a
ITOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION
Oregon Agricultural College is the Friend of the Farmer
Page of News Notes and Interesting Articles Specially Written by College Experts For This Newspaper.
"'mwnmr ss
View of
BISE IN FRUIT PRICES FROM
ORCHARD TO TABLE.
SUCH fruit is sold in tlio orchard
at about a dollar a box, and in
ths home of consumers at three
to five dollars a bor. It is not easy to
Bay in all cases just where the extra
prices are attached to the nrndueera '
price, but Dr. Hector Macpherson, pro-
ieaaor or. beonomies at Oregon Agricul
tural College, cites tho following cases
where this has been successfully done.
Growers of Wenatehee Valley receiv
ed $1.45 per box for extra fancy Jona
than's, and consumers in Chicago paid
for tho same fruit $8.00 per box. The
difference, $6.55, was distributed 10
eents to Growers' Association, 50 ccnt9
to railway company, $2 to wholesaler
and $3.50 to retailer.
Baldwin apples grown in Massachu
setts brought the producers $2.25 per
. barrel, and cost consumers in Boston
$7.50 per barrel. The difference, $5.25,
was distributed 25 cents to pickers, 25
cents for barrel, 25 cents for freight,
tS eents for commission, 15 eents for
sorting, 10 cents for carting, $2.00 to
wholesaler and $1.50 to retailer.
Oranges that netted California grow
en $1.07 per box cost consumers in New
England $3 per box. The difference,
$li3, was distributed 40 eents to pack
ers and sellers, 93 eents to eooling and
shipping, and 60 cents to retailer.
Only in the ease of the oranges did
the grower receive much more than
either of the two selling firms, and in
esse of western apples he received less
than the wholesaler and less than half
as much as the retailet, notwithstanding
his heavy investment and year's labor.
Ths oranges were produced and sold un
der effective organization conditions.
EXTRA! TEACHERS AS LEADERS.
rtE rural teacher's biggest field of
work is forwarding the new de
velopments of community life in
their districts, acocrding to A. I.
O'Reilly, rural supervisor of Lane
eonnty. Mr. O'Reilly, who is the first
Oregon teacher successfully to put into
praetico the home credit system, made
the teacher's importance in tho social
life of the district the leading point
in bis address before the teachers of the
O. A. C. summer school. Community or
ganization and eo-operation, and other
forms of social effort in the eonntry,
demand the best thought and effort of
the rural teacher. It was also claimed
that those schools prosper best educa
tionally whose teachers become leaders
socially.
STANDARDIZATION OF FRUIT.
II STANDARDIZATION is as neces
4 sary as organization in solving
the marketing problems of the
Northwest fruit men," Bays Professor
J. Lewis, who has labored for eight
years in the Agricultural College and
among the growers of Oregon to bring
abont organization. This organization
has been effected by forming loeal as
sociations that aro affiliated with vast
distributing associations that are power
ful enough to cara for the growers' in
terests. But tho work of standardiza
tion has only just begun.
"We must find out what standards
are wanted by tho trade, and then es
tablish them accordingly. When once
established, they must be rigidly main
tained, so that dealers and consumers
may know precisely what they will get
when they put in an order. In fact, it
is only the standards that the trade
eares anything about, and if it could
standardize fruit through individual
growers in sufficient quantities, it
would be satisfied. But organization
makes the establishment and mainte
nance of standards possible, and tho
Oregon Agricultural College. Corvallis,
growers are now in a position to pro
ceed with standardization.
"To secure the data upon which
standards can bo based, we have begun
extensive research and survey work,
We are following the prune at every
stage of its journey from the tree to
tho table, to learn what standards are
most acceptable and profitable. Like
surveys must be made with each of the
other important fruits before the de
sirable classes and standards can be
fixed.
"More work has been done in stand
ardizing by-products than in standard
izing fresh fruit, and the marketing is
far more successful. The lesson of this
is plain."
LIVESTOCK AND DAIRYING EX
TENSION DEPARTMENTS.
GENERAL animal husbandry has
been separated from dairying in
the Extension work of the Agri
cultural College, and placed in charge
of a farm animal specialist, Professor
Ralph Reynolds, formerly a stockman
of Union county. These two important
subjects of farm and dairy industries
have been in charge of Professor E. B.
