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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of One Thousand Questions in California Agriculture Answered
+by E.J. Wickson
+
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+*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of Volunteers!*****
+
+
+Title: One Thousand Questions in California Agriculture Answered
+
+Author: E.J. Wickson
+
+Release Date: February, 2004  [EBook #5152]
+[Yes, we are more than one year ahead of schedule]
+[This file was first posted on May 15, 2002]
+
+Edition: 10
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, ONE THOUSAND QUESTIONS IN CALIFORNIA AGRICULTURE ANSWERED ***
+
+
+
+
+This eBook was produced by David Schwan <davidsch@earthlink.net>.
+
+
+
+One Thousand Questions in California Agriculture Answered
+
+
+
+By E. J. Wickson
+
+Professor of Horticulture, University of California; Editor of Pacific
+Rural Press; Author of "California Fruits and How to Grow Them" and
+"California Vegetables in Garden and Field," etc.
+
+
+
+Foreword
+
+
+
+This brochure is not a systematic treatise in catechetical form intended
+to cover what the writer holds to be most important to know about
+California agricultural practices. It is simply a classified arrangement
+of a thousand or more questions which have been actually asked, and to
+which answers have been undertaken through the columns of the Pacific
+Rural Press, a weekly journal of agriculture published in San Francisco.
+Whatever value is claimed for the work is based upon the assumption that
+information, which about seven hundred people have actually asked for,
+would be also interesting and helpful to thousands of other people. If
+you do not find in this compilation what you desire to know, submit your
+question to the Pacific Rural Press, San Francisco, in the columns of
+which answers to agricultural questions are weekly set forth at the rate
+of five hundred or more each year.
+
+This publication is therefore intended to answer a thousand questions
+for you and to encourage you to ask a thousand more.
+
+E. J. Wickson.
+
+
+
+Contents
+
+
+
+    Part I. Fruit Growing
+   Part II. Vegetable Growing
+  Part III. Grain and Forage Crops
+   Part IV. Soils, Irrigation, and Fertilizers
+    Part V. Live Stock and Dairy
+   Part VI. Feeding Animals
+  Part VII. Diseases of Animals
+Part VIII. Poultry Keeping
+   Part IX. Pests and Diseases of Plants
+    Part X. Index
+
+
+
+Part I. Fruit Growing
+
+
+
+Depth of Soil for Fruit.
+
+
+
+Would four feet of good loose soil be enough for lemons?
+
+Four feet of good soil, providing the underlying strata are not charged
+with alkali, would give you a good growth of lemon trees if moisture was
+regularly present in about the right quantity, neither too much nor too
+little, and the temperature conditions were favorable to the success of
+this tree, which will not stand as much frost as the orange.
+
+
+
+Temperatures for Citrus Fruits.
+
+
+
+What is the lowest temperature at which grapefruit and lemons will
+succeed?
+
+The grapefruit tree is about as hardy as the orange; the lemon is much
+more tender. The fruit of citrus trees will be injured by temperature at
+the ordinary freezing point if continued for some little time, and the
+tree itself is likely to be injured by a temperature of 25 or 27° if
+continued for a few hours. The matter of duration of a low temperature
+is perhaps quite as important as the degree which is actually reached by
+the thermometer. The condition of the tree as to being dormant or active
+also affects injury by freezing temperatures. Under certain conditions
+an orange tree may survive a temperature of 15° Fahrenheit.
+
+
+
+Roots for Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+I wish to bud from certain trees that nurseries probably do not carry,
+as they came from a seedling. Is there more than one variety of
+myrobalan used, and if so, is one as good as another? If I take sprouts
+that come up where the roots have been cut, will they make good trees? I
+have tried a few, now three years old, and the trees are doing nicely so
+far, but the roots sprout up where cut. I am informed that if I can
+raise them from slips they will not sprout up from the root. Will
+apricots and peaches grafted or budded on myrobalan produce fruit as
+large as they will if grafted on their own stock?
+
+Experience seems to be clear that from sprouts you will get sprouts. We
+prefer rooted cuttings to sprouts, but even these are abandoned for
+seedling roots of the common deciduous fruits and of citrus fruits also.
+The apricot does well enough on the myrobalan if the soil needs that
+root; they are usually larger on the peach root or on apricot seedlings.
+The peach is no longer worked on the myrobalan in this State. One
+seedling of the cherry plum is about as good a myrobalan as another.
+
+
+
+What Will the Sucker Be?
+
+
+
+I have a Japanese plum tree which bears choice plums. Three years ago a
+strong young shoot came up from the root of it, which I dug out and
+planted. Will it make a bearing tree in time and be of like quality with
+the parent?
+
+It will certainly bear something when it gets ready. Whether it will be
+like the parent tree depends upon the wood from which the sucker broke
+out. If the young tree was budded very low, or if it was planted low, or
+if the ground has been shifted so as to bring the wood above the bud in
+a place to root a sucker, the fruit will be that of the parent tree. If
+the shoot came from the root below the bud, you will get a duplication
+of whatever stock the plum was budded on in the nursery. It might be a
+peach or an almond or a cherry plum. Of course you can study the foliage
+and wood growth of the sucker, and thus get an idea of what you may
+expect.
+
+
+
+Tree Planting on Coast Sands.
+
+
+
+I wish to plant fruit trees on a sandy mesa well protected from winds
+about a mile from the coast. The soil is a light sandy loam. I intend to
+dig the holes for the trees this fall, each hole the shape of an
+inverted cone, about 4 feet deep and 5 feet across, and put a half-load
+of rotten stable manure in each hole this fall. The winter's rains would
+wash a large amount of plant food from this manure into the ground. In
+March I propose to plant the trees, shoveling the surrounding soil on
+top of the manure and giving a copious watering to ensure the compact
+settling of the soil about and below the roots. The roots would be about
+a foot above the manure.
+
+On such a light sandy soil you can use stable manure more safely than
+you could elsewhere, providing you have water handy to use if you should
+happen to get too much coarse matter under the tree, which would cause
+drying out of the soil. If you do get plenty of water to guard against
+this danger, you are likely to use too much and cause the trees to grow
+too fast. Be very sure the manure is well rotted and use one load to ten
+holes instead of two. Whether you kill the trees or cause them to grow
+aright depends upon how you use water after planting.
+
+
+
+A Wrong Idea of Inter-Planting.
+
+
+
+What forage plant can I grow in a newly planted orchard? The soil is on
+a gently inclined hillside - red, decomposed rock, very deep, mellow,
+fluffy, and light, and deep down is clayish in character. It cannot be
+irrigated, therefore I wish to put out a drought-resisting plant which
+could be harvested, say, in June or July, or even later. I find the
+following plants, but I cannot decide which one is the best: Yellow soja
+bean, speltz, Egyptian corn, Jerusalem corn, yellow Milo maize, or one
+of the millets. What do you think?
+
+Do not think for a moment about planting any such plant between orchard
+trees which are to subsist on rainfall without irrigation. Your trees
+will have difficulty enough in making satisfactory growth on rainfall,
+and would be prevented from doing so if they had to divide the soil
+moisture with crops planted between them. The light, deep soils which
+you mention, resulting from decomposed rock, are not retentive enough,
+and, even with the large rainfall of your region, may require irrigation
+to carry trees through the latter summer and early fall growth.
+
+
+
+What Slopes for Fruit?
+
+
+
+I want to plant some apples and berries. One man says plant them on the
+east or south slope of the hill and they will be ripe early. Another man
+says not to do that, for when the sun hits the trees or vines in the
+morning before the frost is off, it will kill all the blossoms, and as
+they would be on the warm side of the hill they would blossom earlier
+and there will be more frosts to injure them. I am told to plant them on
+the north or west side of the hill, where it is cold, and they will
+blossom later and will therefore have less frosts to bother them, and
+the frost will be almost off before the sun hits them in the morning.
+
+Fruit is grown on all slopes in our foothills, depending on local
+conditions. On the whole, we should choose the east and north slopes
+rather than the east and south, because there is less danger of injury
+from too great heat. In some cases what is said to you about the less
+danger of injury from frosts on the north and west slopes would be true.
+All these things depend upon local conditions, because there is so much
+difference in heat and frost and similar slopes at different elevations
+and exposures. There can never be a general rule for it in a State so
+endowed with varying conditions as California is.
+
+
+
+Trees Over Underflow.
+
+
+
+I have planted fruit trees near the creek, where they do not have to be
+irrigated as the ground there holds sufficient moisture for them, but a
+neighbor tells me that on account of the moisture being so near the
+surface the trees will not bear fruit well, although they will grow and
+have all the appearances of health.
+
+Shallow soil above standing water is not good for fruit trees. A shallow
+soil over moving water or underflow, such as you might expect from a
+creek bank, is better. The effect of water near the surface depends also
+upon the character of the soil, being far more dangerous in the case of
+a heavy clay soil than in the case of a light loam, through which water
+moves more readily and does not rise so far or so rapidly by capillary
+action. If the trees are thrifty they will bear when they attain a
+sufficient age and stop the riotous growth which is characteristic of
+young trees with abundant moisture. If trees have too much water for
+their health, it will be manifested by the rotting of their roots, the
+dying of their branches, the cropping out of mushroom fungi at the base
+and other manifestations of distress. So long as the tree is growing
+well, maintains good foliage to the tip of the branches and is otherwise
+apparently strong, it may be expected to bear fruit in due time.
+
+
+
+The "June Drop."
+
+
+
+I am sending four peaches which are falling off the trees. Can you tell
+me how to prevent falling of the fruit next year and what causes it?
+
+It is impossible to tell from the peaches which you send what caused
+their falling. Where fruit passes the pollination stage successfully, as
+these fruits have, the dropping is generally attributed to some
+conditions affecting the growth of the tree, which never have been fully
+determined. It is of such frequent occurrence that it is called the June
+drop, and it usually takes place in May in California. As the cause is
+not understood no rational preventive has been reached. A general
+treatment which consists in keeping the trees in good growing condition
+late enough during the previous season, that is, by seeing to it that
+they do not suffer from lack of moisture which causes them to close
+their growing season too soon before preparation for the following
+year's crop is made, is probably the best way to strengthen the tree for
+its burden.
+
+
+
+Trees Over a Gravel Streak.
+
+
+
+I have an apricot orchard seven years old. Most of the land is a fairly
+heavy clay with a strip of gravel in the middle running nearly north and
+south. The trees on the clay bear good crops, but those on the gravel
+are usually much lighter in bearing and this year had a very light crop.
+Can you tell me of anything I can do to make them bear? The trees are
+large and healthy looking, and grow big crops of brush.
+
+We should try some water in July on the gravel streak, hoping to
+continue activity in the tree later to induce formation of strong fruit
+for the following year. On the clay loam the soil does this by its
+superior retentiveness.
+
+
+
+Fruit and Overflow.
+
+
+
+I have 16 acres of rich bottom-land that overflows and is under water
+from 24 to 48 hours. I would like to set the ground to fruit trees,
+either prunes, pears, apricots, or peaches. Would it be safe to set them
+on such land?
+
+Fruit trees will endure overflowing, providing the water does not
+exclude the air too long and providing the soil is free enough so that
+the soil does not remain full of water after the surface flow
+disappears. If the soil does not naturally drain itself and the water is
+forced to escape by surface evaporation, probably the situation is not
+satisfactory for any kind of fruit trees. Overflow is more likely to be
+dangerous to fruit trees during the growing season than during the
+dormant season, and yet on well-drained soil even a small overflow may
+not be injurious on a free soil, if not continued too long. Prunes on
+plum root, and pears will endure wet soil better than apricots or
+peaches.
+
+
+
+Fruit Trees and Sunburn.
+
+
+
+How long is it wise to leave protection around young fruit trees set out
+in March in this hot valley? The trees are doing well, but we could not
+tell when to take away protection.
+
+It is necessary to maintain the protection from sunburn all through the
+autumn, for the autumn sun is often very hot, and as the sap flow
+lessens, the danger of burning is apparently greater. The bark also must
+be protected against the spring sunshine, even before the leaves appear.
+So long as the sun has a chance at the bark, you must protect it from
+sunburn.
+
+
+
+Replanting in Orchard.
+
+
+
+Is it considered a good plan to set the tree at once in the place where
+one has died, or is it better to wait a year before replacing?
+
+It is not necessary to wait a year in making a replanting. Get out all
+the old roots you can by digging a large hole, fill in with fresh soil,
+and your tree will accept the situation.
+
+
+
+Whole Roots or Piece Roots.
+
+
+
+For commercial apple orchards which is preferable, trees grafted on
+piece roots or on whole roots? On behalf of the piece-root trees it is
+claimed they sprout up less around the tree. On the other hand, it is
+claimed they never make a vigorous tree. What is the truth?
+
+Value depends rather upon what sort of a growth the tree makes afterward
+than upon what it starts upon. Theoretically perhaps a whole-root tree
+may be demonstrated to be better; practically, we cannot see that it
+becomes so necessarily, because we have trees planted at a time when the
+root graft on a piece was the general rule in propagation. After all, is
+it not more important to have soil conditions and culture of such
+character that a great root can grow in the orchard than to have a whole
+nursery concentrated in the root of the yearling tree? As for the claim
+that a root graft on a piece-root never makes a vigorous tree, we know
+that is nonsense.
+
+
+
+Planting Deciduous Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+In order to gain time, I have thought of planting apples and pears this
+fall, in the belief I would be just that much nearer a crop, than though
+I waited until next spring. The land is sandy loam; no irrigation. Would
+you advise fall or spring planting? If fall, would it be best to plow
+the land now, turning in the stubble from hay crop, or wait until time
+to plant before plowing?
+
+You will not be any nearer a crop, for next summer's growth will be the
+first in either case. On land not liable to be too wet in winter, it is,
+however, best to plant early, say during the month of December, if the
+ground is in good condition and sufficiently moist. If the year's
+rainfall has been scant, wait until the land is well wet down, for it is
+never desirable to plant when the soil is not in the right condition, no
+matter what the calendar may say. On a sandy loam early planting is
+nearly always safe and desirable. On lands which are too wet and liable
+to be rendered very cold by the heavy January rains, planting had better
+be deferred until February, or as soon as the ground gets in good
+condition after these heavy rains. Whenever you plant, it will be
+desirable to plow the land either in advance of the rains, if it is
+workable, or as soon as rain enough comes to make it break up well. It
+is very seldom desirable to postpone plowing until the actual time of
+planting comes.
+
+
+
+Budding Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+Is it better to bud in old bark of an old tree or in younger wood bark?
+How do you separate old bark without breaking it in lifting the bark?
+
+Buds may be placed in old bark of fruit trees to a certain extent. The
+orange and the olive work better that way than do the deciduous trees,
+although buds in old bark of the peach have done well. They should,
+however, be inserted early in the season while the sap flow is active
+and the old bark capable of lifting; if the bark sticks, do not try
+budding. In spite of these facts, nearly all budding of deciduous trees
+is done in bark of the current year's growth.
+
+
+
+Starting Fruit Trees from Seed.
+
+
+
+How shall I start, and when, the following seeds: Peach, plums,
+apricots, walnuts, olives and cherries? In the East we used to plant
+them in the fall, so as to have them freeze; as it does not freeze
+enough here, what do I have to do?
+
+Do just the same. In California, heat and moisture cause the parting of
+the seed-cover, more slowly perhaps, but just as surely as the frost at
+the East. Early planting of all fruit pits and nuts is desirable for two
+reasons. First, it prevents too great drying and hardening and other
+changes in the seed, because the soil moisture prevents it; second, it
+gives plenty of time for the opening and germination first mentioned.
+But early planting must be in ground which is loamy and light rather
+than heavy, because if the soil is so heavy as to become water-logged
+the kernel is more apt to decay than to grow. Where there is danger of
+this, the seed can be kept in boxes of sand, continually moist, but not
+wet, by use of water, and planted out, as sprouting seeds, after the
+coldest rains are over, say in February. Cherry and plum seeds should be
+kept moist after taking from the fruit; very little is usually had from
+dry seeds. The other fruits will stand considerable drying. Very few
+olives are from the seed, because of reversion to wild types - also
+because it is so much easier to get just the variety you want by growing
+trees from cuttings.
+
+
+
+Mailing Scions.
+
+
+
+Which is the best way to send scions by mail?
+
+Wax the ends of mature cuttings, remove the leaves and enclose in a
+tight tin canister with no wet packing material.
+
+
+
+Nursery Stock in Young Orchard.
+
+
+
+How will it do to raise, for two or three years, a lot of orange
+seedlings between the rows of young three-year-old orange trees? I see
+that a nurseryman near me has done this, and his trees are more
+flourishing than mine.
+
+It can be done all right, as your own observation affirms. The superior
+appearance of the trees may be due to the additional water, and
+fertilizer probably, used to push the seedlings; possibly also to extra
+cultivation given them. It all depends upon what policy is observed in
+growing the seedlings; if something more than usual is done for their
+sakes, the trees may get their share and manifest it. If not, the trees
+will be robbed by the seedlings, and there is likely to be loss by both.
+There is no advantage in the mere fact that both are grown; there may be
+in the way they are grown. Whether there is money value in the operation
+or not depends upon how many undertake it.
+
+
+
+Square or Triangular Planting.
+
+
+
+What is your opinion on triangular planting as compared with square
+planting?
+
+
+
+Planting in squares is the prevailing method. The triangular plan is not
+a good one when one contemplates removing trees planted as fillers. The
+orchard should either be planned in the square or quincunx form. In the
+latter case individual trees can be easily removed; in the other case
+rows can be removed - leaving the rows which you wish to keep
+equidistant from each other.
+
+
+
+Killing Stumps by Medication.
+
+
+
+Will boring into green stumps and inserting a handful of saltpeter kill
+the roots and cause the stump to readily burn up a few months later?
+
+We have tried all kinds of prescriptions and have never killed a stump
+which had a mind to live. Many trees can be killed by cutting to stumps
+when in full growth, whether they are bored or not. Others will sprout
+in spite of all medicinal insertions we know of when these are placed in
+the inner wood of the stump. We believe a stump can be killed by
+sufficient contact with the inner bark layer of arsenic, bluestone,
+gasoline, and many other things, but it is not easy to arrange for such
+sufficient contact, and it would probably cost more than it would to
+blow or pull out the stump. One reader, however, assures us that he has
+killed large eucalyptus stumps by boring three holes in the stump with
+an inch auger, near the outer rim of the stump, placing therein a
+tablespoonful of potassium cyanide and saltpeter mixture (half and
+half), and plugging tightly. Another says: Give the stumps a liberal
+application of salt, say a half-inch all over the top, and let the fog
+and rain dissolve and soak down, and you will not have much trouble with
+suckers.
+
+
+
+Planting Fruit Trees on Clearings.
+
+
+
+We wish to plant orchard trees on land cleared this winter: manzanita
+and chaparral, but also some oaks and large pines and groves of small
+pines. We have been told that trees planted under such conditions, the
+ground containing the many small roots that we cannot get out, would not
+do well. Are the bad effects of the small roots liable to be serious;
+also, would lime or any other common fertilizer counteract the bad
+effects?
+
+Proceed with the planting, as you are ready for it, and take the chances
+of root injury. It may be slight; possibly even absent. Carefully throw
+out all root pieces, as you dig the hole, and exclude them from the
+earth which you use in filling around the roots, and in the places where
+large trees stood, fill the holes with soil from a distance. Much
+depends upon how clean the clearing was. No considerable antiseptic
+effect could be expected from lime and the soil ought to be strong
+enough to grow good young trees without enrichment. The pear, fig and
+California black walnut are some of the most resistant among
+fruit-bearing trees, and these may usually be planted with safety. The
+cherry is the most resistant of the stone fruits. The "toadstool"
+disease occasionally affects young apple trees recently set out, but it
+is not usually serious on established trees.
+
+
+
+Dipping Roots of Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+In planting an almond orchard would it be of any benefit to dip the
+young trees in a solution of bluestone and lime dissolved?
+
+We doubt if it would serve any good purpose. If done at all the dip
+should be carefully prepared in accordance with the formula for bordeaux
+mixture, for excess of bluestone will kill roots. Healthy trees do not
+need such treatment, and we doubt if unhealthy ones can be rendered safe
+or desirable by it.
+
+
+
+Preparing for Fruit Planting.
+
+
+
+What effect will a crop of wheat have on new cleared land, to be planted
+in fruit trees later on?
+
+One crop of wheat or barley will make no particular difference with the
+cleared land which you expect to plant to fruit later. It would be
+better to grow a cultivated crop like corn, potatoes, beets, squashes,
+etc., because this crop would require summer cultivation which would
+kill out many weeds or sprouts and leave your land in better shape for
+planting.
+
+
+
+Depth in Planting Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+I have been advised to plant the bud scar above ground in a wet country.
+Is that right?
+
+On ordinary good loam, plant the tree so that it will stand about the
+same as it did in the nursery: a little lower, perhaps, but not much.
+The bud scar should be a little above the surface. It is somewhat less
+likely to give trouble by decay in the upset tissue. If the soil is
+heavy and wet, plant higher, perhaps, than the nursery soil-mark, but
+not much. In light, sandy soil, plant lower - even from four to six
+inches lower - than in the nursery sometimes. In this case the budscar
+is below the surface, but that does not matter in a light, dry soil
+which does not retain moisture near the surface.
+
+
+
+Fruit Trees in a Wet Place.
+
+
+
+One part of my orchard is low and wet, much scale and old trees loose.
+Will much spraying be a cure and can I use posts to hold the old trees
+firm, or would you take out and put in Bartlett pears!
+
+Spraying would kill the scale but no spraying will make a tree
+satisfactory in inhospitable soil. As pears will endure wet places
+better than apples, it would seem to be wise to make the substitution,
+providing the situation is not too bad for any fruit tree. In that case
+you can use it for a summer vegetable patch.
+
+
+
+Cutting Back at Planting.
+
+
+
+I have planted a lot of one-year-old cherry trees and would like to know
+if I should cut them down the same as the apple tree? I have also
+planted a lot of walnut trees. Shall I cut them off?
+
+Yes for the cherries and no for the walnuts - although we have to admit
+that some planters hold for cutting back the walnuts also. If you do cut
+back the walnuts, let them have about twice the height of stem you give
+the cherries and cover the exposed pith with wax or paint.
+
+
+
+Branching Young Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+It is the practice in this locality to wrap all young trees to a point
+24 inches above the bud, for the purpose of protection against rabbits,
+to protect the bark from the sun and to prevent growth of sprouts. These
+wrappings are kept on indefinitely, the rule being that no sprouting is
+to be permitted below the 24-inch murk. Is there any virtue in this, and
+why is it done?
+
+The wrapping is desirable both to protect them from rabbits and from
+sunburn, and either this or whitewash or some other form of protection
+should certainly be employed against the latter trouble. It is not
+desirable to have all the branches emerge at the same point, either 24
+from the ground or at some lower level, as is preferable in interior
+situations, but branches should be distributed up and down and around
+the trunk so as to give a strong, well-balanced, low-headed tree. So far
+as wrapping interferes with the growth of shoots in this manner it is
+undesirable.
+
+
+
+Coal Tar and Asphaltum on Trees.
+
+
+
+What is the effect of coal tar or asphaltum applied to the bark of
+trees?
+
+The application of coal tar to prevent the root borers of the prune
+which operate near the surface of the ground was found to be not
+injurious to the trees, although there was great apprehension that there
+would be. The application of asphaltum, what is known as "grade D," has
+been also used to some extent in the Santa Clara valley without injury.
+Of course, in the use of any black material, you increase the danger of
+sunburn, if applied to bark which is reached by the sun's rays.
+
+
+
+Whitewashing Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+When is the proper time to whitewash walnut trees to prevent sun scald?
+How high up is it advisable to apply the wash?
+
+Whitewash after heavy rains are over and before the sun gets very hot;
+near the coast see that it is on early in April; in the interior it
+should be in place in March. Do not wait until all the rains are over,
+because there is a great chance of bark-burning between rains in the
+spring. Whitewash the trunk and the larger limbs - wherever the sun can
+reach the bark; being careful to keep the surface white where the 2
+o'clock sun hits it. Be particular to whitewash, or otherwise protect by
+"protectors" or burlap wrappings, all young trees; the young tree is
+more apt to be hurt than an old one, but bark seems never to get too old
+to burn if the sun is hot enough.
+
+
+
+Shaping a Young Tree.
+
+
+
+In shortening back long, slim limbs the side shoots come out, and one
+soon has a lot of ugly, crooked limbs to look at. There are a number of
+orchards here being spoiled in that way. How is this avoided?
+
+You cannot secure a low-heading, well-shaped tree without cutting back
+the branches. Afterward you can improve the form by selecting shoots
+which are going in directions which you prefer, or you can cut back the
+shoots afterward to a bud which will start in the direction which you
+desire. In this way the progressive shaping of the tree must be pursued.
+If you only have a few trees and can afford the time, you can, of
+course, bend and tie the branches as they grow, so that they will take
+directions which seem to you better, but this is not practicable in
+orcharding on a commercial scale. There is no disadvantage in crooked
+branches in a fruit tree, but they should crook in desirable directions,
+and that is where the art in pruning comes in.
+
+
+
+Pruning Times.
+
+
+
+What is the best time to prune the French prune and most other trees? In
+Santa Clara volley they prune as soon as leaves are off; in the
+mountains they prune later, say in February and March, and finish after
+bloom is started and of course when sap is up. Which is right?
+
+You can prune French prunes and other deciduous trees at any time during
+the winter that is most convenient to you. It does not make any
+particular difference to the tree, nor does it injure the tree at all if
+you should continue pruning after the bloom has started. In fact, it is
+better to make large cuts late in the winter, because they heal over
+more readily at the beginning of the growing period than at the
+beginning of the resting season. It is believed that early pruning may
+cause the tree or vine to start growth somewhat sooner and this may be
+undesirable in very frosty places.
+
+
+
+Grafting Wax.
+
+
+
+How shall I make grafting wax for grafting fruit trees?
+
+There are many "favorite prescriptions" for grafting wax. One which is
+now being largely used in fruit tree grafting is as follows: Resin, 5
+lbs.; beeswax, 1 lb.; linseed oil, 1 pint; flour, 1 pint. The flour is
+added slowly and stirred in after the other ingredients have been boiled
+together and the liquid becomes somewhat cooler. Some substitute
+lampblack for flour. This wax is warmed and applied as a liquid.
+
+
+
+Plowing in Young Orchard.
+
+
+
+How near can I plow to two-year-old orange trees safely?
+
+You can plow young orange orchards as close to the trees as you can
+approach without injuring the bark, regulating depth so as not to
+destroy main roots. Destruction of root fibers which have approached too
+near the surface is not material. It is very desirable that the soil
+around and near the tree be as carefully worked as possible without
+injury to the bark of the tree. How far that can be done by horse work
+and how much must be done by hand must be decided by the individual
+judgment of the grower.
+
+
+
+Crops Between Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+What would be best to grow between fruit trees, while the trees are
+growing, and what to alternate each season, so as not to use up the soil
+without putting back into it?
+
+Where one is bringing along a young orchard, without irrigation, it is
+doubtful whether it is not better policy to give the trees all the
+advantage of clean cultivation and ample moisture than to undertake
+intercropping. If you live on the place and wish to grow vegetables
+between the rows, the thorough cultivation to bring the vegetables along
+satisfactorily would help to preserve moisture enough both for the
+vegetables and for the trees, but this is very different from growing a
+field crop by ordinary methods of cultivation. Select a crop which will
+require summer cultivation, like corn, potatoes, squashes, and beans,
+and never a hay or grain crop which takes up moisture without working
+the soil for the greater moisture conversation which hoed crops require.
+In choice of hoed crops be governed by what you can use to advantage,
+either for house or the feeding of animals, or what you can grow that is
+salable with least loss of moisture in the soil. The choice is governed
+entirely by local conditions, except that leguminous plants - peas,
+beans, vetches, clovers, etc. - do take nitrogen from the atmosphere and
+can thus be grown with least injury and sometimes with a positive
+benefit to the fertility of the soil.
+
+
+
+Regular Bearing of Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+How can trees be induced to bear regularly instead of bearing
+excessively on alternate years?
+
+The most rational view is that in order to bear regularly the tree must
+be prevented from overbearing by thinning of the fruit; also that the
+moisture and plant-food supply must be regularly maintained, so that the
+tree may work along regularly and not stop bearing one year in order to
+accumulate vigor for a following year's crop. There is some reason to
+believe that some trees which seem to overbear every year can be
+prolonged in their profitable life and made to produce a moderate amount
+of fruit of large size and higher value by sharp thinning to prevent
+overbearing at any time. This is found clearly practicable in the cases
+of the apricot, peach, pear, apple, table grape, shipping plum, etc.,
+because the added value of larger fruits is greater than the cost of
+removing the surplus.
+
+
+
+Scions from Young Trees.
+
+
+
+I have bought some one-year-old apple trees that are certified pedigree
+trees. Would it be practical to take the tops of these trees and graft
+on one-year seedlings and get the same results as from the trees I
+bought? Will they bear just as good, or is it necessary to take the
+scions from old bearing trees?
+
+They will bear exactly the same fruit as the young trees will, but you
+cannot tell how good that will be until you get the fruit. The advantage
+of scions from bearing trees is that you know exactly what you will get,
+for, presumably, you have seen and approved it.
+
+
+
+Late Pruning.
+
+
+
+Will I do injury to my peach trees if I delay pruning until the last of
+February, or until the sap begins to run and the buds to swell?
+
+It will not do any particular harm to let your peach pruning go until
+the buds swell or even after the leaves appear. Late pruning is not
+injurious, but rather more inconvenient.
+
+
+
+Avoiding Crotches in Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+How can I avoid bad crotches in fruit trees?
+
+Crotches, which means branches of equal or nearly equal size, emerging
+from a point at a very acute angle, should be prevented by cutting out
+one or both of them. The branching of a lateral at a larger angle does
+not form a crotch and it usually buttresses itself well on the larger
+branch. That is a desirable form of branching. Short distances between
+such branchings is desirable, because it makes a stronger and more
+permanently upright limb, capable of sustaining much weight of foliage
+and fruit. Build up the young tree by shortening in as it grows, so as
+to get such a strong framework.
+
+
+
+Crotch-Splitting of Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+I have a young fig tree that is splitting at the crotches. I fear that
+when the foliage appears, with the force of the winds the limbs will
+split down entirely.
+
+Perhaps you have been forcing the trees too much with water and thus
+secured too much foliage and weak wood. Whenever a tree is doing that,
+the limbs ought to be supported with bale rope tied to opposite limbs
+through the head, or otherwise held up, to prevent splitting. If
+splitting has actually occurred, the weaker limb should be cut away and
+the other staked if necessary until it gets strength and stiffens. If
+the limbs are rather large they can be drawn up and a 3/16 inch carriage
+bolt put through to hold both in place; but this is a poor way to make a
+strong tree. We should cut out all splits and do the best we could to
+make a tree out of what is left. Then do not make them grow so fast.
+
+
+
+Strengthening Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+I have read that some trees are propped by natural braces; that is, by
+inter-twining two opposite branches while the tree is young, so that in
+time they grow together. What is your idea regarding the practicability
+of such an idea in a large commercial orchard?
+
+Twining branches for the purpose indicated is frequently commended, but
+it seems best for the use of ingenious people with plenty of time and
+not many trees. To prune trees to carry their fruit so far as one can
+foresee, and to use props or other supports when a tree manifests need
+of a particular help which was not foreseen is the most rational way to
+handle the proposition on a large commercial scale.
+
+
+
+Time for Pruning.
+
+
+
+What is the proper time for pruning pear and apricot trees?
+
+Ordinary deciduous fruit trees can be successfully pruned from the time
+the leaves begin to turn yellow and fall, until the new foliage is
+appearing in the late winter or spring.
+
+
+
+Grape Planting.
+
+
+
+What is the proper time for planting grape vines?
+
+Grape vines are most successfully planted after the heavy rains and low
+temperatures are over and before the growth starts: This will usually be
+whenever the soil is in good condition, during the months of February
+and March.
+
+
+
+Covering Tree Wounds.
+
+
+
+What is the best stuff to use on wounds and large cuts on my fruit
+trees? I have used grafting wax, but it is expensive and not altogether
+satisfactory.
+
+Amputation wounds on trees can be more successfully treated with lead
+and oil paint than with grafting wax. Mixed paint containing benzine
+would not be so good as pure lead and oil mixed for the purpose and then
+carefully applied as to amount so as not to run. "Asphaltum Grade D" may
+also be used in the same way.
+
+
+
+Covering Sunburned Bark.
+
+
+
+Would asphaltum do to use an sunburned bark?
+
+Owing to the attraction of the heat by the black color, asphaltum would
+increase the injury by absorption of more heat. Some white coating is
+altogether best for sunburn injuries, because it will reflect and not
+absorb heat, and a durable whitewash applied as may be needed to keep
+the white covering intact is undoubtedly the best treatment. Where the
+bark has been actually removed, white paint would be superior to
+whitewash to keep the wood from checking while the wound was being
+covered laterally by the growth of new bark.
+
+
+
+Too Much Pruning.
+
+
+
+Same peach trees entering the third year were pruned early in the winter
+very severely. The pruner merely left the trunk and the three or four
+main laterals, the latter about one foot in length. A large proportion
+of these trees have not sprouted as yet, though alder and better pruned
+trees are all sprouted in the same vicinity. The bark is green and has
+considerable sap. Will the trees commence to grow?
+
+The trees will sprout later, after they have developed latent buds into
+active form. The pruning probably removed all the buds of recent growth.
+After starting they will make irregular growth, starting too many shoots
+in the wrong places, etc., and considerable effort will be necessary to
+get well-shaped trees by selection of shoots in the right places and
+thinning out those which are not desirable.
+
+
+
+For Broken Roots.
+
+
+
+When the root of an orange or other fruit tree is exposed or brakes by
+the cultivator, what is the best way to treat that root?
+
+Where a root is actually broken it is best to cut it off cleanly above
+the break. This will induce quick healing over and the sending out of
+other roots. Where there is only a bruise on one side, all the frayed
+edges of the wound should be cleanly cut back to sound bark, which will
+have a tendency to promote healing and prevent decay.
+
+
+
+Pruning in Frosty Places.
+
+
+
+This appears to be a frosty section. Pruners are at work continuously
+from the time the apricots are harvested until spring arrives. From what
+is said in "California Fruits?" I judge late winter pruning would be
+best far apricots and peaches. Am I correct?
+
+In frosty places it is often desirable to prune rather late, because the
+late-pruned tree usually starts later than the early pruned, and thus
+may not bloom until after frost is over.
+
+
+
+Low Growth on Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+Should the little twigs an the lower parts of young fruit trees be
+removed or shortened?
+
+An important function which these small shoots and the foliage which
+they will carry perform is in the thickening of the larger branches to
+which they are attached and overcoming the tendency of the tree to
+become too tall and spindling. This can be done at any time, even to the
+pinching of young, soft shoots as they appear. It must be said, however,
+that in ordinary commercial fruit growing little attention is paid to
+these fine points, which are the great enjoyment of the European
+fruit-gardeners and are of questionable value in our standard
+orcharding. It is, however, a great mistake to clear away all low twigs,
+for such twigs bring the first fruit on young trees.
+
+
+
+Are Tap-Roots Essential?
+
+
+
+Is it better to plant a nut or seed or to plant a grafted root; also is
+it better to allow the tap-root to remain or not in event of planting a
+grafted root?
+
+It does not matter at all whether the tree has its original tap-root or
+not. All tap-roots are more or less destroyed in transplanting and the
+fact that not one per cent of the walnut trees now bearing crops in
+California consist of trees grown from the nut itself planted in place,
+is sufficient demonstration to us that it is perfectly practicable to
+proceed with transplanting the trees. It is more important that the tree
+should have the right sort of soil and the right degree of moisture to
+grow in than that it should retain the root from which the seedling
+started. The removal of the tap-root does not prevent the tree from
+sending out one or several deep running roots which will penetrate as
+deeply as the soil and moisture conditions favor. This is true not only
+of the walnut but of other fruit trees.
+
+
+
+Transplanting Old Trees.
+
+
+
+Can I transplant fruit trees 2 to 3 inches through the butt, about one
+foot from the ground? Varieties are oranges, lemons, pears, apples and
+English walnuts nearly 4 inches through the butt. I wish to move them
+nearly a mile. What is the best way and what the best month to do the
+work, or are trees too large to do well if moved?
+
+The orange and lemon will do better in transplanting than the others.
+Take up the trees when the soil becomes warmed by the sun after the
+coldest weather is over. This may be in February. Cut back the branches
+severely and take up the trees with a good ball of earth, using suitable
+lifting tackle to handle it without breaking. Settle the earth around
+the ball in the new place with water, and keep the soil amply moist but
+not wet. Whitewash all bark exposed to the sun by cutting back. You can
+handle the walnut the same way, but it would, however, probably get such
+a setback that it might be better to buy a new tree two or three years
+old and plant that. The apples and pears we would not try to transplant,
+but would rather have good new yearlings than try to coax them along.
+Transplanting deciduous trees should be done earlier in the winter than
+evergreens.
+
+
+
+Dwarfing a Fruit Tree.
+
+
+
+I am told that by pruning the roots of a young tree after the root
+system is well started (say three years old) that as a result this will
+produce a tree that is semi-dwarfed or practically a dwarfed fruit tree.
+
+Yes; cutting back the roots in the winter and cutting back the new
+growth in the summer will have a dwarfing effect. The best way to get a
+dwarfed garden tree is to use a dwarfing root. You can get trees on such
+roots at the nurseries.
+
+
+
+Seedling Fruits.
+
+
+
+I have been growing seedlings from the pits of some extra fine peaches
+and plums with a view to planting them. A man near San Jose advised me
+that I would get good results, but since then I have met others who say
+that the fruit trees that spring from planted seeds yield only poor
+fruit.
+
+It is the tendency of nearly all improved fruit to revert to wild types,
+more or less, when grown from the seed. The chances are, then, that
+nine-tenths or more of the seedlings which you grew for fruiting might
+be worthless. A few might be as good as the fruit from which you took
+the pits; possibly one might he better. For these reasons the growing of
+fruit trees from pits and seeds is only used for the purpose of getting
+a root from which a chosen variety may be gotten by budding and
+grafting.
+
+
+
+Grafting.
+
+
+
+I did a little grafting last spring, and as it was my first attempt,
+about ten per cent of the scions failed to grow. Now shall I saw the
+stub off lower down and try again, or bud into one of the sprouts that
+have grown around the cut end? The trees are pear and cherry.
+
+You did very well as a beginner not to lose more than one-tenth. Saw off
+below and graft again. You might have budded into one of those shoots
+last July, and if you fail again, bud into the new shoots next summer.
+
+
+
+Filling Holes in Trees.
+
+
+
+I have a number of trees that, on account of poor pruning and improper
+care, are decaying in the center. Many of them are hollow for a foot or
+more down the trunk.
+
+Excavate all the decayed wood with a chisel or gouge or whatever cutting
+tool may work well and fill the cavity with Portland cement in such a
+way as to exclude moisture. This will prolong the life and
+productiveness of the trees for many years if other conditions are
+favorable.
+
+
+
+Deferring Bloom of Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+Have any experiments ever been carried on definitely to decide what
+causes early blossoming of fruit trees? For instance, have adjacent
+trees of the same variety been treated definitely by putting a heavy
+mulch around one to hold the cold temperature late in the spring,
+leaving the other tree unmulched so the roots could warm up?
+
+It has been definitely determined by the experiments of Professor
+Whidden of the Missouri Experiment Station that the swelling of the buds
+and starting of the foliage of fruit trees is due to the action of heat
+upon the aerial parts of the trees; that is, growth is not caused by
+increasing the temperature of the ground and cannot be retarded by
+cooling the ground. Experiments with the use of snow and ice under trees
+by which the ground has been kept at a low temperature have not
+prevented the activity of the tree. The only way known to retard
+activity is to spray the tree with whitewash so that the white color may
+reflect the heat and prevent the absorption of it by the bark, which is
+usually of a dark color and therefore suited to heat absorption.
+Retarding of growth is possible in this way for a period of six to ten
+days, which, of course, in some cases might be of value, but the
+lengthened dormancy is probably too small to constitute it of general
+value. In whitewashing, to determine what advantage there is in it in
+retarding growth, the tree should be thoroughly sprayed with whitewash
+so as to cover all the wood some time before the buds swell. In fact, it
+is to prevent the early swelling of the buds that the whitewashing is
+resorted to. It is better to make the application, therefore, a little
+too early than too late. A specific date cannot be given for it that
+would be right in all localities.
+
+
+
+Repairing Rabbit Injuries.
+
+
+
+Your book says in Pruning young trees for the first time, about four
+main branches should be left and these cut back to 10 or 12 inches. Now,
+where the rabbits have pruned back to 4 or 5 inches the very ones I
+wanted, what should be done? Some say, cut these back to the stem,
+allowing new shoots to start from the base of branches so removed.
+
+Cut back to a bud near the stem, or if you do not see any, cut back near
+to the stem, but not near enough to remove the bark at the base of the
+shoot, for there are the latent buds which should give you the growth.
+This should be watched, and the best shoot selected from each point to
+make a strong branch, pinching back or removing the others.
+
+
+
+For a Bark Wound.
+
+
+
+What is best to do with an apricot or prune tree when it has been hit
+with an implement and the bark knocked off?
+
+Cut around the bark wound with a sharp knife so as to remove all frayed
+edges. Cover the exposed wood with oil and lead paint to prevent
+cracking, and the wound will soon be covered with new bark from the
+sides.
+
+
+
+Bridging Gopher Girdles.
+
+
+
+How shall I make the bridge-graft or root-graft over the trunks of trees
+girdled by gophers? Has this method proved successful in saving trees
+three or four inches in diameter, and how is it done?
+
+The bridging over of injury by mice by grafting has been known to be
+successful for decades in countries where this trouble is encountered.
+Undoubtedly the same plan would work in the case of all bark injuries
+which can be bridged. The plan is to take good well-matured shoots which
+are a little longer than the injury which has to be spanned, making a
+sloping cut on both ends, also a cut into the healthy bark above and
+below the injury, and slip the cut ends of the cutting into the cuts in
+the bark so that the ends go under the bark above and below, and the cut
+ends are closely connected with the growing layer of the stock. If the
+cutting is made a little longer than the distance to be spanned, the
+tendency of the cutting by straightening is to hold itself in place.
+When in place, the connections should he covered with wax to prevent
+drying out.
+
+
+
+Soil-Binding Plant for Winter.
+
+
+
+What would be the best to plant in an orchard on ground of a light sandy
+sediment which, after plowing, will move with the strong winds? I would
+like to plant something that will benefit the ground. The winds are the
+strongest from December to April. This is in the irrigated district and
+I need something that will make a sod during that period.
+
+We would, in all the valleys, advise a fall irrigation (if the rains are
+late) and the sowing of burr clover, which when started in September
+will have the ground well covered by December, if you keep the moisture
+right to push it. Disking or plowing this under in March (or April,
+according to locality) will hold the sand and afterward enrich it. You
+can do this every year, but probably you will not need to seed it more
+than once.
+
+
+
+Bananas in California.
+
+
+
+Is there any reason why bananas would not grow and bear in the vicinity
+of Merced if they had plenty of water? Or would the cool nights at
+certain seasons keep them from bearing? Would they do better in the
+Imperial valley?
+
+Bananas would suffer too severely from frost to be profitable at any
+point in the interior valleys of California. A plant would be killed to
+the ground at least every year unless under glass or other protection.
+There are a few places practically frostless where bananas can be grown
+in this State, but there is no promise in commercial production because
+they can be so cheaply imported from the tropics.
+
+
+
+Carobs in California.
+
+
+
+Will the carob tree (St. John's Bread) do well in the Sacramento valley,
+and is it a desirable tree for lining a driveway?
+
+Carobs have been grown in California for thirty years or more and they
+will make a handsome driveway and give a lot of pods for the kids and
+the pigs - for they are "the husks which the swine did eat," and both
+like them. They ought to be much more widely planted in California
+because they grow well and are good to look upon.
+
+
+
+Spineless Cactus Fruit.
+
+
+
+I have about two acres of high land in Fresno county that can't be
+irrigated. It is red adobe soil and there is hardpan in it. Which kind
+of fruit trees will grow and pay best? How near may the hardpan be to
+the surface before I have to blast it?
+
+It is a hard fruit proposition. Try spineless cactus, the fruits of
+which are delicious. Blasting would help if there is a moist substratum
+below the hardpan and might enable you to grow many fruits. If your land
+is hard and dry all the way down, blasting would not help you unless you
+can get irrigation. Presumably your rainfall is too small for fruit
+unless you strike underflow below the hardpan.
+
+
+
+Cleaning Fruit Trays.
+
+
+
+What do you advise for killing and removing the whitish mold that forms
+on trays used for drying prunes? Would sunning the trays be effective,
+or washing in hot water, or is there some suitable fungicide?
+
+Good hot sun and dry wind will kill the mold. The spores of such a
+common mold are waiting everywhere, so that your fruit would mold anyway
+if conditions were right. Still, scalding the trays for cleanliness and
+a short trip through the sulphur box for fungus-killing is commended.
+
+
+
+Killing Moss on Old Trees.
+
+
+
+I have some Bartlett pear trees that are covered with moss and mold, and
+the bark is rough and checked. I have used potash (98%), 1 pound to 6
+gallons spray. It kills the long moss, but the green mold it does not
+seem to affect. The trees have been sprayed about one week. Some trees
+have been sprayed with a 1 pound to 10 gallons solution by mistake.
+Shall I spray these again with full strength, and when?
+
+You have done enough for the moss at present. Even the weaker solution
+ought to be strong enough to clean the bark. Wait and see how the bark
+looks when the potash gets through biting; it will keep at it for some
+time, taking a fresh hold probably with each new moisture supply from
+shower or damp air. The spray should have been shot onto the bark with
+considerable force - not simply sprinkled on.
+
+
+
+Shy-Bearing Apples.
+
+
+
+I have some apple trees 10 and 12 years old that do not bear
+satisfactorily, but persist in making 5 to 6 feet of new wood each year.
+If not cut back this winter, will they be more likely to make fruit
+buds?
+
+Yes, probably. Certainly you should try it. You should also cultivate
+less and slow down the growth. If they then take to bearing, you can
+resume moderate pruning and better cultivation. This is on the
+assumption that your trees are in too rich or too moist a place. But you
+should satisfy yourself by inquiry and observation as to whether the
+same varieties do bear well in your vicinity when conditions are such
+that slower growth is made. If the variety is naturally shy in bearing,
+or if it requires cross-pollination, the proposed repressive treatment
+might not avail anything. In that case you can graft over the tree to
+some variety which does bear well or graft part of the trees to another
+variety for cross-pollination.
+
+
+
+No Apples on Quince.
+
+
+
+How large a tree will the Yellow Bellefleur apple make if grafted or
+budded on quince root at the age of 15 years? I have been trying to get
+some information about dwarf fruit trees, but it is difficult to get.
+
+No wonder the information is hard to get. The Yellow Bellefleur will not
+grow upon the quince at all, or at least not for long. In growing dwarf
+apples the Paradise stock is used, while the quince is used for dwarfing
+the pear, and many varieties of pears will accept the quince root which
+the apple rejects.
+
+
+
+Stock for Apples.
+
+
+
+Do you recommend French seedling stock as greatly to be preferred to
+that grown in this country?
+
+French seedling stock is generally used because it is graded and
+furnished in uniform sizes; also, because it can usually be purchased
+for less than seedlings can be grown under our labor conditions. Locally
+grown apple seedlings are apt to be irregular in size and, as already
+stated, cost more than the properly graded imported stock.
+
+
+
+Apples and Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+I have recently come across a proposition to sow apple orchards in the
+interior of southern California with alfalfa. The apples are said to be
+superior and the crop heavier, to say nothing of a half or two-thirds of
+an alfalfa crop in addition to the crop of apples. What do you know
+about it? Is alfalfa being used by others in this way?
+
+It is perfectly rational to grow alfalfa in fruit orchards if the water
+supply is ample for both the trees and the intercrop and the owner will
+not yield to the temptation to waterlog his trees for the sake of
+getting more alfalfa. It is even more desirable in the interior than
+near the coast, probably. In Arizona some growers have for a number of
+years practiced growing alfalfa in orchards, cutting the alfalfa without
+removing it, counting that clippings are worth more to them through
+their decay and the increase of the humus content of the soil. Even
+where this is not done, the alfalfa will add to the humus of the soil by
+its own wastes both from root and stem. The presence of an alfalfa cover
+reduces the danger of leaf and bark burning either by reflected or
+radiated heat from a smooth ground surface, and some trees are very much
+benefited by this protection in regions of high temperature. This might
+be expected to be the case with the apple, which is somewhat subject to
+leaf burning in our interior valleys.
+
+
+
+Top Grafting.
+
+
+
+In grafting over apple and pear trees to some other variety, is it
+advisable to cut off and graft the entire tree the first year where the
+trees are from 7 to 15 years old, or would it be better to cut off only
+a part of the top the first year and the rest the following year?
+
+In the coast region it is a good practice to graft over the whole tree
+at one time, cutting, however, above the forks and not into the main
+stem below the forking. This gives many scions which seem able to take
+care of the sap successfully. In the interior valleys, it is rather
+better practice to leave a branch or two, cutting them out at the
+following winter's pruning, for probably the first year's grafts will
+give you branches enough. This has the effect of preventing the drowning
+out of the scions from too strong sap-flow. Cutting back and regrafting
+of old trees should be done rather early, before the most active
+sap-flow begins. The later in the season the grafting is done, and the
+warmer the locality, the more desirable it seems to be to leave a branch
+or two when grafting.
+
+
+
+Apple Budding.
+
+
+
+What is the best time to bud apples?
+
+Apples are budded in July and August and remain dormant until the
+following spring.
+
+
+
+Mildew on Apple Seedlings.
+
+
+
+Why do young apple plants in the seed bed became mildewed? They are in a
+lath house.
+
+Because too much moisture was associated with too much shade. More
+sunshine would have prevented mildew, and if they had enjoyed it the
+seedlings could have made better use of the water probably.
+
+
+
+Pruning Apples.
+
+
+
+Young apple trees set two years ago were cut back to 14 to 18 inches and
+cared for as to low branching, proper spacing, etc., but the desired
+branches were allowed to make full growth to the present time. They have
+mode great growth and if allowed to continue will make too tall trees.
+
+We understand that your trees have made two summers' growth since
+pruning. We should cut back to a good lateral wherever you can find one
+running at the right direction at about three to four feet from the last
+cut, and shorten the lateral more or less according to the best judgment
+we could form on sight of the tree. In this way you can take out the
+branches which are running too high and make the framework for a lower
+growth. Do not remove the small twigs and spurs unless you have too many
+such shoots.
+
+
+
+Cutting Back Apples and Pears.
+
+
+
+"California Fruits" says the "apple does not relish cutting back, nor is
+it desirable to shorten in the branches." But when a three-year-old tree
+gets above 12 feet high, as many of mine are doing, what are you going
+to do? I cut these back same last year, but up they go again with more
+branches than ever. The pears are getting too tall, also. Should not
+both apple and pear trees be kept down to about ten feet?
+
+The quotation you make refers to old bearing trees, and indicates that
+their pruning is not like that of the peach, which is continually
+shortened in to keep plenty of new wood low down. Of course, in securing
+low and satisfactory branching on young apples, pears, etc., there must
+be cutting back, and this must be continued while you are forming the
+tree. If you mean that these trees are to be permanently kept at ten
+feet high, you should have planted trees worked on dwarfing stocks. Such
+a height does not allow a standard tree freedom enough for thrift; as
+they become older they will require from twice to thrice the altitude
+you assign to them, probably. Pears can be more successfully kept down
+than apples, but not to ten feet except as dwarfs.
+
+
+
+Pruning Old Apple Trees.
+
+
+
+How would you prune apple trees eight or nine years old that have not
+been cut back? There are a great many that have run up 20 feet high with
+twelve or fifteen main limbs and very few being more than two or three
+inches in diameter.
+
+Remove cross branches which are interfering with others and thin out
+branches which seem to be crowding each other at their attachments to
+the trunk, by removing some of them at the starting point. Having
+removed these carefully so as not to knock off spurs from other
+branches, study the tree as it is thus somewhat opened up and see where
+remaining branches can be shortened to overcome the tendency to run too
+high. Do not shear off branches leaving a lot of stubs in the upper part
+of the tree, but always cut back a main branch to a lateral and shorten
+the lateral higher up if desirable. This will keep away from having a
+lot of brush in the top of the tree. Study each tree by itself for
+symmetry and balance of branches and proceed by judgment rather than by
+rules anyone can give you.
+
+
+
+Top-Grafting Apples.
+
+
+
+Can I graft over a few Ben Davis apple trees 25 years old or
+thereabouts, but thrifty and vigorous?
+
+It is certainly possible, by the old top-grafting method which has been
+used everywhere with apples for centuries. Graft during the winter. Work
+on the limbs above the head so as to preserve the advantage of the old
+forking, using a cleft graft and waxing well. It is usually best to
+graft over a part of the limbs and the balance a year later.
+
+
+
+Will the Apples Be the Same Kind?
+
+
+
+I have a mixed orchard, mostly Gravensteins, and I want to graft all the
+other trees into a Gravenstein top if I can do so and at the same time
+get the early Gravenstein bloom and the fruit would be as satisfactory
+as though on other roots.
+
+The new tree grown from the grafts will behave just like the tree from
+which the scions were taken if similarly thrifty.
+
+
+
+Places for Apples.
+
+
+
+What quality is it in the soil in the vicinity of Watsonville that makes
+that country peculiarly adapted to the culture of apples? Are there not
+other portions of the State where apples could be produced on a
+commercial basis?
+
+It is not alone quality in the soil, but character of the climate that
+underlie success in the Watsonville district. Apples can be and are
+grown on a commercial scale through the coast district of Sonoma,
+Mendocino, and Humboldt counties; also in suitable situations in the
+coast counties south of Santa Cruz county. Along the coast, as far as
+deep retentive soil and the cool air of the ocean extend, one may expect
+to get apples similar to those produced in the Watsonville district. In
+the interior valleys, on suitable soils with adequate moisture, early
+apples are profitably grown, while in the higher foothill and mountain
+valleys in all parts of the State, where moisture is sufficient, late
+keeping apples of high quality are produced.
+
+
+
+Summer-pruning Apples.
+
+
+
+Will summer pruning cause apple trees to bear fruit instead of growing
+so much new wood?
+
+Over-growth can be repressed by summer pruning, and if done just at the
+right time bearing is increased and late new growth is avoided, but it
+is not easy to determine exactly the right time, and it has to be fixed
+according to local conditions of length of growing season and growth
+condition of the tree itself also. It is better for some varieties than
+others, and, in fact, has to be done wisely. A summer slashing of apple
+trees, simply because some one says so, is not only expensive, but may
+do more harm than good. Therefore, those inclined to it, should try a
+few trees at first and note results.
+
+
+
+Grafting Apple Seedlings in Place.
+
+
+
+I want to plant apple trees for home use. I have an idea to plant apple
+seeds instead of trees: planting three or four seeds for each hill,
+right in the place where I would grow the trees, and select the best one
+to graft on. I will take seed of Bellefleurs, which are vigorous
+growers. What do you think? Will the seed germinate readily and when is
+the right time to plant?
+
+Select plump, well ripened seed, keep them in damp sand until the ground
+begins to get warm in January or February, according to location. But
+such an undertaking will cost you vastly more in time, in labor, and
+waste of land than it would to buy well-grown nursery trees budded with
+the variety which you desire. Such trees would give you practically a
+uniform lot of trees in your orchard while planting seedlings and
+grafting afterward would give you very irregular and for the most part
+unsatisfactory results - providing you get any seeds to grow at all in
+the open ground, which is doubtful.
+
+
+
+Resistant Apple Roots.
+
+
+
+A few apple trees which are almost dead from ravages of the woolly
+aphis. I am going to dig them out and plant in their places other apple
+trees on woolly aphis-proof root. Will it be necessary to use measures
+to exterminate the woolly aphis in the old roots or their places in the
+ground before planting new trees in the places of the removed trees?
+
+It is not necessary to undertake to kill aphis in the ground when you
+are planting apple trees on resistant roots. It will give your trees a
+better start to dig large holes, throw out the old soil, and fill in
+with some new soil from another part of the land to be planted, but it
+has been demonstrated that these roots are resistant, no matter if
+planted in the midst of infestation.
+
+
+
+Apples and Cherries for a Hot Place.
+
+
+
+What kind of apple do you think would do best in a dry, hot climate?
+What do you think of the Early Richmond cherry in such a place?
+
+Apples most likely to succeed in a dry situation are those which ripen
+their fruit very early. The Red Astrachan is on the whole the most
+satisfactory, but there are many places which are altogether too dry and
+hot for any kind of apple. Whether cherries would succeed or not you can
+only tell by trying. Possibly the trees would not live through the
+summer if your soil becomes very dry. The most hardy cherries are the
+sour or pie cherries and the Early Richmond is one of this group.
+
+
+
+Die-back of Apple Trees.
+
+
+
+What causes the death of the top shoots in apple trees?
+
+New wood is sometimes diseased by mildew, but die-back is usually due to
+two different causes: One, the accumulation of water in the soil during
+the excessive rains of mid-winter; second, the occurrence of low
+temperatures, including frosts, after the sap has risen. Which of these
+causes operate in a certain case depends, of course, upon whether the
+soil was heavy and inclined to retain standing water too long, or
+whether there were such frosts at about the time when the leaves should
+start. Sometimes, of course, both of these conditions worked in the same
+place; sometimes one and sometimes the other, but certainly both of them
+are capable of causing the trouble. There seems to be no specific
+disease; it is rather a matter of unfavorable conditions for growth.
+
+
+
+Storage of Apples.
+
+
+
+We desire to store two or three thousand boxes of apples for three or
+four months and propose to do it in this way: Make an excavation in dry
+earth, putting at the bottom of the excavation straw. Upon this straw
+place the apples, then dry straw over the apples, and upon the top of
+this two or three feet of dry earth. Will it be a good plan to pour on
+water from time to time over the top of this to keep the apples and all
+wet, or should the apples be kept dry?
+
+Putting down loose apples in a straw-lined pit would be very expensive.
+It would invite decay by bruising the fruit, and the result would
+probably be a worthless mixture of rotten fruit and straw. The fruit
+should be stored in boxes or shallow trays to reduce pressure and
+promote ventilation, and not in bins or large piles. Apples will keep
+for a long time in good condition if the boxes are put in piles in the
+shade, covered with straw, which should be slightly moistened from time
+to time; but in that case there would not be such an accumulation of
+moisture and there would be ventilation at all times. Apples should be
+kept dry, but they will shrivel and become unmarketable unless the air
+in which they are stored is kept reasonably moist. This is generally
+accomplished by making apple houses with double walls and roof to
+exclude heat and with an earth or concrete floor which can be sprinkled
+from time to time with a hose.
+
+
+
+Apple Root-grafts.
+
+
+
+I have an old apple orchard and would like to have two or three of the
+best varieties positively identified, so that I can order these kinds
+from the nursery for next year's planting.
+
+Old California apple orchards have many varieties no longer propagated
+largely. If you greatly desire to have a few trees of exactly the
+varieties which you are now growing, you run some risk of mistake in
+ordering by name, but if you make some root-grafts by taking a piece of
+the smaller roots of the tree, which you can dig out, say about the size
+of a pencil, and graft scions upon them, you can secure root-grafts for
+planting in nursery this year and in that way be sure to have trees of
+exactly the same kind. Root-grafts can be made in the winter, placed in
+sand which is kept moist and not wet, planted out as soon as the ground
+warms up, and you will get immediate and very satisfactory growth in
+that way.
+
+
+
+Pruning Old Apple Trees.
+
+
+
+I have an old orchard containing some apple trees about 40 years
+old - trees well shaped but with plenty of main branches and limbs all
+very long. The trees bear profusely in alternate years but the fruit is
+small. In pruning would you advise cutting out some main limbs where
+there are over three or four and thus making a big wood reduction (where
+sunburn protection can still be guarded) or would you only shorten in
+the branches and thin the fruit severely?
+
+Do not remove main branches unless they are clearly too numerous or have
+been allowed to grow to interference with each other or have become
+weakened or feeble in some way. In such cases the space is worth more
+than the branch. If the tree has a fair framework do not disturb it in
+order to get down to an arbitrary limit of three or four main branches;
+sometimes the tree can carry more. If the tree is too thick, thin it out
+by removing side branches of more or less size - saving the best,
+judging by both vigor and position. Work through the whole top in this
+way until you reach the best judgment you can form of enough space and
+light for good interior foliage and fruit. Apple branches should seldom
+be shortened, and when this seems desirable, cut to a side branch and
+not to a stub which will make a lot of weak shoots or brush in the top
+of the tree.
+
+
+
+Pruning Apple Trees.
+
+
+
+There is a great difference of opinion here regarding the pruning of
+three-year or older apple trees. Many people cut back three, four and
+five-year-old trees half the season's growth; others only cut back six
+inches.
+
+Apple trees are cut back during their early life to cause branching and
+to secure short distances between the larger laterals on the main
+branches. This secures a lower, stronger tree. Cutting back twice or
+three times should secure a good framework of this kind, and then the
+apple should not be regularly and systematically cut back as the peach
+and apricot are. It is not possible to prescribe definite inches,
+because cutting back is a matter of judgment and depends upon how thick
+the growth is, what its position and relation to other shoots, etc. The
+chief point in cutting back is to know where you wish the next laterals
+to come on the shortened shoot, and if you do not wish more laterals at
+once; do not cut back at all. Treatment, of laterals which come of
+themselves is another matter. Do not clip the ends of shoots unless
+laterals are desired. If you keep clipping the ends of apple twigs, you
+will get no fruit from some varieties.
+
+
+
+Grafting Almond on Peach.
+
+
+
+I had good success with the peach trees which I grafted to almond last
+spring, getting about 95 per cent of a stand, and many of the grafts now
+are one and one-half inches diameter. In each of the trees I left about
+a quarter of the branches, to keep up the growing process of the tree.
+The universal practice around here in grafting is to cut the whole top
+off the tree at the time of grafting, but the increased growth and vigor
+of the grafts I have has proved to me and other growers around, that
+much better results are obtained by leaving part of the top on the tree
+at the time of grafting.
+
+You did exceedingly well with your grafting. It seems a more rational
+way to proceed than by a total amputation, and yet ample success is
+often attained by grafting for a whole new top at once.
+
+
+
+Pruning Almonds.
+
+
+
+Should the main branches be shortened in a three-year-old almond tree?
+Of course, I intend to thin out the branches. Some growers here advise
+me to shorten the main branches; others say do not shorten them, as it
+tends to give the trees a brushy top.
+
+Although some growers are contending for regular shortening - in of the
+almond as is practiced on the peach, it is not usual to cut back almond
+trees after they have reached three years of age and have assumed good
+form. Of course, if cutting back is done, the shoots coming from near
+the amputation must be thinned out to prevent the brushiness your
+adviser properly objected to.
+
+
+
+Budding and Grafting Almonds.
+
+
+
+Is it better to bud or graft bitter almond seedlings of one year's
+growth, and, as they must be transplanted, would it be proper to do the
+work this season or defer it for another year's growth?
+
+Your almond seedlings should have been budded in July or August after
+starting from the nut, which would have fitted them for planting in
+orchard the following winter as dormant buds, as they cannot stay where
+they are another season. Now you can transplant to nursery rows in
+another place: cut back and graft as the buds are swelling, allowing a
+good single shoot to grow from below on those which do not start the
+grafts into which you can bud in June, and cut back the stock to force
+growth as soon as the buds have taken. In this way you will get the
+whole stock into trees for planting out next winter. Some will be large
+and some small, but all will come through if planted in good soil and
+cared for properly. Of course, you can plant out the seedlings and graft
+and bud in the orchard, but it will be a lot of trouble and you will get
+very irregular results.
+
+
+
+Cutting Back Almonds.
+
+
+
+I have some nice thrifty two-year-old almond trees which I did not "top"
+this spring. The limbs are from about four to seven or eight feet long.
+Would it not be best to "top" them yet?
+
+Cut them back to a shoot of this year's growth, removing about a third
+of last year's growth, perhaps. This will give you lower and better
+branching.
+
+
+
+Almond Planting.
+
+
+
+I am contemplating the planting of about five to eight acres of almonds:
+what variety is best to plant?
+
+Before planting so many almonds, you should determine how satisfactory
+the almond is in bearing in your location. Unless you can find
+satisfactory demonstration of this fact, it is hazardous to plant such
+an acreage. On the other hand, if you find that almonds are bearing
+satisfactorily, the kinds which are perhaps most satisfactory to plant
+are Nonpareil, Texas Prolific, Ne Plus Ultra and Drake's Seedling. The
+Texas Prolific and Drake's Seedling are abundant bearers and profitable
+because of the size of the crop, although the price is lower than the
+soft-shelled varieties, Nonpareil and Ne Plus Ultra. These two varieties
+are such energetic pollinizers that they not only bear well themselves,
+but force the bearing of the larger varieties mentioned. Every third row
+in your plantation should be either Texas Prolific or Drakes' Seedlings,
+which would give you two-thirds of the larger varieties and one-third of
+the smaller. There are, of course, other soft-shelled almonds which are
+worth planting and are being considerably planted in localities where
+they do well. This you can ascertain by inquiry among local growers and
+nurserymen. The planting of a good proportion of active pollinizers is
+the most important point.
