Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1891-03-27
FARM NOTES.

Dr. Hoskns says that il Paris green
were soluble in water il would kill the
leaves upon which ic was sprinkled. 1t is,
however. soluble in the bodies OF insects.
London purple is slightly soluble in water,
and is hence always more or less harmful
to foliage.
J. j. Thomas the veteran pomologist,
saws that after many long -contiuued exper-
iments he finds barn manure on the whole
the cheapest and most reliable fertilizer for
bearing apple orchards. There is too much
dependence being made on commercial ma
nures for all farm purposes Better far to
keep stock, good stock, feed and care for
it as its needs require, and make manure
at the farm. It is not only reliable, but
costs less.
Recent experiments in treating the black
wart or black knot Of the plum have been
made with linseed oil turpentne and ker-
osene, applied with a small brush as soon
as the warts begin to appear. All these
remedies have been found effectual, but in
some cases injury was done to the trees 10y
the excessive use of turpentine and kero-
seue. The trees should be examined at
least three times during summer and in
each case just enough of the liquid should
/ be applied to saturate the warts.
=
has this to say about the use of the over
draw check. ~ know that the coutrivance
| is sometimes useful, and that it can be EN-
/ ploved in such a manner as not to infict
suffering. But ! repeat my statement that
| / wish il had never been invented because
nine times out Of ten its application is su
/ pertuous and cruel. On working horses.
on livery stable horses, on hack horses, on
horses that stand in harness, on old horses.
| as a rule, it should not be permitted but
/ also repeat that on some Young, skittish
horses. and on some trotters, it is a valua
/ BILE and proper article
There are many farmers vet unacqpaint-
/ ed with the benefits derived from the use of
| a land roller One valuable point in its f. o.
vor is the crushing and pulvprzing Of hard
Jumps and putting small stones aud other
obstacles out Of the way Of the mower or
reaper by bedding them into the ground.
Tomatoes can he grown from cuttings :;
hut experiments made at the Cornell ex-
pertinent grounds in New York show that
nothing is gained 10y this practice. In a
number Of test cases, where cuttings aud
seeding plants received like treatment
the seedlings Welded the most aud the ear
liest fruit The cuttings would in every
case reproduce whatever weaknesses or de-
fects their individual pIogentors had de
veoped, and though tomatoes grown from
seed tend to run out this tendency must be
accelerated if plants were generally grown
from cuttings.
A great deal of the stable manure made
is largely composed of straw, and even
though composted it is not rich in either nj
trogen or phosphate But il these com
mercial fertilizers in any form are added to
susb manure happu,as mora a
than any commercial manure alone can be-
Nitrate Of soda is given a body which pre-
vents 1t from washing away, and phosphate
is furnished the material for fermentation,
creating carbonic acid gas, which prevents
it from becoming insoluble Years ago an
experienced farmer said that he found the
best use Of phosphate on land where he had
applied stable manure Why not then mix
the two, aud save the extra labor Of one
application
To cut our grain in California, says Sen
ator Stanford, We are using a machine that
reaps a swath - feet wide, threshes the
gain as it goes along. puts it in bags. which
men stitch up and drop in the field and the
same machine rakes the straw in and burns
it for fuel upon that reaper
New England farms have suffered 10 val
ne by reason of excessive competition with
government lands railroad lands and un-
natural booms in the West The tide is
rapidly turning, and New England is again
coming to the front. A Western exchange
says there % towns in Kansas, Nebraska a,
Idaho, Washington and California which
have lost from 10 to 30 per cent in popula
ton and 30 per cent in valuation within
the last five years, in consequence of the
collapse Of booms Common sense is guild
ing many investments now where a specu-
lative unrest has had the helm during the
past generation.
The Springfield correspondent Of the
Montpelier Argus SAYS l. VI Cragin, a
bright young farmer, has way of storing
fodder corn and corn fodder for winter use
that gives good satisfaction. He binds t
in convenient sized stocks, setting it around
a hill, first picking the ears and throwing
them on the ground. Then four or FIVE Of
these stocks are set up together. and the
tops turned down and bound After stand
ing as long convenient it is packed and
trOd as solid possible on barn floor or
on a hay NOV, the tops being Tapped enough
to keep the color 1t keeps bright and
sweet, free from mould. and mich COW $
eat it up nearly clean