NOTES:
BY
C.M.BAENITZ
PA.
ICOBEESPONDDotZ
SOLICITED
I , ill. ...... -i
Fruit c3 j Farm and .
IPlowers (Sa-rden
CARNATION NOTES.
THE POULTRY 8NEAK THIEF.
The weasel as a sneak thief and
softly stealing assassin Is beyond de
scription. Silently gliding like a serpent, he
Hps through an Inch opening, bounds
on his harmless victim, sucks its blood
Bnd wantonly cuts the throat of every
fowl. The beautiful thrush, nestling Its
young or on leafy branch caroling to
its Maker, Is suddenly seized and Its
trilling throat pierced by the fangs of
the murderer.
His technical name, putorius, from
"putor," "bad smell," is appropriate,
for, like the polecat, he throws off a
vile odor. Diminutive In size, he Is a
consolidated devil a cross of deep
dyed villain, skunk and silent striking
copperneaa. uenoia mat long, nine,
wiry, restless, quickly moving, muscu
lar body! That flat head, projected
from all the openings in his retreat
seemingly at once, sways from side to
side, like the cobra ready to strike.
Varieties Attracting Attention at tho
( Recent Carnation Convention.
Afterglow Well to the lead In many
classes. A fine thing.
Alma Ward Peerless on the exhibi
tion table.
White Perfection This and White
Enchantress are leaders In the com
mercial class.
Annie Blossom A fine flower, but
not quite distinct enough.
Beacon Very mnch In It In the red
classes; lacks in color.
Cardinal Shown in fine shape.
Creole Beauty Perhaps the brightest
crimson shown.
Defiance Not shown at its best.
Enchantress Still best of Its class.
Harvard A little dark.
Imperial Not a pleasing color.
John E. Haines No place for it
Mrs. Tom Harvey Fine dark pink.
THE INDIVIDUAL - EM.
MARVELOUS LAMBING.
SUMMER FEED" FOR HOGS.
PLUW FOR ALFALFL
Utah Farinere -Adaptation the Com
" - own Walking Plow.
' An article coming under my observa
tion is one entitled "Types of Plows,"
accompanied by a cut of a German
wheel plow. Why a man should run a
clumsy, lumbering construction akin to
a self binder for breaking np lucern
when onr common hand plow will an
swer the purpose to beyond me. 1
fail to see where the writer's concep
tion of i German wheel plow of the
1870 type is much In advance of Mr.
Wing's idea of a French plow In the
twentieth century. A farmers time is
too precious and capable architects are
too few and too expensive in this coun
try to make a plow of such design of
any practical value to its owner.
We have, here In Utah thousands of
acres of alfalfa as luxuriant and
1 Stop and Consider This Easy Way to p;nct Crop For Years In Montana RM Oalna at Lew Coat From Both
boee on a vorn ,rop. Thia Spring. I rorago m w.n.
By J. B. PETERSEN. Kansas. Lambing is In full progress through- When hogs are kept It is a good plan
What constitutes an ideal ear of ont tue state (Montana), and the per-. to produce as mnch of the feed for
corn? This question must be answered rentage of loss Is remarkably light, ac- thm right there on the farm as possl
by every corn breeder if be wishes to cording to reports from the leading ble. All want to make pork as cheap-
succeed. He mast have an ideal : in sheep sections. For many years it has y as they can, and the feed raised on
mind and work to that end. The ear of , Deen tue custom or snippers to nave th. frm la. as a rule, cheaner than
his ideal must be determined by the j jome lambs come in February in order commercial feeds, r But there are ex-
.
THJB 1IUBDEBEB UNMASKED. j
Above are the fearful jaws and
serpent fangs that cut the throats
of eighty chickens in one night. The
skin is drawn back to unmask the
murderous killing weapons and to dis
play the Intricate network of muscles
that work the powerful jaws, which
make the weasel the most dreaded
enemy of the poultry keeper. Though
be weighs from five to eight ounces
and is from six to ten inches in length,
yet this little sausage shaped creature
is much feared and formidable. He has
been known to kill the eagle aud attack
a five prong buck.
