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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZurich Herald, 1955-08-25, Page 3Blackbirds and grackles look upon a corn field as a particularly tasty morsel and in very short order can damage over 90 per cent of the ears and may remove as much as a quarter of the crop. And they are very hard to scare away, as tests at the Central Ex- perimental Farm, Ottawa, have shown. A carbide exploder was tested which consisted of a gas gener- ating unit that combines calcium carbide and water to produce acetylene gas, after the style of the headlights once used on auto- mobiles and bicycles. The gas is mixed with air and creates an explosive mixture in an explo- sion chamber, In turn a pilot light ignites the gas and causes a report similar to that of a shot- gun. The explosions may occur as frequently as twice a minute• under ideal conditions. 4' * * Two exploders were used in the Farm tests in a two -acre block of ear a corn and reduced the damage from 20 per cent to six per cent. However, it cost approximately '75 cents per day to operate the units and in this particular test the value of the crop saved did not equal the cost of operating the exploders. *It was also found that while excellent protection was obtained for a couple of weeks Or so, the birds soon became accustomed to the noise and were then more difficult to scare. The occasional use of a shot gun to supplement the exploders might increase the effectiveness of the units as bird scarers. m * * The conclusion reached is that while carbide exploders afford some protection they are not a complete answer to the problem of scaring birds. >* * * Progress in breeding new vare ieties of tree fruits is limited be r„ cause the seedlings normally be :� PLANETARY PLUMBER - Here's what the well-dressed repair- man will wear when he's called on to tune up space stations or make repairs to rocket ships while in flight, as conceived by W a Disney. "Spacebottle", with jets top and bottom, has seven Mechanical arms, two of which appear in picture. gin to bear their first fruit at five to ten years from seed. Apple seedlings are especially slow in coming into bearing. If an ap- ple cross is made, say, this spring the results of the cross may not be known before 1965. The per- iod from seed to the first fruit is known as the fruitless period or the juvenile phase, No means are known for eliminating the juvenile phase in fruit tree seed- lings. * It is different in established varieties of tree fruits. These varieties had their origin as seed- lings, but many years: have elapsed since the seedlings pass- ed through their juvenile phase and were propagated as varieties. Consequently, it is possible to in- duce a tree of an established ap- ple variety to bear fruit as early as the second year from grafting or planting. At the Canada Department of Agriculture Experimental Sta- tion, Summerland, B.C., experi- ments have been made to deter- mine .the extent to which the fruitless period in apple seed- lings may be shortened by bark ringing. Bark rings, • approxi- mately one-quarter inch in width, were removed from the central leaders of trees at 3 to 5 feet from the ground. The wounds were allowed to dry for 15 min- utes and then covered with an emulsified asphalt tree seal. The ringing was done in the first week of June and the effect of ringing evaluated the following May by counting the blossom trusses on rigged and on unring- ed trees in adjacent rows. Most of the trees were in their eighth year from seed when ringed. 4. * 4< Two years' experiments indi- cated that ringing could shorten the fruitless period by one to two years in trees that were close to the. end of their juvenile phase. In very young seedlings, ringing had no effect on blossom formation. In trees that were ready to bear fruit, irrespective of forcing, ringing increased the amount of blossom per tree. Most of the blossoms, and on many trees all the blossoms, were form- ed above the ring. The ringing effect lasted for• one year only, and trees which'failed to respond to the first treatmenthad to be ringed again. Although the ring- ed trees experienced some shock, which was evident by yellowing of foliage and interruption • of growth in the part above the ring, no trees were lost by the treatment. * * * Since the operation is very simple and takes' only one to two minutes per tree to perform,. the treatment can be considered as a practical