NOTES vST--
ME&DOWBROOR
BRINGING TREES AND SHRUBS
INTO FLOWER DURING WINTER
Ptxrposo of Method Is to Ixnitato Natural Process In Mid
winter at Which Time Fresh Growth Will Have
Special Valuo Secure Boughs During
Very Sevcro Weather.
FEED LOT CONTRIBUTES MUCH
TOWARDS PROFIT IN CATTLE
Thcro Is No Place on Farms Whoro Gains Can bo Eaten Up
Quicker Excellent Plan Is to Provide Shed That
Is Open to South and Wlndtlght to
North, West and East.
.
m
FARM
)jwwu(cmvrt4
V,''
Glvo the chickens grit.
Llmo your corn ground.
Whitewash tho hen houso.
Keep sheep out of draughts.
A few oats make a good poultry
food.
When you feed grit, have- It good
and sharp.
It Is not good for cows to Ho on tho
bare, cold ground.
Tho fresher tho eggs tho better they
will bo for hatching.
Tho silo lends Itself admirably to
efforts at intensive farming.
Keep tho young calves growing.
Glvo them a Httlo grain every day.
Extra banking around the base out
side will mako tho hen house warmer.
Plonty of hay, oats and fresh, air
relieves tho horse of that skinny feel
ing. Reject all damaged feed. It will
pay you In good milk and excellent
butter.
Ground limestone will prove to bo
beneficial to an alfalfa field if tho soil
is sour.
Tho gospel of clean milk is not a
strainer gospel, but a gospel of pre
vention. Currants and gooseberries need
very little, if any, protection through
tho winter.
i
It is important, before trying to
prune, to know where and how tho
fruit is borne.
Tho White Leghorn is the breed
kept on 90 per cent of tho egg farms
of the country.
It is not a good plan to dehorn a
cow while in milk flow. Better wait
until sho is dry.
Tho warmer tho milk tho quicker
the bacteria multiply, and tho quicker
tho milk willour.
Cows should have all tho roughago
they will clean up well in addition to
their silago allowance.
Fall pigs often do not eat enough in
tho winter-time unless special pains
arc taken to make tho feed palatable.
A broad patch of sunlight on the in
side of the houso costs Httlo but pays
big. Not too lato yet to put in somo
glass.
It is impossible to milk a cow that
has a cake of manure on her thigh
without getting somo of tho filth into
the milk pail.
Tho quality of butter produced by
a dairyman depends very largely upon
tho treatment of the cream previous
to churning.
Filthy conditions In tho cow stable
and in tho milk house aro perhaps the
most common sources of bad flavors
in milk or cream.
Corn silago may bo fed out of
doors, in bunks, In the stall, or, In
fact, any place whore animals can eat
it without waBte.
Grain In tho litter in the morning,
mashes at noon, and another heavy
grain feed at night make a good feed
program on a cold day.
A pure-bred animal is tho finest pos
sible machine for making beef or
pork or milk, but like other machines,
it needs both fuel and caro.
Remember, tho cream has to bo at
least 2 degrees warmer on cold days
if tho butter Is to como promptly. Get
it at about 62 and you will havo it
right.
It Is a good plan to get all Borghum
hay and foddor fed up soon, especially
if they aro out of doors. Freezing and
thawing when wet injures this kind of
feed badly.
Tho colt's system roqulrcs a con
siderable amount of bono and musclo
building material, and this can only
bo had by feeding nitrogenous feeds,
such as oats, n Httlo bran, oil meal,
and, if obtainable, somo clover hay.'
A warm-day ration will not satisfy
tho hungor and appetite of a hen on
cold days. Sho needs Bomo food to
counterbalance tho InroadB of tho In
tense cold on her systom, besides the
usual allowanco that should go to the
making of eggs.
?l
hikkJ
Milk rapidly.
Cowpens aro profitable.
Tho work horso needs caro.
Uso fresh eggs In tho incubator.
Weeds delay tho curing of grain and
hay.
Fowls will eat quantities of sand
and gravol.
Sweet ensilage Is said to bo a safe
food for work horses.
Plenty of exerclso for tho owes In
tho winter time Is Imperative
Finely broken chnrcoal occasional
ly, makes an excellent conditioner.
