davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
NOTES FOR THE ORCHARDisT

1t Is a great mistake to cut off
limb without knowing just why you
are doing it.
Bearing spurs should never be cut
but should be allowed to grow down
to the body Of the tree.
Many persons believe that all that IS
necessary in trimming is to cut out
enough branches to let in plenty OF
sunlight. But this sort of trimming
often does more harm than good.
How often we see farm that Is
trim and we'll kept with the excep-
ton of the orchard This is sign
that the man who owns the farm is
not a real farmer, but near farmer.
When we look at an orchard whose
trees are heavy with fruit we realize
how much is taken from the ground
and how necessary it is to replenish
the soil with food that has been taken
from it.
Missouri orchardists, who, by the
way. produce some of the finest ap-
pies and peaches in this country, pin
their faith to cow peas.
OF course cow peas should not be
sown everywhere or anywhere, but as
a cover crop they fill the bill probably
better than any other plant.
The orchard experts of Cornell uni
versity find that their trees grow with
more vigor where clover is sown than
where small cereals are cultivated.
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
ADVICE ON DAHLIA Gull LTURE
Experiences of an Expert viii
Prove Helpful to Growers OF
This Beautiful Flower.
BY EBEN E. RExFoRD.

The present popularity of the dahila
brings many inquiries regarding the
culture of the plant, also many state-
ments of failure in the past from tnose
who have not studied its special re-
quirements and have given 1t only
ordinary culture. Perhaps my per-
sonal experience with this charming
flower may help others to achieve sue
cess with it.
We used to think it impossible to
row the dahlia at the north unless we
Tarted its roots into growth very early
i, the season. We planted them IN
pots and boxes generally in late March,
or early in April, and by the time
the weather was warm enough to war
rant us in putting the plants into the
ground they were tall, weak things that
suffered so much from transplant1ng
that they took a month or two to re-
cover in. The consequence was they
were late in coming into bloom. In
fact, few of them developed flowers be-
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13

fore frosts were due, and as the plant
is very sensitive to cold we generally
tailed to get a good crop of flowers for
our early started plants, and most per-
sons who had experimental along this
line gave up trying to grow dahlias, un-
der the impression that our season was
not long enough to bring them to ma
turity.
Two years ago the spring was very
backward in this locality, and the
ground was wet and cold until the first
of June. I had procured a fine col
lection of dahlia tubers, but had not
thought it advisable to start them into
growth in pots, because of past ex-
perience with early started plants The
tubers were spread on shelf in the
greenhouse when received and lay there
through the month of May, waiting
for warm weather The buds or "eyes'
on them swelled, and by the first of
June sprouts were beginning to grow.
On the first day of June I planted
them in the garden, not daring to wait
! longer. / spaded up the ground to
1 the depth of at ast foot and a half
and manured it very heavily, using old,
thoroughly rotted COW manure. This I
worked into the soil, which was made
as mellow as possible. The tubers
were planted with their heads about
four inches below the surface A little
depression was left in the center of the
soil, where tho tuber was, and this
was not filled with earth until the
sprout had appeared and made a
! growth of four or five inches. Stakes
were set by each plant at planting
time and each stake bore the name Of
the variety it was to furnish support
for Stalking, let me say right here, is
very important, because the stalks of
the dahlia are so extremely brittle that
q strong wind or a heavy rain will
often break the plants down if they
are not well tied up. If supports are
put in place before new roots are sent
out no harm is done by driving them
into the ground. The stalk should be
tied to the stakes with strips of cloth,
rather than strings, as the latter often
cut into the soft wood. Tie the stalk
to the stake for every foot of its
growth. If these stakes are painted a
dull green they will not be noticeable
Care was taken to keep the soil quite
moist after our "dry spell" came on
, and the plants were kept forging stead
J lily and rapidly ahead. The result was
that we had flowers from them by the
, middle of August, and as we covered
the plants with sheets when September
frosts came we had our best crop o1
bloom late in the season, when it was
most appreciated.
Last year I repeated the experiment
of the year before. put out my tubers
June 1, and the result was the same
as that of the previous year. I find, by
a somewhat extensive correspondence
with other flower growers, that thi.
method works well in all parts of the
country where it has been tried Th,
old idea of early starting has beer
proved wrong one, and the new
method of successful dahlia culture il
based on not planting until settled
warm weather is assured, very ricl
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
SOW MORE BLUE GRASS
1t Makes the Finest Pasture, but
Requires Careful Attention
to Obtain Best Results.

