The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1893-03-01

|
horses or cattle, or even sheep. The
| fluctuations in number and price are swift
and great. OF course, there is present
scarcity that will make production q little
slow for six months or more, but IL ia not
! wholly a scarcity that has made these war
| prices Our great packers. who can make
/ and break prices at any time, carried over
big stock of goods from last year They
wanted TO market il at high price, ami,
as hogs were scarce. they chose TO keep
all prices very high. thus making money
| on the old and new stock.
Now. OF course, we farmers want 10
raise hogs, but do write to urge that we
/ do not lose any more money by stocking
up heavily when prices are high, only to
unload again when prices 20 down. The
crowd il after hogs. Let IL have them.
] The man who carries Ills usual number Of
/ brood sows ali the time is The one that
/ makes the money. Ii he varies any, lie
carries the largest number when prices
are sufficiently low to MAKE tina majoritY
drop out. OBSERVER.
Timothy with Glover.
1t is often good practice to SOW some
timothy with the clover in the scring.
This ia rarely done, many sowing clover
alone, or else sowing the timothy in the
fall with the wheat. Several reasons may
be given for seeding with timothy in the
spring The fall sowing is not aivis-
able as in an open winter Il makes such
q growth that the clover is s,unted by it.
| AS the latter is the chief grass for green
! manuring. nothing should be done to re-
tard its growth or prevent a good stand.
In more southerly ATTITUDES the writer has
] I'm 81
growth thatthe wheat crop was materially
| injured. While this is the exception. vet
il is true that much OF this growth will in
jure clover. When the object sought Is
green manurin2, fall seeding with tim
othy is not advisable.
Why use timothy at all then2 For these
reasons Mixed grasses cover the ground
mOre completely. Many spots that would
be bare OF clover will catch in timothy,
md thus not only will the amount OF
growth be greater. but weeds will be kept
down. Then, too, timothy improves the
quality OF the hay usually made from the
frat crops of clover Ii prevents the
clover from lodging 80 badly and injuring
in wet seasons. Ii also assists in curing of
clover-a thing most diff cult TO do in
perfect Eannsr The only drawback is
the fact that timothy is not quite ripe
when clover should bs cut, but if it is
spring sown it will not be, and should not
be, very considerable in amount. only
growing i'll the little spots that have IN.
sufficient cover.
When clover is sOwn its best growth is
the first consideration, and any dwRrfing
of it by other grasses only brings loss. but
an even covering of the field is also i'm
portant. and this is best assured by sowing
some timothy. Four quarts OF timothy is
usually sufficient. although the writer is
now using six quarts per acre on egh teen
acres of rather thin land that will not be
likely to make a good thick catch OF
clover. With ell grasses. the rule is that
the thinner the land the more seed should
be used.
a Point Well Taken.
Joseph Harris, than whom there is no
better authority on manures, has said:
I'VE have always known that If we could
grow good crops of wheat. oats, barley and
corn, but in many cases the trouble is to
grow clover. 1t is the experience of many
that soils which have grown clover every
third or fourth year for long period Of
time do not produce as rank a growth
without care as they formerly did. We
find it little more difficult 10 get a CATCH
and we have to NOW the ground growth
to thicken it.
While clover doubtless takes its nitro
gen from the air it is dependent upon the
soil and subsail for other elements of
plant food. 1t may become more and
more necessary To aid the growth OF the
Young plants with chemical manures.
Some subsoils appear inexhaustible ana
never fail TO grow rank clover. but others
are becoming little Glover tired" Clio
yer lies at the foundation of successful
American agriculture, and the question
is, how can we make big crops of clover
grow?
In the first place. we must make and
save all the manure possible and apply il
as top-dressing on such fields. A coat
of well-pulverized manure on these fields
paws well in an increased yield of the
grain with which the clover is sown, and
it helps to carry the young clover plant
through it's worst stage-while is is being
well rooted. On land responsive 10 COM
merciai fertilizers they answer the same
purpose. A heavy growth of clover every
third year will build up the fertility Of
any soil. We should bend our energies
more and more to make sure OF growth.
Those who have a sub-soil apparently
inexhaustible and never fail to get heavy
growth of clover have tho question of
maintenance OF fertility solved for them.
Health on the Farm.
The death rate in the country should be
considerably lower than it is in the
crowded cities, but statistics do not show
this to DO true. The reason is found in
the poor, sanitary conditions that are
under the complete control OF the people.
and. az q rule, of the individual. Many a
death is attributed to a mysterious dis
pensation OF providence, when it is due TO
10 the ignorance of the plsiuest laws of
health, or to carelessness that is almost
| criminal.
The germs OF disease often Turk in the
drinking water. A well is supposed to
drain an area of ground double in diameter
the depth OF the well. Stops and other
filth and decaying vegetable matter are
thrown on the ground that the we'll drains,
and the seeds of fever and disease are al
lowed to contaminats the water. Thou
sands OF deaths have been traced to the
drinking of impure water, and tens OF
thousands might no doubt be attributed to
this same cause. There is a serious dam
ger from wells on many farms.
The house cellar is fruitful source OF
disease. Decaying vegetables are full OF
deadly germs. Few rootG and vegetables
should be kept in house cellsr, and tho
ventilation should be perfect as possible.
A damp or mouldy cellar Is very I'M
| L.afft..r A .afa ventilation oar Ia tad