The National tribune., 1896-04-23
OUR RURAL TOPICS.
Some Practical Suggestions for Our
Agricultural Readers
A Cheap Me.s for chlsk.

~ tHtHP ness NNtckH.
Procure a sleeps liver and cook it to n
broth. Thicker it while cooking with a
mixture OF equal parts of cornmeaI. bran.
and ground oats. When cold, feed it once
a day to the chicks, on a clean board. or
from trough, giving them as much az they
will eat and removing the remainder. 10
will cost but vey little, and will make the
chicks grow rapidly. The other meals may
be OF any kind Of food they will eat
Oats and yetch.
The Massachusetts Experiment. Station
has grown oats and vetch together. II ia
suggested that several lots be sown 10 davs
apart and green fodder secured for nearly
month; that after the crop has been taken
crop OF Hungarian grass can be grown.
The station secured three tons of yeseh
and oats and one ton Of Hungarian grass
succeeding it; had it been a moist ssHson ft
was certain that another ton could have
been secnred, making a total of i've tons
The station uses four bushels of oats and so
pounds OF yetch TO an acre.
Cut Worms. BE-
With the approach of the garden season
! the customary pest of cut-wOrms may ba
expected as numerOusly as ever. The Flor
| ist Exchange epitomized the following list ef
methods for combating the worm
Placing around the plants fruit or vegeta-
bic cans from which top and bottom have
| been removed The top of the can should be
| three or four inches above the surface of the
ground. The ends can be unsoIdered by
throwing the cans into a fire.
Flowing the ground early in September.
and not allowing weeds TO grow
Flowing the ground late in the Fall or
early in the Spring, keeping the surface free
from weeds by cultivation, and not putting
a crop on same until the middle of Nav or
first of June. During the first 10 DAYS II
May fresh cut clover, grass or weeds which
have been dipped in water containing paris
green should be strewn over the ground each
evening.
Collecting the worms each evening whiEs
they are feeding. This requires good light
and sharp eyes.
Each morning hunting for the fresh-cus
plants.
Using flight traps" at intervals during
the months of June, August and September.
These traps are made by filing tnb or half
cask two-thirds full of water, pouring liz
tie kerosene over the surface and hanginga
lantern over the tub.
Keep Eggs from Chilling.
1t is a common mistake TO suppose that
eggs kept always in a cold place may be-
kept indefinitely. 1t is true that keeping
them too warm starts the germ into life.
but even then the egg is spoiled quicker and
more effeetually by being chilled. The
germ is sensitive to cold almost from tia
first. Some poultry keepers make it a rule
to set eggs the day they are laid, and, if
possible, without ever having the warmth
which they received from the hen impaired.
The necessity of keeping the eggs reason
ably warm until they are set is greatest in
the early Spring months. Many eggs are
kept in cold rooms where the Temperature
at night goes down very near the freezing
point. 1t they are on earthen or metal
vessels, which take away the heat from the
egg very rapidly, the egg will be worthless
for setting long before the shell is cracked
by frost. Without doubt many early SET
tiDg+ of eggs get chilled in this way.
While the weather is cold not so many
eggs should be put under the hen as she
will care for and hatch in the Summer,
when eggs will hatch with little more heat
thin the sun furnishes if covered with some
thing at night TO keep them from being
chilled.
Care for Common as for Fancy Hens.
The flock of common poultry that is wen
Kept will be very much more profitable
than the one that is compelled to shift for
itself, and nything in the way of housing
and feeding that is good for the faneiess
kind of fancy poultry is just as good for the
most common of native hens Do not make
the mistake of thinking that one kind Of
care 10 necessary for a common hen and
another kind for the pure breeds. That
which will increase the profits in one will
increase the profits in the other in a corre-
spending degree. We believe in pure-bred
poultry, because il is best but if the man
who has common stock wants TO get the
best results from it he must give it the best
of care.
Farm Notes.
In setting out an orchard extremely rich
soil is neither profitable nor TO be desired if
it could be made rich without expense.
Most young orchards in the first few years
grow too fast and make wood at the expense
of fruit. III the farmer thinks the soil not
rich enough, he is apt to manure the young
trees with stable manure. This only makes
matters worse. What is needed in most
long cultivated lands is a larger supply of
the mineral fertilizers that promote fruit
production.
An economical MODE or growing early
tomatoes, melons, etc, where but few are
desired, to produce crops for home use, is to
use egg-shells. Break the shells near the
small ends, fill with rich dirt and plant
few seed of the kind desired. The shells
may be set in a shallow pan or box of bran,
and placed in the sunlight on warm days,
care being taken not to expose them to cold
ut night. When transplanting simply set
the shell with the plant in the ground. The
roots OF the plant will soon break through
the shell.
Those who use ineubators and are disap-
pointed when they succeed in Matching only
so or 20 per cent. of the eggs, must not over
look the fact that hens do no better. 1t Is
true that hen will sometimes bring off
dozen chicks from as many eggs but other
hens may hatch only two or three chicks.
The average number of chicks hatched, if 10
or 20 hens are allowed TO sit at the same
time, will not exceed so per cent.
The main objection to growing lima beans
is the providing of supports. In some locali-
ties the poles are costly, and if they must
come from distance the hauling is an item
Of importance. Two strands of strong wire,
to poles suitable distance apart,
will answer as well as to use poles exclus-
lively, string to each vine guiding it TO the