+
+
+
+Almond Pollination.
+
+
+
+My almond trees look healthy but the fruit seems to be diseased. Is it
+necessary to have male and female trees, and how can one distinguish
+them?
+
+The almond is monoecious and has perfect blossoms, therefore, there is
+no such thing as male and female trees in the case of the almond, but
+most of the best soft-shelled almonds are self-sterile and need
+cross-pollination from another variety. This is discussed elsewhere in
+answer to another question.
+
+
+
+Roots for the Almond.
+
+
+
+Which is the best root to have the almond grafted on, peach or bitter
+almond? The soil is sandy.
+
+The bitter almond and the hard-shelled sweet almond are both used and we
+are not aware that any particular advantage has been demonstrated for
+either of them. The almond does well on peach roots also, but the almond
+is a better root where the soil conditions suit it.
+
+
+
+Longevity of Almond and Peach.
+
+
+
+What is difference in life of peach and almond in California?
+
+The almond is the longer-lived, but we have seen both assuming the
+aspect of forest trees in abandoned pioneer places. Both are apt to live
+longer than their planters, if soil and moisture conditions favor.
+
+
+
+Almond Seedlings.
+
+
+
+I have been told that almond trees raised from seed, no matter what kind
+of seed planted, will produce bitter almonds. Is this a fact?
+
+It is not a fact. The majority will probably be hard-shell, sweet and
+bitter, but others will be soft-shell, medium-shell, paper-shell, and
+everything else you ever heard of in the almond line. The almond has the
+sportiest kind of seedlings.
+
+
+
+Do Not Plant Almonds in Place.
+
+
+
+I have 30 acres which I intend to plant to almonds and peaches, and I
+thought of planting the sprouted nuts and pits where I wanted my trees,
+and budding the same there in orchard form. As one or two years' use of
+the land is not considered, what is your advice? My idea is to plant in
+orchard at start so as not to disturb roots, as when grown in nursery
+and transplanted in orchard. Would it not progress as rapidly? Would you
+advise budding peaches on almond roots; if not, why? My idea is that it
+would give a longer-lived tree.
+
+We would do nothing of the kind. If we decided it better to grow trees
+than to buy them, we would grow and bud the seedlings in nursery and not
+in the field. Field budding is open to all kinds of injuries and growth
+from it, when saved from cultivation and all kinds of intruders, is
+irregular and uncertain. As for starting the roots from the nut in
+plate, it is largely a fanciful consideration. We count it no gain for
+the walnut which makes a tap root, and still less gainful for the almond
+and peach, which, usually make spreading roots. To cut off a tap root
+does not prevent the tree from rooting deeply if the soil is favorable.
+As to use of the land, you lose time by growing the seedlings in place.
+The peach does well on the almond root if soil conditions favor the
+almond. Perhaps it gives longer life to the peach, but the profitable
+life of the peach tree in a proper soil does not depend on the root; it
+depends upon the treatment of the top in pruning for renewal of
+branches.
+
+
+
+Almond and Peach.
+
+
+
+With water-table at 18 feet, which root is best for almond trees? The
+experience around here is that the peach root starts best. Which root is
+most durable? What is the life of the peach root and of the almond?
+
+It is not merely a question of depth to water, but of character of the
+soil above the water. Neither of the roots will stand heavy soil which
+holds water too long, and both enjoy a free loam which drains readily
+down to the water-table or bottom water. If the soil is rather sandy,
+letting the water down very quickly, the almond is better in getting to
+it than the peach. If it is finer and still well drained the peach will
+do well, and the almond enjoys that also. The almond probably can be
+counted on to stand coarser soil and greater drouth than the peach and
+under such conditions will outlive the peach, probably, but both of them
+will live twenty to thirty years or more if pruned in the head to get
+enough new wood and the trunk is kept from sunburn. Aside from this
+choose the almond root for the almond.
+
+
+
+Pollination of Almonds.
+
+
+
+I have Drake's Seedling almonds. Some people have told me that I must
+plant some hardshell variety between them, otherwise they will not bear.
+
+It is not necessary to plant hardshell almonds near Drake's Seedling
+trees in order to have them bear. Some varieties of almonds will set few
+nuts unless they are cross-pollinated, but these are the paper-shell
+varieties, as a rule - the Nonpareil, IXL and Ne Plus Ultra - and for
+these the Drake's Seedling or Texas Prolific is planted as a pollenizer.
+The highest-priced nut of all is the Nonpareil, and it is also a good
+bearer when in a good location and planted with Drake's or Texas
+Prolific.
+
+
+
+Stick-tight Almonds.
+
+
+
+I have leased seven acres of bearing almond trees which have the
+appearance of being reasonably well cared for. I notice a few trees that
+still have almonds on ("stick-tights"). What is the cause and remedy?
+
+The occurrence of stick-tights is generally due to lack of moisture and
+thrifty growth, although some trees may be weak from some other cause
+and therefore deficient in sap-flow, which manifests itself in that way.
+Single nuts may also fall into that condition of malnutrition. We know
+no remedy except to keep the trees in good thrift by cultivation or by
+the use of irrigation if necessary.
+
+
+
+Shy-bearing Apricots.
+
+
+
+Why do my apricot trees not bring fruit? They seem healthy and are
+vigorous-looking trees. Five large trees have not borne 100 pounds of
+fruit in three years. The trees are not over six years old.
+
+You may have a shy-bearing kind of apricot, of which there are many, or
+the trees may have grown too fast to hold the fruit, or the frost or
+north wind may have blasted the bloom. Stop winter pruning, and summer
+prune to prevent excessive growth; reduce irrigation; try to convince
+the apricot that it is not a "green bay tree" and see what will happen.
+
+
+
+Pruning Apricots.
+
+
+
+In pruning apricots, if there should be a hollow center of a big branch
+in center of a seven-year-old tree, should it be cut out with summer
+pruning? Should heavy growing apricots be summer pruned? Would it be all
+right to thin out a dense growth of wood in the prune trees in
+September?
+
+It is always desirable to cut below a hollow in a limb if possible.
+Where, however, this would necessitate cutting below the desirable
+laterals, the cavity may be filled with cement and thus rendered
+serviceable for some years. Summer pruning of the apricot is desirable
+if the growth is heavy and the tree has reached a bearing age. Thinning
+out of prune trees can be undertaken in the autumn, providing the tree
+has practically finished its growth, as indicated by the change in the
+color and pose of the leaves.
+
+
+
+Apricot Propagation.
+
+
+
+Can Royal apricots be grafted into seedling apricots? Do the scions do
+well? What is the best time to graft them?
+
+The apricot is grafted readily by the ordinary cleft grafting,
+amputating above the forks if the tree is low-headed enough to allow you
+to work into the limbs instead of the trunk. Grafts will take all right
+in the trunk by bark grafting, but working in smaller limbs makes a
+stronger tree. This is for old trees and the grafting is done during the
+winter. Younger seedlings can be cleft or whip grafted in the stems, but
+it is better to bud into the young seedlings with plump buds of the
+current year's growth, in June, and by shortening in the seedling above
+the buds as soon as they have taken, get a growth on the bud in the
+latter half of the same growing season. In nursery practice, trees are
+usually made by budding in July or August into seedlings which are then
+growing from the seed planted the previous winter. Little seedlings from
+under old trees may be carefully transplanted to nursery rows in the
+spring and budded the same summer. Cultivated well and irrigated if
+necessary, they will not suffer from this transplanting.
+
+
+
+Renewing Old Apricots.
+
+
+
+Shall I prune back heavily a 15 to 20-year-old apricot tree which did
+not mature its fruit this season, I think on account of neglect? It was
+very poorly cultivated and not irrigated, consequently looks very sick.
+
+Cut back all the main branches to six or eight feet from the ground,
+leaving on whatever small growth there may be below that height. Paint
+the stubs and thin out the shoots next summer to get the right number of
+new branches properly distributed. Whether you will get a good renewal
+of the head depends upon whether the sickness is in the root or not. Cut
+back just before the buds swell toward the end of the dormant season.
+
+
+
+Summer Pruning of Apricots.
+
+
+
+Is it feasible to prune five-year-old apricot trees in August? They seem
+in good growth and have been irrigated three times this season, though
+they have never been pruned very closely.
+
+Summer pruning would be perfectly proper and advisable. Summer pruning
+immediately after the fruit is picked, has become much more general, and
+winter pruning has proportionately decreased. Young trees are winter
+pruned to promote low branching and short, stout limbs; bearing trees
+are summer pruned to promote fruit bearing and check wood growth - the
+excess of bearing shoots being removed by thinning during the winter.
+
+
+
+Wild Cherries.
+
+
+
+Where do the Mahaleb and Mazzard cherries grow naturally? How large are
+the trees, and what kind of fruit do they bear?
+
+The Mazzards, of which there are many, and some of them wild in the
+Eastern States, are counted inferior seedlings of the species avium, and
+are tall, large trees, the fruit being small and rather acrid and colors
+various. The Mahaleb is a European type with a smaller tree, fruit
+inferior to the Mazzards, and used as a root under soil and climatic
+conditions under which the Mazzard is not hardy and vigorous. Neither of
+the kinds are worth considering for their fruit.
+
+
+
+Pruning Cherries.
+
+
+
+I have some cherry trees that have not been pruned. They are beautiful
+trees, but it a requires a 24-foot ladder to get near the top limbs. The
+side limbs reach from tree to tree. They had a splendid crop this year.
+People here tell me never to prune cherry trees. One man who claims
+considerable experience with fruit says prune them as soon as the crop
+is off.
+
+Your cherry trees should have been pruned for the first two or three
+years quite severely, in order to secure better branching and strength
+in the main branches. If this is done, and the trees come into full
+bearing, very little pruning has to be done afterward, except removing
+diseased, interfering or surplus branches, if there are too many. It is
+perfectly safe to cut back the trees which you now have as you have been
+advised to do, after the leaves have fallen or after they have begun to
+turn yellow. The trees can be safely topped and thinned, for the cherry
+accepts pruning very readily. Even considerable amounts of the tops have
+been cut off at fruit-picking time from trees which have been running
+too high, so that the fruit could be secured, and this has not injured
+the trees, according to our own experience and observation. Cherries can
+be summer-pruned to check excessive growth and to promote fruit-bearing,
+but as your trees have already begun to bear well, this treatment does
+not seem to be necessary. You should do fall and winter pruning for the
+shape of the trees.
+
+
+
+Training Cherry Grafts.
+
+
+
+I have grafted a lot of seedling cherries, leaving two or three buds on
+each piece of grafted wood. In planting these out, shall I put the union
+under ground (they are grafted at the crown of the root) and shall I
+loosen the cloth a little later when they start to grow? How can I get
+the head for the tree? Should I let only one shoot form, and when it is
+as high as I want it, cut it off as I would a tree gotten from a
+nursery?
+
+If you have used waxed cloth in your grafting, it will be necessary to
+loosen it after the tree gets a good start. Common unwaxed cloth could
+be trusted to decay soon enough, probably, but it should be looked at to
+see that it is not binding. The union should not be placed much below
+the ground surface, although it can be safely covered, and the future
+stem may look the better for it. One shoot could be allowed to grow from
+each graft, choosing the best ones and pinching the others so that they
+will stop extension and hold leaves during the first season. These can
+be cleanly removed at the first winter pruning at the time you head back
+the main shoot to the proper height.
+
+
+
+Restoring Cherry Trees.
+
+
+
+I have about two acres of cherry trees in Sonoma county said to be about
+20 years old. They are in a very neglected condition and I am desirous
+of putting them in good shape for next year's crop. They are in a very
+light sandy loam sail which is easily worked.
+
+Cherry trees under good growing conditions and proper care are very long
+lived in California and bear abundant crops when thirty and more years
+of age. In the San Jose district and elsewhere there are orchards
+considerably older than the limit stated and are still very profitable.
+If your trees have been so neglected that the branches have died back,
+the trees should be pruned, of course, cutting out all dead wood and
+shortening weak or dying branches to a point where a good strong shoot
+can be found. Then a good application of farmyard manure plowed in
+during the rainy season, followed by summer cultivation for moisture
+retention. Although the cherry is very hardy, it is quite likely to
+suffer on light soils which become too dry. On such soils as yours there
+is little if any danger of too much water in the winter, unless the land
+lies low, but the injury to the tree comes from the lack of moisture
+during the summer time, and this, with your abundant rainfall, you can
+probably assure by thorough summer cultivation.
+
+
+
+Renewing Cherry Trees.
+
+
+
+We have cherry trees set out diamond shape about 16 feet apart. We
+cannot take out every other tree and have any order, so we ask you if it
+would be possible to cut the trees back and keep them pruned down to a
+smaller size. The trees are about 20 years old and are dying back quite
+badly.
+
+If the trees are dying for lack of summer moisture it is idle to do much
+for them until you can give them irrigation right after the fruit
+ripens. The cherry tree takes kindly to cutting back and will give good
+new fruit-bearing shoots if the roots are in good condition. It is
+desirable to remove surplus branches entirely rather than to cut back
+everything to a definite height, the branches to be removed being those
+which show disposition to die back and those which are running out too
+far so as to reduce the space between the trees or to interfere with
+branches from other trees. Branches which are failing above can in some
+cases be cut back to a strong thrifty lateral branch below.
+Shortening-in branches high up is less desirable because it forces out
+too much new growth in the top of the tree and carries the fruit so high
+that picking would be expensive. All cuts of any size should be painted
+to prevent the wood from checking.
+
+
+
+Pruning Cherries.
+
+
+
+I have cherry trees in their third season which have been given the
+usual winter pruning. The trees are putting forth a great many more
+branches than are required, and naturally many of the branches are
+growing across the tree. In cutting these extra branches, I am informed
+that there is a way to trim them so that they will eventually form fruit
+spurs. I had an idea that in order to do this it would be well to cut
+about one inch from the main branch. Some one has told me that this
+would merely cause the little branch to sprout again.
+
+Cherry shoots which are not required or desired for branch-forming can
+be transferred into fruit spurs, if the tree is of bearing age, by
+shortening them in. Do not, however, cut at an arbitrary distance of one
+inch from the starting point, but rather save one or two buds at
+whatever distance from the starting point these may be growing. If the
+tree is too young to bear, only growth shoots may appear from these
+buds, but they are likely to be short and will support fruit spurs
+later. This practice should not be carried to excess or you will have
+too many small shoots which will not get light enough to bear good
+fruit, even if fruit spurs should appear.
+
+
+
+Pollination of Black Tartarian.
+
+
+
+There are many old Tartarian cherry trees around our district that have
+only borne a few cherries in years. There are Bing, Royal Ann and Early
+Purple Guignes here with these, but they seldom, if ever, bloom with the
+Tartarian at the proper time to pollinate. What varieties would cause
+the trees to bear?
+
+Sterility of the Black Tartarian is rather unusual. In the coast
+regions, Bing, Black Tartarian and Early Purple Guigne are all
+considered pollinizers for the Royal Ann. Inversely all these should be
+pollinizers for the Black Tartarian, if that variety requires such
+assistance, which we have all along supposed that it did not.
+
+
+
+Treatment of Fig Suckers.
+
+
+
+A few young fig trees are not growing from the tops, but are sending out
+suckers, in some cases above and others below the point of grafting. Had
+I better let these suckers grow and see what comes from them or plant
+new trees?
+
+Graft near the ground all those which are sending suckers from below the
+graft. Suckers from above grafting point can be trained into trees by
+selecting the best, tying to stakes to straighten up and removing all
+other suckers but the one selected.
+
+
+
+No Gopher-proof Fig Roots.
+
+
+
+Is it necessary that figs should be grafted in some other roots to keep
+the gophers from destroying the trees? What root should I order?
+
+Figs are not grown on any other than fig roots and are generally
+propagated by rooted cuttings for the purpose of avoiding the expense of
+grafting. The fruit must then be protected by killing the gophers rather
+than by an effort to get the tree upon a gopher-proof root.
+
+
+
+Pollination of Bartletts.
+
+
+
+Would Clapp's Favorite be a good pollinizer for the Bartlett as well as
+the White Doyenne?
+
+The white Doyenne and the Clapp's Favorite usually begin to bloom three
+or four days later than the Bartlett, but the Bartlett period extends
+about ten days into the blooming period of the others. Therefore, your
+question is to be answered in the affirmative; that is, if the Bartlett
+needs pollination, it will be likley to get it from either of these
+varieties.
+
+
+
+Comice Pears.
+
+
+
+Would you plant Comice pears instead of Bartletts, and why? What is
+their behavior as to bearing? Do they require any different treatment
+than Bartletts? What roots? Do they need other varieties for
+pollinizing?
+
+Do not plant Cornice instead of Bartletts except for those who have
+tested out the Cornice to their production and selling. Though
+satisfactory in some places, it makes no such wide record of success as
+the Bartlett and should be planted only on the basis of experience with
+it. Its propagation and culture are the same as other pears. It takes to
+the quince all right if you want dwarf trees. We have no record of its
+pollination needs, but as the Bartlett in California defies its Eastern
+reputation for self-sterility, it is likely that Cornice may also take
+care of itself, for it is not handicapped by such Eastern condemnation.
+
+
+
+No Pears on Peach.
+
+
+
+I saw, the other day, some Bartlett pear grafts in Salway peach trees,
+and the party informed me that he had seen three-year-old grafts that
+had pears last season. I would like your opinion, as I always thought
+that such a union was not possible.
+
+Our opinion is like yours, and seeing some pear grafts set in peach
+branches would not convince us that they would grow or bear fruit.
+
+
+
+Pigs in the Orchard.
+
+
+
+I have an orchard of Bartlett pears about fifteen years old, located on
+sediment land. I desire to set this to alfalfa, and to feed the alfalfa
+by letting hogs eat it off, thereby leaving the droppings on the land.
+What I wish to know is this: Will this crop be beneficial or injurious
+to the trees?
+
+Alfalfa can be successfully grown in an orchard, providing you have
+irrigation water so that the alfalfa shall not rob the trees of
+moisture; otherwise it is a very dangerous practice. The practice of
+running animals of any kind in an orchard is to be condemned. Pigs are
+particularly liable to injure trees by gnawing the bark, and we have
+seen fig trees barked clean as high as a pig could reach by standing on
+his hind legs. Of course, if you try an experiment for your own
+satisfaction, you will have to watch the pigs very carefully. It is true
+that growing pasture crops in an orchard and grazing, it off is
+injurious to trees, because the land lacks proper aeration, and good
+orchard cultivation is even more necessary in this State than in humid
+climates. Therefore, unless you are sure of a good water supply for
+irrigation, it would be altogether safer to give the whole land to the
+trees and keep them cultivated well, or else dig out the trees and use
+the land for other purposes.
+
+
+
+Dwarf Pears Not Commercially Grown.
+
+
+
+Will you kindly give the experience of pear growers in California who
+have grown the dwarfs? If you can give me the data or refer me to
+persons who can give data showing that the growing of dwarf pears can be
+made a commercial success the information will be of great value.
+
+There is no commercial growing of dwarf pears in this State, except some
+trees owned by the A. Block Company, Santa Clara. The late Mr. Block had
+an old orchard of dwarf trees, planted perhaps forty or fifty years ago,
+which he converted into an approach to a standard orchard by removing
+alternate rows, and the trees being otherwise treated like standards
+have been satisfactorily producing pears for many years. How far these
+trees are still on the dwarf roots and how far they have supplied
+themselves with roots from the variety growth above, we do not know.
+There is no disposition whatever to plant dwarf trees in this State
+except among a few amateurs who are making home fruit gardens. In view
+of the successful growth of standard trees in this State, there seem to
+be no adequate reasons for recourse to dwarf trees.
+
+
+
+Yield in Drying Pears.
+
+
+
+What is the loss of weight in drying Bartlett pears?
+
+They run from 7 to 8 lbs. of fresh pears to 1 lb. hard dried. There is
+quite wide variation according to condition of the fruit. Probably about
+7 1/2 to 1 would be as near a realizable ratio as you could get by
+arbitrary estimate.
+
+
+
+Pear Problems.
+
+
+
+Kindly let me know the advisability of grafting Bartlett pears onto
+apple trees. In replanting pears in young orchard, how would it do to
+take rooted pear suckers, graft the Bartlett on them, and save the cost
+of nursery stock? Last year my five-year-old Bartlett orchard was full
+of blossoms, but, though many pears became as large as white beans, the
+majority of them dropped.
+
+The pear and apple do not make a good union. The grafts may grow for a
+while, but finally fail. Do not use suckers as stocks. You can dig up
+some year roots and use them as starters by making root-grafts with
+Bartlett scions and do better than with suckers, but a good pear
+seedling is the proper thing either for budding or root grafting. Unless
+you have some experience in such work, it will be cheaper in the end to
+buy good nursery trees. The nonbearing of your young trees is probably
+due to their youth and vigor.
+
+
+
+Bees and Pear Blight.
+
+
+
+A few years ago, I planted alfalfa between my pear trees and the trees
+bore a very heavy crop that year. Then blight made its appearance, and
+it was claimed that the bees carried the blight. I therefore plowed
+under the alfalfa and destroyed what few beehives I had. If the theory
+that the bees carry the blight from tree to tree is not correct, I will
+experiment with alfalfa again this year.
+
+It is true that bees carry pear blight. It is also true that you are not
+likely to get many pears without bees to pollinate the blossoms. You
+cannot escape the carriage of the pear blight by removing tame bees,
+because wild bees are abundant in all parts of the State. The way to
+overcome the blight is to pursue it by amputation of diseased branches
+continually, so that there may be no contamination for the bees to
+carry. You are certainly warranted in continuing your alfalfa growing
+without regard to this question, using water enough to keep the alfalfa
+growing well without saturating the soil to the injury of the trees or
+inducing too much summer growth on them.
+
+
+
+Forage Under Sprayed Trees.
+
+
+
+Is it safe to use arsenical sprays in a pear orchard in which alfalfa is
+raised between the trees and afterward cut and fed to cattle?
+
+It was fully demonstrated by experiment about 25 years ago that herbage
+under trees sprayed with paris green at the rate of 1 pound to 160
+gallons of water was not injurious to animals pasturing upon it. We are
+not aware that such an experiment has been made with the more recently
+used arsenates - which can be used with a much higher amount of arsenic
+to the gallon because they do not injure the foliage - to determine
+whether the herbage below would be poisonous or not. Presumably not,
+because modern spraying does not admit as much loss from run-off as was
+the case with old Spraying methods.
+
+
+
+Pears on Quince.
+
+
+
+I saw some time ago a report of some French experiments in grafting the
+pear onto quince root. The report said the fruit produced was much
+larger than on any other root.
+
+Most of our common pears will take readily when grafted on the quince,
+but the quince transforms them into dwarfed trees. Such trees do
+produce, with proper care, very fine fruit. The remark about their being
+better than on standard trees refers, however, to other climates than
+ours, for California grows just as large pears on standard trees as can
+possibly be grown, while where conditions are harder the higher culture
+of the dwarf tree and the protection which it requires from climatic
+hardships, gives the dwarf tree the advantage. You can get pears on
+quince roots from most of our California nurseries.
+
+
+
+Pollination of Pears.
+
+
+
+Is it necessary in growing the Comice pear successfully, to put some
+other pear near for the purpose of pollination in order to make it
+successful? Will the ordinary Bartlett pear do for pollination?
+
+The Comice pear blooms with the Bartlett, and would therefore presumably
+be of pollinizing benefit to the Bartlett if the latter should require
+such treatment. Common experience in California, however, is that the
+Bartlett is self-fertile and not self-sterile as it is commonly reported
+in Eastern publications. California practice is, then, to plant
+Bartletts solidly without reference to preparation for pollination.
+Taking the matter the other way around, the Bartlett will do for
+pollination of the Comice probably, if that should be necessary.
+
+
+
+Lye-Peeling Peaches.
+
+
+
+Please give the formula for peeling peaches by dipping them in caustic
+soda or lye.
+
+Lye for peeling peaches is used at the rate of half to one pound to the
+gallon of water, according to the strength of the lye, which you can
+determine by the quickness with which it acts. The lye water is kept
+boiling, and the fruit is dipped in wire baskets, only being allowed to
+remain in the lye a few seconds, and is then plunged at once into fresh
+water. You must be careful to keep the lye boiling hot, also either to
+use running water for rinsing or change it very frequently, for you have
+to rely on fresh water to remove the lye, or the fruit is likely to be
+stained.
+
+
+
+Aged Peach Trees.
+
+
+
+What should be done with peach trees 35 years old which are becoming
+unthrifty,  bearing only at the ends of the limbs, etc.?
+
+Old peach trees become bark-bound and need to be cut back to just above
+the crotch for the forcing out of new branches, this being facilitated,
+of course, by application of manure, good cultivation of the soil, use
+of water during the dry season, etc. The peach is, under most
+conditions, not a long-lived tree, and if your trees are 35 years of
+age, it is probable that best results could be obtained by grubbing them
+out and replanting with young trees on new soil if possible. The
+profitable life of the Eastern peach tree is put down at five or six
+years. In California the profitable life of the peach sometimes reaches
+twenty or more years, if growing under exceptionally good conditions;
+but 35 years would seem to be at least on the borders of decrepitude.
+Growing at the tips shows that you have not pruned annually to induce
+the growth of new wood lower down.
+
+
+
+Renewing Peach Orchard.
+
+
+
+Which is the best way to renew an old peach orchard? The trees are about
+18 years old, Muirs and Fosters, and are yielding good crops, but some
+of the trees show decline. Is it best to replace the old ones with new
+trees or to plant a new orchard in between the old trees and cut out old
+ones when new trees are three or four years old?
+
+If the trees have sound bodies and are not badly injured by sunburn
+borers, do none of the things you mention, but would cut back for a new
+head. Cutting back should be done during the latter half of the dormant
+period and thinning of shoots to proper balance a new head should be
+carefully done the following winter. It is a hard job to get young trees
+to start among old trees and you are apt to get a mixed lot of trees
+which you will not be proud of. Cut back as suggested or rip out, plow
+deeply and start anew, placing the rows midway between the old rows.
+
+
+
+Will He Have Peaches?
+
+
+
+I have a young orchard between five and six years old, mostly of the
+Lovell variety. I didn't have much of a crop this year. Should I have a
+good crop next year?
+
+You ought to be able to tell now how full a set of fruit buds you have.
+If you do not know what the fruit buds are, ask some neighbor who knows
+peaches to point them out. If you have a good show of fruit buds, the
+question in California is not whether they will winter-kill or not, but
+whether the leaves held late enough the preceding summer and therefore
+the tree had strength enough to make good strong fruit buds. The late
+action of the leaves shows that the trees had enough autumn moisture.
+You will soon learn to recognize the condition also from the plumpness
+of the wood which carries the fruit buds. If all has gone well so far,
+the next point is to spray with the bordeaux mixture in November or
+December so that the new wood shall not be attacked by the peach blight
+or shothole fungus. This disease comes on early in the winter, sets the
+the new bark to gumming and endangers the crop. Then if you have San
+Jose scale, or if your trees showed much curl-leaf last spring, you
+ought to spray before the blossom buds show color with the lime-sulphur
+wash. Supposing that you have good buds now and are willing to protect
+them as suggested, your trees may be expected to come through with a
+good crop if seasonal moisture conditions are right.
+
+
+
+Peach Fillers in Apple Orchard.
+
+
+
+I have heard some talk against planting peach fillers in an apple
+orchard. What is your opinion on the subject?
+
+There is no objection providing the peach is profitable in the locality;
+and that point you must look into. The peach trees will not injure the
+apples unless they are allowed to stand too long. In that case they
+would interfere with the development of the apple.
+
+
+
+Grafting Peach on Almond.
+
+
+
+May I expect to get good results by grafting some kind of peach to
+19-year-old almond tree? If so, what kind of peach will be best? When
+shall I do grafting?
+
+Peaches take to the almond all right. Cut off and graft in the branches
+above the main forking of the tree; leaving at least one large branch to
+be grafted later or to be cut out entirely if you have peach growth
+enough to fill the top sufficiently. Graft in any kind of peach you find
+to be worth growing. Graft toward the latter part of the dormant season,
+say when the buds are swelling for a new start.
+
+
+
+Peaches on Apricot.
+
+
+
+I have a three-year-old peach orchard grafted or budded on apricot
+roots, and interspersed through the orchard are young apricot trees,
+from half-inch to inch and a half in diameter, which sprang from the
+root, the peach bud or graft having died. I budded these over to peaches
+in summer, but the buds all died for some cause. What is now the best
+course to transform them into peach trees? If a graft, what form of
+graft, and approximately when should it be made?
+
+You can graft peach scions into the apricot sprouts by taking the peach
+scions of the varieties you desire while the tree is perfectly dormant,
+keeping them in a cool place and putting in the grafts just as the buds
+are beginning to swell on the apricot stock. The scions can be buried in
+the earth in the shade of a fence or building, selecting a place,
+however, which is moist enough and yet where the water does not gather.
+The ordinary form of top grafting in stems an inch or more in diameter
+will work well. The half-inch stems can be whip-grafted successfully.
+You will have to wax well and see that the wax coating is kept sound
+until the growth starts.
+
+
+
+Replanting After Root-knots.
+
+
+
+In digging out some old peach trees, I find now and then a tree affected
+with root knot. I am burning the root, of course, but as these trees are
+scattered in the orchard, I wish to plant young trees in same locations,
+thus preserving the rows. Can new stock be safely put in the earth from
+which the old tree is removed? If treatment of the soil is essential,
+what is recommended?
+
+Dig a good large hole, removing the earth, and fill with new earth from
+between the rows, and in this way healthy growth ought to be obtained,
+although there is always a disposition in some trees to put on knots.
+They should be looked at from time to time and all those affecting the
+larger stem should be removed and the wound painted with bordeaux
+mixture.
+
+
+
+Buds in Bearing Trees.
+
+
+
+In budding over some old peach trees, should I cut away the branch above
+the bud when the latter seems to have taken?
+
+The sap flow to the upper part of the branch should be checked by part
+girdling or by part breaking or bending the top above the bud, after the
+bud is seen to have set or taken. Do not remove the whole top until the
+growth on the bud has started out well or else you will "drown it" with
+excessive sap flow.
+
+
+
+Pollen Must Be of the Same Kind.
+
+
+
+Do peaches, nectarines and apricots set fruit with the pollen of one
+another, and are the various peaches, nectarines and apricots
+self-sterile, or will most kinds set fruit with their own pollen?
+
+We do not count upon pollination between different kinds of fruit. Most
+fruits are self-fertile, else we could not attain the practical results
+we do, because it is only in the planting of almonds, cherries, pears
+and apples that any regard is paid to the association of varieties for
+that cross-fertilization. Some fruits are more apt to be self-fertile in
+this State than in other States where the growing conditions are not so
+favorable.
+
+
+
+Peach Budding.
+
+
+
+Which is easier with the peach, grafting or budding?
+
+The peach is rather a difficult tree to graft, and budding, on the other
+hand, is quite easy. You can bud into new shoots of this season's growth
+in July, and, if necessary, you can improve the slipping of the bark by
+irrigation a few days before budding. Buds can also be successfully
+placed in June in the old bark of the peach, providing it is not too
+old. For this select well-matured buds from the larger shoots and use
+rather a larger shield than in working into new shoots. When the buds
+are seen to have taken, the top growth beyond it can be reduced
+gradually and some new growth forced on the buds the same season, if the
+sap flow continues as it might be expected to do on young trees well
+cared for.
+
+
+
+Grafting on the Peach.
+
+
+
+Will pears do to graft on the peach, or will plums do well on the peach?
+How soon ought they to bear when grafted on the peach which is past
+three years old?
+
+Pears cannot be grafted on peaches. Plums generally do well on the
+peach, and if the grafts are taken from bearing trees, should come into
+fruit the second season. The peach is more difficult to graft than other
+fruit trees, because of the drying back of the bark. Be extra careful in
+the waxing and be sure that the waxing remains good until the growth
+starts out well the following summer.
+
+
+
+Young Trees Failing to Start.
+
+
+
+Some peach and almond trees set out last spring lived, but made no
+growth. Should they be replaced with new stock? If not, what may be
+expected of them?
+
+If your inactive trees have good plump dormant buds (though they may not
+be large buds), they may make good growth the coming summer, if the land
+is good and the moisture right for free growth.
+
+
+
+Peach Planting in Alfalfa Sod.
+
+
+
+Is it advisable to plant canning peaches in April, and will I gain time
+in growth and development? I want to set out eight acres in Tuscans or
+Phillips on deep rich soil near Yuba City. I have a pumping plant and
+can irrigate. The land has been in alfalfa for several years. I have in
+mind setting out trees without disturbing the alfalfa - until next
+plowing season. Do you think it advisable to use commercial fertilizer
+on ten-year-old Muirs?
+
+Planting the best canning peaches on good peach soil near Yuba City
+seems to be about the safest line of fruit investment which can be
+undertaken. We doubt that you can get much growth from trees planted in
+an old stand of alfalfa without some effort to kill out the plant which
+now occupies the ground. Still, by deep digging, throwing out all the
+alfalfa roots and thorough hoeing during the growing season and keeping
+the alfalfa mowers from sawing off the tops of them, the trees may make
+a good start. As the alfalfa will have to be irrigated, April may not be
+too late to start the trees, providing you can find nursery stock which
+is still quite dormant. Probably ten-year-old peach trees will be very
+much improved by commercial fertilizers.
+
+
+
+Prune on Almond.
+
+
+
+What root is considered best for prune trees? The ranch lies above the
+creek. A friend is very partial to the almond root instead of the
+myrobalan, but I understand that the prune tree sometimes outgrows the
+almond root.
+
+If you have a deep rather light soil which drains well and which there
+is, therefore, no danger of water standing during the rainy season, the
+almond root is perfectly satisfactory for the prune. It is a
+strong-growing root and keeps pace with the top growth well. The prune,
+in fact, is more apt to overgrow the myrobalan than the almond, and the
+myrobalan will not do well on light soils likely to dry out as the
+almond will.
+
+
+
+Re-grafting Silver Prunes.
+
+
+
+I have five acres of Silver prunes which produce very little fruit. The
+trees are strong and healthy. French prune trees adjoining bear
+regularly and heavily. Can I graft French prunes on the Silver trees?
+Will Silver prune trees take other grafts, such as apricots or apples?
+
+The Silver prune is often unsatisfactory for reason of shy bearing. It
+is perfectly feasible to graft over the tree to the French prune and
+this has been done for years by different growers. Apricots will usually
+take on the plum stock, but are apt to over-grow it or else be dwarfed
+themselves, but the apricot is often worked upon a plum stock. Apples
+have no grafting affinity whatever for the plum.
+
+
+
+French or Italian.
+
+
+
+In the prune-growing district around Salem, Oregon, Italian prunes are
+grown exclusively for drying purposes. French prunes were considered
+worthless. Here in Sutter county, California, a great many French prunes
+are grown and we are advised to plant them, but would rather plant the
+Italian prune. Which would you advise us to set out in this part of the
+State?
+
+The Italian or Fellenberg prune was grown to some extent in California
+40 years and abandoned; it was not so sure in bearing as the French, and
+it was not the type of prune which we had ambition to excel with. The
+prune which we grow as the French is the true prune or plum of Agen. We
+should plant it and let the Oregon people have the Italian.
+
+
+
+Myrobalan Seedlings.
+
+
+
+I am sending two small plums which I am told are Myrobalan plum. I
+desire to grow seedlings on which later to bud and graft French prunes.
+If these are Myrobalan plums, will trees from them be as good as trees
+from pits that were imported?
+
+The fruits are Myrobalan plums, and their seedlings would be suitable
+for the French prune, providing the trees which bear them are strong,
+thrifty growing trees. There is great variation in the colors of the
+Myrobalan seedlings, from light yellow to dark red, and it is the
+satisfactory growth of the tree rather than the character of the fruit
+which one has to bear in mind when growing seedlings from selected trees
+instead of depending so largely on imported seedlings.
+
+
+
+Drying Plums and Prunes.
+
+
+
+I have plum trees of various kinds that are loaded with fruit. I do not
+know if any are of the variety used for drying as prunes: I know nothing
+of the process of making or drying prunes. One man suggests that I dip
+them for four or live minutes in a 3 or 4 per cent solution of lye and
+then place them in the sun.
+
+Dipping your plums is right providing they are very sweet, as they will
+dry like prunes without removing the pit. If they are plums that are
+commercially used for shipping, without enough sugar to dry as prunes,
+the pit must be removed. Drying in this way, you do not need to use lye,
+which is simply for the purpose of cracking the skin so that the
+moisture can be more readily evaporated. There is no danger in using the
+necessary amount of lye. Less is used than in making hominy.
+
+
+
+The Sugar Prune.
+
+
+
+What is the commercial value of the Sugar prune? Is there any other
+early ripening variety better than the Sugar?
+
+It is selling very well as a cured prune, and growers in the northern
+bay counties especially have done so well that they are extending their
+plantings. It is coarser in flesh than the French and generally flatter
+in flavor when cooked and thus falls below the ideal of a cured prune,
+but it has compensating characters, such as early ripening, with which
+no other prune compares. The Sugar is also valuable as a shipping plum
+to Eastern markets.
+
+
+
+Glossing Dried Prunes.
+
+
+
+Will you give the method for giving the gloss to dried French prunes?
+
+There are various methods. One pound of glycerine to 20 gallons of
+water; a quick dip in the mixture very hot gives a good finish. Where a
+clear bloom rather than a shine, is desired, five pounds of common salt
+to 100 gallons of water, also dipped hot, gives a good effect. Some use
+a thin syrup made by boiling small prunes in water (by stove or steam)
+and thinning with water to produce the result desired. Steam cooking
+avoids bad flavor by burning. The salt dip is probably the most widely
+used.
+
+
+
+Price of Prunes on a Size Basis.
+
+
+
+Explain the grading in price of prunes. For instance, if the base price
+is, say, five and three-fourths cents, what size does this refer to, and
+how is the price for other sizes calculated? Also, what is the meaning
+of the phrase "four-size basis"?
+
+Prunes, after being sold to the packer, are graded into different sizes,
+according to the number required to make a pound, and paid for on that
+basis. The four regular sizes are 60-70s, 70-80s, 80-90s, and 90-100s,
+which means that from 60 to 70 prunes are required to make a pound, and
+so on. The basis price is for prunes that weigh 80 to the pound. When
+the basis price is 5 3/4 cents, 80-90s are worth 1/4 cent less than this
+amount, or 5 1/2 cents. The next smaller size, 90-100s, are worth 1/2
+cent less, or 5 cents, while prunes under this size are little but skin
+and pit and bring much less to the grower. For each next larger size
+there is a difference of 1/2 cent in favor of the grower, so that on the
+5 3/4-cent basis 70-80s are worth 6 cents, and 60-70s 6 1/2 cents. This
+advance continues for the larger sizes, 30-40s, 40-50s, etc., but these
+quite often command a premium besides, which is fixed according to the
+supplies available and the demand for the various sizes. The sizes for
+which no premium or penalty is generally fixed are those from 60 to 100,
+four sizes, so that this basis of making contracts and sales is called
+the "four-size basis." The advantage that results in having this method
+of selling prunes can be seen by the fact that on a 5 3/4-cent basis the
+smallest of the four sizes will bring but 5 cents a pound, while 30-40s
+would bring, without any premium, 8 1/2 cents, and with 1 cent premium,
+9 1/2 cents. This size has this season brought as high as 10 and 11
+cents a pound. It may be noted here that no prunes are actually sold at
+just the basis price, as they are worth either less or more than this as
+they are smaller or larger than 80 to the pound. No matter what the
+basis price is, there is a difference of one-half cent between each size
+and the sizes nearest to it.
+
+
+
+Pollinizing Plums.
+
+
+
+How many rows of Robe de Sergeant prune trees should be alternated with
+the French prune (the common dried prune of commerce) to insure perfect
+fertilization of the blossoms?
+
+The French prune is self-fertile; that is, it does not require the
+presence of other plum species for pollination of the blossoms. It is
+the Robe de Sergeant prune which is defective in pollination and which
+is presumably assisted by proximity to the French prune. If you wish to
+grow Robe de Sergeant prunes your question of interplanting would be
+pertinent, but if you desire only to grow French prunes you need not
+plant the Robe de Sergeant at all.
+
+
+
+Cultivating Olives.
+
+
+
+How deep should an olive orchard be plowed? I was told that by plowing
+deep I would injure my trees, in cutting up small rootlets and fibres
+which the olive extends through the surface soil. Is this so or not?
+
+Plowing olives is like plowing other trees, the purpose being to get a
+workable soil deep enough to stand five or six inches of summer
+cultivation, usually. If you have old trees which have never been deeply
+plowed, you would destroy a lot of roots by deep plowing, and you should
+not start in and rip up all the land at once. You can gradually deepen
+the plowing, sacrificing fewer roots at a time, without injuring the
+trees if they are otherwise well circumstanced. Small rootlets and
+fibres in the surface soil do not count; they are quickly replaced, and
+if you do not destroy them, the whole surface soil, if moist enough,
+will be filled with a network of roots which will subsequently make
+decent working of the soil impossible.
+
+
+
+Moving Old Olive Trees.
+
+
+
+Would there be anything gained by transplanting old olive trees 6 to 8
+inches in diameter over nursery stock? They would have to be shipped
+from Santa Clara to Butte county and grafted. Would they come into
+bearing any sooner and be as good trees? Could the large limbs be used
+to advantage? Would the fact that they are covered with smut cause any
+trouble?
+
+Old olive trees can be successfully moved a long distance by cutting
+back, taking up a ball of earth, and possibly a short distance with bare
+roots if everything is favorable. But do not for a moment think them
+worth such an outlay for labor, freight and hauling which such a
+movement as you mention involves. The trees on arrival would probably
+only be firewood, and if they lived, the time required in getting a good
+growth and grafting, etc., would perhaps be as great as in bringing a
+young tree of the right kind to bearing, and the latter would be a
+better tree in every way. Large limbs can be split and used as cuttings,
+but the tree would be growth on one side and decay on the other. Use the
+smaller limbs for hard-wood cuttings and the balance for firewood. The
+smut shows that the trees are covered with scale insects and might
+indicate that it is better to burn up the whole outfit unless you learn
+to fight them.
+
+
+
+Darkening Pickled Olives.
+
+
+
+Is there anything that will make olives keep their black color when put
+into lye? When I put my first picking of ripe olives in lye, a large
+part of them turn green, the black leaving the fruit. My formula is one
+pound of lye to five gallons of water. Have you any better formula?
+
+By exposing the olives to the light and air, either during the salting
+or immediately after, ripe olives may be given a uniformly black color.
+Also, fruit which is less ripe and which shows red and green patches
+after processing with lye, becomes an almost uniform dark brown color.
+To do this, the olives are removed from the brine and exposed to light
+and air freely for one or two days. Your lye was stronger than
+necessary. With ripe olives it is desirable to use salt and lye together
+to prevent softening, and the common prescription is two ounces of
+potash lye and four ounces of salt to the gallon of water after the
+bitterness is largely removed by using one or two treatments with two
+ounces of lye to the gallon without the salt. It is necessary to draw
+off the solution, rinse well, and put on fresh solution several times
+during the process to get the best results.
+
+
+
+Seedling Olives Must Be Grafted.
+
+
+
+Will olive trees grown from the olive seed be the right thing to plant?
+Will they be true to the parent tree or will they have to be grafted?
+
+Olives which a seedling olive tree will bear will be, as a rule, very
+inferior and generally of the type of the wild olive. All such trees
+must be grafted in order to produce any particular variety which you
+desire.
+
+
+
+Olives, Oranges and Peppers.
+
+
+
+We have been told that olive trees easily become infested with a fungus
+disease which they then impart to the orange tree. The same objection is
+raised to the planting of pepper trees. May this be true in some parts
+of the State and not in others?
+
+The fungus of which you have heard is the "black smut." It is a result,
+not a cause. It grows on the honey dew exuded from scale insects and if
+your trees have no scale they have no fungus. The olive trees and pepper
+trees may communicate this trouble to citrus trees, or vice versa -
+whichever gets it first gives it away to the other. If you will work
+hard enough to kill the scale wherever it appears you can have all these
+trees, but, of course, it costs a lot to fight scale on big pepper
+trees, and it is, therefore, wisest usually to choose an ornamental tree
+not likely to accept the scale.
+
+
+
+Budding Olive Seedlings.
+
+
+
+I have planted olive seeds which are just sprouting now. Can these be
+budded next June or July in the nursery row, or can they be
+bench-grafted the following winter?
+
+Your seedlings may make growth enough to spur-bud this summer. The
+ordinary plate-bud does not take freely with the olive. Some of them may
+do this; other seedlings may be slow and have to be budded in the second
+summer. Watch the size and the sap flow so that the bark will lift well
+- which may not be at just the time that deciduous trees are budded. It
+may be both earlier or later in the season. Graft evergreens like the
+olive in the nursery row; not by bench grafting.
+
+
+
+Budding Old Olives.
+
+
+
+I have seedling olive trees, set out in 1904, which I wish to change
+over to the Ascolano variety. Which is the best way to do it, by budding
+or grafting, and what is the proper time?
+
+Twig-budding brings the sap of the stock to bear upon a young lateral or
+tip bud, which is much easier to start than dormant buds used either as
+buds or grafts. A short twig about an inch and a half in length is taken
+with some of the bark of the small branch from which it starts, and both
+twig and bark at its base are put in a bark slit like an ordinary shield
+bud and tied closely with a waxed band, although if the sap is moving
+freely it would probably do with a string or raffia tie. Put in such
+buds as growth is starting in the spring.
+
+
+
+Olives from Small Cuttings.
+
+
+
+In the rooting of small soft-wood olive cuttings is it necessary to
+cover same with glass - say perhaps prepare a cold-frame and put stable
+manure in the bottom with about eight inches of sand on top?
+
+It ceases to be a cold-frame when you cover in manure for bottom heat;
+it becomes a hotbed. Varieties of olives differ greatly in the readiness
+with which they start from small cuttings. Some start freely and grow
+well in boxes of sand under partial shade - like a lath house or cover.
+Some need bottom heat in such a hotbed as you describe with a cloth
+over; some start well in a cold-frame with a lath cover. To get the best
+results with all kinds, it is safer to use some more heat than comes
+from exposure to ordinary temperatures - either by concentration, as in
+a covered frame, or by a mild bottom heat. If you have glass frames or
+greenhouse, they are, of course, desirable, but much can be done without
+that expense.
+
+
+
+Olives from Large Cuttings.
+
+
+
+I am about to take olive cuttings from one-half to one inch thick and 54
+to 20 inches long, and wish to root them in nursery rows. Please advise
+me if it is necessary to plant under half shade? Also, can same be
+planted out right away, or should they be buried in trenches for a while
+before setting out? Would it be best to strip all leaves or branches
+off, or leave one on? How many buds should be left above ground?
+
+Plant in open ground in the coast district generally; in the interior a
+lath (or litter shade not too dense) is desirable in places where high
+dry heat is expected and where sprinkling under the cover may be
+desirable. Plant out when the soil is right as to warmth and moisture,
+which is usually a little later than this in the central and northern
+parts of the State. Remove all leaves and twigs and plant about
+three-quarters of the length in the soil, which should be a well-drained
+sandy loam. The cuttings can be taken directly from the trees and need
+not be bedded. If the cuttings come some distance and get end-dried,
+make a fresh cut at planting. If shriveled at all, soak a few hours in
+water before planting out.
+
+
+
+Trimming Up Olives.
+
+
+
+Limbs are shooting out too low on my olive trees. Would it be right to
+trim them up while dormant this winter, or should I let them grow
+another year before doing so? I think I want the first limbs to start at
+18 to 20 inches above the ground.
+
+Take off the lower shoots whenever your knife is sharp. Do not let them
+grow another year. Theoretically, the best time to remove them is toward
+the end of the dormant season, but if they are not large as compared
+with the whole growth of the tree, go to it any time.
+
+
+
+Canning Olives.
+
+
+
+What is the recipe for preserving olives by heat, and how long do they
+have to remain in the heated state?
+
+Canning olives is a process, not a recipe, and it has to be operated
+with judgment. It resembles, of course, the common process of canning
+other fruits and vegetables. It has been demonstrated that heating up to
+175° Fahrenheit is effective to keep olives in sealed containers for
+over two years. The heating was done in the jars in the usual canning
+way for several minutes after 175° was reached, to be sure the contents
+were heated through.
+
+
+
+Renewing Olive Trees.
+
+
+
+I have olive trees on first-class land; no pest of any kind is apparent.
+The trees look healthy in every way, and average about 12 inches at the
+butt and 30 feet high. They have borne fruit, but for the last three
+years have not borne. I am advised to cut back to stumps, 5 or 6 feet
+high, and start new tops.
+
+Unsatisfactory olive trees may be cut back, but not to such an extent as
+you mention. Thin out the branches if too thick and cut back or remove
+those which interfere, but to cut back to a stump would force out a very
+thick mass of brush which you would have to afterward go into and thin
+out desperately. The branches which you decide to retain may be cut back
+to twelve or fifteen feet from the ground. This would have the effect of
+giving you plenty of new thrifty wood, which is desirable for the
+fruiting of the olive, but we cannot guarantee that this treatment will
+make the trees satisfactory bearers. Are you sure they are receiving
+water enough? If not, give them more next summer. Also give the land a
+good coat of stable manure and plow under when the land is right for the
+plow.
+
+
+
+Growing Olives from Seed.
+
+
+
+How are seedlings grown from olive seeds?
+
+Growing olives from seeds is promoted by assisting nature to break the
+hard shell. This can be done by pinching carefully with ordinary wire
+pliers until the shell cracks without injury to the kernel, or the shell
+may be cut into with a file, making a very small aperture to admit
+moisture. The French have specially contrived pliers with a stop which
+admits cracking and prevents crushing. Olive seeds in their natural
+condition germinate slowly and irregularly. They must be kept moist and
+planted about an inch deep in sandy loam, covering with chaff or litter
+to prevent drying of the surface. Before experimenting with olive pits,
+crack a few to see if they have good plump kernels. Seedling olives must
+be grafted, of course, to be sure of getting the variety you want. For
+this reason growth from cuttings is almost universal.
+
+
+
+Neglected Olive Trees.
+
+
+
+I have a lot of olive trees which have grown up around the old stumps.
+They are large trees and some of them have six or eight trunks. Should I
+cut away all but one trunk or let them alone? There are some of the
+trees with small olives; others none.
+
+If the olive trees which were originally planted were trained at first
+and still have a good trunk and tree form, the suckers which have
+intruded from below should be removed. If, however, the trees have been
+allowed to grow many branches from below, so that there is really no
+single tree remaining, make a selection of four or five of the best
+shoots and grow the trees in large bush form, shortening in the higher
+growth so as to bring the fruit within easier reach and reduce the cost
+of picking. You can also develop a single shoot into a tree as you
+suggest. Of course, you must determine whether the trees as they now
+stand are of a variety which is worth growing. If they are all bearing
+very small fruit, it would be a question whether they were worth keeping
+at all, because grafting on the kind of growth which you describe would
+be unlikely to yield satisfactory tree forms, though you might get a
+good deal of fruit from them.
+
+
+
+Olives from Cuttings.
+
+
+
+I have two choice olive trees on my place. I am anxious to get trees
+from these old ones and do not know how to go about it. Can I grow the
+young trees by using cuttings or slips from these old trees ? If so,
+when is the proper time to select the cuttings, and how should they be
+planted?
+
+Take cuttings of old wood, one-half or three-quarters of an inch in
+diameter, about ten inches long, and plant them about three-quarters of
+their length in a sandy loam soil in a row so water can be run alongside
+as may be necessary to keep the soil moist but not too wet. Such dormant
+cuttings can be put in when the soil begins to warm up with the spring
+sunshine. They can be put in the places where you desire them to grow in
+one or two years. Olives, like other evergreen trees, should be
+transplanted in the spring when there is heat enough to induce them to
+take hold at once in their new places, and not during the winter when
+dormant deciduous trees are best transplanted.
+
+
+
+Water and Frost.
+
+
+
+I have in mind two pieces of land well adapted to citrus culture. Both
+have the same elevation, soil, climate and water conditions, except that
+one piece is a mile of the Kaweah river, while the other is four or five
+miles distant. In case of a frost, all conditions being about the same,
+which piece would you consider to be liable to suffer the more? In the
+heavy frost of last December, while neither sustained any great damage,
+that portion of the ground nearer the river seemed to sustain the less.
+Is this correct in theory? The Kaweah river at this point is a
+good-sized stream of rapidly flowing water.
+
+The land near the river, conditions of elevation being similar, would be
+less liable to frost. There are a good many instances where the presence
+of a considerable body of water prevents the lowering of the temperature
+of the air immediately adjacent. It is so at various points along the
+Sacramento river, and it is recognized as a general principle that
+bodies of water exert a warming influence upon their immediate
+environment even in regions with a hard winter. How much it may count
+for must be determined by taking other conditions into the account also.
+
+
+
+Thinning Oranges.
+
+
+
+Is it advisable to thin fruit on young citrus trees? Our trees have been
+bearing about three years, but they are still small trees. The oranges
+and grape fruit ripen well and are large and of excellent quality, but
+the trees seem overloaded.
+
+The size of oranges on over-burdened trees can be increased by thinning,
+just as other fruits are enlarged, but it is not systematically
+undertaken as with peaches and apricots, because it is not so necessary
+and because it is easy to get oranges on young trees too large and to be
+discounted for over-sized coarse fruit. Removing part of the fruit from
+young trees is often done - for the good of the tree, not for the good
+of the fruit. It should be done after the natural drop takes place,
+during the summer.
+
+
+
+Wind-blown Orange Trees.
+
+
+
+What would you do for citrus trees five years old that have been badly
+blown out of shape?
+
+Such trees must be trued up by pruning into the wind; that is, cutting
+to outside buds on the windward side and to inside buds on the lee side;
+also reducing the weight by pruning away branches which have been blown
+too far to the leeward. Sometimes trees can be straightened by moving
+part of the soil and pulling into the wind and bracing there by a good
+prop on the leeward side, but that, of course, is not practicable if the
+trees have attained too much size.
+
+
+
+Handling Balled Citrus Trees.
+
+
+
+I have some orange and lemon trees which were sent me with their roots
+balled up with dirt and sacks. As we are still having frosts I have not
+wanted to set them out. Would it not be better to let them stay as they
+are and keep the sacks wet (they have a sack box over them) than to put
+them out while the frosts last?
+
+Your citrus trees will not be injured for a time unless mold should set
+in from the wet sacks. Get them into the ground as soon as the soil
+comes into good condition, and cover the top for a time after they are
+planted to protect them against frosts. This would be better than to
+hold them too long in the balls, but do not plant in cold, wet soil;
+hold them longer as they are.
+
+
+
+The Navel Not Thornless.
+
+
+
+I have lately purchased some Washington navel orange trees, and upon
+arrival I find they have thorns upon them. I thought the Washington
+navels were thornless.
+
+The navel orange tree is not thornless. It is described as a medium
+thorny variety, so that the finding of thorns upon the trees would not
+be in itself sufficient indication that they were not of the right
+variety.
+
+
+
+Over-size Oranges.
+
+
+
+I have some orange trees in a disintegrated granite with a good many
+small pieces of rock still remaining in the soil. What I wish to know is
+whether it is probably something in the soil that makes them grow too
+large, or is it probably the method of treatment? What treatment should
+be adopted to guard against this excessive growth?
+
+Young trees have a natural disposition to produce outside sizes of
+fruit, and this is sometimes aggravated by excessive use of fertilizers,
+sometimes by over-irrigation. We would cease to fertilize for a time and
+to regulate irrigation so that the trees will have enough to be thrifty
+without undertaking excessive growth. Such soil as you describe is
+sometimes very rich at the beginning in available plant food, and
+fertilization should be delayed until this excess has been appropriated
+by the tree.
+
+
+
+Budding or Grafting in Orange Orchard.
+
+
+
+I have land now ready to be planted to oranges, but it is impossible for
+me to buy the necessary budded stock now or even later this year. Would
+you advise me to plant the "sour stock" as it comes from the nursery and
+have it budded or crown-budded later? Are there any real objections to
+this method, and, if so, what are they?
+
+It is perfectly feasible to plant sour-stock seedlings and to graft them
+afterward to whatever variety of oranges you desire to grow, but it is
+undoubtedly better to pay a pretty good price for budded trees of the
+kind you desire rather than incur the delay and the irregular growth of
+young trees budded or grafted in the field. There is also danger of an
+irregular stand from accidental injuries to new growth started in the
+field without the protection which it finds in the nursery row.
+
+
+
+Budding Oranges.
+
+
+
+How late in the fall can budding of orange trees be done - plants that
+are two years old - and what advantage, if any, is late budding? What
+shall I do with some old trees that were budded about two months ago and
+are still green but not sprouted yet? The budding was done on young
+shoots.
+
+Late budding of the orange can be done as late as the bark will slip
+well; usually, however, not quite so late as this. Such buds are
+preferred because in the experience of most people they make stronger
+growth than those put in in the spring. Such buds are not expected to
+grow until the lowest temperatures of the winter are over. The buds
+which you speak of as green but still dormant are doing just what they
+ought to do. They will start when they get ready.
+
+
+
+Under-pruning of Orange Trees.
+
+
+
+My Washington Navels have a very heavy crop on the lower limbs, as is
+usual. These branches are so low down that many of the oranges lie on
+the ground, and it takes a good deal of time to prop them up so that
+they will not touch the ground. What would be the result of pruning off
+these low branches, after the fruit is off? Will the same amount of
+fruit be produced by the fruit growing on the limbs higher up?
+
+Certainly, raise the branches of the orange trees by removing the lowest
+branches or parts of branches which reach to the ground. A little later
+others will sag down and this under-pruning will have to be continuous.
+It would be better to do this than to undertake any radical removal of
+the lower branches. The progressive removal as becomes necessary will
+not appreciably reduce the fruiting and will be in many ways desirable.
+
+
+
+Keeping Citrus Trees Low.
+
+
+
+My tangerines last fall shot up like lemon trees - a dozen to twenty
+shoots two or three feet high. The trees are eight years old and are
+loaded with bloom and some of the shoots have buds and bloom clear to
+the top. Some shoots have no bloom. What should I do with these shoots?
+Cut them back like lemons or let them remain?
+
+You must shorten the shoots if you desire to have a low tree. This will
+cause their branching and it will be necessary, therefore, to remove
+some of the shoots entirely, either now or later, in order that the tree
+will not become too compact.
+
+
+
+Dying Back of Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+I have a few orange and lemon trees that are starting to die. One tree
+has died on the top. What kind of spray shall I use?
+
+The dying back of a tree at the top indicates that the trouble is in the
+roots, and it is usually due to standing water in the soil, resulting
+either from excessive application of water or because the soil is too
+retentive to distribute an amount of water which might not be excessive
+on a lighter soil which would allow of its freer movement. Dig down near
+the tree and see if you have not a muddy subsoil. The same trouble would
+result if the subsoil is too dry, and that also you can ascertain by
+digging. If you find moisture ample, and yet not excessive, the injury
+to the root might be due to the presence of alkali, or to excessive use
+of fertilizers. The cause of the trouble has to be determined by local
+examination and cannot be prescribed on the basis of a description of
+the plant. It cannot be cured by spraying unless specific parasite is
+found which can be killed by it.
+
+
+
+Young Trees Dropping Fruit.
+
+
+
+I have a few citrus fruit trees about three years old. They have made a
+good growth and are between seven and eight feet high with a good shaped
+top or head. I did not expect any fruit last year and did not have any.
+This spring they blossomed irregularly at blooming time, but quite an
+amount of fruit set and grew as large as marbles, some of it the size of
+a walnut, but lately it has about all fallen off the trees.
+
+There is always more or less dropping from fruit trees. Some years large
+numbers of oranges drop. There may be many causes, and the trouble has
+thus far not been found preventable. When the foliage is good and the
+growth satisfactory, the young tree is certainly not in need of
+anything. It is rather more likely that fruit is dropped by the young
+trees owing to their excessive vegetative vigor, for it is a general
+fact that fruit trees which are growing very fast are less certain in
+fruit-setting. It is, of course, possible that you have been forcing
+such action by too free use of water. You will do well to let your trees
+go along so long as they appear thrifty and satisfactory, and expect
+better fruiting when they become older.
+
+
+
+Orange Training.
+
+
+
+Is not a single leader in an orange tree more desirable than the
+much-forked tree so commonly seen! Can a single-leader tree be made from
+the nursery trees which have already formed their heads, by cutting off
+the heads below so that only a straight stick without any branches is
+left?
+
+An orange tree with a central leader would not be at all satisfactory if
+it were carried very high. Of course, a central stem can be to advantage
+taken higher than it is often done, but we would not think of growing an
+orange tree with a central stem to the apex. The laterals would droop,
+crowd down upon each other badly, open the center to sunburn, and
+encourage also a growth of central suckers and occasion an amount of
+pruning altogether beyond what is necessary with a properly branched
+tree without a central stem.
+
+
+
+Curing Citron.
+
+
+
+I wish to know a way to cure citrons at home. I have a fine tree that
+has borne very fine-looking fruit for the past two years.
+
+An outline for the preparation of candied citron is as follows: The
+fruit, before assuming a yellow color, and also when bright yellow, is
+picked and placed in barrels filled with brine, and left for at least a
+month. The brine is renewed several times, and the fruit allowed to
+remain in it until required for use, often for a period of four or five
+months. When the citrons are to be candied they are taken from the
+barrels and boiled in fresh water to soften them. They are then cut into
+halves, the seed and pulp are removed, and the fruit is again immersed
+in cold water, soon becoming of a greenish color. After this it is
+placed in large earthen jars, covered with hot syrup, and allowed to
+stand about three weeks. During this time the strength of the syrup is
+gradually increased. The fruit is then put into boilers with
+crystallized sugar dissolved in a small quantity of water, and cooked;
+then allowed to cool, and boiled again until it will take up no more
+sugar. It is then dried and packed in wooden boxes.
+
+
+
+Crops Between Orange Trees.
+
+
+
+What crop can I plant between rows of young orange trees to utilize the
+ground as well as pay a little something?
+
+It depends not alone upon what will grow, but upon what can be
+profitably sold or used on the place, and unless sure of that, it is
+usually better not to undertake planting between young trees but rather
+to cultivate well, irrigate intelligently, and trust for the reward in a
+better growth and later productiveness of the trees. It is clear,
+California experience that planting between trees except to things which
+are demonstrated to be profitable should not be undertaken, and where
+one does not need immediate returns is, as a rule, undesirable. The
+growth of a strip of alfalfa, if one is careful not to submerge the
+trees by over-irrigation, would be the best thing one could undertake
+for the purpose of improving the soil by increasing the humus content,
+reducing the amount of reflected heat from a clean surface, and is
+otherwise desirable wherever moisture is available for it. You could
+also grow cow peas for the good of the land if not for other profit. You
+can, of course, grow small fruits and vegetables for home use if you
+will cultivate well. Common field crops, with scant cultivation, will
+generally cause you to lose more from the bad condition in which they
+leave the soil than you can gain from the use or sale of the crop.
+
+
+
+Navels and Valencias.
+
+
+
+Navel trees are being budded to Valencias in southern California,
+because of the higher price received for the late-ripening Valencias.
+Are the orchards in central and northern California being planted in
+Navels, and is there any difference in soil or climate requirements of
+Navels and Valencias?
+
+There is no particular difference in the soil requirements of Valencia
+and Navel oranges. They are both budded on the same root. The
+desirability of Navel oranges in the upper citrus districts arises from
+the fact that the policy of those districts at the present time is to
+produce an early orange. This they could not accomplish by growing the
+Valencia. The great advantage of the Valencia in southern California, on
+the other hand, lies in the very fact that it is late and that it can be
+marketed in midsummer and early autumn when there are no Navels
+available from anywhere.
+
+
+
+Orange Seedlings.
+
+
+
+What about planting the seed from St. Michael's oranges or of grapefruit
+for a seed-bed to be budded to Valencias?
+
+Good plump St. Michael's seeds would be all right if you desire to use
+sweet seedling stock. Grapefruit seedlings are good and quite widely
+used, though the general preference is for sour-stock seedlings.
+
+
+
+Acres of Oranges to a Man.
+
+
+
+In your opinion, is it possible for one man, of average strength, to
+take perfect care of a twenty-acre citrus orchard? Are the services of a
+man who takes the entire responsibility of an orchard (citrus) worth
+more than those of a common ranch hand?
+
+It depends upon the man, upon the age of the trees, upon the kind of
+soil he has to handle, upon the irrigation arrangements and upon what
+you mean by "perfect care." If you contract the picking and hauling of
+fruit, the fumigation and allow extra help when conditions require that
+something must be done quickly, whatever it may be, a man with good legs
+and arms, and a good head full of special knowledge to make them go, can
+handle twenty acres and if he does it right you ought to pay him twice
+as much as an ordinary ranch hand.