means of shorten- ing the fruitless period in apple seedlings. Ringing can also be used to induce blossom forma- tion in over -vigorous trees of all varieti es. FOREIGN LANGUAGE A couple who never before had ventured west of Hoboken were making their first trans- continental trip aboard a Cana- dian streamliner. At one stop far along the line they left the train for a little exercise, and inquired of a man on the plat- form, "What's the name of this town?" He answered, "Saska- toon, Saskatchewan," "Good- ness," marveled the husband, "we've come se far the natives don't even speak English here!" CROSSWO PUZZLE ACROSS 60. Issue forth 1. Send 70. Italian poet 13aymerit DOWN 6, Lilt 13. Deport 14. Most 15. Near 10once arou,,.:i 1.. humor 19, Exist 2r1. oribba54 *COTe 22. :.niter. 24. Faucet 20. Pecan 23 Knock 30 "arrow Hoard 113 wonderfully 26 Three nrefia) 37 MiislrnI r,•,1'': 34 FIT itta 1 tavern 29 'lomat) bronze 4) while 42, Hotel 44. Formal Melees 47. c"niture medium 40, (luido's nor.,_+ 50, Dance step 51.Cooking vessel 53. Possessive nronottn , 55. Young goo t 57. aletrle measure 50 )liseult 61. Dorn spine's Hack Z0,16,) )64. Sailor '67,1',rruq)t,t)) rt 1, Garner 2, Reaching 3, 1001 4, Poorly 5. Fresh -water duck 6. Type measure 7. Statute 3, Passage out 0. Necessary 10. Morning (ab.) 11, Vat 12. Scotch uncle 17 Religious tale 21 Masticatory 23 Idle talk 25 Suitable 27. Point 2'1 Pacify 31 Passing 32 Sibilant sound 33 Continent 34. Bitter herb 25, Still 40. Drink slowly 43. Doze 45. Yale 46, Sturdy tree 48. Harbinger of spring 52. Fish 54. Brownish - red cha) redo 03' 56.Propical fruit 57. Rice paste 58. Clatter 00, Clear gain Minim . un god 66. Anent 68. One I 8 3 4 '3 ;2ti; to 7 e 9 10 11 i2 r, ;;PA. 1b 17 r�i 1i3 •tik 49 ..0 21 ' •' *...."4' 22 23 c..}: 24 20 ` �':. •.)+{�y; 26 2'7 ' .,, Z$ 29 '.,%$ •?:o 31 32. • 39 :1, 3 34 M1'hy.sg 354 .3(0 4d >'iu1 .7 42 43_ 44 45 4b 47 49 .V49 ,5tl Ars NSW's' ���� `h 6z: ,J S. 54 .�:'' 57 se")., �, °s9 . .. ia0 . . y: ;.Y51 4 ', 67 • ;,�'• 63 Tor 65 w9 otic 70 Annsweneleewhcre on this page. PEACE - AND WAR - As the world enters the l l th year of the atomic age, a monument to peace stands in the shadow of shattred Industrial Promotion Hall, Hiroshima, Japan. Situated at ground zero, focal point of the blast which levelled the city August 6, 1945, the rubble has been left as a reminder of the cataclysmic power of the atom. Among the inscriptions on the memirial is one that expresses the wish of all mankind -"No More Hiroshim'as." How To Propagate Lilies Quickly The popularity of garden lilies has increased greatly within.,. the past few years and each new season sees a greater. interst in this fine group of .garden plants. Many species and varieties of Mites multiply themselves more or less rapidly by means of small -. bulbs which are produced on the underground portion of the stem. -"By allowing these small bulbs to ,xleyeldp, a group of plants may '`fie obtained eevntually from one healthy bulb. But a more rapid method is. by scale propagation, says D. F. Cameron, Division of Horticulture, Central- Experi•- • mental Farm, Ottawa, -Ont Most lilies may be propagated rapidly from the scales of- the bulb, and various methods have been used, most of which. require the use of cold frames or propagating beds. For the home gardener who wishes to propagate some of his choice lilies to extend his plant- ings, or to increase his stock of a choice variety of seedling, the following method is suggested. This method requires little equipment oder than polythene bags such as those in which ap- ples, oranges and other fruit and vegetables are sold, and some sphagnum moss, which may be obtained from florists or garden supply stores. The best time to take the . scales from the lily bulbs is shortly after the flowers have faded. If the plant is dug up carefully at this time, a num- ber of thick fleshy outer scales may be broken away from the bulb without doing any harm to the plant. The core or heart of the bulb is then set back in the garden arid it will dontinue its normal growth until the end of the growing season. Another method of obtaining the scales is to dig the earth away from arbund the base of the stem, ex- posing the underground stem down to the bulb, when the scales may be pried loose with- out disturbing it. These fresh plump scales are then placed by separate varie- ties in polythene bags along with a couple of handfuls of slightly moist shredded sphagnum