Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The North Platte semi-weekly tribune. (North Platte, Neb.) 1895-1922 | View Entire Issue (May 31, 1912)
k NOTES zS?- ME&DOWBROOK iSlr FARM SEVERAL IMPORTANT FACTORS IN SECURING SUPERIOR HOGS Too Much Stress Cannot, bo Laid on Selecting Breeding Swlno From Sound Healthy Animals Cream Separator Has Greatly Reduced Scours In Pigs Balanced Ration Best. IMPORTANT REQUISITES IN MANAGING A PEAR ORCHARD; Pruning and Training of Troos Essential to Attain Symmet rical, Evenly Balanced Heads and Malntenanco of Sufficient Follago to Protect Trees and Dranchos From tho Sun. j&J v( I p K Know your brood sows. Clean tho poultry houses. Chickens like sunflowor seeds. Kerosene emulsion lu easily made. A horse that Is trained without blinds Is usually tho safer horse. Young pigs are peculiarly subjected to various kinds of intestinal worms. ' It Is better to give tho orchard clean cultivation than to try to raiso crops In it. It Is better to havo a dirty floor than n dirty, dusty atmosphero during milk Ing time. Leave a horse untied when hooked to a Vehicle and ho will bo likely to bo gono when you return for him. Flno gravel Is not tho proper grit for, poultry. They want a sharp ma terial with which to grind their food. Export orchardlsts recommend seed ing tho orchard to crimson clover or rye to bo plowed down tho following spring. In localities where aster, goldenrod and other fall blooms abound it Is well to look for surplus even in Sep tember. An hour's work with a sharp wire at the foot of your peach trees killing borers may mean an extra bushol of fine peaches. A tree can bo bridge grafted in less than half an hour, and it is better to take this time to do It than to let a valuable tree die. Qo over tho young applo trees and cut off every water sprout with a sharp knifo close to the trunk. Do it early, and they will heal this season. To do well tho cows should bo turn ed dry something like six weeks bo- fore freshening. This is good for the calf, rests the cow, and develops the udder. When it comes to growing pigs, calves, poultry or cream, any farmer with a few acres of alfalfa on his farm has a gieat advantage over his neigh bor without it. Tho first milk of the cow is of a pe culiar character called colostrum acting as a purgative, and this putB the bowels of the young calt in per fect working condition. If you did not havo enough good seed for tho farm crops, loso no time in getting enough to plant your crops. Get tho best that can bo had, regardless of tho price. A ration for a dairy cow should ful fill tho following requirements: It should bo balanced, palatablo, homo grown as near as possible, and Anally it should be economical. During the winter the dairy farm er has more timo to figure out his plans for Improving his system of farming. The great question should be to got a better and more profitable lot of cows. Sixty per cent, of all horses that go unsound, go wrong in tho hock Joints, according to tho nates taken by ono breeder. Too much attention cannot be given tho hocks In choosing stal lions to which tho maros arc to bo mated. Call a veterinarian if a mare Is hav ing trouble in dropping n colt and you are in doubt of being able to assist her properly. A fee of 5 or ?10 to tho veterinarian mav save a ?300 mare and bring a colt into tho world that will develop Into a horse worth as much more. A little knowlego of tho proper typo of animal to select Is worth a lot Df money to tho buyer sometimes. At tend tho short courso schools when ever you gul a chance and study tho types and breeds as woll as tho mar kets. There Is a surprising difference In animals when you know what to look for as much as there Is In peo ple. When It is deBlred to spray tho poultry houso it is important that ovory Bquaro Inch of space should bo given a flno spray, and whtlo small forco pumps, rubber sprayers, hol lows, etc., may be used, It Is not so important to do tho work quickly as to do It well, caro being taken to forco tho spray mixture upon tho walls and into tho cracks. It must bo in tho form of a flno spray to reach every spot. Such methods of npplylng it require but a short time, and It Is labor well applied If tho llco aro exterminated. Qlvo tho chickens grlc Kill out tho peach borors. Don't ovorfeed tho llttlo chicks. Alfalfa makes an excellent rough ngo. Tho rent In tho clothes will not pay tho rent on tho farm. Tho Dabcock test is Just as accu rato as tho man who usos it. Don't keep eggs for hatching longer than ten days or two weeks at most. Milk at 90 degrees Is about tho torn poraturo at which it separates best. If rabbits havo gnawed only tho outer bark, wrap tho wound with cloth. Barley nnd oats, as well as wheat, are usually Improved In quality on flax land. Working tho soil when It is wet will mako It coarso nnd lumpy tho whole season. As soon as your lettuce Is large enough, feed it to thoso chlckenB you aro fattening. .There Is no