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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Seaforth News, 1923-08-23, Page 31 Address communications to Agronomist, 73, Adelaide St, West, Toronto NI: T,—Trill jou please tell me whet time of the year is best to plant rhubarb, and hose to replant it?'- I have several bunches but they are not doing well. Answer—Rhubarb may be planted in either the fall or spring. September is a good month to replant because the roots are dormant by that time. Rhu- barb is a ravenous feeder. It is necessary, therefore; for best results to fertilize the soil well before,plent- ing. The plants should be set not closer than four feet apart in soil that has been well, fertilized to '0 depth of two„and it half feet. T. A. B.—I had an unsightly ap- pearance of locusts, willows and brush this spring in front of mfg/ house along the roadside, and spent some time in cutting sante down, Now the stumps. are shooting out branches, aid by aft - other year it will loofa just as un- sightly. Islet there something I could. apply to the stumps to prevent any new growth? Answer—The' best plan, and per- haps the. only plan so far as willows are concerned, of getting rid of the lints, is to dig them out root and branch. By digging around the roots a team of horses With a chain should be able to remove each plant success- fully. Indeed' it would seem that a neat. appearance of the front of one's house could not be secured except by complete removal of the roots and levelling and seeding in the usual manner for making lawns. SAVING- TIMOTHY FOR SEED. 'Pests made at Experirnentei' Sta- tions go to show that it is quite profit- able for one to grow his own timothy seed. This may be done by seeding timothy at the rate of 10 pounds per acre when seeding down, Or, if 8 pounds of timothy, 8 pounds of ted clover and 2 pounds of , alsike are seeded, a good even stand of clear timothy will be secured the second year after•. seeding. It is,seldom,that there is not a fairly ` clean stand of timothy' somewhere on a faring such area should be'r•eserved'for seed pur- poses. ` It does not mean a great loss of hay as the straw after threshing is of fair quality and can be fed unless badly weathered. It was found. that a seeding of timothy alone'in 1920 gave in 1921 280 pounds of timothy seed,: and 2,220 pounds of straw per acre after threshing. The harvesting was done August' 455, and as the sea- son was dry the seed ripened rapidly. This same area produced 167 pounds of seed and 2,475 pounds of hay per acre in 1922. A considerable amount of other grasses, particularly red top, was noticeable in the 1922 cutting. An adjoining area seeded. in 1920 with the clover and timothy mixture 'mett- tioned above yielded 186 pounds of timothy seed and 3,052 pounds of tim- othy straw per acre in 1922. This seed was of particularly good quality and much better than the seed fit= the area in timothy seed fdr two years. The practice here'is to leave the timothy that is to be cut for. seed standing until it is nicely filled and to cut with a binder. The' sheaves are stooked neatly and allowed to stand for two or' three weeks, •or until tho heads shell readily. It is then taken in and threshed in - a threshing mill of with a flail. It sometimes happens that birds cause a great loss from shelling in which case the . sheaves should he taken inside to a loft and allowed to stand- until they can be threshed. Storing Spuds, and Other Jobs Good stable manure is becoming such a scarce and expensive com- modity that home gardeners who are ro situated that they cannot procure all they require for their gardens roust try to replace it with other humus - forming material. For this purpose there Is nothing better than the leaves which in fall: gather in drifts along our roads and underihe trees; when properly stored they become in time a rich' humus which needs but little stimulating dressing of commercial fertilizer to make it a manure substitute that is even • superior to some animal ma - aures. The question of storage requires some consideration. Where the gar- dener's grounds are commodious there should bo no difficulty in selecting eons outeof-the-way place for the compost heap, but in the small yard It niay take some thought and a little trouble to concoct` a suitable recep- tacle. Tramped firmly in boxes or barrelb the leaves can be left in some out-of-the-way corner, or a holecan be dug for them; tramped firmly and some soil spread on top, they will in the course of a season become a solid block of rich black humus. A large bin or crate can be readily made by fixing four strong posts in the ground to form a square and then nailing boards orwire netting round them.' Another method• of storage is to build a wall of sod, either in the form of a square or an oblong. In this the