About nn ounco of food a day is
needed for every pound of hen weight
In fitting horsos for hard work in
creaso tho grain ration but not tho
hay.
At present prices of corn and hogs,
hog feeders are Just about breaking
even.
Do not havo the trees como beforo
you aro ready to put them into tho
ground.
Sheep should not bo kept with
horBes or swine, for they aro liable to
get killed.
Sheep do best on high, rolling
ground; low ground produces foot-rot
nnd parasites.
Millet will yield between threo and
four tons of hay per acre under favor
ablo conditions.
Fruit trees aro slow-growing plants,
and therefore do not need quick-acting
fertilizers as a rule.
A herd of good dairy cows is tho
best insurance against hard times or
a slump In prosperity.
Filthy cows, nnd In many cases un
clean milkers also, havo their effect
upon tho milk produced.
Tho cow that is to do her best in
tho winter must bo woll fed, well shel
tered and woll cared for.
One of tho best forms of Investment
on tho farm is tho liberal feeding of
farm animals of all kinds.
The winter feed of tho owo should
contain tho essential food nutrients
In their proper proportions.
If a heifer is to mako tho best dairy
cow, sho should freshen when sho is
from two years to 30 months old.
Roughago for calves should first bo
fed at two or throe weeks of age,
when tho calf begins to eat grain.
A few turnips, cabbage, beets, etc.,
will relievo tho monotony of dry feeds
and help tho milk flow wonderfully.
Ice-cold water checks tho milk flow
and so affects tho cow that it Is apt
to bo detrimental to her unborn calf.
Cleanliness Is an exceedingly Im
portant thing In carrying horses
through the winter in good condition.
Feeding is a most Important part of
tho pure-bred live stock Industry and
one to which not enough attention is
given.
Silage is strong in carbohydrates,
tho principal food requirement for all
animals, but needs protein to bal
ance it.
Corn silage may bo fed out-of-doora
in bunks, in tho stall, or, In fact, any
placo where animals can eat it with
out wasto.
Provide a scratching yard or a
scratching shed in which wheat or oat
straw is strewn at a depth of six to
eight Inches.
Do not let tho owes crowd and push
through tight doors and openings.
Many an owo has lost her lamb as
tho result of a squeeze.
Pure bred animals will almost al
ways reproduce their good qualities,
while tho scrub will lnvnriably repro
duce tholr bad qualities.
A Httlo tankage mixed in makes a
better egg food of the mash and this
is a good way to furnish tho meat por
tion of tho laying ration.
Good young horses aro always in
demand on the mnrket, and can only
be supplied from tho farms whoro
colts recclvo tho proper care and
treatment.
No matter at what price you sell'
tho poor cows It 1b generally safo to
say you got all they are worth and
a little more, particularly If sho is to
bo classed as a dairy animal.
Rotted stable manuro for tho aspar
agus and rhubarb beds will mako theso
crops doublo their ylolds. If put on
now the rains will wash it Into tho Boll
ready for tho plants noxt spring.
Tho colony plan of housing and
yarding is in general uso; portablo
colony houses being used whoro tho
rango permits. In cold climates these
portablo houses, which aro scattered
over tho farm in summer, aro drawn
in convenient to tho other buildings
that tho fowls may bo readily cared
for in winter.
Showing Buds
To tho gardener, the cold months of
tho year must always mean a cessa
tion in tho activo work of plant cul
ture. Any scheme which will onablo
the enthusiast to pursue his paBtlmo
during the winter is sure of a wol
como. Tho new method of bringing
the branches of trees and of shrubs
into flower at this time, is ono which
promises to mako a valuable addition
to tho resources of tho indoor gar
dener. ItB very simplicity must ap
peal to everyone, whllo tho decorative
possibilities of tho system cannot fall
to attract nil ilowor admirers.
In order to understand tho purpose
of tho treatment the consideration of
a few natural science points may not
bo out of plnce. It is well known to
botanists that all deciduous trees and
shrubs bring their next season's
growth to a very advanced stago dur
ing tho fall. Indeed, all leaves and
flowers aro qulto ready for tho spring
folded up on a very small scale be
neath tho protecting bud cases. Now
tho resumption of growth, when it
docs take place, is largely duo to tho
fact that tho plant starts to draw wa
ter from tho soil and tho fluid rising
to tho buds swell out the undeveloped
tissuo and tho tree comes into foliago
Removing Bark.
and blossom. Tho purposo of tho
present method is to Initiate as near
ly as possible this natural process in
m!d-winter at which tlmo tho fresh
growth will havo a special valuo.