+
+
+
+Roots for Orange Trees.
+
+
+
+What are the conditions most favorable to orange trees budded upon sour
+stock; also upon sweet stock and trifoliata?
+
+The sour stock is believed to be more hardy against trying conditions of
+soil moisture - both excess and deficiency, and diseases incident
+thereto. The sweet stock is a free growing and satisfactory stock and
+most of the older orchards are upon this root, but it is held to be less
+resistant of soil troubles than the sour stock, and therefore
+propagators are now largely using the latter. The trifoliata has been
+promoted as more likely to induce dormancy of the top growth during cold
+weather, because of its own deciduous habit. It has also been advocated
+as likely to induce earlier maturity in the fruit and thus minister to
+early marketing. The objection urged against it has been a claimed
+dwarfing of the tree worked upon it.
+
+
+
+Citrus Budding.
+
+
+
+I wish to bud some Maltese blood orange trees to pomelos and lemons.
+Will they make good stock for them, and, if so, is it necessary to cut
+below the original bud?
+
+It is possible to bud as you propose, and it is not necessary to go back
+to the old stock. Work in above the forks.
+
+
+
+No Citrus Fruits on Lemon Roots.
+
+
+
+Would it be any advantage to bud the Washington Navel on grapefruit and
+lemon roots?
+
+The grapefruit or pomelo is a good root for the orange, and some
+propagators prefer it. The lemon root is not used at present, because of
+its effect in causing a coarse growth of tree and fruit and because it
+is more subject to disease than the orange root. In fact, we grow nearly
+all lemons on orange roots.
+
+
+
+Budding Oranges.
+
+
+
+My first attempt at budding, I cut 20 buds and immediately inserted in
+stock of Mexican sour orange "Amataca." I left bands on them for ten
+days at which time about half seemed to have "stuck," but after a few
+days the bark curled away and the buds dried up and died. I then tried
+again, but left the bands on for thirteen days and lightly tied strings
+around below the bud to prevent the bark from curling, and also put
+grafting wax in the cut and over the bud. These appeared fresh and green
+at time of taking off the bands, but three weeks later I found them
+rotted. The grafting wax used was made of beeswax, resin, olive oil and
+a small amount of lard to soften it. Do you think that the action of the
+lard on the buds would cause them to rot?
+
+Consider first whether the buds which you use are sufficiently
+developed; that is, a sufficient amount of hardness and maturity
+attained by the twig from which you took these buds. Second, use a waxed
+band, drawing it quite tightly around the bark, above and below the bud,
+covering the bud itself without too much pressure for several days, then
+loosening the band somewhat, but carefully replacing over all but the
+bud point. It is necessary to exclude the air sufficiently, but not
+wholly. The use of a soft fat like olive oil or lard is not desirable.
+If you use oil at all for the purpose of softening, linseed oil, as used
+by painters, is safer because of its disposition to dry without so much
+penetration. Having used olive oil and lard together you had too much
+soft fatty material.
+
+
+
+Budding Orange Seedlings in the Orchard.
+
+
+
+What are the objections or advantages of planting sour stock seedlings
+where one wishes the trees and one or two years later bud into the
+branches instead of budding the young stock low on the trunk?
+
+Planting the seedling and at some future time cutting back the branches
+and grafting in the head above the forks is an expensive operation and
+loses time in getting fruit. You will get very irregular trees and be
+disappointed in the amount of re-working you will have to do. Suckers
+must be always watched for; that has to be done anyway, but a sucker
+from a wild stock is worse in effects if you happen to overlook it.
+Avoid all such trouble by planting good clean trees budded in nursery
+rows. You may have to do rebudding later, if you want to change
+varieties, and that is trouble enough. Do not rush at the beginning into
+all the difficulties there are.
+
+
+
+Grapefruit and Nuts.
+
+
+
+Peaches, pears and plums predominate in this section, but would not
+grapefruit, almonds and English walnuts be just as profitable? What is
+your idea about English walnuts on black walnut root?
+
+You can expect grapefruit to succeed under conditions which favor the
+orange. Therefore, if oranges are doing well in your district,
+grapefruit might also be expected to succeed on the same soils and with
+the same treatment. Planting of almonds should proceed upon a
+demonstration that the immediate location is suited to almonds, because
+they are very early to start and very subject to spring frost and should
+not be planted unless you can find bearing trees which have demonstrated
+their acceptance of the situation by regular and profitable crops.
+English walnuts are less subject to frosts because they start much later
+in the season. They need, however, deep, rich land which will be sure
+not to dry out during the summer. English walnuts are a perfect success
+upon the California black walnut root.
+
+
+
+Soil and Situation for Oranges.
+
+
+
+Is it absolutely essential that orange trees be planted on a southern
+slope, or will they thrive as well on any slope? What is the minimum
+depth of soil required for orange trees? How can I tell whether the soil
+is good for oranges?
+
+Orange trees are grown successfully on all slopes, although in
+particular localities certain exposures may be decidedly best, as must
+be learned by local observation. How shallow a soil will suit orange
+trees depends upon how water and fertilizer are applied; on a shallow
+soil more fertilizer and more frequent use of water in smaller
+quantities. Any soil which has grown good grain crops may be used for
+orange growing if the moisture supply is never too scant and any excess
+is currently disposed of by good drainage. There can be no arbitrary
+rule either for exposure, depth or texture of soils, because oranges are
+being successfully grown on medium loam to heavy clay loam, providing
+the moisture supply is kept right.
+
+
+
+Transplanting Orange Trees.
+
+
+
+Can you transplant trees two years old with safety to another location
+in same grove, same soil; etc.?
+
+Yes; and you can move them a greater distance, if you like. Take up the
+trees with a good ball of earth, transplanting in the spring when the
+ground has become well warmed, just about at the time when new growth
+begins to appear on the tree. The top of the tree should he cut back
+somewhat and the leaves should be removed if they show a disposition to
+wilt. You should also whitewash or otherwise protect the bark from
+sunburn if the foliage should be removed.
+
+
+
+Protecting Young Citrus Trees.
+
+
+
+Is it necessary to have young orange trees covered or leave them
+uncovered during the winter months?
+
+It is desirable to cover with burlaps or bale with cornstalks, straw or
+some other coarse litter, all young trees which are being planted in
+untried places; and even where old trees are safe, young trees which go
+into the frost period with new growth of immature wood should be thus
+protected. Do not use too much stuff nor bundle too tightly.
+
+
+
+Not Orange on the Osage.
+
+
+
+Can the Navel orange be grafted on the osage orange? I understand it is
+done in Florida, and would like to know if it has been tried in
+California.
+
+It cannot. It has not been done in Florida nor anywhere else. The osage
+orange is not an orange at all. The tree is not a member of the citrus
+family.
+
+
+
+No Pollenizer for Navels.
+
+
+
+I read that the flowers of the Navel orange are entirely lacking in
+pollen, or only poorly supplied. If this is true, what variety of orange
+would you plant in a Navel grove - to supply pollen at the proper time?
+
+We would not plant any other orange near the Navel for the sake of
+supplying it with pollen. Pollen is only needed to make seeds, and by
+the same process to make the fruit set, and Navels do not make seeds,
+except rarely, nor do they seem to need pollen to make the fruit set.
+
+
+
+Water and Frost.
+
+
+
+From how many acres could I keep off a freeze of oranges with 1000
+gallons per minute? The water is at 65 degrees.
+
+The amount of water will prevent frost over as large an area as you can
+cover with the water, so as to thoroughly wet the surface, but the
+presence of water will only be effective through about four degrees of
+temperature and only for a short time. If, then, the temperature should
+fall below 27 degrees and should remain at that point for an hour or
+two, it is doubtful if the water would save your fruit. Water is only of
+limited value in the prevention of frost, and of no value at all when
+the temperature falls too low.
+
+
+
+What to Do with Frosted Oranges.
+
+
+
+What is the best plan of treatment for frosted orange trees? The crop
+will be a total loss. It does not show any tendency to fall off the
+trees, however. Should it be picked off, thrown on the ground and plowed
+under? Should this be done right away or later?
+
+Unsound fruit should be removed as soon as its injury can be
+conveniently detected and worked into the soil by cultivation; never,
+however, being allowed to collect in masses, which is productive of
+decay and which may be injurious to roots. If trees are injured
+sufficiently to lose most of their leaves, the fruit should also be
+removed if it shows a disposition to hang on. This will be a
+contribution to the strength of the tree and its ability to clothe
+itself with new foliage.
+
+
+
+Pruning Frosted Citrus Trees.
+
+
+
+How shall I prune two-year-old orange orchard, also nursery stock buds
+that are badly injured by frost; how much to prune and at what time?
+
+As soon as you can see how far injury has gone down the branch or stem,
+cut below it, so that a new shoot may push out from sound wood, and heal
+the cut as soon as possible. This applies to growths of all ages. In the
+case of buds, if you can only save a single node you may get a bud
+started there and make a tree of that. In the case of trees, large or
+small, it is always desirable to cut above the forkings of the main
+branches, if possible, and when this much of the tree remains sound, a
+new tree can be formed very quickly. If the main stem is injured, bark
+cracked, etc., cut below the ground and put scions in the bark without
+splitting the root crown; wax well or otherwise cover exposed wood to
+prevent checking. If this is successfully done, root-rot may be
+prevented and the wound covered with new bark while the strong new stems
+are developing above.
+
+
+
+Pruning Oranges.
+
+
+
+Is it best to prune out orange trees by removing occasional branches so
+as to permit free air passage through the trees? Some are advocating
+doing so; but as I remember, the trees in southern California are
+allowed to grow quite dense, so that we could see into the foliage but
+very little.
+
+It is a matter of judgment, with a present tendency toward a more open
+tree than was formerly prescribed. Trees should be more thrifty and
+should bear more fruit deeper in the foliage-wall if more air and light
+are admitted. But this can be had without opening the tree so that free
+sight of its interior is possible. We believe thinning of the growth to
+admit more light and air is good, but we should not intentionally cut
+enough to make holes in the tree.
+
+
+
+Pecan Growing.
+
+
+
+Would you advise planting of pecans in commercial orchards here? Walnuts
+in their proper location constitute some of California's best
+improvements. After visiting some bearing paper-shell pecans here in
+Fresno county, I believe a pecan orchard of choice variety would be more
+desirable than a walnut orchard.
+
+Pecans do well on moist rich land in the interior valleys where there
+are sharper temperature changes than in the coast valleys, except
+perhaps near the upper coast. Such planting as you propose seems
+promising on lands having moisture enough to carry the nuts to full
+ripening.
+
+
+
+Growing Filberts.
+
+
+
+Please give information about growing filberts.
+
+Filberts have been largely a disappointment in California and no product
+of any amount has ever been made. Good nuts have been produced in the
+foothills of the Sierra Nevada and the Coast Range. Theoretically, the
+places where the wild hazel grows would best suit the filbert, and so
+far this seems to be justified by the little that has actually been
+done, but there is very little to say about it beyond that. It requires
+much more experience to lift the nut out of the experimental state.
+
+
+
+Early Bearing of Walnuts.
+
+
+
+Please inform me if young walnut trees grafted on black walnut stock
+will produce fruit within 18 months after being planted.
+
+It is true that the French varieties of English walnuts have produced
+fruit the second summer of their growth. This does not mean, however,
+that you can count upon a crop the second year. These are usually grafts
+in nursery rows, and one would have to wait longer, as a rule, for trees
+planted out in orchards with a chance to make a freer wood growth. This
+is rather fortunate, because it is better to have a larger tree than to
+have the growth diverted into bearing a small amount of fruit while the
+tree is very young. We do not know any advantage in getting nuts the
+second year except it be to see if you really have secured the variety
+you desire to produce later.
+
+
+
+Handling Walnut Seedlings.
+
+
+
+What is the best time to transplant seedlings of the black walnut?
+
+Transplant during the dormant season (as shown by absence of leaves)
+when the soil is in good condition. Handle them just as you would an
+apple tree, for instance.
+
+
+
+How to Start English Walnuts.
+
+
+
+In starting English walnuts, shall we get nursery stock grafted on
+California black, or shall we start our black walnut seedlings in
+nursery plats, or plant the nuts where the tree is wanted, and graft
+them at two or three years? What is the advantage, if any, of the long
+stock from grafting high, over the grafted root?
+
+If we had the money to invest and were sure of the soil conditions,
+etc., we should buy grafted trees of the variety we desired, just as we
+would of any other kind of fruit. If we were shy of money and long on
+time, we would start seedlings in nursery, plant out seedlings, and
+graft later, because it is easier to graft when the seedling is two or
+three years in place. We count the planting of nuts in place troublesome
+and of no compensating advantage. The chief advantage known to us of
+grafting high and getting a black walnut trunk is the hardier bark of
+the black walnut.
+
+
+
+Walnut Planting.
+
+
+
+I am planning to plant walnuts on rather heavy soil. I have been told to
+put the nut six inches below the surface, but think that too deep, as
+soil is rather heavy.
+
+In a heavy soil we should not plant these nuts more than three inches
+below the surface, but should cover the surface with a mulch of rotten
+straw to prevent drying out.
+
+
+
+Pruning Grafted Walnuts.
+
+
+
+Should English walnut trees be pruned? I have along the roadside English
+walnuts grafted on the California black, and they have grown to very
+large size and the fruit seems to be mostly on the outside of the trees.
+
+English walnuts are not usually pruned much, though it is often
+desirable, and of course trees can be improved by removing undesirable
+branches and especially where too many branches have started from
+grafts, it is desirable that some be removed. They should be cleanly
+sawed off and the wound covered with wax or thick paint to prevent the
+wood from decaying.
+
+
+
+Pruning Walnuts.
+
+
+
+When is the best time to remove large limbs from walnut trees?
+
+This work with walnuts or other deciduous fruit trees should be done
+late in the winter, about the time the buds are swelling; never mind the
+bleeding, it does no harm, and the healing-growth over the wound is more
+rapid while the sap is pushing.
+
+
+
+Grafting Walnuts.
+
+
+
+In cleft grafting walnuts is it necessary to use scions with only a leaf
+bud, or with staminate or pistillate buds?  Is cutting the pith of the
+scion or stock fatal to the tree?
+
+In grafting walnuts it is usual to take shoots bearing wood buds, and
+not the spurs which carry the fruit blossoms, although a part of the
+graft containing also a wood bud can be used, retaining the latter.
+Cutting into the pith of the scion or of the stock is not fatal, but it
+is avoided because it makes a split or wound which is very hard to heal.
+For this reason it is better to cut at one side of the pith in the
+stock, and to cut the scion so that the slope is chiefly in the wood at
+one side of the pith and not cutting a double wedge in a way to bring
+the pith in the center.
+
+
+
+Grafting Nuts on Oaks.
+
+
+
+I have 10 to 15 acres of black oak trees which I wish to graft over to
+chestnuts. Can grafting be done successfully?
+
+Some success has been secured in grafting the chestnut on the chestnut
+oak, but not, so far as we have heard, on the black oak. But grafts on
+the chestnut oak are not permanently thrifty and productive, though they
+have been reported as growing for some time. The same is true of English
+walnut grafts on some of the native oaks.
+
+
+
+Grafting Walnut Seedlings.
+
+
+
+Would it be proper to graft one-year California black walnut seedlings
+that must also be transplanted?
+
+As the seedlings must be moved, plant in orchard and graft as two or
+three-year-olds, according to the size which they attain.
+
+
+
+Pruning the Walnut.
+
+
+
+What is the proper time for pruning the walnut?  Is it bad for the tree
+to prune during the active season? I have recently acquired a
+long-neglected grove in which many large limbs will have to be removed
+in order to allow proper methods of cultivation to be practiced, and I
+am in doubt as to the wisdom of doing this during the rise of sap.
+
+The best time to remove large limbs to secure rapid growth of bark from
+the sides of the cut, is just at the time the sap is rising. There will
+be some outflow of sap, but of no particular loss to the tree. As soon
+as the large wounds have dried sufficiently, the exposed surface should
+be painted to prevent cracking of the wood.
+
+
+
+Eastern or California Black Walnuts?
+
+
+
+I am told that the Eastern black walnut is a more suitable root for the
+low lands in California than the California black. Is this true?
+
+There has been no demonstration that the Eastern black walnut is more
+suitable to low moist lands than the California black walnut. Our
+grandest California black walnut trees are situated on low moist lands.
+Walnut Grove is on the edge of the Sacramento river with immense trees
+growing almost on the water's edge. Walnut Creek in Contra Costa county
+is also named from large walnut trees on the creek bank land. We have
+very few Eastern black walnut trees in California and although they do
+show appreciation of moist land, they are not in any respect better than
+the Californian.
+
+
+
+Ripening of Walnuts.
+
+
+
+I send you two walnuts. I am in doubt if they will mature.
+
+The nuts are well grown, the kernel fully formed in every respect.
+Whether they will attain perfect maturity must be determined by an
+observation of the fact and cannot be theoretically predicated. Where
+trees are in such an ever-growing climate as you seem to have, they must
+apparently take a suggestion that the time has arrived for maturity from
+the drying of the soil. The roots should know that it is time for them
+to stop working so that the foliage may yellow and the nuts mature. It
+is possible that stopping cultivation a little earlier in the season may
+be necessary to accomplish this purpose.
+
+
+
+Cutting Below Dead Wood.
+
+
+
+I have some seedling English walnut trees which are two years old, but
+they are not coming out in bud this year. They are about three feet
+high, and from the top down to about 10 inches of the ground the limbs
+are dark brown, and below that they are a nice green. I cut the top off
+of one of them to see what is the matter that they do not leaf out, and
+I found that there is a round hole right down through the center of the
+tree down to the green part. The hole is about three-sixteenths of an
+inch in diameter. The pith of the limbs has been eaten away by some kind
+of a worm from the inside. Would it be better to cut the tree down to
+the green part, or let them alone?
+
+It is the work of a borer. Cut down to live wood and paint over the
+wound or wax it. Protect the pith until the bark grows over it or you
+will have decay inside. If buds do not start on the trunk, take a sucker
+from below to make a tree of. You could put a bud in the trunk, but it
+is not very easy to do it.
+
+
+
+Walnuts in Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+Will the walnut trees be injured in any way by irrigating them at the
+same time and manner as the alfalfa - that is, by flooding the land
+between the checks? Will the walnuts make as good a growth when planted
+in the alfalfa, and the ground cultivated two or three feet around the
+tree, as though the alfalfa was entirely removed? Is it advisable to
+plant the trees on the checks rather than between the checks?
+
+Walnut trees will do well, providing you do not irrigate the alfalfa
+sufficiently to waterlog the trees; providing also that you do use water
+enough so that the trees will not be robbed of moisture by the alfalfa.
+This method of growing trees will be, of course, safer and probably more
+satisfactory if your soil is deep and loamy, as it should be to get the
+best results with both alfalfa and walnuts. It would be better to have
+the trees stand so that the water does not come into direct contact with
+the bark, although walnut trees are irrigated by surrounding them with
+check levees. Planting walnut trees in an old stand of alfalfa is harder
+on the tree than to start alfalfa after the trees have taken hold,
+because the alfalfa roots like to hang on to their advantage. In
+planting in an old field, we should plow strips, say, five feet wide and
+keep it cultivated rather than to try to start the trees in pot-holes,
+although with extra care they might go that way.
+
+
+
+Walnuts in the Hills.
+
+
+
+Will walnuts grow well in the foothill country; elevation about 600
+feet, soil rich, does not crack in summer and seems to have small stones
+in it?
+
+Walnuts will do well providing the soil or subsoil is retentive enough.
+If you have water available for irrigation in case the trees should need
+it, they would do well, but if the soil is gravelly way down and likely
+to dry out deeply and you have no water available an opposite result
+might be expected. It is a fact that on some of the uplands of the coast
+mountains there is a lack of moisture late in the season which
+interferes with the success of some fruit trees.
+
+
+
+To Increase Bearing of Walnuts.
+
+
+
+We have a walnut orchard which does not bear enough nuts. The trees are
+all fine, even trees, 10 and 12 years old, and we are told that the crop
+was light this year because the trees were growing so vigorously and put
+most of their energy into the new wood. Is there any special fertilizer
+which will make the trees bear more and not prompt such heavy growth?
+
+If your adviser is right that the trees are not bearing because of
+excessive growth, it would be better not to apply any fertilizer during
+the coming year, but allow the trees to assume more steady habit and
+possibly even to encourage them to do so by using less cultivation and
+water. If you wish to experiment with some of the trees, give them an
+application of five pounds of superphosphate and two pounds of potash to
+each tree, properly distributed over the land which it occupies. You
+certainly should not use any form of nitrogen.
+
+
+
+Temperature and Moisture for the English Walnut.
+
+
+
+What amount of freezing and drouth can English walnuts stand? Under what
+conditions is irrigation necessary?
+
+The walnut tree will endure hard freezing, providing it comes when the
+tree is dormant, because they are successfully grown in some parts of
+the Eastern States, though not to a large extent; but the walnut tree is
+subject to injury from lighter frosts, providing they follow
+temperatures which have induced activity in the tree. On the Pacific
+Coast the walnut is successfully grown as far north as the State of
+Washington, but even in California there are elevations where frosts are
+likely to occur when the tree is active, and these may be destructive to
+its profit, although they may not injure the tree. You are not safe in
+planting walnuts to any extent except in places where you can find trees
+bearing satisfactorily. Planting elsewhere is, of course, an
+enterprising experimental thing to do, but very risky as a line of
+investment. Irrigation is required if the annual rainfall, coupled with
+the retentiveness of the soil and good cultivation, do not give moisture
+enough to carry the tree well into the autumn, maintaining activity in
+the leaves some little time after the fruit is gathered.
+
+
+
+Walnuts from Seed.
+
+
+
+There is a reliable nursery company selling seedling Franquette walnut
+trees on a positive guarantee that they will come true to type. Are
+orchards of this kind satisfactory?
+
+Walnuts do come truer to the seed than almonds and other fruits and the
+Franquette has a good reputation for remembering its ancestry. Until
+recently practically all the commercial walnut product of California was
+grown on seedling trees. But these facts hardly justify one in trusting
+to seedlings in plantings now made. The way to get a walnut of the
+highest type is to take a bud or graft from a tree which is bearing that
+type.
+
+
+
+High-grafted Walnuts.
+
+
+
+What is the advantage of a high-grafted walnut? I am about ready to
+plant 10 acres to nuts and do not know whether to purchase Franquette
+grafted high on California Black or not.
+
+The advantage of grafting English walnut high on California Black walnut
+consists in securing a main trunk for the tree, which is less liable to
+sunburn and probably hardier otherwise than is the stem of the English
+walnut, and the present disposition toward higher grafting or budding
+seems therefore justified and desirable.
+
+
+
+Grafting and Budding the Mulberry.
+
+
+
+What is the most approved manner of grafting mulberry trees? Am told
+that they are very difficult to successfully graft.
+
+Most propagators find the mulberry difficult by ordinary top and cleft
+grafting methods. A flute or ring graft or bud does well on small
+seedlings - that is, removing a ring or cylinder of the bark from the
+stock and putting in its place a cylinder from the variety desired, cut
+to fit accurately. For large trees this would have to be done on young
+shoots forced out by cutting back the main branches, but when this is
+done ordinary shield budding in these new shoots would give good
+results. Cut back the trees now and bud in the new shoots in July or
+August.
+
+
+
+Hardiness of Hybrid Berries.
+
+
+
+How much cold will Phenomenal, Himalaya and Mammoth blackberries stand
+in winter? Is it safe to plant where the temperature goes below 32
+degrees?
+
+These berries are hardy to zero at least, for they are grown in northern
+parts of this coast where they get such a touch once in a while. They
+have also endured low temperatures in the central continental plateau
+States and eastward. Whether they can endure the lowest temperatures of
+the winter-killing regions of the northern border cannot be determined
+in California, for we do not have the conditions for such tests. The
+berries are very hardy while dormant, and probably their value in colder
+regions would depend rather more upon their disposition to remain
+dormant than upon what they can endure when in that condition.
+
+
+
+Pruning Himalayas.
+
+
+
+Shall the old wood be cut away in pruning Himalayas?
+
+All the old wood which has borne fruit should be cut out in the fall and
+new shoots reduced to three or four from each root, and these three or
+four shoots should be shortened to a length of ten or twelve feet and be
+trained to a trellis or fence, or some other suitable support. Vines
+which are allowed to grow riotously as they will, are apt to be
+deficient in fruit bearing.
+
+
+
+Strawberries with Perfect Flowers.
+
+
+
+Has Longworth Prolific an imperfect bloom? I have Longworths in bearing
+which apparently are perfect. Is there another strain of Longworth that
+are not self-fertilizing?
+
+The Longworth Prolific strawberry has both staminate and pistillate
+elements. Possibly some other variety, because of its resemblance to
+Longworth and the popularity of it, may have been wrongly given its
+name. Most of the varieties which are largely grown in California are
+perfect in blossom, though some of the newer varieties need association
+with pollinizers.
+
+
+
+Pruning Loganberries.
+
+
+
+Should the new shoots of Loganberry vines, which come out in the spring,
+be left or cut away? If cut, will more shoots put out in the fall and be
+sufficient for the next year's crop?
+
+The Loganberry shoots which are growing should be carefully trained and
+preserved for next year's fruiting. The old canes should be cut away at
+the base after the fruit is gathered. The plant bears each year upon the
+wood which grew the previous summer.
+
+
+
+Strawberry Planting.
+
+
+
+Should I plant strawberries in the spring or fall?
+
+Whether it is wise to plant strawberry plants in the fall depends on
+several things, such as getting the ground in the very best of
+condition, abundance of water at all times, splendidly rooted plants,
+and cool weather (which is very rare at the time plants are to be
+planted, August and September). Plants may be taken with balls of earth
+around the roots, and water poured in the hole that receives the plant.
+After planting, each plant should be shaded from the sun; after this the
+ditches must be kept full of water so the moisture will rise to the
+surface; this must be done till the plant starts growth. This method can
+only be used in small plantings, as it is too expensive for large
+plantings, as is also the potted plant method where each plant is grown
+in a small pot and transplanted by dumping out the earth as a ball with
+the plant and putting directly in the ground. From potted plants, set
+out in the fall, one may count on a fine crop of berries the following
+spring. Strawberry plants are never dormant till midwinter, and there is
+no plant more difficult to transplant when roots are disturbed in the
+hot season, which usually prevails in the interior valleys of
+California. To have a long-lived strawberry field and to get best
+results, planting must be done in the spring, as soon as the soil can be
+put in best condition to receive plants. From this a fall crop can be
+expected - Answer by Tribble Bros., Elk Grove.
+
+
+
+Blackberries for Drying Only.
+
+
+
+What variety of blackberries or raspberries are the best for drying
+purposes? Are berries successfully dried in evaporators? This is a
+natural berry country. Wild blackberries are a wonder here.
+Transportation facilities do not allow raising for the city market. In
+your opinion, would the planting of ten acres in berries for drying be a
+success?
+
+The blackberries chiefly grown in California are the Lawton, Crandall
+and the Mammoth. The raspberry chiefly grown is the Cuthbert. There are
+very few of these berries dried. It would be better to dry them in an
+evaporator than in the sun, but little of it is done in this State. It
+is doubtful whether it would pay to plant blackberries for drying only,
+because there is such a large product flow in various places where the
+berries are either sold fresh or sold to the cannery, and drying is only
+done for the purpose of saving the crop if the prices for the other uses
+are not satisfactory. To grow especially for drying would give you only
+one chance of selling to advantage, and that the poorest.
+
+
+
+Planting Bush Fruits.
+
+
+
+What is the best time to set out blackberries and Loganberries?
+
+Any time after the soil is thoroughly wet down and you can get good,
+mature and dormant plants for transplanting. This may be as early as
+November and may continue until February or later in some places.
+
+
+
+Growing Strawberry Plants.
+
+
+
+In a patch of strawberries planted this spring, is it advisable to cut
+off runners or root some of them?
+
+In planting strawberries in matted rows, it is usual to allow a few
+runners to take root and thus fill the row. It is the judgment of plant
+growers that plants for sale should not be produced in this way, but
+should be grown from plants specially kept for that purpose.
+
+
+
+Strawberries in Succession.
+
+
+
+Is there any reason, in strawberry culture, when the vines are removed
+at the end of the fourth year, why the ground may not be thoroughly
+plowed and again planted to strawberries?
+
+It is theoretically possible to grow strawberries continuously on the
+same land by proper fertilization and irrigation. Practically, the
+objection is that certain diseases and injurious insects may multiply in
+the land, and this is the chief reason why new plantations are put on
+new land and the old land used for a time for beans or some root crop,
+so that the soil may be cleaned and refreshed by rotation and by the
+possibility of deeper tillage.
+
+
+
+Limitations on Gooseberries.
+
+
+
+Why is it that gooseberries are not grown more in California? Is there
+any reason, climatic or other, why the gooseberry should not be as
+successfully grown in California as elsewhere?
+
+There are two reasons. First, the gooseberry does not like interior
+valleys, although with proper protection from mildew or by growing
+resistant varieties, good fruit can be had in coast or mountain valleys.
+Second, practically no one cares for a ripe gooseberry in a country
+where so many other fruits are grown, and the demand is for green
+gooseberries for pies and sauce, and that is very easily oversupplied.
+
+
+
+Dry Farming with Grapes.
+
+
+
+I have heard that they are planting Muscat grapes on the dry farming
+plan. Will it be successful?
+
+Grapes have been grown in California on the dry farming plan ever since
+Americans came 60 years ago. Grapes can be successfully grown by
+thorough cultivation for moisture retention, providing the rainfall is
+sufficient to carry the plant when it is conserved by the most thorough
+and frequent cultivation. Unless this rainfall is adequate, no amount of
+cultivation will make grape vines succeed, because even the best
+cultivation produces no moisture, but only conserves a part of that
+which falls from the clouds. Whether grapes will do depends, first, upon
+what the rainfall is; second, upon whether the soil is retentive; third,
+upon whether you cultivate in such a way as to enable the soil to
+exercise its maximum retentiveness. These are matters which cannot be
+determined theoretically - they require actual test.
+
+
+
+Cutting Back Frosted Vine Canes.
+
+
+
+Vines have been badly injured by the late frosts, especially the young
+vines which were out the most. Is there anything to be done with the
+injured shoots now on the vines so as to help the prospects of a crop?
+
+If shoots are only lightly frosted they should be cut off at once as low
+as you can detect injury. This may save the lower parts of the shoot,
+from which a later growth can be made. Frosted parts ferment and carry
+destruction downward, and therefore should be disposed of as soon as
+possible. Where vines have run out considerably and badly frosted, the
+best practice usually is to strip off the frozen shoots so as to get rid
+of the dormant buds at the base, which often give sterile shoots. A new
+break of canes from other buds is generally more productive.
+
+
+
+Dipping Thompson Seedless.
+
+
+
+What is the process of dipping and bleaching Thompson seedless grapes?
+
+One recipe for dipped raisins is as follows: One quart olive oil;
+3/4-pound Greenbank soda and 3 quarts water are made into an emulsion,
+and then reduced with 10 gallons water in the dipping tank, adding more
+soda to get lye-strength enough to cut the skins, and more soda has to
+be added from time to time to keep up the strength. The grapes are
+dipped in this solution and sulphured to the proper color. This is the
+general outline of the process. The ability to use it well can only be
+attained by experience and close observation.
+
+
+
+The Zante Currant.
+
+
+
+Is the currant that grows in the United States in any way related to the
+currant that grows in Greece? If so, could it be cured like the currant
+that comes from Greece?
+
+The dried currants of commerce are made in Greece and in California (to
+a slight extent) from the grape known as the grape of Corinth. They are
+not made from the bush currant which is generally grown in the United
+States, and the two plants are not in any way related.
+
+
+
+Grape Vines for an Arbor.
+
+
+
+How shall I prune grape vines, viz: Tokay, Black Cornichon, Muscat,
+Thompson Seedless, Rose of Peru, planted for a grape arbor?
+
+You can grow all the vines you mention with high stumps reaching part
+way or to the top of the arbor as you desire side or top shade or both.
+You can also grow them with permanent side branches on the side slats of
+the arbor if you desire. Each winter pruning would consist in cutting
+back all the previous summer's growth to a few buds from which new canes
+will grow for shade or fruiting, or you can work on the renewal system,
+keeping some of these canes long for quick foliage and more fruit
+perhaps and cutting some of them short to grow new wood for the
+following year's service, as they often do in growing Eastern grapes.
+
+
+
+Pruning Old Vines.
+
+
+
+I have some Muscat grape vines 30 years old. Can I chop off most of the
+old wood with a hatchet and thereby bring them back to proper bearing?
+
+Not with a hatchet. If the vines are worth keeping at all, they are
+worth careful cutting with a saw and a painting of all cuts in large old
+wood. If the vines have been neglected, you can saw away surplus prongs
+or spurs, reserving four or five of the best placed and most vigorous,
+and cut back the canes of last summer's growth to one, two or three
+buds, according to the strength of the canes - the thicker the canes,
+the more buds to be kept. It is not desirable to cut away an old vine to
+get a new start from the ground, unless you wish to graft. Shape the top
+of the vine as well as you can by saving the best of the old growth.
+
+
+
+Topping Grape Vines.
+
+
+
+Is topping grape vines desirable?
+
+Topping of vines is in all cases more or less weakening. The more
+foliage that is removed, the more weakening it is. Vines, therefore,
+which are making a weak growth from any cause whatever can only be
+injured by topping. If the vines are exceptionally vigorous, the
+weakening due to topping may be an advantage by making them more
+fruitful. The topping, however, must be done with discretion. Early
+topping in May is much more effective and less weakening than later
+topping in June. Very early topping before blossoming helps the setting
+of the blossoms. Topping in general increases the size of the berries.
+
+
+
+Bleeding Vines.
+
+
+
+Will pruning grape vines when they bleed injure them?
+
+It has been demonstrated not to be of any measurable injury.
+
+
+
+Vines and Scant Moisture.
+
+
+
+Would it be well to sucker vines and take also some bearing canes off,
+or in a dry year will they mature properly as in other years if the
+ground is in good condition?
+
+Vines usually bear drouth-stress better than bearing fruit trees. On
+soils of good depth and retentiveness, they are likely to give good
+crops in a dry year with thorough cultivation; still, lightening the
+burden of the vines is rational. Suckering and cutting away second-crop
+efforts should be done. Whether you need to reduce the first crop can be
+told better by the looks of the vines later in the season.
+
+
+
+Sulphuring for Mildew.
+
+
+
+For two years I have not sulphured my vineyard and had no mildew. My
+vines seem as healthy and thrifty as any of the neighbors' that were
+duly sulphured. Have I lost anything by not sulphuring?
+
+Certainly not. In sections where mildew is practically sure to come,
+sulphur should be used regularly as a preventive without waiting for the
+appearance of the disease. There are, however, many locations,
+especially in the interior valley, where the occurrence of mildew is
+rare in sufficient volume to do appreciable harm, and then sulphuring
+should depend upon the weather, which favors mildew or otherwise. But be
+always on the watch and have everything ready to sulphur immediately;
+also learn to recognize the conditions under which appearances of mildew
+become a menace.
+
+
+
+Grape Sugar in Canned Grapes.
+
+
+
+How can I prevent the formation of grape sugar in canned grapes?
+
+Take care that the syrup is of the same density as the juice of the
+grape when the fruit and the juice are placed together in the can. The
+density of the syrup and the juice are, of course, to be obtained by the
+use of the spindle, the same arrangement employed for determining when
+the percentage of sugar in the grape juice is right for raisin-making or
+for wine-making. Whatever the density of the juice, make the syrup the
+same by the use of the right amount of sugar.
+
+
+
+Part II. Vegetable Growing
+
+
+
+California Grown Seed.
+
+
+
+Which are the best garden seeds to use, those raised in Ohio and the
+East or those raised in Washington and Oregon or those raised in this
+State?
+
+It has been definitely shown by experience and experiment that is does
+not matter much where the seed comes from, providing it is well grown
+and good of its kind. There is no such advantage in changing seed from
+one locality to another as is commonly supposed. Besides, it is now very
+difficult to tell positively where seed is grown, because California
+wholesale seeds are retailed in all the States you mention, and the
+contents of many small packets of seeds distributed in California went
+first of all from California to the Eastern retailers, who advertise and
+sell them everywhere.
+
+
+
+Cloth for Hotbeds.
+
+
+
+Would cloth do to cover a hotbox to raise lettuce, radishes, etc., for
+winter use where we get a very heavy rainfall?
+
+Yes, if you make the cloth waterproof for its own preservation from
+mildew and other agencies of decay. The following recipe for
+waterproofing cloth is taken from our book on "California Vegetables":
+Soften 4 1/2 ounces of glue in 8 3/4 pints of water, cold at first; then
+dissolve in, say, a washboiler full (6 gallons) of warm water, with 2
+1/2 ounces of hard soap; put in the cloth and boil for an hour, wring
+and dry; then prepare a bath of a pound of alum and a pound of salt,
+soak the prepared cloth in it for a couple of hours, rinse with clear
+water and dry. One gallon of the glue solution will soak about ten yards
+of cloth. This cloth has been used in southern California for several
+years without mildewing, and it will hold water by the pailful. Where
+the rain is heavy and frequent, the cloth should be well supported by
+slats and given slope to shed water quickly. Of course, this is only a
+makeshift. Glass would be more satisfactory and durable in a region of
+much cloudiness and scant sunshine; the greater illumination through
+glass will make for the greater health and growth of the plants.
+
+
+
+Soil for Vegetables.
+
+
+
+Some of my soil bakes and hardens quickly after irrigation, but I have
+an acre or so of sandy soil. Would this be best for garden truck and
+berries?
+
+Sandy, loamy soil is better than the heavy soil for vegetables and
+berries, if moisture is kept right, because it can be more easily
+cultivated and takes water without losing the friable condition which is
+so desirable. A heavier soil can, however, be improved by the free use
+of stable manure or by the addition of sand, or by the use of one or
+more applications of lime at the rate of 500 pounds to the acre, as may
+be required - all these operations making the soil more loamy and more
+easily handled.
+
+
+
+Vegetables in a Cold, Dark Draft.
+
+
+
+What vegetables will thrive in localities where the sun shines only part
+of the day? I have a space in my garden that gets the sun only between
+the hours of 11 and 5, thereabouts; I would like to utilise those places
+for vegetables if any particular kind will grow under such conditions.
+The soil apparently is good, of a sandy nature, with some loam. The
+place is high and subject to much wind.
+
+You can only definitely determine by actual trial what vegetables will
+be satisfactory under the shade conditions which you describe. You may
+get good results from lettuces, radishes, beets, peas, top onions, and
+many other things which do well at rather a low temperature, while
+tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, etc., would probably be worthless. Your
+soil is probably satisfactory and you can easily keep the moisture right
+by being careful not to use as much water as you would in open sunshine.
+The behavior of the plants will be directly dependent upon the
+temperature and the sunshine which they receive under the conditions
+described.
+
+
+
+Jesusalem Artichokes.
+
+
+
+What is the best time for planting Jerusalem artichokes?
+
+Jerusalem artichoke tubers are planted in the spring after the ground
+has become warm and the heavy frosts are over. The planting may be done
+in rows far enough apart for cultivation, the tubers being set about a
+foot apart in the row. This tuber grows like a potato, but is more
+delicate than the potato. It is inclined to decay when out of the
+ground, but will not start growth as early as the potato, and therefore
+it is not desirable to start it early in the winter if the winters are
+cold and the ground apt to be very wet. Do not cut the tubers for seed
+as you would potatoes.
+
+
+
+Globe Artichokes.
+
+
+
+I have land that will grow magnificent artichokes. Two plants last year
+(variety unknown) produced heavy crops of buds, but the scales opened
+too wide and allowed the center to become fibrous and were unsalable. Is
+this due to climate, lack of sufficient water, or to not having the
+right variety?
+
+Many artichokes which are planted should really be put in the ornamental
+class - they are either a reversion from a wilder type in plants grown
+from the seed or they never have been good. In order to determine which
+varieties you had better grow on a large scale, it is desirable to get a
+few plants of the different varieties as offered by seedmen. In this way
+you would find out just what are considered best in different parts of
+the State, and propagate largely the ones which are best worth to you.
+By subdivision of the roots you get exactly the same type in any
+quantity you desire - ruling out undesirable variations likely to appear
+in seedlings.
+
+
+
+Artichoke Growing.
+
+
+
+Is the Globe artichoke a profitable crop to raise commercially? Near
+Pescadero a company has been formed to raise it for Eastern shipment. Is
+it a very profitable crop to raise? Are certain varieties worthless?
+
+Considerable quantities of Globe artichokes are grown in southern and
+central California for Eastern shipment. There is a limit to the amount
+which can be profitably shipped, because people generally, at the East,
+do not know the Globe artichoke and how to eat it, but more of them are
+learning the desirability of it every year. There are species which are
+only ornamental, as a bad weed.
+
+
+
+Asparagus Growing.
+
+
+
+What is the average commercial yield of asparagus to the acre in
+California? Also, how long it takes asparagus to come into full bearing,
+and what yield could be expected after two years' growth? Is asparagus
+resistant to moderate quantities of alkali in the soil?
+
+The yield of asparagus is from one to four tons of marketable shoots per
+acre, according to age and thrift of plants, etc., the largest yields
+being on the peat lands of the river islands. On suitable lands one
+ought to get at least two tons per acre. Roots may yield a few days'
+cuttings during their second year in permanent place; the third year
+they will stand much more cutting, and for several years after that will
+be in full yielding. Asparagus enjoys a little salt in the land, but one
+would not select what is ordinarily called "alkali land" for growing it
+- not only because of the alkali but because of the soil character which
+it induces.
+
+
+
+Bean Growing.
+
+
+
+We have a small field of beans, and would like to know which is the best
+and most profitable way to crop them.
+
+Cultivate the beans so that the plants may have plenty of moisture to
+fill the pods, then let them dry and die. Gather the dry plants before
+the pods open much, and let them dry on a clean, smooth piece of ground
+or on the barn floor. When they are well dried, thresh with a flail,
+rake off the straw, sweep up the beans and clean by winnowing in the
+wind or with a fanning mill with suitable screens.
+
+
+
+Hoeing Beans.
+
+
+
+Should beans be hoed while the dew is on the vine?
+
+Beans had better be hoed with the dew on them than not hoed at all. The
+only objection to hoeing with the dew on is that the hoer will get his
+feet wet, the vines will become untidy from adhering dust, with a
+possible chance of the leaves becoming less effective and the
+pollination of the blossom rendered less liable to occur.
+
+
+
+Beans as Nitrogen Gatherers.
+
+
+
+I grow string beans in my rotation to restore nitrogen, but I see it
+stated that not all beans are valuable for this purpose. Are the common
+bush varieties nitrogen gatherers?
+
+Probably they are all doing it in various degrees. Pull up or dig up a
+few plants when growing actively, not too early nor too late in the
+season, and look for nodules on the roots. Number and size considered
+together will measure their activity in this line in your soil.
+
+
+
+Bean Growing.
+
+
+
+I want to plant beans of different varieties. The land is rich, black
+loam with a little sand. When is the best time to plant? If planted
+early, what shall we do to keep the weevils out of them?
+
+It is desirable to plant beans as early as you can without encountering
+danger of frost killing. No particular date can be mentioned for
+planting because the dates will vary in different locations according to
+the beginning of the frost-free period. The best way to escape weevil is
+to sell most of the beans as soon as harvested, treating those which you
+retain for seed, or for your own use, with bisulphide of carbon vapor or
+by gently heating to a temperature not above 130 degrees, which, of
+course, must be done carefully with an accurate thermometer so as not to
+injure germinating power. Unless you know that beans do well in your
+locality, it would be wise to plant a small area at first, because beans
+are somewhat particular in their choice of location in California, and
+one should have practical demonstration of bearing before risking much
+upon the crop.
+
+
+
+The Yard-Long Bean.
+
+
+
+I wish to ask about the very long bean which I think was introduced from
+China into California. I remember seeing one vine when I was living in
+California which I think must have been 20 or 30 feet long and had
+hundreds of pods and each of these pods were from 2 to 3 feet long. Are
+these beans generally considered eatable? Would they be at all suitable
+to get as a field bean which the hogs eat?
+
+You probably refer to the "yard-long" pole bean. It is a world variety
+and may have come to California from China as you suggest, but it has
+also been well known for generations in Europe and was brought thence to
+the Eastern States at some early date. It is generally accounted as an
+unimportant species and certainly has not risen to commercial account in
+California. The beans are edible and the whole plant available for stock
+feeding, but there is no doubt but that the growth of some of the
+cowpeas would be preferable as a summer field crop for hog pasture.
+
+
+
+Why the Beans are Waiting.
+
+
+
+Can you tell me why pink beans which were planted early in Merced
+county, irrigated four times, hoed four times and cultivated, have no
+beans on them? The vines look finely.
+
+Probably because you had too much hot, dry wind at the blooming. This is
+one of the most frequent troubles with beans in the hot valley, but the
+pink bean resists it better than other varieties. As the heat moderates
+you are likely to get blossoms which will come through and form pods,
+and then the crop will depend upon how long frost is postponed. You have
+also treated the plants a little too well with water and cultivation.
+You had better let them feel the pinch of poverty a little now; they
+will be more likely to go to work.
+
+
+
+Blackeye Beans.
+
+
+
+What is the best way to prepare land for Black-eye beans? How much seed
+is required per acre, and what is the estimated cost of growing them?
+The soil is a well-drained clay loam.
+
+The cost of growing is not particularly different from other beans, and
+will vary, of course, according to the capacity and efficiency of the
+plows, harrows, teams, tractors, men, etc. Every man has to figure that
+according to his conditions and methods of turning and fining the land.
+Sow 40 pounds per acre in drills 3 feet apart, and cultivate as long as
+you can without injuring the vines too much. Sowing must of course be
+done late, after the ground is warm and danger of frost is past, though
+the plowing and harrowing should be done earlier than that.
+
+
+
+Blackeye Beans are Cow Peas.
+
+
+
+I sent for some Blackeye cow peas; they look like Blackeye beans. Am
+sending you a sample of what I got. What are they?
+
+Yes, they are in the cow pea group, but there are other cow peas which
+would not be recognized as having any relation to them. All cow peas
+are, however, beans, and they have not much use for frost. They are not
+hardy like the true pea group.
+
+
+
+Growing Horse Beans.
+
+
+
+Does the soil need to be inoculated for horse beans? I intend to plant
+five acres about January 1, on the valley border in Placer county and
+they get heavy frost in the morning. Does frost hurt them? How shall I
+plant them?
+
+California experience is that horse beans grow readily without
+inoculation of the seed. Quite a good growth of the plant is being
+secured in many parts of the State, particularly in the coast region
+where the plant seems to thrive best. It is one of the hardiest of the
+bean family and will endure light frost. How hardy it will prove in your
+place could be told only by a local experiment. Whether it can be
+planted after frost danger is over, as corn is, and make satisfactory
+growth and product in the dry heat of the interior summer must also be
+determined by experience.
+
+The horse bean is a tall growing, upright plant which is successfully
+grown in rows far enough apart for cultivation, say about 2 1/2 feet,
+the seed dropped thinly so that the plants will stand from 6 inches to 1
+foot apart in the row.
+
+
+
+Growing Castor Beans.
+
+
+
+Give information on the castor oil bean; the kind of bean best to plant,
+when to plant and harvest, the best soil, and where one can market them.
+
+Castor bean growing has been undertaken from time to time since 1860 in
+various parts of California. There is no difficulty about getting a
+satisfactory growth of the plant in parts of the State where moisture
+enough can be depended upon. Although the growing of beans is easy
+enough, the harvesting is a difficult proposition, because in California
+the clusters ripen from time to time, have to be gathered by hand, to be
+put in the sun to dry, and finally threshed when they are popping
+properly. The low price, in connection with the amount of hand work
+which has to be done upon the crop, has removed all the attractions for
+California growers. There is also, some years, an excess of production
+in the central West, which causes prices to fall and makes it still more
+impracticable to make money from the crop with the ordinary rates of
+labor. The oil cannot be economically extracted except by the aid of the
+most effective machinery and a well equipped establishment. Oil-making
+in the rude way in which it is conducted in India would certainly not be
+profitable here.
+
+
+
+Legume Seed Inoculation.
+
+
+
+Is there any virtue in inoculating plants with the bacteria that some
+seed firms offer? I refer to such plants as peas and beans.
+
+If the land is yielding good crops of these plants and the roots are
+noduled, it does not need addition of germs. If the growth is scant even
+when there is enough moisture present and the roots are free from
+nodules, the presumption is that germs should be added. Speaking
+generally, added germs are not needed in California because our great
+legume crops are made without inoculation. Presumably, burr clover and
+our host of native legumes have already charged the soil with them. If,
+however, such plants do not do well, try inoculation by all means, to
+see if absence of germs is the reason for such failure or whether you
+must look for some other reason. If the results are satisfactory, you
+may have made a great gain by introduction of desirable soil organisms
+which you can extend as you like by the distribution of the germ-laden
+soil from the areas which have been given that character by inoculation
+of the seed.
+
+
+
+Beans on Irrigated Mesas.
+
+
+
+Would white and pink beans do well on the red orange land at Palermo
+with plenty of water? I have in mind hill land, the hills being very red
+and running into a dark soil in the lower part. How many beans could I
+get per acre?
+
+Probably nothing would be better for the land or for the future needs of
+the trees than to grow beans. An average crop of beans, for the whole
+State and all kinds of beans, is about one ton to the acre. What you
+will get by irrigation on hot uplands we do not know. Beans do not like
+dry heat, even if the soil moisture is adequate. They do not fructify
+well even when they grow well. The pink bean does best under such
+conditions. All beans, except horse beans, must be brought up after
+frost dangers are all over, and this brings them into high heat almost
+from the start in such a place as you mention. You should find out
+locally how beans perform under such conditions as you have, before
+undertaking much investment.
+
+
+
+Leases for Sugar Beets.
+
+
+
+I have land in Yolo county that has made an average yield yearly of from
+12 to 18 sacks of wheat and barley. A beet sugar company proposes
+renting this land and plant it to sugar beets and I would prefer not to
+consider any agreement of less than five years' duration. The particular
+point that I would like to have you advise me on is the effect sugar
+beet has upon the soil.
+
+You certainly have good soil, and it is not strange that a sugar company
+should desire to rent it for its purposes. There is, however, a great
+question as to whether it would be desirable to run to beets continually
+for five years. Beets make a strong draft on some components of the
+soil, and it is a common experience that they should not be grown year
+after year for a long period, but should take their place in a rotation,
+in the course of which one or two crops of beets should be followed by a
+crop of grain, and that if possible by a leguminous plant like alfalfa
+or an annual legume like burr clover used for pasturage, and then to
+beets again. Beets improve soil for grain, because of the deep running
+of the root, and because beet culture is not profitable without deep
+plowing and continuous summer cultivation. This deepens and cleans the
+land to the manifest advantage of the grain crop, but still the beet
+reduces the plant food in the soil and some change of crop should be
+made with reference to its restoration. We would much prefer to lease it
+for two years than for five years of beet growing.
+
+
+
+Topping Mangel Wurzels.
+
+
+
+Does it harm the mangel wurzels if their tops ore cut off once a month?
+
+Removing leaves will decrease the size and harden the tissues of the
+beet root. If you wish to grow the plant for the top, the root will
+continue to put out leaves for you for a time; if you grow it for the
+size and quality of the root, you need all the leaf-action you can get,
+therefore do not reduce the foliage.
+
+
+
+Blooming Brussels Sprouts.
+
+
+
+Are Brussels sprouts male and female? Some of my plants are flowering
+and show no signs of sprouts, while those that are not, show some small
+eyes at stem that look like young sprouts.
+
+Brussels sprouts ought to form the sprouts without flowering, just as a
+cabbage heads without flowering. Those plants which show flowers have
+been stopped by drought or otherwise, and have taken on prematurely the
+second stage of growth which is productive of seed and is undesirable
+from the point of view of growing heads.
+
+
+
+Blanching Celery.
+
+
+
+I desire to know the different methods by which the celery is bleached,
+and particularly whether boards or other material other than earth is
+used for this purpose.
+
+There is some blanching of celery with boards, cloth wrappings,
+boot-legs, old tiles, sewer pipes, etc., in market gardens in different
+parts of the State, but the great commercial product of celery for
+export is blanched wholly by piling the light, dry earth against the
+growing plant. As we do not have rains during the growing season and as
+the soil on which celery is chiefly grown is particularly coarse in its
+texture, there is no rusting or staining from this method of blanching.
+It shakes out clean and bright. Conditions which make earth-blanching
+undesirable in the humid region do not exist here.
+
+
+
+Corn in the Sacramento Valley.
+
+
+
+Is it practical to raise corn in the Sacramento volley? Are the soil and
+climatic conditions suitable?
+
+The success of corn on plains and uplands in the Sacramento valley has
+not yet been fully demonstrated, although good corn is grown on river
+bottom lands, and it is possible that much more may be done with this
+grain in the future than in the past. Corn does not enjoy the dry heat
+of the plains, and even when irrigated seems to be dissatisfied with it.
+How far we shall succeed in getting varieties which will endure dry heat
+and still be large and productive will ere long be determined by the
+experiments which are in progress. The old Sacramento valley farmer has
+been justified to some degree in his conclusion that his is not a corn
+country. Still it may appear so later.
+
+
+
+Plant Corn in Warm Ground.
+
+
+
+I also put in a lot of corn and none of it came up. The ground was damp
+and rather cold, as well as being alkali.
+
+Corn should never be planted in cold, wet ground - in fact, very few
+seeds should be. Besides, corn has no use for alkali.
+
+
+
+Sweet Corn in California.
+
+
+
+I have been informed that sweet corn cannot be raised in this part of
+the country, an account of worms eating the kernels before the ear has
+matured. Is there any method of overcoming this difficulty?
+
+You have been correctly informed concerning the difficulty in growing
+sweet corn. Although many experiments have been made, no method of
+overcoming this pest has yet been demonstrated. For this reason canning
+of corn is not undertaken in this State, and for the same reason most of
+the green corn ears sold in our markets have the tops of the ears
+amputated. It is sometimes possible to escape the worm by planting
+rather late, so that the ears shall develop after the moth, which is
+parent of the worm, has deposited its eggs.
+
+
+
+Forcing Cucumbers.
+
+
+
+Give information on growing hot-house cucumbers, and also if you think
+it would pay me to go into the business in southern California.
+
+Forcing of cucumbers has been undertaken for a number of years in
+California and formerly was considered unprofitable because cucumbers
+grown in the open air in frostless places came in before the forced
+product could be sold out at sufficiently high prices to make the
+venture profitable. Recently, however, owing to our increased population
+in cities and larger demand of products out of season, forcing becomes
+more promising and is worthy of attention. Forcing of cucumbers in
+California can be done at very much less expense, of course, than
+elsewhere, because of the abundance of winter sunshine and the fact that
+sufficiently high temperatures can be secured in glass houses with
+exceedingly little if any artificial heat: The chances of growing
+cucumbers out of season for shipment eastward and northward can be
+discussed with the officers of the California Vegetable Growers' Union,
+which has offices and warehouse in Los Angeles.
+
+
+
+Cucumber Growing.
+
+
+
+I have a piece of red so-called orange land which has produced excellent
+wheat. Will you give information about its adaptability to cucumbers?
+Are there pickle factories in the State which would demand them in
+quantities, and is there much other demand for them? About when should
+they be planted, and how much water would they need?
+
+The cucumber needs a retentive soil which does not crack and bake, and
+such a soil is made by abundance of organic matter. Your orange soil,
+unless heavily treated with stable manure and given plenty of time for
+disintegration, would probably give you distressful cucumber plants, if
+it has come right out of wheat-growing. Besides, cucumbers do not like
+dry heat, even if the soil be kept moist by irrigation. Oranges will do
+well under conditions not favorable to cucumbers. Cucumber plants must
+come up after danger of frost is over. The amount of water they require
+depends upon how moist the soil is naturally, and as the crop is chiefly
+grown on moist river lands and around the bay, it is chiefly made
+without irrigation. Such lands have a cucumber capacity equal to the
+consumption of the United States, probably, and the pickle factories can
+usually get all they can use at a minimum transportation cost.
+Large-scale plantings should only be made by men who know the crop and
+have definite information or contract for what they can get for it.
+
+
+
+Ginger in California.
+
+
+
+We have ginger roots in a growing condition with sprouts and bulbs
+growing an them, but we do not understand how to raise the plants.
+
+Growing ginger in California in a commercial way has not been worked
+out, although roots have been introduced from time to time. Plant your
+roots in the garden, just as you would callas, where you can give them
+good cultivation and water, as seems to be necessary, and note their
+behavior under these favorable conditions before you undertake any large
+investment in a crop.
+
+
+
+Licorice Growing in California.
+
+
+
+I have for some time been seeking far some information as to the method
+of preparation for market and sale of licorice roots. I have a lot of
+them and have never been able to find a market, and do not know how they
+are prepared for market.
+
+Licorice was first planted in California about 1880 by the late Isaac
+Lea, of Florin, Sacramento county. Mr. Lea grew a considerable amount of
+licorice roots and gave much effort to finding a market for it. He found
+that the local consumption of licorice root was too small to warrant
+growing it as a crop; that the high price of labor in digging the roots,
+and the high cost of transportation of the roots to Eastern markets
+would make it impossible for him to undertake competition in the Eastern
+markets with the Sicilian producers, unless, perhaps, he could build an
+extracting factory and market licorice extract, the black solid which is
+sold by the druggist, and which the Sicilians produce in large
+quantities. The preparation of licorice root is simply digging and
+drying, but the preparation of the extract requires steam extractors and
+condensers. California could produce licorice, for we have a good
+climate for it. If it is grown on light, sandy loams, it could be pulled
+from the ground by the yard at rather small expense, and yet, one should
+not undertake the production unless he wished to put in much time and
+money in working up economical production and marketing in competition
+with the foreign product, produced by cheap labor and with the advantage
+of processes well known and established by long usage. Experiments
+should be circumspectly undertaken, for licorice is one of the worst
+weeds in the world, and extremely difficult of eradication probably.
+
+
+
+Growing Lentils.
+
+
+
+Give information regarding the planting and raising of lentils. Can they
+be grown in the Sacramento valley in the vicinity of Colusa, and at a
+profit?
+
+Lentils are as easily grown in California as common peas, and will do
+well as a field crop if started during the rainy season, as they are
+hardy enough to survive our ordinary valley frosts. With respect to
+lentils, it may be said that excellent as these legumes are for many
+purposes, they do not seem to be well known to American consumers, and
+therefore the amount to be grown is limited, until you know who will buy
+larger quantities of them at a good price.
+
+
+
+Canada Peas for Seed.
+
+
+
+I want to raise Canada peas for the seed. In what month of the year is
+the best time to plant them; also how many pounds to the acre to be
+sowed broadcast on rolling land in Napa?
+
+Broadcast from 80 to 100 pounds of seed per acre as soon as you can get
+the ground into good condition. What you get will depend much upon how
+late spring rains hold this year. We should only try a small area this
+year to see what happens, for you probably should have started earlier
+in the season. On uplands it will always be a question whether your soil
+will hold moisture enough to mature a good seed crop.
+
+
+
+Growing Niles Peas.
+
+
+
+How shall I plant and handle a crop of Niles peas?
+
+Niles peas are hardy and will make a good crop on any good soil, if
+planted early in the season so as to make the main part of their growth
+before the heat of the summer comes on. Under garden conditions they
+can, of course, be grown all summer.
+
+
+
+Transplanting Lettuce.
+
+
+
+I have lettuce plants that have been transplanted to head. Occasionally
+I find a head that has withered away and upon examining it find it
+rotted away at the stem. Can you suggest a remedy for it?
+
+Your lettuce plants are destroyed by the "damping, off" fungus. It would
+be preventable by reducing the amount of moisture until the transplanted
+plant had opportunity to re-establish itself in the soil and thus come
+into condition to take water. The chance of it could also be reduced by
+using a certain amount of sand in connection with the soil, unless it is
+already very sandy, and by a shallow covering of sand on the surface
+around the plants after they are reset, in order to prevent too great
+accumulation of moisture.
+
+
+
+Handling Winter Melons.
+
+
+
+Give particulars regarding harvesting, storaging, and shipment of winter
+melons. How do you harvest and pack them for distant market?
+
+There is no particular system in the handling of winter melons. They are
+gathered into piles on ground where water will not gather and covered
+with the trash of the vines on which they grow. They will keep for
+months in this way, as our autumn temperatures do not freeze them. Other
+growers collect them in open sheds shaded from sun and rain, and still
+others put them into barns or shallow cellars under buildings, etc. The
+melons are very durable and seem disposed to keep in any old way. The
+melons are shipped in large packing cases with slat sides, or in the
+smaller slat crates that are used for summer cantaloupes. No packing is
+used, generally. If it seemed necessary, a little clean straw would be
+sufficient.
+
+
+
+Ripe Melons.
+
+
+
+How can I tell when a watermelon is fully ripe? What is the method used
+by growers in picking for commercial shipping?
+
+Gently press the sides of a melon and if it crackles a little bit, all
+right; if it makes no sound then go to another. Commercial pickers look
+at the little spiral between the melon and the nearest leaf. If it is
+withered they pick the melon, if fresh, pass it until next picking.
+
+
+
+Growing Onion Seed and Sets.
+
+
+
+Will you give localities of the leading production of onion seed or dry
+sets in your State?
+
+Onion seed is grown in several parts of the State, largely in the Santa
+Clara valley adjacent to the city of San Jose. Onion sets are largely
+produced in Orange county, near Los Angeles, for eastern shipment, for
+which purpose they are grown under contract.
+
+
+
+Ripening Onions.
+
+
+
+I am raising some onions from bottom sets and as they are growing nicely
+and are beginning to swell at the bulb some advise me to cut the tops
+off and some advise me to bend them over or tramp them down.
+
+Do not cut off the tops of the onions. If they seem to be overgrowing
+and not disposed to ripen the bulb, the top can be broken down, thus
+partly arresting the vegetative energy of the plant and causing
+maturity.
+
+
+
+Onions from Sets.
+
+
+
+Will onion sets planted in July grow and mature in the fall months?
+
+Good onion sets grown during the winter and spring should be mature by
+July and if planted after drying would proceed to make a full growth of
+large onions if growing conditions should be right for them; that is,
+the soil moist and the temperature not too high.
+
+
+
+How Many Crops of Onion Seed?
+
+Does the growing of onion seed exhaust adobe land, and if so, how many
+years' cropping before it requires rest or fertilizing?
+
+The growth of any seed crop, including cereal grains, of course, makes a
+supreme draft upon soil fertility. How long a certain soil can stand it,
+depends upon the amount of fertility it has when the draft begins. The
+best rough way to tell how it is going, is to watch the growth and crop,
+when moisture conditions are known to be favorable. If you get a good
+growth of the plant it is still good to make the seed.
+
+
+
+Onions from Seed.
+
+
+
+Will onions from seed mature the same season if they are irrigated? Some
+tell us they will not, so we would be very much pleased to hear from
+you.
+
+Onions grown from the seed do fully develop during the growing season
+following the planting of the seed. In fact, nearly all California
+onions are grown in that way. Our growing season is so long that we do
+not need to use onion sets to any extent, as they do in short-summer
+climates.
+
+
+
+Dry Farming with Chili Peppers.
+
+
+
+If I set chili pepper plants down six or eight inches lower than the
+surface of the ground and fill in as the plants grow larger, will this
+help in case I could not get water enough? My soil is a deep sandy loam.
+We have had between five and six inches of rain. Do you think water
+every fifteen days would be enough?
+
+On such light soil as you mention, the plants can be planted deeply and
+a certain amount of soil brought up to the plants by cultivation without
+injury. As this plant has a long growing season and matures its crop
+rather late, you will undoubtedly need irrigation. Probably irrigation
+twice a month will be sufficient in connection with good cultivation,
+but you will have to watch the plants and apply the water as it seems to
+be needed, rather than by a specific scheme of days.
+
+
+
+Harvesting Peanuts.
+
+
+
+I would like information regarding the curing of peanuts. Should they be
+bleached, and, if so, how is it done? Does bleaching affect the keeping
+qualities?
+
+It is not usual to bleach peanuts. They should be grown in such light
+soil that they will not be stained, and the common method of curing is
+to dig or plow up, throw the vines, with nuts attached, into windrows
+and allow them to lie a week or ten days for drying. Then the nuts are
+picked into sacks and cleaned before shipment in revolving drums,
+followed by a grain fan which throws out the light nuts and other
+rubbish. Bleaching would not destroy the keeping quality probably, but
+it would destroy the flavor and the germinating power. The latter would
+not matter, except with such nuts as you wish to keep for seed, because
+the roasting destroys the germinating power also, but sulphuring, which
+would reduce the flavor, would give the product a bad name. Possibly
+some growers do bleaching, but, if so, they have to be pretty careful
+about it. The cost of the operation would also be a bar to profit, for
+peanuts are grown on a narrow margin owing to competition with
+importations grown with cheap labor.
