The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1905-02-09
Farm
and
Garden.
by TRIGGs.

| by TRIGGS.
The shade in the summer for stock
| Is not more acceptable to them than Is
| the sunshine in winter.
1t is always better to have flock
| of sheep on a farm than mortgage.
In fact, the sheep will help to drive a
mortgage off farm, just as they will
| the weeds.
The bur oak tree best survives the
effects of settlement and cultivation Of
any of our native forest trees, yet even
| the bur oak will not endure the con-
tinuous tramping Of stock around it'
roots.
We heard farmer at farm insti
| tute this winter object to his wife keep
ing poultry on the farm on account Of
the grain they consumed. We asked
him If his wife got the poultry money,
and he said that she did. An unregen-
crate old specimen, this.
The promoter may always be found
doing business just as soon as there Is
any new invention made. Within a
year or two 1t has been found that a
very cheap and indestructible fence
post can be made on any farm with ce-
ment, and our promoter is already out
| selling rights to manufacture the same.
| Pass him.
A friend told us curious fact re-
Gently He said farmer up In the
Assinlboia country sowed field Of
| winter wheat in August, 1903. The
wheat lived through the winter, and 1t
took it until September, 1904, to get
ripe enough to harvest, when it gave q
good crop. This is the first time we
| ever heard of wheat requiring thirteen
months to make d crop.
We are asked how far bees will fly to
secure supply of honey. 1t is not easy
| to answer this exactly. Last summer
we knew Of case where man who
kept bees in small town had them
store up a plentiful supply Of honey
made from buckwheat bloom, a grade
of honey which is easily identified, and
the nearest field of buckwheat to the
town was three and half miles. Civ
en- a plentiful food supply, we should
not be surprised If in fair weather they
| went even greater distance than this.
We are told by the bug men that
there are 100000 different kinds Of in
sects. We believe it. We are inclined
| around our garden. orchard and farm
last summer. Not plant, tree or
shrub but seems to have it's special In
sect parasite. This manifold insect
life has its mission, partly for one kind
to prey on another, partly as food for
birds and an equally useful mission in
the mystery Of fertilization Of all plant
life. Again, others serve as sections,
undertakers and garbage destroyers.
The wonderful economy of all plant,
| vegetable, insect and bird life Is so
closely interviewer and so delicately
| and marvelously adjusted that when
man rudely and arbitrarily interferes
| hn nj. \, IN.
penalty. Thus in wantonly destroying
the birds he has thrown the machine
| out of gear and disturbed the nice bal
| ance of the species, the birds being one
Of the most reliable agencies for linn
iting the overpropagation of insect
life. The motto "Spare the Birds"
should have place in every home In
the land.
Not long since we saw the wife of a
pretty well fixed farmer dragging a
heavy sack and hunting around the
| place for fuel with which to cook the
evening meal, and as she found some
| cobs or some sticks or some pieces Of
board she would put them into the
| sack. Seeing this woman thus working,
we wondered If her husband thought
as much of her as he did of his cows,
| horses or hogs. Now, you men who
read this, see here. Don't you secure at
once for your own comfort and conven-
ience each and all of the improved de-
! vices for doing your farm work? And
don't you know that you often go into
| debt for them at that? The use Of
these improved appliances has made
| your work vastly easier and taken from
the farm very much of its old time
slavery and toll. Now, what have you
| done in this line for your good wives? ?
Practically nothing at all-no soft wa
ter save as you can catch some In a
leaking barrel, no woodhouse no wood
pile, no conveniently arranged kitchen
and modern cooking utensils. no paint
ed floor, no washing machine, none Of
the hundred and one little inventions
which SO tighten the housekeeper's toll.
And the wife, partly because you al
ways preach that you are hard up
and partly because Of her ignorance
that such labor saving devices exist,
goes on uncomplainingly. There was a
time when poverty excused to some ex-
tent this neglect and selishness. hut