leaves are tramped firmly in layers of about one foot. On this is spread three or four inches of fresh manure, then more leaves as before, alternating the layer of leaves with manure to any desired depth, the whole being covered with a roof of three-inch sods. Late the following summer the entire mass is turned over and mixed thoroughly, and it makes a pile of unexcelled ma- nurtial matter. POULTRY-73oTSEsodic rase. But where no place is available for composting the leaves they may be dug into the soil as they are gathered. The best plan is to open a trench along one endpf the patch, into which a thick layer of the leaves is spread, covering Chem with the next spading,. continuing until the entire • area is finished. In whatever way the leaves are composted or piled, a little air -slaked Hine should be used as the work pro- ceeds, scattering just sufficient be- tween each twelve -inch layer to whiten the surface.. Where chickens are kept their drop- pings make a splendid fertilizer' if properly cared for. As poultry ma- nure is very strong in ammonia,' its loss must be prevented. That can only be done by keeping it dry. It is usual to find, air -slaked line being freely dusted on the boards, but this is alto- gether wrong. The lune certainly keeps the house sweet, but its action on the droppings sets free the valu- able ammonia, it is driven off as a gas and thus is lost. Gypsum, or land plaster "should be used instead, dust- ing it over the ,perches and boards. daily, using, more when the 'manure Is.. scraped off. Gypsum will do all that air -slaked lime does in keeping the house sweet and clean: In the spring. the manure wilhrequire to be crushed, reducing it to a fine powder on a hard floor with the back of a heavy spade or 'club. Before usir:g add half its weight of acid phosphate and you will have an excellent fertilizer for all garden vegetables. • - The time will shortly be at hand when the harvesting and storing of the potato crop will require attention. The earlier varieties must have our first care, but in taking them up to store; the main guide Is the weather and condition .of the soil Of all mis- takes made in dealing with potatoes none is greater than working among them, and especially digging them up, when it is raining of when the soilis soaking wet underfoot. If we wish to have our potatoes in the best possible condition throughout the winter, the crop must be left severely alone while they are wet. In light sandy ground the tubers, as a rule, come out clean and free from any heavy deposit of soil, even though the latter may be moderately wet, but in heavy land the soil will not fall away from thein as it should do unless it be moderately dry. When digging we should always choose fine dry days for the operation. Get as many taken up as possible dur- ing the early part of the day, bringing thein well to the surface and spread- ing them out to dry as digging pro- ceeds. Then before evening they should all be collected together and covered over on the ground. It is, however, a better planif, after being exposed for two hours or so, they are taken into an open shed and spread out to dry there. In this way much time will be saved and the tubers will then be handled in the finest possible condition. Some gardeners pull up all the vines before beginning to lift the roots, but .this is not a goodway of, going about it, for there is nothing left to guide,them or show where each hill of roots is located, and the conse- quence is that an innumerable quan- tity of them are spoiled with the fork. The proper way ' of going about the work is to push -the fork in behind each hill and throw it forward. A few inches must be allowed for the crowd of tubers which cluster near the base of the stems. Be careful not to get. right on top of them, with the fork, it is best to push it in l .little to the side. When a quantity has been dug and is spread on the surface, they. should be sorted over. NEXT :Soatsow S SEEO. • The seed for next season is now se- lected, choosing second size tubers av= eraging twb or three ounces each in weight' and 'talteii from those hills which yielded well and heavily. The main crop is then picked up to store ..for• winter. - In whatever place it may decided to store the best, tubers, they must never be put away,until you are,cer- Cain they are thoroughly: dry and then there willbe no danger of any great loss or deterioration taking place. An open shed where the sun will not reach them is an ideal place in which to ',dry and cure the others before storing, Immediately they are. dry SIGHTS'' AT X�!� T €; all light must be excluded, foe if ex- '� posed to bright bight litany ;days for, ...see- nines nroheri, amitrd ;.arch W,lsan. Olshte. 