+
+
+
+Adobe and Peanuts.
+
+
+
+Is adobe land good for the peanut? Is it harder to start than in other
+soils or not?
+
+It is not good at all. Peanuts require the finest, mellowest loam with
+sand enough to prevent crust, and moisture even and continuous. The
+surface must be kept loose so that the plant can bury its own bloom stem
+and the under soil light and clean so that it will readily shake from
+the nuts and not stain them. Adobe is the worst soil you could find for
+peanuts.
+
+
+
+Cutting Potatoes.
+
+
+
+What would be the most profitable potato to plant in the Salinas valley,
+and how small can a potato be cut up for planting? How many eyes should
+each piece contain in order to make a good growth and be profitable?
+
+Probably the best potato for your district would be the Burbank, which
+is largely grown near Salinas and brings the highest price. It is
+customary to cut a medium-sized potato in two pieces and a large one in
+four pieces. One can be very economical of seed by smaller cutting, but
+it would require the most favorable conditions to bring a vigorous
+growth. Probably pieces weighing not less than two ounces would be best
+under ordinary conditions. Potatoes which are rather small may be used
+for seed if well matured and have good eyes. It is dangerous, however,
+to use the small stuff - too small for sale. Unless the soil and
+moisture conditions are extra favorable, the growth will be weak and
+unsatisfactory.
+
+
+
+Potato Planting.
+
+
+
+How many sacks of potatoes are to be planted to an acre, and how many
+eyes are to be left in a seed? If, for instance, we plant seed with
+three eyes, how many potatoes should we get from that vine?
+
+Potatoes are planted all the way from five to fifteen sacks to the acre,
+probably about ten sacks being the average. There is no particular
+number of eyes specified in preparing the seed, according to common
+practice. Good medium-sized potatoes are generally cut in two pieces
+crosswise, and large potatoes in four pieces, cutting both ways. There
+is no definite relation between the number of eyes planted and the
+number of potatoes coming from them. This has been the subject of
+innumerable experiments, and the conclusion is that the crop is more
+dependent upon good soil and favorable growing conditions than upon any
+way of preparing the seed.
+
+
+
+Northern Potatoes for Seed.
+
+
+
+Do you regard northern-grown seed potatoes sufficiently better to make
+it worth while paying freight on them from the State of Washington?
+
+Experience seems to indicate the superiority of northern-grown seed
+potatoes, not only in this State, but on the Atlantic Coast, and they
+are largely depended upon. Systematic demonstration by comparative tests
+has been made by the Vermont station and preference for northern-grown
+seed seems, to be justified.
+
+
+
+Potato Planting.
+
+
+
+I have ten acres of land in Placer county which I propose to put into
+potatoes next spring. It has been recommended to me to put potatoes in
+as early as January. It seems to me that January is rather early;
+however, it is said that this land is in the orange belt and practically
+free from frost.
+
+Whether you can plant potatoes to advantage in January or not depends
+upon the temperatures which you are likely to meet after that date, also
+whether the ground is warm enough in January, because there is no
+advantage in planting in cold ground nor in soil that is too wet at the
+time. The earliest potatoes, of course, come from planting much earlier
+than January; usually as soon as the ground is moistened enough in the
+autumn. The potato will stand some frost, but autumn planting is not
+feasible in places which are under hard freezing or receive too much
+cold rain water.
+
+
+
+Potatoes Should be Planted Early.
+
+
+
+I have Early Rose potatoes planted about May first. The tops look fine,
+but there are few potatoes and small, and, though not developed, have
+commenced growing a second time, sprouts starting from the new potatoes.
+When should I plant and what care should they have?
+
+Your potatoes act peculiarly because of intermittent moisture - the
+plant being arrested by drought and then starting again, which is very
+undesirable. To avoid this, potatoes should be planted earlier so as to
+get a large part of their growth during the rainy season. If planted
+late the ground should be well wet down by irrigation, and then plowed
+and cultivated, and irrigation should be used while the plant is growing
+well. If this is done, potatoes can be successfully grown by irrigation,
+but if the land is allowed to become dry the plant is arrested in its
+growth for a time and a second and undesirable growth is started.
+
+
+
+Potato Balls.
+
+
+
+I find in potato writings of forty years ago that the seed from the
+potato balls which form on the tops of the plants is recommended for
+growing the best potatoes. In later books I find no mention of them and
+all are advised how to cut the tubers to get seed potatoes.
+
+The seed of the potato plant which is found in the "balls" which develop
+on the tops of the plant is only valuable for the origination of new
+varieties, with the chance, of course, that most of them will be
+inferior to the tubers produced by the plant which bears the seed.
+Therefore, these seeds are of no commercial importance. There has also
+sometimes developed upon the top of the plant what is called an aerial
+tuber, which is even of less value than the seed ball, because it does
+not contain seed nor is it good as a tuber.
+
+Forty years ago there was a great demand for newer and better kinds of
+potatoes which has, since that time, been largely supplied, and
+commercial potato-growing consists in multiplying the standard varieties
+which best suit the soil and the market. This is done by planting the
+tuber itself, which is really a root-cutting and therefore reproduces
+its own kind. Those who are originating new kinds of potatoes still use
+seed from the balls, either taking their chances by natural variation
+or, by hybridizing the blossoms, increasing the chances for variation
+from which desirable varieties are taken by selection, to be afterward
+multiplied by growth from the tubers.
+
+
+
+Seed-Ends of Potatoes.
+
+
+
+Is it bad practice to plant the seed-ends of potatoes?
+
+The seed-end of the potato is the least valuable part of it, but it is
+better probably to plant than to reject it.
+
+
+
+The Moon and Potato Planting.
+
+
+
+Is there any foundation to the oft-repeated story about potatoes in the
+light of the moon running to tops and the dark of the moon to spuds?
+
+If we paid any attention to the moon in planting, we should plant in the
+dark of the moon so as to give the plant opportunity to make use of
+whatever additional light the full moon afforded.
+
+
+
+Planting Whole Potatoes.
+
+
+
+One man states the only way to cut seed is to take a potato and cut the
+ends off and not divide the potato any more; or, in other words, a whole
+potato for each seed.
+
+Good results are obtained by planting whole potatoes, but in that case
+there is no advantage in removing the ends.
+
+
+
+How to Cut Seed Potatoes.
+
+
+
+Would it pay in returns to use large potatoes for seed in preference to
+culls?
+
+Large potatoes are better than culls, but medium-sized potatoes are
+better than either. Many experiments have been made to determine this.
+At the Arkansas station whole tubers two to three inches in diameter
+yielded 18 per cent more than small whole tubers three-quarters to one
+and one-quarter inches in diameter, and large cut tubers yielded 15.8
+per cent more than small cut tubers.
+
+
+
+Cutting Potatoes to Single Eyes.
+
+
+
+Some say only one eye to a piece; others say several eyes - which is
+better?
+
+In one experiment potatoes cut to single eyes with each piece weighing
+one-sixteenth of an ounce yielded 44 bushels to the acre, while single
+eyes on two-ounce pieces yielded 177 bushels to the acre. Experiments in
+Indiana showed that the yield usually increased with the weight of the
+set and that the exact number of eyes per cutting is relatively
+unimportant.
+
+
+
+Potato Scab.
+
+
+
+Can potatoes be treated in any way before planting to prevent the new
+ones from being what is called "scabby"?
+
+There are two successful treatments for scab in potatoes. One is dipping
+in a solution of corrosive sublimate. Dissolve one ounce in eight
+gallons of water and soak the seed potatoes in this solution for one and
+one-half hours before cutting. This treatment kills the scab spores
+which may be upon the exterior of the potatoes. More recently, however,
+to avoid danger in handling such a rank poison as corrosive sublimate,
+formaldehyde has been used, and one pint of commercial formaldehyde, as
+it is bought in the stores, is diluted with thirty gallons of water, and
+potatoes are soaked in this for two hours. Thirty gallons of this dip
+ought to treat about fifty bushels of potatoes.
+
+
+
+Double-Cropping with Potatoes.
+
+
+
+I am told that here two crops of potatoes can be raised by planting the
+second crop in August. I have five acres which will be ready to dig in
+July. Can I dig these Potatoes and use them for seed at once for another
+crop, or won't they grow? I have a crop of barley, and as it is heading
+out now, I want to put potatoes on the ground after I take the barley
+off. I have plenty of water to irrigate.
+
+If your potatoes ripen in July and you allow those which you desire for
+seed to lie upon the ground and become somewhat greenish, they are
+likely to sprout well for a second crop. They should not, however, be
+planted immediately. Whether you get a second crop successfully or not
+depends upon how early the frosts come in your district. Whether you get
+potatoes after barley or not depends also upon how much moisture there
+remains in the soil. By irrigating thoroughly after harvesting the grain
+and then plowing deeply for potatoes, you would do vastly better than to
+plant in dry ground and irrigate afterward.
+
+
+
+When to Plant Potatoes.
+
+
+
+I have been puzzled to understand Potato growing in California. Do you
+have more than one cropping season, and if so, about what dates are they
+due?
+
+Every month in the year potatoes are being put into the ground and being
+taken out of the ground somewhere in California. We have, then,
+practically a continuous planting and harvesting season. There is,
+however, a division possible to make in this way: Plantings undertaken
+in September and October are for winter supplies of new potatoes, which
+begin about the holidays and continue during the winter. There is also
+in southern California a planting beginning in January, which might be
+called the earliest planting for the main crop, and other plantings for
+the main crop in the central and northern parts of the State begin in
+February and continue until May, according to the character of the land;
+that is, whether it is upland, on which the planting is earlier, or
+whether it is lowland along the rivers where excessive moisture may
+render the land unsuitable until April or May. The harvesting of the
+main crop then begins in May and continues during the whole of the
+summer, according to the character of the land cropped over, lapping the
+planting time for early potatoes first mentioned. It is also true by use
+of properly matured seed one can secure, in some places, two crops a
+year, if there is sufficient inducement therefor. Thus it comes about
+that we are continually planting and digging potatoes according to local
+conditions and the possibility of selling advantages.
+
+
+
+Keeping Potatoes.
+
+
+
+Advise me how to keep my potatoes. What is the best way? Would a dark
+room be suitable? Some people are digging holes in the ground to put
+them in.
+
+Potatoes, if properly matured and free from disease, will keep for a
+considerable time in dark rooms kept as cool as possible. They must be
+kept away from the reach of the moth, which is parent to the worm
+producing long black strings inside of the potato. If they are
+thoroughly covered with boards or sacking or straw, so as to keep the
+moth from reaching the potato, they may be held for a long time in the
+open air, and covering with earth, as your neighbors are doing, will be
+all right until the rains come and cause decay by making the soil too
+wet. The main point is to keep the tubers as cool as possible and out of
+reach of the potato moth.
+
+
+
+Potato Yield.
+
+
+
+What is the yield per acre of potatoes on the best land around Stockton,
+Cal., where work is done properly; also what is the yield for potatoes
+along the coast?
+
+The average yield of potatoes in California, taking the whole acreage
+and product as reported by the last United States census, is 147 bushels
+to the acre. In Stockton district, on good new reclaimed land the yield
+has been reported all the way from 300 to 800 bushels per acre - the
+crop declining rapidly when continued on the same land. One year's crop
+in the Stockton district was estimated at 45,000 acres averaging 125
+sacks per acre. The coast yield would be more like the general average
+for the State as first given.
+
+
+New Potatoes for Seed.
+
+
+
+Can I plant American Wonder potatoes for the first crop, and let enough
+of them mature to use for seed for the second crop, to be planted the
+first or middle of July?
+
+It is possible to use potatoes grown the same year as seed for the later
+crop, providing you let the potatoes mature first by the complete dying
+down of the vines, and second by digging the potatoes allow them to lie
+in the open air, with some protection against sun-burning, until the
+potatoes become somewhat greenish. If this is the case the eyes will
+develop and seed will grow, while without such treatment you might be
+disappointed in their behavior. Of course, the question still remains
+whether it would be desirable to do this or to plant some later variety
+earlier in the season when the growing conditions would be better.
+
+
+
+Potato Growing.
+
+
+
+In what locality are the best early potatoes grown in California? Can
+they be raised on wheat lands without irrigation as an early crop?
+
+Early potatoes are grown in regions of light frosts in all parts of the
+State - around the bay of San Francisco, on the mesas in southern
+California, and to some extent at slight elevations in the central part
+of the State. The potato endures some frost, but one has, for an early
+crop, to guard against the locations subject to hard freezing. Most of
+our potatoes are grown without irrigation because, on uplands, winter
+temperatures favor their growing during the rainy season. The
+middle-season and late potatoes are grown on moist lowlands where
+irrigation is not necessary. In proper situations, much of the land
+which is used for potatoes has at some time produced wheat or barley,
+corn or sorghum, and other field crops.
+
+
+
+Potatoes After Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+I have been a successful potato grower in Ohio. I have the best alfalfa
+soil and it is now in its fourth year of productiveness in that crop. I
+would like to grow potatoes in a small way.
+
+Proceed just as you would at the East in getting potatoes upon a red
+clover sod. Turn under the alfalfa deeply now if the soil will work
+well, and roll your sandy soil. You must use a sharp plow to cut and
+cover well. If there is moisture enough the alfalfa, plowed under in the
+fall, ought to be decayed by February, when you could plant potatoes
+safely, probably, unless your situation is very frosty. If you plant
+early you ought to get the crop through without irrigation if you
+cultivate well and keep the land flat.
+
+
+
+Flat or Hill Culture for Potatoes.
+
+
+
+Is it better to hill potatoes or not?
+
+During the dry time of the year potatoes should be grown with flat
+cultivation, except as it may be necessary to furrow out between the
+rows for the application of irrigation water. Potatoes grown during the
+rainy season in places where there is liable to be too much water, can
+often be hilled to advantage, but dry-season cultivation of practically
+everything should be as flat as possible to retain moisture near the
+surface for the development of shallow-rooting plants.
+
+
+
+Bad Conditions for Potatoes.
+
+
+
+Our potatoes were planted early and were frosted several times while
+young. As we come to harvest them we find them with very large green
+tops but the potatoes are about the size of a hen's egg and from that
+they run down to the size of a pea. The larger ones are beginning to
+send out roots, four or five to a potato. The potatoes have not been
+irrigated lately and the ground they are in is dry.
+
+The ugly behavior of your potatoes is doubtless due to irregularities in
+temperature and moisture which have forced the plants into abnormal or
+undesirable activity. Potatoes should have regular conditions of
+moisture so that they shall proceed from start to finish and not stop
+and start again, for this will usually make the crop unsatisfactory and
+worthless. Excessive moisture is not desirable, but the requisite amount
+in continuous supply is indispensable.
+
+
+
+Potatoes on Heavy Land.
+
+
+
+Will potatoes grow well in adobe land, or partly adobe, that has not
+been used for seven years except for pasturing?
+
+Although potatoes enjoy best of all a light loam in which they can
+readily expand, it is possible to get very good results on heavy land
+which has been used for pasturage for some years, providing the land is
+broken up early and deeply and harrowed well in advance of planting and
+thorough cultivation maintained while the crop is growing. The content
+of grass roots and manure which the land has received during its period
+of grazing tends to make the soil lighter and will also feed the plant
+well. For this reason better potatoes are had on heavy land after
+pasturage than could be had on the same land if continually used for
+grain or for some other crop which tended to reduce the amount of humus
+and to make the land more rebellious in cultivation.
+
+
+
+Storage of Seed Potatoes.
+
+
+
+We need potatoes for late planting and have found a good lot which is
+being held in cold storage at temperatures from 34 to 36 degrees F. They
+have not been there long, however. Would that hurt them for seed, and
+also how long could they be safely left there now before planting?
+
+Seed potatoes would not be injured in storage, providing the temperature
+is not allowed to go below the freezing point. They should not, however,
+be allowed to remain longer in storage, but should be exposed to the sun
+for the development of the eyes, even to the sprouting point being
+desirable before planting. The greening of the potato by the sun is no
+disadvantage. We would not think of planting potatoes directly from
+storage, because, owing to the lack of development in the eyes, decay
+might get the start of germination.
+
+
+
+Potatoes and Frosts.
+
+
+
+Can I keep frost off of potato tops by building smudge fires! I would
+like to plant about February 1, but we usually have a few light frosts
+here during March. If I were to turn water in the field when too cold,
+would that keep the frost off, and if so, would I have to turn water
+down each row, or would one furrow full of water to about every fourth
+or sixth row be enough?
+
+You can prevent frost by smudging for potatoes just as you can for other
+vegetables. The potato, however, needs little protection of this kind
+and will endure a light frost which would be destructive to tomatoes,
+melons, and other more tender growths. Unless you have a very frosty
+situation, you can certainly grow potatoes without frost protection, and
+they should be planted earlier than February first if the ground is in
+good condition. The great secret of success in growing potatoes in
+southern California is to get a good early start before the heat and
+drought come on. Water will protect from frost if the temperature only
+goes to about 28 degrees and does not stay there too long. The more
+water there is exposed the longer may be the protection, but probably
+not against a lower temperature.
+
+
+
+Growing Sweet Potato Plants.
+
+
+
+How shall I make a hot-bed to raise sweet potato plants? I don't mean to
+put glass over bed, but want full description of an up-to-date outfit
+for raising them.
+
+Manure hot-beds have been largely abandoned for growing sweet potato
+slips, though, of course, you can grow them that way on a small scale or
+for experiment. In the large sweet potato districts, elaborate
+arrangements for bottom heat by circulation of hot water or steam are in
+use. In a smaller way hot air works well. The Arizona Experiment Station
+tells how a very good sweet potato hot-bed at little cost is constructed
+as follows: A frame of rough boards seven feet wide, twenty feet long
+and fourteen inches deep is laid down over two flues made by digging two
+trenches one foot deep and about two feet wide, lengthwise of the bed.
+These trenches are covered with plank or iron roofing, and are equipped
+with a fire pit at one end and short smokestack at the other.
+
+Four inches of soil is filled into this bed and sweet potatoes placed
+upon it in a layer which is then covered with two or three inches more
+of soil. Large potatoes may be split and laid flat side down. The whole
+bed is then covered with muslin, operating on a roller by which to cover
+and uncover the bed. Thus prepared, the bed may easily be kept at a
+temperature of 60 to 70 degrees F. by smouldering wood fires in the fire
+boxes. The potatoes, kept moist at this temperature, sprout promptly and
+will be ready to transplant in about six weeks. A bed of the size
+mentioned will receive five to seven bushels of seed roots, which will
+make slips enough to plant an acre or more of potatoes.
+
+
+
+Growing Sweet Potatoes.
+
+
+
+Please inform me how to keep sweet potatoes for seed; also how many
+pounds it takes for one acre, and what distance apart to plant, and the
+time to plant.
+
+Sweet potatoes may be kept from sprouting by storage in a cool, dry
+place. Sweet potatoes are not grown by direct cutting of the tuber as
+the ordinary potato is, but the tubers are put in January or later in a
+hot bed and the sprouts are taken off for planting when the ground
+becomes warm and all danger of frost is over in the locality. The number
+of sprouts required for an acre is from five to ten thousand, and a
+bushel of small sweet potatoes will produce about two thousand sprouts
+if properly handled in the hot bed, which consists in removing the
+sprouts when they have attained a height of five or six inches, and in
+this way the potatoes will be yielding sprouts in succession for some
+time. The sprouts are planted in rows far enough apart for horse
+cultivation. They are usually hilled up pretty well after starting to
+grow well. They cannot be planted until the danger of frost is over, for
+they are much more tender than Irish potatoes.
+
+
+
+Sweet Potato Growing.
+
+
+
+In planting sweet potatoes, do we have to make hotbeds just like those
+for tomatoes, or if just a plain seed-bed will do? Is it necessary to
+irrigate them or not?
+
+You can bed your sweet potatoes in a warm place on the sunny side of a
+building or board fence, and get sprouts all right. You will, however,
+get them sooner and in greater numbers by using a slow hotbed in which
+the manure supply is not too large. The fact that sweet potato growers
+do use some artificial heat, either from manure or by piping bottom-heat
+in their propagating houses, is a demonstration that such recourse is
+desirable to get best results. The necessity of irrigation depends upon
+the soil and its natural moisture supply. On a fine retentive loam, the
+crop is chiefly made without irrigation, if the plants are all ready to
+put out in the field as soon as it is safe. If you are late in the
+planting, or if the soil is dry or likely to dry before the tubers are
+grown to good size, irrigation, some time ahead of the need of the
+plant, is essential.
+
+
+
+Sweet Potatoes.
+
+
+
+What kind of soil and climate does it take to grow sweet potatoes, and
+can I grow them in any part of Contra Costa county, and about what time
+is the best to plant them?
+
+Sweet potatoes do best in a light warm loam which drains well and does
+not bake or crust by rain or irrigation. Sprout the tubers in a hot-bed
+or cold-frame in February and break off the shoots and plant as soon as
+you are out of danger by frost. Sweet potatoes are more tender than
+common potatoes. There are places in Contra Costa county where they do
+well, though some parts of the county do not have enough summer heat.
+
+
+
+Sweet Potatoes Between Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+I am expecting to grow a fall crop of about twenty acres of sweet
+potatoes. The land is a heavy, sandy loam in the interior, which has
+been set out this spring to almonds, apricots and prunes. I wish to grow
+sweet potatoes between trees. Would an irrigation every forty days be
+often enough? Also, if either sweet or Irish potatoes grown between rows
+are harmful to either of the varieties of fruit mentioned?
+
+We see no reason why you should not get your crop, providing you do not
+have to run the plants into the frosty period, and sweet potatoes will
+not, of course, stand frost as well as the common potato. The moisture
+which you propose to give ought to be enough for a retentive soil in
+connection with good cultivation until the vines cover the ground.
+Growing any crop between orchard trees is apt to be an injury to the
+trees, because of the spaces which are not and cannot be adequately
+cultivated, so that the ground around the trees is apt to become
+compacted either by the run of water or the lack of cultivation, or
+both. Our observation has been that Irish potatoes are no more injurious
+than other crops. Any crop will injure young trees if it takes moisture
+they ought to have or interferes with good cultivation of the land.
+
+
+
+Giant Japanese Radish.
+
+
+
+In discussing sakurajima (giant Japanese radish) Eastern publications
+advise planting late, about August 1, and not earlier than July 1. What
+can you tell me about the plant here?
+
+The Asiatic winter radishes can be successfully planted in California in
+July or August if the soil is thoroughly saturated by irrigation before
+digging and planting. It is, however, not so necessary to begin early in
+California as at the East, because our winter temperatures favor the
+growth of the plant, while at the East they have to make an early start
+in order to get something well grown before the ground freezes. For the
+growth of winter radishes, then, in California you can wait until the
+ground is wet thoroughly by the rain, which may be expected during
+September, and afterward you can make later plantings for succession at
+any time you desire during the rainy season. This applies to all kinds
+of radishes.
+
+
+
+Rhubarb Rotting.
+
+
+
+I have planted rhubarb roots in the San Joaquin valley and find the root
+crowns rot below the surface.
+
+The old-fashioned summer rhubarb usually goes off that way in very hot
+localities. If there is too much alkali or hardpan, or if planted too
+late, the same results will be had with any sort of rhubarb. Where it is
+very hot, plants, irrigated in the morning near the plants, scald at the
+crown and die in a few days. If irrigated in the afternoon and the
+ground worked before it gets hot the next day fine results are obtained.
+The winter rhubarb varieties do well in hot districts if the roots are
+planted from September 15 to May 1, while in cooler sections, April,
+May, June and July are the best months and will insure a crop the
+following winter.
+
+
+
+Squashes Dislike Hardship.
+
+
+
+What caused these squashes, of which I send you samples, to be so hard
+and woody? They were grown without irrigation.
+
+Your squashes were grown without irrigation under conditions which were
+too dry for them and became inferior in quality. Possibly the variety
+itself is not of good quality or the specimen from which the seed was
+taken may have been inferior. A squash, in order to be tender and
+acceptable, needs rich feeding and plenty of drink. Otherwise, it is apt
+to resent ill treatment by very undesirable growth.
+
+
+
+Harvesting Sunflowers.
+
+
+
+What is the method used in saving or threshing the seed from the Giant
+Russian sunflower?
+
+Cut off the seed heads of your sunflowers when the seed seems to be well
+matured but before any of it falls away from the head. Throw these heads
+on a smooth piece of ground or a tight floor and when they become
+thoroughly dry thresh out the seed with a flail, removing the coarse
+stuff with a rake and afterwards cleaning the seed by shoveling it into
+the wind so that the light stuff may be blown away. A more perfect
+cleaning afterwards could be secured with a grain fanning mill or a
+simple sieve of the right mesh.
+
+
+
+Irrigating Tomatoes.
+
+
+
+How much water does it take (in gallons or cubic feet) to properly
+irrigate an acre of land for tomatoes? The soil is adobe, and the
+customary way of planting tomatoes is 6 feet apart each way, plowing a
+trench of one furrow with the slope of the land for irrigating, that is,
+a trench between every row and a cross trench as a feeder. The land is
+low and in the driest part of the year the surface water is from 2 to 3
+feet beneath the top of the ground.
+
+It is not possible to state a specific quantity of water for any crop,
+because the amount depends to such a large extent upon the retentiveness
+of the soil, the rate of evaporation and the kind of cultivation. The
+best source of information is the behavior of the plant itself, bearing
+in mind that tomato plants require constant but not excessive moisture
+supply, and that if moisture is applied in excess it will promote an
+excessive growth of the plant, which will cause it to drop its blossoms
+and therefore be unsatisfactory and unproductive. In such land as you
+describe no irrigation whatever would be desirable except in years of
+short rainfall, and such land, if properly cultivated, would always
+furnish moisture enough by capillary action to support the growth of the
+plant.
+
+
+
+Less Water and More Heat.
+
+
+
+What chemicals should I put into the soil to insure a good crop of
+vegetables, such as tomatoes, string beans, or other over-ground
+producers? Last year my tomatoes and string beans grew plentifully, but
+never produced any tomatoes or beans, yet turnips and parsnips were all
+right.
+
+Vegetables which behave like your tomatoes and string beans, making too
+much growth and not enough fruit, do not need fertilization. The land is
+perhaps too rich already, or you may have used too much water. Use less
+water so that the plants will make a more moderate growth, and they will
+be fruitful if the season is warm enough in the later part of summer.
+This, of course, would be one of the drawbacks to growing tomatoes and
+beans in San Francisco. Turnips and parsnips do well with less heat. You
+may have to modify the San Francisco summer climate by wind screens or
+glass covers.
+
+
+
+Continuous Cropping With the Same Plant.
+
+
+
+What would happen on the crops of cucumbers, tomatoes and eggplants,
+etc., planted on the same place continuously?
+
+There would be in time a decadence of crop from soil exhaustion, but
+that you could prevent by fertilization. The greatest danger from
+continuously growing these vegetables on the same land is the
+multiplication of bacteria which injuriously affect them, in the soil.
+The plants which you mention are all subject to "wilt" diseases from
+this cause, therefore, they should have new ground. If you have to use
+the same garden ground continuously, the plants which you mention should
+be rotated with root crops or with other kinds of vegetables, so as to
+frequently change plants and soil within the general area which has to
+be used for them.
+
+
+
+Big Worms on Tomatoes.
+
+
+
+I have a nice patch of tomatoes in my garden, and only recently I notice
+large green worms on them with one large brown horn on their head. They
+strip the leaves off. They look to me like a tobacco worm.
+
+They are tobacco worms; that is, they are the larvae of hawk moths, some
+of which take tobacco, tomatoes, grapevines and many other plants,
+including some of the native weeds of your valley. Pick them off and
+crush them, or give them a little snip with the scissors if you do not
+like to handle them. They are so large and easily found that such
+treatment is easily applied, as in "worming tobacco."
+
+
+
+Loss of Tomato Bloom.
+
+
+
+I have tomato plants which are very strong and healthy and full of
+blossoms, but there is something cutting the blossoms off and just about
+to ruin my plants.
+
+The trouble with your tomato plants is that life is too easy for them,
+that they have so much moisture and plant food that they can grow
+comfortably and rapidly without thought of the future. So, because they
+do not have to think of making fruit, the blossoms drop off. This is a
+very common occurrence with tomatoes, especially in home gardens where
+the owners have not the experience or the information on the subject
+that they might have, and give the tomatoes too much water. Many other
+plants act the same way and will not set fruit while they can grow
+easily, and only begin to produce when they have made a great growth or
+when moisture begins to get a little short. If you irrigate the
+tomatoes, stop, and put no more water on until the plant begins to set
+fruit as if it meant business, or gives some sign that water would be
+appreciated. If the ground is naturally moist you will have to wait
+until the plants make more growth and the weather gets drier and hotter,
+and the plants will then set fruit. Some growers have found that by
+trimming up the vine and staking it, the fruit sets much more readily.
+
+
+
+Part III. Grains and Forage Crops
+
+
+
+Wants Us to Do the Whole Thing.
+
+
+
+Can you help, me to determine a good product to plant somewhere in
+California; also what particular section would be most suitable for the
+raising of that which you would advise? I wish a crop of permanent
+nature (as orchard trees). I also desire advice on some product which
+would give a quick return while I am waiting on the more permanent one
+to mature and bear. I have not procured land yet, and am thinking
+seriously of trying to get government land, therefore, you are free to
+give me the best location for the raising of that which you would,
+suggest. I want a money-making product and one which is not already
+overdone.
+
+The choice of crops depends quite as much upon the market demand and
+opportunity as it does upon the suitability of the soil and local
+climate. Choice of crops indeed involves almost the whole business of
+farming, and although we can sometimes give a man useful suggestions as
+to the growth of plants and the protection of plants from enemies, we
+cannot undertake to plan his farming business for him. He must form his
+own opinions as to what will be most marketable, and therefore
+profitable, if he succeeds in getting a good article for sale. A wise
+man at the East once said: "You can advise a man to do almost anything.
+You can even select a wife for him, but never commit the indiscretion of
+advising him what to grow to make money. That is a matter he has to
+determine for himself."
+
+
+
+Pasturing Young Grain.
+
+
+
+Would it be advisable to herd milch cows for a few hours each day on a
+field of black oats which is to be grown for hay? The oats are now about
+four inches high and rank, as the land was pastured last year. The land
+is sandy, rolling soil and will soon be dry enough so that the cows
+would not injure the plants. The idea is that the leaves which are green
+now will all dry up and are really not the growth which is cut for hay;
+therefore, I should think it would do no harm to feed it down a bit.
+
+Over-rank grain with abundant moisture will make a more stocky growth
+and stand against lodging if pastured or mowed. The leaves which you
+speak of as being lost in the later growth of the plant serve an
+important purpose in making that growth, and removing them is a
+repressive process which is not desirable when rain is short. We should
+allow the plants to push along into as good a growth of hay as a dry
+year's moisture will give.
+
+
+
+Dry Plowing for Grain.
+
+
+
+We have land that we could very easily plow now with our traction engine
+and improved plows, but the people here claim that it does not pay to
+dry-plow, that is, before the land has had a good rain on it and the
+vegetation has started. I believe in dry plowing. Two of our oldest
+farmers in Merced county dry-plowed, that is, they commenced plowing as
+soon as harvesting was over.
+
+If the rainfall is small and likely to come in light showers, dry
+plowing, if it turns up the land in large clods, might yield poorer
+results than land which is plowed after rain, because there would be so
+much moisture lost by drying out from the coarse surface when it came in
+amounts not adequate for deep penetration. Plowing after the rain for
+the purpose of killing out the foul stuff which starts is, however,
+quite another consideration. It is a fact that dry plowing and sowing is
+not now desirable in some places where it was formerly accepted, because
+the land has become so foul as to give a rank growth of weeds which
+choke out the grain at its beginning. Such land can be cleaned by one or
+two shallow plowings and cultivations after there is moisture enough to
+start the weeds to growing. These are local questions which you will
+have to settle by observation. In a general way, it is true that opening
+the surface of the ground before the rains, reduces the run-off and loss
+of moisture, but whether there would be any loss of moisture by run-off
+or not depends upon the slope of the land and also upon the way in which
+the rain comes, and the total amount of moisture which is available for
+the season.
+
+
+
+Sub-varieties of California Barley.
+
+
+
+Can you tell where I can buy seed of varieties of California six-rowed
+barley, described as "pallidum" and "coerulescens," and what the seed
+will cost?
+
+No one knows where the six-rowed barley, known as "common" barley in
+this State, came from, nor when it came. It has been here since the
+early days and it has naturally shown a disposition to vary, so that it
+is quite possible to select a number of types from any large field, of
+it. These variations have been studied to some extent by Eastern
+students who are endeavoring to develop American types of barley for
+brewing purposes as likely to be better than the brewing varieties which
+are famous in Europe. In Europe brewing barleys are chiefly two-rowed.
+Under California conditions the plant is able to develop just as good
+brewing grains on a six-rowed basis, and this seems to be a commendable
+trait in the way of multiplying the product. The names "pallidum" and
+"coerulescens" indicate two of these varieties recognized by Eastern
+students. It is not possible at this time to get even a pound of
+selected grain true to this type, and no one knows when it will be
+worked out to available quantities.
+
+
+
+Chevalier Barley.
+
+
+
+Has Chevalier barley more value to feed hens for egg production than
+common feed barley or wheat?
+
+Chevalier barley is no better for chicken feed than any other barley
+which is equally large and plump. Brewers like Chevalier because of its
+fullness of starch to support the malting process; also, because it is
+bright, that is, white, and not stained or tinged with bluish or reddish
+colors. Color points do not count for chicken feed, but good plump
+kernels do. Besides this, however, darker kernel (not chaff) usually
+indicates more protein, and therefore a darker kernel of either wheat or
+barley might be more valuable for feeding. A hard, horny kernel is
+richer than a softer, more starchy one, either in wheat or barley.
+
+
+
+Barley on Moist Land.
+
+
+
+What would you do with land subject to overflow by the Sacramento when
+that river rises 20 feet, and which you wanted to plant to barley this
+season? Would you take a chance on the river rising that high this year,
+or wait until after that danger was over, and take a chance on not
+getting enough rain to make the grain come up; also, if the river did
+come up for 48 hours after the grain was in, but did not wash, would the
+grain be lost? Should the grain be planted deeper than on ordinary land,
+and, if so, should a drill be used? How much seed should be sown per
+acre on good river-bottom soil?
+
+Get the barley in and watch for the overflow rather than to fear it. An
+overflow for 48 hours would give you the greatest crop you ever saw,
+unless it should be in a settling basin and the water forced to escape
+by evaporation. From your description we judge that this is not so and
+that the land clears itself quickly from an overflow. Depth of sowing
+depends upon the character and condition of the soil - the lighter and
+drier the deeper. By all means use a drill if the soil is dry on the
+surface. Short rainfall makes the advantage of drill seeding most
+conspicuous. On the University Farm 22 trials gave an average gain of
+over 10 per cent in yield. The difference would be much greater in a dry
+year; it might be 25 per cent greater, possibly, and save high-priced
+seed at the same time, as about 90 pounds of seed per acre will do,
+instead of 120 pounds broadcast, in accordance with the approved heavy
+seeding practice on the river lands.
+
+
+
+Barley and Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+I have some alfalfa which is a poor stand. Can I disc it up heavily and
+seed in some barley for winter pasture?
+
+You can get barley into your alfalfa as you propose, but you should not
+seed until fall. The more barley you get into your alfalfa, however, the
+less alfalfa you will have afterward. If you want to improve your
+afalfa, keep everything else out of the field and help the plants by
+regular irrigations during the balance of the growing season.
+
+
+
+Beets and Potatoes.
+
+
+
+Which is the best for dairy cows, plain red mangels or a cross between
+these and sugar beets? Can you suggest a more profitable variety of
+potato than the Oregon Burbank?
+
+If you can get a cross which gives you more tonnage than a mangel and a
+higher nutritive content you would have something better to grow. The
+first point you have to determine by growing the two side by side and
+weighing the product; the nutritive value of each will have to be
+determined by chemical analysis. Until these determinations are actually
+made a comparison of desirability is nothing but conjecture. There are
+several other potatoes which are sometimes more profitable here and
+there for early crop when grown in an early locality. If you are not in
+an early locality you are obliged to produce for the main crop, and
+nothing, to our knowledge, sells as well as the Burbank, if you get a
+good one.
+
+
+
+Beets for Stock.
+
+
+
+Will sugar beets grow on black alkali land? How many pounds of seed per
+acre should be used and when is it time for sowing in the San Joaquin
+valley? Which kind would be best for cows?
+
+Beets will do more on alkali than some other plants, but too much alkali
+will knock them out. You must try and see whether you have too much
+alkali or not. You can sow at various times during the rainy season, for
+the beets will stand some frost. Sow 8 pounds per acre in drills 2 1/2
+to 3 feet apart, so as to use a horse cultivator. For stock you had
+better grow large stock beets like marigolds or tankards - not sugar
+beets. It costs too much to get sugar beets out of the ground, because
+it is their habit to grow small and bury themselves for the sake of the
+sugar maker, while stock beets grow largely above ground.
+
+
+
+Summer Start of Stock Beets.
+
+
+
+How can I make Mangel Wurzels grow in hot weather? The land is level and
+can be irrigated by flooding or ditching between the rows. How often
+should the water be applied, and which method used? The land is in fine
+shape; a sandy loam bordering on to heavier land.
+
+Wet the land thoroughly; plow and harrow and drill in the seed in rows
+about 2 1/2 feet apart. This ought to give moisture enough to start the
+seed. Cultivate as soon as you can see the rows well. Irrigate in a
+furrow between the rows about once a month; cultivate after each
+irrigation.
+
+
+
+Corn Growing for Silage.
+
+
+
+With fair cultivation, will an acre produce about 10 tons of ensilage
+without fertilization - it being bottom land? How should it be planted?
+- the rows closer together than 3 feet, or should it be planted the
+usual width between rows, and thick in the rows? If fertilizers were to
+be used, what kind would you recommend? Would you recommend deep plowing
+followed by a packer and harrow so as to preserve the moisture?
+
+You ought to be able to get 10 tons of silage per acre from corn grown
+on good corn land. It can be best grown in rows sufficiently distant for
+cultivation, closer in the row than would be desirable for corn, and yet
+not too crowded, because corn for silage should develop good ears and
+should be cut for silage about the time when the glazing begins to
+appear. If your land needs fertilization, stable manure or a "complete
+fertilizer" of the dealers would be the proper thing to use. It would be
+very desirable to plow corn land deeply the preceding fall, followed by
+a packer or harrow to settle down the land below, but do not work down
+fine. Keep the surface stirred from time to time during the winter and
+put in the crop with the usual cultivation in the spring as soon as the
+frost danger is over.
+
+
+
+Irrigation for Corn.
+
+
+
+What amount of water is necessary per acre for the best possible yield
+of corn under acreage conditions and proper cultivation in the San
+Joaquin or Sacramento valleys?
+
+No one can answer such a question with anything more than a guess. It
+depends upon how much rain has fallen the previous winter, how retentive
+the soil is naturally, and what has been done to help the soil to hold
+it. Nearly all the corn that is grown is carried without any irrigation
+at all on moist lowlands, which may be too wet for winter crops. If you
+demand a guess, make it six acre-inches, with a good surface pulverizing
+after each run of water in furrows between the rows. This water would be
+best used in two or three applications.
+
+
+
+Eastern Seed Corn for California.
+
+
+
+The question has been raised as to Eastern-grown seed corn, comparing it
+with California-grown seed. Some claim that the former does not yield
+well the first season.
+
+We cannot give a complete refutation of the impression that Eastern seed
+corn does not yield well the first season in California. It is a
+somewhat prevalent impression. All that we can announce now is that we
+have grown collections of Eastern seed corn and have found the product
+quite as good as could have been expected, and did not encounter,
+apparently, the trouble of which you write.
+
+
+
+Need of Corn Suckering.
+
+
+
+To insure the best crop of corn possible, does it pay to sucker it or
+not?
+
+The removal of suckers is a matter of local conditions largely in
+California, and growers are getting out of the habit of suckering. In
+some places suckering is needed, and in others it apparently does not
+pay to do so, although with very rare exceptions a larger yield can be
+secured by suckering than without.
+
+
+
+Cow Peas Not Preparatory for Corn.
+
+
+
+What time of the year can cow peas be planted, and can the entire crop
+be plowed under in time for planting field corn?
+
+Cowpeas are very subject to frost. They are really beans, and therefore
+can be grown in the winter time only in a few practically frostless
+places. Wherever frosts are likely to occur they must be planted, like
+beans and corn, when the frost danger is over. Field peas, Canadian peas
+and vetches are hardy against frost and therefore safer for winter
+growth, and treated as you propose they may be preparatory for
+corn-growing providing you plow them under soon enough to get a month or
+more for decay before planting the corn.
+
+
+
+Oats and Rust
+
+
+
+Is there any variety of oats that is rust-proof, or any method of
+treating oats that will render them rust resistant? We are situated on a
+mountain, only about 12 miles from the coast, and have considerable
+foggy weather, which most of the farmers here say is the cause of the
+rust.
+
+There is no way of treating oats which will prevent smut, if the variety
+is liable to it. There is a great difference in the resistance of
+different varieties. A few dark-colored oats are practically rust-proof,
+and you can get seed of them from the seedsmen in San Francisco and Los
+Angeles. Such varieties are chiefly grown on the southern coast. Foggy
+weather has much to do with the rust, because it causes atmospheric
+moisture which is favorable to the growth of the fungus, which is
+usually checked by dry heat, and yet there are atmospheric conditions
+occasionally which favor the rust even in the driest parts of the State.
+The fog favors rust, but does not cause it. The cause is a fungus, long
+ago thoroughly understood and named puccinia graminis.
+
+
+
+Midsummer Hay Sowing.
+
+
+
+Can I sow oats or barley in July upon irrigated mesa land, with the
+object of making hay in the fall? Which of the two would do the better
+in summer time? I have plenty of water.
+
+We have never seen this done to advantage. If you desire to try it,
+irrigate thoroughly and plow and sow afterward. Use barley rather than
+oats and irrigate when the plant shades the land well, if you get growth
+enough to warrant it. It will be easier to get the crop than to figure a
+profit in it.
+
+
+
+Loose Hay by Measure.
+
+
+
+How many cubic feet should be allowed for a ton of alfalfa hay loaded on
+a wagon from the shock? I must sell more or less in that way, as no
+scales are near enough to be used.
+
+It is a proposition, as to the weight of loose hay, which could of
+course keep changing the higher you built the load on the wagon. It is
+easier to give figures on weight from a stack in which there has been
+something like uniform pressure for a time. In the case from a 30-day
+stack it is common to allow an eight-foot cube to a ton, etc. Perhaps
+you can guess from that.
+
+
+
+When to Cut Oat Hay.
+
+
+
+To make the best red oat hay should it be cut when in the "milk,"
+"dough" or nearly ripe!
+
+It should be cut in the "soft dough" or, as some express it, "between
+the milk and the dough." This is probably as near an approach in words
+as can be made to that condition which loses neither by immaturity or by
+over-maturity from the point of view of hay which is to get as much as
+can be in the head without losing nutritiveness in the straw. Of course
+there are other conditions intruding sometimes, like the outbreak of
+rust or the premature ripening through drought. In such cases care must
+be taken not to let the plant stand too long for the sake of reaching an
+ideal condition in the head - which for lack of favorable growing
+conditions the plant may not be able to reach.
+
+
+
+Rye for Hay.
+
+
+
+When is the best time to cut rye for hay, and how should it best be
+handled? Would it be well to cut it up and blow it into the barn, and
+would it do all right for silage?
+
+Rye makes poor hay on account of its woody stems and must be cut earlier
+than other grains. After that it is handled as is other hay. Cutting it
+up would probably be more of a help than to other grain hay. It could be
+put into the silo, but would of course have to be cut pretty green and
+would have to run through a cutter and blower. Putting it in whole would
+be out of the question. In the silo, the fermentation would largely
+overcome the woodiness of the stems. It would also as a silage balance
+up nicely with alfalfa, and the best way to do would be to mix it with
+alfalfa when putting it in.
+
+
+
+Rye in California.
+
+
+
+Which kind of rye is the hardiest, the best yielding, and the best hay
+varieties in your State?
+
+Rye is the least grown of all the cereals in California, and no
+attention has been paid to selection of varieties. That which is
+produced is "just rye," of some common variety which came to the State
+years ago and still remains. No rye is grown for hay, as the toughness
+of the stem renders it undesirable for that purpose. There is a certain
+amount of rye grown for winter feeding. This is grown in the foothills
+principally and it serves an excellent purpose, but it is fed off before
+approaching maturity.
+
+
+
+That Old Seven-Headed Wheat.
+
+
+
+We are sending you some heads of grain which was grown in this county.
+The land was planted with an imported Australian wheat, which we believe
+the smaller heads to be, but the wheat is about evenly mired with grain
+like the large heads, which we think to be a species of barley.
+
+The grain is an old, coarse, bearded wheat which is continually
+appearing in fields of ordinary grain and naturally excites interest
+among all to whom the variety is a novelty. It is the old seven-headed
+Egyptian wheat, which has never proved of any cultural value, because
+its manifolding of the head is of no advantage. It is better to have a
+straight well-filled head than to have a branching head of this kind.
+This matter has been fully demonstrated by experience during the last
+thirty or forty years, not only in this State, but in other States, for
+the variety has a way of getting around the world, and seed has
+sometimes been sold at exorbitant prices to people who have been
+persuaded that it is of particular value.
+
+
+
+Speltz.
+
+
+
+I have heard of a Russian grain called "Speltz" or "Emmer." Can I raise
+it successfully and, if so, what is the very best time of year to sow
+some for the best crop obtainable? Can it be sown in the fall, say
+November? Would springtime be a better time to sow it on soil that is
+very soft in winter?
+
+If your land yields good crops of wheat or barley or oats, you have
+little to expect from speltz or emmer. This is a grain generally
+considered inferior to those just mentioned and advocated for conditions
+under which the better known grains do not do well. It is hardy against
+drought and frost, particularly the latter, and is, therefore, chiefly
+grown in the extreme north of Europe. It may be sown in the fall or in
+the spring in places where rains are late and carry the plant to
+maturity.
+
+
+
+Italian Rye Grass.
+
+
+
+What kind of grass is enclosed? Also the best method to eradicate it?
+
+The grass is the Italian rye grass, or as it is sometimes called, the
+Italian variety of the perennial rye grass. It is proving a very
+satisfactory grass in California for moderate drought resistance and for
+winter growing, and a great deal of it is being sown for these purposes.
+You can readily kill it out by cultivation, but most people are more
+occupied with its propagation than with its destruction.
+
+
+
+Fall Feed.
+
+
+
+Can I irrigate and plant a forage crop n July to feed dairy cows this
+fall and winter? Would you recommend cow peas or some kind of sugar
+corn? If cow peas, how many pounds to the acre?
+
+If you wet down the land thoroughly and then plow and harrow and plant
+either cow peas or Indian corn, you ought to get a good green crop
+before frost. Drill in or drop the seed in rows about three feet apart
+and keep cultivating and irrigating as long as you can get through
+without injuring the crop too much. Use about 40 pounds of cow peas to
+the acre.
+
+
+
+Hurry-up Pasture.
+
+
+
+What can I plant this fall which would produce pasturage for a small
+amount of stock this winter, and until I can get the land under
+irrigation and seeded to alfalfa?
+
+For quick fall and winter growth nothing is better probably than oats
+and vetches sown together as soon as you get rain enough to plow, but it
+would be a question whether it is worth while to work for that, because
+you ought to get your land ready for February sowing of alfalfa and that
+will keep the land busy after the rain gets it into working condition.
+
+
+
+Johnson Grass.
+
+
+
+I am informed that Johnson grass makes fine hay. I have not sown the
+seed yet, but would like to know if the hay is good and if it will grow
+on dry land. I have the seed on hand, but do not want to sow it if it is
+not good.
+
+Johnson grass is poor, coarse stuff. The plant is most valuable for
+grazing when young. Johnson grass will not grow on really dry land, but
+it will take the best moist land it can find and hold on to it. It is
+sensitive to frost and is not a winter grower except in the absence of
+frost.
+
+
+
+Improving Heavy Land for Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+My land is very heavy, red loam, and crusts over very hard in dry
+seasons. I would like to know if it would be best to use barnyard
+compost over the surface as a mulch, or would it be best to use plain
+straw for that purpose?
+
+A very heavy soil can be brought into better surface condition for
+alfalfa by plowing in stable manure as soon as possible after the fall
+rains, in order that the manure may have opportunity to become
+disintegrated and mixed with the soil by the time for alfalfa sowing,
+which is from February to April - whenever the heavy frosts of the
+locality are over. For a small piece, you might get a better stand by
+using a light mulch of disintegrated coarse manure or even straw,
+scattering it after the sowing, but for a large acreage this would
+involve too much labor. It is not desirable to work in much manure or
+other coarse stuff at the time of sowing the seed, but you can make a
+light surface application after the plant has made a start.
+
+
+
+Cultivating Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+When is the best time to cultivate alfalfa, and how often during the
+season is it advantageous to do so? Which is the best implement to use?
+
+Cultivated alfalfa is a term applied to alfalfa sown in rows and allowed
+to grow in narrow bands with cultivated land between, and the irrigation
+is then done in a furrow in the narrow cultivated strip. This will give
+thriftier growth and perhaps more hay to the acre than flooded,
+broad-casted alfalfa, but it will cost so much more that the acre profit
+would probably be less. This is an intensive culture of alfalfa, which
+is still to be tested out in California, if any one should be inclined
+to do it. Some one-cow suburbanite would be in condition to try the
+scheme first. Probably you refer to disking, and for that an ordinary
+disk is used with the disks set pretty straight to reduce the side
+cutting, and this is done at different times of the year by different
+growers. By doing it when the ground gets dry in the early spring much
+of the foul stuff is cut out before the alfalfa starts strongly. But
+disking seems to be good whenever in the year the soil is dry enough to
+take it well.
+
+
+
+Suburban Alfalfa Patch.
+
+
+
+How can we rid the alfalfa of weeds? As we are obliged to hire help, and
+do not succeed in getting the hay cared for until we have mostly stalks
+without leaves, I have put the cow on it to pasture it off.
+
+The cow knows how to handle it, but you will not get as much alfalfa as
+if you cut and carried it to her. If you cut sooner you will get rid of
+many plants which are propagated by the seeds which they produce, and
+you will also get better hay, more leaves and fewer stalks. Cut it about
+the time it begins to bloom, not waiting for the full bloom to appear.
+
+
+
+Alfalfa and Bermuda.
+
+
+
+I have land which was seeded to alfalfa some 15 years ago and has been
+pastured continuously until it was almost all Bermuda. I had it
+thoroughly plowed, disk harrowed and sowed to oats; disk harrowed in,
+and drag harrowed. After cutting for hay this year I intend putting it
+in Egyptian corn in rows, so it can be cultivated to get rid of Bermuda.
+I have also been advised to plow the land immediately after harvesting
+corn and let it lie until next January and then plow and sow to barley
+and alfalfa as I wish to grow alfalfa. Kindly let me know if method is
+right. The land is sandy loam and under irrigation.
+
+Whether you will fully succeed against Bermuda grass or not is doubtful.
+It is probable, however, that you can reduce the Bermuda so that other
+cultivated crops can be continuously grown. Common experience is that
+Bermuda will hold on unless you have hard freezing of the ground to a
+considerable depth, as they have in the northern States. The best use
+that you can make of land infested with Bermuda is to get as good a
+stand as you can of alfalfa and let the alfalfa fight for itself. The
+combination of alfalfa and Bermuda grass makes very good hay or
+pasturage. We should, however, sow the alfalfa alone and not handicap it
+by sowing with barley. The Bermuda will smile at that advice. Egyptian
+corn can be planted in rows, 2 1/2 to 3 feet between the rows to admit
+of easy cultivation
+
+
+
+Bermuda Grass.
+
+
+
+What is the value of Bermuda grass as a forage crop for cattle, more
+particularly dairy cows?
+
+Bermuda grass is generally condemned because of getting in places where
+it is not desirable and of being almost impossible of eradication
+therefrom. Still, Bermuda grass will make good pasturage on land which
+is too alkaline to make other crops, and therefore is highly esteemed by
+some owners of waste lands in the San Joaquin valley. It is good
+pasturage and is most easily propagated by cutting the roots up into
+short pieces by use of the hay-cutter, nearly all the pieces retaining
+an eye which will make a new plant. It is easy to get in and hard to get
+out.
+
+
+
+Salt Grass and Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+I have some land in Sutter county and it has some of this salt grass in
+spots. I am about to take a twenty-acre piece and put in alfalfa, but
+some old-timers tell me that the salt grass on it is bad stuff to
+handle.
+
+Your trouble will probably be not so much the salt grass, but the alkali
+in the soil which the salt grass can tolerate and which other plants
+cannot stand. You cannot then substitute alfalfa for salt grass without
+getting the alkali out of the soil, and you cannot do this without
+having sufficient drainage so that the rainfall may wash the alkali out
+from the soil and carry it away in the drainage water. You probably
+cannot get a satisfactory growth of alfalfa on the spots where the salt
+grass has established itself, although the land round about may be very
+satisfactory to alfalfa.
+
+
+
+Giant Spurry.
+
+
+
+I would like information about spurry. How much frost will it stand?
+What is time for sowing? Its value as crop to plow under?
+
+From a California point of view, spurry is a winter-growing weed which
+has been approved by orchardists in Sonoma county because it yields a
+considerable amount of vegetation for turning under with the spring
+plowing of the orchard. For this purpose it should be sown at the
+beginning of the rainy season. Its value as a crop to turn under depends
+upon the amount of growth you can get. It is not a legume and,
+therefore, does not have the value of the nitrogen-gathering plant.
+Still, it yields humus and, therefore, is valuable for winter growing as
+ordinary weeds, grasses, grains, etc., are.
+
+
+
+Light Soil and Scant Moisture.
+
+
+
+Advise me as to plowing under a crop of last year's weeds where I intend
+to plant beans, corn, etc. The soil is "slickens," on the Yuba river,
+and the weeds grew up last year in a crop of volunteer barley, which was
+hogged off. I expect to plow five inches deep, and calculate that the
+barley straw and weeds will contribute to the supply of humus, which is
+always deficient in most of our soils. I expect to try to grow beans
+without irrigation, and wonder if the trash would hold the soil too open
+so as to dry them out.
+
+Considering the character of the soil which you describe and the shallow
+plowing you intend we should certainly burn off all the trash upon the
+land. With deep plowing early in the season this coarse stuff could be
+covered in to advantage, but it would be dangerous to do it in the
+spring. Clean land and thorough cultivation to save moisture enough for
+summer's growth is the only rational spring treatment.
+
+
+
+Clovers and Drought.
+
+
+
+I have sandy loam with some alkali. In wet years it is regarded as too
+damp in some places. Can you give me any information on the following
+points? I have practically no water for irrigation and I feel sure that
+alfalfa would not grow without it. Do you think that clover would make
+one or more cuttings without water?
+
+Red and white clover are less tolerant of drought than alfalfa, which,
+being a deep-rooting plant, is especially commended in dry-farming
+undertakings. Red clover will grow better on low wet lands than will
+alfalfa, but the land must not dry out or the red clover will die during
+the dry season. None of the plants will stand much alkali.
+
+
+
+Clover for Wet Lands.
+
+
+
+What kind of alfalfa will do best on sub-irrigated land which is very
+wet? I have sown it in alfalfa and it grows finely for two or three
+years, but then the roots rot and die.
+
+It is impossible to make any kind of alfalfa grow well on very wet land,
+that is, where the water comes too near the surface. Alfalfa has a
+deep-running tap root which is very subject to standing water. You can
+get very good results from the Eastern red clover on such land, because
+the red clover has a fibrous root which is content to live in a shallow
+layer of soil above water. But red clover will not stand drought as well
+as alfalfa, because it is shallower rooting. It is necessary, therefore,
+that water should be permanently near the surface or surface irrigation
+be frequently applied, in order to secure satisfactory growth of red
+clover in the drier sections of California. It is also necessary that
+neither land nor water carry alkali.
+
+
+
+Frosted Grain for Hay.
+
+
+
+The freeze struck us pretty severely. I had 125 acres of summer-fallowed
+wheat which I had estimated to make 20 sacks to the acre of grain. It
+was breast high in places already, and was just heading out. The frost
+pinched the stalks of this grain in several places and the heads are now
+turning white. It is ruined for grain. There is lots of fodder in it,
+and it should be made into hay. If so, should it not be cut and cured at
+once? What is the relative worth of such hay as compared with more
+matured hay? Would the fact that it is frozen make it injurious to feed?
+
+If the whole plant seems to be getting white, the sooner it is cut the
+better. If the head is affected and the leaf growth continued, cutting
+might be deferred for the purpose of getting more of it. Hay made from
+such material will not be in any way dangerous, although it would be
+inferior as containing less nutritive and more non-nutritive matter.
+Such hay would seem to be most serviceable as roughage for cows or
+steers in connection with alfalfa hay or some other feed which would
+supply this deficiency.
+
+
+
+Forage Plants in the Foothills.
+
+
+
+We have 3,000 acres of foothill land and hope to be able to irrigate
+some land this spring and wish to know the best forage crops, for sheep
+and hogs, especially. Kafir corn, stock peas, rape, sugar-beets and
+artichokes are the varieties about which we desire information.
+
+Where you have irrigation water available in the foothills you can get a
+very satisfactory growth of red clover. We have seen it doing very well
+on sloping land in your county where water was allowed to spill over
+from a ditch on the ridge to moisten the slope below. Winter rye and
+other hardy stock feeds could also be grown in the winter time on the
+protected slopes with the rainfall. Some such plants are not good summer
+growers, owing to the drought. Rape is a good winter grower by rainfall,
+but not so satisfactory as vetches and kale. Sugar beets are not so good
+for stock purposes as stock beets, which give you much more growth for
+the same labor and are more easily gathered because they grow a good
+part out of the ground. They will stand considerable freezing and may be
+sown at different times throughout the year, whenever the land is moist,
+either by irrigation or rainfall. Artichokes are of doubtful value. We
+have never found anyone who continued to grow them long. Of course, on
+good, deep land, with irrigation, nothing can be better than alfalfa as
+supplementary to hill range during the summer season.
+
+
+
+Winter Forage.
+
+
+
+At what time of the year should I plant kale, Swiss chard, etc., so as
+to have them ready for use during the months from February to June?
+
+You should plant Swiss chard, kale, etc., as soon as the ground is
+sufficiently moist from the rain in the fall. In fact, it would be
+desirable for you to plant the seed earlier in boxes and thus secure
+plants for planting out when the ground is sufficiently moist. These
+plants are quite hardy against frost, and in order to have them
+available by February, a start in the autumn is essential.
+
+
+
+A Summer Hay Crop.
+
+
+
+What can I put on the land after the oat crop is taken off to furnish
+hay for horses during the coming winter? I had thought millet would be
+good. I have water for irrigation.
+
+You could get most out of the land you mention during the hot season by
+growing Kafir corn or milo, cutting for hay before the plant gets too
+far advanced. If your land can be flooded and takes water well, so that
+you can wet it deeply before plowing, the sorghum seed can be broadcast
+and the crop cut with the mower while the stalks are not more than half
+an inch in diameter. This makes a good coarse hay. If you have not water
+enough or the land does not lie right for flooding, you can grow the
+sorghum in drills and irrigate by the furrow method, being careful,
+however, not to let the crop go too far if you desire to feed it as hay.
+
+
+
+Teosinte.
+
+
+
+What about "Teosinte," its food value, method of culture, and
+adaptability to our climate, character of soil required?
+
+Teosinte is a corn-like plant of much lower growth than Indian corn. It
+may be of value as a forage plant on low, moist, interior lands in the
+summer season. It is very sensitive to frost and is, therefore, not a
+winter grower. It abhors drought and, therefore, is not a plant for
+plains or hillsides. It was grown to some extent in California 25 years
+ago and abandoned as worthless so far as tried.
+
+
+
+Bermuda Objectionable.
+
+
+
+Bermuda grass as pasture for summer to supplement burr clover and
+alfilaria in winter on the cheap hill pasture lands along the coast or
+the foothill ranges of the Sierras. Stock like it and do well on it, and
+I have noticed it growing in places where it had no water but the little
+rains of winter in southern California. So the question occurred to me,
+why should it not be a profitable pasture for the dry summers on the
+coast or foothill ranges of the State?
+
+Bermuda grass will not make summer growth enough on dry pasture land to
+make it worth having. It will not make much growth in the rainy season
+because of frost, and if it has possession of the ground it will not
+allow either burr clover or alfilaria to make such winter growth as they
+will on clean land. Besides, this grass is generally counted a nuisance,
+because it will get into all the good cultivated land and it is almost
+impossible of eradication. Bermuda grass is of some account on alkali
+land where it finds moisture enough for free growth. We would not plant
+it in any other situation.
+
+
+
+Rye Grasses Better than Brome.
+
+
+
+I see in an Eastern seed catalogue "Bromus Inermis" very highly spoken
+of as pasturage. Do you know anything of it, and do you think it would
+be suitable for reclaimed tule land in the bay section?
+
+Both English and Italian rye grasses have proved better than Bromus
+Inermis on such land as you mention. The latter is commonly known as
+Hungarian brome grass or awniess brome grass and it was introduced to
+this State from Europe about 25 years ago and the seed distributed by
+the University Experiment Station. Hungarian brome may be better on
+rather dry lands, although it will not live through the summer on very
+dry lands in this State, but we would rather trust the rye grasses or
+reclaimed lands, providing, of course, that they are sufficiently free
+from salt to carry tame grass at all. On the upper coast Hungarian brome
+has been favorably reported as an early-winter growing grass with
+comparatively low nutritive value, but is especially valuable because it
+will grow in poor soil. It is especially suited to sandy pasture and
+meadow lands and is quite resistant to drought. It is a perennial grass,
+reproducing by a stout rootstock, which makes it somewhat difficult to
+eradicate when it is not desired. It is desirable to keep stock off the
+fields during the first year to get a good stand.
+
+
+
+Black Medic.
+
+
+
+Will you kindly name the enclosed; also explain its value as forage!
+
+The plant is black medic. It has been very widely distributed over the
+State during the last few years. It is sometimes called a new burr
+clover, which it somewhat resembles. It is not very freely eaten by
+stock and is apparently inferior to burr clover for forage purposes. It
+is a good plant to plow under for green manure.
+
+
+
+Crimson Clover.
+
+
+
+About crimson clover in California. Has it proved satisfactory? If so,
+can you give me data how to plant, etc.!
+
+Crimson clover must be sown after frost, for it is tender. It will give
+a great show in June and July on low moist land. It is not good against
+either frost or drought. It has been amply tried in California and
+proved on the whole of little account.
+
+
+
+California Winter Pastures.
+
+
+
+We have a great deal of pasture land on which the native grasses yield
+less feed each year. A great part of this land can be cleared of brush
+and stone, ready for the plow, but what can we sow to take the place of
+the native pasture? The ground in many places is not level enough for
+alfalfa and in some places water is not available. Can we break up the
+land and sow pasture grasses as the farmers are exhorted to do at the
+East? The annual rainfall is from 12 to 15 inches.
+
+The perennial grasses which they rely upon for pasturage in the East and
+which will maintain themselves from year to year, will not live at all
+on the dry lands of California, nor has investigation of the last
+twenty-five or thirty years found anything better for these California
+uplands than the winter growth of plants which are native to them. Such
+lands should be better treated, first by not being overstocked; second,
+by taking off cattle at the time the native plant needs to make seed,
+because, as they are not perennial, they are dependent upon each year's
+seed. After the plants have seeded, the land can be pastured for dry
+feed without losing the seed.
+
+Of course, if one has land capable of irrigation he can grow forage
+plants, even the grasses which grow in moist climates, like the rye
+grasses, the brome grasses and the oat grasses, etc., which will do well
+if given a little moisture, but it will be a loss of money to break up
+the dryer lands with the idea of establishing perennial grasses upon
+them without irrigation. California pastures are naturally good. In
+early days they were wonderful, but they are restricted to growth during
+the rainy season, or for a little time after that, and are therefore
+suited for winter and spring pasturage, while the summer feeding of
+stock, aside from dry feed, should be provided from other lands where
+water can be used. The improvement of these wild pastures consists in a
+more intelligent policy for their production and preservation rather
+than an effort to improve them by the introduction of new plants.
+Pastures may, however, be often improved by clearing off the brush and
+harrowing in seed of burr clover, alfilaria, etc., at the beginning of
+the rainy season.
+
+
+
+Alfilaria and Winter Pasturage.
+
+
+
+Will alfilaria (Erodium cicutarium) grow well on the hills of Sonoma
+county partially covered with shrubs? I want something that will be food
+for stock another year. I have heard of alfilaria and that it grows well
+without being irrigated.
