Year: 1879

The observance of few simple rule,
will promote success with house plants
Always let the night temperature be Is
deg. lower than that of the day. Change
the air of the room thoroughly ever
day without allowing a cold current Of
air to fall upon the plants; this may Of,
ten be done through an adjoining room,
Water, when water is needed, and only
then; it is better to let a plant suffer for
a little-as shown by the tagging of the
leaves-than to over-water and keep, as
too many do, the soil in the pots in the
condition of mud. Avoid dust as far as
possible, by covering the plants while
sweeping; but with all care they will
get dusty; those with smooth leaves
may be sponged once week, going
over each leaf with a soft sponge, or
soft cloth, dampened with blood-warm
water.


No plants give more satisfaction in
window culture than the Holland Bulbs.
Hyacinths and the Polyanthus Narcis.
sus are the most popular, because, be.
sides their right colors, the; are delight
fully fragrant. Tulips, CrocuseS, etc.,
are snowy, but lack odor. Bulbs may
be grown in sand, moss, sponge, or in
water, but such methods are merely
fanciful, and do not give strong bloom
like those in rich soil in pots. Equal
parts of good garden soil, old cow
manure, and sand, will give a good
mixture. Pot the bulbs at Once-it
should have been done last month
and set in dark cellar until roots are
formed.


WAGON WHEELS The general farm.
wagon has large hindwheels and small
wheels--Say the hind-wheels about
four and half to five feet in diameter,
and the fore-wheels about three and a
half to four feet in diameter. This form
and size of wheel has been in use so long
and so generally that they have come to
be regarded as standard or necessity,
and these sizes are continued without
question whether any other sizes would
be better or not. We presume that the
size of the fore-wheel has been suggest
ed and adopted on account of placing
the draft about on the line with the
shoulder of the common-sized horse,
and that the hind-wheel has been made
larger on account of the greater ease
with which it is rolled over obstacles.
These considerations, it will be seen, re-
late wholly to the question OF draft, and
leave out of sight all other considera-
tions. These sizes for the farm wagon
wheels were adopted before the exist
ence of railroads, and when the farm
wagon was the only means OF convey
ing farm produce many miles to market.
They are the sizes best adapted to the
conveyance of loads on the road, but
for farm use strictly every practical
farmer must have had it suggested to
him by experience that lower wagon
smaller wheels, particularly hind
wheels-wOuld be more convenient. In
using wagon on the farm, the loading
and unloading is going on almost con-
stantly, while the distance to which
loads are drawn are generally short.
The question of lifting, therefore, be-
comes one of more Importance than
draught, especially when we consider
that the lifting is done by man and the
drawing by horse or other farm animal.
We are sure if farmers were generally
to have the hind-wheels of their farm.
wagons made about the same size as the
fore-wheels are now made they would
find the farm-wagon much more conve-
nient, and really a much greater labor
saving machine. We would also sug-
gest that if they would have tires made
from two to two and half inches wide
according to the condition or compost
ton of their land, they would find this
a very important improvement, 1t
would compensate for the loss IN easy
moving on large wheels, and would be
decided improvement in wet weather,
both in the ease of running OF the
wagon and in avoiding cutting up the
soil.