15 t sport., n,ailthix, f ar sand to i ld-kn n.w.. hey 'will"'b'o eine green, i;liereby. lin Watton Gun Sight Co., 304 Viotorla. St„ Toro to pairing 'teen' navel.. It is ae advan- age to have them dried and >stored away as (licitly as possible, Those se- lected for seed are not so eare'fully dealt with in this respect; in Sac they are all the better for beeomin quite green, as in this condition the seem to keep must better and are no so likely to sprout prematurely, The should be spread out thinly hi shallow boxes and may fully exposed' to the light. It is an advantage to have the sets nicely sprouted in the spring be- fore planting and if proper accommo- dation is available they should be box- ed for sprouting in the fall' or soon after`. they are lifted 'and sorted. For our purpose shallow boxes ar necessary and if the ends are thr inches higher than the sides they c be tiered one above the• other and sti I adroit light and air to all the tuber 1A dry cellar wherein air can be' ad i mitted, but quite cool, though exclud frost, is a first class place in''whi to keep them, choosing a spot'wher I they will receive plenty of light, I t, g y y e ee an three hundred thousand recipients, the 11 names of the weeds that effect their s. soil, and the extent to which. they aro - troublesome;' the character of the soil - on which they, flourish; whether the eh land iswell drained," naturally or e otherwise, 'what rotation of crops, if f any, is followed, and what methods A Weed Survey. , Weeds mid their suppression have for many years engaged the attention of not only'the Dominion Department of Agriculture but also the - various provincial departments. A. movement has' now been set afoot under the Di- vision of Botany of the Dominion Ex- perimental Farms,' to gather fuller in- formation as to the extent farm w and distri- bution of, farm and'snch other data as is likely to be useful. With this end in view, farmers all over: the country 'aro invited to send to the Divislon: (postage free), on a form that has gone out with "Seasonable Hints" for July, to that publication's temperature and other conditions ar right, they will, by planting time, hay made short sturdy shoots. Two goo strong sprouts on each tuber ar ample. Finishing Hens and Broilers. Dispose of all hens that are not be kept over for breeders just as so as they stop laying. If this plan i followed the marketing will he extend ed over a considerable period. If yo can get them all marketed-,befor broilers become plentiful you are cer tain'to obtain much better prices th if you market thein later in th season. After hens have been laying heav sly they are likely to be thin in flesh and should not be marketed until pu into good condition again. Even hen that have been loafing and are con sequently fat are not in as good mon dition for Billing as they should be Ten days feeding in the crates will make a great difference in these birds, as the crate feeding and the inactivity softens the muscles and makes the fowl much more tender and juicy. Broilers—Many poultry growers do not consider that special feeding of broilers is necessary, They. think that because the chickens are,young that they will be tender, and consequently they take them from the range and market them as they are. Such meth- ods tend to retard the demand for poultry meats. A consumer who, gets a broiler that is hard and stringy is not inclined to order another, but if he gets a broiler that has been prop- erly fed in confinement for from ten days to two weeks the quality will be such that he will want more. To properly finish either fowls or broil- ers they should be crate fed. Nothing but soft feed should be used and to' get the finest quality it is necessary to mix the mash with sour milk, in the proportion of about three pounds of milk to two pounds- of grain. A mixture of equal parts of finely, ground oats:and corn -meal is one of the best feeds but other grains may be used if lower in price or more easily ob- tained. A 'little salt added to the feed will make it more palatable and the fowls will eat more. Do not over feed for the first day or two, as the birds will go off their feed and will lose weight instead of putting it on. • Only by marketing poultry of the highest quality,_will an increased de- mand'be created. e have been, found best in suppression. e The form contains a list of the weeds' d moat frequently reported to date in e the order of their apparent import- ance in the country as a whole. This list every farmer is invited to revise so as to represent his own farm fairly. to Weeds not present may be crossed out on or marked' absent and other`s"added if s of more concern on the farm. Num- - bers can then be placed before each u name to indicate the order of serious - e ness. Any weed not known by name should be sent to the Division for nn identification. Parcels up to sixteen e ounces, if addressed to the Division of Botany, Central Experimental Farm, - Ottawa, aro postage free. Plants should be sent preferably when in t flower or fruit, and as complete as s possible, includinger cot. The list of weeds given in the form, which can - be had from the Division, is as fol- , lows Couch (twitch grass), Canada thistle, perennial sow thistle, wild mustard, wild oats, common ragweed, stinkweed.