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About The gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 19, 1915)
HOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION United States Department of Agriculture Special Page Bulletins and Special Articles Issued by the Government, of Interest to the Northwest; Suggestions Covering a Wide Eange of Activities; Results of Federal Investigations, Etc. 10 Sulphuric Acid Will Remedy "Damping Off" COMMERCIAL sulphuric acid has been found by the United States Department of Agriculture to be an effective remedy for the loss of pine and spruce seedlings from "damp ing off." It is quite common for the soft tissues of these young seedlings to decay so rapidly soon after sprouting that they disappear some times before the nurseryman knows, that there is anything the matter with them. So common Indeed is loss from this source that many nurserymen import their seedling stock from Europe. This, however, is not only troublesome, but danger ous. The white pine blister rust has already been introduced into this country in this way and continued importations of seedlings are cer tain to result in the establishment in the United States of other foreign pests. For this reason the Department attaches much importance to the recent investigations of possible dis infecting agents which will rid the soil of the parasitie fungi which cause "damping off." Of these agents the most satisfactory for commercial use in the majority of cases has been found to be sulphuric acid. Treatment with this acid not only reduces losses from "damping off" but increases germination. The treatment is not expensive, for commercial sulphuric acid can be purchased in quantity at very low rates. At one nursery where careful accounts wore kept it was found that the entire cost of the treatment, in cluding labor, materials and extra waterings, was less than $5 per thousand square feet of bed. On the other hand the saving in the cost of weeding alone, which the treatment made possible, amounted -to 95.30 per thousand square feet. The sulphuric acid is dissolved in water and applied to the beds with a paraffin-coated sprinkler just after the seed is sown and covered. From Va to of a fluid ounce of acid should be used per square foot of bed, dissolved in enough water to make 1 a or 2 piuts of solution. At some nurseries it Is also necessary to water the beds once or twice daily during the germination period to pre vent chemical injury to the seed lings. Individual conditions, how ever, must determine for each nursery whether or not this frequent watering is necessary and exactly how much acid should be used. In some Northern nurseries where soil disinfection has not been re sorted to, Fall sowing has been found to control "damping off" fairly well. At all nurseries where the soil remains frozen during the Winter, it is worth while to test sow ing just before the soil freezes. Ex cessive moisture should be avoided in unsterilized seed beds. The Silo Principle. Go over to the market and buy a quart of fine sauer kraut made from home-grown flat dutch cabbage. Having the kraut next purchase a sparerib or two. Cook the two ar ticles thoroughly and the result will be a dish fit for the Kaiser, when he is good and hungry. Now how would a dish prepared in this way compare with a mess of sun-dried cabbage leaves for palatabllity and nutrition? When this question is answered you will be able to understand the value of a silo, the preserved ripening corn precisely as the matured cabbage is put up. Can there be any question about the practicability of silos, espe cially in this Western country, where all kinds of feed are so expensive and where the climate dries out the fod der in the shock so that it tastes like a hemlock shingle? Sudan for Soiling. With reference to feeding Sudan grass as a catch and soiling crop, Mr. A. M. Augustine, secretary Illinois State Horticultural Society, says in a private communication: "Sudan grass is in my opinion one of the most valuable things that has ever been brought out in this section of the country, especially for a catch crop. It personally gave me wonder ful results for Summer pasture this year. An acre carried two mules and a work horse, all the forage they re ceived from the lfth of July until a few days ago, and still It got ahead of them, so that we had to cut it twice, and got over a ton of hay from the land." Migratory Birds Must " Not Be Shot,' Says Law FROM the number of letters which they have received on the sub ject recently, officials of the Depart ment of Agriculture believe that sportsmen may unintentionally vio late the provisions of the Federal Migratory Bird law, which It is the purpose of the Government to en force rigidly. Under the provisions of this law no water fowl can be shot in the Northern or breeding zone after January 15, except in New Jersey, where the season extends to February 1. In most of the Southern or Win tering zone the season closes Febru ary 1, but extends to February 15 In Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. These regulations were proclaimed on October 1, 1914. As a matter of fact, the law pro vides that all changes in the regula tions must be considered for a per iod of 90 days, and then must be ap proved