On Jan. 17 last a miner was ter
ribly lacerated and bitten by a weasel
at Bear Valley shaft, Shamokin, Pa.
In the darkness the weasel seemed
master, but miners, hearing the cries
of distress, rescued their companion
and killed the weasel with drills and
shovels. This animal has been known
to kill six full grown hens, twenty tur
keys and eighty chickens In three
nights. His victims are not disfigured.
He bleeds a rabbit between the eye and
ear. but has been known to chase One
Into a stone fence and open an artery
in the hind leg.
He will clean the rats and mice out
of a barn and bleed them the same
Vay.
He bites old chickens in the arteries
of the neck close to the head. Young
chickens, pigeons and wild birds are
caught back of the neck and sucked
dry. If wounded, he will suicide by
sucking his own blood.
A hunter followed a weasel for
twenty-Are miles, the little animal
stopping to kill only eight rabbits dur
ing the race. At times he would dis
appear and travel under the snow for
fifty feet In this way he kills many -quail
that seek shelter under wind
falls, the farmers In the spring re
porting them frozen by the hard winter
weather.
In one night a hunter trapped a dark
brown, light red and white weasel. The
most common color is brown. Weasels
are dark and light brown, dark and
light red, maltese and white. Maltese
are rare. The weasel wears white In
winter. On the snow he can hardly
CARNATION APTEBGXOW.
Pink Imperial Looks well under ar
tificial light
President Seelye Will score well up
to head of standard whites.
Bed Chief Not quite large enough
for the show table.
Robert Craig A few still shown.
Kose Pink Enchantress Fine, but
too many varieties too near alike.
Ruby Crimson, promising.
La wson Enchantress; very pretty.
Lieutenant Peary Scores high.
Melody Will not trot with Enchan
tress. Mrs. C. W. Ward Lights up well
under electric light
Mrs. Charles Knopf Large flower, a
little weak In color and stem. - .
Mrs. M. A. Patten Nothing better
shown in Its class.
Mrs. Robert Hartshorne Not shown
at Its best
Sarah Hill Fine white bloom.
Snowflake Very good white.
Splendor Fine flower In the Wlnsor
class.
Toreador Very decorative, unusual
ly long stem and fine color; under
sized.
Variegated La wson Shown in good
shape.
Victory Disputes with Beacon first
place In commercial reds.
Viola Sinclair A pretty rose pink,
medium In size.
Wanoka Fine crimson, a little dark
in color.
Welcome Not quite in it with Wln
sor. White Enchantress A leading white.
A Writer in Gardening.
CONOAVXD FLOWS HABR.
thrifty as any in the world, some of
which is broken every spring. Farm
ers would find this a very great task
Indeed If they found it necessary to
' employ any such cumbersome devices
as the one accompanying the article in
question. We use a common -walking
plow, with a wheel or shoe under the
end of the beam and a straight or slant
tng cutter.' The secret of the whole
problem lies in the fact that the plow
share from A to B along the dotted
iline D is "concaved so that the plow
I rests upon the curved portion and the
point C is at least a half an inch above
the level or a half an inch higher tnan
the point A or the point B.
The share should be new or com
paratively so In order to give room
for the concave surface. Any village
blacksmith can fix the share. It would
be advisable not to temper the share,
as It is necessary to file It every few
rounds when plowing old alfalfa. Any
ket. when lambs bring fancy prices. Pns to the rule, and the man who
As a general rule it is necessary to ld ,h,mse'f V rfflrdIVtof
have these lambs come under sheds, conditions should change his methods,
and it Is often found a requisite to take : Experiments have proved, what we
the young lamb into the herder's cabin nv '0UE(1 b-T experience to be true,
until It is strong enough to stand up the table waste and sklmmilk and
.nri Mo. nnnMw Thio co.,nn i : cornmeal constitute a feed for hog
discarded and the good ears shelled ; Is entirely a different proposition. The running to pasture that makethe most
and the com made ready for planting. I weather Is quite like summer. The ; npld gains for the cost of r nJ'-
There Is perhaps no one thing that sun shines all the time, and it seldom y rouna, write . a. whp
condition of the soil and climate. In
buying seed corn It is not advisable to
secure it from a long distance. -
Seed corn should not be shelled until
Bear planting time, but early in the
spring a germination test should be
made of each ear and the poorest ears
will do as much to increase the yield
of corn on every farm as the testing
of each ear to be used for seed. The
importance of discarding the ears that
are poor In vitality is essential when
we realize that one good ear will plant
one-eighth of. an acre.