Nowadays when flowering trees and
shrubs aro so common In our gardens
thero will bo no difficulty In flndlng
Bubjects for treatment. All tho orna
mental plums, apples, chorries and
currants, to mention only four kinds
are perfectly adapted, whilst the wild
species of these fruits which are to
be found in tho hedge-rows may bo
made equally useful. Bright green
foliago Is always very accoptablo and
branches of trees with largo buds,
such as chestnuts and sycamores, may
bo included in the collection.
Tho season of tho year when tho
systom may bo moBt successfully prac
ticed is during tho months of January
and February. Strango as it may
seom, the buds always expand moro
readily if they havo been subjocted to
a week or two of frost, bo during a
spell of Bovero weather is a good tlmo
to secure tho boughs. It is, of course,
a matter of importance to bo ablo to
select the boughs of tho trees which
aro woll budded for blossom. Mostly
tho flower buds will be fatter than
thoso producing only foliago.
In cutting tho branches from the
trees It is a matter of.some importance
to mako a clean severance, seeing
that torn or raggod fractures prevent
a free development on tho part of tho
twigs. Tho moBt shapely branchos
should bo solocted and all along It
should bo borno In mind that tho
sprays aro to bo used In vases for
decorative purposes. In order to en
able the boughs to absorb water as
freely as possible it Is a good plan to
removo somo cf the bark on the lower
portion of the stem. This Is best cut
nwny with a sharp knife in altornato
slices, as Is shown in tho Illustration.
Now secure a numbor of largo bowls
Into which Bomo hot not scalding
woter has been poured. TIo all the
branches to bo trcuted into bundles
and placo tho ends of the boughs in
tho wator, nt once removing tho
whole thing to a dark cupboard.
This omersion in hot water scorns
to havo tho curious tonic effect of
stirring tho Bleeping buds bo that
when brought out into tho light thoy
will bo ablo to commenco active
growth. Of course tho method la ono
mm &y&
Developed.
ofton followed by florists when they
wish to revlvo drooping flowers.
It is Just ns woll to loavo tho
branches in tho dark cupboard for
twenty-four hours, although naturally
tho water will havo become cold long
before this intervnl has elapsed, but
this dbes not matter. It is a question
for tho individual to decido whether
tho boughs shall bo grown to perfec
tion in tho vases or whether they shall
only bo placed in tho ornamental re
ceptacles after thoy havo fully devel
oped. Somo pcoplo do not And tho
leafless branches innrtlstlc and thoso
aro, of course, soon adorned with ex
panding buds which glvo n delightful
"spring" feeling to tho apartment.
Which over course Is adopted tho
boughs should bo placed nt onco in
pure wator which it is nocessary
should bo kept in a fresh condition.
To this end it is not n bad plan to
placo a lump of charcoal In each vaso
or bowl, or chango tho water every
day. It Is now dcsirablo that tho
branches should bo placed in a fully
light position, If possiblo in front of a
window where they will got all tho
sunshine.
Tho speed of growth will be entire
ly dependent upon tho warmth of tho
room; If tho temperature is high tho
budB will commenco to ewoII very rap
idly. Soon tho expnndlng flowerB and
leavoB will bo plainly visible and at
this stago dust is harmful to tho young
growth.
If possiblo, tho boughs should bo
protected whon any swooping is going
on in tho apartment, and in nny caso
tho shoots will b'o benefited If thoy
aro sprinkled occasionally with luko
warm wator. It should bo pointed out
In conclusion, howover, that tho direc
tions emphasized In tho foregoing
lines should bo followed if tho best
results aro desired.
WOODEN SHOE
Pioce of Board 30 Incboo Lons
and 12 Inches Wide Pro-
toctr. Sharp Bdge
From Stones.
Whon farmers start to plow in tho
spring or fall it is usually tho custom
to load tho plow or plows into tho
wagon or on to a stono boat in order
to take them to tho field.
