The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-03-13
New Varieties of Vegetables.

trOQuclng nOVelUeS each season, ana IL must
be slow firm that does not at least adj
vertise one or more such novelties each
year. Farmers and growers generally have
come to look upon the seedsmen as the real
intrOducers and discoveries of new varle-
ties, and they look upon them as the true
benefactors of their fraternity. To a GER
tain extent this is true. Most of the new
valuable vegetables have been introduced
by seedsmen, but after all the credit of the
discovery is due to some obscure, plain
gardener who persistently attempted to OBJ
tain new variety by good culture and Sc
lection. The seedsmen proper are business
men more than gardeners, and they have
to trust the real work of finding novelties
to their gardeners and seedgrowers. The
demand for something new in vegetables is
very great nowadays, and any new novelty
that is of real value is pretty sure to bring
in a handsome return to the owner. COnse-
quently it pays seedsmen to pay good
prices to expert gardeners to spend their
time in trying to find new vegetables for
them.
The progressive farmer of the present
and future, however, is one who will be
expert enough to improve upon his old
varieties Of vegetables, and maybe possibly
discover new ones. This work will not then
be confined to the seedsmen. 1t will be
general throughout the country, and 1t will
be more beneficial to the farmer for several
reasons. Most of the so-called novelties do
not thrive well except in the locality in
which they are first produced. They are
peculiarly adapted to that certain location.
This accounts for the failure of many Of
them when purchased by farmers. Many a
good variety has received black eye, and
the dealer been called hard names, simply
because the novelty would not thrive In
it's various new homes. In the soil where
it was first produced it undoubtedly came
up to all the descriptions aScr1bed to 1t.
BV growing and discovering his own nov.
elites and new varieties of vegetables and
fruits the farmer is sure to know just what
to expect. He may not be able to recon-
mend it to another grower, but he is as
sured that it does well on his SOIL If the
Importance of this work was more general
ly appreciated we would have better re-
suits from our gardens. 1t is good idea
to make farmers feel that it is their duty
to attempt to raise new varieties for gen.
eral sale or to realize a fortune. One will
only reap disappointment and failure. The
number Of real new varieties that are pro-
duced superior to those already cultivated
are extremely small averaging only a few
a season, and sometimes not one. sst ~
Winter Management of Cows.
The dairy farmer who has not learned
something from the lessons of the past
winter is a poor student. 1t has been a
hard and trying time in many respects to
both man and beast, and the average
dairyman finds himself coming into the
spring with a lot of very thin COWS.
This, I fear, is the case in the majority
of instances. Now, the lesson at hand
is one that should be taken to heart. Ex-
perience is dear article at best, but from
it we have to learn many things. Among
these things, we will find that it costs
more to bring a run down animal into good
condition than it would to keep the animal
up to the standard health-twice over.
Such practice is the poorest kind of econo-
my. 1t is getting to be quite the proper
thing to have a COW come in in the fall
this gives a winter mixer, and if the care
is proper the method is without question
proper. This brings them dry during that
portion of the year when pasturage is at
It's poorest and the insects most numerous.
But, if the COW is skin poor at the time
the calf is dropped, she cannot give as
much milk as is usually required, and no
amount of feed will bring her into good
condition until the calf is well grown, and
thus the profits from the COW are cut down
to a minimum, if not entirely oblitera ted.
1t is evident therefore, that the best course
to follow is to prevent this from occurring
upon this largely depends the profit of the
dairy, therefore let us consider it WE'LL
Practical Dairyman