Fitts, who will now be able to give all
his attention to extension work in
dairying, while Professor Reynolds will
devote all his time to extension work
with horses, eattle, sheep and swine.
Professor Beynolds, who is a gradu
ate of the Agricultural College and of
the University of Wisconsin, will visit
the stock raisers of the state and con
fer with them on the various phases
of the livestock industry. Questions of
feeding and managing farm animals
will be considered, but the subject of
better herds, secured by better sires
and by other means, will receive an ex
tra share of attention. It is expected
that this phase of the work will be ad
vanced rapidly, since farmers are gen
erally beginning to take much interest
in improving their herds.
HOW FARMERS BUT AND SELL.
FARMERS generally receive the low
est price that their produce is ever
sold for, and pay tho highest prices
that their supplies ever command. This
condition, according to economists at
the Oregon Agricultural College, is but
one of the evils of the present system
of unorganized marketing. While it is
natural that produce prices should rise
as they travel from the producer, it is
very burdensome when middlemen ab
sorb, as at present, from 50 to 60 per
cent of the cost to the consumer. Since
nearly all the added cost is a result of
wasteful methods of city distribution,
consumers as well as producer should
organize to eliminate the waste. High
prices charged to farmers are caused in
part by the extravagant methods of
city retail trade, since farmers pay a
share of the small phone order, immedi
ate delivery and other expenses, al
though getting none of its benefits.
PRESERVING EGGS.
HtGG8 may be preserved for sev
d eral months by different meth
ods," says Professor James
Dryden of the poultry department of
the Oregon Agricultural College.
The Lime Method Dissolve a pound
of lime in five gallons of water. The
water should be boiled previously to
sterilize it, and then cooled. Stir thor
ougbly, and let settle. Then pour off
the clear liquid into a wooden or earth
en jar or tub. Fill with eggs to within
an inch of the top of the liquid. This
will allow for evaporation. The liquid
should not be allowed to get lower than
the top of the eggs. When the vessel is
filled with eggs, cover it with coarse
muslin or factory, over which spread
mr,, T-ymir-
Oregon, the Sole Aim of Which Is to Aid
a paste of lime to exelude the air.
The Water-Glass Method " Water
glass (sodium silicate) may be pur
chased at the drug stores. Use the
liquid form and the commercial grade
in the proportions of ono part water
glass to eight parts water. Use earthen
jars or wooden tubs or barrels that ore
perfectly clean, and store in a cloan,
cool place. The material used will cost
about a cent for each dozen eggs
stored."
BETTER RURAL SCHOOLS.
HAT public opinion in tho country
should be educated to the point
where it demands as good educa
tional facilities for the country boys
and girls as for tho city children, is the
view of Miss Ida Mae Smith, rural
school supervisor of Yamhill county, as
presented in an address on rural schools
before the summer school session of the
Oregon Agricultural College. Farmers
have advanced modern views in regard
to the qnaility of their horses and
cattle, their machinery and their crops.
With this commendable idea of these
material things, it should be easy to
get the farmers to accept a like high
standard of schools for their children.
City people voluntarily tax themselves
to build good school buildings, buy first
class equipment and hire the best of
teachers. When the roral districts are
as liberally supported the quality and
quantity of work done in them will
measure up with that of the city school.
The speaker thinks that the country boy
and girl are entitled to this considera
tion, and will soon have it.
USES OF SUMMER PRUNING.
1 1 RUMMER pruning is for wood on
9 the one hand or for fruit on the
other," says Professor C. I.
Lewis, horticulturist at the Oregon
Agricultural College. "The old adage,
'Prune in winter for wood and in sum
mer for fruit,' is altogether too general.
The amount and time of pruning and
the age and kind of tree are the deter
mining factors in summer pruning. It
may bo performed to provide denser
shade by forcing out a greater supply
of laterals, to shape the tree and con
trol the habit of growth, to remove
watersprouts or other undesirable
growths, to suppress over rank branches
or to correct undesirablo fruiting habits.