and signed by the President, before they become effective. It Is thus evident that there is no possi bility that the prohibition of Spring shooting win be in any way modified this year. The officials of the" United States Department of Agriculture who ate entrusted with the enforcement of the law are anxious that these facts be impressed upon the people be cause it is the intention to investi gate carefully all reports of viola tions made to the Department's in spectors and wardens and to prose cute all such violations in the Fed eral courts. In this connection it is pointed out that prosecutions may be instituted at any time within three years of the offense. Live Stock Increasing in U. S. A. FOR the first time in many years, information collected by the U. ma S. Department of Agriculture shows that all classes of livestock in the United States are increasing in numbers. Thus the real facts con tradict absolutely sensational re ports that prices for meat and shoes would rise to unprecedented figures in the immediate future. It has even been said that a Government statisti cian predicted meat at 50 cents a 'pound and shoes at $10 a pair with in the next two years. Such a pre diction, the real Government sta tisticians say, is quite unwarranted. On January 1, for example, the number of beef tattle showed an in crease of 3.4 per cent over the num ber a year ago, and an actual in crease of 1,212,000 head. Hitherto the number of beef cattle In the United States has declined steadily since 1910. There are also more milch cows in the country than last year, the increase being 2.5 per cent, or in numbers 525,000. Swine, however, showed the greatest in: crease of all classes 9.6 per cent. On January 1, 1914, there were only 58,933,000 swine in the coun try; on January 1, 1915, 64,618,000. This is accounted for by the fact that the production of swine can be increased more rapidly than that o other classes of livestock and conse quently an enlarged demand can be met more readily. The Facts. The prediction of 50-cent meat and $10 shoes was accompanied by the declaration that France alone has taken from America nearly 3u0, 000 horses within the last five months and that the other cguntries at war have drawn upon our re sources In the same proportion. The facts are that more horses were on the farms of the United States on January 1, 1916, than there were a year before, the increase being 233, 000 head, or 1.1 per cent. So far from France alone having taken 300,000 horses from us, the total exports since the war began have certainly been much less than 100,000 and very likely not over 75,000. Since there are approxi mately 25,000,000 horses altogether in the United Slates, the drain on account of the war is scarcely alarming. It is in fact pointed out by Gov ernment statisticians that the market value of farm horses has actually declined to such an extent that the average is now about $G a head less than a year ago. This de cline is most noticeable in the cotton states and in those states which Aid Foot-and-Mouth Disease Eradication LjNDER the recent urgent defi ' ciency act which was signed by the President oji January 25, $2,500, 000 is now available for the eradica tion of the foot-and-mouth disease. Up to January 1, 1915, the outbreak had cost the Federal Government a total of $2,129,138.04. Of thls"sum $1,840,328.99 represents the Fed eral Government's share of the ex pense of slaughtering affected herds and reimbursing the owners for their loss, of which the Government pays half and the individual states the remaluder. The figures show that exclusive of the work in January, 101, 176 animals havo been slaugh tered. Of these 46,208 were cattle, 47,735 swine, and the remainder sheep and' goats. ( The money now at the disposal of the Department of Agriculture will, it is believed, aid the campaign against the pestilence by enabling the Government to make p'rompt payment to all owners of infected herds, and thus minimize the reluc tance of farmers to have their stock slaughtered. In Illinois, for example, approxi mately $600,000 is now available for this purpose. The loss in that state has been larger than In any other, 36,753 animals, altogether, having been slaughtered. Pennsylvania comes next with 17,896 animals, and Ohio third with 10,111. None of the 16 other states in which there was an outbreak has lost as mauv as 8000. The range In Colfax County, New Mexico, Is unusually fine. Ranchers have been able to take beef right off the range without feeding. make a business of breeding horses for sale in other sections. Mules have declined even more than horses, their value being now $11.50 per head less than a year ago. The explanation Is to be found in the depression on account of the cot ton situation in the South, which is the great market for mules. An im provement In this respect will do much to restore the demand for horses, so that Government special ists while ridiculing the notion of a horse famine are convinced that farmers will find it profitable to use good work mares for breeding more stock. Situation In Hides. As for hides, the situation Is not quite so clear, but even here there has been much gross exaggeration. From two-fifths to less than one-half of the leather used In this country 1b imported, about 