moss, and the bags shaken to cover the scales with moss. The tops of the bags should be folded over to exclude the air, and held closed by means of a paper clip or an elastic band. The poly- thene bags permit the passage of gases but prevent moisture from escaping from them, thus keeping the scales turgid. The bags containing the scales should then be placed in a dark cabinet at room temperature, and afterthree or four weeks, from one to four or five small bulbs will develop along the bases of the scales. By late Sep- tember or early October, these bulblets will be up to One-half einch • in diameter and at this time they may be planted out, 2 inches deep, in a sheltered frame where they can be pro- tected over winter, to be re- moved the following October to their permanent location in the garden. Or the may be set out directly from the polythene bag into the border where they are to flower, and covered with a two inch mulch of leaf mould, sawdust or shavings, to prevent heaving by frost action in the spring. By this inexpensive sim- ple method, one good healthy bulb can be propagated to yield up to one hundred flowering size bulbs within a period of two years. There is one piece of advice, in a life of study, which I think no one will object to; and that is, every now and then to be completely idle -to do nothing at all. -SYDNEY SMITH TweedHe-Dee-Junk Even as the late, great Ring Lardner in his time, we find ourselves growing tune -touchy .. What gripes usmare each time it's repeated on radio, juke box or TV is that simpering little jumble of hogwash called "Tweedley, Tweedley, Tweedley Dee." Some of you oldsters may re- call that Ring Lardner's pet peeve among the juke ballads was Cole Porter's Night -and - Day thing, "I've Got You Under My Skin.' ... He raved on by the, column, cussing out the whole song. But what dug him the most was the rhyme about that "yearning, burning deep down inside of me" which gets "under the hide of me." Poor old Ring! He wanted songs to have a little dignity about 'em. We're glad he doesn't have to wince with us at the baby -talk rhyme tricks of the Tweedley song. They're enough to make Mother Goose herself blush, We don't object to rhyming "tweedley-dee" with "as can be," or "tweedley-dum" with "sugar plum." But when the switch runs to "tweedley-dot' in order to rhyme with "gimme all the love you've got," our gorge begins to rise. Each time we hear that song we feel a glaze forming over the eyes, and a hum -happy spasm coming on: Tweedley,ditto-ditto dunk, Song -rhymes now are merely junk. Hubba, hubba, summer and fall, 'The fool things never make sense at all, Tweedley - tweedley - tweed - ley, BAH! -Denver Post. Upsidedown to Prevent Peeking D 001 LESSON R, Barclay Warren B.A. Oa Hope for the Despairing: 'sash, Chapter 55 Memory Selection; Incline you ear, and come unto me: heate and your soul shall live. -Isaiah, 55:$ The prophets of God were Of- ten misunderstood. Jeremiah ad- vised that Jerusalem should sur- . render. For this he was branded a traitor and cast into a dun- geon, He was known as the weeping prophet. But these prophets of doom had an opti- mistic faith, too, They knew that though God might chastise his people for a time for their sins, he would not forsake them. A better day would come. Jere- miah and Ezekiel, whose writ- ings form a part of today's les- son foresaw the return of the exiles to their own land. They had also, some vision of the new covenant which God would make with men through his son, Jesus Christ. The printed portion of the les- son is from Isaiah and has a universal -appeal. It has been aptly called an Old Testament offer of salvation. The invitation is, "Ho every one that thirsteth." Man is rest- less within himself. He is only content when he gives himself in full surrender to God. In the meanwhile he wastes his money for that which is not bread and his energy for that which satis- fieth not. Isaiah pleads with men to seek the Lord while he may be found. He points out the way: "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon." Then there will be a transformation. "Ye shall go out with joy. -Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree." The life becomes beautiful and fruitful. Sin never pays. But God has provided a glorious deliverance from it. We will only find hap- piness which we come to God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Hrrk.nes Release ore Energy Thn SvraI A By KENNETH O. GILMORE NEA