As applied for wood, summer pruning
is most useful in the first three years
of the tree's life, bnt it is sometimes
used to correct the effect of over-
pruning in winter. Judiciously employ
ed summer pruning may gain a year in
tho development of tho tree, but grow
ers that are inexperienced in this prac
tice aro advised to prune sparingly and
watch closely the effects until the best
method are developed. "
DISLODGING THE DANDELION.
DANDELIONS that escaped spudding
out last spring when the lawn was
cleaned up may be set back and
killed by ono or more applications of a
good herbicide, following the recom
mendations of the Botany and Plant
Pathology department, Oregon Agricul
tural College. Kerosene, applied to the
crown or center roots, is one of the
treatments recommended. A small table
spoonful of salt applied in the morning
of a hot day when tho soil is dry is said
to kill dandelions, although this niay
have to be repeated one or more times.
Sulphate of ammonia is another detri
mental substance. Sulphato of iron is
the most generally endorsed chemical
plant killer, and may bo applied as a
dry salt to the center of the rosette.
It is most often made up into a spray
by dissolving about two pounds of the
sulphate in ono gallon of water. This
kills young plants and injures Ibe oldor
X" TnittaJI
Agriculturists.
ones, which are killed only by repeated
applications. It should not be applied
for several days either before or after
the lawn is mowed, since it may kill
very young leaves of the lawn plants.
It discolors tho lawn, walks, clothing,
etc., but docs the lawn no permanent
injury, according to the manufacturers
of iron sulphate.
MUSTARD SOLD FOR RAPE.
RAPE SEED for sowing a 20acr
field was recently purchased by a
Lane County farmer for forage
purposes. When about to begin sow
ing the seed tho farmer became suspi
cious that it was very badly adulter
ated, if indeed it was rape seed at all
To determine tho matter he called upon
the county farm demonstration agent,
Floyd W. Rader, who at onco pro
nounced the seed to bo muRtard,
Samples were sent to the co operative
seed testing laboratory of tho Agricul
tural College for final determination,
and wore pronounced all mustard by
the expert tester in charge. Had the
seed been sown the loss would have
been heavy, including money, time,
labor and an enormous erop of weed
pests for years to come. Evidences are
accumulating that it pays to have seed
tested for purity and for germination
strength.
ALFALFA FOB FARM SHEEP.
BANDS of sheep prosper on alfalfs
hay and pasture in Central Ore
gon, according to a report mado to
the O. A. C. Extension division by
County Farm Agent A. E. Lovctt. A
Crook county farmer bought 200 ewes
last year at $2 each. This spring he
realized a 125 per cent increase from
lambs and secured 12 pounds of wool
from the fleece of each sheep. He is
breeding for January lambs, but will
sell off the poorer members of the flock.
This band of sheep was kept on a forty
acre farm, chiefly on alfalfa hay and
pasture.
HOMECRAFTS FOB HOUSEWIVES.
OREGON housewives as well as col
lego students will be given an op
portunity to learn house-craft at
the Oregon Agricultural College. An in
structor, Miss Helen Peer, has been ap-
pointea to teach house decoration, Bew
ing, dressmaking and tailoring, design
ing, weaving and basketry. Her in
struction wil be given to tho vocation
course students, thus making a way
whereby broad and hcloful ririncinles
of house keeping will be open to the
present nome-makers of tho state. Miss
Peer was graduated from Pratt Uni
versity and has since engaged in teach
ing, iiast summer she was supervisor
of the Daily Vacation Bible School of
Greater New York, in which capacity
hub is Bum io navo Deen splendid, net
former associates think that Oregon
women are very fortunate in their op.
portnnity to study borne-making under
her diretcion.
ENTOMOLOGIST APPOINTED.
LEROY CHILD8, who has been aa
assistant in the offiee of the Cali
fornia Horticultural Cnmmi
since finishing his college work at tha
Stanford University, has boon appoint
ed an assistant professor of entomology
at the Oregon Agricultural College,
iroiessor jiiiius was ranked by his
teachers at Stanford as one of the vory
best students graduated by the insti
tution, and is said to be unusually effi
cient in his office and field work for
the commission. He will do special work
here in lorest entomology, studying in
sects that damage limber and timber
Iproducts, and methods of their control