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About The North Platte semi-weekly tribune. (North Platte, Neb.) 1895-1922 | View Entire Issue (April 12, 1912)
NOTES S&aa ME&D0WBR00K Don't forget the water. C!ein out feed troughs dally. l'eklns luy from 120 to 170 eggs per year. Alslhc clover helps out the stand of red clover. A purplish red comb Indicates bad health In n fowl. Test out lnfortllo eggs on tenth and seventeenth days. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE MAKING UNIQUE EXPERIMENTS Establishes Gurdon on Pacific Coast for Culture and Prop agation of Holland Bulbs Compare Favorably With, If Thoy Do Not Surpass tho Imported Article s rex? A quart of mixed feed right for twelvo hens. Is about If you wish to succeed, know your hens nro comfortable that BREEDING HORSES SUITABLE FOR GENERAL WORK ON FARM .English Clydesdales and Crosses Resulting From Uso of French or German Coach Animals Make Excellent All-Round TeamPull Almost Any Load Within Reason. &5CM J C-CS& I i L . T"r Clydesdale Filly Farmers In tho south still cling to the light breeds of horses, mainly because there Is more horseback rid ing done, and tho average farmer wants a horse for all-around pur poses. In the north, the heavy breeds, such as the Percherons, Clydes and Shires are most generally used. The wise farmer .will raise tho type of horse best adapted to his needs. Generally speaking, where only one team can be kept on tho farm, the horses should be sizeable enough to yull a rflow or draw a heavy wagon load with comparative eaBe, and at the same tlmo light enough to got along over tho road with a surrey or light rig at a fairly good gait. If a farmer keeps a number of horses he will, of course, use tho heavy type for plowing and other heavy farm work, and keep a light harness team for the road. It Ib a great mistake to attempt to By Coins So Former WilX Not Htivo So Much Trouble in Brcalttnz' in tho Yourjsr Animals. Many good horses aro spoiled when colts by improper training. They may have been teased by children, where upon they developed a mean disposi tion. To mako a colt easy to break, you should make friends with it. Gain its conildence by feeding it from your hand, petting and currying. A colt Is nearly, halt broken, when you can catch it anywhere. The colt should first bo halterbroke. At first you will need the assistance of a driver, but ho should bo dis pensed with 08 soon as possible. A good way to halterbreak n colt is alongsldo a horse. The rider, can act as leader and driver. Somo per sons tie tho colt to the harness of tho FEW HINTS ON - -aS- Many attemptB havo been mado to raise skunks for their fur, but tho en terprises have usually been given up ns unprofitable. According to tho bio logical survey of tho United States department of agriculturo, tho chief causes of failure havo been cost of fencing inclosurcs, cost of mainte nance or lack of experience, leading to overcrowding and overfeeding tho animals. In many cases, where the animals were successfully reared, It was found that tho expense of feed ing them to maturity exceeded tho value of tho fur, whllo in other In stances tho antipathy of the neigh bors led to the abandonment of tho experiments. At present tho -value of tho best black skins would probably allow a margin of profit in rearing this class of skunks. Tho survey gives the following hints on Bkunk farming: In tho matter of food, tho chief aim Bhould bo to supply a suitable and suf ficient diet at reasonable cost. A cer tain proportion of meat Js necessary, but tho animals cat also bread, green corn, clover, tomatoes and many other "Thelma Second." plow with a team of horses of tho harness type. Farmers aro plowing deeply these days, and it is distressing to seo a light team struggling with a heavy plow. The general tendency, therefore, is, when a light team is used, to allow tho plow to skim tho ground In order to case up on tho team. If a team of sturdy draft horses, weighing 1,300 to 1,500 each is used, they walk along with a plow, running from six to eight Inches deep, without tho slightest dis tress. The English Clydesdales and crosses resulting from the use of French or German coach horses mako a good all-round farm team. Tho Infusion of tho French or German Coach blood produces a horse of good action, while the blood of the Clydesdales, Shires and Percherons keeps him heavy enough, and closo enough to tho ground to pull almost any load with in reason. work horse or trotter. This not only teaches the colt to lead, but also shows It its place. When tho har ness is to bo put on it should be donb very gently, letting tho colt become need to it. Then drive it, using ohort lines. When tho colt is