+
+Alfilaria is a good winter-growing forage plant in places where it
+accepts the situation. It is an annual and therefore does not make
+permanent pasturage except where it may re-seed itself. On the coming of
+the dry season it will speedily form seed and disappear. It is therefore
+of no summer use under the conditions which you describe, nor is it
+possible to secure any perennial grass which will be satisfactory on dry
+hillsides without irrigation. Improved winter pasturage can be secured
+by scattering seed of common rye at the beginning of the rainy season,
+or of burr clover, both of which are winter-growing plants. Pasturage is
+also capable of improvement by being careful not to overstock the land,
+so that the native annuals may be able to produce seed and provide for
+their own succession. The secret of successful pasturage on dry uplands
+is to improve the winter growth. It is too much to expect much of them
+for summer growth without irrigation.
+
+
+
+Grasses for Bank-Holding.
+
+
+
+We desire a grass to be used on levees, to keep from washing. Bermuda or
+Johnson gross are dangerous to farming lands. What we desire is a grass
+that will grow in good dirt with no water to support it during most of
+the year, except the annual rainfall of Fresno county. Of course, this
+grass will also have to endure a great deal of water during the flooded
+season of the year. We have heard that the Italian rye grass would be
+suitable.
+
+The rye grasses do not have running roots; therefore are not calculated
+to bind soil particles together as Bermuda grass does. If you want a
+binding grass, you must take the chances of its spreading to adjacent
+lands. Of course, if you could get a sod of rye grass it would prevent
+surface washing from overflow, etc., to a certain extent. We are not
+sure how far it would prevent bank cutting by the flowing water, for it
+makes a bunchy and not a sod-like growth. It would not live through the
+summer unless the levee soil keeps somewhat moist. The only way to
+determine whether you can get a permanent growth of it, will be by
+making a trial. Seed should be sown as soon as the ground becomes
+moistened by rain. It is a very safe proposition, because if it is
+willing to live through the summer, it is one of the best pasturage
+grasses for places in California where it will consent to grow, and it
+is not liable to become an annoyance by taking possession of adjacent
+land, because it would be readily killed by cultivation.
+
+
+
+Alfalfa and Alkali.
+
+
+
+I sowed several acres of alfalfa seed with a disc this season and none
+of it has come up. I think the reason for it not coming up is that the
+disc put it into the ground too deep. We sowed some by hand and it came
+up very well. Is there any probability that later in the season this
+seed will germinate, or has it rotted in the ground? Water stands within
+three feet of the surface and has considerable alkali. What can I plant
+on this land and get a crop? It is our intention to sow it to alfalfa
+next fall. The land adjoining, although higher, has a good stand of
+alfalfa now.
+
+You are right about covering the alfalfa seed too deeply. It is not
+likely to appear. Your chance of getting a durable stand of alfalfa on
+such shallow soil over alkali water is not good, but you can hardly
+determine that without trying. Sometimes conditions are better than you
+think; sometimes worse. The plant itself is the best judge. On your
+lower land you could probably get a better stand of rye grass than
+anything else - sowing at the beginning of the rainy season. Of course,
+however, even that will depend upon how much alkali you have to deal
+with.
+
+
+
+Alfalfa on Adobe.
+
+
+
+Is adobe land good for alfalfa? Is it harder to start than in other
+soils or not? How much seed is required to sow an acre? Also state what
+time alfalfa should be sowed.
+
+Alfalfa will thrive on an adobe soil if the moisture is kept right -
+especially guarding against too much water at a time. It is necessary to
+irrigate more frequently and apply only as much as can be absorbed by
+the soil before the hot sun comes on the field, for that scalds the
+plant badly. It is harder to get a good stand because of the cracking
+and hardening of the surface. Sow about 20 pounds to the acre just as
+soon as the soil comes into good condition - that is, moist and warm.
+February and March are usually the best months, according to the season
+in the interior valleys.
+
+
+
+Alfalfa and Soil Depth.
+
+
+
+Do you consider soil which is from 4 to 6 feet deep to hardpan of
+sufficient depth for alfalfa? Is there hardpan in the region of Lathrop
+in San Joaquin county, and can it be dissolved by irrigation, or can any
+good be accomplished by blowing holes at different places to allow the
+water to pass to lower levels? Are other crops affected by hardpan being
+so close to the surface?
+
+You can grow alfalfa successfully on land which is from four to six feet
+deep if you irrigate rather more frequently and use less amounts of
+water each time, so that the plant shall be adequately supplied and yet
+not forced to carry its roots in standing water. The Eastern alfalfa
+grower is fortunate when he gets half the depth you mention, although it
+does seem rather shallow in California. Shallow lands are distributed
+over the valley quite widely. A deepening of the available soil is
+usually accomplished by dynamiting, especially so if the hardpan is
+underlaid by permanent strata. Alfalfa will penetrate some kinds and
+thicknesses of hardpan when it is kept moist, but not too wet, to
+encourage root growth.
+
+Winter-growing green crops are less affected by shallow soil because
+they generally make their growth while the moisture is ample, if the
+season is good.
+
+
+
+Curing Alfalfa with Artificial Heat.
+
+
+
+It is current rumor that "out in California they are hauling alfalfa
+green and curing it by artificial heat," thus reducing loss through bad
+weather and producing a superior hay for feeding or milling purposes.
+
+It is true that alfalfa is being cut green and dried by artificial heat,
+but this is only being done in preparation for grinding. No one thinks
+of doing it for the making of hay for storage or for feeding. This
+method is undertaken, not because the alfalfa hay does not dry quickly
+enough in the field, but because after drying in the field so many
+leaves are lost in hauling to the mill. We have no trouble sun-drying
+alfalfa for ordinary hay purposes; in fact, we have to be very careful
+that it does not get too dry.
+
+
+
+Cheap Preparation of Land for Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+I am about to put a piece of land into alfalfa, and want to use the most
+economical system of preparing the land for irrigation. My neighbors
+tell me that it will be necessary for me to have the land leveled; at a
+cost of $6 to $10 per acre. Now I am informed that in Alberta, and some
+places in California, they do not go to the expense of leveling land,
+but use a system of preparing land for irrigation at a cost of about 60
+cents per acre.
+
+Nothing except a highly educated gale of wind, with discriminating
+cutting and filling ability of a very high order, could do it for that
+price. The cheapest way to prepare land for irrigation is the contour
+check method, which is largely used, or the flooding in strips between
+levees at right angles to the supply ditch; but neither of these could
+be put in properly for that money, even if the land was naturally in
+such shape that a minimum amount of soil-shifting is necessary.
+
+
+
+Where Alfalfa is Grown.
+
+
+
+In what counties is alfalfa most successfully grown? By this I mean
+where three crops of hay may be had each growing season. Also, will corn
+grow good paying crops in same sections?
+
+Alfalfa is grown all through the valleys and foothills of interior
+California; also to a certain extent in coast valleys. On suitable
+lands, three crops can sometimes be secured without irrigation, while
+twice or three times as many cuttings are secured on irrigated lands
+where the frost-free season is particularly long. According to the last
+census, we are growing alfalfa on 19,104 farms with a total acreage of
+484,098. The total value of the product is over $13,000,000. Corn is
+widely grown, but is small as compared with alfalfa. It is grown in
+alfalfa districts and in coast valleys where there is not much done with
+alfalfa.
+
+
+
+Sowing Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+What is the proper time to sow alfalfa? Some advocate fall and others
+spring sowing. What seasons are given for each sowing?
+
+We shall undoubtedly soon get to sowing alfalfa all the year round
+except in the short season of sharp frosts and cold wet ground in
+November, December and January. If you can get a good start in September
+and October, all right; if not, wait until February and March, according
+to the season. Where it is never very cold or wet, sow whenever moisture
+is right. There never can be any rule about it, for localities will
+differ.
+
+
+
+Foxtail and Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+Will foxtail choke out and exterminate alfalfa? Some fields look as
+though the foxtail had crowded the alfalfa out, but I hold that the
+alfalfa died from some other cause and the foxtail merely took its
+place.
+
+Foxtail will not choke out alfalfa, providing, soil and moisture
+conditions are right for the latter, and a good stand of plant has been
+secured. If anything is wrong with the alfalfa, the foxtail will be on
+the alert to take advantage of it. You will always have foxtail with
+you, and considerable quantities of it, perhaps, in the first cutting,
+because foxtail will grow at a lower temperature than alfalfa, and,
+therefore, will keep very busy during the rainy season, while the
+alfalfa is more or less dormant, but as the heat increases, if the soil
+is good and moisture ample, the alfalfa will put the foxtail out of
+sight until the following winter invites it to make another aggressive
+growth. Therefore, we answer that alfalfa does not die from foxtail, but
+from some condition unfavorable to the alfalfa, which must be sought in
+the soil, or in the moisture supply, or traced back to bad seed, and a
+poor stand at the beginning.
+
+
+
+Which Alfalfa is Best?
+
+
+
+I have in Stanislaus county ten acres of Arabian alfalfa, which was sown
+the first week in April this year. It was clipped in July and irrigated.
+It is now about 14 inches high, but looks sickly, turns white at the
+tips, and some dies down. There are several places here with the Arabian
+alfalfa on them and with the same trouble, while the ordinary variety is
+looking fine by the side of it.
+
+Arabian alfalfa usually makes a good show at first and begins to run out
+afterward. It does not seem to be so long-lived and satisfactory as the
+common variety. With this prospect ahead of you, according to present
+experience, it would seem to be desirable to plow the crop in and seed
+again with the common variety, or with the Turkestan, which is proving
+the most satisfactory of the recently introduced varieties.
+
+
+
+Fall Sowing of Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+We have summer-fallowed land which we know will grow good alfalfa, and
+as we have just had four inches of rainfall upon it, we were wondering
+if we could not plow the twenty acres and get a stand upon it in time to
+stand the cold weather this winter. Do you think this is practicable?
+
+If four inches of rain on summer fallow connects well with the lower
+moisture which a good summer fallow ought to conserve in the soil, such
+sowing is rational; but if the summer fallowing was not done well, that
+is, if it was rough plowing without enough harrowing, as is too often
+the case, the four inches of rain might not be safe because of the dry
+ground beneath waiting to seize the moisture and so dry the surface that
+sprouting alfalfa plants would perish between dry soil below and dry
+wind above. Fall sowing will give enough growth to resist frost killing
+in many places in the valley if the moisture in the soil is enough to
+carry the plant as well as start it, or if showers come frequently -
+otherwise it is dangerous, not from frost but from drouth.
+
+
+
+Alfalfa Hay and Soil Fertility.
+
+
+
+We are feeding all our hay to dairy cows, returning the manure to the
+soil. At present prices of hay, my neighbors who sell theirs, seem to be
+as well off, with considerable less work; but how about the future? Can
+this soil be cropped indefinitely and the crops sold, without returning
+anything to the land?
+
+It is a mistake to think that you can sell alfalfa hay indefinitely
+without reducing the soil. It may gain in nitrogen by the wastes of the
+plant, but it will lose in other constituents unless reinforced by
+fertilization. No single act can make for the maintenance of the soil as
+the growing and feeding of crops and return of manure does.
+
+
+
+Dry-Land Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+I am in a country of strictly dry farming. I have a wash or gulch on my
+place and would like to know if  I could, with success, plant it to
+alfalfa without irrigation; soil is sandy loam, no evidences of springy
+moisture at all. What kind should I try?
+
+Alfalfa will endure much drouth. What it will do in a particular place
+can only be told by trying. Sow Turkestan alfalfa. If the rains come
+early so as to wet the land down in September and October, sow the seed
+then. The endurance of the plant will depend much upon its having a
+chance to root deeply before the drouth comes on.
+
+
+
+Inoculating Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+Is it profitable to inoculate alfalfa seed before planting to increase
+its yield? Can it be done by leaching soil from old alfalfa ground,
+providing it has been plowed up and allowed to stand for a year? Are
+commercial inoculants a safe thing to inoculate with?
+
+Apparently alfalfa does not need inoculation in this State. Probably not
+one acre in ten thousand now profitably growing alfalfa has ever had
+artificial introduction of germs. You can make germ-tea, if you wish, of
+the soil you describe; one year's exposure would not destroy the germs.
+It is safe enough to use commercial cultures. You will have to decide
+for yourself whether it is worth while.
+
+
+
+Irrigating Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+I am making parallel ridges for alfalfa, sending a full head of water
+down to the end of the field between each ridge. Should I calculate the
+lands to be mowed one at a time in even swaths? The mower being 5-foot
+cut, would you count on cutting a 4 1/2 or 5-foot swath? This soil is
+sandy, water percolating rapidly. The fall is 8 feet to the mile. How
+wide, then, would you advise making the ridges to suit the mower, and to
+flood economically, using from 2 to 4 cubic feet per second? The length
+of the lands is across 40 acres.
+
+Growing alfalfa in long parallel checks, to be flooded between the
+levees, is the way in which much alfalfa is being put in at the present
+time where the land has such a slope as you indicate. It is calculated,
+however, to seed the levees as well as the check bottoms, and to run the
+mowers across the levees, thus leaving no waste land and mowing across
+the whole field and not between the levees as you propose. For that
+purpose these levees are made low, not over a foot in height,
+calculating that they will settle to about six or eight inches, which is
+sufficient to hold the water and direct its flow gently down the slope.
+There is, however, a limit to the distance over which water can be
+evenly distributed in this way, the difference being dependent upon the
+character of the soil, slope, etc. A length of nine hundred feet is
+sometimes found too great for an even distribution, and, for this
+reason, supply ditches at shorter intervals are introduced.
+
+
+
+Unirrigated Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+In what part of the State does alfalfa grow best without irrigation?
+
+Obviously the parts which have the greatest rainfall in connection with
+retentive soil and plenty of summer heat. Alfalfa grows best without
+irrigation on "sub-irrigated" land where the ground water is
+sufficiently deep to allow a deep rooting of the plant in free soil and
+yet not too far down to be readily reached by the deep-running roots.
+Good results can be obtained with anywhere from four to ten or twelve
+feet of soil above water. On shallower soils the plant is apt to be
+short-lived through root troubles. Unirrigated alfalfa is also reduced
+by the incursions of gophers which flooding at least once a year will
+destroy.
+
+
+
+Alfalfa and Overflow.
+
+
+
+How long can alfalfa stand water without being drowned out? I have a
+piece of alfalfa on which the water will stand for considerable time in
+the winter time.
+
+Alfalfa while dormant will endure submergence for several weeks. We do
+not know exactly how long, but evidently for a considerable period,
+providing temperatures are too low to invite growth. On the other hand,
+growing alfalfa is quickly and seriously injured by overflow.
+
+
+
+No Nurse-Crop for Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+Is it advisable to use oats with alfalfa seeds in seeding for alfalfa?
+Some growers of alfalfa here advise it strongly, others advise against
+it.
+
+The general experience in California is decidedly against using oats,
+barley, or any other nursecrop with alfalfa. Get the land in the best
+possible condition and let the alfalfa have the full benefit of it. The
+ripening of the grain crop will do the young alfalfa plants more harm by
+robbing them of moisture than any protection which the taller plant can
+afford.
+
+
+
+Reseeding Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+This spring I planted alfalfa and only got about half a stand on some of
+the land. I want to reseed this fall and I thought of putting more seed
+on the ground and then disc it in. Or would you advise replanting the
+land? What do you think of putting manure on young alfalfa? Do you think
+there is any danger of burning it out?
+
+Stir it up with a spring tooth harrow or disc it lightly to make a nice
+seed bed and then sow your seed as if you were planting alfalfa for the
+first time. This will give you a good seed bed and will not hurt the
+alfalfa already growing. Prepare the surface first and then sow, rather
+than disking in the seed. The manure in moderate application would not
+burn out the young alfalfa if properly applied after the rains begin.
+
+
+
+Taking the Bloat Out of Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+Will Italian rye grass and red top clover be a success under irrigation
+as cow pasture in this county, either separately or mixed with alfalfa?
+To sow in bare spots in the alfalfa, would the rye grass prevent bloat?
+
+Italian rye grass and red clover will make good pasturage under
+irrigation and will make a fight with the alfalfa to the best of their
+ability. The admixture of rye grass will reduce the danger from
+bloating. Red clover will not have that effect, because red clover is a
+pretty good bloater on its own account. This seems to be the function of
+all the clovers according to the rankness of their growth at the time
+that they are grazed.
+
+
+
+The Time to Cut Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+What is the best period to cut alfalfa hay for cow feed and the best
+method for curing?
+
+The best time to cut alfalfa is just when new shoots are starting out at
+the crown. This will give the greatest yield of hay during a season, and
+the hay will be much more palatable than if the alfalfa is permitted to
+get well into the blossoming period. The leaves, which are the best part
+of the hay, also remain on better than if the stems are older. If a
+person does not care to take the trouble to find out whether the new
+shoots are coming out or not, he can approximate the time to cut fairly
+well by waiting until a blossom here and there appears, cutting
+immediately. It would be difficult to tell on paper exactly when alfalfa
+was properly cured, as that is a matter of individual judgment. It is
+usual to cut in the morning and rake into windrows in the afternoon.
+With the usual weather in interior California that stage of the curing
+is completed by that time. The next day it can be gathered into cocks
+and gotten ready to move. That is about all the curing that is done. The
+size of the windrows depends upon the amount of hay, as thick hay should
+be put up in small windrows to give plenty of circulation of air. It is
+considered better also to build the cocks on raked land, otherwise the
+hay lying flat at the bottom will not cure properly and cannot be
+gathered up clean.
+
+
+
+Which Crop of Alfalfa for Seed?
+
+
+
+Which cutting of alfalfa should be left for seed bearing?
+
+Which cutting is best for seed depends, of course, on the way the plant
+grows in your locality. Where it starts early and gives many cuttings in
+a season with irrigation a later growth should be chosen for seed than
+with a short season where fewer cuttings can be had. The second cutting
+is best in many places, but O. E. Lambert of Modesto after threshing
+about 30 lots in one year tells us that some growers had left second,
+some third and some fourth cuttings for seed. He found the second
+cutting very poor both in yield and grade, much of it not being well
+filled and the seed blighted, as the growth of hay was too heavy. The
+seed on third cutting was good both in grade and yield. Much of the seed
+on fourth cutting was not matured. For good results the stand should be
+thin. Our drier, heavier lands give the best results, sub-irrigated
+lands not seeding. All irrigation should stop with the previous cutting
+for hay.
+
+
+
+Siloing First Crop Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+How about putting first cutting of alfalfa and foxtail into the silo? Do
+you think there is any danger of fire in a wooden silo, and do you add
+salt and water when filling, and how long after it is cut would you
+advise putting it into the silo?
+
+Put it through the silo cutter as soon as you can get it from the field.
+Do not let it cure at all, and be sure to cut and pack well. If at all
+dry, use water at the time of filling, and some salt then also, if you
+desire. There is no danger of firing if you put it in with good
+moisture, and by short cutting and hard packing you exclude the air. If
+you do not do this you will get a silo full of manure, and possibly have
+a fire while it is rotting.
+
+
+
+Soil for Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+What kind of soil is best for alfalfa on a dairy ranch?
+
+An ideal soil for alfalfa is a deep well drained soil into which the
+roots can run deeply without danger of encountering standing water or
+alkali. Still we are finding that alfalfa is very successful on soils
+which are not strictly ideal, providing the moisture is supplied in such
+a way that the soil shall not be waterlogged nor the water be allowed to
+remain upon the surface during the hot weather, because this kills the
+plant.
+
+
+
+Handling Young Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+I have alfalfa that is doing very well for the first year. My soil is
+sandy loam with light traces of white alkali, although it does not seem
+to be detrimental to the growth thus far. I am in the dairy business and
+will have by winter enough manure to top-dress the field. Would it be
+good policy to use the manure, or would it be more satisfactory to
+top-dress with gypsum? Would it injure alfalfa to pasture lightly after
+the last cutting?
+
+Presumably your soil contains enough lime, and therefore the application
+of gypsum at this time of the year would not be necessary. It may be
+desirable to top-dress with gypsum near the end of the rainy season to
+stimulate the growth of the plant. Gypsum, however, has no effect upon
+white alkali. So far as alkali goes, gypsum merely changes black alkali
+into white, thus making it less corrosive.
+
+There would be no objection to pasturing lightly this fall. Be careful,
+however, to keep off the stock while the land is wet and not to
+overstock so as to injure root crowns by tramping. The manure can be
+used as a top dressing during the rainy season, unless you think it
+better to save it for the growth of other crops. Alfalfa is so deep
+rooting where conditions are favorable that it does not require
+fertilization usually on land which has been used for a long time for
+grain or other shallow-rooting plants.
+
+
+
+Alfalfa Sowing with Gypsum.
+
+
+
+I intend sowing alfalfa this fall on land that has some very compact
+hard spots. I aim to doctor these spots with gypsum at the rate of about
+1000 pounds per acre and cultivate the gypsum in thoroughly two or three
+weeks before sowing the alfalfa seed. Would this be all right? Is there
+danger of injury to seed by coming in contact with gypsum?
+
+Gypsum will not hurt the alfalfa seed. It is not corrosive like an
+alkali. Whether it will have time enough to ameliorate the soil in the
+spots in the period you mention depends upon there being moisture enough
+present at the time.
+
+
+
+Red Clover for Shallow Land.
+
+
+
+What can you say of red clover on shallow soils in the Sacramento valley
+under irrigation? How many crops, etc.?
+
+Red clover is fine under the conditions you describe. We could never
+understand why people do not grow more of it on shallow land over
+hardpan which is free from alkali and not irrigated too much at a time.
+It is good on shallow land over water, where alfalfa roots decay, etc.
+Though we have no exact figures, we should expect to get about
+two-thirds as much weight from it as from an equally good stand of
+alfalfa.
+
+
+
+Clovers for High Ground-Water.
+
+
+
+Where, in California, is alfalfa being raised successfully above a
+water-table of, say, 4 feet or less, and are any unusual means used to
+accomplish this?
+
+Over a high water-table, the alfalfa plant will be shorter lived
+according to the shallowness of soil above water. One could get very
+good results at from 4 to 6 feet, whereas at 2 or 3 feet the stand of
+alfalfa would soon become scant through decay of its fleshy root. Where
+the water comes very near the surface, a more shallow and fibrous
+rooting plant, like the Eastern red clover, should be substituted for
+alfalfa in California. It is a very vigorous grower and will yield a
+number of crops in succession although the water might be very near the
+surface, as in the case of the reclaimed islands in the Stockton and
+Sacramento regions and in shallow irrigated soils over bedrock in the
+foothills or over hardpan on the valley plains. In this statement,
+freedom from alkali is presumed.
+
+
+
+Vetches in San joaquin.
+
+
+
+In Michigan I was familiar with the use of the sand vetch as a forage
+plant, for hay, for green manure, and as a nitrogen producer. In western
+Michigan, on the loose sandy soil, I sowed in September or October 20
+pounds per acre for a seed crop and 40 pounds per acre for pasture, hay,
+or green manure. Can I expect good results in Fresno and Tulare counties
+without irrigation? Will fall seeding the same as wheat produce a seed
+crop? Will sand vetch grow on soil having one-half of one per cent
+alkali?
+
+Most of the vetches grow well in the California valleys during the rainy
+season; the common vetch, Vicia sativa, and the hairy vetch, Vicia
+hirsuta, are giving best results. The proper time to plant is at the
+beginning of the rainy season. They will stand some alkali, especially
+during the rainy season, when it is likely to be distributed by the
+downward movement of water, but it is very easy to find land which has
+too much alkali for them. These plants seed well in some parts of the
+valley, but a local trial must be made to give you definite information.
+
+
+
+Growing Vetch for Hay.
+
+
+
+How many pounds of vetch seed should be sown to the acre? How many tons
+per acre in the crop? As I desire to change my crop, having to some
+extent exhausted the soil with oats, how advisable will it be to sow
+wheat with the vetch to give it something to climb on? If so, and wheat
+is not desirable under the circumstances, what? In using vetch for horse
+fodder, how much barley should be fed with it per day for a driving
+horse? For a draught horse? Is vetch sown and harvested at about the
+same time as other crops?
+
+Except in very frosty places, vetch can be sown after the rain begins at
+about 40 to 60 pounds of seed to the acre. The yield will depend upon
+the land and on the moisture supply, and cannot be prophesied. One
+grower reports three tons of hay per acre near Napa. If the land usually
+yields a good hay crop, it should yield a greater weight of vetch. In
+mowing for hay purposes it is desirable to raise the vetch off the
+ground to facilitate the action of the mower. Oats would be better than
+wheat, because rather quicker in winter growth. If the vetch is to be
+fed green, rye is a good grain, but not good for hay purposes because of
+the hardness of the stem. There is no particular difference in the
+plant-food requirements of the different grains, so that there is
+nothing gained in that way in the choice of wheat. In feeding a combined
+vetch and barley hay, the ration is balanced; the feeding of grain would
+not be necessary, except in case of hard work under the same conditions
+grain is usually fed to horses and in about the same amounts. Vetch
+requires a longer season than ordinary oat or barley hay crop to make a
+larger growth, consequently an early sowing is desirable.
+
+
+
+Cover Crop in Hop Yard.
+
+
+
+Will you please give information concerning cow peas or the most
+suitable crop to sow in a hop field for winter growth, to be plowed
+under as a fertilizer in the spring? Also, would it injure the vines to
+be cut down before they die, so as to sow the mulch crop soon as
+possible after the hops are gathered?
+
+Cow peas would not do for the use which you propose, because they would
+be speedily killed by frost on low lands, usually chosen for hops, and
+would give you no growth during the frosty season. Probably there is
+nothing better than burr clover for such a winter growth. Hop vines
+should be allowed to grow as long as they maintain the thrifty green
+color, because the growth of the leaves strengthens the root. But when
+they begin to become weakened and yellow they can be removed without
+injury. It is not necessary to wait for them to become fully dead.
+
+
+
+Growing Cowpeas.
+
+
+
+What is the best variety of cow peas for a forage crap? I want a variety
+which with irrigation will come up after it has been cut, so as to keep
+growing and not be like some which I tried last year. They grew up like
+ordinary garden peas and were just a waste of ground.
+
+Possibly you did not get cowpeas; they do not look like garden peas at
+all: they look more like running beans, which they are. The crop is not
+counted satisfactory except on low, moist land, for on uplands, even
+with irrigation, it does not seem to behave right. We do not know that a
+second growth can be expected, for in the Southern States it is grown as
+a single crop, and resowing is done if a succession is desired, the
+point being made at the South that the plant is adapted to this method
+of culture because it grows so rapidly that it can be twice sown and
+harvested during the frost-free period.
+
+
+
+Cowpeas in the San Joaquin.
+
+
+
+How late in the season will it be profitable to plant cowpeas? What is
+the best manner of planting? Are there several varieties? If so, which
+one is best adapted to plant after oats? The land can be irrigated until
+about August 10. Will it be advisable to plow up a poor stand of alfalfa
+about July 1 and plant to cow peas?
+
+You can plant cowpeas all summer on land which is moist enough by
+natural moisture or irrigation to promote growth. What you will get by
+late planting depends upon moisture and absence of an early fall frost.
+If your alfalfa stand is bad enough to need re-sowing anyway, you may
+get a good catch crop of cowpeas by doing as you propose. If, however,
+you plow under much coarse stuff in putting in the peas the growth may
+be irregular. It can, of course, be improved by free irrigation. On
+clear land moderately retentive much more is being done in summer growth
+of cowpeas without irrigation than expected. There are several good
+varieties. One of these is the Whippoorwill. Cowpeas can be sown in
+furrows three feet apart and cultivated, using about 40 pounds of seed
+to the acre, or they may be broadcasted, which takes about twice as much
+seed.
+
+
+
+Cowpeas and Canadian Peas.
+
+
+
+Would Canadian field peas and cow peas be valuable as a forage crop for
+cows and hogs; also as fertilizer? Please tell us also when to plant,
+how to plant, etc.
+
+These plants are of high forage value as cow feed; also as a soil
+restorative when the whole crop is plowed under green or when the roots
+and manure from feeding add to the soil. But for either purpose the
+result depends upon how much growth you can get, and that should be told
+by local trial before any great outlay is undertaken. Canadian peas are
+hardy against frost and can be broadcasted and covered with shallow
+plowing as soon as the land is moist enough from fall rains - except in
+very frosty parts of the State. They can also be sown in drills to
+advantage. Cow peas are beans, and cannot be planted until frost danger
+is over in the spring. They are only available for summer feeding, and
+whether they will be worth while or not depends upon how much moisture
+can be held in the soil for summer growth. They should be sown in drills
+and cultivation continued for moisture conservation until the plants
+cover the ground too much to get the cultivator through.
+
+
+
+Canadian or Niles Peas.
+
+
+
+I send a sample of peas which I bought for Canada field peas, and they
+were so labeled. I would like to know what they are.
+
+The peas are, apparently, one kind of Canada peas. There is some
+variation in Canada peas, but these are peas of that class. Some of the
+Canada pea are hardly distinguishable from the so-called Niles pea of
+California growth, and it does not matter much, anyway, for one is about
+as good as the other.
+
+
+
+Sunflowers and Soy Beans.
+
+
+
+I would like information concerning cultivation, method of feeding and
+food value of soy beans. Also sunflowers.
+
+Soy beans are grown like other beans, in rows which, for convenience in
+field culture, should be about 2 1/2 feet apart and cultivated up to
+blooming time at least. They should be sown after frost danger is over
+and the weather is settled warm, for they enjoy heat. For feeding they
+can be made into hay before maturity, or the beans can be matured and
+prepared for feeding by grinding. As with other beans, small amounts
+should be used in connection with other feeds. They are a rich food and
+somewhat heavy on the digestion. The same is true of sunflowers, except
+that the seed is richer in oil than in protein, as beans are. Sunflowers
+in field culture are planted and cultivated like beans. The seed is
+flailed out of the heads after they lie for a time to dry.
+
+
+
+Jersey Kale.
+
+
+
+Please inform me how to plant Jersey or cow kale.
+
+Jersey kale can be planted by thin scattering of seeds in rows 2 1/2
+feet apart so as to admit of cultivation, or the plants can be grown
+just as cabbage plants are and set out 2 1/2 or 3 feet apart, the
+squares to admit of  cultivation both ways. The plant needs a good deal
+more space than an ordinary cabbage, for it makes a tall free growth,
+and space must be had for the growth of the plant and for going into the
+patch for stripping off leaves and cultivation. The plant can be started
+in the rainy season whenever the land comes into good condition. It is a
+winter grower in California valleys.
+
+
+
+Rape and Milo.
+
+
+
+Would rape be a good pasture crop sown broadcast? If so, at what time
+should it be planted? Will Milo maize grow profitable in Sonoma county?
+
+Rape can be sown as soon as the land gets moist enough from early rains
+to start the seed and hold the growth. It is a wintergrowing plant in
+this State. We believe, however, you will get better results with common
+vetch, which is also a winter grower and more nutritious. If you desire
+one of the cabbage family, kale will probably serve you better than
+rape. Milo is one of the sorghums and will only grow during the
+frostless period, like Kafir, Egyptian corn and other sorghums. It will
+do well with you, but probably make less growth than in the interior
+valleys.
+
+
+
+Sweet Clover Not an Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+I send you a sample of alfalfa which grows very vigorous here on my
+place spontaneously and would like you to give me all the information
+about it you will, as a feed for cows and hogs. The stock seem to eat it
+well.
+
+The plant is not alfalfa at all. It is white sweet clover (melilotus
+alba), and it is usually considered a great pest in alfalfa fields,
+because although it grows vigorously as you describe, it is not
+generally accepted by stock, unless once in awhile some one considers it
+a good thing, perhaps because he keeps stock hungry enough to enjoy it
+in spite of its rank taste and smell, but, usually when they can get
+alfalfa they will not pay much attention to this plant. It is good for
+bee pasturage, however, and is grown to some extent for that purpose.
+You probably had the seed of it in your alfalfa seed. It is a biennial
+and not a perennial like alfalfa. It will disappear if you can keep it
+from going to seed.
+
+
+
+Sweet Clover as a Cover Crop.
+
+
+
+How about melilotus as a cover crop? Last year in certain sections it
+proved very successful, while in others it did not give satisfaction.
+
+Melilotus, by virtue of its hardiness in growing at low temperatures,
+its depth of root penetration, the availability of the seed, the
+smallness of the seed so that the weight required for the acre is not
+large, is to be favored for a cover crop. The objections are two: The
+fact that it does not seem to grow well under some conditions; second,
+that when a growth is made it is coarse and rangey, and the amount of
+green stuff to the acre is much less than its appearance would indicate.
+We know of cases where what seemed to be a good stand of melilotus
+yielded only about ten tons of green stuff to the acre, and what
+appeared to be a less growth of vetches or peas yielded from fifteen to
+twenty tons to the acre. And yet we believe that in some places it will
+be found extremely desirable for a cover crop in harmony with what was
+reported some time ago as the result of experiments by the Arizona
+Experiment Station.
+
+
+
+Spineless Cactus.
+
+
+
+There seems to be two distinct kinds of cactus: One for forage, the
+other for fruit. It is claimed by some people that the spineless cactus
+is more valuable as a forage plant than alfalfa. What is your opinion?
+
+There are many varieties of smooth cacti. Some of them bear higher
+quality fruit than others, and some are freer growers and bear a greater
+amount of leaf substance for forage purposes; therefore, varieties are
+being developed which are superior for fruit or for forage, as the case
+may be. Spineless cactus is in no way comparable with alfalfa, either in
+nutritive content or in value of crop, providing you have land and water
+which will produce a good product of alfalfa. Cactus is for lands which
+are in an entirely different class and which are not capable of alfalfa
+production.
+
+
+
+Probably Not Broom-Corn.
+
+
+
+I have a side-hill ranch on which I would very much like to raise broom
+corn. The soil produces good grapes, fruit, corn, oats, peas, etc., and
+I wish to know if there are possibilities of broom-straw.
+
+All the broom-corn which has been successfully produced in California
+has been produced on moist, riverside land. The plant is a sorghum -
+consequently subject to frost injury, and can only be grown during the
+frostless season as Indian corn is. This makes it impossible to get the
+advantage of rainfall on winter upland and necessitates the use of
+lowlands, which carry moisture enough to secure a free growth of the
+brush, for poor broom-corn is worthless practically, being too low
+priced to be profitable for brooms and too fibrous to be of value for
+feeding purposes. Even in a place where the plant grows well its product
+is worthless unless properly treated, and that requires full knowledge
+and a good deal of work.
+
+
+
+The Outlook for Broom Corn.
+
+
+
+Broom corn is way up in price, but that is an indication that everyone
+who has ever grown broom corn is likely to plant it this year. What is
+the outlook in California?
+
+Nothing but a local experiment will determine whether you can get a
+satisfactory brush under the conditions prevailing in your vicinity.
+Undoubtedly, the high price of broom corn will stimulate production, but
+under quite sharp limitations in California, because a good,
+satisfactory brush cannot be grown on dry plains, although a good
+product is made in the river bottoms not far away. But there are so few
+people in California who understand how to handle broom corn to produce
+a good commercial article, and there are such rigid requirements in the
+size, quality, etc., that those who break into the business without
+proper knowledge cannot command even profitable prices. Therefore, if
+your enterprise is conducted with a full knowledge and with proper local
+conditions it would not encounter such a local disadvantage in the great
+increase of the product as one might think at first.
+
+
+
+Smutty Sorghum.
+
+
+
+The various plantings of Egyptian corn on the ranch have turned smutty,
+very much after the manner of wheat and barley. Is there any unusual
+reason for this, or could irrigation have caused it, and what is the
+best method of preventing it?
+
+Sorghum is affected by a smut similar to that of other grains. It is due
+to the introduction of the germ of the disease which comes with the use
+of smutty seed. Possibly the growth of the smut may have been promoted
+by moisture arising from soil rendered very wet by irrigation, and for
+this plant free irrigation should not be used, because it will do more
+with less water than any other plant we are growing, and is likely to be
+more thrifty in a drier atmosphere. Get seed for next year from an
+absolutely clean field; get as much growth as you can without
+irrigation, and then use water in moderate quantities as may be
+necessary, followed by a cultivation for the drying of the surface.
+
+
+
+Late-sown Sorghum.
+
+
+
+How late can Egyptian corn be planted on good sediment soil capable of
+growing 40 to 50 socks of barley per acre in good years with ordinary
+rain? The field was cut this year for hay on account of rank growth of
+wild oats, after irrigating; land is still moist. Can I put in Egyptian
+corn with on assurance of crop, or is it too late? How much seed should
+be planted to the acre, also should seed be drilled in or broad-casted?
+
+There is no difficulty in getting a start of Egyptian corn during the
+dry season providing the soil contains moisture enough to germinate the
+seed. Afterward the growth will be more or less according to the
+moisture present and will be available for forage purposes. Whether a
+seed crop can be had by late sowing depends upon the frost occurrence in
+the particular locality, for it only takes a light frost to destroy the
+plant. To get the best results, particularly with late sowing, the seeds
+should be drilled in rows far enough apart for horse cultivation; about
+forty pounds of seed to the acre. What you get in this way will depend
+upon the amount of moisture in the soil and the duration of the
+frost-freedom.
+
+
+
+Kaffir and Egyptian Corn.
+
+
+
+Does Kaffir corn yield as well here as Egyptian corn? The fodder is good
+feed and the heads stand erect and at a more even height from the
+ground, which makes three advantages over Egyptian. Irrigation in either
+case is the some.
+
+The reasons you mention have no doubt had much to do with the present
+popularity of an upright plant like Kafir over a gooseneck like the old
+dhoura or Egyptian, which was the type first introduced in California.
+For years there has been more gooseneck sorghum in the Sacramento valley
+than in any other part of the State. It may have superior local
+adaptions or the people may be more conservative. The way to determine
+which is better is to try it out, and, unless the Egyptian does better
+in grain and forage than the upright growers, take to the grain which
+holds its head up.
+
+
+
+Sorghums for Seed.
+
+
+
+Which sorghum is the most profitable to plant for the seed only White
+Egyptian, Brawn Egyptian or Yellow Mila?
+
+Which sorghum is best is apparently a local question and governed by
+local conditions to a certain extent. Egyptian corn (with the goose-neck
+stem) has held more popularity in your part of the Sacramento than
+elsewhere, while Kaffir corn (holding its head upright, as do many other
+sorghums) has been for years very popular in the San Joaquin. In the
+Imperial valley Dwarf Milo is chiefly grown for a seed crop shattering
+and bird invasion are very important. G. W. Dairs of the San Joaquin
+valley, says there is a very great difference in the different varieties
+regarding waste from the blackbird. The ordinary white Egyptian corn is
+very easily shelled, and the birds waste many times more of the grain
+than they eat, after it has become thoroughly ripe. The Milo maize, or
+red Egyptian corn, does not shell nearly so easily as the white corn,
+and the grain is considerably harder and less attractive to the
+blackbirds. In fact, blackbirds will not work in a field of this variety
+of corn if there is any white corn in the vicinity to be had. The dwarf
+Milo maize yields much more crop than the white Egyptian corn, or any
+other variety. Blackbirds do not damage the white Kaffir corn to the
+extent they do the ordinary white Egyptian corn.
+
+
+
+Sorghum Planting.
+
+
+
+What is the best time to sow Egyptian corn; also how much per acre to
+sow?
+
+All the sorghums, of which Egyptian corn is one, must be sown after
+frost danger is over - the time widely known as suitable for Indian
+corn, squashes and other tender plants. Sow thinly in shallow furrows or
+"marks," 3 1/2 or 4 feet apart and cultivate as long as you can easily
+get through the rows with a horse. About 8 pounds of seed is used per
+acre. If grown for green fodder, sow more thickly and make the rows
+closer, say 2 1/2 feet apart.
+
+
+
+Buckwheat Growing.
+
+
+
+Two or three farmers in this locality desire to plant buckwheat. Not
+having done so heretofore they are in doubt as to the soil and other
+conditions that go to make a successful crop.
+
+The growing of buckwheat in California is an exceedingly small affair.
+The local market is very limited, as most California hot cakes are made
+of wheat flour. There is no chance for outward shipment, and the crop
+itself, being capable of growing only during the frostless season, has
+to be planted on moist lands where there is not only abundant summer
+moisture but an air somewhat humid. Irrigated uplands, even in the
+frostless season, are hardly suitable for the common buckwheat, although
+they may give the growth of Japanese buckwheat for beekeepers who use
+dark honey for bee feeding. The Japanese buckwheat is well suited for
+this because it keeps blooming and produces a scattered crop of seed,
+but this characteristic makes it less suitable for a grain crop, and it
+has therefore never become very popular in this State. We consider
+buckwheat as not worthy of much consideration by California farmers.
+
+
+
+Variation in Russian Sunflowers.
+
+
+
+In an acre of mammoth Russian sunflowers there seems to be three
+varieties, some of the plants bear but one large flower; others bear a
+flower at the top with many other smaller ones circling it, while others
+have long stalks just above the leaf stems from the ground level all the
+way up to the largest flower, which appears at the very top. Are all
+these varieties true mammoth Russian sunflowers? What explanation is
+there for these variations? Will the seed from the variety carrying but
+one natural head produce seed that will reproduce true to the parent?
+
+Your sunflowers are probably only playing the pranks their grandfathers
+enjoyed. If seed is gathered indiscriminately from all the heads which
+appear in the crop, succeeding generations will keep reverting until
+they return to the wild type, or something near it. If there is a clear
+idea of what is the best type (one great head or several heads, placed
+in a certain way) and seed is continually taken from such plants only
+for planting, more and more plants will be of this kind until the type
+becomes fixed and reversions will only rarely appear. No seed should be
+kept for planting without selecting it from what you consider the best
+type of plant; no field should be grown for commercial seed without
+rogue-ing out the plants which show reversions or bad variations. If you
+find sunflowers profitable as a crop in your locality, rigid selection
+of seed should be practiced by all growers, after careful comparison of
+views and a decision as to the best characters to select for.
+
+
+
+Sacaline.
+
+
+
+My attention has been brought to a plant called Sacaline by an Eastern
+plant dealer. He states that this plant will grow in any kind of soil
+and needs practically no water.
+
+The plant Sacaline (Polygonum saghalience) was introduced to California
+as a dry-land forage plant about 1893, and has never demonstrated any
+particular forage value. It is a browsing shrub, making woody stem, and
+cattle will eat it readily when not provided with better food. It has
+possible value on waste land, but probably is in no sense superior to
+the native shrubs of California which serve that purpose. It is a
+handsome ornamental plant for gardens or parks.
+
+
+
+Mossy Lawns.
+
+
+
+What will destroy patches of moss which are spreading over our lawns and
+apparently destroying the grass?
+
+More sunlight would have a tendency to discourage the growth of moss on
+a lawn. If this is not feasible, irrigation less frequently but a more
+thorough soaking each time will give the surface a better chance to dry
+off, and moss will not grow on a dry surface. The frequent spraying of a
+lawn with just enough water to keep the surface moist and not enough
+water to penetrate deeply will tend to the growing of moss and to less
+vigor in the growth of the grass, A good soaking of the soil once a week
+is better than daily sprinkling, but, of course, very much more water
+must be used when you only sprinkle at long intervals. The drying of the
+surface may be assisted by sprinkling with air-slaked lime and this will
+discourage the growth of moss, but of course lime must not be used in
+excess or it will also injure the grass.
+
+
+
+Scattering Grass Seeds.
+
+
+
+We live on the west side of Sonoma valley, and want to seed some of our
+fields with a good wild grass. We want to carry bags of it in our
+pockets to scatter when we ride. Timothy we should like, but this is not
+its habitat, is it? Can you suggest a grass or grasses that would do
+well here?
+
+There are really wild grasses worthy of multiplication, but no one makes
+a business of collecting the seed for sale, so that such seeds are not
+available for such purpose as you describe. Of the introduced grasses,
+those which are most likely to catch from early scattered seed are
+Australian and Italian rye grasses, orchard grass, wild oat grass and
+red top. You can get seed of all these from dealers in any quantity
+which you desire at from 15 to 30 cents a pound, according to the
+variety, and make a mixture of equal parts of each grass, which you can
+carry and scatter as you propose. Some of them will catch somewhere,
+particularly in spots where the shade modifies the summer heat and where
+seepage moisture reduces soil drought. You are right about timothy; it
+is good farther up the coast and in the mountain valleys, but not in
+your district.
+
+
+
+Poultry Forage.
+
+
+
+I have light sandy loam on which I desire to grow forage for chickens.
+It lies too high for irrigation.
+
+You could probably grow alfalfa to advantage if the soil still deep and
+loose, getting less, of course, than by irrigation, but still an amount
+that would be very helpful in your chicken business. Otherwise, as the
+land lies higher and perhaps out of sharp frosts, you could grow winter
+crops of vetches and peas and thus improve the land while furnishing you
+additional poultry pasture. The latter purpose could also be served by
+growing beets, cabbage or other hardy vegetables during the rainy
+season. This is prescribed because of the apprehension that the soil may
+not contain moisture enough for summer cropping without irrigation.
+
+
+
+No Grain Elevators in California.
+
+
+
+Is California wheat shipped in bulk or in bags at the present time?
+
+There are no elevators in this State, owing to the fact that hitherto
+grain cargoes have been acceptable to ship only as sacked grain, because
+of claimed danger of shifting cargo and disaster during the long voyage
+around the Horn. A novel by Frank Norris, entitled the "Octopus,"
+describes a man being killed by smothering in a grain elevator at Port
+Costa, but there never was an elevator at that point, and consequently
+there never was a man killed by getting under the spout thereof.
+Answering specifically your question, California grain is shipped in
+bags and not in bulk. It is handled in sacks from the separator to
+roadside or riverside storage, to the loading point into the ships and
+out of the ships on the other side - still in bags.
+
+
+
+New Zealand Flax.
+
+
+
+Give information about Phormiun tenax (New Zealand flax), which I see is
+imported to San Francisco in large quantities yearly for making cordage
+and binder twine, and is said also to be the best of bee pasture. Can I
+get the plants on the coast, and is California soil and climate adapted
+to the culture?
+
+New Zealand flax grows admirably in the coast region of California. You
+will find it in nearly all the public parks and in private gardens, for
+it is a very ornamental perennial. Plants can be had in any quantity
+from the California nurserymen and florists. It produces plenty of
+leaves, but we should doubt whether it is floriferous enough for bee
+pasturage except where it occurs wild over a large acreage. You could
+get vastly more honey from other plants grown for that purpose.
+
+
+
+No Home-made Beet Sugar.
+
+
+
+Is there any simple process of making sugar from beets so that I could
+make my own sugar at home from my own beets while sugar is so very
+expensive to buy?
+
+There is no simple way of making beet sugar. It can only be economically
+done in factories costing hundreds of thousands of dollars.
+
+
+
+Don't Get Crazy About Special Crops.
+
+
+
+I want information about flax as a crop. I have been having some land
+graded for alfalfa and I have had to wait so long I am now doubting the
+advisability of seeding it all under these conditions until fall, as hot
+weather will soon come. I want some good crop to plant in the checks and
+give two good irrigations. What would you think about rye for straw for
+horse collars? I do not wish to consider corn, as the stalks would be
+troublesome. Potatoes would necessitate disarranging the land too much
+and would require more attention than I am in shape to give just flow.
+Everybody grows wheat, barley and oats. I want something that I can get
+a special market for.
+
+To succeed with flax, the seed ought to be sown in the fall, or early
+winter, in California, and the plant will make satisfactory growth under
+about the same conditions that suit barley or wheat. Spring sowing would
+not give you anything worth while except on moist bottom land. Rye is
+also a winter-growing grain. To grow rye straw for horse collars would
+be unprofitable unless you could find some local saddler who could use a
+little, and it is probable you could not get a summer growth of rye
+which would give good straw, even if you had a market for it. You could
+get a growth of stock beets, field squashes, or pumpkins for stock
+feeding. In fact, the latter would give you most satisfaction if you
+have stock to which they can be fed to advantage. Sorghum is our chief
+dry-season crop, but that makes stalks like corn and would, therefore,
+be open to the same objections. Has it never occurred to you that people
+grow the common crops, not because they are stupid, but because those
+are the things for which there is a constant demand and the best chance
+for profitable sale? Efforts to supply special markets are worth
+thinking of, but seldom worth making unless you know just who is going
+to buy the product and at what price.
+
+
+
+California Insect Powder.
+
+
+
+What part of the plant is used in making insect powder and how is it
+prepared? Is the plant a perennial? What soil suits it best?
+
+The plant is Pyrethrum cinerariaefolium and has a white blossom
+resembling the common marguerite. The powder is made of the petals and
+the seed capsules or heads are thoroughly dried in the sun and ground
+with a run of stone such as was formerly used for making flour. The
+powder must be finely ground, and only good powder can be made in a mill
+suitably equipped for that purpose. The plant is a perennial, beginning
+to bloom the second year from seed. It will grow in any good soil with
+ordinary cultivation. Twenty-five years ago it was thought that a great
+California industry might be established on that basis, but there is at
+the present time but one establishment, which grows about all the
+material it can use on its own ranch in Merced county, on a fine, deep
+loam which the plant seems to enjoy.
+
+
+
+Rotations for California.
+
+
+
+I wish to work out a practical system of crop rotation suitable to the
+climate and conditions obtaining in southern California. Would you
+recommend different systems for grain lands and irrigated lands?
+
+General schemes of rotation are hard to work out in California. They
+must be locally revised according to the local temperature conditions
+and the local market also. We should endeavor to find out what has been
+successfully grown on similar lands to those which you have in mind and
+arrange the rotation on that basis, from what we knew of the relation of
+the different plants to soil fertility, etc. You cannot make out a
+satisfactory local scheme for the seven counties in southern California,
+because of the widely different behavior of the separate plants in the
+different parts of the district. You can hardly work on the basis of
+soil character: moisture supply and temperatures are more determinative.
+Surely you should make a scheme for irrigated land different from that
+for dry land, and it could not only be a longer rotation, but many more
+plants would be available for its service.
+
+
+
+Berseem?
+
+
+
+Berseem has been introduced into this country from Egypt, and would like
+to know if it has been used in California, and if it has came up to
+expectations.
+
+Berseem is an annual clover supposed to grow only during the summer
+time. It has been tried widely in California, but practically abandoned
+because it will not grow during the rainy season. It is in no way
+comparable to alfalfa, which is a deep rooted perennial plant, nor would
+it be comparable with burr clover as a winter grower on lands which have
+a moderate amount of water.
+
+
+
+Heating and Fermentation.
+
+
+
+Please explain why dampness will cause anything like hay, Egyptian corn
+or other like products to heat.
+
+Heating is due to fermentation, which means the action upon the
+vegetable substance of germs which begin to grow and multiply after
+their kind whenever conditions favor them. The earlier stages of this
+action is called "sweating," and it is beneficial as in the case of hay,
+tobacco, dried fruits, etc., as is commonly recognized - resulting in
+what is known as curing - and it is the art of the handler of such
+products not to allow the action to go beyond what may be called the
+normal "sweating." If not checked by proper handling, which involves
+drying, cooling, etc., fermentation will continue, and other germs will
+find conditions suitable for them to take up their work of destruction,
+and this new action produces higher temperature still, and if not
+checked by cooling or drying or otherwise making the substance
+inhospitable to them, "heating" will result, and thence onward rapidly
+to decay, if they have everything their own way.
+
+
+
+Moonshine Farming.
+
+
+
+What influence, if any, has the moon on plant growth? Are there any
+reliable data of experiments available?
+
+Very prolonged investigation by the Weather Bureau determined that no
+difference was found in planting in different phases of the moon. If we
+paid any attention to it, we should plant in the dark of the moon, so as
+to get the plants up so that they could use the little more light which
+the moon gives. It is, however, more important to have the soil right
+than the moon.
+
+
+
+Part IV. Soils, Fertilizers and Irrigation
+
+
+
+What is Intensive Cultivation?
+
+
+
+From whom can I receive instruction or information regarding intensive
+cultivation?
+
+Intensive cultivation has, so far as we know, not been made the subject
+of any treatise or publication. Intensive cultivation means the use of a
+maximum amount of labor, fertilizers and water for products of high
+market value. There is no better example of intensive cultivation in the
+world than is afforded by the practice of the best market gardeners and
+producers of small fruit. Next to them, on larger areas, would be the
+policies and methods of the fruit growers of California. Intensive
+culture, then, is not a particular method or system, but consists in
+doing the best thing for maximum production of any product which is
+valuable enough to spend the large outlay which is required. Just how
+this cultivation should be done depends upon the nature of the product
+and the conditions of soil and climate in whatever locality intensive
+cultivation may be undertaken.
+
+
+
+Can a Man Farm?
+
+
+
+Is it possible for a man with a few acres well cared for and carefully
+tilled to make a living and pay out on a purchase of land at $123 per
+acre? Could a good carpenter make wages and take care of a small tract
+for a year or so until well under way?
+
+We consider $125 per acre for good land with a good water right a fair
+price. Financing a farming operation depends more upon the man than upon
+the good land. There are men who would, by intensive cultivation of
+salable stuff and right use of water, pay off the full value of the land
+from its produce in a couple of years. Others will never pay off. Of
+course, the nearer you can come to paying for the land at the beginning,
+and the more money you have for improvements, the more satisfactory your
+situation should be in every respect. There is a good chance for
+carpenter work in colony development, and considerable self-help could
+be secured in that way. You do not say whether you know anything about
+farming. Farming is a very complicated business and a basic knowledge
+derived from experience is a proper foundation to build upon in the
+light of the fuller application of scientific principles.
+
+
+
+Soil Depth for Citrus Trees.
+
+
+
+I have a top soil of rich loam containing small rocks and pebbles.
+Underneath it is washed gravel, rocks, boulders, yellow sand, etc. What
+is the limit as to thinness before trees will not grow, or thrive?
+
+Orange trees are growing quite successfully on shallow soil overlying
+clay where the use of water and fertilizers was carefully adjusted so as
+to keep the trees supplied with just the right amount. Under such
+conditions a good growth may be expected so long as this treatment is
+maintained. There should be, however, not less than three feet of good
+soil to make the large expenditure necessary to establish an orange
+orchard permanently productive, and all the depth you can get beyond
+three feet is desirable. We question the desirability of planting orange
+trees even on a good soil overlying gravel, rocks or sand. Roots will
+penetrate such material only a short distance usually. It is almost
+impossible with such a leachy foundation to keep the surface soil
+properly moistened and enriched; You are apt to lose both water and
+fertilizer into the too rapid drainage.
+
+
+
+Soils and Oranges.
+
+
+
+I find this entire district underlaid with hardpan at various depths,
+from 1 to 6 feet down, and of various thicknesses. This hardpan is more
+or less porous and seeps up water to some extent, but is too hard for
+roots to penetrate. It is represented to me that if this hard pan is
+down from 4 to 5 feet it does not interfere with the growth of the
+orange tree or its producing. Is 4 or 5 feet of the loam enough?
+
+Four or five feet of good soil over a hardpan, which was somewhat
+porous, is likely to be satisfactory for orange planting. There has been
+trouble from hardpan too near the surface and from the occurrence of a
+hardpan too rich in lime, which has resulted in yellow leaf and other
+manifestations of unthrift in the tree. Discussion of this subject is
+given on page 434 of the fifth edition of our book on "California
+Fruits," where we especially commend a good depth of "strong, free
+loam." This does not mean necessarily deep. The orange likes rather a
+heavier soil, while a deep sandy loam is preferred by some other fruits.
+If you keep the moisture supply regular and right and feed the plant
+with fertilizers, as may be required, the soil you mention is of
+sufficient depth - if it is otherwise satisfactory.
+
+
+
+Oranges Over High Ground Water.
+
+
+
+Does California experience show that citrus trees can be grown upon land
+successfully where the water-level is 6 feet from the surface; that is,
+where water is found at that level at all seasons and does not appear to
+rise higher during the rainy season?
+
+We do not know of citrus trees in California with ground-water
+permanently at six feet below the surface. If the soil should be a free
+loam and the capillarity therefore somewhat reduced, orange trees would
+probably be permanently productive. If the soil were very heavy,
+capillary rise might be too energetic and saturate the soil for some
+distance above the water-level. In a free soil without this danger the
+roots could approach the water as they find it desirable and be
+permanently supplied. Orange trees are largely dependent upon a shallow
+root system, the chief roots generally occupying the first four feet
+below the surface. From this fact we conclude that deep rooting is not
+necessary to the orange, although unquestionably deep rooting and deep
+penetration for water are desirable as allowing the tree to draw upon a
+much greater soil mass and therefore be less dependent upon frequent
+irrigations and fertilizations.
+
+
+
+Depth of Ground-Water.
+
+
+
+Is there probable harm from water standing 12 feet from the surface in
+an orchard? Also probable age of trees before any effect of said water
+would be felt by them? The soil is almost entirely chocolate dry bog. -
+W. E. Wahtoke.
+
+Water at twelve feet from the surface is desirable, and water at that
+point will be indefinitely desirable for the growing of fruit trees. Of
+course, conditions would change rapidly as standing water might approach
+more nearly to the surface, a condition which has to be carefully
+guarded against in irrigation. But it can come nearer than twelve feet
+without danger.
+
+
+
+Summer Fallow and Summer Cropping.
+
+
+
+I own some hill land which has been run down by continuous hay cropping.
+I am told that a portion must be summer-fallowed each year, but I wish
+to grow some summer crop on this fallow ground that will both enrich the
+soil and at the same time furnish good milk-producing feed for cows -
+thoroughly cultivating it between the rows. What crop would be best? I
+am told the common Kaffir or Egyptian corn are both soil enriching and
+milk producing.
+
+If you grow a summer crop on the summer-fallowed upland, you lose the
+chief advantage of summer fallowing, which is the storing of moisture
+for the following year's crop. A cultivated crop would waste less
+moisture than a broadcast crop, surely, but on uplands without
+irrigation it would take out all the moisture available and not act in
+the line of a summer fallow.
+
+Kaffir corn is not soil enriching. It has no such character. It probably
+depletes the soil just as much as an ordinary corn or hay crop. It is a
+good food to continue a milking period into the dry season, but you must
+be careful not to allow your cattle to get too much green sorghum, for
+it sometimes produces fatal results. We do not know anything which you
+can grow during the summer without irrigation which would contribute to
+the fertility of your land. If you had water and could grow clover or
+some legume during the summer season, the desired effect on the soil
+would be secured.
+
+
+
+Soils and Crop Changes.
+
+
+
+Peas and sweet peas do not grow well continuously in the same ground. I
+know this practically in my experience, but in no book have I ever found
+why they do not grow.
+
+There are two very good reasons why some classes of plants cannot be
+well grown continuously in the same piece of ground. One is the
+depletion of available plant food, the other the formation of injurious
+compounds by the plants, or the gradual increase of fungoid, bacterial
+or animate pests in the soil, which finally become abundant enough to
+seriously hinder growth. Different plants take the plant foods, as
+nitrogen, lime, potash, phosphates, etc., in different proportion. More
+important, perhaps, is the fact that the root acids that extract these
+foods are of different types and strength. Thus before many seasons it
+may happen that most of the plant food of one or more kinds may be
+nearly exhausted as far as that kind of plant is concerned that has
+grown there continually, while there would be plenty of easily available
+food for plants with a different kind of root system and different root
+acids, etc. This is one reason why rotation of crops is so good; it
+gives a combination of root acids and root systems to the soil during a
+term of years, and it also frees the soil from one certain kind of
+organism because it cannot survive the absence of the particular plants
+on which it thrives.
+
+
+
+Summer-Fallow Before Fruit Planting.
+
+
+
+I recently bought a ranch at Sheridan, Placer county, and was intending
+to put 10 acres to peaches and 50 acres to wheat or barley, but the
+residents tell me that the land must be summer-fallowed before I can do
+anything. The soil is a red loam and has not been plowed for six years.
+
+Your local advisers are probably right as to the necessity for
+summer-fallowing in order to conserve moisture from a previous year's
+rainfall and to get the land otherwise into good condition. There might
+be such a generous rainfall that an excellent crop might come without
+summer-fallowing, and the results will depend upon the rainfall. If it
+should be small in amount, you might not recover your seed. By the same
+sign you might not get much growth on your fruit trees, but you could
+help them by constant cultivation and by using the water-wagon if the
+season should be very dry. Therefore, you are likely to do better with
+trees than with grain without summer-fallowing, although even for trees
+it is a decided advantage to have more moisture stored in the subsoil
+and the surface soil pulverized by more tillage.
+
+
+
+Defects in Soil Moisture.
+
+
+
+I have apricot trees that appear to be almost dead; all but a very few
+small green leaves are gone, and they look bad, still I think they might
+be saved if I only knew what to do.
+
+Presumably your apricot tree is suffering from too much standing water
+during the dormant season, or from a lack of water during the dry
+season. The remedy would be to correct moisture conditions, either by
+underdrainage for winter excess or by irrigation for summer deficiency.
+When a tree gets into a position such as you describe, it should be cut
+back freely and irrigation supplied, if the soil is dry, in the house
+that the roots may be able to restore themselves and promote a new
+growth in the top.
+
+
+
+Dry Plowing for Soil and Weed Growth.
+
+
+
+Is there any scientific reason to support the belief that it is
+injurious to the soil to dry-plow it for seeding to grain this fall and
+winter? Will dry-plowing now cause a worse growth of filth after the
+rains than the customary fallowing in the spring? Should the stubble be
+burned, or plowed under!
+
+The points against dry-plowing to which you allude may arise from two
+claims or beliefs: first, that turning up land to the sun has a tendency
+to "burn out the humus"; second, that dry-plowing may leave the land so
+rough and cloddy that a small rainfall is currently lost by evaporation
+and leaves less moisture available for a crop than if it is plowed in
+the usual way after the rains. The first claim is probably largely
+fanciful, so far as an upturning in the reduced sunshine of the autumn
+goes. Whatever there may be in it would occur in vastly increased degree
+in a properly worked summer-fallow, and even that is negligible, because
+of the greater advantage which the summer-fallow yields. There may be
+cases in which one will get less growth on dry-plowing than on winter
+plowing, if the land is rough and the rain scant, and yet dry-plowing
+before the rains is a foundation for moisture reception and retention -
+if the land is not only plowed, but is also harrowed or otherwise worked
+down out of its large cloddy condition. When that is done, dry-plowing
+may be a great help toward early sowing and large growth afterward. As
+for weeds, dry-plowing may help their starting, but that is an advantage
+and not otherwise, because they can be destroyed by cultivation before
+sowing. If the land is full of weed seed, the best thing to do is to
+start it and kill it. The trouble with dry-plowing probably arises, not
+from the plowing, but from lack of work enough between the plowing and
+the sowing. Stubble should often be burned: it depends upon the soil and
+the rainfall. On a heavy soil with a good rainfall, plowing-in stubble
+is an addition to the humus of the soil, because conditions favor its
+reduction to that form, and there is moisture enough to accomplish that
+and promote also a satisfactory growth of the new crop.
+
+
+
+Treatment of Dry-Plowed Land.
+
+
+
+We are plowing a piece of light sandy mesa land, dry, which has
+considerable tarweed and other weeds growing before plowing. Which would
+be best, to leave the land as it is until the rains come and then
+harrow, or harrow now? Would the land left without harrowing gather any
+elements from the air before rain comes! The above land is for oat hay
+and beans next season.
+
+Roll down the 'tar-weed, if it is tall and likely to be troublesome, and
+plow in at once so that decay may begin as soon as the land gets
+moisture from the rain. It would be well to allow the land to lie in
+that shape, and disc in the seed without disturbing the weeds which have
+been plowed under. If all this is done early, with plenty of rain coming
+there is likely to be water enough to settle the soil, decay the weeds,
+and grow the hay crop. Of course, such practice could not be commenced
+much later in the season. The land gains practically nothing from the
+atmosphere by lying in its present condition. If there is any
+appreciable gain, it would be larger after breaking up as proposed. In
+dry farming, harrowing or disking should be done immediately after
+plowing, not to produce a fine surface as for a seed bed, but to settle
+the soil enough to prevent too free movement of dry air. If your
+rainfall is ample, the land may be left looser for water-settling.
+
+
+
+For a Refractory Soil.
+
+
+
+What can I do to soil that dries out and crusts over so hard that it
+won't permit vegetable growth? A liberal amount of stable manure has
+been applied, and the land deeply plowed, harrowed and cultivated, but
+as soon as water gets on it, it forms a deep crust on evaporation. Will
+guano help, or is sodium nitrate or potash the thing?
+
+None of the things you mention are of any particular use for the
+specific purpose you describe. Keep on working in stable manure or
+rotten straw, or any other coarse vegetable matter, when the soil is
+moist enough for its decay. Plow under all the weeds you can grow, or
+green barley or rye, and later grow a crop of peas or vetches to plow in
+green. Keep at this till the pesky stuff gets mellow. If you think the
+soil is alkaline, use gypsum freely; if not, dose it with lime to the
+limit of your purse and patience, and put in all the tillage you can
+whenever the soil breaks well.
+
+
+
+More Manure, Water and Cultivation Required.
+
+
+
+I have a small place on a hillside, with brown soil about one to two
+feet deep to hardpan and I am getting rather discouraged, as so many
+things fail to come up and others grow so very slowly after they are up.
