The Holly chieftain., 1902-10-03
[AGRICULTURE)
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Starting the Furrows-


requires experience in doing the work.
II the first burrows are run carelessiy
or incorrectly 1t will b. found exceed
ingiy dihicult to do a good job Tne
plowing Of old fields is less dlmcui1
than the plowing of new ones, Tor the
reason that the old fields have land
marks that are easily Understood. Ihls
is, OF course. true only II the piowlns
OF former years has been correct. II
is somewhat dinicult ask to turn
straight furrow across new field
with nothing to serve as guide but
some object on the further side. The
skilled farmer should not entrust the
turning of the first fur-ows to the boy
or the unskilled hired hand. II the
first burrows are crook II Is dlmcult
to make any straight ones afterward.
The best plowman will ind it difhcult
to correct the errors OF his predeces-
sors- Even the skilled plowman will
not find 1t an easy matter to run the
first furrow straight ahead of him and
keep his team well under control. II
the field is to be plowed on the lands
plan. then there is al added reason
why the best plowmal on the farm
should take the matte in hand, for
there will be several first" burrows to
plow. The first furrows are the pat
terms Of all that are 10 follow them.
Landmarks set up OF opposite sides
of the field will assist the plowman In
making his furrow straight whether
he be skilled or novice.
Sites for Orc hards.
The site for an orchard can not be
selected by rule. II We attempt to
divide all the orchards of the country
into groups to correspond with rules
that the rules do not mean very much,
as the exceptions to the rules are very
numerous. Exposure, soil and drain
age must all be considered. AS to
exposure, northern slope for an ap-
pie orchard is always advisable. yet
there are many successful orchards on
the level. Probably the northern,
slope is more necessary in the north
ern rim of the apple growing belt than
in the southern rim. The soil Is
matter Of good deal of importance.
Sometimes, farm contains a dozen
different kinds of soil. one or two
kinds being more suitable for the or
chard than the others. The soil best
adapted to the growing of orchard
trees is the one that should be Be-
lected irrespective Of whether that soil
be near or far from the house. Too
often the orchard is located with refer
ence to the house rather than in rela-
tion to the soils Of the farm. But
1t is better to have productive or
chard a half mile from the house than
to have an unproductive orchard near
the house. Nearly all clay soils need
to be drained even II the location of
the orchard be on the hill.
When to Cut Alfalfa.
Alfalfa should be cut when not more
than one-tenth of the plants have
come in bloom. Cut at this early
stage. the yield OF hay for the season
will be much greater than If the al
falfa Is cut near maturity. and every
pound Of hay secured will be worth
more for feed. At the Kansas Ok
pertinent Station, strip through 4
uctu VI hlldlLd WAS CUT Wneu one
tenth was in bloom, another strip was
cut after full bloom had passed. The
strip cut early was nearly ready to
cut the second time when that cut
after full bloom was being harvested
the first time. The strip cut early
grew vigorously through the season
and made three cuttings and a good
aftermath. The strip cut after full
bloom gave low yield the first cut
ting and did not grow sufficiently to
yield a good second cutting. Early
cuttings invigorate the plant-Kansas
Station Report.
vioor a Valuable Quality In Swine.
Prof. W. J. Kennedy says: In judg-
ing swine. the butchers preference
should be adhered to very closely. The
profit in the production Of hogs large
ly lies in successfully catering to the
butcher. There are some other points,
however. which must be considered in
this connection. The evidences Of
constitution and vigor are points on
which the butcher cannot realize prof
it. To the feeder and breeder. howev-
er. they are Of the utmost importance.
No man can afford to underestimate
the value of constitution and vigor In
the hog. They are the best specifics -
yet discovered to ward OF the ravages
of hog cholera.
Varieties Of Geese.
From Farmers Review: Will some