bettor way by which tho corn crop can bo used than through tho silo. You can not mako as 'good silage from dry cornstalks as you can from mnture green corn. Plant a row of the large, lame sun flowers along the fence for hen feed at moulting time next fall. Tho strawberry is ono of tho small fruits which apparently thrive better in acid than in alkaline soils. Tho fleece of tho ram should be dense, even In quality, and of a strong, clear, white fiber throughout. A pure-bred bull is ofton a poor bred bull. Pedigree and performance are not interchangeable words. It is to the poultryman's interest to keep his stock to the best type, healthy and vigorous all tho time. A half clay's work In tho orchard with the manure spreader will show up when apples nro rlpo next sum mer. No profit in keeping old ewes that havo lost their teeth. Better fatten them tho bc3t you can and get rid of them quickly. You should know tho working quali ties of your sows; watch them from tho tlmo they farrow and see how they treat the llttlo fellows. The average cow ought to have four to six weeks' rest each year. A good time to dry them off is Just as they be gin to mako an udder. Coal oil will soften the old paint brushes used last year. Place them in a can of the oil and wash them woll in warm soapsuds. Feather pulling may be checked by dissolving powdered aloes in water and washing tho feathers of tho birds that have been plucked. To keep up a heavy milk flow a cow must havo all the water she can drink for every 100 pounds of her milk con tains 87 pounds of water. Every garden for the homo should havo grapes and many market gar dens could bo made more profitable by growing this splendid fruit. Many people havo tho Idea .that brown shelled eggs nro tho richer but tho differenco between white and brown eggs Is only in tho color. Tho best milking pall is tho ono so constructed that It will reduce to a minimum tho amount of dirt falling Into tho milk during tho process of milking. Ono of tho most general methods adopted for cooling milk Is to place tho cans In a vat containing water which reaches a point slightly above surface of milk. Cleanliness In handling, In straining and in separating tho milk is a thing that cannot .bo too religiously adhered to, for prevention is the key word to quality In all dairy work. Tho cow is a fertilizer factory, n butter factory and a Bklm milk fac tory; yet many farmers feed her as little grain as they dare In tho winter and none at all in tho summer. Plan to have a good, big patch of btrawberrlcs for homo use, and se cure your plantB early In tho season. The big crop of berries Is from vines that have a long season of cultivation and growth. Horses with soro oyes can bo great ly relieved by applying ono part coal tar disinfectant and eight parts vnso line. Do not got grease in tho eyes. Also use saturated solution or boric acid and salt water as a wash. If you have plonty of potatoes on hand they mako an oxcellent feed for pigs, but they should bo cooked nnd mixed with corn chop, middlings, etc. Corn meal and potatoes, well cooked Into a soft muBh, makes an Ideal feed and Is greatly relished by pigs, be sides It Is a very healthful food. Excellent Drood Sow and Litter. (By B. E. LARA.) Tljo farmers of Denmark secure tho best price's for their fancy bncon for tho reason that they havo established small packing establishments whero they can haul their hogs and got tholr pay for tho hogs according to their actual worth. Tho man who has a lot of thrifty August and September pigs and gives them rational caro until grass comes and has them ready for the market by tho mlddlo of Juno will make bet ter money for his feed than he will on nny bunch of pigs that ho feeds during tho year. On each and every fnrm there should bo omo provision made for dipping hogs. This not only proves to No an easy and effectual way of disin fecting animals which aro brought onto tho farm but It also keeps tnem tree from lice. Possibly there lo no other farm ani mal that can offer as poor an excuse Tor his existence as the scrub hog. Ho is an unprofitable animal any way you take him. As an economical pork producer ho Is a failure. Even his ability to shift for himself does not recommend him to the people within the limit of his range as ho has tho reputation of preying upon neighboring corn fields when food Is scarce. His build naturally adapts him to his manner of living since he is long legged, narrow in the chest, has a long, narrow snout. This adapts him. to his manner of living, with tho scrub hog It Is "root hog or die," hence the long snout. Ills narrow body aids him in getting through small fenco cracks and If ho fnlls to find a place largo enough to go through the fence he can soon dig un der it with his long snout. There Is no standard of excellence for the scrub hog since ho may pos sess almost any form except a beau tiful one; he may be of any color. He has tho reputation of being able to stand