+A neighbor planted some dahlia roots the same time I did. Only one of
+mine came up and it is not in bloom yet, while several of his have been
+blooming for some weeks and are ten times as large in mass of foliage as
+mine with its lone stalk and one little bud on the top. Peas came up and
+kept dying at the bottom with blossoms at the top tilt they were four or
+five feet high, but I never could get enough peas for a mess. Can you
+help me get this thing right?
+
+Use of stable manure and water freely. Your trouble probably lies either
+in the lack of plant food or of moisture in the soil. This, of course,
+is supposing that you cultivate well so that the moisture you use shall
+not be evaporated and the ground hardened by the process. During the
+summer a good surface application of stable manure to which water can be
+applied would be better than to work manure into the soil, which should
+be done at the beginning of the rainy season. As your soil is so shallow
+it will be well for you to stand along the side of the plant much of the
+time with a bucket of water in one hand and a shovel of manure in the
+other.
+
+
+
+Planting Trees in Alkali Soil.
+
+
+
+My land contains a considerable quantity of both the black and white
+alkalies, the upper two feet being a rather heavy, sticky clay, the next
+three feet below being fine sand, containing more or less alkali, while
+immediately underneath this sand is a dense black muck in which, summer
+and winter, is found the ground-water. Do you think the following method
+of setting trees would be advantageous. Excavate for each tree a hole
+three feet in diameter and three feet deep. Fill in a layer of three or
+four inches of coarse hay, forming a lining for the excavation. Then
+fill the hole with sandy loam in which the tree is to be set. The sandy
+loam would give the young tree a good start, while the lining of hay
+would break up the capillary attraction between the filled-in sand and
+the ground-water in the surrounding alkali-charged soil.
+
+The fresh soil which you put in would before long be impregnated through
+the surface evaporation of the rising moisture, which your straw lining
+would not long exclude. The trees would not be permanently satisfactory
+under such conditions as you describe, though they might grow well at
+first. It would be interesting, of course, to make a small-scale
+experiment to demonstrate what would actually occur and it would,
+perhaps, give you a chance to sell out to a tenderfoot.
+
+
+
+Planting in Mud.
+
+
+
+Why does ground lose its vitality or its growing qualities when it is
+plowed or stirred when wet, and does this act in all kinds of soil in
+the same way? We are planting a fig and olive orchard at the present
+time, but some were planted when the ground was extremely wet. The holes
+were dug before the rain and after a heavy rain they started to plant.
+After placing the trees in the holes they filled them half full with wet
+dirt, in fact so wet that it was actually slush. What would you advise
+under the circumstances and what can be done to counteract this? We have
+not finished filling in the holes since the planting was done, which was
+about a week ago.
+
+The soil loses its vitality after working when too wet, because it is
+thrown into bad mechanical (or physical) condition and therefore becomes
+difficult of root extension and of movement of moisture and air. How
+easily soil may be thrown into bad mechanical condition depends upon its
+character. A light sandy loam could be plowed and trees planted as you
+describe without serious injury perhaps, while such a treatment of a
+clay would bring a plant into the midst of a soil brick which would
+cause it to spindle and perhaps to fail outright. The best treatment
+would consist in keeping the soil around the roots continually moist,
+yet not too wet. The upper part of the holes should be filled loosely
+and the ground kept from surface compacting. The maintenance of such a
+condition during the coming summer will probably allow the trees to
+overcome the mistake made at their planting, unless the soil should be a
+tough adobe or other soil which has a disposition to act like cement.
+
+
+
+Electro-Agriculture.
+
+
+
+Kindly tell me of any one who is working upon the application of
+electricity to stimulating agricultural growth-especially here on the
+Coast. A friend who has done some work in this line seeks to interest
+me. I have seen notices of this work, and have read of Professor
+Arrhenius stimulating the mental activity of children, etc., but I
+desire more definite information, if possible. Does the idea seem to you
+to be feasible?
+
+So far as we know, there has been no local trial of the effect of
+electric light in stimulating plant growth. Much has been done with it
+in Europe and in this country. There is much about it in European
+scientific literature. It is perfectly rational that increased growth
+should be attained by continuous light in the same way, though in less
+degree than occurs in the extreme north during the period of the
+midnight sun. It is known that moonlight, to the extent of its
+illumination, increases plant growth, and it has been amply demonstrated
+that light is light, just as heat is heat, irrespective of the source
+thereof. Of course, the commercial advantage must be sought in the
+relative amount of increased growth and the selling value of whatever is
+gained in point of time.
+
+
+
+High Hardpan and Low Water.
+
+
+
+What detriment is hardpan if 14 inches below the surface and in some
+places 12 inches? I have been plowing so I could set peach trees, but I
+have been told that they will not grow. I would like your opinion about
+it. I intended to blast holes for the trees, and the water is 30 feet
+from surface. The top soil is red sandy and clay mixed, but it works
+very easily.
+
+You cannot expect much from trees on such a shallow soil
+over hardpan without breaking it up, because the soil mass available to
+the trees is small; also because the shallow surface layer over hardpan
+will soon dry out in spite of the best cultivation, because there is no
+moisture supply from below. If such a soil should be selected for fruit
+trees at all, the breaking through the hardpan by dynamite or otherwise
+is desirable, and irrigation will be, probably, indispensable.
+
+
+
+Depth of Cultivation.
+
+
+
+I would be glad to know whether in cultivating an orchard a light-draft
+harrow could profitably be used, which cultivates three and a half
+inches deep? I have used another cultivator, and try to have it go at
+least seven inches.
+
+A depth of 3 1-2 inches is not satisfactory in orchard cultivation,
+although there may be some condition under which greater depth would be
+difficult to obtain because of root injury to trees, which have been
+encouraged to root near the surface. Both experience and actual
+determinations of moisture in this State show that cultivation to a
+depth of 5 inches conserves twice as much moisture in the lower soil as
+can be saved by a 3-inch depth of cultivation under similar soil
+conditions and water supply. It is all the better to go 7 inches if
+young trees have been treated that way from the beginning.
+
+
+
+Alfalfa Over Hardpan.
+
+
+
+I have land graded for alfalfa and some of the checks are low and water
+will stand on the low checks in the winter. There is on an average from
+two to three feet of soil on top of hardpan and hardpan is about two
+feet thick. Will water drain off the low checks if the hardpan is
+dynamited, and will this land grow alfalfa with profit?
+
+Yes; much of the hardpan in your district is thin enough and underlaid
+by permeable strata so that drainage is readily secured by breaking up
+the hardpan. Standing water on dormant alfalfa is not injurious.
+
+
+
+Trees Over High-Water.
+
+
+
+Which are the best fruit trees to plant on black adobe soil with water
+table between 3 and 4 feet from surface? The soil is very rich and
+productive. The land is leveled for alfalfa also; will the alfalfa
+disturb the growth of trees?
+
+We would not plant such land to fruit at all, except a family orchard.
+The fruits most likely to succeed are pears and pecans. On such land
+alfalfa should not hurt trees unless it is allowed to actually strangle
+them. The alfalfa may help the trees by pumping out some of the surplus
+water.
+
+
+
+Soil Suitable for Fruits.
+
+
+
+I am sending samples of soil in which there are apricots and prunes
+growing, and ask you to examine it with reference to its suitability for
+other fruits. Will lemons thrive in this soil?
+
+It is not necessary to have analysis of the soil. If you find by
+experience that apricot and prune trees are doing well, it is a
+demonstration of its suitability for the orange, so far as soil is
+concerned. The same would also be a demonstration for soil suitability
+for the lemon because the lemon is always grown on orange root. The
+thing to be determined is whether the temperature conditions suit the
+lemon and whether you have an irrigation supply available, because
+citrus fruits, being evergreen, require about fifty per cent more
+moisture than deciduous fruits, and they are not grown successfully
+anywhere in this State without irrigation, except, possibly, on land
+with underflow. The matter to determine then is the surety of suitable
+temperatures and water supply.
+
+
+
+For Blowing Soils.
+
+
+
+I am going to dry-sow rye late this fall. I want some leguminous plant
+to seed with the rye for a wind-break crop, not to plow under. The land
+varies from heavy loam to blow-sand. I have under consideration sweet
+clover, burr clover, vetches. I see occasional stray plants of sweet
+clover (the white-blossomed) growing in the alfalfa on both hard and
+sandy soil. I read in an Eastern bee journal that sweet clover can be
+sowed on hard uncultivated land with success. Could I grow it on the
+hard vacant spots that occur in the alfalfa fields?
+
+You can sow these leguminous plants all along during the earlier part of
+the rainy season (September to December) except that they will not make
+a good start in cold ground which does not seem to bother rye much. But
+on sand you are not likely to get cold, waterlogged soil, so you can put
+in there whenever you like - the earlier the better, however, if you
+have moisture enough in the soil to sustain the growth as well as start
+it. We should sow rye and common vetch. Sweet clover will grow anywhere,
+from a river sandbar to an uncovered upland hardpan, but it will not do
+much if your vacant spots are caused by alkali.
+
+
+
+More Than Dynamite Needed.
+
+
+
+I have some peculiar land. People here call it cement. It does not take
+irrigation water readily, and water will pass over it for a long time
+and not wet down more than an inch or so. When really wet it can be
+dipped up with a spoon. Hardpan is down about 24 to 36 inches. I have
+tried blowing up between the vines with dynamite, and see little
+difference. Can you suggest anything to loosen up the soil?
+
+You could not reasonably expect dynamite to transform the character of
+the surface soil except as its rebelliousness might in some cases be
+wholly due to lack of drainage - in that case blasting the hardpan might
+work wonders. But you have another problem, viz: to change the physical
+condition of the surface soil to prevent the particles from running
+together and cementing. This is to be accomplished by the introduction
+of coarse particles, preferably of a fibrous character. To do this the
+free use of rotten straw or stable manure, deeply worked into the soil,
+and the growth of green crops for plowing under, is a practical
+suggestion. Such treatment would render your soil mellow, and, in
+connection with blasting of the hardpan to prevent accumulation of
+surplus water over it, would accomplish the transformation which you
+desire. The cost and profit of such a course you can figure out for
+yourself.
+
+
+
+Is Dynamite Needed?
+
+
+
+I have an old prune orchard on river bottom lands; soil about 15 or 16
+feet deep. Quite a number of trees have died, I presume from old age. I
+desire to remove them and to replace them with prune trees. I have been
+advised to use dynamite in preparing the soil for the planting of the
+new trees.
+
+Whether you need dynamite or not depends upon the condition of the
+sub-soil. If you are on river flats with an alluvial soil, rather loose
+to a considerable depth, dynamiting is not necessary. If, by digging,
+you encounter hardpan, or clay, dynamiting may be very profitable. This
+matter must be looked into, because the failure of trees on river lands
+is more often due to their planting over gravel streaks, which too
+rapidly draw off water and cause the tree to fail for lack of moisture.
+In such cases dynamite would only aggravate the trouble. Dynamiting
+should be done in the fall and not in the spring. The land should have a
+chance to settle and readjust itself by the action of the winter rains;
+otherwise, your trees may dry out too much next summer.
+
+
+
+Improving Heavy Soils.
+
+
+
+What is adobe? What kind of plants will grow best in adobe? In this
+Redwood City I find clay-like soil which looks very dark and heavy. What
+kind of plants will grow best in this soil?
+
+The term adobe does not mean any particular kind of soil. It is applied
+locally to clay and clay-loam soils indiscriminately. It generally
+signifies the heaviest, stickiest, crackingest soil in the vicinity.
+Most plants will grow well on heavy soils if they are kept from getting
+too dry and too full of water. This is done by using plenty of stable
+manure and other coarse stuff to make the soil more friable, which
+favors aeration, drainage, root extension and plant thrift. Friability
+is also promoted by the use of lime and by good tillage. The particular
+soil to which you refer is a black clay loam which can be improved in
+all the ways stated. It is a good soil for most flowers and vegetables
+if handled as suggested. You can get hints of what does best by studying
+your neighbors' earlier plantings.
+
+
+
+For a Reclaimed Swamp.
+
+
+
+I have land, formerly a pond which dried up in the summer months. It has
+been thoroughly drained now for several years. The land surrounding it
+is good fertile soil and produces good crops. On this piece, however,
+crops come up and look fairly well until about two inches high when they
+turn yellow and die. Mesquite grass and strawberries seem to be the only
+crops that will live, and they do not do at all well. Sorrel grows
+abundantly in the natural state.
+
+Apparently the reclaimed land which you speak of needs liming to
+overcome the acidity in the soil. Common builders' lime applied at the
+rate of 1000 pounds to the acre at the beginning of the rainy season
+ought to make the land much more productive and the soil, at the same
+time, more friable. Deep plowing with aeration will also help the land,
+and this treatment can begin at once if the soil is workable. Other
+additions of lime can be made later as they may be required to make the
+improvement permanent.
+
+
+
+Improving Uncovered Subsoil.
+
+
+
+What is the best treatment for spots that have been scraped in leveling
+for irrigation?
+
+The land can be improved by plowing deeply and turning in stable manure
+or green alfalfa or any other vegetable matter which may decay,
+rendering the soil rich in humus and more friable. Of course, it will
+take some time to accomplish this improvement, and it is necessary that
+there be moisture enough present to cause the material to decay in order
+that the improvement may be secured.
+
+
+
+Sand for Clay Soils.
+
+
+
+Will beach sand do adobe or clay soil any good? It gets hard at times
+and I thought that if I was to put beach sand in the ground the salt in
+the sand would do the ground harm.
+
+It is certainly desirable to mix sand with heavy soil for the purpose of
+making it lighter - that is, better drained and more friable and
+therefore improving it for the growth of plants. Sometimes beach sand
+contains a good deal of salt, which, however, is readily removed by
+fresh water, and sand hauled and exposed to the rains rapidly loses any
+excess of salt it may contain. Probably with such an amount of sand as
+you are likely to use to mix with your adobe, there is no danger at all
+from salt. Even if such sand should contain considerable salt, if
+applied at the beginning of the rainy season it would be so quickly
+distributed as to not constitute a menace to the growth of plants. The
+worst adobe can be transformed into a most beautiful garden soil by the
+application of sand and stable manure.
+
+
+
+Plowing from or Towards.
+
+
+
+Which is the proper way to plow an orchard? First to plow to the trees
+and then to plow from them, or to plow from the trees and then to them,
+and your reasons? I have had many arguments with my neighbor farmers.
+
+There is difference of opinion everywhere as to whether the first
+plowing should be toward or away from the trees. In places where the
+soil is pretty heavy and the rainfall is apt to be quite large, plowing
+toward the trees and opening a dead furrow near the center seems to
+promote rapid distribution of surplus water. If the rainfall is less and
+arrangements for deep penetration are more necessary, the plowing can
+well be away from the trees, so as to direct the water toward the row.
+It is, of course, exceedingly important in this case, that the land
+should be worked back before it has a chance to dry out by exposure and
+this is one of the chief objections to the practice, because one is apt
+to let the land lie away from the trees, hoping for a late rain which
+may not come. Whatever theoretical advantages there may be in either of
+these methods, they can only be secured by the greatest care to avoid
+the dangers which attend them. This uncertainty is the reason why people
+so generally disagree as to which is the best practice, and they are
+right in disagreeing.
+
+
+
+Dry Plowing and Sowing.
+
+
+
+I dry-plowed my grain field to a depth averaging seven inches; it turned
+up very rough. I then disked and harrowed it, but it is still very
+rough. I intended to drill the seed, wait for sufficient rain, and
+harrow to a satisfactory condition, but have been advised to put no
+implement on after the drill, as a harrow would spoil the work done by
+the drill, and a slab or roller would cause the ground to bake. If I
+wait for rain to work the soil before drilling, it will bring the
+seeding too late.
+
+You have probably done a pretty good job of dry work. If the land is
+still too rough for the drill, we should broadcast and harrow again. It
+is not desirable to harrow after the drill, and to roll or rub is likely
+to smooth too much, because the land would bake or crust after the heavy
+rains. This would cause loss of moisture and it is therefore better to
+leave the surface a little rough. You can roll lightly after the grain
+is up, if the surface seems to need closing a little.
+
+
+
+Artesian Water.
+
+
+
+I have a large tract of adobe soil, a black clay top soil. For about
+five months in the year there is not sufficient water on the place. I
+have sunk wells in different parts, but with very poor results, the
+further we went down the drier and harder the soil got. What little
+water we did obtain was unfit for domestic use. Can you give me an idea
+as to what might be the result of an artesian well in such soil?
+
+Artesian water has nothing to do with the soils. It is a deeper
+proposition than that. Artesian water comes from gravel strata overlaid
+with impervious layers of rock or clay in such a way that water in the
+gravel is under pressure because the gravel leads up and away to some
+point where water is poured into it by rain falling or snow melting on
+mountain or high plateau. As the water cannot get out of this gravel
+until you punch a hole in its lid, its effort will be to shoot up to
+something less than the elevation at which it gained entrance to this
+gravel - as soon as your puncture gives it a chance. Geologists who know
+the locality may be able to tell you that you have little or no chance,
+but no one can tell you whether you have a good chance or not until he
+has tested the matter by boring. The quality of the artesian water is
+determined by its distant source and the bad water you have found is
+therefore no indication of the quality of what may be below it. No one
+should enter an artesian undertaking, except to tap a stratum of known
+depth, without a long purse. Probably one in a thousand of the bores
+made into the crust of the earth yields as many gallons of artesian
+water as gallons of various liquids used in boring it - and yet some of
+them are good wells to pump from because they pierce other strata
+carrying water, but not under pressure causing it to rise.
+
+
+
+Treatment of Alkali.
+
+
+
+I am advised that in some cases alkali may be drained and that in others
+it is treated with gypsum.
+
+Gypsum is not a cure for alkali, but simply a means of transforming
+black alkali into white, which is less corrosive and therefore less
+destructive to plants, but there may be easily too much white alkali
+present - so much that the land would be made sterile by it. You cannot
+remove alkali by flooding unless two conditions can be assured: first,
+that the water itself is free from alkali before application to the
+land; second, that you underdrain the land at a depth of from three to
+four feet with tile, so that the fresh water on the surface can flow
+through the soil into the drains, carrying away from the land the
+alkali, which it dissolves in its course. To flood land even with fresh
+water without making arrangements for carrying off the alkali water
+below, is to increase the alkali on the surface as the water evaporates,
+and such treatment does land injury rather than benefit. We cannot give
+you any estimate as to the cost of washing out. It depends altogether
+upon local conditions: whether you use hand work or machinery for the
+ditching, and what your water will cost.
+
+
+
+Alkali, Gypsum and Shade Trees.
+
+
+
+Kindly advise how to apply gypsum, and how much, to heavy, sticky soil,
+the worst sort of adobe and heavily saturated with alkali. We want to
+plant shade trees. Eucalyptus and peppers succeed fairly well after once
+started. Gypsum seems to help, but I don't know how much to use.
+
+The amount of gypsum required to neutralize black alkali depends upon
+how much black alkali there is to be neutralized, and no definite
+amount, therefore, can be prescribed beforehand as sufficient without a
+determination of the amount of alkali. In some experiments gypsum to the
+amount of thirty tons to the acre or more has been used just for the
+purpose of seeing how much the land would take, and a fine growth of
+grain has been secured after using that much gypsum, but that, of
+course, would be out of the question because the outlay would be more
+than the land or the crop would be worth.
+
+In the planting of trees at some distance apart, the tree can be
+protected from destruction and enabled to make a stand in the soil by
+using gypsum on the spot rather than the treatment of the whole surface.
+In this way five or ten pounds of gypsum could be used by mixing with
+the soil to fill a good-sized hole.
+
+
+
+Distribution of Alkali.
+
+
+
+I am told by all the ranchers on the east and south sides of the valley
+that their wells are excellent. But they all say that on the west side -
+they are bringing up alkali. One also said that the water level was
+rising throughout all the valley. Is it safe to depend on this in part,
+or will the alkali spread over all the valley and the foothills?
+
+It is not unusual to find people who predict the rise of alkali almost
+anywhere except on their own premises. No one can exactly tell where
+alkali will go, because no one has complete knowledge of the water
+movement in underlying strata. Wherever the ground water rises on lower
+levels because of irrigation on higher levels there is danger of the
+rising of the alkali, for which the only cure is underdrainage with tile
+so that this rising water is carried to an outflow and not allowed to
+approach within three or four feet of the surface. If you have such an
+outflow and desire to undertake the expense of tiling, you can insure
+yourself against a serious rise of alkali indefinitely. We do not see,
+however, how alkali can rise to the higher lands of the valley. Its
+first effect would be to make lakes or ponds in the lowest parts of the
+valley, and even then the surrounding mesa lands would not be injured.
+
+
+
+Plants Will Tell About Alkali.
+
+
+
+Please give information as to the application of gypsum to my soil which
+is somewhat alkaline. I do not care to have an analysis made of my soil,
+and believe that you can advise me without it.
+
+If your soil is too alkaline for the growth of plants you can
+demonstrate that fact by experiment, or if it is capable of being used
+by the application of gypsum, that also can be determined by experiment
+and noting the behavior of the same plants afterwards. It is rather a
+slow process but it is sure enough.
+
+
+
+Litmus and Alkali.
+
+
+
+Is there any simple soil test for alkali that can be made without a
+chemical analysis?
+
+You can ascertain the presence of alkali by using red litmus paper,
+which will be turned blue by the alkali in the soil, if the soil is
+moist enough. This does not determine the amount of alkali, but the
+quickness of the turning to the blue color and the depth of the color
+are both attained when the alkali is very strong. When there is less
+alkali, the reaction is slower and weaker. This test, however, gives you
+only a rough idea whether the soil is suitable for growing plants. You
+can tell that better by the appearance of the plants which you find. Any
+druggist can furnish the litmus paper, and give you a demonstration of
+how it acts on contact with alkali.
+
+
+
+Using Gypsum for Alkali.
+
+
+
+Is it better, to kill the black alkali in the soil with gypsum, just to
+scatter it over an alkalied spot or to plow the soil first and then use
+the gypsum? I am going to sow alfalfa.
+
+Use the gypsum after plowing, for it will wet down more quickly, and the
+gypsum has to be dissolved to act freely. The best way to cure your spot
+is to run an underdrain into it, if possible, so the rain-water can run
+through the soil freely and take the alkali with it.
+
+
+
+Blasting or Tiling.
+
+
+
+In planting trees where hardpan is four feet from the surface is it
+necessary to blast the hardpan, or is there no benefit derived by the
+blasting?
+
+If there should be a good available soil under a shallow layer of
+hardpan, which you say is four feet from the surface, it might be of
+considerable advantage to bore into the hardpan and explode a dynamite
+cartridge in it. But if your good soil is really only four feet deep and
+hardpan continuous below, the blast might cause fissures which would
+prevent standing water in the upper stratum. If you are sure of four
+feet of good soil above the hardpan you will have no difficulty in
+growing good trees, if you get the moisture just right and the hardpan
+slopes in such a way that surplus moisture will move away. If, however,
+you have hardpan at different depths on the tract, so that it may really
+make basins which will hold water, you are likely to have trouble from
+accumulations of water which will not only prevent the roots extending
+to the full depths of the soil, but will also cause some trees to die.
+Such a danger could be removed by draining the soil to a depth of three
+and a half or four feet with tile, in order to prevent accumulations at
+any point. This would be expensive perhaps, but you would be sure that
+you had rendered your four feet of soil safe and available. If you trust
+to blasting you will have to wait several years for the trees to tell
+you whether you helped them or not.
+
+
+
+Effects of Blasting.
+
+
+
+I have land which is underlaid with hardpan two or three feet deep and
+this in turn is underlaid with sand or sandpan. What I would like
+to know is whether blasting the holes before setting trees would allow
+more moisture coming from this sandpan, or, rather, what effect it would
+have as to moisture.
+
+We do not know. It might make the soil better for the trees by allowing
+escape for surplus water through previous layers. It might allow the
+tree to root more deeply for moisture in those strata. It might allow
+water to rise from such strata if they have water under pressure. It
+might do other things good or bad, according to conditions prevailing
+under the hardpan. If you are to irrigate the land the effects would
+probably be good.
+
+
+
+The Sub-soil Plow.
+
+
+
+I am contemplating using a sub-soil plow for the purpose of breaking
+plow-sole on grain land. This is about 4 1/2 inches below the surface
+and is about 5 inches thick. This soil is comparatively loose and seems
+to be of good quality. Do you think that the sub-soil plow run low
+enough to break this plow-sole will benefit the land?
+
+There can be no question about the benefit of breaking up this tight
+stratum, provided you use a long-tooth harrow or a subsoil packer
+afterward to reduce the land so that it will not be too open to loss of
+moisture by too free circulation of air. The best way to treat such a
+soil would be to use a tractor and plow to a full foot of depth, for
+this, followed by good harrowing, would disintegrate the hard stuff and
+commingle it with the loose surface soil and make it somewhat more
+retentive - doing this when the moisture is just right for
+disintegration and mixing. If you are not ready to go to this expense, a
+subsoiler, following the plow with another team, would put your land in
+better shape for dry farming or for irrigation than it is now. Starting
+late, however, might give you less crop the first year on such deep
+working than by shallow plowing if the year's rainfall should be scant.
+It would, however, be a good start for summer-fallowing and a big crop
+the next year.
+
+
+
+Sour Soil.
+
+
+
+What is "sour" soil? Is that the name by which it is commonly known, and
+what is the treatment for it?
+
+Sour soil is soil in which an acid is developed by plant decay and
+exclusion of air. The proper treatment is the application of lime, and
+aeration by open tillage and underdrainage.
+
+
+
+Old Plaster for Sour Land.
+
+
+
+Can house plaster be used in reclaiming sour ground and how much per
+acre? The ground produces some sour grass - not a great deal. The
+plaster is from an old building that is being torn down.
+
+House plaster is desirable as an application to land which is sour. It
+also adds to the mellowness of land which is hard, because of the sand
+contained in it. It has always been considered a good dressing for
+garden land. So far as the correction of sourness goes, it is much less
+active than fresh lime, but it acts in the same way to a limited extent.
+It is certainly worth using, providing it does not cost too much for
+delivery, and can be freely used if the land is heavy and needs
+friability.
+
+
+
+Application of Manure Ashes.
+
+
+
+Having recently got a lot of manure plentifully supplied with redwood
+shavings that had been used with the bedding, and being afraid to use
+the same in that shape, as it takes such a long time for the wood to
+rot, I reduced the pile to a heap of ashes. How can it be best applied
+to ornamental trees and shrubbery in a light gravelly soil?
+
+You have done unwisely in burning the manure. We would have taken the
+risk of a single use of shavings for the sake of the manurial matter
+associated with them, and this risk of too much lightening of a gravelly
+soil would be especially small in connection with deep rooting plants
+like ornamental trees and shrubbery. You have left merely the skeleton
+of the manure, and much of that of doubtful solubility, if the
+temperature ran very high by burning in a mass. You need not be fearful
+about using these ashes. Scatter or spread them over the ground just as
+you would have spread the manure, let the rains dissolve and carry down
+what they can and go on with your usual methods of cultivation.
+
+
+
+The Best Fertilizer for Sand.
+
+
+
+How can I best fertilize soil that is pure sand?
+
+The best fertilizer for pure sand is well-rotted stable manure,  because
+it not only supplies all kinds of plant food, but increases the humus in
+the soil, which is exceedingly important in making the sand more
+retentive of moisture as well as more productive.
+
+
+
+Fertilizers in Tree Holes.
+
+
+
+Would it be harmful to add 2 or 3 pounds of steamed bone meal to the
+hole of a young tree just before planting?
+
+There would be no injury, providing you mix it with a considerable
+amount of soil by digging over the bottom of the hole, but our
+conviction is that on lands which are good enough for the commercial
+planting of fruit trees, it is not necessary to stimulate a young tree
+in this way, but that it is better to postpone the use of fertilizers
+until the trees come into bearing and show the desirability of more
+liberal feeding. Of course, if young trees do not make satisfactory
+growth, they may be stimulated either with some kind of a fertilizer or
+with a freer use of water, and it is generally the latter that they are
+chiefly in need of.
+
+
+
+Wood Ashes and Tomatoes.
+
+
+
+Is there any harm to vegetable growing to dig sufficient of wood ashes
+in for mellowing heavy soil? My tomato plants grew splendidly this year,
+but the fruits were all rough and wrinkled. I gave them plenty of horse
+and poultry manure at planting and plenty of wood ashes and falling
+leaves of cypress later.
+
+Wood ashes do not mellow a heavy soil. The effect of the potash is to
+overcome the granular structure and increase compactness. Coal ashes,
+because they are coarser in particles and devoid of potash, do promote
+mellowness, and are valuable mechanically on a heavy soil although they
+do not contain appreciable amounts of plant food. You are overfeeding
+your tomato plants, probably. The chances are that you had poor seed.
+There is no best tomato, because you ought to grow early and late kinds:
+there is also some difference in the behavior of varieties in different
+places.
+
+
+
+Was It the Potash or the Water?
+
+
+
+Last year the lye from the prune dipper was turned on the ground near
+two almond trees which seemed to be dying, and to my surprise they have
+taken a new lease of life. Hence my conclusion that potash was good for
+our soil.
+
+Your experience seems to justify the application of potash, surely, but
+the question still remains, how much good the potash did the trees, and
+how much they needed the extra water which the waste dips supplied. It
+would be desirable for you to make another experiment with other trees,
+applying wood ashes, if you have them, or about four pounds per tree of
+the potash which you use for dipping, scattering well and working it
+into the soil after it is moistened by the rains, and not using any more
+water than the trees ordinarily received from rainfall. After this trial
+you will be in a position to know whether your trees need potash or
+irrigation - by comparing with other trees adjacent. Besides are you
+sure that your lye dip was caustic potash and not caustic soda? The
+latter has no fertilizing value.
+
+
+
+Prunings as Fertilizer.
+
+
+
+Is orchard and vineyard brush worth enough as a fertilizer to pay for
+cutting or breaking and putting back on the land?
+
+We should say not. It takes too much labor to put it in any form to
+promote decay, and is even then too indestructible. It is also possible
+that its decay may induce root rot of trees. We should burn the stuff
+and spread the ashes. Vineyard prunings are more promising because more
+easily and quickly reduced by decay. Vinecane-hashers have been proposed
+from time to time, but we do not know anyone who long used them.
+
+
+
+Gypsum on Grain Land.
+
+
+
+Is there any profit in sowing gypsum on grain land, say on wheat or oat
+crop? At what stage should it be applied and in what quantity?
+
+It would have a tendency to make the surface more friable and therefore
+better for moisture retention, and it could be used at the rate of 1000
+pounds to the acre, broadcasted before plowing for grain. As our soils
+are, however, usually well supplied with lime, there is a question
+whether there would be any profit in the use of gypsum, for, aside from
+lime, it contains no plant food, although it does act rather
+energetically upon other coil contents. Gypsum is a tonic and not a
+fertilizer from that point of view. The best way to satisfy yourself of
+its effect would be to try a small area, marked so as you could note its
+behavior as compared with the rest of the field.
+
+
+
+Gypsum and Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+What is gypsum composed of? Is it detrimental to land in future years?
+Have the lands of California any black alkali in them? I notice my
+neighbors who sow gypsum on their alfalfa get a very much better yield
+of hay than those who do not.
+
+Gypsum is sulphate of lime. It is not detrimental to the land in after
+years except that its action is to render immediately available other
+plant foods and this may render the land poorer - not by the addition of
+anything that is injurious but by the quicker using up of plant food
+which it already contains. Black alkali is very common in California in
+alkali lands. In lands which show their quality by good cropping, there
+is no reason to apprehend black alkali nor to use gypsum to prevent its
+occurrence. The use of gypsum does stimulate the growth of alfalfa and
+makes its product greater just as you observe in the experience of your
+neighbors, but the more they use up the land now the less they will have
+later, unless they resort to regular fertilization to restore what has
+been exhausted. But even that may be a good business proposition.
+
+
+
+What Gypsum Does.
+
+
+
+I intend to fertilize alfalfa and should like to know about gypsum. I
+have heard it stimulates the growth temporarily but in three or four
+years hurts the land. I have heavy land.
+
+The functions of gypsum are: (a) to supply lime when the soil lacks it;
+(b) to make a heavy soil more mellow, and (c) to act upon other soil
+substances to render them more available for plant food. These are some
+of the soil aspects of gypsum; it may have plant aspects also. It is too
+much to say that gypsum hurts the land; it does, however, help the plant
+to more quickly exhaust its fertility, and in this respect is not like
+the direct plant foods which comprise the true fertilizers - one of
+which gypsum is not. It might be best for your pocketbook and for the
+mechanical condition of the soil to use it, but do not think that it is
+maintaining the fertility of the land (a service which we expect from
+the true fertilizers) except as it may supply a possible deficiency of
+lime.
+
+
+
+How Much Gypsum?
+
+
+
+How much per acre, how frequently and what seasons of the year are the
+best time to apply gypsum?
+
+Of gypsum on alkali, we should begin at the rate of one ton to the acre
+and repeat the application as frequently as necessary to achieve the
+desired result. If the alkali was quite strong we would use twice as
+much. Without reference to an alkaline condition in the soil, and to
+give heavy soil a more friable character, which promotes cultivation,
+aeration, etc., and, therefore, ministers to more successful production,
+half a ton to the acre can be used, applications to be repeated as
+conditions seem to warrant it.
+
+
+
+Wood Ashes in the Garden.
+
+
+
+There is available in my neighborhood a free supply of wood ashes. Can
+you tell me how best to distribute the same in a garden (flowers and
+garden truck), and what, if any, treatment is to be given the ashes for
+the best results.
+
+Wood ashes long exposed to rain lose most of their valuable contents,
+and leached ashes are only of small value. If they are fresh ashes or
+ashes which have been kept dry, they are chiefly valuable for potash,
+which is good in its way, but not all that a plant needs. If, however,
+your soil is shy of potash, the use of ashes will notably improve growth
+if not applied in excess in the caustic form in which it occurs in the
+ashes. They require no treatment. Spread, say, a quarter of an inch
+thickness all over the ground and dig in deeply. It may also help you by
+destruction of wire worms and other ground pests.
+
+
+
+Coal Ashes in the Garden.
+
+
+
+What is the effect of coal ashes on the red clay soil of Redlands or
+wood and coal ashes combined?
+
+Coal ashes are exceedingly desirable upon clay land because their
+mechanical mixture with the fine particles of the clay renders the soil
+more friable, permeable and better adapted to the growth of most plants.
+Coal ashes, however, possess no fertilizing value - their action is
+merely mechanical. The wood ashes which may be combined with them are
+desirable as a source of potash which most plants require.
+
+
+
+Liming a Chicken Yard.
+
+
+
+I have a small family orchard of half an acre, fenced in as a chicken
+yard, the soil of which has become very foul. When would be the best
+time to apply lime and how much?
+
+Put on 500 pounds of lime and plow under as soon as you can - that is,
+spread the lime just before the plowing, with a shower or two on the
+lime before plowing, if the weather runs that way.
+
+
+
+Poultry Manure.
+
+
+
+Give directions for using chicken manure. For use of young trees, is
+there any difference in treatment of deciduous and citrus trees? For use
+in the vegetable garden and the flower garden, what should be mixed with
+it and in what proportions? So many people say poultry manure is so
+strong, I am afraid to use it.
+
+It is a fact that poultry manure, free from earth, contains even as high
+as four times as much plant food as ordinary stable manure. It is,
+therefore, to be used with proportional care, so that the plants shall
+not receive too much, and particularly so that there may not be too much
+collected in one place. Probably the best way to guard against this is
+to thoroughly mix the manure with three or four times its bulk of
+ordinary garden soil and then use this mixture at about the same rate
+you would stable manure. If you do not desire to go to all this trouble,
+make an even scattering of the manure and work it into the soil. There
+is no reason to fear the material; simply guard against the unwise use
+of it. It is good for all the plants which you mention; in fact, for any
+plant grown, provided it is sparingly and evenly distributed.
+
+It should be pulverized so that there shall not be lumps and masses in
+the same place for fear of root injury. Of course, the strength depends
+upon how much earth is gathered up with the manure. Sometimes there is
+so much waste material that it can be handled just as ordinary farm
+manure is.
+
+We should not use over 20 pounds of clean droppings to a young tree and
+should mix it with the soil for a considerable distance around the tree.
+Old bearing trees might stand two or three tons to the acre if
+distributed all over the ground. The material contains everything that
+is necessary for the growth of the tree and formation of the fruit.
+
+
+
+Ashes and Poultry Manure.
+
+
+
+It is said that ashes mixed with chicken manure is not good. I use ashes
+altogether on the drop boards because I can keep the boards cleaner. The
+refuse is then scattered around the fruit trees.
+
+Wood ashes and lime should never be used as you propose, because they
+set free the nitrogen compounds which are the most valuable content of
+poultry manures. This action is conditioned largely upon the presence of
+moisture, and if the droppings are kept dry and hurried into the soil
+the loss is lessened. Coal ashes, on the other hand, are a thoroughly
+good absorbent when the coal burns to a fine ash or is sifted. They do
+not act as wood ashes do, because they do not contain soluble alkali.
+They also have a good mellowing effect on heavy soil.
+
+
+
+Caustic Lime Not a Good Absorbent.
+
+
+
+Would air-slackened lime be suitable to sprinkle over the dropping
+boards in hen houses?
+
+Gypsum is greatly superior to air-slacked lime for the hen houses, as it
+has every beneficial effect of the latter, while the air-slacked lime
+will set free much of the fertilizing value of the manure, which the
+gypsum will not do.
+
+
+
+Too Much Chicken Manure for Young Trees.
+
+
+
+I have peach trees and apple trees, 3 to 6 years old, that are very
+thrifty but grow only wood. The soil was poor when planting, and I have
+put on plenty of sweepings from the chicken-yards. I suppose that is the
+cause of the trouble.
+
+Undoubtedly you have overmanured your soil with chicken manure, which is
+a very strong fertilizer and should only be used in limited quantities.
+In order to counteract any acidity or ill effects which have been
+produced by its excessive application, it would be desirable for you to
+apply about 500 to 1000 pounds per acre of common builders' lime at the
+beginning of the rainy season, working it into the soil with the fall or
+early winter plowing. Do not cut back the tree during the dormant
+season, although, of course, you may have to remove surplus or
+interfering branches for the sake of shaping the tree. Winter pruning
+induces a greater wood growth during the following summer; therefore, it
+should be avoided under such conditions as you describe. Having adopted
+such a policy, there is nothing for you to do but to wait for the trees
+to slow down and assume a normal bearing habit proper for their ages.
+Summer pruning is an offset for excessive wood growth.
+
+
+
+Suburban Wastes.
+
+
+
+We keep a cow and poultry and have a dry-earth toilet. We have been
+burying the manure in the little garden spot or along by the fences or
+spreading it out on the alfalfa before it is rotted, but do not get good
+results. How shall we apply it to get the best results ? We have a town
+ordinance against leaving it in piles to rot.
+
+You can compost it in a tight bin made of planks, and using enough water
+to prevent too rapid fermentation and loss of valuable ingredients.
+During the dry season you can probably use enough dry earth or road dust
+to render the material inoffensive, and you can also distribute it then
+without undesirable results.
+
+
+
+Composting Garden Wastes.
+
+
+
+You recommend making a compost of all scrapings, garbage, weeds, etc. Is
+there any danger in having this in a pit near the house?
+
+If you desire to put garden wastes, including manure, into a pit, the
+only objection would be the heavy work of digging it out again. If you
+allow waste water from the house to run into the pit, there would
+probably be not enough dry material to absorb it, and the pit would be
+not only objectionable on account of odors, but possibly dangerous to
+health. The water would also prevent decomposition, because of exclusion
+of air. At the same time, enough moisture to promote slow decomposition
+is essential. It is usually more convenient to compost garden wastes on
+the surface of the ground, enclosing them with a plank retainer, because
+moisture can easily be applied with a hose, as desirable, the material
+can be occasionally forked over to promote decay, and the heavy work of
+digging material out of a pit is avoided. Such a collection is neither
+offensive nor dangerous if handled right.
+
+
+
+Composting Manure.
+
+
+
+Will the dry barnyard manure, when heaped up and dampened with water,
+make a valuable fertilizer?
+
+For garden use, dry manure in heaps should be dampened with water from
+time to time so as to prevent too active fermentation. Of course, water
+should not be supplied so freely as to cause a leaching of the pile. It
+is also desirable that the material should be forked over from time to
+time to distribute moisture and promote decay. When this is done a
+thoroughly first-class fertilizer is produced.
+
+
+
+Barnyard Manure and Alkali.
+
+
+
+In spots my land is hard and has some black alkali. Will barnyard manure
+help the hard land if cultivated in?
+
+Use stable manure because that would not only furnish nitrogen, if your
+plants need any more, but it would add coarse material and ultimately
+humus which would overcome the tendency of your soil to become compact
+and thus concentrate alkali near the surface by evaporation. Mellow the
+soil, increase the humus, make water movement freer and good cultivation
+easier and alkali will become weaker by distribution through a greater
+mass of the soil and may be too weak at any point to be troublesome,
+unless you have too much to start with. Put on manure at the beginning
+of the rainy season and plow it under, with all the green stuff which
+grows upon it, during the winter or early spring.
+
+
+
+Stable Manure and Bean Straw.
+
+
+
+What are the approximate contents of common stable manure; also, how
+much of the above is contained in bean straw?
+
+The composition of mixed stable manure is given as containing in one
+ton: Nitrogen, 10 pounds; phosphoric acid, 5 pounds; potash, 10 pounds.
+The constituents of bean straw in one ton, are given as: Nitrogen, 28
+pounds; phosphoric acid, 6 pounds; potash, 38 pounds; Of course, a large
+part of the difference in composition is due to the excessive amount of
+moisture which ordinary stable manure contains. Air dried stable manure,
+such as is found in a California corral, would have much higher
+fertilizing value than such moist manure as an Eastern chemist would be
+likely to handle.
+
+
+
+Roofing a Manure Pit.
+
+
+
+Is it necessary to roof a manure pit, if the pit is tight so that all
+rain on manure is caught in the liquid manure and nothing is lost?
+
+To secure satisfactory composting of stable manures in a pit it is
+necessary to be able to regulate the moisture of the mass. If it becomes
+too dry, too rapid fermentation takes place and the material is
+destroyed by what is called fire-fanging. If too much liquid enters the
+pit, so that the material is submerged, the air is excluded and
+fermentation stops. For these reasons it is necessary that a pit in the
+region of large rainfall be covered, and water be used from a hose or
+other source of supply in just sufficient quantity to keep the material
+right for slow fermentation. How much water should be added to bring the
+moisture to a right condition depends upon how much liquid waste runs
+into the pit, and where water is used for cleaning a stable care has to
+be taken that the pit is not submerged. Success with a pit is,
+therefore, conditioned on the amount of moisture admitted, and this
+cannot be controlled unless the pit has a cover fit to shed rainfall. Of
+course, it may be adjustable so that some rainfall may be admitted as
+may be desirable.
+
+
+
+Value of Animals in Manure.
+
+In the operation of our fruit and dairy ranch we have the manure from
+some forty head of horses and cattle, which is distributed over the
+place. We cut our alfalfa and feed it and do very little pasturing. In
+order to give our dairy the proper credit, we would kindly ask what you
+consider a fair price for the manure of a cow for one year. Also what
+would the manure from a horse for one year be worth?
+
+A compilation of a considerable number of weighings, analyses and
+valuations in Europe, cited by Prof. Roberts in his book on the
+"Fertility of the Land," gives an average value of the voidings of a cow
+for a year as $32.25 and of a horse at $24.06. This is based, of course,
+upon the collection and saving of all excrements which is never secured
+except in careful experimentation. The value of manure depends upon the
+quality of the feed. In two experiments, considered a safe substitute
+for the straw, apart from the fact that the gave a value in manure of $1
+per ton of hay fed; cows fed on clover and bran gave value in manure of
+3.80 per ton of mixed feed. Your alfalfa feeding would approach the
+higher value. You will have to make an estimate from the above data to
+serve your purpose and you can figure it either by the number of animals
+or by the tonnage of the feed.
+
+
+
+Value of Fresh and Dry Manure.
+
+
+
+What is the relative value of the weekly or semi-weekly corral scrapings
+which are tramped fine and air-dried; and of the fresh, wet manure from
+the stable? I do not understand that the latter has appreciable water
+added, and the amount of sand in the corral scrapings would be small.
+
+Fresh, mixed animal manure is usually calculated to contain about 75 per
+cent of water. Manure which has been quickly dried, without fermentation
+and without leaching by rains, may be worth four or five times as much
+per ton. Nothing, however, short of analysis would determine the value
+of any particular lot, for that depends somewhat upon the way the
+animals are fed, as well as upon the moisture content.
+
+
+
+Shavings in Stable Manure.
+
+
+
+Is barnyard fertilizer containing shavings instead of straw, desirable?
+
+Barnyard manure containing shavings is chiefly objectionable because of
+the amount of inert material. The shavings are exceedingly slow to
+decompose, and in light soil in considerable quantities would cause a
+serious loss of moisture. If applied, on the other hand, to a heavy soil
+and accompanied by sufficient irrigation water, the effect of making the
+soil more friable might be very desirable. It depends then upon
+circumstances whether shavings can be concited by Prof. Snyder in his
+"Soils and Fertilizers," cows fed on hay straw is more valuable not only
+because more easily decomposed, but because its content of plant food is
+greater.
+
+
+
+Handling Grape Pomace.
+
+
+
+In the case of grape pomace, would not the large value shown by analysis
+be chiefly in the seeds? My observation is that these are exceedingly
+slow to became available in the soil. Would composting break down the
+shell of the seed?
+
+Grape pomace is slowly available because of the slow disintegration you
+mention. It could be hastened by drying and grinding, but we doubt if
+this or other treatment would return its cost. Decay by moisture
+promoted by composting with manure, kept at a low temperature by
+continuous moisture would render it sooner available, but this would
+involve labor which, at our wage rates, would probably make the material
+cost more than it is worth. This is probably a cost in which time is
+cheaper than money.
+
+
+
+Sheep and Goat Manure.
+
+
+
+I can buy goat manure from an inclosure where this is deposited to an
+amount of about five carloads. Will goat manure be of great value in
+fertilizing an orchard? If so, how much of it should be spread an an
+acre?
+
+Accumulations of sheep and goat manure in a dry situation, that is,
+where not leached out by heavy rainfall, have been found to run as high
+as $13 per ton in fertilizing constituents. The average would, however,
+be not above $7.50, and would depend not only upon the unleached
+condition of the material but upon the amount of sand mixed with it. If
+it is in a situation where sand blows very freely, it might not be worth
+over $4 or $5 per ton, possibly not that much. You have, therefore, to
+deal with a condition largely unknown. So far as its fertilizing quality
+goes, however, it is freely available and directly calculated to
+stimulate the growth of plants, and probably four or five tons could be
+used to the acre without injury if well distributed over the surface of
+the land. Application can be made at any time of the year, for the
+drying will not injure it. It will not, however, become available until
+the soil is sufficiently moist to carry its contents to the roots of the
+plants. Under ordinary conditions in California, application should be
+made just before the beginning of the rainy season.
+
+
+
+Hog Manure and Potatoes.
+
+
+
+What is the fertilizing value of hog manure, and also what is the best
+fertilizer to use for potatoes? Our potatoes are planted early in
+January.
+
+Hog manure is rather a rank and strong fertilizer, usually very rich,
+although the quality of it depends upon how well the hogs have been fed
+- that from grain-fed hogs being notably better. The valuation of hog
+manure ranges from $2.50 to $3.25 per ton, according to the feeding as
+noted, while ordinary stable manure may be worth from $2 to $2.75 per
+ton. It is not a good idea to apply these organic manures directly for
+the growth of potatoes. It is better to apply them to the land for the
+growth of a grain or forage crop, plowing in the stubble and using the
+land for potatoes the following year. If you wish to fertilize directly
+for potatoes, the use of a commercial fertilizer containing a good
+amount of potash would be a better proposition.
+
+
+
+Fertilizer for Sweet Potatoes and Melons.
+
+
+
+I have sandy soil that has been used for sweet potatoes until it is worn
+out for that crop, and would like your advice as to the best fertilizer
+to use. Also, what fertilizer would be best for melons on land that has
+been planted to melons for the past three years?
+
+There is not much difference in the plant food required by the two crops
+you mention, but both evidently need a freshened soil and an increase of
+humus. We should apply a half ton to the acre of a complete fertilizer,
+of which any dealer can give you descriptions and prices. If you wish to
+do a good job, start a growth of peas or vetches or burr clover, and sow
+the fertilizer evenly with the seed. Plow the growth under in February
+and roll (as the soil is sandy) to close down and promote the decay of
+the green stuff, which ought to be so well accomplished by the date that
+it is safe to plant sweet potatoes or melons that it will give no
+trouble in summer cultivation.
+
+
+
+An Abuse of Grape Pomace.
+
+
+
+I got in an argument with a neighbor of mine who stated that grape
+pomace is not a fertilizer. Is it so? My neighbor says that two years
+ago he had two apricot trees in his yard, and they were fine bearing and
+healthy trees. After making his wine he put the pomace on the ground and
+they died. Could that be the cause?
+
+Yes, probably. He used too much fresh pomace and the resulting
+fermentation of its products may have killed the trees. But grape
+pomace, after going through fermentation and in the process of decay,
+makes humus in addition to giving potash and other desirable substances
+to the soil.
+
+
+
+Manuring Vineyard.
+
+
+
+Does barnyard manure have any injurious effect on the vines if applied
+on my vineyard? One of my neighbors claims barnyard manure burned his
+vines so he got no crop wherever he spread the manure, and nothing would
+now induce him to use it again.
+
+Barnyard manure can be safely used in a vineyard at the beginning of the
+rainy season, working it in with the plowing, but not using too much.
+Wine grapes are sometimes injuriously affected in flavor by the use of
+such fertilizer, but the growth of the vine itself can be stimulated by
+the rational use of it. Your neighbor apparently either used too much or
+made the application at the beginning of the dry season or made some
+other mistake.
+
+
+
+Bones for Grape Vines.
+
+
+
+I am going to plant out some grape vines, and would like to know if it
+is a good plan to put old bones, broken up fine, into the holes when
+planting.
+
+Yes, if you do not use too much and it is mixed with earth, a little
+beyond the touch of the roots at planting. You do not need to finely
+break the bones. The roots will take care of that. But do not put in too
+much coarse stuff, for fear of causing too rapid drainage.
+
+
+
+Reviving Blighted Trees.
+
+
+
+I have a couple of apple trees here that were hurt by the pear blight
+three years ago and were cut back since then; they come out each year,
+but the leaves curl up, and they do not do anything. I would like to
+know if putting any fertilizer around them would help them to put out
+their leaves, and if so what I should use?
+
+Put some stable manure on the top of the soil around your trees now so
+that the rains may reach the contents of the soil, then later in the
+season dig the manure into the soil. Apply water during the summer time
+and this will encourage the trees to grow, if there is any vigor
+remaining in them. This treatment, however, will not protect them from
+the blight.
+
+
+
+Fertilizing Pear Orchard.
+
+
+
+I have pear trees 15 years old which have fruited heavily for years and
+have never been fertilized. What is the best fertilizer for the soil
+which is heavy, and when is the best time to apply it? I intend planting
+rye to plow under in the spring, but thought possibly the fertilizer
+should be applied first.
+
+If you have stable manure available, nothing could be better for the
+feeding of the trees and for its mellowing effect upon your heavy soil.
+Application can be made at once, to be worked into the land when the rye
+is sown. It will help the trees and give you more rye which in the end
+will help the trees. If you have no stable manure available, what is
+called by the dealers a "complete fertilizer" for orchard purposes is
+what you should use and apply it when you work the land for rye.
+
+
+
+Fertilizing Olives.
+
+
+
+What is the best means of fertilizing an olive orchard? My orchard gives
+me a perfect quality of oil, but a poor quantity. My soil is dry
+calcareous, red and gray, and is very thin in places, therefore, it
+lacks moisture.
+
+An olive orchard can be fertilized with stable manure or with a
+"complete fertilizer," or with the special brands of different
+manufacturers of special fruit fertilizers. But you must be sure that
+your trees do not need moisture more than they need fertilizers, for
+without adequate moisture fertilizers cannot do their best work. The
+increase of the humus content of the soil, either secured by stable
+manure or by the plowing under of winter-grown cover crops, is
+desirable, as they not only give the trees more plant food, but make the
+soil also more retentive of moisture. You will have to experiment along
+this line to see just what is best for your trees.
+
+
+
+Consult the Trees.
+
+
+
+Can I send you a little soil out of my one-year-old pear orchard so that
+you can advise me what I can do to improve its fertility. The trees are
+fairly thrifty, but as fruit growing is my pleasure I wish to make it a
+model orchard and add whatever it requires of nitrogen, humus, etc.,
+immediately so as to increase the growth for this summer. Next winter I
+intend to put manure around them and cultivate about every other month.
+
+Careful experimenting with fertilizers will teach you more than analysis
+would do, because the behavior of the tree under various conditions
+tells you more than a chemist possibly could. Besides, we are of the
+conviction that on good soils young fruit trees should not be pushed
+beyond the growth which they would naturally make with a regular and
+adequate moisture supply. Be careful about using fertilizers on young
+trees, either in the summer or in the winter. When they come to bearing
+age and yield large crops of fruit, that is another question. Any
+California soil which will not grow young fruit trees thriftily should
+not be used for orchard purposes unless an amateur desires to grow trees
+on a picturesque lot of rocks or sand.
+
+
+
+Results of Fertilizing Olives.
+
+
+
+We have 100 acres in olives about six miles northeast of Rialto in San
+Bernardino county. In 1908 we got about five tons from the 100 acres. We
+began fertilizing and cultivating in 1909, and have put on the 100 acres
+about the same amount of fertilizer each year. In 1909 we got 15 tons;
+in 1910, 116 tons, and 1911 is estimated at 325 to 350 tons.
+
+It is important that your olive trees are responding to good treatment
+and fertilization. Unfortunately, that does not seem to be always the
+case and a good many olive trees have been made into firewood because
+nothing seemed to bring them into satisfactory bearing. Good bearing
+olive trees are now among the very best of our horticultural properties,
+while non-bearing olive trees are worth about $7 a cord for fire wood.
+
+
+
+Nursery Fertilizers.
+
+
+
+I have light sandy loam, well drained. It has been in blackberries, and
+I now have it planted to nursery fruit tree stock. I have given it this
+spring two applications of nitrate of soda, but no other fertilizer.
+Will the nitrate act alone, or must I apply also the phosphate and
+potash to get results?
+
+Nitrate of soda will act alone and will stimulate growth, and there are
+cases in which there is enough phosphate and potash already in the soil
+to act with it. Usually, however, it is customary to use a complete
+fertilizer containing phosphate and potash as well as nitrogen, in order
+that the plant may be more roundly supplied and promoted, and one would
+be a little safer in using that sort of fertilizer than in relying upon
+the nitrate of soda alone. You will, of course, be careful not to use
+these fertilizers in too large amounts, for nitrate of soda is
+especially dangerous if used in excess.
+
+
+
+Almond Hulls and Sawdust.
+
+
+
+Is there any fertilizing value in the hulls of almonds? Would pine
+sawdust from the lumber mills be a good substance to mix in and plow
+under in a three-acre adobe patch in order to loosen and lighten the
+soil for truck gardening?
+
+Almond hulls have considerable fertilizing value, but they are slow to
+decompose, and, therefore, may be a long time unused by the plant. They
+also have a good feeding value for stock, and if you can expose them in
+the corral so the stock can eat as they like, this is the best way to
+get them into fertilizing form. If they can be cheaply ground their
+availability as a fertilizer would, of course, be quickened. Redwood
+sawdust is better than pine sawdust, but any kind of sawdust can be made
+to serve a good purpose in mellowing heavy soils if not used to excess
+and if there is plenty of moisture to promote decay.
+
+
+
+Fertilizing Fruit Trees.
+
+
+
+I have an orchard of prunes, apricots and cherries, which has been
+bearing since some 30 years ago, without fertilization, except possibly
+muddy sediment from occasional irrigations of mountain streams. Various
+people are advocating the use of nitrates and other fertilizers. Should
+I have samples of this earth analyzed in order to ascertain what the
+soil most needs?
+
+To find out whether your trees need fertilization, study the tree and
+the product and do not depend upon chemical analysis of the soil. If
+your trees are growing thriftily and have sufficiently goodsized leaves
+of good color, and if fruit of good size and quality is obtained, it is
+not necesssary to think of fertilization. If the trees are not
+satisfactory in all these respects, the first thing to do is to
+determine whether they have moisture enough during the later part of the
+summer. This should be determined by digging or boring to a depth or
+three or four feet in July or August. The subsoil should be reasonably
+moist in order to sustain the tree during the late summer and early fall
+when strong fruit buds for the coming year will be finished. If you are
+sure the moisture supply is ample, then fertilization either with stable
+manure or with commercial fertilizers containing especially nitrates and
+phosphates should be undertaken experimentally, in accordance with
+suggestions for application made to you by dealers in these articles,
+who are usually well informed by observation. When you have the tree to
+advise you of the condition of the soil, you do not need a chemist,
+although if the tree manifests serious distress and is unable to make
+satisfactory growth the suggestions of a chemist may be very helpful.
+
+
+
+Fertilizing Oranges.
+
+
+
+What is the general and what do you consider the ideal, manuring, and
+when applied for orange trees from 15 to 12 years old under irrigation?
+I use about 2 cwt. each of superphosphate, nitrate of soda and sulphate
+of potash per acre, but am dissatisfied with my yields as compared with
+yours in California.
+
+There is not only no standard for fertilizing orange trees, but there is
+no "ideal" which might be considered as a basis for a standard. All
+growers who are awake to the necessity of doing something for bearing
+trees, try all things and hold fast to what (they think) is good.
+Practically none of them has any enduring conviction or demonstration as
+to what is good, but they keep on trying. There is, however, one clear
+and enduring conviction, and that is, that continuous fertilizing must
+be done for profit, and our best growers are using the same materials
+you mention in considerably larger amounts than you apply, and use also
+other forms of nitrogenous fertilizers. The amounts of superphosphate
+and nitrate which you use would be considered homeopathic treatment by
+our growers.
+
+
+
+Cow Stable Drainage for Fruit.
+
+
+
+I have been told that the drainings from a cow barn make an excellent
+fertilizer for orange and lemon trees, in fact, anywhere on plants where
+manure is considered beneficial.
+
+The drainage from a cow barn is excellent for fertilizing almost any
+crop unless it is used in too large quantity. If it should be combined
+with a considerable amount of water used for cleaning out the stable, it
+would be excellent for the irrigation of all kinds of fruit trees. Care
+should be taken, however, not to oversaturate the ground, which would be
+the case if the washing of the stable was allowed to run continuously
+alongside a single row of trees. The water should be changed from row to
+row in succession, cultivating the ground meantime to promote aeration
+and to prevent too great compacting of the soil.
+
+
+
+Seed Farm Refuse as a Fertilizer.
+
+
+
+Would cleanings from sweet peas or all kinds of seeds grown on a seed
+farm be of any value as a fertilizer on sandy loam soil for an orchard?
+This has been in a pile for three years or more, and I can get it for
+the hauling. There are a hundred loads or more of it and not very far to
+haul.
+
+It would be worth more on a heavy soil, because the danger of drying out
+would be less and the surety of reduction to humus greater. To get the
+highest value from such stuff it should be composted with water and
+turning in heaps, but that would occasion expense beyond value probably,
+unless it could be composted with manure for market garden purposes. The
+hauling might be good work for idle teams. Spread the stuff rather
+thinly to be covered in with fall plowing, so that its decay could be
+promoted during the rainy season.
+
+
+
+Slow Stuff as a Fertilizer.
+
+
+
+How can we use sawdust and shavings from our high school shop so as to
+combine it with street sweepings, lawn cuttings, etc., and insure ready
+decay without objectionable features?
+
+Do not mix sawdust and shavings with lawn clippings and street
+sweepings, because of the great difference in susceptibility to decay.
+The lawn clippings and street sweepings, which would contain
+considerable horse manure, would be readily transformed into a good
+fertilizer by composting. Such treatment, however, would have no
+appreciable effect upon sawdust or shavings for a considerable period of
+time, and they would still be too coarse in their character to be of any
+value unless you have to deal with heavy clay soil, and in that case the
+sawdust and fine shavings might be dug in at once and trusted to decay
+slowly in the soil, at the same time improving its friability by their
+coarser particles. If, however, you are dealing with light sandy loam,
+such coarse material would cause too rapid drying out and injure the
+plant, which might be benefited by lawn clippings and street sweepings.
+The best way to get rid of the sawdust and shavings is to set up an
+altar, such as we have in our own backyard - a piece of an old boiler
+about two feet in diameter and two and a half feet high, in which we
+currently burn all rubbish which is not available for quick composting
+into a fertilizer.
+
+
+
+Lime on Sandy Soil.
+
+
+
+Do you think 500 pounds of lime per acre would help a sandy soil which
+has not been enriched by pasturing or legumes? Of course, we would not
+apply the lime until next fall before plowing.
+
+Lime is not usually called for in a sandy soil, which probably requires
+direct fertilizing with stable or commercial fertilizers.
+
+
+
+Lime on Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+What effect does putting lime on land have in holding moisture? Also,
+will it pay to put it on a large field of alfalfa? The land is adobe. I
+can get slaked lime for the hauling, distance being about five miles.
+
+The lime will make the land more friable and, therefore, less disposed
+to bake and lose moisture by evaporation. Alfalfa is hungry for lime and
+is generally advanced by the application of it.
+
+
+
+Fertilizing Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+Can new cow manure be put on alfalfa? Is not the best way to use the
+above as a fertilizer in form of liquid being run from barn via pipes to
+a settling-tank and from there via irrigation ditches to the land to be
+irrigated? What is the best way to get rid of cow manure so as to keep a
+barn sanitary and the place free from stench?
+
+Cow manure can be used to advantage on alfalfa. Corrals can be cleaned
+up and the manure spread at the beginning of the rainy season. During
+the winter the manure can be spread as it is produced and very good
+results will be noticed in the growth during the following summer. It is
+perfectly rational for you to use the liquid fertilizer as you propose
+in connection with irrigation water, but this is not generally done
+because of the cost of the outfit and the labor of handling the material
+in that way. The best way to keep a barn sanitary is to keep it clean,
+removing all the waste matter to a considerable distance daily, allowing
+nothing to accumulate, and have the stable drainage arranged so that the
+stable can be frequently flushed out into good drainage outlets,
+carrying the water to grass or alfalfa land if possible.
+
+
+
+Fertilizing Corn.
+
+
+
+We are going to plant about 20 acres to corn on a sidehill and intend to
+put some fertilizer on, but want to give it to the corn only. Would it
+be a good plan, after we have marked out our rows, to scatter some
+fertilizer in these marks and put the corn right on top of it?
+
+We take it you ask about the use of a readily soluble commercial
+fertilizer. If so, you can do as you propose, being careful not to use
+too much. The operation of planting will distribute the fertilizer
+through enough soil if the application is not too heavy. The effect will
+depend something upon what showers you get after planting.
+
+
+
+Scrap Iron as a Fertilizer.
+
+
+
+Is cast or other iron in small pieces plowed into the land of any
+benefit to trees as a fertilizer? If so, what would be the value as such
+per 100 pounds? Junk dealers sometimes offer 25 cents per 100 pounds. If
+it has any value as a fertilizer, I am satisfied it must be worth four
+times that price. We pay three cents a pound for sulphate of iron as a
+fertilizer. Of course, it is a salt and dissolves quickly, therefore, I
+believe cast iron, even if it works slowly, has some value, and at the
+same time farmers can clean up and get rid of a lot of rubbish.
+
+In most cases the California soils are sufficiently supplied with iron
+by nature. Iron scraps have a little and remote value because they are
+so slowly available by the process of rust disintegration. It might,
+therefore, be worth while for farmers to bury such scrap iron as
+accumulates on the place below the reach of the cultivating tools. But
+it would not be profitable to buy iron scraps at junk dealers' price,
+nor would it be profitable to haul this material any long distance, even
+if it could be had for nothing.
+
+
+
+Kelp as a Fertilizer.
+
+
+
+Are there ill effects from using sea kelp as a fertilizer for orange
+trees?
+
+There is no ill effect. Sea kelp has been dragged from the beaches at
+low tide, partly dried and used, for centuries perhaps, as field
+fertilizer for all sorts of crops in Europe, and for decades, to some
+extent, on the New England coast. The dangerous substance in it would
+seem to indicate that that is not present in sufficient quantity to
+cause trouble. The great difficulty lies in securing and transporting
+the substance, for less than its fertilizing equivalent can be obtained
+by purchase of other more concentrated manures.
+
+
+
+Applying Thomas Phosphate.
+
+
+
+When is the best time to apply Thomas phosphate slag on orchard land?
+
+As Thomas phosphate is slowly soluble, it can be applied at any time
+during the rainy season without danger of loss, and for the same fact,
+it should be applied early during the rainy season in order to be
+available to trees during the following summer's growth. It ought,
+perhaps, to be added that other forms of phosphate have largely
+displaced slag during the last few years in the United States, other
+forms being more available.