The simplest and best method of test
ing the germination of each ear Is by
using a germination box. The most
convenient box is 3 by 4 feet with
wire Btretched crosswise forming
freezes during the night
Orange Judd Farmer. It is not neces-
The season is far the best sheep men : ry to 8toP to theorize In regard to-
of Montana have enjoyed for a decade
or more, and the percentage of lambs
saved - is little short of marvelous,
averaging upward of 100 per cent
This condition Is due of course to the
fact that twins offset more than the
deaths. It is making the average of
the ewes' product more than one lamb.
These lambs will be very valuable, as
in May and June they wlll be worth
souares large enough to hold six to an average of $4,
eight kernels. Fill the box with sand. J A new experiment has been tried
Number each one of the squares. Take
a few kernels from each ear and put
in each of these squares. Then wet
the sand and place "a damp cloth over
the box, keeping the sand and cloth
moist and warm. Keep a record of
the time of germination and note the
kernels which fail to grow.
What Eight Good Ears Will Do.
After the germination test the next
step Is to prepare the corn for the
planter by removing the mixed ker
nels, the ununiform kernels; the in
jured or rotten kernels and the tip and
butt kernels, when the corn should be
carefully shelled. .
The value of testing the vitality of
corn which Is intended for seed can
not be overestimated. It is strange
how many farmers., even today, are
willing to plant corn without the least
certainty that the seed will garmlnate
and produce good, healthy plants.
There are thousands of acres that have
been planted over each year on ac
count of the poor vitality of the seed.
I wish each farmer would stop to
consider this. Get a seed tester and
test your seed this spring. The vitali
ty of each Individual ear of corn in
tended for planting may be determin
ed. You can discard the poor ears,
this season and ' with not a little suc
cess. This has been to feed the ewes
on alfalfa for thirty days before lamb
ing. Judging from the lamb crop, it is
believed that this has met with the
most encouraging results, especially in
the matter of strength. If lambs en
ter the world in an enfeebled condi
tion, the danger of loss is very great.
On the other hand, born strong very
few losses are recorded. -
The present winter has been remark
ably favorable to stockmen. Cattle,
team worthy of the name can pull the j keeping the good ears for seed. Some
plow with as little effort as is requir- : larmens ny wej u.c uvi iuC .
ed when plowing stubble. test tne seea.
We do not plow alfalfa more tnan I owy miu .wu ."- ""'j
three inches deep, because after that ; from eight to ten good ears for each
depth the deeper one plows the harder acre. Suppose you plant an ear of
. - .. . wr44-n14-r nPVv Tinn o fa. IrkOfrtf stria-
the alfalfa Is to kill. Tne aeptn isT- "C. .
regulated by the wheel under the beam. ; eighth of your crop, and it takes only
and any boy who can plow stubble : a few minutes to make the germina-
s.ocllt7 ormnirh handle the Plow in . uuu irau
tau j o
alfalfa. "When the plow is thus fixed.
for plowing alfalfa, however, one can
nnf nlnv era in stubble with It For
Apples on Long Island.
Long Island In the past was noted
CAUGHT AT LAST.
le seen by his victim and enemy.
His white fur is the ermine of royalty
nd august courts, and the dark spots
on these robes are the black tips of
weasel tails.
The mink and weasel should not be
couf used. Minks reach two pounds and
have half webbed toes. When a chicken
is ripped from the neck down the
back, it is neither a weasel, mink, rat
nor opossum, but a cooper's hawk did
the damage. Weasels are born from
April to May, six to two to a litter.
The young ones are great poultry
fiends and are easily caught in steel
traps. They are common all over the
country, except in Arizona, New Mex
ico, southern California and the gulf
states. ,
Work For Boys.