25 per cent of the foreign hides coming from Argentina, 15 per cent from Canada, 11 per cent from Mexico, & per cent from European Russia, and 7 per cent from France. Since the outbreak of the war, importations have shown a certain falling off, those for Septem ber, 1914, for example, being only 34,000,000 pounds, instead of 45, 000,000 pounds the year previous. There is, however, little reason to suppose that this decrease will be permanent or of sufficient Im portance to create any real scarcity. Since the great bulk of the imported hides come from countries that are not at war, shipments are not Inter fered with In any way, and the oniy new factor to be considered is the possibility of an increased demand by the warring countries. It Is believed, however, that the United States is now in a better con dition to face such a situation than for years past. The tide, It seems, has turned. Instead of livestock steadily decreasing year after year, this year for the first time, as has been said, all classes show an ap preciable Increase. Including horses, mules, milch cows, beef cattle, sheep and swine, there were on Jan uary 1, 1915, 7,712,000 more farm animals in the United States than on January 1, 1914. The increase In the total value was $78,024,000, or 1.3 per cent. It Is quite true that this increase Is not yet proportional to the in crease In population, which is ap proximately 2 per cent; but the fact that there Is an Increase, that the tide seems definitely to have turned, Is regarded as a sufficient answer to alarming exaggerations and mislead ing figures. Government Will Stop Adulteration of Oats SEVENTY-FIVE carloads of oats intended for export have recently been seized by the Federal authorities because they were found to be adul terated within the meaning of the Food aud Drugs Act. The adultera tion charged Is the addition of feed barley or water or both. Under cer tain circumstances adulteration In these ways may be so profitable that it is believed to be at times a com mon practice among grain shippers. The Government, however, is de termined that the practice shall cease at once, and field representa tives of the Department of Agricul ture have all been Instructed to ex ercise the utmost vigilance In de tecting future shipments adulterated in this way. Low grade barley which Is known to the trade as "feed barley," 1b sometimes mixed with oats when there is sufficient difference between the prices of the two grains to make this profitable. This "feed barley" Is the product which remains after the best grade of the grain has been separated and removed for malting purposes. It contains material percentages of weed seeds, foreign grains and dust, and the addition to oats of such a product is held to be a violation of the Food and Drugs Act. The ad dition of water to oats arises from the fact that the grain is sold by weight. Investigations of the De partment of Agriculture have re vealed the fact that water is some times added in the amount of from 2 to 4 per cent. In the opinion of the Government officials there is no reason why either of these practices should be tolerated. Grain shippers and deal ers, therefore, are being warned that the prevalence of the custom in the past will not affect the legal pro ceedings against future shipments found to be adulterated In this way. Utilization of Wood Waste Is Profitable IT has been estimated by the Forest Service that 1,500,000 cords of wood waste is consumed annually as refuse In the Pacific ' Northwest This would be sufficient to yiold 195 billion cubic feet of producer gas, and develop from it 1125 million k. w. h. of electric energy. Thus far the most extensive de velopment of wood gas producers has been In France and Sweden. Plauts are operated also In England, India and Mexico. In this country there are a few producer plants operating In the South and Southwest. In the former region producer gas is being generated from wood waste, com posed of 50 per cent sawdust and 60 per cent sawmill hog. The cost per brake horsepower hour was found to be 22 mills, half of which was for fuel and half for labor. Using coal in the same way, the cost was a frac tion over 28 mills per brake horse power hour, 7H mills being for labor. Through these various oper ations, It has been found also that wood has the following advantages over coal: 1. Very little ash and that easily removable. 2. High grade of gas. 3. Much less tar and that of more liquid character. 4. Constant quality of gas with little labor. 5. Low cost per horsepower hour. Among the present uses of pro ducer gas as a heating medium are ennoallng, enameling, Japanning, boI dering, forging, coffee roasting, glass finishing, paper drying, in lime and cement kilns, pottery kilns, glass fur naces, bakei'B' ovens and laundry Irons. In view of the fact that there Is much wood waste in the Northwest, the process of utilizing It In the gas producer and gas engine Is one which seems to have a good chance for larg er development. It Is a more eco nomical method of producing power than by burning wood under steam boilers, especially where such small waste as shavings and sawdust can be used. , The District Forester, Portland, Or., will furnish further Information to those who may be particularly la-terestcd.