Don't break up your good blue grass
pastures. Missouri farmers say that
II f1rst-class bluegrass pasture is
broken up and put through a rotation
1t will take from ten to twenty years
to get as good a bluegrass pasture in
its place. Henry Wallace says he has
never been able to secure as good a
pasture of bluegrass on any land that
has ever been broken up as he could
secure by seeding it on wild prairie
and pasturing closely until the blue
grass gets a good hold.
Bluegrass pasture properly handled
will increase in value from year to
year, and he often advised farmers not
to break UP their bluegrass pastures
or suffer them to be broken up until
their youngest grandchild is 81 years
old. They will not, however, get the
full benefit of bluegrass pastures if
they merely pasture them and let them
alone; nor will they if they pasture
them too closely They should study
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13

the nature of bluegrass and its nutrl-
tive requirements.
1t has two periods of growth-one in
the spring and one in the fall. 1t
takes a rest about the first or the mid
die of July and is not ready to begin
work again until the fall rains come.
The farmer who pastures bluegrass
into the ground these two months can't
well kill it, but he can seriously in
lure it. It is almost impossible to kill
out a once thoroughly set bluegrass
sod on land to which it is adapted.
The grub worms may get into it and
kill every spear Of grass standing till
YOU can strip the sod off like you
would a carpet off the floor, but there
is always enough seed left TO re-seed it
if left alone. The man who turns
a lot of experienced brood sows into
a pasture thus infested and lets them
do their own sweet will, shuts his eyes
till they are through and then harrows
it over takes wise course He takes
a still wiser course if before he har-
rows he sows some clover and timothy
seed to occupy the ground until the
bluegrass gets thoroughly at work
again.
Therefore avoid close pasturlnS our
ing the hot season. If you must pas
ture during the hot season, pasture
lightly during the early part of the
wear, so that there will be plenty OF
grass for the cattle without gnawine
| it into the ground. If, however, yor
would get the full benefit, disk 1t every
three years, thus preventing it from
getting sod-bound, and at the same
time SOW some clover seed in order te
supply it with nitrogen.
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
SHEEP ON THE HILL LANDS
Certain Breeds Are Especially
Adapted to Rough Country
How to Raise Them.
By PROFESSOR j. j. HOOPER,
Kentucky Experiment Station.

The number of sheep in the United
States is decreasing, while the con-
sumption of mutton is increasing, and
as a result we find sheep commanding
a high price. 1t is not at all improba-
BILE that these high prices will con-
tinue for long number Of years.
Farmers now understand that there
is money in sheep and they are in
quiring how they can best start
flock.
Every farmer who has any grazing
land can profitably raise some sheep.
Hilly pasture land is in abundance
in many sections-hills that have not
been cleared of their timber; and there
are millions of acres of such iAnd
which will afford good browsing for
sheep or Angora goats.
For hilly lands I can recommend any
of the Down breeds--Southdown and
Shropshires. The Leicesters or Lin
coins would probably do well in the
level fertile sections.
My advice is not to engage in the
sheep business at all unless you can
give the sheep the care and attention
which they demand. They will not
thrive unless they are looked after
carefully.
AS a general rule, when properly
managed, they can subsist on land that
will not support larger domestic ami
mails. They eat nearly all of the weeds.
1 do not pretend to be able to say
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13

