tribe, and
Of all others have the best faculty of
making their own living. Neither
geese nor ducks should be allowed on
the grass plot around the house. Pekin,
ltouen and Aylesbury ducks and
Emblem and Toulouse geess are large
and favorite varieties.
COMPARE the fifty quarts of milk
per day yielded by some Of the promi-
nent Holstein COWS with the ten quarts
from the ordinary dairy COWS, and it
will require but q few moments ~calcula-
ton to show the loss sustained by the
use of scrub bulls. When 1T is con-
sidered that a pure-bred bull can in a
few years change the characteristics of
a large herd. if the dairyman will raise
his cows instead of selling of those
that become dry for the purpose of pro-
curing fresh ones, the surprise is that
dairymen still continue to practice the
old extravaganza method.
TIE mutton breeds of sheep, have
been wonderfully improved within the
past twenty years. At an English ex-
hibition Hampshire lambs less than 10
months old averaged 234 pounds each
and gained over three.quarters of a
pound per day from birth. Two years
ago at the Illinois State Fair a S.year-
old Oxford Down ram was exhibited
that weighed APO pounds. To make
the mutton breeds pay the farmer must
aim to produce something superior, and
thus obtain not only heavier carcasses
but a higher price per pound for quail
ty.
THE winds In the spring shake the
young trees and thereby damage them
to a certain extent, but this can be par
TALLY avoided by cutting back the
young trees as much as possible before
putting them In. The peach tree will
thrive better II cut back and also be-
come more ''stocky."
PLANT beet, carrot and parsnip seed
early, so as not only to get ahead Of
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