old enough to do light work give It a few lessons with tho waeon, plow, harrow or any two-horse implement, always beclde a well-broken horse to act ns teacher. Raising Early Lambs. Tho sole object in raising early lambs is to produce a fine animal of good size and flesh and get him to market at the earliest possible mo- ) ment. to uo tnat requires goou ieeu ing, good care and good management from the time ho is bqrn until ho is sent to market. Silage Needs a Balance. Cows should never be fed exclu sively on silage. They need some dry forage to go with it; besides, silago is a carbonaceous food, and needs some more nitrogenous food to go with It to mako a well-balanced ration. SKUNK FARMING vegetable substances. Butcher and tablo scraps given when fresh are tho main reliance. Tho food should not bo salted, and fresh water should bo supplied regulaVly. Skunks nro especially fond of in sects, nnd If tho pens aro largo enough and favorably placed, tho ani mals will forago for a part of their food. At least an aero of ground should bo Inclosed for each fifty skunks, and oven then thero is danger of canni balism unless thero aro plenty of separate dens for tho females. Tho fence should bo mado of poultry net ting 1-inch mesh. Tho posts should bo set In ditches 18 inches or moro in depth, which should bo filled with brokon stono or concrete. Another plan is to extend tho wiro netting underground. Tho fenoo should bo threo or four feet high and havo nn overhang at the top to keep the ani mals from climbing over. Skunks breed onco a year and prc duco from six to eight young. They aro born in May or Juno, and maturo, by, December. Keep nothing but puro breds. Peat soils need potassium (potash). Bo careful of caked udders owes. In tho Tho natural color of butter Ib that found in Juno. A deep bed will often causo tho Iobb of a number of pigs. A collar that fits is tho best preven tive for soro shoulders. Never whip a horse when ho Bhies. It will increase his fear. Give tho sowb plenty of clean water to drink. Tako the chill off. If tho fodder Is getting scarce, bet ter buy than stint tho cows. A good agitator on tho spray pump is as important as a good pump. Save all tho hog manure. You have nono on tho farm that Is richer. In choosing eggs for hatching, try to got those from tho best hens you have. With three cows you need a cream separator; with ten, you mu3t have a silo. Fllo tho crosscut saw yourself; you will thus soon save enough to buy a now saw. Tho churn should bo thoroughly sculdcd and then cooled boforo cream is put in. ' It is a losing proposition to try to raise 200 chicks where there is room for only 50, A llttlo oil meal or a few potatoes will help tho horses got rid of their winter hair. Before you start your Incubator, get out the manufacturers' directions and re-read carefully. Do not use any Ill-formed eggs for hatching, nor any that are unnaturally long, or, nearly round, t,1 Keop your fowls on tho same foot ing that you keep your cattle, and you wln surciy D0 rowarded Most anyone can have a small flock and keep from eight to a dozen hens and feed on table Bcraps. Bo sure' tho fenders nre in position In tho farrowing pens to prevent tho sows laying on tho young pigs. Place tho beo hives on string sup ports about olght inches from the ground to prevent dampness and cold. Cold, raw winds mako chapped teats all tho worse. Havo a small jar of vaseline handy at milking tlmo and uso it. It costs a good deal of money to buy a satisfactory team. In most cases this can bo avoided by tho farmer raising his own. "It is hard for an empty sack to stand straight, but it Is still harder for a lazy man to succeed in tho dairy business." Every four years 1,000 pounds of rock phosphate Is needed to keop up tho phosphorous content of avorago corn belt soil. An occasional colt or young horse to sell, even when ono Is not making a business of raising horses, is a help to any farmer. Get after tho San Jose scale. What a melliferous name this llttlo beast sailB under! But cover him with Bor deaux all tho Bame. The tlmo to'plant grapo cuttings is In early spring, as soon as the ground can bo worked. Slant tho cuttings a llttlo and leave only ono bud above ground. If you aro a beginner with sheep go slow until you havo mastered tho in dustry. Ab in poultrylng or nny other like business, experience Is tho safe, puro teacher. Neglected fruit trees aro not only an eyesore, but soon become bo pest Infested as to mako them a menace to fruit growing in tho whole neghbor pood. Better nono ' at all than the peglected kind. , The Now Jersey experiment station announces that Professor Halsted has succeeded in growing a seedless to mato. Not overy fruit grown