in the soil and an uneven stand will
be produced.
Sown with drill, the grain is even
ly distributed, has an equal covering,
terminates and comes up at the same
time and has an equal chance of de-
velopment.
In sowing wheat the value of the
drill is so we'll understood that it is
very generally used, but, strange to
say, many farmers continue to sow
their oats broadcast
This, more than anything else, has
caused oats to be wrongfully consid-
cred Improbable, though a necessary
crop, for conclusive statistics from the
experiment stations show that oats
when properly planted will return a
highly profitable yield.
Oats respond marvelously to correct
planting, showing in some instances
the difference of nine bushels per acre
over the broadcast sowing.
For long time farmers in the corn
belt thought it was impossible to get
a drill that would work in heavy corn
stalks and put wheat or other seed in
the ground evenly, but manufacturers
have overcome this difficulty and it
is now possible to get seeders that
really perform remarkable work on
| tough ground.
Farmers no longer care to expert
ment with any kind of a machine that
comes along, and manufacturers have
come to understand that they must
fully meet the requirements of farmers
in order to sell their machines. When
they do this farmers are always ready
to adopt them.
This surplus yield, which may mean
the raising of oats at a profit instead
of a loss, Is a powerful argument ir
favor of drill planting, and we recon-
mend that every farmer who is en-
gagged in growing grain secure drill
before planting time
1t is almost impossible to sow grass
seed broadcast and get an even stand
And as, grass seed is very expensive
the saving in seed alone is an impor.
tant item, to say nothing Of the uni.
formity of growth.-B. L. Lara
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
PROTECT YOUR DAUGHTERS

The recent awful disclosures of the
work of great organization of crimi-
nails in this country, who actually sell
girls into the most fearful slavery
should arouse every father and mother
in the land to the danger of allowing
their daughters to leave the country,
unprotected, to seek their fortunes in
the cities.
This criminal syndicate has its
branches in every large city and its
agents lie in wait at the railway sta
ticns and steamboat docks to waylay
innocent girls and lead them, under
fair but false promises of employment,
into houses of vice. Once inside the
doors of these places a girl is power
less. She is threatened, her clothing
is forcibly taken from her and she is
often beaten to prevent her escape.
The scoundrels who capture these
girls fresh from the country receive
$50 to 5000 from the proprietors of
houses OF i'll fame. The girls are sold
like swine and the demand always ex-
ceeds the supply.
Few girls ever escape the terrible life
irto which they have been delivered
by the agents of these vile syndicates
until disease and death release them.
The government and the municipal
authorities are attempting to destroy
this traffic in girls and they urge par
ents on the farms and in the villages
and towns to keep their girls at home.
No girl should be permitted to go
alone to a big city in search Of work
CT even on business. She is constantly
exposed to the tricks and schemes of
men who make it a business to entrap
and ruin them, and they are constantly
in danger.
Parents who permit their girls to
leave home for the city unaccompanied
or without finding in advance for them
positive protection when they arrive
| are sadly remiss in their duty.
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
FLOWERS. IN THE WHITE HOUSE

Mrs. Roosevelt is partial to growing
flowers and plants rather than cut
blossoms for the decoration of the
White House, and during Roosevelt's
administration the entire house has
been kept bright and lovely with grow
ing things.
The beautiful state drawing rooms
which are used for public receptions
and social functions, are made CHEEKY
and beautiful with pots of fuchsias and
pepper plants glowing in the sun, with
an occasional jardiniere of scarlet
tipped poinsettia.
Oriental palms in porcelain vases and
dainty ferns in quaint boxes of birch
bark give delightfully."- homelike ap-
pearance to the wide, bare walls of the
lower wing.
Only an occasional vase of roses is
seen on the mantel of the blue room
and growing plant invariably has the
place Of honor on the dining table.
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
RAISING TURKEYS SUCCESSFULLY

Young turkeys are not any harder to
raise than chickens, if one is careful
never to inbreed and keep them free
from lice and mites.
l set all the eggs under chicken hens
so as to keep my turkeys laying. When
the eggs pipped put them in the incu-
bator, which was set with chicken
eggs. Every egg that pipped Matched
and they did not harm the other eggs
in the least.
1t wasn't an unusual thing to have
every egg of setting hatch and never
more than one that did not hatch.
1 never let the young turkeys run
with the turkey hen, because she takes
them too far from home and it is easier
to keep them free from lice when they
are raised by hand
1 do not feed the poults for twenty
four hours after Matching. Then ]
don't have any trouble teaching them
to eat. Soak bread in milk and squeeze
it dry for them for two or three days,
then feed fine cracked corn mixed with
clabber cheese.
never feed black pepper, as so many
do, nor very many hard-boiled eggs
and I raise more turkeys than those
that do in this neighborhood.
Then let them have as much freedom
as possible, for they like to pick bugs
and tender grass. If they are kept in
house at night that has roosts they
will soon fly on them and do better
than if left on the ground. 1t is neces-
sary to keep these coops or roosting
places clean and disinfected, for lice
and mites are sure death to young tur-
keys.
Coarse sand should be provided for
them, also plenty of shade, and ashes
for their dust bath.
Out of eighty-ive turkeys raised last
season lost only ten-five from mites
and the others were killed accidentally.
Mrs. A. II. Woods.
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
GARDEN PLANTING HINTS