(Freeclr weed, pennycress), redroot, pigweed, lamb's quarters, ball mustard, Russian thistle, bindweed (wild morning glory). Do It Now. The "Do It Now" sign is very often found in business offices for the pur poses of getting things done quickly so that the big boss can go golf play- ing, or to give the impression that the place is a busy one. While this sign is used mainly for impressional purposes in offices, it might be used to practical purposes around the farm buildings. It may pay to wait in some few things but when it comes to repairing and re- painting, a stitch in time saves nine. The longer a small repair job is left the longer and more expensive the job will be. Our sense of economy may indicate that building materials are too high to do necessary repair work. If that is so, our sense of economy needs adjusting. Your implements may need ade- quate shelter; your chicken coop may make it necessary for your chickens to spend their winter shivering; your barn may be leaking and thus cause loss in hay and fodder; and even your house may begin to look a little the worse for wear. If that is so the time to get busy is now. To keep in repair is greatest econ- omy; to repair whon repairing is nec- essary shows good judgment, but to leave repairing go until it becomes a big job, is the grossest waste and extravagance. When it comes to keeping things in shape, or putting them in shape, "Do It Now" is good, sound business advice. Saving the Old Meadow. The old meadow was almost barren. The land grew oats at one time, then was turned over to the growing of buckwheat. Then the , ground was abandoned, for it would raise nothing. I bought it and a mortgage started to grow. After cleaning out the old barn and other buildings, we put the ma- nure on the sod. When forty or fifty loads to the acre had started a growth of fuzz, the land was plowed and one ton of lime put on to the acre. The ground was planted to buckwheat and seeded to timothy and a little orchard grass and other grasses. Next winter the ground was given • a. top dressing of poultry manure and coal ashes. Did it come to life? The result was timothy, red top and alsike clover five feet high, and the mortgage didn't grow.—D. C. Kenyon. Feed Floor Buys Itself. I think that a concrete hog -feeding floor will pay for itself in about five years. I built one 36x46 feet. I be- lieve the feed it saves me has easily paid for the materials in the few years that I have had it. It makes feeding easier. You don't have to get so dirty, especially in the spring, and the feed is always cleaner. On the ground some of the grain is bound to be wasted. J. H. If' a drawer atic' try rubbing thb edge of the two sides with laundry soap. HAVING NO ENTANGLEMENTS WITH EUROPE • Some of the European governments are refusing offered loans from the • U.S; for the purchase of'wlieat in that country, preferring to>purchsse their • grate wherever they ,ohoos:e:• —From the. New York World. Beauty is only skin deep— Keep the skin clean, r h arsd p � fr s beautiful with Lifebuoy. Y The 62I!> Doth'creamYlather of Lifebuoy wakens up the skin. Lifebuoy makes soft white hands Fresh wholesome - m bodies. � body s. Lifebuoy's health odour as delightful. 1805 Home Education "The Child's,FIrst School' le the Family"—Frocbel." The Story Hour—By Mrs. Grace P. Abbott. It has been one of the many ro- mantic fancies of my life that some- day, seated in front of a glowing fire- place, I woelci observe that holy of ho:ies, the story hour, with my fair- haired boys and girls gathered at, my knee. My girls, it is true, are fair- haired and dearly love stories though they are young yet, but they do not love "The story hour" as I had so many times visioned' it. Then, I was the story -teller and they the starry- eyed audience. I know that I rim not alone in this disillusionment for I have seen other mothers try the same thing and then abolish the story hour, saying regret- fully, "Somehow, my children don't care much for stories. I guess they aren't like I was when I was a child. I used to sit by the hour and listen to my Mother and I well remember one@ how—": "By the hour" was probably how it seemed to them and not to their mothers and they probably listened much as do the children of to -day, by doing all of the talking themselves. It took me a rather long time to learn my lesson. I hated to give in to the fact that I was beaten and I would not give up that story hour, but at last I was forced to admit