The National tribune., 1896-03-05
OUR RURAL TOPICS.
Some Practical Suggestions for Our
Agricultural Readers
Tomatoes for the mome Garden.

Tomatoes for the Home Garden.
Tomatoes started now will make plants as
large as can be trausplanted to advantage in
June. If started earlier they will be over
grown and receive bad setback when
placed in the field. For home use, SOW seed
in shallow wooden boxes, which can be kept
on the windOwsill in q warm room. For fill
ing the boxes, use sifted earth from the barn
cellar floor. Fill boxes level and cover with
panes of glass to retain moisture. Keep
them well watered. When young plants
send out pair of true foliage leaves. trans
plant to two inches apart into larger boxes,
setting a little deeper than in the seed bed.
When three or four inches high transplant
again and set a little deeper and further
apart Set them in the field in June. after
the weather is settled. If a frosty night comes
late in the season, cover with straw. For
home use, the Dwarf Champion is an early
and very fine variety. The Boston Market,
Ruby, or Canada Victor are very early
market varieties, and the Acme is a large,
smooth, late kind
PicklinG Pork.
Procure clean, new oak barrels for picking.
When the pork has been cut up, first be sure
that the animal heat is entirely Ost of it and
that it is completely cold. See also that there
is no blood on the pieces and no Joints nor
bloody scraps. Cover the bottom of the bar
rel with an inch of dry. coarse salt, then pack
the pork, the skin coming in contact with the
barrel in a circle. Pack in even layers aad
as cOmpactly as possible. Cover each layer
with an inch of salt, filling in all the vacant
spaces. When the barrel is filled cover the
top layer with an inch Of salt, make strong
brine and fill the barrel 80 that the meat will
be completely covered by it. There is no
danger Of clear fat pork becoming over-salted,
no matter how much salt may be used, since
it will only take up a certain amount, and
any surplus will remain in the brine Some
put a small quantity of saltpeter into each
barrel which hardenS the pork somewhat.
Usually from 40 to 80 pounds Of salt are
necessary for each barrel The pork must be
we'll covered with brine and the barrel should
be looked to occasionally t. see that it does
not leak.
Killing Weed Seed.
The manure intended for the garden that
contains the seeds Of weeds should be piled
up and allowed to ferment until the whole
mass is thoroughly rotted By this means
the seeds in it will be killed. But in order
to rot manure to the best advantage it should
be forked over occasionally when well
warmed up by fermentation, and the whole
turned over, with the outside Of the pile
thrown into the center IF dry, it should be
watered enough to enable fermentation to
continue and TO prevent fre-fanging. 1t is
seldom advisable to use fresh manure in the
garden, and manure should only be applied
in this condition when free from weeds. and
then only for some late-maturing crops, in
which case there will be time for it to rot be-
fore the crops need it. All early crops need
well-rotted manure, and require it in much
larger quantities than do the late maturing.
Green Peas for the Table.
No farmers table should be without a
variety of vegetables in their season. and Of
all that grow in the garden none gives greater
pleasure..to the appetite than green peas. The
time approaches when they can be sOwn.
The very earliest should be some smooth
variety, as these are less sweet and less likely
TO rot in the soil than are the wrinkled peas.
Carter's First Crop is really very good pea,
and only inferior to the wrinkled sorts. The
Little Gem and American Wonder pea should
be sOwn next. and with them some late
wrinkled pea like the Champion of England
or StTatagem. This will prOlOIg the season
three weeks or more. A second sowing may
be made of the Little Gem, but we never sue
eeeded with late sowing of the later varieties,
because forming their seeds in hot, dry
weather the vines would mildew and spoil the
crop. This is probably because in the drOuth
the roots could not get enough mineral plant
foOd to furnish the phosphate and lime for the
seeds.
Feeding Steers.
The Oregon Experiment Station has con-
Quoted an experiment. in feeding steers that
showed gains ranging from 1.88 pounds per
day up to 81 pounds for Winter feed. We
give the result as an evidence OF the gain
under good management. The foods fed con-
sisted of roots and silage, foods that one
would suppose it would be hard to compete
with hay at So per ton, the price quoted rs
prevailing at the station market. Wheat
was consumed at as good advantage as corn.
The point made by the station in review of
the slight profit found for feeding that man
IRE is to be calculated, is not one to be over
looked. The day is to be welcomed when
the virgin States turn their attention to the
question of the fertility of their soils.
Dehorning Cattle.
The Agricultural Experiment Station at
Oklahoma has twice dehorned a
number of cattle. In no case
has any serious injury resulted. The opera
ton is very painful for time but the animals
apparently soon recover. In most instances
there was some shrinkage i'm weight for few
lays, although this might have been caused
by q change in food, in part. Several calves
we're dehorned last Fall and seemed to suffer
less than older steers, some of them not show
ing any shrinkage in weight. The growth of
horns may be prevented by the application of
,austic potash. This is preferably done
before the calf is a month old. 1t is better to
Hip off some of the hair, wet the skin and
'ub with the caustic directly over the bud
ling horn or knob. Good judgment and
0me experience are necessary to determine
ust how much of an application is needed.
FOO much causes needless suffering; too
title will not prevent the growth of the
lorns. When carefully attended to this
Ian is to be preferred to cutting or saving
he horns when the animal is older.
Conducted Excursions to Cali