The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-03-21

three inches long and pack in boxes
OF clean, coarse, sharp sand and place
| in cold cellar regulated with ice SO
the Thermometer will stand at 80 de-
grees An ordinary cellar will not do,
| for if allowed to get too warm the
| cuttings will commence to grow and all
be spoiled If allowed to freeze they
| will not callus and thus fail to emit
sufficient roots.
What Is Callus Pit is a law OF ma
| ture that when root is cut or injured
the plant will repair the damage by
sending out new roots, but no new
roots will start until callus is formed.
Certain wood cells and gristle-like
substance must form, and out of this
callus the roots start The process re-
quires time and goes on at a low tenn
perature and the longer the root is
! kept in this dormant condition the
more calluses there will be.
Roots prepared in October form cal
luses in great numbers before plant
Ing time the following May, when the
cuttings are placed in nursery rows in
rich, moist, sandy soil about three
inches apart and one and half deep.
1t is quite difficult to make them grow
properly without irrigation. II the
roots get dry they will fail. If buried
too deep they damp off and die. Low,
springy or cold ground will not do.
They must have frequent cultivation
and not a weed allowed to grow among
them. AS soon as dormant in the fall,
the plants are carefully taken up and
roots trimmed to the proper length
and again packed in coarse, sharp sand
so 1t is solid around every root and
kept as in, the first winter, when cal
luses form all along the sides and ends
of roots so that when planted out
where they are to fruit in the spring
myriads Of roots will start at one time
and at the end Of the season the ground
will be full of fine feeding roots as
above described. In keeping them in
the callusing cellar it should be sup
piled with ice, for If perchance the eel
lar gets too warm the plants will grow
| and be lost.
! The common way Is, as in the case
OF raspberries, to let a patch fruit as
long as it will and then NOW OFF the
tops and let suckers come up from be-
tween the rows and the next season
| to dig them up to start new patch.
OF course the weakness and exhaustion
of the old patch is carried into the
new. The roots on the plant are few
and commence growing always from
the end, and l have seen them extend
several rods away, While near the
canes the ground would not be occu-
| pied at all. The sap having to come
through these long roots to the leaves
for assimilation they are continuously
sending up suckers which become a
nuisance.
| Beef Prices.
| What the result will be in beef cat
| tie prices, when the short-fed steers
now in the feed lots go to market, is
! a question that feeders and dealers
are slow in answering, says the Omaha
World-Hera,d. 1t is generally be-
lieved that prices must go higher.
Feeders are not disposed to put steers
into the feed lots on high-priced corn
and hay in the face of an advancing
feed market and not see where the de-
mand for the beef cattle will justify
this venture. The ordinary risks in,
cattle feeding, under the usual con-
ditions, are sufficiently hazardous
where the feed supply is in favor of
the FEEDER, without taking any chances
| OF manipulated markets. The scarcity
of winter feed on large areas of the
western range has caused thousands
Of cattle and sheep to be put onto the
market as feeders and stockers, and
as the cattle feeder is very cautious
Just now, in his investments, this class
OF stock is selling low. Even the
farmer who usually has large crops
OF fodder and straw to dispose of in
wlntering stock cattle, is not now dis
posed to buy cattle, but prefers to sell
the roughness to the cattle feeder and
dealer. The present condition cannot
last long. The fat cattle supply will
De short, and the demand will be no
less among the consumers. This must
result In higher prices for beef and
higher prices for beef cattle. The
cheap stock cattle that are now forced
upon the market on account of the
scare of feed shortage will be sell
ing nigh next spring. There is every
prospect of an increased number of
sheep to be fed this winter, and sheep
feeders being able to get this stock
at lower prices than prevailed a year
ago figure that sheep feeding offers a
good interest. for profit. The influ-
ence of shortage in the grazing and
hay conditions of the range districts
west and the shipping demand for
corn throughout the corn-growing
country has presented an illustration
OF how the markets can be affected by
providential influences. A big crop
OF grass and hay places the stock
raiser in position to defend his pro.
duclng interest by holding his stock.
Clover Seed.
Glover seed is now in the market
and the forehanded farmer will soon
be making his purchases for the spring
seeding. In this connection some f1g-.
ures sent out by the Vermont expert
ment station will be interesting. Out
OF many samples OF clover seed bought
last year in Vermont markets and ex-
amined by the Experiment station. 81
per cent We're below tho official ,t,,