my defeat in order to keep the hour that has now become an even more pre- cious thing than'I had visioned it. I havecome to.a happy compromise, which is really what all great happi- nosses are based on,—we make up our stories together. I start in or one of the children starts, or sometimes we all just sit there ever so quietly until a new thought comes along and hops right out of us, Or sometimes we have great fun telling nursery rhymes in turn,—each one 'thinking up hers while the one in turn before, recites. The littlest one of us, my baby of three, has to be started on her rhyme quite often or switched from her fav- orite recital, the "Now 1 lay zee," prayer, which she cannot distinguish yet from good old Mother Goose. My other daughter loves to tell stories of real life as she sees it, storiesabout good little girls who drink all their milk every day for weeks and weeks and weeks and grow fatter and fatter and fatter until I am afraid they will burst of goodness or too much. milk. I get in one or two short funny stories each night but they must be very short and very funny. The ones which can be illustrated in life by the making of faces or gestures are the most popular. I have learned how to tell a story and make it interesting (stubborn pride in my romantic fancy brought me to it and for once I can be thank- ful for my stubbornness) but more than that I have learned how to ob- serve the story hour and make it happy. Let it be the children's story hour, guide their shapeless thoughts into laughing channels but let it be their story always and you will find that they will love that time at your knee by the soft firelight quite as well as you and be willing to sit there for the hours that we all think we so vividly remember. To Kill Quack Grass. -The way to kill quack -grass is to let it grow until it begins to blossom, then cut it for -hay. As soon there- after as- possible, skim the sod loose from the underlying soil in as thin a layer as possible. In small patches this may be done with a hoe; in larger patches with a plow, provided the plowshare is broad` enough to cut the entire slice loose from the soil, and .of course sharp enough. In.plow- ing, plow just as shallow as possible— certainly not over -three inches deep. After this, stir the sod with a harrow .about once egery ten days until cold weather, If the season is a very wet one, you may have to stir it oftener in order to keep the roots from getting attached to the underlying soil again. If the season is dry they will- die without so much stirring. We have known some large fields of quack - grass to be completely exterminated in a single: year by this simple method Shop Tools., 01 course, you •have a shop. And after you have it, what ought you to have in it? First and foremost, a set of bits and augers, of all sizes; . and don't get them at the five -and -ten -cent store, either. Get some good, ones while you are about it. Back of the bench trail up a strip of inch -board with holes in it to stand the bits up in, Get a good stock to go with the bits and hang that up on a hook ciao by the bits. A couple of nails driven into the. wall` an inch apart will hold the augers. nnf'"ef dlgEt*-'., Then get good saws, rip and cross- cut. - Farmers, As a rule are pretty =' ad "i 7► ;;r/ th 81 reason why they. shouldbe. A it1 fa tools on the farm. Some hooks back of the bench will hold these, if they don't run away with some - careless A couple of hammers will come handy, one for the house apd the other for the shop. Keep on getting tools, a few at a time, until you have a set of strong chisels, a standard square, a spirit- level—and be very careful of that, for it is a valuable and delicate instru- nlent—two,or: three whetstones, coarse and fine, an adz, a small bench -vise, a try -square, a bevel -square, a compass, a saw -set, a cold -chisel, a screw- driver, a nail -set, some rat-tail, three - cornered and fiat files, a wood rasp and fiscally a drtawshave and some good planes. A good jack -strew is o also a farm necessity, --Farmer Vin- cent. KEEP AFTER h' IGNITION The working of the ignition systen affects the performance of the engin, to a greater extent probably than any other one ting., First, we have the miss noticeable at low speed. This sort of miss is due to one Cylinder's not firing. If a plug is at fault the trouble can be located by retarding the spark about half way, putting on quite a dot of gas, and holding down three of the coil vibrators and Letting the engine run on one cylinder, This test is made with the ear standing still. By letting the engine, run on the first, then the second, then the third and fourth'eyl- inders the one missing can be easily found. To find out whether the miss is due to the plug or the coil, move one of the coils from a cylinder'which does fire over to the one