The man who hopes for fruit, wheth
er he has ten trees or a thousand, must
keep the insect war moving. Some
thing can be done now which will tell
for the saving of the fruit next sum
mer. Those who have large orchards
are prepared for spraying, but thou
sands of farmers whose fruit Is only
a side Issue are not so prepared, re
marks Iowa Homestead.
But for that reason they need not
abandon the orchard entirely; They
may do mnch to save the crop on their
fifty or hundred trees. Have the boys go
over the trees carefully and gather ait
of the worms' eggs, cocoons, etc Ev
ery dead leaf found adhering to a
limb covers a bunch of worms' eggs,
and you will be surprised at the num
ber of these when they are gathered
together. An active boy with a good
tall stepladder will gather a pocket
ful in an hour, and every one of them
should be carefully deposited In the
redhot kitchen stove. Do this work
carefully and persistently, and the re
sult will appear next summer to your
great delight '
Cultivation of the Currant.
' As the currant to do well must have
a good supply of moisture, cultivation
should be begun soon after, planting
and the surface soil kept loose during
the summer. While the plantH are
young the cultivation may be fairly
deep in the middle of the rows, but
7J7- y':. " nM h.v. to for its trees, both fruit and foliage, and
be made into its original shape, or, j many rare ; foreign trees are thriving
j LUUilJ UU 119 lUCai OV., w
: climate to back It It has developed
! some of the finest apples known,
! among them the Newtown Pippin, both
I green and yellow; Flushing Spitzen
Iburg, Long Island Russet, Long Island
! Seek No Further and other varieties.
1 The Yellow Newtown Pippin Is un
donbtedlv the most widely known of
todeb sidb of PLOWSHARE. &u apple& Jt jg unsurpassed as a des-
better still, if one has a great deal of or a COoklng apple, and for cider
alfalfa breaking to do, use another it stands unique both In clearness and
share, using the especially prepared nlgn qllauty. They are known in some
one for the purpose of breaking up lu- sectjon8 aB Albemarle Pippin, but all
cern only, concludes A. J. Syndergaard came trom a seedling originating at
in Breeder's Gazette, Chicago. i Newtown,- N. Y. Introduced Into Eu-
rope by Benjamin Franklin in 1759, It
Quality In Seeds. ' still brings two and even three times
As the result of tests of alfalfa, red as much as any other apple. It bears
clover and grass seeds secured in the annually; hence it Is an all around
open market Chief Galloway or tne.. "good thing." a. b. ruuerron.
AN EAEIiT LAMB.
sheep and horses are in excellent con
dition, and the season is so far ad
vanced that a severe or prolonged
! storm is wholly unexpected. Even
should it come stock will be in fine
shape to weather it, not having been
compelled to undergo the rigors of a
winter beforehand. Experience has
taught that because of their weakened
condition from a long and severe win
ter stock cannot withstand the custom
ary spring blizzard; but, the former
having been eliminated this year, it
seems safe to.predict the banner record
so far as light losses are concerned.
Leon Shaw in Breeder's Gazette, Chi
cago.
Treatment For Loco.
The results of tne loco weed when
eaten by stock are unpleasantly fa
miliar to the stockman of the plains
the matter. It la sufficient to know
that such things are a fact
But the question comes np as to the
kind of pasture that furnishes the best
feed. It has been proved again and.
again that alfalfa makes the best feed,
frith June clover a close second. In
the absence of clover, blue grass Is
the next best pasture. When none of -the
clovers or grasses are available it
Is far better to sow rape than to com
pel pigs to go without any. green for
age. The man who gets lopsided and keeps
his hogs either on green forage alone
or on grain alone makes a mistake.
Experience has shown us that hogs
can live on forage and make some gain,
but do not make the gains rapid enough
to show the venture a satisfactory one.
Hogs may make rapid gains on a grain
diet alone, but it is too expensive. The
man who uses both forage and grain
makes a rapid gain at a low cost pro
vided the feeds are well balanced.
Hogs fed on both forage and grain
show a better quality of meat than If
either is fed alone. The forage helps
to make bone and muscle, and the grain
helps to add the fat The sklmmilk,
buttermilk, dishwater and whey pro
mote growth, and all help to produce
cheap pork if fed In connection with
the other feeds. They also help to Im
prove the quality of meat.
