The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-09-21
Farm Notes.

Experiments are of more value TO the
farmer when practiced on the farm than at
the experiment stations. Five dollars ex-
pended on the farm i'm that manner. on
small plots, will be money we'll invested,
which may return fifty fold in the future.
For the average farmer. says the Win
chester Herald. the best sheep is the one
that has short legs and good body, good
of length and properly shaped, square on
the shoulders, a round rib. good. straight
back, well-rounded hams and a good bris-
ket.
An experiment made by a Michigan
grower of apples shows that If apples are
packed I'm kiln-dried. clean sand and the
apples not allowed to touch, they may be
put into bins and kept for months. pro-
vided the bins are, in n cool, dry place, and
the apples not bruised. Success has been
also obtained by the use of well-dried corn
and oats, especially in keeping beets, tur-
nips and potatoes.
The ordinary concentrated I've is really
caustic soda, which is cheaper than potash.
Soda I've makes hard soap and potash I've
soft soap Soapsuds from soft soap makes
a valuable fertilizer, but soda soapsuds is
not considered valuable except for celery
and asparagus, which are always benefited
by soda in any form. The use OF any kind
of soapsuds is beneficial in assisting TO
lberate plant food in the soil. however.
Another machine has been devised to
meet a long-felt want on the farms. This
time IL is machine for graduating potato
bugs. The machine operates somewhat like
of rollers that are supposed TO knock the
bugs of the vines into troughs, where they
are killed. Several acres day can be gone
over with the machine. which Is said TO
catch at least three-fourths OF the bugs
In referring to the degeneracy OF musk
melons, G. q. Tousey, OF Great Neck, j.. l.,
says: The cause of this degeneracy Is I'm
planting squashes. cucumbers and musk
melons close together. All three OF these
plants are in bloom at the same time. con-
sequently the pollen Of one Is carried TO
another by the wind. causing hybrid pro-
duction. Eat a squash raw and a musk
melon boiled and you will have a good idea
of the effect OF planting these close to-
gether.
An excellent way to keep cabbages is to
pull them up and put them close together,
roots in the ground, and cover them, so as
to protect against rain, first placing hay or
straw over the heads. BY this plan the
cabbages will keep until late In the spring,
the stalks will take root ana throw out
sprouts or greens. after the heads are
gone. BY burying the heads win the roots
up the frost prevents their use. and when
the frost leaves them the ground is damp
and the heads rot. IL will be found OF adj
vantage to use the stalks In the manner
stated if for other purpose than to Sc
cure the early greens
All farmers know that wood ashes are
valuable as fertilizer. But this value,
MANY know, is due very much 10 the ma
terial from which the ashes come Thus
ashes made from hard wood are more valu-
able than ashes made from soft wood. In
fact some ashes from soft wood have not
enough value TO make IL worth while 10
bother with them. IL has also been found
that the value is largely governed by the
rart of the tree from which the ashes are
made II is declared by chemists that the
ash of young twigs In OF more value than
the ash of the trunk of the tree. while the
ash of leaves is stih more valuable.