which does not, If the miss moves with the coil, the coil le to blame: If et does not move with the coil, the trouble is prob ably . e Coilintroublethping. is usually due to bad condition of the coil 'points or vibra- tors. •Most service stations now have coil testers, in which the coil is placed, and the current taken by the coil and the spark it gives can be told, and the coil adjusted to give best results. The other form of missing comes only at highspeed. This trouble usu- ally can be traced to a worn commu- tator. The fibre and steel over which the commutator roller runs wears full of little hills' and hollows. At slow speed the roller can move up and down in. these places, but when going fast it just hits the high spots and misses some altogether, and the engine miss- es. The remedy 18 to putin a new commutator and roller. The length of time that a commutator lasts depends almost entirely on the oiling it re- ceives. One owner wore out a com- mutator in one week by not oiling it at all; another used one, it whole sum- mer of ukn-mer-of hard work by oiling it daily. Sometimes hard starting is due to the current from the magneto being weak. .After a while it may be neces- aary to put in batteries for starting. One owner who had this trouble was advised to have the 'magnefs, of his magneto recharged. This can be done at a service station. There is one miss at low speed that cannot be blamed on the ignition. An owner changed plugs, had new coil points put in and a new commutator and roller, but :still the car did not pull right at low speed. A mechanic, who examined the car, took three of the spark plugs out and then cranked the engine over on compression. Then the one plugwas moved in turn to tine second, third and fourth cylinders. There was a very noticeable , differ- ence i11 the compression of the cyl- inders, and one' had' practically none, "Cnean carbon and grind in valves to fix it," was the mechanic's report. The work was done and the desired re- sult was obtained. Ye Scrub, Farewell. These are good days for pure-bred live stock. The wide-awake farmer has learned the economy of , them. Agricultural authorities ` have been preaching the gospel of improved breeding, lo, these many years. .Tho pure-bred sire has come into his own and has plenty of support in determining that the scrub must go. The evidence of superiority, is all on his side, and if our good country con. throes to move forward • toward a higher and higher state of perfection, it is only a matter of time until the scrub sire,' together with his mothers and sisters and daughters, must be relegated to the background of oblivion. Most pure-bred stock breeders are in full sympathy with this movement They are finding an absorbing occupa- tion in a consistent endeavor to breed their animals better and better, and are thoroughly conscientious in their efforts to put out to their customers only stock that they are sure will please. This practice is no doubt do- ing more than any other one thing to supplant scrub' live stock. Soldering Equipment Causes Rusty Tools. Many thols in the farm workshop, such as chisels, bits, saws, etc., are too expensive to be endangered; with rust, but if a home -soldering outfit is kept in the tool -box, 'or close to the tools'.. n the bench, rust will get them in spite of yourcare to avoid'danipness n the sh Ilearnedop. this by sad experience and of until an 'elderly tinsmith explained the cause did I learn to cork the aoid ottle with a glass stopper and place' to lump of sal 'ammoniac in a box ith a tight fitting cover when not 1 use. These two essentials of the solder.- fig equipment are very active produce ers of rust, and negligence to keep them covered will surely result,in image, -H, 't 4���, r a -•ver. n sf _ s.ruirw.i b tl w it Oaf th;* book) 10 cannot afford to , d • i!. rarthout It C e Wil , n51t1 15 If t 1 tlollaraon horw.e 1t can vizor you h,witreda r TO, book— 1 tit tine on 55.ho U "-la yam for the n.ktoy t your dru5tdst'e. '. The bons and ail b t hhn—h1, d!neasea —how to recomle tbu,n—whntto no nhout 1 thole—wltb o5npF�tern on brood u&, --`time and .hooutg loading—awl,tnrs5trluawnd prarouhornera ns .mediae. ^ dek,oimdtul,gl tr `cath' ot'•ATrnetip' yah honoree` ax r}to nR OOcW+et— lg: ti Dr. Et. J.KENDAL.2,Co., ro Emogburg..Falk, Vi. U.S.A. I.. Says Sam: If you're'building a house, ,and a fellow will show you "where you've got the, foundation i wrong, you'll thank him. But if you're building, say, a marketing ;organize- on, and he shows, you a fault at cic-bottom why, dern him; he's a short of good saws. No 1 saw 'is,one of the most indispensable ISSUE No. 34—'23., The spirit of co-operation demands at everyone who participates in the owin l�tri s ortin n P g, preparing and, arketieg : of goods is entitled to a it return' for his effort, and no more. q.