Many people hitch tholr teams to tho
plow and drag thorn, writes J. Q. Dent
tlo in tho Wisconsin Agriculturist.
This, howovor, is a bad mlstako, bo
causo tho plow edgo is not only spoil
ed by scratching tho occasional stono3
A Shoe for the Plow.
that lay along tho road, but tho wholo
plow is Jarred as It swings from ono
Bide to tho other.
To savo tho time of bothorlng with
a stonoboat, or tho exertion of lifting
tho plow on to a wugon onch time it
has to be moved, wo tako a board 30
indie's long and 12 inches wldo. This
board Is beveled out in tho center so
that when tho plow rests upon tho
board lengthwiso and Is pulled for
ward, tho plowlay grips tho board and
holds it there in placo. Tho under
sldo of tho front edgo should bo round
ed off with a draw shave.
Japs Learn Sheep Industry.
During tho past two or threo yonro
Japan has sent somo of ItB oxpert
stock growers to America to learn
how to raise sheep and it is under
stood that sheep raising will bo ex
tensively engaged in ovor thero.
Apples From Nova Scotia.
Nova Scotia Bends away over 1,000,
000 barrels of apples during tho oca
eon.
THE PLOW sU """ U
(By n. Q. WEATHEIISTON12.)
Carrots should be raised in quanti
ties whenever possiblo aa thoy aro a
Very valuable addition to tho food in
making it palatable They require
light, Bandy soil and with Httlo culti
vation produco largo crops.
Llusend meal In small quantities
onco or twice a weok kcops horses la
flno condition.
Last winter wo saw a' bunch of S&
stcors being fed on a fnrm nonr
Aurora, 111. Theso cattlo stood in a
largo lot on the sldo of a Hill !n mud
up to tholr knees. Tho barn and nil
Its surroundings wero as filthy as
could bo Imagined, and wo woro not
surprised when tho ownor, locking
gloomily over his cattlo, remarked: "I
nover seemed to hit off stcor feeding
to nny great ndvantago."
Heavily timbered land does not
mako good foodlng ground for cattlo
becauso tho sun cannot dry out tho
ground ns quickly ns an open lot.
Tho best feeding Bhod for cnttlo is
ono that is wlud-tlght on tho north,
oast and west and ontlroly open on
tho south.
Of courso a paved food lot is an
oxponslvo proposition at tho start, but
wd bollevo that on a reasonable cost
tho proflt will moro than Justify tho
expense. Evon if a man cannot afford
to pavo his feed lot ho can drain It
with tiling nnd by tho addition of
gravel, and Binall, smooth stones Im
prove its condition at very small cost.
Oats mako an ideal feed for tho
lamb during the winter, but ho noods
about only n pound a dny to keop In
flno condition. In addition ho must
havo clovor hay or alfalfa or corn fod
der nnd turnips and othor roots at
least threo tlmos a week.
A very handy wheolbarrow for tho
feed lot can bo mndo of either wood
or Iron. Tho framo should btf vory
strong, but not heavy. Iron makes a
strong frame and vory light. It can
bo mado in four sections nnd boltod
togethor. Tho Iron hoop should bo
mado of ono-clghth inch iron and is
of a slzo to admit a common flour
barrol up to tho second row of hoops.
Tho barrol can easily bo put in and
taken out. The wheol should bo mado
of wood with a vory broad tiro, not
Iosb than threo Inches, nnd four inchos
would bo better. If tho framo is mado
of iron, tho handles can bo made of
wood nnd boltod on. Wood is better
for this purposo.
Do you know that somo of tho
smaller packing houses which cator
to first class trado at homo and
abroad will not buy swill-fed hogs at
any coBt? They want animals that aro
fed on clean corn, roughago, roots and
water.
Wo do not think much of tho skim
milk that comes from tho creameries
for foodlng hogs. In many of thoso
creameries, washing powdors aro used
for cleaning tho machlnory, and this
is very injurious to bogs.
