Year: 1879



 ton and practice of the farmer were to have his COWS dry at this time of the year, in many cases not even reserving one COW in milk for family use during the winter. Now this industry has changed butter can be made and sold as well in winter as in summer, while in point of fact it can be made better in the coldest months of winter than in the hottest months of summer.

 In the former case, this can only be successfully carried on through the use ot warm barns, which should never be so cold as to permit water to freeze within their walls. Cows should not be allowed to run out in the mornings af- ter the grass has been much frozen, as such feeding will give a disagre cable flavor to the butter. Permitting dairy stock to range over the fields on a cold. raw day will shrink the butter supply far more in value than the benefit to be derived from any extra food supply ob- tanned in this method. There is little, Ii any, butter in frozen grass. A cold barn will materially shrink the butter product.

 With warm barn, daily feeding of four quarts of shorts, two quarts of h. dian meal, half a peck of carrots Cor @ peck of mangels fed two months from now), some sarly-out hay and fodder Ing of well-cured cornstalks, sweet corn preferred, will keep up good flow of milk, and yield good results in butter. It IS not advisable to allow the stock to remain out long in the yard during the winter season, even though the sun may be shining brightly, since there are of- ten cold, chilly winds even with sum- shine, while on such occasions the COWS generally huddIe up in a sheltered cor her. Better far to keep them comforta- ble in a barn, permitting them to take their exercise while going to the spring for drink. Finally, do not neglect using the card or curry comb upon the COWS, if not every day, then at least three to four times week. Remunera- tive results can only be secured through good care and intelligent management. -American Cultivator.

 FERTILIZERS FOR POTATOES,

 At recent meeting of the Elmira (N. Y.) Farmers Club the following letter from I. N. Baker, Bath, N. r., was read:

 l asked your club last spring for fertilizer for potatoes, and you rec commended wood ashes, which I used and found that they increased the yield, but there were more rotten potatoes where they were applied than where the planting was on inverted clover sod. I have found that to cover potatoes four or i've inches deep with straw or coarse manure will give the best results. I planted about three acres of clover sod, plowed this spring, and 8 part of it being very stony, I thought I would cover 1t with straw to save cultivatinp among the stones, and the result was that the potatoes were larger and more of them in the hill. I planted the potatoes in tho usual way, covering about four inches deep, and in digging all we had to do was to pull the tops and take away the straw, and there were the potatoes clean and smooth. Rose potatoes should be covered deep and evenly or they will sunburn.

 In tho discussion which followed one member said that If ashes increase the tendency to rot, the fact is not generally known. They certainly do promote growth and augment yield. D. T. Billings said that potatoes may be raised under straw covering. He has tried the plan without any great success, however. G. s. McCann had also tried it, but could see no special advantage in the practice. President Hoffman thought straw would have to be spread thickly to retain the requisite moisture and to prevent growth of weeds and grass. It would require great deal to cover such areas as we give to field planting. If cheap production is to be considered it will be difficult to show that it can be effected by straw covering. In regard to the pasturing of rye, MT. Heller repeated the statement formerly made by him, that he dId not doubt the feasibility of pasturlng rye late in the fall, or even in the winter, when the seed was sown early He knew, too, that in the spring as late as the latter part of May would not interfere materially with the grain product ex- ,ept to delay it. Such 0 course had been practioed by his father, when, as one of the early settlers of this valley, l he had limited resources in the way of | oas!urage.