all kinds of rough treatment and still survive. Ho is regardctl as being able to re sist disease better than tho improved broods of hogs. We very much doubt whether this quality attributed to tho scrub hog Is true since wo havo no ticed that hog cholera takes tho scrub as well ns tho well-bred hog. One thing Is sure that tho scrub hog can consume more valunblo feed and glvo lesln return than any other animal that we know of. A farmer who owns n herd of scrub hogs seldom needs nny other corn crib than his hogs. Ho never gets rich selling pork and In fact If he depended upon his hogs to mako him money to buy better bred hogs ho would never own better ones. Tho scrub hog usually keeps his owner so poor that ho Is not ablo to buy better stock. In fact, this Is tho excuse usually given for his existence Poor farming nnd scrub hogs aro usu ally found associated together. They aro near and dear compan ions. Both mako a rapid retreat be fore a progressive spirit and there Is not a bettor evidence of tho general progresslveness of a people than the nbsence of tho Bcrub hog from a com munity. Too much stress canont be laid on selecting breeding swine from sound, healthy parents. Animals that aro not strong In constitution cannot with stand dlseaso ns woll as thoso which aro strong In that respect. In case hogs aro troubled iwlth disease It Is nlmost lmposslblo to give them medi cine or anything elso that will prove very helpful. About all wo can do Is to feed a ration that can bo easily di gested and keep them In clean quar ters, thoroughly disinfect tho pons and let the disease run Its courso. Whole milk Is ono of the best feeds for hogs that are Buffering with dlseaso of any kind. It Is an excel lent feed nnd has often been of great asslstnnco In bringing hogs through spoils of sickness. There Is no disputing the fact that corn is an ideal hog feed, but every practical feeder admits that bettor re sults can be brought aoout by feeding a ration thut is composed of less than two-thirds corn. It is a mlstnko to think that wo cannot afford to buy other feed to mix with tho corn. Ordinarily It is n mlstako not to feed tho hogs tho liquid beforo tho solid food. Hogs will mako from 10 to 12 I pounds of meat, llvo weight, for each bushel of corn eaten, but because ol this too many farmers feed too much corn. Tho cream separator has greatly re duced scours in pigs because tho skim milk can always bo fed while sweet. When tho sow of good typo has proven herself a prolific breeder, an economical feedor, and a good mother, It Is a good plan to keep her BeveraJ years. Tho mature bow requires only food for maintenance, while- tho growing ono needs food for growth. Further more the older one will have un appe tite for wnsto that a young ono would not caro for. Exorcise will help mako that streak of lean nnd streak of fat that is desired. SUPERIOR OAT SEED ESSENTIAL Good, Plump Variety 'Will Gcrmt- mi to Rapidly and Got Vlcorouo Start Beat Land Needed. (By W. M. KELTT.) Thero Is more light nnd inferior oat seed plpanted than any othor causes a of small grain. Poor seed causes a low yield of oats every tlmo. Tho actual cost of improved seed Is very low compared with tho Increased yields that como from Its use. By good seed I do not mean ex tremely high-priced seed that Is ad vertised to produco 100 bushols of oats to tho aero but good plump seed that will germinate rapidly and get a vig orous Btart early In the spring. Wo seldom seo a largo crop of oats threshed from a field that makes a poor start In tho spring. I have found that It pays big re turns to select ono ncro of tho best land to grow Beod oats on each year and to keep this crop for seed only nnd to buy now seed every two or threp years to plant on this aero plot. Under ordinary conditions I believe that we should chango oat seed ovory threo or four years, for thero Is no farm crop that will thrivo bettor when moved from ono locality to another than oats, or that will deteriorate faster when grown on tho same farm year after year. Of courso proper seed selection will help to overcome this tendency, but few farmers tako that precaution. Closely linked with tho good seed question comes that of selecting or planting healthy seed, and I havo found It a good plan to treat all oat seed with formalin before sowing, to kill tho smut spores and insuro healthy seod. DIFFICULTY IN GROWING MELONS Leaf Blight la Moot Common of Cantolotipo Troubles May do Checked by Sprayinsr. Whon blight nttacks tho cantaloupe then tho hopes of the grower wilts, a3 woll as tho leaves of his plant It la usually a hard case to cure. Leaf blight is tho most common of cantaloupe troubles. Tho loaves be corao covered with light, to dark brown, gonorally circular spots, which Increase In size and finally coalesce, resulting in cornploto wilting and curling of tho leaves. Tho spots commonly Bhow flno and rather indistinct concentric markings such as are found In tho common alternarla