Staff Correspondent Most of the big hurricanes come during the months of Au- gust, September and October ac- cording to records kept for 67 years. *: *: 4' Hurricanes originate in tropi- cal ocean areas and usually move' from low to higher lati- tudes with increasing speed, size and intensity. They are large, revolving storms accompanied by destructive winds, heavy rains and high waves and tides. En- gineers have estimated that sur- face wind speeds up to 250 miles per hour have occurred within a hurricane. The damage a hurricane can do is frightening. The most re- cent example is infamous Carol which boiled through the New England states early last Sep- tember after brushing the North Carolina coast. It caused about 60 fatalities and a loss of over $460. million to property and crops. Officials at the Weather Bu- reau estimate that one minute of a hurricane uses up more , en- ergy than the entire U. S. pro- duces in electric power in 50 years. And the energy released by a typical hurricane in one second is greater than several atomic explosions. For the past 70 years an aver- age of eight hurricanes per year have occurred, but this number has increased to 10 per day dur- ing the last 20 years. Lately, a number of people have been writing to the Weather Bureau suggesting the possibility of blunting or taming the storms with an atom bomb, • hat to o in a Hurricane By NEA SERVICE For those persons on land who are in the path of .a hurri- cane or near one, the Weather Bureau urges these instruc- tions be followed: Keep radio and television on and listen carefully for the latest alerts, warnings and advisories. Get away and stay away from beach areas and other lo- cations which may be swept by high tides or storm waves. Remain in your house if it is out of danger from high tides and well built. - Supply yourself with extra food that can be eaten with- out cooking or much preparation. Sterilize the bathtub, jugs, bottles, cooking utensils and fill them with drinking water, as the city water service may be interrupted. - Have flashlights or other emergency lights in working condition and handy. Be sure you have gasoline in your car. Check on everything that might blow away or be torn loose like garbage cans, garden tools, signs and porch furni- ture. If the center or "eye" of the storm passes directly over, don't be fooled by the lull in the wind. It will return from the opposite direction after a few minutes, frequently with greater force. This would do no good and only make matters worse, say the weather experts. Even as- suming that such an explosion stopped the winds momentarily, the natural production of energy by the hurricane rains would be sufficient to restore the winds to full force in about 15 minutes, Further, the heat of a blast in the atmosphere only tends to in- crease the intensity of the storm. Another objection is radioactiv- ity that would result from a nuclear explosion. It is estab- lished that fallout is greater when precipitation occurs, and I ATTFRN FOR HAVOC: Arrows indicate directions in which hurricanes generally travel toward the United States. All of there . originate ha the belt of doldrums in the southern North Atlantic, hurricanes always have consid- erable amounts of rainfall. The best defense against hur- ricanes is a good warning sys- tem. And the Weather Bureau claims its Hurricane Warning Service has been expanded to improve the issuance and dis- tribution of alerts. Here are some of the facilities that are going.to be in use dur- ing the hurricane season: From Brownsville, Texas, to Portland, - Me., on the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, teletypewriter circuits are hooked up to Weath- er Bureau offices. Instantane- ously every station on the cir- cuit receives all the observations, reports and alerts that are sent out. Many agencies pitch in to help during this critical time of the year when every morsel of in- formation can be used by mete- orologists to accurately and speedily predict when and where the storm will strike. Specially trained Air Force and Navy crews fly into areas of suspected storm activity and often directly into the storm. This is the most dangerous but also the most reliable method of reporting the location, inten- sity and movement of the storm. Also assisting tare Coast Guard stations, lighthouses and mobile units. Ships in the hurricane vi- cinity are of particular value, and they furnish reports at hour- ly intervals.