The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1905-02-02

strip on a large plate and moisten 1t we'll,
put not soaking it with water. Then from
the seeds it is desired to test select 100 or
more and lay them carefully on the moist
ened cloth SO they will not touch each
other. Then cover another plate over the
cloth on the first plate and place the
plates some place where the temperature
will be about 10 degrees all the time for
three or four days. At the end Of that
period count the seeds which nave sprout-
ed and you have a fair test of their germ
mating powers. Most seeds will test SIS
to 80 per cent. If high class. Some seeds
will require less time to terminate and
others a little longer time. If the seeds
fall below the per cent. named it Is rea-
~dsonably certain that one would run con-
siderable risk in planting largely Of them.
so another dealers product should be
tried.
WHAT ARE THE PULLETS DOING?
Spring Matched pullets should be laying
now in good shape eve though they were
thatched late and if they are in a COM
Portable house and have the proper var
,iety of food they should be very profit
able. Complaint is general throughout the
country that the birds were late in moult-
ing, particularly the gear old hens, and
this will delay the Egg production. or
icourse if one is out for eggs he has kept
the males away from the flock after dis
posing of all that were not needed for
breeding purposes later In the season. The
pullet needs good care now, for being un-
used to egg producing the process requires
more of her vitality than it will a year
hence, SO that the question ofJfood should
he carefully looked after. Pullets will
need more than year old hens, and the
est of this extra quantity may be par
Itially met by having it of corn, that is, in
the ration of the pullet there may be
safely one-third more corn than in the
ration of the year-old hen. OF course var
iiety must be furnished to keep up the egg
supply, but this does not mean that corn
Ishould be cut so largely as with year-old
mems. Green food Will be particularly
necessary and steamed clover hay will be
;about as good in this line as anything.
WARMING SLOP FOR SWINE.
Assuming that no soapy dishwater is
given the swine, the water in which
GREASY dinner plates are rinsed before
washing forms a good foundation for a
islop for hogs. Our plan is to place the
greasy dishes in a pan Of scalding water
and with a rag on the end of a stick wash
loft the bulk Of the grease. Thu dishes are
then washed in the regular way, and we
take this hot greasy water, put into it any
scraps of vegetables, warm or cold, q lit
tile corn meal and bran, and give it tC
the hogs as hot as they can drink it. Nc
attempt is made to have this constitute a
3IlSdl Dul IL Is SlNcH liClll do dl dppStAHSA
on cold mornings and warns them sc
thoroughly that they are ready for the
regular meal a little later. One car
scarcely realize how these little atten-
tons help in keeping the hogs in good
condition and enable them to take on IA
when you want them to, until they have
been tried.
PLAN FOR THE TEST GROUNDS.
Those who have never known the value
- III ~,.. l.. Ill. -a, ,aN1,- yoa 1.-Two hE
amount of time and money saved In hav.
ing a portion of the farm devoted eX
clusively to testing new things. We make
a speciality Of Strawberries, and during
the past ten years have made 1t a prac'
tice to buy a few of each new variety the
wear it Is introduced; If possible we buy
not grown plants to set In midsummer, 81
as to nave the best possible crop the fol
lowing season. Two seasons fruiting vii
determine If the new variety is suited t.
our soil and other conditions. By thi:
time the plants are not high in price ant
If the variety has proved itself Of value
with us we are prepared to set largely o
it with every expectation that it vii
prove profitable. 1t is safe to say tina
not one in twenty of the sorts we testet
were of any value to us. This does no
mean that the variety was worthless b.
any means for, without doubt, 1t was a
much of a success with some other grow
,er as it was failure with US. The sam
idea can be carried out with vegetable
and with grains and by the plan one ca
be reasonably sure of what he may ex
Tpect from larger paintings under norma
conditions. 1t is not necessary to give u
much space to this trial ground, for a hal
dozen berry plants or two or three pota
toes will be enough for a test. The plan i
well worth trying the coming season. On
thing more, do not have the soil on tn
trial plots a bit richer than you woul
give to the new variety If you were plant
ing ten acres instead Of perhaps a foo
square for to do this would not be q fai
test.
WHERE THE APPLE BOX PAYS.
A friend of the writer is a coInmissio
mar in a large city and receives large cor
signrnents of apples every fall. During tn
exposition at st. Louis he saw some c
the apples from oregon packed In boxes
On his return home he had a hundre
boxes made after the Oregon patterI
each holding a peck, and proceeded t
try his plan. He paid the highest marke
price for apples in barrels to his custom
Iers and then proceeded to assert then
hacking the choice ones In the boxes an
making a second and a third grade
what was left. He tells me that afte
having for the boxes and a proper pric
for labor he received as profit one-thir
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