INJURE THE MILK.
Ue of Rusty or Poorly Tinned Can
Produce Off Flavors.
"Rusty Cans and Their Effect Upon
Milk For Cheesemaklng" Is the title
of a recent bulletin of the Wisconsin
experiment station prepared by George
A. Olson, assistant cnemist. experi
ments made by Mr. Olson show that
milk hauled in poorly tinned or rusty
cans is materially Injured for cheese
making. "The cheese factory operator
should not hesitate to refuse milk
which is hauled In poorly tinned or
rusty cans," writes Mr. Olson, "for, in.
addition to the retarding influence of
the Iron on the rennet action and tht
neutralization of the acid by the iron,
there are also produced taints or off"
flavors."
The milk cans used to haul milk to
the cheese factory are often of a cheap
grade and are dented the first or sec
ond time that they are used, with a
result that the tin cracks and the iron
is exposed and rusts. At one factory a
can was found that had been used for
this source In
bureau of plants industry makes a re
port that is certainly of Interest to
farmers.
Red 3Iover. Of the 1,217 samples 01
Southport Globe Onions.
Connecticut's famous Southport Globe
onions stand unsurpassed among popu-
red clover seed secured 405, or one-third, r,ar American varieties of the onion.
contained seed of dodder, 424 contain- They are in high favor In some of the
ed traces of yellow trefoil seed, andfinest commercial onico growing dis
135 bore evidence of having originated , mcta of Ohio and New York and dur
in Chile. Ing a few year past have made a
Alfalfa. Of the 399 samples of alfal- teady advance in standing everywhere
fa seed secured 191, or about one-half, as a highly bred, perfect onion. East
contained seed of dodder, 135 contained ern oni0n growers use the red and
a trace of yellow trefoil seed, 120 con- j wbJte Southport Globes to produce
talned a trace of sweet clover seed, 1 exceptionally Urge, solid, beauti
and 16 contained a trace of bur clover tuily formed bulbs that bring top
seed. ' S- pricc-s in the New York city markets.
Bromus Inermls. Of the 55 samples Besides the two varieties named.
of Bromus inermls seed obtained 15 jere is a yellow Southport Globe that
reached the sum of a million dollars
per annum. ' The national bureau of
plant industry has been taking a turn
at the loco problem, and C. D. Marsh,
expert in poison plants, reports that
it has been found that locoed cattle
can in most cases be cured by a course
of treatment with strychnine, while
locoed horses can generally be cured
by a course of treatment with Fow
ler's solution The animals under
treatment must not be allowed to eat
the loco weed and should be given not
only nutritious food, but so far as pos
sible, food with laxative properties.
To this end magnesium sulphate was
administered to correct the constipa
tion which is almost universal among
locoed animals. It should.be noted,
too, that magnesium sulphate may
serve to some extent as an antidote to
the poison.
It may be added in regard to the
question of Immunity that loco poison
ing comes on in a slow and cumulative
manner, so that there Is no possibility
of animals becoming Immune.
contained seed of cheat or chess, 28
contained from 2 to 3 per cent of seed
of the wheat grasses, several con
tained seed of meadow fescue, and one
contained more than 24 per cent of
meadow fescue and rye grass seed, together.
Kentucky Blue Grass. or tne 4Ztf
samples of Kentucky blue grass seed
obtained only 8 were found to be free
from any trace of Canada blue grass.
In most of these samples the trace of
Canada blue grass found was Immature,
seed, showing that it was harvested
with the Kentucky blue grass seed. The
seeds of the two plants not ripening at
the same time. It Is Improbable that
mature seed of Canada blue grass'
would be harvested with Kentucky.
KItia mu cumuI Tn lift sumnlps. how-
when the roots begin to extend across eT Canada blue grass seed was found
the rows cultivation should be quite m qnantltie8 exceeding 5 per cent. 82
snauow. as moujr " - 0f these being Canada blue grass seed
near the surface. W. T. Macoun.
Disease of the Quince.
The quince Is subject to much, the
same disease and Insects as pear and
apple. It Is especially liable to injury
by the black rot, blight rust and leaf
spot which together almost destroy the
quince crop annually. They could be
easily' prevented by a little trouble In
misbranded as Kentucky bine grass
. 6eed. . .