Is seed less, plenty of them containing from ten to twenty seeds, but many others contain none at all and all aro of ex cellent flavor. Do not mako too violent Select a typo and stick to it. crosses. It Is not so much tho make of In cubator u b tho man who, runs It. Air-slaked lime is a valuable dis infectant in tho poultry house. Variety Is always good, but sudden and abrupt changes aro daugorous. It payB in more ways than ono to bo on friendly terms with tho heifers. Tho sort of seed corn to scloct Is tho kind, that produces bushels per acre. Correct sour or acid soil with ono to five tons per acre of crushed lime stone. To maintain normal soil fertlllty tho supply of humus must bo con-' served. Tho business hen Ib tho lien that puts her dally credits In tho egg basket. Tho only proper way to replenish tho flock Ib to savo tho best lambB each year. A common causo of slow churning' Is an overfilled churn. Half full Ib about right. Dirty collars aro probably as re sponsible for sor? shoulders as ill fitting ones. Keep tho horses well cleaned, but remember that you can bo cruol with tho curry comb. The hopper system of feeding Is a good ono, but put only ono kind of feed in ono hopper. Tho fault of too, many dairy farm ers is failure to mako tho cows pro duce up to their limit. Too much corn hns caused tho loss of many a flno litter of pigs, and often tho loss of tho sow as well. In raising horses for one's own uso It should bo done ns intelligently nB if it were to be a regular business. Spraying is ono of tho unavoidable tasks of tho farmer who would keop hiB orchard in deslrnblo condition. Arsenate of lead which is held over from tho year before will bo good If it has not dried out nnd become a hard lump. When turkeys aro penned up to fat ten for ninrkct, good results aro not obtained if they nro cramped for room. Now and then put a llttlo brino on tho straw. It nets as an appetizer, and tho sheep clean up tho straw hotter. , A heifer may give as much milk In proportion to tho food oaton as a maturo cow, and mako somo growth In addition. A paint brush that has become hardened with pnlnt can bo made1 soft and pllablo by immersing It in boiling vinegar. It Is just ns easy to multiply de fects In breeding as it is to strength en good points, nnd many peoplo nro doing tho former. Tho colt crop on tho general farm may bo mado a by-product that will coat very little, but swell tho bank ac count considerably. Seed corn? Of courso you have It all In good shape and ready for tho gcrmlnntlon test. Do not plant a grain unless you know It comes from sound stock. Tho best medicine In tho world for poultry aro dry, clean qunrterB and lots of sunshine Better Iobo every oth er poultry rcclpo known than to for get this. The great need of tho day Ib edu cated dairymen, men who undorstand tho care and feeding of tho cow ns well ns the successful marketing of her products. Test tho spray hoso sovoral dnys bo foro needed for sprnying. Try it with tho highest preBSuro you will use. If It bursts eaBlly or leaks, mako tho needed repalrB In it, or got a now hoso. It will savo delays at a critical time. Something similar to a scantling, a foot or two from tho ground, Is tho only proper perch for turkeys. Tills, allows tho breastbonos to grow straight, making tho birds worth a cent or two moro per pound on the market gut fv tvp 'JC'f?MktPM 91 JK A Fine Turnip Comparatively fow know of tho in teresting experiments that nro being carrlod on at tho bulb garden near the town of Bolllnghnm, Washington, un der tho direction of Uie secretary of agriculturo. For years tho United StnteB has been sending to Holland and Euro pean countries many thousands of dol lars annually for hyacinth, tulip, nar cissus, nnd crocus bulbs. Tho pur chaso of theso bulbs had constantly increased until the past year, when over a million dollars' worth woro Im ported. In 1908 tho secretary of agriculturo decided to establish on tho Pacific const a garden for tho culturo and propagation of Holland bulbs, and a point on Puget Sound near to tho town of Bolllnghnm wns selected ns having a sultnblo Boll and cllmnto for this work. A tract of ton acres wns leased through tho Bolllnghnm board of trndo and the necessary buildings erected nnd turned over to tho depart ment of agriculturo for tho purpose of demonstrating whether or not tho Hol land bulbs could bo grown successfully at that point. Tho department commoncod work at Gathering Hyacinth onco, nnd tho samo year planted over 170,000 bulbs. From that tlmo tho work has gono on Increasing until tho present yonr, when over 8G9.000 bulbs wero planted. Tho Increaso In tho number of bulbs raised has been vory gratifying; each bulb yielding