Skim milk that is separated on tho
farm cannot bo beaten for foodlng
Useful In the Feed Lot.
pigs, calves and poultry. It is a shamo
to allow a single gallon of it to es
cape An Illinois farmer writeB to know
If unthreshed wheat is a good feed for
hogs. Wo think not. If wheat 1b to
bo fed at all, hotter thresh and either
soak or boll it. Dut wo do not be
lieve that wheat was over intended for
hog focd.
Cattle that aro allowed to run on
green beet crops ofton scour bo badly
that thoy aro sot back from two to
four weeks. Thoy do not llko tho
dried and cured crops bo woll but will
eat them if forced to and thoy make
a fnlrly good ration.
English feodors ralso large quan
tities of turnips, mangles and other
roots. In the fall thoy dig enough for
tho cattlo and loavo scattered through
out tho flold enough to keop tho sheep
BAD FAULTS IN
In tho first illustration tho toes of a horso aro shown turned out. The
middlo picturo shows lnkneod attltudo, nnd tho third shows in-turnod toes.
Whethor standing or traveling, tho appearanco is unpleasant and mitigates
against value.
busy for weeks. Somo feeders allow
tho sheep to dig them out of tho
ground whllo others dig them for
them. Tho lattor plan is tho best.
Many cattlo fecdors who do not bo
llovc that silago is a good feed will
continuo to stuff their animals with
corn foddor or timothy hny. If
theso men would tako tho pains to
conduct n cnrcfnl exporlment they
would quickly discover that Bllago
oven ns a food would beat corn
foddor.
Sllngo fed alono la not ideal for fat
tening nteors. It contains a largo ol
eosa of carbo-hydrates and somo nitro
gen must bo put Into tho focd to evon
it up. Soy beans, clovor, alfalfa hny
und cotton seed monl will do this to
perfection.
If you havo plonty of cow peas,
clovor or nlfalfa on tho farm, not much
uso to Bpond monoy on bran or cotton"
seed meal. A Httlo oil cako is good
at all times.
Tho best cIbbb of dairy cows cannot
return a proflt unless thoy havo all
tho clean and wholesomo feed thoy
can possibly consumo at all tlmoa
during tho wintor.
It Is a mlBtnko to keop cows on
sennt rations during tho wintor. Tho
cow that goeB through tho winter on
soml-stnrvntlon rations suffers a shock
from which her system Is vory slow
in recovering, nnd if tho half rations
A Handy Feed Carrier.
aro continued nny length of time her
mllk-glvlng capacity for tho approach
ing freshening period la materially de
creased. Good focdlng docs not mean tho
cows should bo stuffed with high
priced grain foods but coaxed to con
sumo enough roughago and cheap
feeds to keep them in good, thrifty
condition at nil times.
GOOD POTATOES
Maoaachuoott's Spcclallot Differs
From Familiar Methods
in Fertilizer and
Preparation.
Dr. J. Fisher of Fltchburg, MaBB., Is
very successful in growing largo crops
of potatoes, and ho varies from our
familiar methods principally in his fer
tilizer formula, tho preparation and
planting of tho seed. Following is tho
formula:
Two hundred and twonty-flvo pounds
of sulphate ammonia; 750 pounds ni
trato of Boda; 150 pounds South Caro
lina floats; 450 pounds acid phos
phato; 450 pounds sulphate of potash;
150 pounds sulphato magnesia; 200
pounds air-slacked llmej '2,375 pounds
costing about $40.
Two-thirds of this formula will bo
spread broadcast and will bo harrowed
In beforo planting, Tho seed potatoes
are trcatod with the corroslvo subli
mate solution to prevent scab, then
spread in a greonhouso and allowed to
sprout several weekB. At planting tlmo
tho seed is cut and oply ono sprout
loft on each pleco, tho surplus sprouts
being purposely broken off. Dr. Fish
er considers a potntoo tho slzo of a
marble, which has been started in this
way and all but tho best sprout
rubbed off, as very good sood.
Furrowing out is dono with a horso
hoo and tho seed is planted under a
lino, giving porfoctly straight rows
and exact distance betwoen plants.
Each seed pleco is Bet upright and
covered with about two Inches of
earth; tho remaining third of tho fer
tilizer is now scattered in the drill
and covered by running the horse hoo
between tho rows. Tho horso woedor
and cultivator aro used so frequently
and thoroughly as to avoid hand hoe
ing. CONFORMATION
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