SOtJTHPOBT WHITE GLOfeE.
Inches in diameter in some places.
Milk kept In such cans would take for
ty minutes longer to coagulate than
that kept in good cans.
In these experiments milk was piacea
In rusty tin cans and allowed to stand
for different periods, while other sam
ples of the same milk were kept in
glass beakers. Every time that this
experiment was repeated the milk kept
in the rusty cans gave evidence of a re
tarding Influence on the rennet action
as compared with the milk kept in the
glass beaker. Milk which was allowed
to stand in iron utensils for several
hours had a peculiar bluish gray color,.
Indicating the presence of Iron In solu
tion. It was evident that the acid iu
the milk acted upon the iron and dis
solved some of it The maximum quan
tity of iron dissolved in the milk
ranged from one to one and a half
pounds for every thousand pounds of
milk. This iron in solution at least
partly causes the retarding influence of
the rennet action, since it Increases the
solids In the milk.
Growing Feed Crops.
Theoretically when I feed my cows
a full amount of good corn silage and
alfalfa hay my milk yield should be
satisfactory, but actually I find my
kind of cows will increase their milk
giving if I add some cornmeal to the
bill of fare, and Increase still more if
in addition I furnish about two pounds
per day of oilmeal per cow; hence,
while I am personally very much In
favor of the farmer-dairyman growing
feed crops to the fullest extent, of
proved profit endeavoring to do so my
self, yet to all I grow I never hesitate
to bring in as supplementary by pur
chase any feed needed which my cows
can use at a profit to me.
I have no manner of doubt that a ton
f clover hay, being all one acre could
produce, is of materially less feeding
worth, than a ton from an acre having
grown a three ton crop, all conditions
of cutting and curing in both cases be
ing equal. I" know that when I secure
a crop of 100 bushels of corn per acre
I have more than twice as much feed
Oats For Calves.
The great business of the growing
calf Is to make muscle. This muscle Is
what gives plumpness to a thrifty
calf.
For this purpose a food Is needed
which is especially rich in muscle
forming material. Grass is not For
this nothing can be found that is bet
ter than oats. Not only are they rich
in the material desired, but that rich
ness is not so concentrated as to make
them a dangerous food. They are
neither heating nor fattening in their
nature, but tend Instead to build up
muscle and give, the animal strength
and vigor.
In the spring, before the pastures are
ready to turn on to, is the time that the
calves will need this addition to their
feed. If at any time they are allowed
to grow thin in flesh It will take a long
time of good feeding and careful atten
tion to bring them again into a thrifty
condition. Gilbert Allen.
ummhioa tho nthora hi shane and gen
eral character, but Is of a rich yellow j as I have If I am so unfortunate as to
color.
The white is one of those beautifully
! white, perfectly globe shaped onions
Where Hogs Follow Cattle.
Even if m addition to corn other
concentrates richer Hn protein and ash that take the eye and bring highest
than is corn are fed to steers, the corn nriort in anv market Its skin is thin
in the droppings is mnch more readily and paperlike, the flesh fine grained,
found, and the benefit derived by the crisp and mild flavored. Add to this
get but fifty bushels per acre. W.- F.
McSparran.
Fodder Terms.
Roughage includes the coarser and
less nutritious feeds, such as hay,
straw, com xouaei, "- 1 u aota ton M to irlve
Concentrates Include the more nutn- j " ...
Cows That Pay.
Professor Spillman of the Washing
ton experimental station writes: "In
the first place, the paying dairy con
sists of cows that eat heartily and do
not make meat, but do make milk of
their food. This means that they must
be dairy and not beef cows. A good
dairy cow, though she be killed and
easily' prevented by a little trouQ-.e m nog from the feeds other than corn Is that it is a tremendous cropper, ana it t onceuirai V"' ' milk, will give a profit fiat will buy
spraying and cutting oat blight and'not very great, although Jt is belieTed represents almost an Ideal product in 'tlons feeds, such as corn, whiat bran, J" , w
back rat Injuries. J. B. S. Nortoa . that some benefit may be derl' d.
' Its line.