The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1889-02-13
Editorial NOtings.

lows I" l notice the article in your paper
called out by the questions of the young
man, etc. l wish to inform him that
the course which we offer is worth con-
sidering. In case he finds it satisfac-
tory, we can give it to him without any
charge for tuition"
FoREsTRY.-The Report of the Mich
igan Forestry Commission for 1888 is
received. The directors of the commits
sion, Professor j w. Beal and Hon.
Charles w. Garfield, stand high, the
country over, for general ability, as well
as for knowledge in this specially; and
their report is of highly practical
character. Michigan has great and
valuable forests, and has begun none
too soon to attend to their preservation
and to investigate the subject with ref
erence to all parts of the state. The
report is illustrated with photographers
of the leading timber trees of the state
as they stand in the forest, etc.
PROFIT OF TRUCK FARMING" The
investment of $4,000 in truck farming
will give yearly net profit Of $4,000 "
is statement of Mr.. Rawson of Ar
lington, Mass, who has had abundant
experience; but we notice that another
man near by, in the same business,
kicks at the statement and intimates
that Mr.. Rawson knows better. Our
own experience, without the advantage
of large city close by, or the large
amount of glass used by Mr. Rawson,
would yet not lead us to dispute his
statement. The trouble with many
truckers is that they never have had the
capital (and perhaps not the skilD to do
the business to the best advantage. 1t
is business that requires the cash, and
considerable of it, to make it pay well.
SALTPETER AS AN 1NSECTICIDE.-
Saltpeter is an excellent fertilizer,
being a combination of nitric acid
and potash, but is rather too eXpen-
sive to use for that purpose on
large scale. 1t has been quite often
recommended as destructive to insects,
and j. H. Curtis, in the Homestead,
says: GA tablespoonful of saltpeter
dissolved in pail of water, and enough
poured around plant to wet the
ground where cut-worms are sure to be
at work, will cause the worm to stay in
his hole for the season." This, if eff
fective, is cheap enough. Another
writer in the same paper advises a
saltpeter solution of exactly the same
strength, in ,Cdrm water, TO kill cab
bage-worms, giving he plants a good
sprinkling. This, he says, will rarely
have to be repeated more than once,
A correspondent in another paper re-
peats the recipe, and calls it L" as per-
feet remedy as could be desired"
He applied it with whisk broom.
TESTING TILLAGE IMPLEMENTS
Professor j. w. Sanborn of the Mis-
souri, Agricultural College and Expert
ment Station gives, in recent Bulle-
tin, report of a series of tests to show
the draft and efficiency of number of
tillage implements, of which those of
the Acme, Randall and Spring-tooth
harrows may interest our readers. The
Acme showed twenty and one-half per
cent of the total draft of seven ma
chimes when run on unplowed corn
ground, while on plowed corn ground it
required but 1853 per cent, with splen-
did relative pulverization. On timothy
sod its pulverization was less than three
other machines, yet its average for all
soils was the greatest. Regarding
depth of tillage, the Randall was long
way the leader. The other machines
drew easier per pound of earth moved
but at great sacrifice of depth. Fol
depth the Randall is far the best, bu
for surface work the Acme leaves the
ground in the best shape. The SOC
land was badly Uttered with sods wher,
the Spring-toothed harrow was used
This harrow is of light draft, and goe'
deeper than Acme, but is exceeded
in depth twenty-five per cent BY
the Randall. The Smoothing-harrov
(Thomas) tills shallow, and compact
the soil Professor Sanborn concludes
that no one harrow is sufficient for tn,
best filth of a farm; that harrows til
shallower than is generally supposed
that as a substitute for plows they d
not economic force; that all but thu
Acme leave the bottom very uneven
that one harrow may break the clod
best, but not leave so much fine soil a
another; and FINELY, that each harrow
tried had place to which it is bes
adapted, but for general-purpose haI
row on heavy soil--depth of cut
of &c