Make our your lists foE seeds and
plants early.
The azaleas bloom late in winter.
In the south plant sweet peas; trim
roses.
Turn plants frequently to keep from
being drawn"
Be ready for the cold days-they ara
still at hand.
Leave fuchsias in cellar until March.
Too much fertilizer develops a weak
but rapid growth.
Plants that are not growing need M
fertilizers.
Do not shower plants on cloudy days
and keep out of sun when wet
Take no chances in fighting insectsI
fight to eXtermnate
Keep window garden. clean Remove
dead leaves, scrub pots, shower foliage
keep window glass clean
Paste paper over all cracks and open.
ings of windows containing plants
Tighten loose panes with putty.
Large pots for foliage small pots for
flowers. Plenty of sunshine for gerani.
uIns.
| Amaryllis and Queen lily should ba
brought into light the last of March
J for May blooming.
= Il
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13

just how the farmer can start a flocl
of sheep in the most economical man.
ner, as this will depend upon the To-
cation of the farm and the available
supply of stock ewes in the locality.
AS a general rule, if it is possible
to secure the foundation flock neal
home that would be preferred to buy.
ing them at a distance.
In selecting and buying ewes be very
careful not to get disease. Watch fol
scab. They should always be dipped
before leaving their old yards, and II
possible dipped again on reaching the
new home. Look for ewes that show
good breeding.
Old ewes, such as are not desired by
the butchers, can frequently be pur-
chased at a very reasonable price, can
be economically carried over the win
ter, and after lambing time in the
spring they can be culled out and the
poorest ones fattened and sold.
Every flock of sheep should be
looked over very carefully each spring
and no poor ones left in it.
The ewes should all be fed well just
before breeding and should have suf-
ficient food at all times. Old country
shepherds claim that by flushing" al
lowing them free run of succulent pas
ture just before and during the breed
ing season, the ewes will produce
larger number of twins.
The selection of the ram to head
ones flock is a very important matter.
BY all means pick out good, vigorous,
pure bred one.
In a grade flock the pure-bred ram
exerts at least half, and probably more
than half, of influence on the lambs
that he gets. Select ram that Is
low-set, deep in body wide of back
and heavily muscled over all parts,
especially in the leg of mutton, the
highest price cut in the whole body.
Examine the fleece carefully. Secure
a ram that is we'll wooled over the
belly, as this will insure against colds
and pneumonia when the sheep have
to lie on cold or damp ground
| AS a general rule the production OF
market sheep will bring in as great a
profit as the rearing of fancy stock
Sheep will thrive on most Of the foods
produced on the average farm.
A good mixture to supplement pas
ture is ten pounds Of cornmeal, ten
pounds of bran and two pounds of oil
meal.
Corn makes an excellent fattenina
food. Alfalfa makes an excellent pas
I ture, and the same is true of clover
but care must be taken to prevent
bloat when first pastured.
The hay from these pastures, forags
crops. is excellent for sheep.
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
GARDENS IN THE KLONDlKE

Dawson is to be credited with the
discovery of the agricultural possibili-
ties Of the great valley of the Yukon.
few seeds were first taken into
that country by some of the "old-
timers" who did not expect them to
amount to anything.
These were planted on the sunny
side of cabin roof and they created
great deal of surprise and joy when
they grew into an abundant supply OF
radishes and lettuce.
To-day hundreds of acres in the
Klondike are being titled and the veg
etables grown are fine-in fact, equal tt
those that can be found anywhere ir
Canada
The potato crop alone was over 20t
tons last year, and the farmers ant
gardeners expect to double their potato
acreage this year.
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
BETTER ROADS NECESSARY
Sad Roads Serious Objection
TO Living on a Farm-Good
Ones Easy to Make.

