The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1896-08-27
OUR RURAL TOPICS.
Some Practical Suggestions for Our
Agricultural Readers
Cabbage Worms.

Cabbage Worms.
The worst enemy Of the cabbage is the
cabbage worm. Fall is the time when it
makes its appearance. and unless checked
will completely destroy large fields. The
following is from the Minnesota Experiments
Station Bulletin:
If only a comparatively few heads are to
be protected, an application of boiling-hot
water has been proposed. This seems 20 be
case of jumping from the frying-pan into
the fire, and most people seem to think that
hot water would kill the plants q little
quicker than the worms yet such is not the
case. An application of hot water will kill
all insects, but will not kill or injure the
plant. 1t should be applied as hot a. posi-
be with a sprink!ing-pof. The passage
from the sprinkler to the plant will cool the
water sufficiently to render it incapable Of
doing any permanent injury. Gfcourse this
is a remedy which cannot be applied on
large scale.
ga free use Of pyrethrum in the following
| proportions, one part of pyrethrum TO
| three or four parts of flour, is also n very
/ good remedy. providing the pyrethrum Is
| not too much adulterafed OF otherwise
spoiled. The powder should always be kept
| in an alright tin box, otherwise it's active
principle, an essential oil, will soon escape.
| "The use of lime and carbolic powder is
highly recommended by Prot. Riley. It
should be sprinkled upon the plants early in
| the season, since it both kills the larva and
drives away the adults that come to deposit
eggs. The method of preparation is as fol-
lows: Twenty parts OF superphosphate Of
| lime are mixed with three parts of fresh
air-slaked lime and one part of carboiic
| powder, which is made by thoroughly i'm
| ORIGINATING sawduss with carboiic acid. Is
| tervais of three days
kerosene emulsion, of extra strength and
| forci5ly applied, will also kill large num-
bers of caterpillars, but il is not as effective
as could be desired"
| Handling Ounces.
4! Ounces may be gathered as they ripen in
sucn a manner as to prolong the season very
much. No fruit needs more careful hand
| ling-even thumb mark becomes a dark
spot in a short time For shipping to dis
| tant market in considerable quantities,
probably no package is more satisfactory
| than the ordinary apple barrel The ends
| should be lined with white paper, and the
] fruit placed in very carefully, ealyx end
downward against the head, instead Of the
| stem end, "a with the apple. The tail end
Of the barrel should be gently pressed to its
place with lever or screw-press, but less
heavily than in the case of the apple, be-
cause the texture of the ounce is more
brittle and less elastic, consequently every
| bfuise will result in a serious blemish. For
a near market, and in smal Ter quantities, no
| package can surpass the now very popular
12-quart basket. Whichever package is used
it will usually be found best to make two
classes, and not ship the small, missfapen or
poorly-eolored specimens In the same pack
age with the choice fruit. If, however, no
selection is made, fair show of best and
worst should be made, in order that the
dealers may know exactly what they ars
handling, and buyers may know exactly
what they are buying.
/ Good Absorbents.
The best absorbents for use in stables ars
comparatively little known. IL. is fact,
however, that the Iow-grade potash-saIts. es-
pecially kainit, which is sold by all agrieul-
tural dealers, and keserit (which is not so
common), if sprinklsd in the stable daily
or on the manure pile, will absorb the am
i
while also adding considerable potash to the
manure pile. Kainit contains about IL
pounds of actual potash to the hundred
weight. Acid phosphate is also good abb
| sorbent if not too wet and where the fine
| ground rock phosphate can be had cheapIY,
| 1t may be freely used in the stable The de-
| composition In the manure pile may assist
In making the phosphsric acid of this raw
| product available. foreground land plaster
or gypsum (sulphate of Iime( is also D
| splendid absorbent, and can be had almost
everywhere. Where manures are to be ap-
piled to land that seems to require the use
of lime, plaster should he freely used as an
| absorbent in the stable. These absorbents
keep the stable free from odor, making them
healthful, and also assist in preventing the
manure from heating.
| Dubbing Cockere1s.
| In cold climates where the combs of the
| fowls are sometimes frosted in the Winter
season, it may be advisable to dub the
| cockerels when they are about three months
cid. This is done by using sharp shears.
Cut off the comb and wattles close to the
heads and sprinkle powdered alum on the
surfaces. 1t is apparently cruel, and is not
to be recommended, except when there is
liability of frosted combs, which are mora
painful than the clubbing.
Repairing Broken Trees.
A correspondent to american Gardening
says that after planting a blood leaved beach
| a team IN plowing, got beyond control and
broke the tree squarely off three inches
| from the ground, so that it lay fiat, the top
attached to the root portion by strip no
| heavier than barrel-hoOp. Resolving to
save it if possible, Mr.. Long dug down to-
| where the roots began to branch, and drove
| 4 strong, square stIke six feet long close to
| the stump. The prestrate tree was lifted,
the broken parts adjusted, and the top tied
| to the stake. Then the broken place was
coated with grating wax, four pieces of lath
one and half feet long were bedded in the
wax and kept in place by pieces of wire
| The branches of the tree were pruned bach
! one-tbird. The beech grew beautifully, and
in October, when the laihs were taken off
the union was found complete. Two latb
were replaced. and the tree banked up for
| the Winter above the wound. Three years
now have passed the repair is perfect and
the tree a magnificentspecimen. The stake
| still remains.
| Destroying Burdocks.
| The burdock is bad weed for a careless
or lazy farmer. If it is allowed to seed the
! product of seed is so enormous from each
! plant that once they get scattered over the
ground the place will not be free from them
for years after Yet IL Is not n hard weed