tho ronxlmum number of young ones, which havo proved equal, If not superi or, to tho results obtained in Holland. It Ib believed that bulba can bo grown on the Pacific const, and of a quality that will compare favorably with, and In many ways surpass, tho Imported article, tho cost of produc tion and marketing being now tho chiof obstacles. An effort Is being mado to over come tho differences between tho high price of labor in America and tho cheap labor of Europe by Invent ing appliances to lessen tho hand labor required in bulb production, and tho substitution of horso power for mnny of tho operations porformod entirely by hand In Europo has re duced tho cost of production consid erably. In this way it is hoped that growers in tho United States will bo ablo to compoto successfully with tho European bulb growers. CLOVER IS ONE . OF BEST CROPS Valuablo far Storing Up Nltrozen in tho Soil itt u. Form Available) for Other Plunto. Clovor Is at tho namo tlmo ono of tho best feeding crops and ono of tho best tillngo crops. It acts both as a subBoller and drainer. Tho subjoctB of clover and fertility aro closely in terwoven, and although thoy are aa old as history to many farmors, they aro a now thing, and thero nro prob lems connected with thorn which nro not yet aolvod. Tho abuso of clovor consists In grow ing It for tho solo purposo of hny or grain to bo sold off tho land. The uso of It consists In growing it for stor ing un nitrogen in the soil in a form available for other crops, which In I j : : 1 . Field In Holland. A serloua drnwback to tho produc tion of Holland bulbs on tho const is tho heavy cxpeuso of freight ship ments across tho continent, but when shipment can bo mado by water, as will bo tho caso after tho completion of tho Pnnnma canal, It should bo pos sible to deliver such bulbs at tho port of New York almost as cheaply na thoy can bo brought from Europe Furthermore, tho domnnd for such bulbs for planting on the Pnclflc coast is rapidly increasing. These experiments aro solely for tho purposo of showing prospectlvo bulb growers what can bo dono In growing theso bulbs In tho United States. The1 gnrdens nro always open to tho public, and when the bulbs nro in bloom thousands nvnil them selves of tho opportunity to visit tho gnrdens nnd onjoy tho flowers. At that tlmo it is a vorltablo llttlo Hol land. Thousands upon thousands of hyacinths, tulips and narclssls in all colors and nenrly all in flower nt onco can be seen. Cnroful records aro being kept and much vnluablo Information is being; collected in connection with tho bulb experiments which will, eventually, bo Blooms In Holland. nt tho disposal of anyone who may wish to tako up bulb growing. Last year a very interesting exper iment wns made on tho trial grounds, of tho dopartment of ngrlculturo at Washington, whoro a tost was mado of tho bulbs that had been grown at" Belllngham In comparison with thoso grown In Holland. Fitly bulbs of tho Bame varieties of tulips wero plant ed Bide by sldo and given tho samo treatment. Thoso from Belllnghami opened their flowers from sovon to ten' dnys earllor than tho Holland-grown bulbs, wero of, better quality In sizo of flower and in color, nnd wero re markablo for tho almost total absencoi of dlseaso, whllo tho Imported bulbs showed a largo numbor of dlseascdl plants, and many of them failed to produco a flower. i As the demand for such flower rootB, Is Increasing rapidly and bids fair to doublo In valuo within a fow yearB, it offers a promising fleld for tho In vestment of American capital and tho establishment of a now and profltablo Industry on tho Pacific coast which will keep at homo tho largo amount of money now being sent abroad an nually for bulbs. turn should bo fed out on tho farm, and tho manuro restored to tho soli. By using clover, without nbuMng It, it is posslblo to Increase tho supply of nitrogen In tho soil to almost any ex tent, and at tho same time maintain tho othor elements. These elemento In their avnllablo form are constantly Increased by tho liberating of tho ni trogen In tho soil Itself through tho action of frost, water nnd tillage; and hence tho uso of clovor will enablo tho farmer to keep his land constantly In a vory high state of fertility, whllo tho abuse of It will onablo him to mako it moro absolutely and utterly barren. Clovor hay proporly cured makes an acceptable food for all stock. It ls not usually considered a satisfactory hay for tho horso, tho dust it carrlea provlng vory detrimental. A llmltod quantity of good clover hay may, how ovcr, bo fed to horses of all kinds with favorablo rosults. If the hay Isj dusty, It should bo moistened with iv llttlo wator bofore. feeding, I i II --wrJtufl