+
+
+
+Sugar Factory Lime for Fertilizing.
+
+
+
+Is the lime from a sugar factory a good fertilizer for either oranges or
+walnuts; if so, about what amount to the acre would you recommend?
+
+If your land needs lime or if it is heavy and needs to be more friable,
+or if you have reason to think that it may be soured by exclusion of air
+or by excessive use of fermenting manures, the refuse lime you speak of
+will do as a corrective just as other lime does, though, perhaps, not so
+actively. Beyond that there is nothing of great value in it. You can use
+two or three applications of 500 pounds to the acre without overdoing it
+- if your land needs it at all.
+
+
+
+Nitrate With Stable Manure.
+
+
+
+I am going to plant about 2000 plants of rhubarb. I intend to put some
+cow and horse manure under the plants as a fertilizer, but I do not
+think I will have enough for all the plants, so I bought some nitrate of
+lime, with the intention of mixing the cow and horse manure with the
+lime nitrate, which I thought would allow me to spread the manure much
+thinner and I could cover more surface. Now I am not sure but the
+nitrate of lime will burn the manure if mixed with it.
+
+You can mix either nitrate of lime or nitrate of soda with the stable
+manure as you propose; in fact, it is frequently done. These nitrates
+are neutral salts and do not act on manure as caustic lime or wood ashes
+would do. They are quite content to keep along without kicking their
+neighbors. But, of course, the more nitrate you add the more careful you
+must be about using too much of the mixture, and as for putting manure
+under any plant, at spring planting particular, it is dangerous
+business.
+
+
+
+Nitrate of Soda.
+
+
+
+How shall I apply nitrate of soda as fertilizer for roses and other
+flowers and lawns during the summer months?
+
+One has to be very careful in the use of nitrate of soda not to use too
+much and not to apply it unevenly, so that too much is brought in
+contact with the roots of particular plants. From one to two hundred
+pounds an acre evenly distributed is the usual prescription for nitrate
+of soda, although in the case of bearing orange trees considerably
+larger amounts have been successfully used. This would be at the rate of
+about one ounce to one square yard of surface. It would be a safe
+application to begin with and could be increased a little on the basis
+of observation of results. Of course, the application should be
+accompanied by copious irrigation in order to dissolve and distribute
+the substance.
+
+
+
+Fertilizing Strawberries.
+
+
+
+I have half an acre of strawberries which will fruit their second season
+this spring, and half an acre set last month. I had intended to use
+nitrate of soda on them, but was talking to a friend who told me it
+would kill my soil. That the first year it would produce an enormous
+crop and the next year I couldn't raise anything. Which would be better
+to use here, stable manure or commercial fertilizer?
+
+It is true that nitrate of soda is a stimulant of plants, and by
+rendering soil fertility immediately available may seem to reduce the
+supply later, and yet it is a most available forcing fertilizer if used
+with great caution, not over 200 pounds to the acre evenly scattered
+over the whole surface or a less amount, of course, if confined to
+particular areas. If used in excess it may actually kill the plants.
+Still nitrate of soda is being used actively and intelligently by nearly
+all growers of plants and must be counted on the whole a valuable
+agency. If you can get stable manure, nothing is better as a complete
+plant food. Application to strawberries must be made at the close of the
+season, rubbish scraped away and manure applied and allowed to stand on
+the surface during the early rains, being worked into the soil during
+the rainy season. If the soil is light, sandy loam, too much coarse
+material must be avoided. Therefore, well-rotted manure is important on
+such soils while on a heavy soil coarser material may be used to
+advantage if applied early in the rainy season. If you have no
+well-rotted manure, a complete commercial fertilizer will give best
+results.
+
+
+
+Late Applications of Nitrate.
+
+
+
+I have some prune trees which blossomed some time ago and the prunes are
+already set, and of small size. Would you recommend me to use an
+application of, say 100 pounds per acre of nitrate of soda, applied
+immediately, or is it a little too late in the season to get the desired
+result?
+
+It would be perfectly safe to use 100 pounds of nitrate of soda to the
+acre well distributed now; in fact, you could safely use twice as much,
+but we doubt if you would get any benefit from it unless you should
+irrigate, for there is no reason to expect showers that would have
+penetrating powers enough to carry the nitrate any appreciable distance
+into the soil. Of course, the nitrate could be plowed or cultivated in
+to a considerable depth, but that would probably result in losing
+moisture by deep opening or turning, which would do more harm than any
+gain which the nitrate produces, if it were to become available. Our
+judgment would be, then, that it is too late for any benefit to accrue
+unless the land can be irrigated.
+
+
+
+Charcoal is a Medicine, Not a Food.
+
+
+
+Recently a lumberyard burned, leaving quite a quantity of charcoal. I
+have a lot 50 x 150 feet in rhubarb. Would the charcoal be of any
+service on that lot as a fertilizer? I now have it well fertilized with
+horse manure, but would like to use the charcoal if it would be of any
+material assistance to the plants.
+
+Charcoal is of no value as a fertilizer. It is practically
+indestructible in the soil. In fact, they are digging up now charcoal in
+the graves of ancient Egyptians, who departed this life five thousand
+years ago. Charcoal has corrective influence in absorbing some
+substances which might make the soil sour or otherwise inhospitable to
+plants. It has been found desirable sometimes to mix a certain amount of
+charcoal with soil used in potting plants for the purpose of preventing
+such trouble. The only way to make your charcoal of any value as a
+fertilizer would be to set it on fire again and maintain the burning
+until it was reduced to ashes, which are a source of potash and,
+therefore, desirable, but it will probably cost more than the product of
+potash will be worth.
+
+
+
+Humus Burning Out.
+
+
+
+I would like to know whether or not dry-plowing land, in preparation for
+sowing oats for hay, injures the soil? I have heard that dry plowing
+tends to wear out the soil, as the soil is exposed to the sun a long
+time before harrowing. I have been dry-plowing my land to kill the,
+weeds, but had a light crop of hay this year.
+
+There is believed to be what is called "a burning out of humus," by long
+exposure of the soil to the intense heat of our interior districts. It
+is probable that the reduction of humus is due more to the lack of
+effort to maintain the supply than to the actual destruction of it by
+culture methods. Such a little time as might intervene between dry
+plowing and sowing could not be charged with any appreciable destruction
+of soil fertility. It is altogether more probable that your hay crop was
+less from loss of moisture than from loss of other plant food; and it is
+desirable to harrow a dry plowing, not so much to save the soil from the
+action of the atmosphere, as to conserve the moisture, which, as you
+know, will rise from below and will rapidly be evaporated from the
+undisturbed bases of your furrows. Therefore, we should harrow a dry
+plowing as soon as practicable, but with particular reference to the
+moisture supply rather than to other forms of fertility.
+
+
+
+Straw for Humus.
+
+
+
+Do you consider straw good to plow under for humus, and which kind,
+wheat, oat, or barley straw, is best?
+
+Straw, by its decay in the soil, produces humus and, therefore acts in
+the same way just as does the decay of other forms of vegetation. As,
+however, straw is less easily decomposed than fresh vegetation, it is
+less valuable and may be troublesome by acquiring a greater amount of
+moisture by interfering with cultivation or by tending to dry out the
+soil to the injury of other plants. If the soil is heavy and moisture
+abundant, straw may be desirable, while in the case of a light soil and
+scant moisture, may be injurious. There is no particular difference in
+the straw of the different grains from this point of view.
+
+
+
+The Best Legume for Cover Crop.
+
+
+
+What would you advise to sow as a crop to plow under? When should it be
+sowed, and when plowed under?
+
+The best crop for green-manuring in any locality is the one which will
+make the best growth when surplus moisture is available for it, and when
+its growth can be undertaken with least interference with irrigation,
+cultivation and other orchard operation. Generally in California, such a
+crop can be most conveniently grown during the rainy season, but in some
+parts of the State where irrigation water is available, a summer growth
+can be procured with very satisfactory results; so that we are now
+growing in California both wintergrowing legumes, like field peas,
+vetches, burr clover, etc., which are hardy enough to grow in spite of
+the light frosts which may prevail, and are also growing summer legumes
+which thrive under high temperature, like cowpeas and other members of
+the bean family, and for which water can be spared without injury to the
+fruit trees which share the application of the land with them. The
+plants which are worth trying are burr clover, common or Oregon vetch,
+Canadian field pea, and the common California or Niles pea. Whichever
+one of these makes the best winter growth so that it can be plowed under
+early in the spring, say in February or March, while there is still
+plenty of moisture in the soil for its decay, without robbing the trees
+or rendering the soil difficult of summer cultivation, is the plant for
+you to use largely. All these plants should be sown in California
+valleys and foothills, as soon as there is moisture enough from rainfall
+to warrant you in believing they will catch and continue to grow. If the
+land is light they can be put in with a cultivator and plowed under
+deeply in the spring, as stated. If the land is heavy, probably a
+shallow plowing would be better to begin with.
+
+
+
+Cowpeas for Cover Crop.
+
+
+
+I planted cowpeas between peach trees which I have kept irrigated; when
+should they be plowed under?
+
+Cowpeas will be killed by frost in most places and should, therefore, be
+plowed in this fall whenever you have a large growth of green stuff and
+the ground gets moist enough so that the trees will not be endangered by
+drying out of the soil, which is likely to occur after plowing in coarse
+material, unless the soil is kept moist by rain or otherwise.
+
+
+
+Garden Peas for Green Manure.
+
+
+
+Would it be possible to plant the Yorkshire Hero pea in on orange grove
+as late as December 25 and get a crop from the peas? Would this pea add
+much to the fertility of the soil?
+
+You can sow any garden peas as late as December 25, if the ground is in
+good condition and the temperature not too low. They are grown as a
+winter crop except when the ground freezes. You would not get as much
+good for the grove by growing these peas for the market as you would by
+plowing the whole growth under green, but you certainly will get
+advantage from the decomposition of the pea straw and of the root growth
+of the plant.
+
+
+
+Grass for Green Manuring.
+
+
+
+I wish to sow this fall some green grass to be plowed in next spring to
+improve the soil of part of my land. I read for that purpose a bulletin
+I had from the government, but the conditions are so different here in
+California that I am very much puzzled which kind to select.
+
+There is no grass which grows quickly enough to be worth seeding in the
+fall for spring plowing. It is a good deal better to use a grain, either
+barley or rye, for the seed is cheap, the growth quick and you can get a
+good deal of green stuff to plow under. Legumes are, of course, better
+because of their ability to absorb atmospheric nitrogen, but any plant
+which makes a large green growth is good, and it is better to have a
+heavy weight of wild vegetation than to have a light growth of an
+introduced legume.
+
+
+
+Manure with a Clover Crop.
+
+
+
+I have an old apple orchard in which I intend to sow burr clover. In
+order to get the clover to grow I know that I shall have to use
+fertilizer of some kind and this is what I want your advice about.
+
+If you can get it, use stable manure at the time of sowing the clover
+seed. Stable manure alone will restore the humus and overcome the
+rebellious behavior of the soil. Possibly you cannot secure sufficient
+quantities of it. In that case a little with the burr clover seed will
+give the plant a good start, or use a complete fertilizer to secure the
+growth of a legume in the freest and quickest way.
+
+
+
+Fenugreek as a Cover Crop.
+
+
+
+Fenugreek has been recommended to be as a nitrogen-gathering plant, but
+I cannot find information as to the amount of nitrogen it gathers in its
+roots and tops, nor the amount of crop per acre.
+
+Fenugreek is a good nitrogen gatherer and is desirable for green
+manuring wherever you can get a good growth of the plant. You can count
+it worth as much as peas, vetches, etc., if you can get as much growth
+of the plant. It is most largely used in the lemon district near Santa
+Paula. The best way to proceed would be to try a small area of all the
+nitrogen gathering plants of which you can get the seed easily, and
+determine by your own observation which makes the best growth under your
+conditions.
+
+
+
+Improvement of Cementing Soils.
+
+
+
+I would like some advice in handling the "cementy" gravel soil. Manure
+is beneficial in loosening up the soil, but there is not enough
+available. Would the Canadian field pea make a satisfactory growth here
+if sown as soon as the rains begin? I would try to grow either peas or
+vetch and plow under in February or March and then set trees or vines on
+the land.
+
+The way to mellow your soil is certainly to use stable manure or to plow
+under green stuff, as you propose. This increases the humus which the
+soil needs and imparts all the desirable characters and qualities which
+humus carries. You ought to get a good growth of Canadian field peas or
+common California field peas or the common Oregon vetch by sowing in the
+fall, as soon as the ground can be moistened by rain or irrigation, and,
+if the season is favorable, secure enough growth for plowing under in
+February to make it worth while. Be careful, however, not to defer
+planting trees and vines too late in order to let the green stuff grow,
+because this would hazard the success of your planting by the reduction
+of the moisture supply during the following summer by the amount which
+might be required to keep the covered-in stuff decaying, plus loss of
+moisture from the fact that the covered stuff prevented you from getting
+thorough surface cultivation during the dry season. For these reasons
+one is to be careful about planting on covered-in stuff which has not
+had a chance to decay. This consideration, of course, becomes negligible
+if you have water for summer irrigation, but if you expect to get the
+growth of your trees and vines with the rainfall of the previous winter,
+be careful not to waste it in either of the ways which have been
+indicated, and above all, do not plant trees and vines too late.
+Theoretically, your position is perfect. The application of it, however,
+requires some care and judgment. Rather than plant too late, you had
+better grow the green stuff the winter after the trees have been
+planted.
+
+
+
+Needs Organic Matter.
+
+
+
+I have what I believe to be decomposed sandstone. Many rocks are still
+projecting out of land which I blast and break up. The soil works freely
+when moist or wet, but when dry it takes a pick-axe to dig it up; a plow
+won't touch it. Among my young fruit trees I tried to grow peas, beans,
+carrots and beets, and although I freely irrigated them during the
+summer and fall, and although I planted at different times, my peas and
+beans have been a total failure, and the beets, carrots and onions
+nearly so. For years the land has grown nothing but weeds.
+
+Your soil needs organic matter which would make it more easy of
+cultivation, more retentive of moisture, and in every way better suited
+to the growth of plants. Liberal applications of stable manure would
+produce best effects. No commercial fertilizer would begin to be so
+desirable. If you can dig into the soil large amounts of weeds or other
+vegetable waste material, you would be proceeding along the same line,
+but stable manure is better on account of its greater fertilizing
+content. You ought to be thankful that the soil has spunk enough to grow
+weeds. The Immanent Creator is still doing the best he can to help you
+out; take a hand yourself on the same line.
+
+
+
+Two Legumes in a Year.
+
+
+
+I have land on which I wish to plant to fruits, and I wish to build up
+the soil all I can, by planting cover crops and plowing under. What
+would be the best to plant this fall, to be plowed under next spring,
+and to plant again next spring to plow under in the fall? I will not be
+able to plant any trees before next fall or the following spring.
+
+Get in vetches as soon as the ground is in shape in the fall. Plow them
+under early in the spring and close the covering and compact the green
+stuff by running a straight disk over the ground after plowing. This
+will help decay and save moisture. Follow with cow peas as soon as you
+are out of the frost, disking in the seed so as not to disturb the stuff
+previously covered in. Do not wait to put under the winter growth until
+it is safe to put on the cowpeas, for, if you do, you will lose so much
+moisture that the cowpeas will not amount to much.
+
+
+
+Handling Orchard Soil.
+
+
+
+We average about 35 inches of rainfall. With this heavy rainfall, is
+there any advantage to be gained by early plowing and clean cultivation
+right through the winter? Would such plowing and cultivation result in
+any serious loss of plant food? Would you advise an early or late
+application of nitrogen, such as nitrate or guano? If there is any loss
+from an early application, can it be determined by any means?
+
+The old policy of clean winter cultivation has been largely abandoned.
+Nearly everyone is trying to grow something green during the rainy
+season to plow under toward the end of it. Even those who do not sow
+legumes for this purpose are plowing under as good a weed cover as they
+can get. This improves the soil both in plant food and in friability,
+which promotes summer pulverization and saves moisture from summer
+evaporation. Much less early plowing is done than formerly unless it be
+shallow to get in the seed for the cover crop; the deeper plowing being
+done to put it under. Guano can be applied earlier in the winter than
+nitrate, which can be turned in with the cover crop, while the former
+may be sown with the seed to promote the winter growth. Whether you are
+losing your nitrate or not the chemist might determine for you by
+before-and-after analyses. If you are a good observer you may detect
+loss by absence of the effects you desire to secure.
+
+
+
+Soaking Seeds.
+
+
+
+Do you think it a good practice to soak seeds before planting?
+
+It is more desirable with some seeds than others and when the ground is
+rather dry or the sowing time rather late, than when sowing in moister
+ground or earlier in the rainy season, when heavy rains are to be
+expected. Soaking is simply a way to be sure that the seed covering has
+ample moisture for softening and the kernel has what it requires for
+awakening it germ and meeting its needs. The soil may not always have
+enough to spare for these purposes and germination may be delayed or
+started and arrested. Ordinarily seeds can be helped by soaking a few
+hours in water at ordinary temperatures. Some very hard seeds like those
+of acacia trees, etc., are helped by hot water - even near the boiling
+point.
+
+
+
+Irrigating Palms.
+
+
+
+My palms are quite small, but they do not seem to grow; they seem to be
+drying up.
+
+The growth of palms is proportional to the amount of soil moisture
+available, providing it is not in excess and not too alkaline. Some
+palms are quite drouth-resisting, but it is a mistake to think of a palm
+as a desert plant and try to make a desert for it. A young palm,
+especially, needs regular and ample water supply until it gets well
+established. Your plants may be drying up, or they may have had too much
+frost or too much alkali. If they are not too far gone, they will come
+out later if you give them regular moisture and cultivation.
+
+
+
+Water from Wells or Streams.
+
+
+
+One of our neighbors insists that water from a well is, in the long run,
+very hard on the land, and that irrigation water is much to be
+preferred.
+
+There is no characteristic and permanent difference between waters from
+wells and waters from streams so far as irrigation is concerned. The
+character depends upon the sources from which both are derived. Some
+wells may carry too much mineral matter in the form of salt, alkali,
+etc., and some stream waters sometimes carry considerable alkali. For
+this reason some wells may be better than streams and some streams
+better than wells. There is no general rule in the matter. Your neighbor
+may be right as applied to your location, and may know from his
+experience that the well water carries too much undesirable material.
+That could only be determined by analysis, and the analysis must be made
+when the water is rather low, because during the rainy season, or soon
+after it, the water may have less mineral impurity than later in the
+season when it may be more concentrated.
+
+
+
+Shall He Irrigate or Cultivate?
+
+
+
+Our soil is of an excellent quality, and I feel if the moisture were
+properly conserved by suitable methods it could be made to produce
+fruits or some other very much more profitable than from hay and grain
+crops.
+
+Whether you can grow deciduous fruits successfully without irrigation
+depends not only upon how well you conserve the moisture by cultivation,
+but also whether the total rainfall conveys water enough, even if as
+much as possible of it is conserved. Again, you might find that thorough
+cultivation will give you satisfactory young trees, but would not
+conserve moisture enough for the same trees when they come into bearing.
+This proposition should be studied locally. If you can find trees in the
+vicinity which do give satisfactory fruit under the rainfall, you would
+have a practical demonstration which would be more trustworthy than any
+forecast which could be prepared upon theoretical grounds.
+
+
+
+Condensation for Irrigation.
+
+
+
+If a circular funnel of waterproofed building paper, or some better
+cheap device, were fastened about the base of the tree in such a manner
+as to catch and concentrate most of the drippings from the leaves, and
+that water made to run down through a tube leading a suitable depth into
+the earth, it seems to me that the number of foggy nights that occur in
+many localities during the season might thus supply ample water for a
+tree's needs.
+
+The probability is that water would not be secured in sufficient
+quantities to serve any notable irrigation purposes, or if the fogs were
+so thick as to yield water enough, the sunshine would be too scant for
+the success of the plant. Put your idea to the test and see how much
+water you could get from a tree of definite leaf area, which could be
+readily estimated.
+
+
+
+Winter Irrigation.
+
+
+
+Last May I irrigated my prune trees for the first time, again during the
+first two weeks of last December. If no rain should come within the next
+two weeks, would you advise me to irrigate then? Should I plow before
+irrigating, or should irrigation be done before the buds swell?
+
+Unless your ground is deeply wet down by the rains which are now coming,
+irrigate it once, and do not plow before irrigating. The point is to get
+as much water into the ground and as much grass growth on top as you can
+before the spring plowing. Never mind about the swelling of the buds.
+The trees will not be affected injuriously by getting a good supply of
+winter water into the soil. There might be some danger with trees which
+bloom late in the spring, like citrus trees or olives, because by that
+time the ground has become warm and the roots very active. At the
+blooming time of deciduous trees less danger would threaten, because
+there is less difference between the temperature of the ground and the
+water which you were then applying from a running stream. If you
+irrigated in furrows and, therefore, did not collect the water in mass,
+its temperature would rise by contact with air, which would be another
+reason for not apprehending trouble from it.
+
+
+
+How Much Water for Oranges?
+
+
+
+How much water would you consider absolutely necessary to carry to
+full-bearing citrus trees an clay loam-that is, how many acres to a
+miner's inch, figuring nine gallons per minute to the inch?
+
+It would, of course, depend upon the age of the trees, as old bearing
+trees may require twice as much as young trees. We would estimate for
+bearing trees, on such retentive soil, 30-acre inches per year applied
+in the way best for the soil.
+
+
+
+Damping-off.
+
+
+
+My orange seed-bed stack has "damp-off." Same say "too much water;" "not
+enough water;" "put on lime;" etc. I use a medium amount of water and
+more of my stack is affected than that of any other grower. One man has
+kept his well soaked since planting, and only about six plants were
+affected. Another has used but little water, keeping them very dry; he
+has lost none.
+
+Damping-off is due to a fungus which attacks the tender growth when
+there is too much surface moisture. It may be produced by rather a small
+amount of water, providing the soil is heavy and the water is not
+rapidly absorbed and distributed. On the other hand, a lighter soil
+taking water more easily may grow plants without damping-off, even
+though a great deal more water has been used than on the heavier soil.
+Too much shade, which prevents the sun from drying the surface soil, is
+also likely to produce damping-off, therefore, one has to provide just
+the right amount of shade and the right amount of ventilation through
+circulation of the air, etc. The use of sand on the surface of a heavier
+soil may save plants from damping-off, because the sand passes the water
+quickly and dries, while a heavier surface soil would remain soggy. Lime
+may be of advantage if not used in too great quantities because it
+disintegrates the surface of the soil and helps to produce a dryness
+which is desirable. Keeping the surface dry enough and yet providing the
+seedlings with moisture for a free and satisfactory growth is a matter
+which must be determined by experience and good judgment.
+
+
+
+Irrigated or Non-Irrigated Trees.
+
+
+
+Is there any difference between the same kind of fruit trees grown
+without irrigation and with it?
+
+It does not make a particle of difference, if the trees are grown well
+and matured well. Overirrigated trees or trees growing on land naturally
+moist may be equally bad. Excessively large trees and stunted trees are
+both bad; with irrigation you may be more likely to get the first kind;
+without it you are more likely to get the latter. There is, however, a
+difference between a stunted tree and a wellgrown small tree, and as a
+rule medium-sized trees are most desirable than overgrown trees. The
+mere fact of irrigation does not make either good trees or bad trees: it
+is the man at the ditch.
+
+
+
+Too Little Rather Than Too Much Water.
+
+
+
+Looking through an orchard of 18-year-old prune trees on riverbottom
+land, I found a number of the trees had died. A well bored in the
+orchard strikes water at about 15 feet. I find no apparent reason far
+the death of these trees unless it is that the tap roots reach this body
+of water and are injuriously affected thereby.
+
+We do not believe that water at 15 feet depth could possibly kill a
+prune tree. It is more likely that owing to spotted condition of the
+soil, gravel should occur in different places, and with gravel three or
+four feet below the surface a tree might actually die although there was
+plenty of water at a depth of 15 feet. There is more danger that the
+trees died from lack of water than from an oversupply of it, and it is
+quite likely also that you could pump and irrigate to advantage large
+trees which did not seem to be up to the standard of the whole place, as
+manifested by lack of bearing, smallness of leaves, which would be apt
+to turn yellow too early in the season.
+
+
+
+Possibly Too Much Water.
+
+
+
+My trees are four years old and are as follows: Peach, fig, loquat,
+apple, apricot and plum. Last year they had plenty of blossoms, but I
+got no fruit. I always watered them twice a week in summer.
+
+You are watering your trees too much; stimulating their growth too much,
+and this, while a tree is young, is apt to postpone its fruit bearing.
+Give the soil a good soaking about once a mouth, unless you are situated
+in a sandy or gravelly soil, in which more frequent applications may be
+necessary.
+
+
+
+Too Little Water After Dynamiting.
+
+
+
+In planting almonds on a dry hard soil I dynamited the holes and ran
+about 200 gallons of water into each hole before planting. About 95 per
+cent of the trees started growth, but seem now to be in a somewhat
+dormant state, the leaves of some being slightly wilted. All the trees
+were watered since planting. I have been told I made a mistake by
+throwing water in the dynamited holes. When the holes were watered the
+ground was very dry and the water disappeared in a few minutes.
+
+You have used too little water rather than too much. Dry soil of fine
+texture can suck up an awful lot of moisture, which can be drawn off so
+far, or so widely distributed, that there will not be enough for the
+immediate vicinity of the roots. The dynamiting tended to deep drying
+and necessitated much more irrigation.
+
+
+
+Irrigating Young Trees.
+
+
+
+We have just put out 50 acres to walnuts. The party who put them out
+wants me to have some boxes or troughs made 15 inches long with a 3-inch
+opening, and put in on the slant so as to have the water hit the roots.
+
+Many such arrangements of boxes, perforated cans, pieces of tile, etc.,
+have been proposed during the last fifty years in California for
+accomplishing the purposes which are mentioned in your letter, and all
+such devices have been abandoned as undesirable. They may bring the
+water to bear upon a lower level as intended, but the free access of air
+and the fact that, with their use, proper stirring of the soil is
+neglected renders them undesirable. The best way to water young trees
+singly is to make a trench around tree, but not allowing the water to
+touch the bark, applying the water and then thoroughly hoe when the
+surface soil comes into proper condition. Young trees treated in this
+way, with the surface always in good condition, do not require much
+water. The amount depends, of course, upon whether the soil is naturally
+porous or retentive.
+
+
+
+Underground Irrigation.
+
+
+
+How extensively used and with what results is the underground tile
+system for irrigation used, and what especial character of soil is it
+best suited for?
+
+Not extensively at all; in fact, if there is an acre of it which has
+been for three years in continuous and successful operation, it has
+escaped us. After forty years of trial of different systems, none has
+demonstrated value enough to warrant its use. Theoretically, they are
+excellent; in practice they are defective. Surface application in
+different ways, according to the nature of the soil, accompanied with
+thorough cultivation, is the only thing that at the present time
+promises satisfactory results, except that where the land suits it,
+irrigation by underflow from ditches on higher elevations is being
+successfully used on small areas in the foothills. For gardens the most
+promising arrangement seems to be a laying of drain tiles rather near
+the surface, which shall be taken up each year, cleaned of silt and
+plant roots, and relaid along the rows before planting; but this calls
+for too much labor, except perhaps for amateur gardeners. The kind of
+soil best suited to such a system is a medium loam which will distribute
+water sufficiently to avoid saturation and air-exclusion. Both a heavy
+soil which does this, and a coarse sandy loam which takes water down out
+of reach of shallow-rooting plants too rapidly and lacks capillarity to
+draw it up again, are ill adapted to underground distribution.
+
+
+
+Irrigation of Potatoes.
+
+
+
+Will you kindly tell me when is the proper time to irrigate potatoes,
+before they bloom or after they bloom, and do they require much water?
+
+It should seldom be necessary to irrigate potatoes after the bloom
+appears. Potatoes do not need much water, and there is danger of giving
+them too much. It is absolutely essential to see that there is no check
+in the growth of the plant, for once the growth is at all checked by
+drought, and irrigation is done, a new lot of potatoes start and new and
+old growth of tubers are worthless. Give what irrigation is needed and
+make cultivation do the rest. The secret of success is keeping the soil
+continually at the right moisture, so that the first growth of the plant
+may continue regularly until the tubers are brought to maturity.
+
+
+
+Irrigated or Non-Irrigated Apples.
+
+
+
+Where soil and climatic conditions are favorable to the raising of
+apples, what effect has irrigation an them?
+
+The commercial product of California apples is chiefly made upon deep
+soils in districts of ample rainfall so that the fruit can be perfected
+and the trees maintained in thrift by thorough cultivation and without
+irrigation. In the foothill and mountain regions, however, apple trees
+are irrigated and first-class fruit produced by the process. There is no
+particular virtue in the absence of irrigation nor in the presence of
+it. All that the tree requires is that the moisture supply should be
+adequate and timely. There are undoubtedly many apple orchards grown
+without irrigation where a little water during the latter part of the
+summer would be a great advantage for the perfection of winter
+varieties.
+
+
+
+Irrigating Walnuts-Checks or Furrows.
+
+
+
+Which is the best method to irrigate a tract of 25 acres of sandy
+sediment sail, nearly level, preparatory to planting walnuts?
+
+By all means use the furrow system of irrigation unless your land should
+be so light that the water would sink in the furrows and distribution
+would be very unequal without covering the whole surface as is done by
+filling checks. When the land cannot be covered well by the furrow
+system, checking is resorted to, but not otherwise.
+
+
+
+Summer and Fall Irrigation.
+
+
+
+Is it desirable to irrigate peach trees in the fall after the crop is
+gathered?
+
+The popularity of autumn irrigation for peaches in the San Joaquin
+valley is based upon the experience of the last few years where trees
+that have been allowed to become dormant too early in the season and
+have been weakened by a long period of soil-drought during the autumn,
+have cast their blossoms or manifested other indications of weakness
+during the following year. It is thoroughly rational to apply irrigation
+to hold the leaves and secure their service in the strengthening of
+bloom buds for the following year by irrigation. Such irrigation should
+be applied immediately after the fruit is gathered or even before that,
+if the yellowing of the leaves indicates lack of strength in the tree
+and the frequency and amount of irrigation during the autumn depends
+upon whether the soil will hold moisture enough to carry the tree to its
+proper period of dormancy. This may be determined by the aspect of the
+trees and by digging down two or three feet to see whether the soil
+carries moisture which is likely to be sufficient until the coming of
+the rains. Whether late irrigation will be necessary is also
+determinable by the character of the soil; on close retentive soil it
+may not be necessary, while on loose, sandy or gravelly soil it may be
+essential to the life of the tree. One has to settle all these matters
+by judgment and not by recipe.
+
+
+
+Fertilizers in Irrigation Water.
+
+
+
+Do you recommend putting fertilizers in irrigating water? I am about to
+water the orchard and am thinking of putting some nitrate in the water.
+
+You can distribute any soluble fertilizer by dissolving it in irrigation
+water, but few have ever done it because of the difficulties of getting
+equal strength in running water. It is much easier to distribute on land
+before irrigation.
+
+
+
+Irrigating Alfalfa on Heavy Soils.
+
+
+
+How does alfalfa succeed on adobe and soils slightly modified from it?
+Does irrigation work well an adobe planted to alfalfa?
+
+If you get the irrigation adjusted so that the soil shall not be
+water-logged and so that the water does not stand on the surface when
+the sun is hot, you can get plenty of good alfalfa on a heavy soil.
+Irrigation on adobe soils must be done more frequently and a less amount
+at each application to guard against the dangers named above.
+
+
+
+How Much Water for Crops?
+
+
+
+Same of my land is heavy but the most of it is light soil. I want
+alfalfa mostly, same potatoes and grain, and later oranges, olives and
+other fruit. How much water in inches or acre feet is required per acre
+per year far the irrigation of it?
+
+The amount of water required to grow different crops depends upon the
+crop itself, upon the time of the year in which it grows, the character
+of the soil, etc. There is no such thing as stating how much water would
+be used for all crops on all soils, and at all times of the year. The
+range would be from, say, ten acre inches for irrigation of deciduous
+fruits, which need moisture supplementary to rainfall; twice or thrice
+as much for citrus fruit trees; four or five times as much for alfalfa
+where a full number of cuttings are required. These are, of course, only
+rough estimates which would have to be modified according to local
+rainfall and soil character. Water should be applied frequently enough
+to keep the lower soil amply moist. A color of moisture is not enough
+and a muddy condition results from too much water. One has to learn to
+judge when there is moisture enough, and a good test of this to take up
+a handful of soil, squeeze it and open the hand. If the ball retains its
+shape it is probably moist enough. If it has a tendency to crack upon
+opening the hand, it is too dry. This test, of course, is somewhat
+affected by the character of the soil, but one has to form the best
+judgment possible how far allowance has to be made for that.
+
+
+
+Sewage Irrigation.
+
+
+
+What is the usefulness or harmfulness of the outflow from septic tanks
+for use an fruits and vegetables?
+
+There is no question as to the suitability of the affluent from a septic
+tank for irrigation purposes. Waste waters are sometimes injurious when
+they are loaded with antiseptics, but the septic tank will not work
+unless it has a chance for free fermentation in the absence of
+antiseptics, therefore, this objection against waste water does not hold
+with the out-flow from septic tanks. It has the advantage over straight
+sewage irrigation because fermentation in the septic tank is believed to
+free the water from many dangerous germs, though not all of them.
+
+
+
+Creamery Wastes for Irrigation.
+
+
+
+Will the waste water from a creamery, pumped into a ditch and used for
+irrigating sandy loam orchard land, or nursery stack, in any way be
+injurious to the land or the trees?
+
+It will depend upon the amounts of salt and alkaline washing materials
+which it carries. This would be governed, of course, by the amount of
+fresh water used for dilution in the irrigation ditch. There are two
+ways to determine the question. One would be to make an analysis of a
+sample of the water taken when it contains the largest amount of these
+materials after the dilution with ditch water. Another way would be to
+plant some corn, squashes, barley and other plants, so that they would
+be freely irrigated by the water during one growing season. This would
+be rather better than an analysis, because everybody could see whether
+the plants grew well or not, and would be apt to be better convinced by
+what they see than by an opinion which a chemist might give on the basis
+of an analysis. The use of this water on a sandy loam would obviously be
+less injurious than upon a heavy retentive soil.
+
+
+
+House Waste Water.
+
+
+
+Is it feasible to use wash water, etc., for watering fruit trees and
+vegetables?
+
+Kitchen sink water is not desirable because of its great content of
+grease, but wash-tub and bathtub water are good. Strong soapsuds should
+be mixed with considerable rinsing water to escape excessive content of
+alkali. Run the water in hoe-ditches, along the rows of vegetables,
+hoeing thoroughly as soon as the land hoes well, changing the runs of
+water so that the soil does not become compacted but is kept friable and
+lively.
+
+
+
+Draining a Wet Spot.
+
+
+
+I have a spot of about an acre that in a wet winter becomes very miry
+and as a rule is wet up to July. Can I put in a ditch two and one-half
+feet deep and fill in with small stones for a foot or a foot and a half,
+until I can afford to buy tiles?
+
+Drains made of small stones are often quickly filled with soil and stop
+running. However, it will work for a time, and such drains were formerly
+largely employed in Eastern situations when cash was scant and stones
+abundant. Dig the ditch bottom to a depth of not less than 3 or 3 1/2
+feet, then put in the stones deep enough not to be interfered with by
+plowing. If you have flat stones you can make quite a water-way with
+them and fill in with small stones above it.
+
+
+
+Part V. Live Stock and Dairy
+
+
+
+Legal Milk House.
+
+
+
+What is a legal milk house in California?
+
+The State dairy law says little concerning the construction or equipment
+of the milk house. It says that the house, or room, shall be properly
+screened to exclude flies and insects, and is to be used for the purpose
+of cooling, mixing, canning and keeping the milk. The milk room shall
+not be used for any other purpose than milk handling and storing, and
+must be 100 feet or more distant from hogpen, horse stable, cesspool or
+similar accumulation of filth, and must be over 50 feet from cow stalls
+or places where milking is done. In regard to the size of the milk room
+and equipment, nothing is said provided it is large enough for the milk
+to be handled conveniently. Concrete milk houses, however, had best have
+smooth-finished floors and walls. The interior of the milk house is also
+to be whitewashed once in two years or oftener. If milk from the dairy
+is to go to a city, the requirements will be more severe than provided
+in the State law, and must conform to the ordinances of the city to
+which the milk is to be sent.
+
+
+
+Cure for a Self-Milker.
+
+
+
+What shall I do for a young cow that milks herself?
+
+Fit a harness consisting of two light side slats and a girth and neck
+strap in such a way that the cow cannot reach her udder. Unless she is
+particularly valuable for milk, it will save you a lot of worry to fix
+her up for beef.
+
+
+
+Strong Milk.
+
+
+
+How can I overcome strong milk in a three-quarter Jersey cow? I had been
+feeding alfalfa hay with two quarts alfalfa meal and one quart middlings
+twice a day. Thinking the strong milk came from the feed I changed to
+oat hay and alfalfa with a soft feed of bran and middlings.
+
+There is nothing in either ration that could cause strong milk, nor will
+a change of feed likely benefit the trouble. If the cow is in good
+physical condition the trouble probably comes from the entrance of
+bacteria during or after milking. Thoroughly clean up around the milking
+stable, followed by a disinfection of the premises. Have the flanks,
+udder and teats of the cow thoroughly cleaned before milking and scald
+all utensils used for the milk. Harmful bacteria may have gotten well
+established on the premises and the entrance of a few is enough to
+seriously affect the flavor of the milk. Once the trouble is checked it
+can be kept down with the usual sanitary methods.
+
+
+
+Separator as Milk Purifier.
+
+
+
+I have a neighbor who contends that a cream separator purifies the milk
+that passes through it. I say that it does not purify the milk. I agree
+that it does take out some of the heavy particles of dirt and filth, but
+that it cannot take out what is already in solution with the milk.
+
+The purification naturally cannot be very great, and if milk is produced
+in unsanitary fashion, running through the separator will do little, if
+any, good. Nevertheless, the separator does remove more than just the
+solid particles of dirt. The purifying comes by leaving behind the
+separator slime, so called, the slimy material left behind after a good
+deal of milk has been run through. In fact, some creameries separate
+milk, only to mix milk and cream again, largely for the purpose of
+removing the impurities found in the slime. In this slime are not only
+the impurities that fall into the milk, but also some of the fibrous
+matter that is part of the milk, and this gathers, being pulled out by
+gravity as are the fat particles, it seems to gather with it a few more
+bacteria than remain in the milk itself. Material in real solution, as
+sugar is in solution in water, naturally is practically unaffected by
+separation. You are, therefore, right to the extent that you cannot
+produce unsanitary milk and clean it with the separator, but your
+neighbor is right to the extent that the separator does remove some
+impurities and is used just for that purpose. There is also in the dairy
+trade a centrifugal milk clarifier which is constructed in somewhat
+similar manner to a cream separator, but acts differently on the milk in
+not interfering with cream rising by gravity when separated cream and
+milk are mixed after cleaning.
+
+
+
+Butter Going White.
+
+
+
+I bought some butter and during the warm weather it melted. About 40 or
+50 per cent was white, while the balance was yellow and went to the top.
+When the butter remelted, the yellow portion melted, leaving the white
+portion retaining its shape. The white portion did not taste like
+ordinary butter. The butter made from our cows' cream melted at a higher
+temperature, but did not have a white portion. Why did our butter not
+act like the creamery butter?
+
+Samples of butter have occasionally been sent to this office that have
+turned white on the outside, and since the white part has a very
+disagreeable, tallowy flavor, people think that tallow or oleomargarine
+has been mixed with it, but we have never been able to find any foreign
+substance in any of the samples. We have found that some of the best
+brands of butter will turn white first on the outside and the white
+color will gradually go deeper if the butter is exposed to a current of
+air or if left in the sun a short time - F. W. Andreason, State Dairy
+Bureau.
+
+
+
+What Is "Butter-fat?"
+
+
+
+I would like to know what "butter-fat" means. I have asked farmers this
+question and no one seems to know. I suppose all parties dealing with
+creameries understand what the standard of measure or weight of
+butter-fat is, but it is my guess that there are thousands of farmers
+whom, if they were asked this question, would not know. We, of course,
+know that butter is sold by the pound and cream by the pint, quart or
+gallon, but what is butter-fat sold by?
+
+Butter-fat is the yellow substance which forms the larger part of
+butter. Besides, this fat butter is composed of 16 per cent or less of
+water and small amounts of salt, and other substances of which milk is
+composed. From 80 to 85 per cent or so of ordinary butter is the fat
+itself. It is sold by weight. The cream from which butter is made is
+taken to the creamery and weighed, not measured. A small sample is
+tested by the so-called Babcock test to determine the exact percentage
+of fat, and payment mode on this basis. For instance, if 1,00 pounds of
+cream is one-third butter-fat, the dairyman receives pay for 33 1/3
+pounds of this substance. If it is only one-quarter fat, he receives pay
+for 25 pounds. Ordinary cream varies within these limits, but may be
+much richer or thinner. Cream after the butterfat is removed is much
+like skimmed milk, although it has less water in it.
+
+
+
+Why Would Not Butter Come?
+
+
+
+What is the trouble with cream that you churn on from Monday until
+Saturday, then have to give up in despair and turn it out to the hogs?
+We warmed it, and we cooled it, and used a dairy thermometer, but
+nothing would do.
+
+If the cream was in churnable condition otherwise, the probability is
+that it was too cool when you started churning. It should be about 62°
+Fahrenheit.
+
+
+
+Drying a Persistent Milker.
+
+
+
+My cow is to come fresh about the middle of next mouth, and in the last
+two weeks her milk has changed in some way so that the cream makes very
+yellow butter and comes to butter nearly as quick as when the cow was
+fresh. Would it best for her to go entirely dry before coming fresh, or
+will it be all right if she does not entirely dry up?
+
+If your cow has been able to pick up any special amount of grass since
+the rains came it might add to the color of the butter. A cow's milk
+also gets richer toward the end of her lactation period, which may make
+a richer cream and make the butter come quickly There does not seem to
+be anything to worry about. The cow would probably do better if she
+could become entirely dry before calving, but unless you can easily dry
+her up it would be dangerous to try to force her to do so.
+
+
+
+Butter-fat in Sweet and Sour Cream.
+
+
+
+The creamery wagon takes our cream every other day. Without ice it is
+almost impossible to keep the cream sweet during the hot weather. By the
+time the wagon gets here, several hours after the fourth milking, the
+cream is quite sour. Does sour cream test lower than sweet cream! Is any
+butter-fat lost due to evaporation in dry weather?
+
+The test of sour cream will be as accurate as of sweet cream, if
+properly made, but it is rather more difficult to make; or rather, to
+get the material into condition to work well. There is no fat lost by
+evaporation.
+
+
+
+Cream That Won't Whip.
+
+
+
+When I sell my cream from the separator they say they cannot whip it.
+Can you tell me if there is any way that I can make the cream whip?
+
+There appears to be no good reason for blaming the separator for your
+difficulty with the cream. Possibly the cream may be too thin, as thin
+cream is sometimes difficult to whip. There is also the possibility that
+the fat globules in the cream may be rather small, but that will be the
+fault of the cows, not of the separator. Another reason why the cream
+may not whip well may be that it is used too quickly. If the milk is all
+right, the cream not too thin and it is permitted to stand for 12 hours
+or so there should be no trouble with it. Occasionally when cream is
+pasteurized it will not whip well. In these cases, or any other that may
+develop, the application of lime water to the cream at the rate of 1
+gallon to 60 will remove the difficulty.
+
+
+
+What Is Certified Milk?
+
+
+
+What process has milk to go through to be called "certified," and what
+demand is there for it?
+
+Certified milk is simply milk that is produced and marketed under
+prescribed sanitary conditions. The dairies are inspected periodically
+by representatives of some medical society or other organization to see
+that all regulations are observed, who certify that this is done; hence
+the name. Milk from other dairies is prohibited by law from being sold
+under the name "certified milk." Among the requirements in its
+production are that the cows must be free from tuberculosis and
+otherwise perfectly healthy, the stable to have a concrete floor which
+is washed out after each milking, the milkers to have special clothes
+for milking, etc. The milk is cooled and bottled immediately after
+milking, and kept at a low temperature until it reaches the consumer, to
+prevent the entrance of dirt of any kind or the development of the few
+bacteria that must gain entrance before it is bottled. To produce such
+milk requires much expensive apparatus and much more labor than to
+produce ordinary milk, and as a result it sells for a much higher price,
+both to distributor and consumer, so that the market for it is rather
+limited.
+
+
+
+Jersey Shorthorn Cross.
+
+
+
+If I cross Registered Shorthorns with a Jersey bull, what dairying value
+will the progeny have?
+
+This makes an excellent cross. Even beef-strain Shorthorns have lots of
+milking power if it is developed and the Jersey cross will bring it out
+in the progeny. The cows have excellent milking qualities and give very
+rich milk. They also have a big frame and fine constitution. About the
+finest cows in Humboldt county were of this cross although Jersey bulls
+have been used so long that the Shorthorn blood is almost eliminated.
+The first "improved" cattle in California and the first cross made for
+dairy purposes was Jersey bulls upon grade Shorthorn cows. Later the
+Holstein Friesians became popular and they and their grades are now most
+abundant.
+
+
+
+A Free Martin.
+
+
+
+I have a Jersey cow who has just had twin calves, a heifer and a bull.
+The heifer was born about five minutes before the bull and seems to be
+the stronger. My neighbors tell me to fatten both for the butcher, for
+they say the heifer will be barren. The mother is a young cow, as this
+is her second calf. Kindly inform if this is one of nature's laws or if
+there is a possibility of the heifer turning out all right?
+
+The probability is that it will be better to veal the heifer than to
+raise her, as most heifer calves twinned with a bull are free martins,
+or animals of mixed sex and no good for breeding purposes or for
+profitable milk production. If the bull is a good animal, he probably
+will be all right, as this twinning does not seem to affect a bull calf,
+though it does the heifer. It does not always happen that the heifer is
+worthless for breeding, but the probability is so great that you had
+better have her killed and be done with it.
+
+
+
+What Is a "Grade"?
+
+
+
+Does the term "grade" mean an animal whose sire is a thoroughbred and
+whose dam is a scrub, or just one who is selected from others because of
+her good points or those of her mother?
+
+Roughly speaking, a grade animal is one having more or less pure-bred
+blood, but not enough, or otherwise too irregular, for registry under
+the rules of the association of the breed to which it has affiliation.
+It does not refer to selection without use of a pure-blood sire at some
+point in the ancestry, but this is not a distinction of much moment, for
+it is hard to find animals which have not borrowed something from some
+cross with pure blood, though remote. The terms high and low grade are
+sometimes used to signify amount of pure blood recognizable by form and
+other characters or remembered by owners or their neighbors. Generally
+speaking, a grade is anything not entitled to registry, though
+ordinarily it refers to the offspring of a pure-bred sire and a cow of
+another or of no breed. The offspring of a pure-bred cow and a scrub
+bull would also be a grade.
+
+
+
+Breeding a Young Mare.
+
+
+
+I have a beautiful colt 22 months old that will weigh 1200 or 1300
+pounds; very compactly built, and has extra health, life and vigor. I
+want this colt for a broodmare. Would you advise breeding at two or
+three years old?
+
+Authorities agree at placing the age from two to three years, according
+to the development of the animal and other circumstances.
+
+
+
+"To Breed in the Purple."
+
+
+
+What is meant by breeding a sow in the purple? I have seen this
+statement used many times by breeders who advertised "sows safe in pig
+bred in the purple."
+
+To be "bred in the purple" means to be of royal or princely parentage.
+It originally was used in reference to the nobility of Europe, as purple
+was the insignia of royal blood, due to the fact that purple was the
+rarest and most costly color and only the rich and noble could buy it.
+When used in referring to live stock, it signifies that the animal in
+question has a long line of blooded ancestry.
+
+
+
+Cows for Hill Country.
+
+
+
+What breed of dairy cows do you think would be preferable to keep for
+butter, at an altitude of about 1800 feet, in Nevada county - Jerseys,
+Guernseys or Ayrshires? I do not mean to have them to rustle for their
+own living, but to feed them well, house and care for them in all
+weather, particularly in stormy weather.
+
+The best breed for a man is the one he likes best, providing it has been
+bred for the purposes he desires to attain. All the breeds you mention
+are suited to the scheme you outline.
+
+
+
+Foothill Dairying.
+
+
+
+Is there any risk to run in taking cows to an altitude of 2000 from a
+much lower one?
+
+There is no quarrel between a cow and a mountain. Ever since the
+settlement of the State cows have been driven directly from the valley
+up to the mountain meadow pastures, both for butter and for beef-making,
+in the summer time. The foothill elevation you mention is only a
+starting to elevations of 6000 feet and more to which cattle are driven
+every season.
+
+
+
+Bad-Tempered Jerseys.
+
+
+
+Jersey bulls are apt to become vicious after a time; is it so to the
+same extent with bulls of the other named breeds?
+
+The Jersey bull is conceded to be crosser and more dangerous than other
+bulls, but no bull should ever be allowed to have a chance at a man.
+Never consider a bull gentle and you will be safe with him.
+
+
+
+Breeding in Line.
+
+
+
+Is it right and proper to breed a pedigreed registered bull to his
+daughter, who is the offspring of a grade cow? If it is not right,
+explain why. If it can be done, will the offspring be physically perfect
+and an improvement, or will it have poorer qualities than its sire and
+mother? If this inbreeding can be done successfully, how long can it be
+carried on, or, in other words, how long could one bull be bred back
+into his own offspring? Can a herd be perfected in this way?
+
+It is right and proper to breed a registered sire to his daughter, who
+is the offspring of a grade cow. The first cross is all right and the
+offspring ought to be physically perfect. This is a first step in what
+we call line breeding, but in line breeding proper, both animals must be
+pure bloods and registered, having ancestors on both sides which have a
+long line of good individuals with strong constitutions and true to
+type. To do this, one must have a perfect ideal in mind. This line
+breeding is what has developed the breeds today up to the high standard
+of perfection. Breeding sire to daughter, if followed along these lines,
+will be all right; at least, it was so in the case of Amos Cruickshank,
+the great shorthorn breeder. You cannot successfully breed back on the
+daughter's offspring, but if you use a straight out-cross on the
+daughter's offspring you can again use this sire on her produce with
+marked success. In the case of a grade cow and registered sire, there
+are two things which will make you either lose or win with one cross,
+and that is regarding the breeding of your sire. If he is just an
+ordinary-bred fellow it will be a hit-and-miss game, but if he is from a
+long line of good ancestors on his dam's side, you can very materially
+improve the, herd, because always keep in mind the female produce from
+the sire's dam will grow with age toward the sire's dam. So if your
+first cross from your first sire is all right, use a straight out-cross
+bull, but be sure he is what he ought to be, and then you can use your
+old bull back on his heifers. Of course, a man practicing this breeding
+ought to be a thorough stockman and a first-class judge of live stock. -
+W. M. Carruthers.
+
+
+
+Whitewashes for Stock Buildings.
+
+
+
+I desire whitewash recipes which have given durable results on
+outbuildings.
+
+It is so desirable to make outbuildings neat and clean, and so important
+to keep trees from sunburning, etc., that a durable whitewash as cheaply
+and easily made as possible is very important. The following are
+commended: No. 1 - To half a bucketful of unslaked lime add 2 handfuls
+of common salt, and soft soap at the rate of 1 pound to 15 gallons of
+the wash. Slake slowly, stirring all the time. This quantity makes 2
+bucketfuls of very adhesive wash, which is not affected by rain. No. 2 -
+Whitewash requires some kind of grease in it to make it most durable.
+Any kind of grease, even though it be old and partly spoiled, will
+answer all right, though tallow is best. The grease imparts to the
+whitewash an oil property the same as in good paint. Tallow will stay
+right on the job for years, and the cheapest of it will do. In order to
+prepare this grease and get it properly incorporated into the white
+wash, it is necessary to put the grease in a vessel on the stove, and
+boil it into a part of the whitewash so as to emulsify it and get it
+into such condition that it can be properly incorporated with the
+whitewash mixture. No. 3 - For every barrel of fresh lime, add 16 pounds
+of tallow, 16 pounds of salt and 4 pounds of glue, dissolved. Mix all
+together and slack; keep covered, and let stand a few days before using.
+Add water to bring the right consistency to spread readily. For nice
+inside work strain it. When less than a barrel of lime is used, the
+quality of the wash does not seem so good. It is better to apply hot,
+but it does well cold.
+
+
+
+Government Whitewash.
+
+
+
+What is the government recipe for whitewash?
+
+"Take a half bushel of well-burned, unslaked lime, slake it with boiling
+water, cover during the process to keep in steam, strain the liquid
+through a fine sieve or strainer, and add to it 7 pounds of salt,
+previously dissolved in warm water; 3 pounds of ground rice boiled to a
+thin paste and stirred in while hot; half a pound of Spanish whiting and
+1 pound of glue, previously dissolved by soaking in cold water, and then
+hanging over in a small pot hung in a larger one filled with water. Add
+5 gallons of hot water to the mixture, stir well and let it stand for a
+few days, covered from dirt. It should be applied hot, for which purpose
+it can be kept in a portable furnace. A pint of this mixture, if
+properly applied, will cover a square yard."
+
+
+
+Whitewash for Spray Pump.
+
+
+
+Can you give a recipe for a durable whitewash which can be prepared
+simply and in large quantities? The whitewash will be applied with a
+spray pump.
+
+To 25 pounds of lime, whole, slacking with 6 gallons of water, add 6
+pounds of common salt and 1 1/2 pounds of brown sugar. Stir and mix well
+and allow to cool. When cool stir in 1 ounce of ultramarine blue. Then
+add 2 gallons of water, and sprinkle and stir in 2 pounds of Portland
+cement. If two coats are to be applied, add 1 more gallon of water.
+Strain for work on smooth surface.
+
+
+
+Buttermilk Paint
+
+
+
+How is paint made with buttermilk for farm buildings?
+
+One gallon buttermilk, 3 pounds of Portland cement, and sufficient
+coloring matter to give the desired shade. Apply as soon as made, and
+stir a great deal while being applied. It is said to dry in about 6
+hours and to be a good preservative for fences, barns and other
+outbuildings.
+
+
+
+Trespassing Live Stock.
+
+
+
+Is there a fence law in this State? In other words, do I have to fence
+against my neighbors' stock, or does the law require him to care for his
+stock and keep it off my property?
+
+The old "no-fence law" which was enacted during the troubles between
+wheat growers and stock rangers has been put out of commission by more
+recent legislation. The trespassing live stock is liable for damage, but
+just how to proceed to protect yourself you should learn from a local
+lawyer who knows statutes and your county ordinances also.
+
+
+
+Rat-Proof Granary.
+
+
+
+How can I make a rat-proof granary for alfalfa meal and barley?
+
+Omit all boarding of the sides below the floor level and place a heavy
+inverted pan, milk pan, between the top of each of the supporting posts
+and the floor beams. Care should be taken that the diagonal bracing of
+the underpinning or posts does not allow a rat to secure a foot hold
+near enough the floor to permit of gnawing through.
+
+
+
+Concrete Stable Floor.
+
+
+
+Is a concrete floor good for a horse stable?
+
+Concrete floors are satisfactorily used for horse stables, provided the
+floor is ribbed or otherwise roughened in a way to reduce the danger of
+slipping. Some stablemen have stall floors made that way. Some use a
+wooden grating over the concrete in places where the horses have to
+stand for any length of time. Others soften the standing by free use of
+bedding.
+
+
+
+Silo-Heating Not Dangerous.
+
+
+
+Is there any danger of a barn burning from spontaneous combustion due to
+a silo being built in the barn?
+
+There is no danger of the silo overheating and setting fire to a barn.
+When the ensilage is curing, it often gets warm, but never anywhere near
+the point of combustion.
+
+
+
+To Make Shingles Durable.
+
+
+
+What is the best material with which to coat the shingles on my barn
+roof?
+
+The best coating is a wood preservative, the principal ingredient of
+which is creosote. There are several reliable brands of preservatives
+and stains that may be had at a cost of about half that of paint. We
+must remark also the natural durability of redwood shingles in this
+climate if the roof has a good pitch. We reshingled our house roof after
+20 years of use and found the shingles so sound that we turned them and
+shingled the sides and roof of a shed with them where they promise to be
+good for another score of years.
+
+
+
+Best Breed of Hogs.
+
+
+
+What is the best breed of hogs for pen feeding, shutting them up in
+small pens from the time they are little pigs and feeding them mostly on
+skim milk and slops?
+
+There is no best breed. It is a matter of personal preference. Any of
+the breeds are all right to pen up and feed. The principal thing is to
+see that the hogs are all pure bred and have not been crossed too often
+to cause deterioration. Choose one breed of hogs and keep them as pure
+as possible and you will have no trouble in raising them. All the breeds
+are good; but some are fancied more than others. Dark-colored hogs are
+preferred in California because less liable to sunburn.
+
+
+
+Part VI. Feeding Farm Animals
+
+
+
+Feed for Plow-Horses.
+
+
+
+While doing heavy plowing, how many pounds of rolled barley per day
+should I feed to keep 1300-pound horses in good condition? If I feed
+part oat hay and part alfalfa hay, together with rolled barley, what
+ration would be ample?
+
+A ration used by the California Experiment Station was 12 pounds of
+alfalfa hay, 11 pounds of wheat hay and 7 pounds of crushed barley for
+1000 pounds of horse at hard work. The larger the horse the less food
+for the amount of work he does in proportion to his size, so multiplying
+these figures by 1.2 would bring a person somewhere near the ration for
+a 1300-pound horse, and an approximation is as close as one can come to
+any general ration. Probably more alfalfa and less of the other feeds
+could well be given, since many farmers are succeeding in feeding
+alfalfa exclusively.
+
+
+
+Vetch for Horses.
+
+
+
+Does vetch make good feed for horses? Will vetch produce a heavier crop
+than grain? When is the best time to sow vetch for hay, and what is the
+best variety?
+
+Vetch makes excellent stock feed whether used as hay or as pasturage.
+Vetch falls to the ground so badly that it is very difficult to cut hay
+from it unless some grain is planted to hold it up. Oats make an
+excellent hold-up crop and is more generally used. A half a bushel of
+vetch seed is mixed with a bushel of oats and this is enough to plant an
+acre. Some growers, however, prefer a bushel of vetch as that makes the
+stand much heavier.
+
+
+
+Sorghum Feeding.
+
+
+
+Can I allow milk cows to pasture on growing Kaffir and Egyptian corn
+during the summer? Which one is the best for pasture and milk?
+
+There is no difference between Kaffir corn and Egyptian corn so far as
+feeding goes. They are both sorghums. There is a danger in pasturing on
+young sorghums, because stock is often killed from overeating it, and
+they are quite apt to do this when they come upon it from dry feed. If
+you cut and wilt the young sorghum, or if it is fed sparingly with hay,
+etc., it becomes innocent of injury. After the sorghum has obtained
+considerable growth, it also loses its dangerous character.
+
+
+
+Salting Hay.
+
+
+
+What kind of salt is used for salting hay, how much to use and how to
+apply it?
+
+Any good commercial salt such as is used for pork or beef packing is
+satisfactory for salting hay. A good handful to the ton, scattering it
+as the hay is stocked is as good a formula as can be had.
+
+
+
+Stover.
+
+
+
+What is stover? How is it cut and handled?
+
+Stover is corn fodder after the ears are taken off. The best time to cut
+the corn for stover is immediately after the kernel becomes dented and
+the leaves or blades commence to dry. Immediately after the ears are
+taken off, the stalks should be cut and stacked. The size of the shock
+depends upon the climate. If it is a foggly climate and stalks are
+green, it is better to make a smaller shock, but in the interior valley
+where the weather is warm it is best to make large shocks, so that the
+stacks will not dry up very rapidly.
+
+
+
+Feed for Cows.
+
+
+
+What shall I feed cows when they are fresh and when they are dry!
+
+When they commence to freshen, give some green feed, such as alfalfa or
+corn; if possible, also give, say, two or three pounds of barley or
+bran, and gradually increase this for two or three weeks until six or
+seven pounds of bran or barley is being fed. Also give a small amount of
+hay. Bran may be rather expensive feeding and a substitute is being
+used. Take four parts of barley to one of bran and mix. With barley at
+its low price, this makes rather inexpensive feeding. Another substitute
+is to take the chopped alfalfa hay and barley. These are mixed
+thoroughly together and moistened. After the cow freshens and gives her
+full flow of milk, let her eat all the alfalfa hay she wants. A good
+ration is about 15 to 20 pounds of hay, 6 or 7 pounds of barley or bran
+and about 10 pounds of roots such as beets or mangels. When the cow is
+dry, pasture is the best food, supplemented with some green food.
+
+
+
+Sorghum Silage.
+
+
+
+Will Egyptian corn make good ensilage and at what time should it be cut
+to make the best feed for dairy cows?
+
+Sorghum makes good silage. It must be cut while surely juicy enough, for
+it is a little more apt to dry out than Indian corn.
+
+
+
+Barley for Hay Feeding.
+
+
+
+Should the barley for hog feeding be rolled, ground or fed whole, dry or
+wet? Also, how much should be fed and how often to get best results?
+
+To obtain the best results, the barley should be ground into a meal (not
+too fine) and have the hulls screened or floated out. This is best fed
+when made into a thick slop. Some good feeders believe in letting it
+stand until fermentation sets up, that is, gets a little sour. We prefer
+a sweet to a sour feed. However, hogs will do well on either, provided
+there is no change from sour to sweet. The change is the bad part. Hogs
+should be fed just the amount that they will clean up well, and no more.
+A hog should always be ready for his feed at feeding time. We would not
+feed oftener than twice a day: night and morning. - Chas. Goodman.
+
+
+
+Sugar Beets and Silage.
+
+
+
+Will sugar beets keep in a silo and how sugar beets rank as a hog feed?
+
+Sugar beets would probably keep all right if stored in a silo just as
+they might if kept in any other receptacle, but it is not necessary to
+store beets for stock-feeding in this State. They can be taken from the
+field, or from piles made under open sheds in which the beets may be put
+because more convenient for feeding than to take them from the field in
+the rainy season. Beets put whole into a silo would not make silage. For
+that purpose they would need to be reduced to a pulp, but there is no
+object in going to the expense of that operation where beets will keep
+so well in their natural condition and where there is no hard freezing
+to injure them. Beet pulp silage is made from beets which are put
+through a pulping process for the purpose of extraction of the sugar
+and, therefore, best pulp silage is only made in connection with
+beet-sugar factories and is a by-product thereof which is proving of
+large value for feeding purposes.
+
+
+
+Feeding Value of Spelt.
+
+
+
+What is the food value of spelt? It is a Russian variety of wheat, and
+yet, I am informed, it has about the same value as a stock food that
+barley has.
+
+We have no analysis of spelt at hand. It is presumably like that of
+barley, as you suggest, because the spelt has an adhering chaff as
+barley has. This fact makes it better for feeding than wheat, not in
+nutritive content, but because the chaff tends to distribute the starchy
+material, making it more easily digestible; just as barley and oats are
+better than ordinary wheat for stock feeding.
+
+
+
+Concentrates and Corn Stalks.
+
+
+
+Is it necessary to feed mulch cows any hay or concentrated feed in
+addition to green corn stalks?
+
+It is necessary. Green corn is an excellent thing for milch cows, but it
+is a very unbalanced ration and needs alfalfa or something else to
+balance it up. Green corn, for example, contains only about one per cent
+of digestible protein and 11.5 per cent of digestible carbohydrates and
+0.4 per cent fat, or a nutritive ratio of about 1 to 12 1/2. A proper
+ration would be about 1 to 6 or 7, or less. To balance this up alfalfa
+can be fed better than anything else in California, for that is very
+rich in protein and the cheapest supply of protein that there is. If you
+give the cows a good supply of alfalfa hay with the green corn, you will
+have an ideal combination.
+
+
+
+Dry Sorghum Fodder.
+
+
+
+Is Egyptian corn fodder good for cows? I have been told it would dry up
+the milk. I have several acres and would like to feed it if it is not
+harmful.
+
+Dry sorghum fodder is counted about the poorest roughage that one would
+think of harvesting. It is much less valuable than Indian corn fodder.
+Egyptian corn is one of the non-saccharine sorghums which are valuable
+both for grain or for green feeding. We never heard of direct
+milk-drying effect, though such a result might be expected from feeding
+such innutritive material, which is also difficult of digestion. If fed
+for roughness it should be in connection with concentrated foods like
+bran or oil meal or with green alfalfa. No cow can give much milk when
+the feed is hardly nutritive enough to keep her alive.
+
+There seems to be, however, much difference in the dry fodders from
+different varieties of sorghum. One grower writes: "Kaffir corn is the
+only variety within our knowledge of which the fodder is of much value.