blight of the potato, Tho loaf stalks and vinos are so affected. Tho blight is caused by a fungus which may nt least bo checked by spraying with bordeaux. Tho first application should bo mado when tho vines aro from 12 to 18 Inches long and then ovory two weeks during tho season. Tho bordeaux mlxturo should bo of tho usual strength six pounds of bluo Btono and bIx pounds of lime to GO gal lons of water. Tho greatest caro should bo taken to got down on tho undor sldo of tho leavea with tho Bpray. Use a hand pump on small plotB with a flno spray. If this does not save them nothing will. (By a. B. BHACK13TT.) Pruning and training nro important requisites in tho successful manage ment of a pear orchard. Tho objects to bo attained aro: (1) symmetrical, evenly balanced heads; (2) tho ad misslon'of sunlight and frco circula tion of air into all parts of tho treo tops; and (3) tho maintenance of suf ficient follago to protect tho trunks and branches from tho intense heat of Pyramidal Form of Top. tho sun's rays which would ohorwlso bo likely to scald nnd Injuro both treo and fruit. Pruning should begin as soon as tho trees havo boon planted by cut ting back tho young trees nt tho tlmo of planting to tho height from tho ground It Is proposed to start tho branches to form tho head of tho treo, which Bhould not bo over. 12 to 15 inches. This cutting back will causo several of tho upper buds to break and grow, thus starting tho top or head at tho proper height. Tho start ing branches should bo watched and only such loft to grow as aro to form tho main branches. Tho strongest Bhoots should bo left at equal dis tances around tho stom nnd should tend obliquely outward so as to spread and mako nn opon head. Tho second year these shoots should bo shortened back to tho extent of about half of tho growth. Tho samo plan should bo continued tho third and fourth yenrs. In nil pruning to glvo tho desired form to tho head and-especially whllo tho treo is young, tho orchardlst should keep clearly fixed In his mind tho form of tho treo as It Is to bo when old; for what may seem to bo an opon hoad whon tho treo Is young may prove to bo too dense and crowd ed whon tho treo is older. Tho branches should not bo too closo to gether for convenience in gathorlng tho fruit. During lato winter, or in early spring beforo tho sap starts, each treo should bo carefully looked over and all branches which nro likely to Inter- PLYMOUTH ROCKS FOR THE FARM ' Tho general purposo breeds of poul try, Huch.as the Plymouth Rocks, Wy andottcs, Rhodg Island Hods and Orp ingtons, should be kept on the farm, rather than small-egg breeds or Biuall mongrel stock. It Bhould also bo re membered that the dark-plumaged varieties do not, as a rulo, look as woll when dressed as poultry of other colors. Usually more Interest Is taken with a flock of fowls that aro of the same breed and color, and It Is an estab foro with adjoining ones should bo cut out and tho centers of denso growth thinned out; sldo branches which nro making n Btrongor growth thnn tho others should bo checked by shortening in, so ns to maintain an ovonly balanced head. Soma varieties havo nn upright habit of growth and somo mnko n slondor, straggling growth. All need attention each yenr. In cutting bnck tho last year's growth tho top bud should bo left on tho sldo of tho branch facing tho direction in which tho growth needs to bo dl vortcd. By this method thoro will bo no difficulty In shaping tho treo into nny desired form. All pruning and training posstblo should bo dono whtlo tho trees nro young nnd tho growth of wood la tender. At such tlmo tho healing over Is more rapid and complete, and tho treo suffers loss Injury. Old trees that havo been neglected may bo renowed by severe priming, cutting back all tho branches that nro not In a healthy condition. Thla pruning will causo now, vigorous shoots to grow. Tho new growth will need to bo cut back as occasion re quires. By persistent pruning nn en tire now top may b3 formed In a few years. Tho pyramldnl form differs from tho vaso form in that tho main lead ing shoot of tho treo is allowed to maintain Us upright growth and tho sldo branches aro shortened back bo as to produco tho shnpo of a pyramid. Tho intermediate form is probably Vase or Goblet Form of Top. tho best for training tho poar. Th treo Is allowed to grow more in ac cord with its natural habit, but It must be checked and modified mora or less In its growth so ns to conform to tho Ideas of tho plantor. lished fact that such a flock produces a moro uniform product, which in variably secure to the owned higher prices than can bo derived from tho product of n mongrel flock. As soon as tho hatching season is over, all male blrd3 should bo market ed, thoy having no Influence whatovor ou the number of eggs laid, aud eggs produced by flocks composed of fe males only keop much hotter than eggs from lions that aro allowed to run with males,. fl 'PPilliiiP if J.tyL