The persistent and powerful enemies
# dirt roads are water and narrow
Tres, and the constant effort of the
nen in charge Of the roads should be
o guard against their destructive ef-
'ects and remedy all damage as quickly
is possible.
With sandy soil and a subsoil of
LAY or clay and gravel deep plowing
10 as to raise and mix the clay with
he surface soil and sand will prove
beneficial
The combination forms sand-clay
'oad at a trifling expense. On the
,ther hand, If the road be entirely
If sand a mistake will be made If it
plowed unless clay can be added.
Such plowing would merely deepen
.he sand, and at the same time break
ip the small amount of hard surface
material which may have formed.
II the subsoil is clay and the surface
scant in sand or gravel, plowing should
not be resorted to, as it would result
In clay surface rather than one of
yand or gravel.
road foreman must know not only
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
soil and plenty of moisture, these three
essentials keeping the plants going
forward from start to finish.
FENCE RAIL PHILOSOPHY

The man who is always thinking of
the reward for his good deeds will
not make good showing in the final
accounting.
The best use for lawyer is to keep
after we are once in.
One form Of religion is to keep the
windows of the sleeping rooms open.
A hungry COW cannot produce milk
any more than an empty mill hopper
can produce flour.
Some men are so prodigal of their
a crop of corn just to throw it in the
mud to be trampled and wasted by
the cattle.
Sunshine, pure air in the house and
well-cooked food make combination
which produces health and optimism
and tends to discourage the patent
medicine men.
The rural route postal service comes
high, but it is doing more to educate
and uplift the young people of the farm
than any other influence.
How tenderly we nurse the young
animal to give it good start in life,
but how often we neglect this care of
our CullQTen.
The bank books of the dairymen tell
the story of last summers drought
Soiling crops will prevent so much loss
hereafter.
This motto should be nailed over
the door Of every schoolhouse: Tel
the truth and shame the devil.'
1t is as much the duty of a farmer
to take an interest in politics as ir
the church. But he can do that with
out becoming a permanent and valua-
BILE member of the Grocery Store De-
batting club.
Every Woodworking farmer earns {
vacation of at least two weeks every
year-and generally the wife earn;
four. But does she get it?
The farm telephone wire is the con.
Meeting link between neighbors and tht
outside world. 1t banishes lonelines:
and creates sympathy and spirit O.
optimism.
If our troubles which keep us awake
nights We're really as big as they seen
in the dark we would never get owe
them.
A man may have a good knowledg,
of the two principles of farming, bu
if he neglects the details he will fail.
You can tell good husband by tn,
clothes his wife wears.
It's wise man who knows a goo,
wife while he has her.
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13

proportioned and occupy completely
the space between the circumference
of the ear and the circumference of
the cob.
The upper right-hand two kernels
are poorly shaped and leave a lot of
unoccupied space.
Tho lower right hand two kernels
show how the white rice popcorn ker-
nels occupy the space.
The lower two kernels are of the
shoe-peg type.
The left two kernels show the rela-
tive shape and position of flint kernels
as compared with the upper three dent
kernels.
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13

ing broadcast is not as generally ap-
preciated as it should be. To have q
proper understanding of the benefit g
the drill it is necessary to know ju's.
what it. does and how.
In the first place a drill saves seed, a
bushel of grain drilled in producing as
good a stand as bushel and peck
sown broadcast.
A large amount of broadcast seed
never comes up, even if covered in the
best possible manner with a disk or a
harrow.
Some of it will not be covered at
all, while some will be sown too deep
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
A POPULAR BREED

Leghorns, if compelled to roost in
cold houses and pick a living from the
slush of a barnyard, will not lay. But
when warmly housed and properly fec
they are the best of winter layers.
The best bred Leghorns are prac-
Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1909-03-13
FAMOUS TREES FOR KENTUCKY

The great oak trees in the garden
at the White House are known as the
Peace Oaks" They were planted pre-
vious to the civil war by John j. Crit
tenden and James B. Beck of Ken
lucky. These men, who were repre-
senting the state of Kentucky in the
United States senate, attempted to de-
fer the war by means of a peace con-
ference. Their failure was symbolized
by planting two acorns from which
grew these carefully guarded trees.
Two small Seeding oaks-"Peace
Trees"-sprouted from acorns the fruit
of the peace Oaks" have been sent
from the botanical gardens in Wash
ington to be planted in one oft he pub
lie parks in Kentucky.