+We consider the fodder much more preferable than that of the ordinary
+Indian corn, and our stock eat it much more readily than the sweet
+sorghum. However, it requires a much longer season in which to ripen
+than does any of the other varieties, for which reason it is less
+desirable to plant in midsummer."
+
+
+
+Steers on Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+How much alfalfa hay will a two or three-year-old steer eat per day, and
+about what is the gain in weight per day?
+
+A steer will clean up about 33 pounds per day. Steers will make about 1
+1/2 pounds gain in weight per day.
+
+
+
+Concentrates with Alfalfa.
+
+
+
+I have a good supply of alfalfa hay and have been feeding this as a
+straight feed for my dairy cows. They are not, however, doing as well as
+they should and I am looking for some good feed to go with it.
+
+You could probably get better returns by feeding about a pound of
+cocoanut meal and three of dried beet pulp than by any other combination
+of concentrates with straight alfalfa. If you are producing market milk
+or butter prices justify it, more concentrates could profitably be fed.
+It is an expensive proposition to build up a properly balanced ration
+with alfalfa and concentrates alone, and unless market milk is being
+sold, it usually does not pay. The cheapest way to provide a balanced
+ration is not by concentrates, but by wheat or other grain straw, and
+let the cows eat all they care for. This is very cheap and helps to
+balance a ration with green or dry alfalfa hay, is usually cheap, and is
+fine for cows. Both are much less expensive than concentrates.
+
+
+
+Chopping Hay for Horses.
+
+
+
+What saving may be made by chopping all oat hay when fed to horses?
+
+There is no particular saving in chopping hay unless the horses are
+worked very hard and for very long hours, as is often the case with
+express horses in the cities, or unless the power for cutting is very
+cheap and feed high. The idea is that, except in unusual cases as above
+mentioned, the horses can do their own grinding cheaper than it can be
+done by power. Somewhat less hay is wasted when fed cut than when fed
+long, but if they are not fed too much long hay they will waste very
+little.
+
+
+
+Grain for Horses.
+
+
+
+What is the best formula for feeding work horses with oat hay, alfalfa,
+barley (crushed) and corn as rations?
+
+Feed one-half oat hay and one-half alfalfa hay, about 1 to 1 1/2 pounds
+per day for each 100 pounds live weight of the horse. Add to this from
+3/4 to 1 pound of rolled barley or corn for each 100 pounds live weight.
+If the corn is on the cob, four-fifths of its weight is corn; that is to
+say, 5 pounds of corn on the cob has 4 pounds of grain.
+
+
+
+Feeding Cut Alfalfa Hay.
+
+
+
+Would alfalfa hay, cut, say, from one-half to three inches in length be
+better than whole hay for hogs, cattle and horses, and if it is better,
+should it be fed wet or dry?
+
+Cattle and horses do much better when fed chopped alfalfa hay than when
+fed whole hay. They can eat the required amount in much less time and
+with less exertion. For cattle and horses the hay should be cut about
+one inch long and fed dry. There is no advantage in chopping alfalfa hay
+for hogs unless it is mixed with ground grain and made into slop. - L.
+P. Denny.
+
+
+
+Storing Cut Alfalfa Hay.
+
+
+
+We are planning on cutting our next season's crop of alfalfa with a feed
+cutter and storing it in a barn for winter feeding.
+
+The hay must, of course, be thoroughly cured, because of the great
+danger of heating in a tight mass. A. Balfour says: "I have been cutting
+alfalfa into a barn for wo seasons. It is absolutely necessary to have
+the sides and floor tight, and it is easier to feed it if it is in a
+loft. The hay is best stacked first, and must be thoroughly cured."
+
+
+
+Alfalfa Grinding.
+
+
+
+Is the curing of alfalfa for grinding different from ordinary; has it to
+be chopped before grinding, and what is the cost of grinding?
+
+Alfalfa hay should be cut when the very first blossoms commence to
+appear. At this point the plant contains the greatest amount of protein;
+from that time on until seed time, the protein diminishes and fiber
+increases. To make meal, hay should be well cured, have gone through the
+sweat, and should be dry, or as near dry as possible. It mills easier
+when dry and makes a finer product. It should be cured so as to retain
+the green color. To grind it, it is not necessary to cut it before
+grinding, it mills better if ground just as it comes from the stack. The
+cost of milling hay varies with the size of the machine, condition of
+hay, whether dry or damp, or whether tough or tender. With larger plants
+of a capacity of four to five tons per hour, it costs about 45 cents a
+ton to put it in the sack, exclusive of the cost of sacks; and with
+smaller, it runs from that on up to $1 to $2 per ton.
+
+
+
+Feeding Calves.
+
+
+
+How soon can calves be weaned and not hinder their growth? After
+weaning, what would you advise to feed them?
+
+After the calf has once nursed, it should be taken away from its mother,
+but fed its mother's milk for a few days, depending on the vigor of the
+calf. Commence to add skim-milk after a week or ten days, adding a small
+amount at first and increasing it daily until the calf is on an entirely
+skim-milk diet. The milk must be sweet, it must be as warm as its
+mother's milk and the calf must not have too much of it. Four quarts at
+a feed twice a day is sufficient for the average sized calf for the
+first month, then increase it accordingly. Add a spoonful of ground
+flaxseed to each feed and teach the calf to eat a little grain as soon
+as possible. Ground barley is the most economical feed to balance a
+ration containing so much skim-milk. If calves show a tendency to
+looseness of the bowels, feed less milk, and when this does not remedy
+the trouble, heat some skim-milk to boiling and when it is cooled to a
+proper temperature feed this to the calf. A good grain ration to feed
+calves along with skim-milk is ground barley with green alfalfa hay.
+When the milk is cut off, feed barley and bran soaked with molasses
+water. Put a pint of molasses in a pail of water and dampen feed with
+it. This amount will dampen three bushels of feed. - W. M. Carruthers.
+
+
+
+Winter Feed for Sheep.
+
+
+
+What would be the best to sow for sheep pasture - barley, oats, rye, vetch
+or rape?
+
+Of the grains, rye is usually found to be best for quick winter growth,
+and rye and vetches sown together are very satisfactory, because the rye
+holds the vetches up so that the whole growth can be more successfully
+handled with the mower, and if grown that way and fed green in a corral,
+a very large amount of good feed can be secured. Sufficient experiments
+have not yet been made with rape to fully demonstrate its value. Even if
+it grew well, it would be inferior in nutritive value to vetches and
+rye.
+
+
+
+Balanced Rations.
+
+
+
+What is a balanced ration for milk cows and brood sows?
+
+When plenty of alfalfa is available many dairymen feed that alone. It is
+better to feed a little corn, grain hay, beet pulp or the beets
+themselves to balance up the ration. Some of the best concentrates to
+feed to offset alfalfa hay are ground barley and dried beet pulp. The
+same thing can be said about the sows. They will consume about 10 pounds
+of chopped alfalfa per day and all the skim-milk that is likely to be
+given them. Not more than eight pounds of concentrates need be fed, of
+which one-fifth may be bran, the same amount, or more, of cocoanut oil
+cake, and the rest corn or barley. With plenty of skim-milk and alfalfa,
+but little grain or other concentrates will be needed. A few beets will
+also go well with alfalfa.
+
+
+
+Pasture and Cover Crop.
+
+
+
+I am thinking of sowing burr clover with rye to be plowed under in the
+spring. Is it good policy to sow rye with clover?
+
+Burr clover and rye would be very satisfactory for sowing, after the
+rains, to secure a winter growth for plowing under in March or April, or
+earlier if the growth should be large enough to warrant. Such a cover
+crop can be pastured lightly to advantage.
+
+
+
+Cutting Corn for Silage.
+
+
+
+What is the best time to cut corn for the silo? What length is it cut?
+Is water put on it when it is put in the silo?
+
+The best time to cut corn for the silo is just as the kernels are
+beginning to glaze. It is cut with a proper ensilage cutter into half or
+three-quarter inch lengths. No water is used, unless the corn should be
+unusually dry, with shriveled leaves; in that case, the use of water to
+compensate for the loss of moisture in the stalks and leaves is
+desirable.
+
+
+
+Fall and Winter Pasturage.
+
+
+
+What do you advise for planting in the fall for winter pasture in the
+Sacramento valley? Are field peas suitable?
+
+The common California field pea, called Niles pea, the Canadian pea, the
+common vetch (which is sometimes called the Oregon vetch because the
+seed is largely grown in that State) are all suitable for fall planting
+and winter growth because they are not injured by ordinary valley
+frosts. Aside from legumes, you can get winter feed from fall-sown rye,
+Essex rape or kale.
+
+
+
+Summer Pasture for Hogs.
+
+
+
+I want to pasture hogs in the San Joaquin valley this spring and summer.
+Have water for irrigation, but will not have time to get alfalfa started
+sufficient to pasture.
+
+Sorghum can be planted with pumpkins or some root crop between the rows.
+The root crop or the pumpkins could be used in the later summer, while
+the sorghums could come between the natural grasses of the early spring
+and the root crops. A strictly pasturage scheme is to sow wheat or
+barley and turn the hogs on this, so that they will eat within certain
+prescribed limits. In order to do this, the field needs a shifting
+fence, so that the hogs can be driven from one section to another -
+never letting the hogs eat too closely, as they will kill off the stand.
+
+
+
+Size of a Silo.
+
+
+
+I am planning to build a silo 8 feet high and 10 feet across. Will
+ensilage (corn, oats) keep well in a silo of those dimensions?
+
+The silo you are intending to build is too shallow, and would hold only
+a very small amount of silage. There would be several inches loss of
+silage before you could start feeding, and you would have to feed at
+least two and probably three inches off per day in order to keep the
+food from spoiling. Sixty inches of silage would thus only last about
+twenty days. Also, the deeper a silo is, the tighter the ensilage is
+packed and the more will be contained in a cubic foot. The following
+table will give suggestions as to dimensions:
+
+Diameter.   Height.   Capacity.     Diameter.   Height.    Capacity.
+10 feet     25 feet    36 tons      14 feet     34 feet    115 tons
+10  "       28  "      42  "        15  "       34  "      131   "
+11  "       29  "      60  "        16  "       35  "      158   "
+12  "       32  "      73  "        20  "       35  "      258   "
+13  "       33  "      83  "
+
+A cow can consume four tons of silage in 180 days and more or less as
+you care to feed, so by figuring out how long you will probably feed,
+you can see the size of silo to build at once.
+
+
+
+Soiling Crops in California.
+
+
+
+What are the dates for planting crops to be used for soiling in your
+State?
+
+We are using Indian corn and sorghums of various kinds for soiling to a
+certain extent. There is also some cutting and carrying of alfalfa,
+although most of the alfalfa is pastured. Dates of planting depend upon
+the frost-free period; sometimes beginning in April, and successive
+planting for later growth as water may be available for irrigation.
+There are places where one can see standing corn and sorghum untouched
+by frost as late as December 1. In other locations the growth of these
+plants have to be made between May and September. We have also
+winter-soiling practiced to a small extent in this State and for that
+purpose rye and barley sown at the beginning of the rainy season are
+used to some extent.
+
+
+
+Brewer's Grains for Cows.
+
+
+
+Are sprouted barley grains that may be had from breweries good for milch
+cows? Will it increase the milk, or will it dry up the cows?
+
+Professor Henry, in his standard work on "Feeds and Feedings," says:
+"Fresh brewer's grains constitute one of the best feeds for the dairy
+cow. She is fond of them and they influence most favorably the flow of
+milk. Fed while fresh in reasonable quantities, supplemented by bright
+hay or corn fodder for dry feed, the grains being kept in tight
+feed-boxes which can be kept clean, and with other conditions favorable
+to the healthfulness of the cow, no valid objection can be raised
+against this form of feed. From 20 to 30 pounds of wet grains should
+constitute a day's allowance."
+
+
+
+Feeding Pumpkins.
+
+
+
+What is the proper way to feed pumpkins to cows? Some say to cut them in
+halves; while others say they must be chopped fine enough so that the
+cows cannot choke on them. Some tell me the seeds tend to dry the cows
+up, and should not be fed with pumpkins.
+
+Pumpkins should be either cut in halves or broken in large fragments so
+that the stock can get a bite at them or else should be chopped fine,
+and we could never see the advantage of going to that trouble. Cutting
+into medium-sized pieces is dangerous because of the temptation to
+swallow them whole and thus getting choked. It is not necessary to
+remove the seeds.
+
+
+
+Feeding a Family Cow.
+
+
+
+What shall I feed family Jersey cow in addition to alfalfa hay to insure
+a good supply of milk?
+
+One of the best things to feed in addition to alfalfa hay is a couple of
+quarts of middling or bran twice a day, with which is mixed a cup of
+molasses with enough water to make a nice paste. Dried beet pulp is
+exceptionally good with alfalfa, if it is available, this also to be
+moistened before feeding.
+
+
+
+Rolled Barley for Cows.
+
+
+
+Will rolled barley hurt milk cows, say two light feeds a day? Will it
+not do about as much good as the same amount of bran?
+
+Certainly not and otherwise will be good if not used in excess to
+encourage fattening. Bran is a better feed for milk because it has a
+higher protein content.
+
+
+
+Horse Beans and Pie-melons.
+
+
+
+Would it pay me to raise horse beans for fattening hogs? Horse beans do
+well. Would citrons do well there without irrigation, and would they be
+better than stock-beets for hog feed?
+
+We do not promise anyone that anything will pay. Horsebeans are good
+with other feeds for hogs. Theoretically, they will balance well with
+pie-melons and beets, and both the latter will produce well on good land
+with proper cultivation in the valley you mention. Theoretically, also,
+we would rather have beets than pie-melons. The hogs will tell you the
+rest.
+
+
+
+Horse Beans.
+
+
+
+Are "horse beans" a leguminous crop and how does their feeding value for
+hogs compare to cowpeas and Canadian field peas?
+
+They surely are legumes, and they resemble so closely in composition the
+other legumes which you mention that their feeding value would be
+practically the same.
+
+
+
+Storing Stock Beets.
+
+
+
+What is the best method of storing stock beets and stock carrots in this
+climate? We can let them remain in the ground and grow until February or
+March and would like to preserve them for feeding as long as possible.
+
+Stock beets and carrots can be stored in California without recourse to
+covering with ground or use of a cellar. They keep very well during the
+winter if piled under cover in such a way as to keep cool and dry.
+
+
+
+Kale for Cow Feed.
+
+
+
+What is kale worth for cow feed as compared with alfalfa, also can it be
+cut and cured the same as alfalfa and what variety is the best?
+
+Kale is very similar to cabbage in growth, and for feeding purposes. For
+cow feed it would have about three-fourths the amount of digestible
+nutrients as green alfalfa, but would have an added value on account of
+its succulency. It would go especially well with alfalfa hay. The Jersey
+or Thousand-Headed kale is considered the standard for stock or poultry
+feed. It is always fed fresh and is not made into hay.
+
+
+
+What Kind of Beet for Stock?
+
+
+
+Which would be most valuable to plant on river-bottom land for cattle
+and hog feed, sugar beets or mangels?
+
+Grow a large stock of beet by all means - either a mangel or a tankard.
+Usually you will get more weight than with sugar beets; the cost of
+harvesting is far less, and the nutritive contents high enough.
+
+
+
+Keeping Pumpkins.
+
+
+
+What is the best way of storing pumpkins, under ordinary farm
+conditions, in a climate such as we have here in northern California? I
+have no facilities for cold storage.
+
+All you have to do in this climate to keep pumpkins is to keep them out
+of reach of the stock. They do not need storage of any kind, but will
+keep in good condition during the late autumn and winter months in any
+open-air place where they may be convenient for feeding purposes. In
+parts of California where there is hard ground freezing, protection must
+be given by covering with boards or straw or any other material
+available. We have no need for root cellars or cold storage, for our
+winter temperatures are neither high nor low enough to hurt them.
+
+
+
+Grape Pomace as Hog Feed.
+
+
+
+What is the value of grape pomace as a hog feed?
+
+It has been sold for 50 cents a ton as it comes from the press at the
+winery and when a person has not got any surplus of other feeds, it is
+evidently worth that and then some. The only way to feed it is to put it
+up in a big pile and let the hogs take it as they want it. It will help
+keep them growing through the winter provided they have other feed with
+it that might not be sufficient without the pomace.
+
+
+
+Proper Feeding of Young Pigs.
+
+
+
+If I put two 50-pound shoats to an acre of barley that will yield 10 or
+12 sacks of grain, how many months could they be kept there to
+advantage, and what gain could I expect them to make in that time?
+
+If the pigs have been properly fed and were of good stock, they should
+have attained a weight of 50 pounds at three or four months of age. Pigs
+in this condition would be more likely to lose than gain turned on a dry
+barley field, even if the yield were double what you state. Barley is an
+excellent fattener for mature hogs, but is a poor food for young growing
+pigs. Young pigs should have a balanced ration, which may be defined as
+a little of almost all kinds of feed and not all of any one kind. We
+have pigs running on a barley field such as you describe, and in
+addition to the barley we feed them once a day a slop composed of wheat
+middling and bran in equal parts by measurement, to which we add about 8
+per cent tankage, and they seem to be moving along nicely. Without the
+slop we don't think they would hold their own. - Chas. Goodman.
+
+
+
+Pie-melons and Pigs.
+
+
+
+I have 14 sows which were fed almost entirely on pie-melons and milk,
+not much of the latter. Out of the 14, only 3 sows have saved any pigs;
+the rest lost all the young they had. Four or five sows that for the
+last three weeks have had no melons, nothing but green grass and a
+little whole barley each day, are saving their pigs all right.
+
+Pie-melons are poor feed and pigs which are not given anything better
+ought to fail. "Green grass and a little whole barley" is much better
+feed than pie-melons. Pie-melons are useful fed with alfalfa hay or some
+richer food.
+
+
+
+Wheat or Barley for Hogs.
+
+
+
+Which would be the better grain for me to buy for hog feed; wheat at
+$1.30 per hundred, or barley at $1? Would it be worth paying 10 cents a
+hundred for rolling, and then haul the grain 8 miles by wagon?
+
+Wheat is only considered about 10 per cent more valuable as a hog feed
+than barley, so that in your case, barley at $1 is the cheaper. In
+Bulletin 80 of the Oregon Station it was found that crushed wheat was 29
+per cent more efficient than the whole grain, and it is safe to say that
+barley will run about the same, enough so at any rate to pay the extra
+10 cents a hundred for crushing and the hauling.
+
+
+
+Grain and Pasture for Pigs.
+
+
+
+What is the most profitable amount of grain to feed to spring pigs while
+on alfalfa pasture, from the time of weaning to the time of marketing?
+
+We doubt the profit of feeding whole grain to hogs of any age while on
+green pasture. On almost all kinds of land they will get enough grit to
+keep their teeth sore, hence they will not masticate the grain
+thoroughly. Perfect mastication is very essential. We would feed the
+pigs all the slop that they would clean up good twice a day. The slop to
+be composed of equal parts of corn, barley meal ground fine, and wheat
+middlings mixed with milk. There is nothing in all the world like milk
+for growing pigs. If milk is not to be had, we would add from 5 to 10
+per cent meat meal, which we consider next to milk. If whole grain is to
+be used, it should be thoroughly cooked on account of the pigs' teeth
+not being in condition to chew the hard grain. - Chas. Goodman.
+
+
+
+Growing Pigs on Roots and Barley.
+
+
+
+We can raise all kinds of root crops, such as carrots, sugar beets,
+rutabagas, etc., and cow peas and pumpkins do wonderfully well. Will
+hogs do well an that kind of diet, especially if given a little barley
+with it?
+
+The plants that you mention are good for hog feeding and can be used to
+advantage with a little barley as you suggest. None of these plants are,
+however, rich in protein as alfalfa and the other clovers are. The
+reason why we get such a rapid and satisfactory growth of young hogs in
+California is due to the fact that they are largely kept on alfalfa and
+rapid growth is the product of a sufficient protein content in the
+fodder. Both common field peas and cowpeas do not possess this element,
+and if you can grow them they will serve as a substitute for the other
+legumes, such as alfalfa. If you are feeding skim-milk, which is rich in
+protein, roots and grain will go well with that.
+
+
+
+Wheat and Barley for Feeding.
+
+
+
+What is the difference in the feeding value of wheat and barley for hogs
+and horses?
+
+There is very little difference in the chemical composition of wheat and
+barley. In their physical condition there is much difference, chiefly
+because of the adhering chaff of the barley, which makes it more
+digestible because it separates the starchy mass and enables the gastric
+juice to work upon the particles more readily and quickly. Oats also
+have this character. This is very important in the case of horses, which
+can quickly be put out of condition by feeding wheat. For hogs and
+chickens it makes much less difference, and the absence of the chaff
+gives a greater amount of nutritive matter to the ton, so that wheat is
+worth more at the same ton price. But look out about giving horses too
+much wheat.
+
+
+
+Part VII. Diseases of Animals
+
+This division is largely compiled from the writings of Dr. E. J. Creely
+of the San Francisco Veterinary College.
+
+
+
+Abscess of Parotid Gland.
+
+
+
+My horse has had a bad cold and it has a large lump on its neck which
+keeps running and does not seem to get any better; it has been running
+for two weeks.
+
+This horse has an abscess of the parotid gland and the abscess should be
+opened large enough so that the finger can be introduced to break down
+adhesions, so that proper drainage can be established, after which wash
+out with a 5 per cent solution of permanganate of potash. As this is a
+dangerous location for a layman to interfere with, owing to the
+branching of the carotid artery, pneumogastric nerve and jugular vein,
+it should be done by a qualified veterinarian.
+
+
+
+Forage Poisoning.
+
+
+
+Last fall one of our horses was taken ill and had a swollen jaw. He died
+soon and we supposed that he had been kicked and died of lockjaw. This
+spring another was taken ill. He began dragging around, making an effort
+to eat and drink, but not being able to swallow much. Something seemed
+wrong with his throat and his hind legs. In two or three days he got
+down, seeming to have no strength in his back. He kept struggling for
+two days, not being able to swallow much; so we put him out of his
+misery. Since then two others have gone off the same way.
+
+The trouble is due to forage poisoning, caused by the eating food
+infested with poisonous moulds. The symptoms are inability to swallow
+(paralysis of the muscles of deglutition) and paresis of the hind and
+forequarters. When the symptoms become advanced, treatment is of little
+avail. However, further troubles can be prevented by ascertaining the
+food which is infested with this mould. Ofttimes, however, such food may
+be apparently clean to the eye. Make a complete change of food and a
+thorough cleaning of your stable and corrals of all old fodder which
+might be in the mangers, or in any accessible place. Very frequently old
+food which is left in the bottom of mangers becomes mouldy, and horses
+picking for grain which might be left in it, eat considerable quantities
+of this spoiled fodder, get poisoned.
+
+
+
+For a Scabby Swelling.
+
+One of my cows has a swelling on her hind leg with little scabs on it,
+first it was on the front leg. It is as big as your hand.
+
+Use the following, applied once daily: Olive oil, 1 pint; turpentine, 2
+ounces; oil cedar, 2 ounces; lysol, 1 ounce; mix and apply.
+
+
+
+An Easement in Bloat.
+
+
+
+What can be done for bloating?
+
+It does not seem to be generally known that to put a bridle on a cow or
+put a stick in her mouth and tie tightly with a string or strap up over
+her head, so as to keep her jaws working, will relieve bloat. We have
+given common soda and salt with good results to our milk cows. Take a
+whip and run her around the corral, after giving the soda. This
+treatment causes the wind to pass off.
+
+
+
+Fatal Skin Disease.
+
+
+
+About two months ago a horse was turned out in pasture. Several of the
+horses in the pasture started to lose their hair. It seemed to fall away
+from the hide, and leave the skin exposed. The horse that was newly
+turned to pasture got the same disease and died. The other horses did
+not die. The hair on the horse that had died had fallen off from the
+sides and hind legs.
+
+This is gangrenous dermatis, a gangrenout inflammation of the skin. It
+is due to mould, must or vegetable fungi. Remove to a new pasture, give
+food free from the fungi, and apply the following ointment to the skin:
+Lanoline, 8 ounces; zinc oxide, 1 ounce; Pearson's Creoline, 1/2 ounce;
+tannin, 3 drachms; mix and apply once daily.
+
+
+
+Shoulder Injury on Mare.
+
+
+
+A young mare that bruised her shoulder on the point with collar. It was
+lanced and now has a hard lump or callous, about three inches in
+diameter. What is best to do? She is not lame, but it would interfere
+with the collar.
+
+Get a qualified veterinarian to operate and entirely remove the growth
+or you may use the following mixture to see if it will not cause it to
+partly absorb and then use a dutch collar or a specially padded collar:
+Compound tinct. iodine, 4 ounces; sulphuric ether, 2 ounces; oil cedar,
+2 ounces; turpentine, 4 ounces; mix and apply once daily until
+blistered.
+
+
+
+Horse with Worms.
+
+
+
+What is the best remedy for a horse that has worms? I would like to
+know, as I have a horse that is getting poor with this trouble.
+
+Mix 1/2 pound pulverized and dried iron sulphate and 1/2 pound
+bicarbonate of soda, and give one teaspoonful each morning until the
+medicine is gone. After the last dose give the following: Turpentine, 2
+ounces; fluid extract male fern, 1/2 ounce; Pearson's Creolins, 1 ounce;
+raw linseed oil, 1 pint. Mix and give all at one dose. To improve the
+general condition one may give artificial Carlsbad salts, 1
+tablespoonful in each feed, and each dose to have added to it 3 to 5
+grains arsenious acid. If plenty rock salt is allowed for horses to
+lick, they will be protected against intestinal parasites to a slight
+but useful degree.
+
+
+
+Is It Mange?
+
+
+
+We have a horse five years old that is always scratching and biting
+himself as if he had mange or lice. He seems to itch more on his
+shoulders and front legs than any other place. We have washed him with a
+carbolic wash, also with a tea made from tobacco, but so far have been
+unable to stop it. He often bites his legs below the knees until he
+takes off all the hair and part of the skin. None of the other horses
+are, troubled, although this horse has been troubled for three years.
+
+Apply the following: Lysol, 1 ounce; kerosene, 4 ounces; formalin, 2
+drachms; cotton seed oil, 9 ounces. Mix and apply once daily after
+washing with hot sheep dip solution 10 to 100.
+
+
+
+Horse with Itch.
+
+
+
+For about a year my horse has been itching so badly that he has rubbed
+off all the hair on certain parts of his body. Lately he bites his tail.
+
+Whitewash the stall once weekly, scrub the harness, brushes, combs and
+every stable appliance that he has come in contact with. Don't use the
+same appliance on other animals that you use on this horse. Use the
+following mixture once daily on affected spots: Milk of sulphur, 4
+ounces; tincture of iodine, 4 ounces; turpentine, 4 ounces; kerosene, 16
+ounces; cottonseed oil, 120 ounces.
+
+
+
+For a Bowel Trouble.
+
+
+
+What can I do to relieve a horse that balls up on alfalfa at the time of
+the first symptoms? I have been bothered considerably with this, and
+although I know the symptoms, I can never seem to relieve the pain
+before the veterinary is called.
+
+Give the following prescription: Fluid extract Cannabis Indica, 3
+ounces; sulphuric ether, 2 ounces; spirits turpentine, 3 ounces; oil
+peppermint, 10 drops; raw linseed oil, 24 ounces. Mix. Give one-half at
+once, balance in one hour. If not relieved give several hotwater
+soap-sud injections.
+
+
+
+Abnormal Thirst of Horse.
+
+
+
+I have a horse with an abnormal desire for water. I notice that in
+drinking she always wants more than the others. I also notice she
+perspires more freely in the harness and even will sweat in the barn at
+night.
+
+Your horse has kidney affection, probably due to feeding hay rich in
+alkalines. Treatment: Change the feed and give 1 quart of thick flaxseed
+tea three times daily.
+
+
+
+Scours.
+
+
+
+Kindly recommend a treatment for a horse troubled with scours. He is on
+dry feed, but the trouble continues.
+
+Give very little water mornings and while worked, but give plenty at
+night. Feed dry rolled oats, oat hay, one handful of whole flaxseed at
+night, and the following powder: Bismuth subgalate, 4 ounces; iron
+sulphate, dessicated, 8 ounces; bismuth subnitrate, 8 ounces. Mix, and
+give a heaping teaspoonful each morning.
+
+
+
+Depraved Appetite.
+
+
+
+I have a colt about one year old that continually delights in chewing up
+harness, ropes, chews on the manger and, in fact, anything it can get a
+hold of.
+
+This is a condition caused by something being lacking in the system
+(lime, salts, etc.). Give plenty of salt, good food, grain, etc. Get
+this prescription: Iron sulphate, 2 ounces; soda syposulphate, 4 ounces;
+Gentian root pulv., 2 ounces; ginger, 1 ounce. Mix and give teaspoonful
+daily.
+
+
+
+Good Dentist Needed.
+
+
+
+I have an old horse which has always been fat and quite full of life
+until right lately. Now he is getting thin and looks bad. He eats his
+food all right. I had his teeth fixed a few weeks ago. The man said they
+were bad and he fixed them as well as he could.
+
+There is probably an excessively long molar projecting into a cavity and
+the projecting molar should be cut off by a qualified veterinarian. The
+horse will begin to pick up and grow fat almost as soon as the condition
+is relieved. Most horse owners will permit every person with a float to
+ruin a horse's mouth without inquiring whether the dentist possesses
+proper qualifications as certified by a State license and diploma.
+
+
+
+Kidney Trouble.
+
+
+
+My horse has some trouble in passing water. What can I give him that may
+be put in the mash? I don't think his trouble is due all to old age, for
+it didn't come on gradually.
+
+Give gran. sal nitre: a teaspoonful daily in water is good to stimulate
+the kidneys.
+
+
+
+For Chronic Indigestion.
+
+
+
+I have given my horse condition powders for indigestion, but her hair is
+rough still. Do you advise feeding on the road when a horse leaves the
+stable at 10 a. m., traveling continually for thirty miles, returning
+5:30 p. m., being fed at 7 a. m.?
+
+A great majority of condition powders contain resin and antimony. While
+a slight amount may be beneficial, continued use results in affection of
+the kidneys by over-stimulation. Give the following for indigestion:
+Bismuth subintrate, 1 ounce; powdered pepsine, 1 ounce; soda bi
+carbonate, 12 ounces; carbonate iron, 2 ounces. Mix and give a heaping
+teaspoon twice daily. By all means feed your horse three times daily and
+water as often as you can. It is unnecessary to warn you that the horse
+must not be overheated when you give the noonday feed.
+
+
+
+Wound Sore.
+
+
+
+My colt got its hind leg cut on barbed wire some weeks ago. There is a
+hole about an inch and one-half deep in the center of the sore which
+will not heal. The inside of the sore does not seem very tender, but the
+leg stays swollen all of the time and is somewhat feverish.
+
+This is probably a fistulous track that should be curetted by a
+veterinarian, after which the following formula could be used to heal:
+Acetanilide, 1/2 ounce; zinc oxide, 1/4 ounce; bismuth subgalate, 1 1/4
+ounce. Mix and apply on cotton and bandage once daily after washing.
+
+
+
+Warts on Horse.
+
+
+
+How can warts be removed from a horse's hide?
+
+We use sulphuric acid. The results were favorable from the very start.
+The warts rapidly shrunk away and finally disappeared entirely. The acid
+is applied to the crown of the wart with a small swab or similar
+instrument, and only in sufficient quantities to wet the crown surface
+of the wart. It should be applied about three times a week until the
+wart is well reduced. Don't use too much acid, and don't keep up the
+application too long - A. F. Etter.
+
+
+
+Kidney Trouble in Horse.
+
+
+
+What is the remedy for a horse that stops often to urinate while
+working?
+
+The horse is affected by an irritation of the kidneys. Give 1 quart of
+flaxseed tea daily, change the food and give 1 drachm of C. P.
+hydro-chloric acid in one bucket of drinking water.
+
+
+
+Castration of Colt.
+
+
+
+Which is the correct and best way to castrate a yearling colt, with an
+emasculator or a blade, and when is the proper time?
+
+An emasculator is the only instrument to use in castrating. The object
+in using any instrument is to prevent a hemorrhage, and nothing works
+with so much certainty and quickness. The A. Hausman and Dunn
+emasculator is recommended. The proper time is when the weather is mild,
+the grass at its best and the colt in good condition.
+
+
+
+For a Chronic Cough.
+
+
+
+We have a mare seven years old that is troubled with a chronic cough,
+and at times shows symptoms of heaves, and also has occasionally a white
+foamy discharge from the nostrils. She is a greedy eater and drinker and
+her excreta is often very offensive.
+
+If she expels flatus when she coughs, this would indicate a
+predisposition to heaves. Wet all food, as dry or dusty food aggravates
+the cough. Give the following: Spirits camphor, 4 ounces; Fl. Ext.
+belladonna, 2 ounces; neutral oil, 8 ounces; oil eucalyptus, 2 ounces.
+Mix and give tablespoonful three times daily.
+
+
+
+Chronic Indigestion.
+
+
+
+I have a mare eleven years old. Give her plenty of oats, hay, grain and
+a little alfalfa hay three nights per week and leave salt where she can
+get at it, but she is falling off and her hair does not lie down
+properly. She eats well and her system seems to be in good condition.
+Have had her teeth attended to so she chews her food well.
+
+This condition is caused by the animal not being able to properly
+masticate the food. Have your dentist examine the mouth again, or you
+can carefully examine the feces and see if it shows whole grain, or long
+pieces of hay.
+
+
+
+For Short-Wind or Heaves.
+
+
+
+I have a mare that has something wrong with her wind. About six months
+ago I noticed her wind was not good and she had a slight cough, and
+about a week later, while working her, she seemed to choke down and
+almost died before she got her wind, and since then she sometimes takes
+those spells should she trot off briskly for a short distance.
+
+Give two 3/2-ounce doses of Fowler's solution arsenic daily. Dusty or
+musty hay will aggravate the symptoms. Thoroughly shake out the dust and
+wet the hay. Feed hay only at night. Give the animal as little feed and
+water as possible before being put to work. Continue this treatment one
+month if necessary. The following is a case of experience with this
+treatment: For a remedial agent we began to use Fowler's Solution of
+Arsenic, in two teaspoonful doses at first. once a day, put in the water
+with which the hay was moistened. These doses were given for a few days,
+then skipped for a day, then continued for five or six days again. This
+treatment has been continued. At times when the trouble was most severe,
+giving a great spoonful at a dose, twice a day for two days, then
+stopping for a day or two, always being sure to mix it with the water
+which the hay is moistened, so that it shall be taken into the stomach
+very slowly. This course of treatment has served to so relieve the
+disease that nature has nearly or quite overcome it.
+
+
+
+Side-Bone.
+
+
+
+I have a 1500-pound 3-year-old colt with small brittle feet that has
+side bone coming on left front foot caused by driving him barefoot on
+the road two or three months ago.
+
+A good blister of the following once every six weeks for three times
+will stop the side-bones from growing. Side-bones on a draft horse are
+not considered an unsoundness; in light fast drivers it is an incurable
+blemish causing lameness. Side-bones cannot be removed. Use this
+blister: Simple cerate, 4 ounces; cantharides, 3 drachms; bin iodide
+mercury, 2 drachms. Mix thoroughly and apply after clipping hair.
+
+
+
+Fungus Poisoning.
+
+
+
+One of my mares, every evening after a full day's work harrowing, stands
+for an hour or so with her head to the ground, shaking it frequently and
+not touching the feed till the spell was over. She does not seem to be
+any worse off, and in the morning seems to be in good shape.
+
+This is due to a mold or fungus in the earth or hay. Let them have
+access to plenty of water during the day. In the morning feed give a
+handful of sodium hyposulphate.
+
+
+
+Treatment for Horse's Feet.
+
+
+
+The soles of the fore feet of a fine 4-year-old horse, weight 1350, are
+rather spongy and grow down faster than the hoof, sometimes causing
+slight lameness. He is not on soft pasture, but is stabled all the time.
+Now have bar shoes on him. What treatment do you recommend?
+
+Use leather, tar and okum and a dish-shoe.
+
+
+
+For a Cleft Hoof.
+
+
+
+I have a horse with a cracked hoof. One hind foot has been in a bad
+condition, the other seems to be beginning to crack. Can anything be
+done by feeding or otherwise to toughen the hoofs and render them less
+liable to crack?
+
+Apply the following: Honey, 2 ounces; yellow wax, 4 ounces; tar, 2
+ounces; olive oil, 8 ounces. Melt, mix and apply once daily.
+
+
+
+Stiff Joints.
+
+
+
+I have a horse that was bruised on the ankle about two years ago. This
+is now producing an enlargement of the bone and stiffness of the joint.
+
+Apply the following liniment: Sulphuric ether, 1 ounce; tinct. iodine, 1
+ounce; pulv. camphor, 1 ounce; alcohol, ounces; turpentine, 2 ounces;
+oil of cedar, 2 ounces.
+
+
+
+Treatment for Nail Puncture.
+
+
+
+Our horse got a nail in his foot. It was a wire nail, rusty, entering
+about one inch from the point of the frog, and just puncturing far
+enough to reach a sensitive part of the hoof. It occurred six days ago;
+the nail was pulled at once, the hoof cut open, and thoroughly cleaned
+with turpentine (the first thing we could get), then later filled with
+iodine. Since then I have kept on a flaxseed poultice.
+
+The treatment with turpentine and iodine was proper and should prove a
+success. If the foot becomes tender and inflamed, it will be because all
+dirt was not removed from the wound, and the poultice should be taken
+off, all foreign matter removed from the wound, and the treatment
+repeated. In case of similar accidents, other disinfectants could be
+used in place of turpentine or iodine.
+
+
+
+Pregnancy of Mare.
+
+
+
+Is there any way to tell when a mare is in foal? I have had a
+veterinarian and he could not tell me.
+
+There is no very good way to tell whether a mare is in foal for some
+time. Practically speaking, the safest way to do is to have her bred
+every time she comes in heat until she takes the stallion no longer.
+Even then some mares will come in heat a couple of times after getting
+in foal. If the sexual excitement speedily subsides and the mare
+persistently refuses the stallion for a month, she is probably pregnant,
+though not surely so. Also if a vicious mare becomes gentle after
+service it is an excellent indication of pregnancy; likewise pregnant
+mares will very often put on fat rapidly after conception and will be
+unable and unwilling to do as hard work as before. Enlargement of the
+abdomen, especially in its lower third, with slight falling in beneath
+the loins and hollowness of the back are significant symptoms, though
+they may be entirely absent. Swelling and firmness of the udder, with
+the smoothing out of its wrinkles, is a suggestive sign, even though it
+appears only at intervals during gestation. A steady increase of weight
+(1 1/4 pounds daily) about the fourth or fifth month is a useful
+indication of pregnancy. The further along the mare is in gestation the
+more pronounced the symptoms become. In the early stages it is naturally
+much more difficult to detect, especially with the great differences in
+different mares. Cessation of heat and changes of disposition are about
+the best signs in early stages.
+
+
+
+Diseased Uterus of Mare.
+
+
+
+I have a brood mare that has given me two fine colts, but for the last
+two years I have not been able to get her with foal. She takes service
+and then refuses service for three or four months, and about the time I
+come to the conclusion that she is safe with foal she will pass off
+great quantities of mattery substance. I have had her thoroughly washed
+out with Lysol previous to breeding, but so far she has repeated this
+performance each time about three or four months after service.
+
+This is a disease of the ovaries or uterus; perhaps mumification of a
+foetus. Irrigate with a normal salt solution (teaspoon salt to each pint
+of warm water) only daily. Insert the solution through the neck of the
+womb into the uterus. Give internally 1/2 ounce daily of Fowler's
+Solution of Arsenic.
+
+
+
+Deep-Seated Abscess.
+
+
+
+I have a mule which has a swelling on the throat about where the
+throatlatch touches. It just seems to be swollen hard and not sore. I am
+using caustic liniment to fester it so it will come to a head and I can
+open it, but the liniment does not seem to do much good. The mule is
+losing flesh and does not eat much.
+
+This mule should be operated upon at once by a qualified veterinarian.
+The application of liniments or blisters are useless; the knife only
+will effect a cure. The fact that the mule is losing flesh makes the
+case serious.
+
+
+
+Cure for Cocked Ankles.
+
+
+
+I have a 4-year-old mare that has cocked ankles, and would like to know
+what treatment to give her.
+
+Cocked ankles are due to an inflammation of the tendons back of the
+ankle and a drawing up or contraction in consequence. Put on heel calks
+one inch, no toe, to rest and relieve the back tendons from strain.
+Apply the following liniment at night, after which put on cold-water
+swabs and let them remain all night: Soap liniment, 8 ounces; tincture
+iodine, 2 ounces; oil cedar, 4 ounces; sulphuric ether, 2 ounces. Mix
+and apply once daily.
+
+
+
+Dehorning.
+
+
+
+Which is the best way to dehorn cows and calves?
+
+The best time to dehorn cows is in the spring, before the fly season
+starts. It is best not to have a cow too far along in calf before
+dehorning, as she is very apt to lose her calf. It is also better to
+dehorn before your cows freshen, because when cows are milking and are
+dehorned they will go back in their milk a great deal for the first
+month after the dehorning has taken place. Calves can be dehorned by
+blistering the little buttons before they adhere to the skull. This is
+very simple and not painful. First clip the hair about the horns and wet
+the little loose button and apply caustic potash, in stick form, by
+rubbing it on the damp horn. Remember, this must be done before the horn
+adheres to the skull. Also remember not to use water enough to run the
+lye away from the button and rub until the skin reddens. Also, look out
+to keep your end of the potash stick dry or you may dehorn the tips of
+your fingers.
+
+
+
+Paralysis During Pregnancy.
+
+
+
+I have a cow that will freshen in a few days. About six days ago she
+seemed weak in her hind legs and on going downhill would drag or stumble
+for 10 or 12 feet, then catch herself and go on rather wobbly.
+
+Pregnant animals about to bring forth their young sometimes show a
+paralysis or loss of power in their hind parts due to pressure of
+foetus. Nature corrects this after birth.
+
+
+
+Bloody Milk.
+
+
+
+What can be done to stop bloody milk?
+
+Milk each teat in a separate glass jar, let stand to ascertain which
+teat the red specks are coming from, then milk the teats clean and
+inject the infected teat with equal parts of hydrogen dioxide and water.
+After a few hours inject 4 drachms of ferric chloride in 1 ounce of
+water. Then milk clean.
+
+
+
+To Cleanse Cows.
+
+
+
+My cows are healthy and calves all right, but seem to have trouble
+throwing the afterbirth.
+
+Wash out twice daily with about 1 gallon of normal salt solution
+(teaspoonful of salt to each pint of warm water). Give internally the
+following powder: Pulv. gentian, 4 ounces; puv. slippery elm, 1 ounce;
+puv. charcoal, 1 ounce; pulv. hyposulphate of soda. 8 ounces. Mix and
+give a heaping teaspoonful twice daily.
+
+
+
+Treatment for Caked Bag.
+
+
+
+I have a cow whose udder is caked hard and has been swollen from the
+udder to the forelegs. This latter swelling has gone down by applying
+equal mixture of turpentine and lard, but the udder itself still remains
+hard. When first noticed, one teat caked, then another, until all four
+are caked alike.
+
+Insert a milk tube and inject the following: Hydrogen dioxide, 8 ounces;
+tincture iron chloride, 1 ounce; water, 7 ounces. Inject into each
+affected teat. Apply the following externally: Camphorated oil, 8
+ounces; tincture belladonna, 2 ounces; oil eucalyptus, 2 ounces. Mix and
+apply twice daily.
+
+
+
+Garget.
+
+
+
+I have a cow which gave rich milk all the time, but now every time I
+milk her some yellow, hard substance will come out instead of milk.
+First from one teat, then the next, and when I strain the milk the
+strainer will be full of hard yellow specks.
+
+Your cow has undoubtedly been affected with garget. This milk should not
+be used. The condition is best treated by massaging the udder every day
+with camphorated oil. It will also be necessary for you to continue to
+milk her regularly until about six weeks before she is due to freshen,
+at which time you should proceed to dry her up.
+
+
+
+Infectious Mastitis.
+
+
+
+We have a 2-year-old heifer, which, two weeks before she was due to
+freshen, had a large udder slightly caked. Upon pressing the teat a
+discharge of blood issues from each teat.
+
+This is infectious mastitis. It may be due to a bruise or blow or
+infection introduced through the milk duct. The first is most likely.
+Apply camphorated oil externally and inject into the affected udder some
+hydrogen dioxide (peroxide of hydrogen. - EDITOR.). After ten minutes,
+milk out again. Repeat once daily.
+
+
+
+A Mangy Cow.
+
+
+
+I have a milk cow with some trouble about her head, neck and shoulders,
+which causes her to rub herself enough to make raw spots and take off
+most all of the hair from the parts affected. The trouble has been
+standing for 18 months, but I have been using medicine at different
+times, which stops the rubbing, and the part will cover with hair nicely
+again, but in due time the trouble shows up again.
+
+This cow seems to have mange or scabbies, which is caused by a parasite
+and is easily spread by contact to other cattle. It should be treated by
+two or three applications, ten days apart, of a hot solution of creolin,
+well scrubbed into the skin. The solution is made by mixing five
+tablespoonfuls of creolin in a gallon of hot water. The treatment should
+be applied pretty well over the body to cover all the affected parts,
+and needs to be repeated in ten days to destroy the younger generation.
+The sheds should be cleaned and whitewashed.
+
+
+
+Irritation on Back of Udder.
+
+
+
+I have a yearling heifer which has sore teats and blotches just back of
+her bag which seem to itch. Her mother had a sort of eczema on her neck.
+I fear her sore teats will spoil her for milking when she comes in next
+year.
+
+The following treatment is advised: Drench with 1 pound of Epsom salts
+dissolved in a couple quarts of water. The sores may be treated by
+washing them with a 2 per cent solution of one of the coaltar
+disinfectants, such as creolin. After the sores have been allowed to dry
+naturally, a very little powdered calomel may be dusted thereon. Do this
+every other day for a few days.
+
+
+
+Enlarged Gland on Neck.
+
+
+
+I have a calf that has a lump on her neck, which appeared when she was
+two days old. The lump is getting larger.
+
+This is probably an enlarged thyroid gland. Apply the following once
+daily for several weeks and let it alone unless it becomes too large or
+gets very soft, which is unlikely. Churchill's tincture iodine, 8
+ounces; turpentine, 1 ounce; sulphuric ether, 2 ounces; oil aniseed, 1/2
+ounce. Mix and apply once daily.
+
+
+
+Lumpy Jaw.
+
+
+
+Some of my cows have hard lumps on their jaws, or lumpy jaw. Can that be
+cured, and how?
+
+This is Actinomycosis (lumpy jaw) and is due to ray fungi (actinomyces)
+which are found originally on plants which enter the body in various
+ways. The trouble usually appears in the upper or lower jaws of cattle,
+where it generally produces tumors of bone or soft tissues. For
+treatment give 1 1/2 drachms of iodide of potash in 1/2 pint of water
+daily for 14 days. Increase to 2 drachms for 14 more days, and then
+gradually decrease. Divide the tumor and insert gauze saturated with
+tincture of iodine for 4 days. In 8 days a visible improvement will be
+noticed,
+
+
+
+A Neck-Swelling.
+
+
+
+My cow has a swelling under her neck between her jaw bones about the
+size of a baseball and almost as hard. It is not attached to anything
+apparently, but largely suspended by the skin at the entrance to the
+throat.
+
+Cut directly through the center of the enlargement, clean to the bottom,
+splitting it wide open. Clean it out with peroxide of hydrogen, after
+which saturate absorbent cotton with tincture iodine, pack in tight and
+sew the skin to hold it in place. Remove the dressing in 48 hours and
+wash with sheep dip (tablespoon to 1 quart of warm water) twice daily.
+This may be tubercular, or the result of foxtail, etc.
+
+
+
+Cow Chewing Bones.
+
+
+
+One of my cows is continually chewing bones. What can I do to prevent
+it?
+
+Give the cow good clean hay; some root crop, cocoanut meal, bran or
+soy-bean meal. If the cow does not stop mix in the drinking water twice
+daily a little dilute hydrochloric acid. Also, have boxes arranged near
+feeding stalls which contain wood ashes, slaked lime and salt.
+
+
+
+Swelling on the Dewlap.
+
+
+
+I have a cow that has a large lump at the point of the breastbone, the
+dewlap. This lump is as large as a cocoanut, and was caused, I think, by
+friction against a low manger in eating.
+
+Get equal parts of tincture of iodine and soap liniment and rub onto the
+swelling twice daily for a week.
+
+
+
+Barren Heifers.
+
+
+
+I have three heifers, 3 years old, which have run with the bull right
+along and have failed with calf; have had three different bulls to them;
+what can be done?
+
+There is a possibility of contagious abortion causing these heifers to
+fail to breed. If this has occurred in the herd, the heifers are very
+apt to be affected. If apparently healthy, reduce me feed and make the
+heifers take considerable exercise to reduce flesh. Give each a dram of
+powdered nux vomIca and one-half dram of dried sulphate of iron once
+daily in a little feed. Breed to a healthy bull when the heifers come in
+heat.
+
+
+
+A Sterile Cow.
+
+
+
+I have a very fine Jersey cow. I have had her to the bull every month,
+and can't get her with calf.
+
+In an isolated case of this kind there is probably some disease of the
+generative organs or some condition whereby the impregnation cannot
+occur even when the animal is bred. The ovaries may be cystic; there may
+be chronic inflammation of the womb and possibly the mouth of the womb
+was injured at last calf birth and the scar prevents its admitting the
+fertilizing cells. If possible, a veterinarian should make a careful
+examination of this cow in order to determine what the trouble is.
+However, this treatment may be tried: About the time of coming in heat,
+give the cow a large dose of glaubers salts (one pound) and the nux
+vomica and iron treatment advised for "Barren Heifers" in another
+paragraph. Before breeding the cow, apply a little extract of belladonna
+and glycerine to the mouth of the womb and breed a few hours after.
+
+
+
+Supernumerary Teat.
+
+
+
+On the upper part of one of the hind teats of a young Jersey cow that
+freshened recently for the first time, there is a small growth from
+which the milk comes more plentifully than from the natural opening
+below. How, if at all, can this opening be closed without drying the
+cow? The milk from it runs all over the milker's hand and makes milking
+very disagreeable.
+
+The only thing that can be done until the cow is dry is to tie the small
+teat up before milking. This can be done with a string, rubber band, or
+an ordinary clamp. If it is so small that the opening cannot be tied,
+there is nothing to do, except, perhaps to use, her as a nurse for
+calves. Two of these might run with her at a time, making way for others
+as soon as they are able to look after themselves. Quite a number of
+calves can sometimes be handled in a single year by a cow affected this
+way and the benefit to the calves might be nearly as much as by using
+the cow for butter production. When the cow is dry the teat can be
+amputated and the opening will close when the sore heals, or a stick of
+lunar caustic can be inserted into it, causing a wound that will heal
+solid.
+
+
+
+Infection of Udder.
+
+
+
+Last year one of my cows had milk fever which affected her udder. This
+year after freshening she milked two months when she suddenly went dry
+on one side of her udder. She is now badly stiffened up in her hind
+quarters and off her feed.
+
+The cow has infectious mastitis due to introduction of some infection.
+Give a saline purge (1 pound. glauber salt), inject peroxide of
+hydrogen, after which pump in, sterile air. Apply externally camphorated
+oil once daily. Camphorated oil has a tendency to dry up the secretion
+of the gland and is used advisedly.
+
+
+
+Lumps in Teats.
+
+
+
+My cow has hard lumps in, her teats and lower part of the bag. These
+cause pain to her on milking, but there are no other symptoms of
+disorder. This condition has prevailed several months.
+
+Give 1 drachm. iodide potash daily for one week; 2 drachms the second
+week 3 drachms the third week, add reduce as you began. If tumors are
+small and interfere with the flow of milk they can be removed.
+
+
+
+Wound in Teat.
+
+
+
+I have a cow with an open slit about one-fourth to one-third of an inch
+in the side of one teat. I have lacerated the edges and stitched the
+slit well together many times but the milk will ooze out and prevent
+healing together. I have used numberless milk tubes to no avail, as the
+flange on the tubes loose out. When I remove the flange the tubes creep
+up into the udder and it is a trouble to get them out again.
+
+Wounds of a quiescent udder usually heal, but if the cow is in milk and
+the lesions involve the teats it is exceedingly difficult to heal the
+wound, as the irritation delays or interrupts the healing process. The
+following lotion is one of the very best to use for teat wound: Tinct.
+iodine, 2 ounces; tinct. arnica, 2 ounces; glycerine, 2 ounces; comp.
+tinct. benzoine, 2 ounces. Mix and apply twice daily after washing with
+5 per cent solution carbolic acid and castile soap. Your milk tube must
+be an ancient one as all milk tubes of today are self-retainers and
+could not slip into the udder. Care must be taken to boil the tube
+previous to each using as you may cause an infection of the udder by a
+filthy tube.
+
+
+
+Injury to Udder.
+
+
+
+I have a cow which has a gathering in the back of her udder which seems
+to be some sort of injury. It has been there but a few days.
+
+This injury was caused by a blow or traumatism. Thoroughly scrape out
+the diseased tissue and after washing with sheep-dip water (tablespoon
+to one quart) apply the following powder: Mix the following powder and
+apply it to the wound: Iodoform, 1 drachm; boric acid, 1 ounce; alum,
+1/2 ounce; zinc oxide, 1/2 ounce. Be sure and insert this powder into
+the bottom of the wound, so that it will reach all diseased parts.
+
+
+
+Blind Teat.
+
+
+
+What can I do for a "blind teat"? The cow has just freshened and that
+quarter of her udder is very full, but there is no milk in the teat. I
+have been rubbing and greasing the udder. The blind quarter is slightly
+inflamed.
+
+An artificial opening should be made in the teat at once. Call in the
+nearest physician unless you have a regular graduate veterinarian near.
+
+
+
+Cow Pox.
+
+
+
+I have a yearling heifer which is in fine condition and making good
+growth. But all four of her teats have sores on them and are mostly
+covered with scabs.
+
+It is probably cow pox. Give a physic of glauber and epsom salts mixed 4
+ounces of each to the heifer and double the dose to the cow. Apply
+externally, once daily, after washing, the following prescription: Zinc
+ointment, 4 ounces; iodoform, 1/2 ounce; glycerine, 2 ounces; carbolic
+acid, 2 drachms. Mix thoroughly and apply. to sores.
+
+
+
+Cause of "Loss of Cud."
+
+
+
+About three months ago a pure-bred Jersey commenced to fail on her milk
+and soon went dry, although on good feed. Did not seem to be sick, but
+did not eat ravenously as she generally did, and little was thought of
+it. During the past six weeks she has failed rapidly. Does not chew her
+cud, froths at the mouth, runs at the eyes, and when she eats anything
+much it bloats her. In fact, she seems bloated all the time. She is
+lifeless and will hardly move around, getting very thin, and hair
+standing the wrong way. Is there such a thing as a cow losing her cud?
+
+Most people imagine a cow's cud is something material. As a matter of
+fact, in a certain sense the words appetite and cud are synonymous. You
+can say a cow has lost her appetite or a cow has lost her cud. Now, any
+sickness severe enough will cause a cow to lose her appetite. The
+bloating is caused from indigestion secondary to some organic disease,
+probably tuberculosis. Keep up the cow's strength by giving condensed
+floods or drenches of egg-nogg, gruel or greens. Give warm salt-water
+injections twice daily and give the following mixture: Quinine sulphate,
+2 ounces; Antipyrine, 1 ounce; ammonia muriate, 3 ounces; alcohol, 1
+quart; water 1 quart. Mix; give 2 ounces every four hours.
+
+
+
+Calf Dysentery.
+
+
+
+I would like to know the reason for bloody discharges from the bowels of
+a young six-day-old calf. There is a looseness of the bowels and the
+blood is intermingled with the excrement. There is not a profuse amount
+of blood, nor is it very dark in color, and it seems to be accompanied
+with mucus or light, thick substance.
+
+This is dysentery, due to scours so prevalent in calves. Give 6 ounces
+olive oil, 4 drachms bismuth subnitrate and 1 drachm Pearson's creoline.
+The discharge is very dangerous to other animals.
+
+
+
+Bovine Rheumatism.
+
+
+
+Our Jersey cow got somewhat lame one year ago in one hip or leg after
+calving but soon got better. Last June when she came in one leg was
+lame. It seems to be in the stiffle joint and the first one above. When
+she walks she gets real lame.
+
+Rheumatism is the trouble here. Give the following powder: Soda
+salicylate, 3 ounces; salol, 2 ounces; pulv. gentian root, 2 ounces. Mix
+and make 24 powders. Give four daily. Apply Pratt's, a good veterinary
+liniment.
+
+
+
+Bleeding for Blackleg.
+
+
+
+I have read several articles on blackleg, and it seems strange to me
+that no mention is made of an operation that is an absolute preventive,
+namely, bleeding in the feet.
+
+The reason that no special mention of bleeding is made is that it is not
+now considered the preventive that it once was. Some people appear to
+have fair success with it, and others no success at all. The Bureau of
+Animal Industry states that the evidence indicates that bleeding,
+nerving, roweling or setoning have neither curative nor protective value
+and, therefore, should be discarded for vaccination which is now widely
+used as a preventive.
+
+
+
+Poor Feeding, Depraved Appetite.
+
+
+
+I have three cows. They have been fed alfalfa hay all winter and are in
+very good condition and seem otherwise in good health, and have salt to
+run to. Every time they chance to come to the yard they will pick up on
+old bone and chew it for perhaps a half hour. I always take the bone
+away from them when I discover it.
+
+These cows have a depraved appetite, owing to the fact the tissues of
+the body are crying out for something lacking that is required in the
+system. Administer the following powder; also put a lump of lime in the
+watering trough: Pulv. gentian, 1 ounce; pulv. elm bark, 2 ounces; pulv.
+iron sulphate, 1 ounce; pulv. bicarb. soda, 4 ounces; pulv. aniseed, 2
+ounces; pulv. red pepper 1/2 ounce; pulv. oilcake meal 10 pounds. Mix
+thoroughly and give a tablespoonful in scalded grain once daily.
+
+
+
+Cows Swallowing Foreign Substances.
+
+
+
+We recently lost a valuable cow, and when we opened her we found a large
+tumor or abscess at the top of the heart as large as a gallon jar. What
+caused it, or is there any danger of other cows taking it, and if so,
+what can we do?
+
+This is a common disease among cows and is called traumatic
+pericarditis. The trouble arises from the habit of the cows picking up
+foreign substances such as wire, nails, or hairpins, and swallowing
+them. They are taken into the paunch and the digestive movements of this
+organ cause the foreign body to penetrate the lining and enter the
+heart, where it gradually causes death as it enters deeper. It is very
+common to find nails, etc., in the stomachs of old dairy cows which are
+killed at the slaughter-houses. If you had examined the animal
+carefully, you would find that some foreign body had penetrated the
+heart and caused death. There is no danger of any contagion arising from
+your cow.
+
+
+
+Defective Urination.
+
+
+
+I have a cow that seems to be in good health and gives plenty of milk.
+Nearly every morning when she is being milked she seems to want to
+urinate and will stand letting the water drip from her.
+
+This trouble often results from the cows eating alkaline hay. Give her
+two quarts of flaxseed tea daily. Mix it with her food in which there
+has been placed one-half teaspoon of powdered Buchu.
+
+
+
+Infectious Conjunctivitis (Sore Eyes).
+
+
+
+I have several cows and heifers that are affected with sore eyes. The
+disease first makes its appearance by excessive watering of the eyes;
+then the center or pupil becomes white and later turns red of bloodshot.
+
+Bathe thoroughly with the normal salt solution (teaspoon salt to 1 pint
+warm water), after which place in the eye and all around the mucuous
+membrane of the eye the following: Twenty-five per cent solution of
+argyrol, one-half ounce; apply thoroughly once daily and keep out of the
+sunlight if possible. Another treatment is: Bathe the eyes once daily
+with boracic acid 1 teaspoon, water 1 pint, after which thoroughly
+saturate the eyelids and eyes with 1 to 10,000 solution of bichloride of
+mercury. You are dealing with a disease that will spread throughout your
+herd if you do not take proper means to separate the affected from the
+well ones.
+
+
+
+What to Do Against Tuberculous Milk.
+
+
+
+I should like to know what could be done with a dairy where cows are
+dying with tuberculosis and the owner knows, but is selling the milk.
+
+The case should be reported to F. W. Andreason, Secretary of the State
+Dairy Bureau, at San Francisco, for investigation by an inspector. If
+conditions are found as represented, the sale of milk will be prevented,
+as it is contrary to State law to sell milk from sick cows. County
+boards of health have also authority to prevent the sale of such milk in
+the county on the ground that this is a menace to the public health.
+
+
+
+Effects of Ill-Feeding Pigs.
+
+
+
+I have a couple of pigs, out of about 75 head farrowed last spring,
+which seem to have the staggers. They are looking fairly well, feed well
+on pasture and at feeding time are right there making as much noise as
+the others. They run around as if they had a shot too much.
+
+Your pigs are suffering from acute indigestion, undoubtedly due to
+improper feeding. Cut down the rations, especially if they are getting
+grain. Give sick pigs two tablespoonfuls of castor oil each.
+
+
+
+Sore Eyes in Pigs.
+
+
+
+What is the matter with young pigs when their eyes swell shut? Before
+they shut they look as if there was a white milky scum over them.
+
+There is some infection present, and a good cleaning up in needed. The
+sows and pigs should be dipped in a warm solution of some coal-tar
+disinfectant, and the quarters thoroughly cleaned and disinfected or
+changed to a dry warm place. The pigs' eyes should be washed with warm
+water and a few drops of the following solution dropped into eyes once a
+day for a few days: Have druggist prepare a 1 per cent solution of
+silver nitrate. After applying this the eyes had better be washed a few
+minutes later with water to which a little common salt has been added.
+
+
+
+Hog Cholera.
+
+
+
+I have a number of pigs which have been ailing for three weeks or so.
+They discharge a yellowish kind of manure at times, running of the
+bowels. The most striking symptom seems to be a partial paralysis of the
+hindquarters. The hogs will be walking along and seem to lose control of
+their hing legs. It seems to be spreading to the other hogs and a number
+have already died. Their appetite is poor.
+
+This is undoubtedly hog cholera. The owner should appeal to the
+Experiment Station at Berkeley for serum and treat all well hogs and
+clean up as thoroughly as possible. The matter should also be reported
+to the State Veterinarian at Sacramento.
+
+
+
+Pneumonia in Pigs.
+
+
+
+What is the disease which may be said to confine itself, with few
+exceptions, to young pigs weighing 100 pounds or less? Its symptoms are
+at first sneezing and a mild cough. These quickly change to hard
+coughing and labored breathing, which as the disease progresses shows
+evidence of much pain. The appetite is lost and the eyes become gummed
+and inflamed. In some cases the pig lingers on for weeks, while in
+others death occurs almost immediately. Vomiting sometimes occurs.
+
+It is pneumonia and in its treatment "an ounce of prevention is worth a
+pound of cure." Once pneumonia gets a foothold in a hog, the chances are
+so strongly in favor of death that recovery may be considered out of the
+question. Since remedies are not certain in the cure of pneumonia, it
+will be found that the prevention of the disease is the only real way to
+combat it. The main causes of the disease are exposure to draughts,
+sudden changes in temperature, damp beds, manure heaps as sleeping
+quarters, and exposure to the disease itself. Pigs in thin condition or
+weak constitutionally are more liable to contract the trouble than pigs
+in good flesh and healthy specimens. Good, dry, warm, comfortable
+sleeping houses, well ventilated and so arranged as to prevent crowding
+and piling up, will, I think, do more to prevent pneumonia than any
+other one thing. Some such preparation as advocated by the Government
+for the prevention of hog cholera will help keep the stock in a good
+healthy condition, the better to combat exposure. It is the little
+attentions that keep the herd healthy and in a vigorous condition, and
+by using simple preventatives, remedies will he found unnecessary. - H.
+B. Wintringham.
+
+
+
+General Prescription for Hog Sickness.
+
+
+
+My hogs seem to be mangy and scabby, but am unable to find any lice on
+them. They eat well, but vomit a good deal and are falling off in flesh.
+
+They may be affected with a chronic type of cholera, and this should be
+determined by some one who can see the hogs. Make a general cleaning up
+of the hogs and quarters, using a dip and repeating in ten days. Hogs
+have a true mange as well as other animals. A change of feed may also be
+needed, depending on what is being fed and how the hogs are managed.
+Green alfalfa pasture with a moderate feed of shorts or middlings of
+wheat and ground barley made into a slop would be a good ration.
+Evidently there is some digestive trouble here, and a dose of croton oil
+(3 drops) mixed in a teaspoonful of raw linseed oil for each hog would
+be beneficial. Charcoal, ashes, salt and a little epsom salts would be
+of benefit to tone the digestion. The oil should be carefully mixed in
+the slop.
+
+
+
+Pigs Out of Condition.
+
+
+
+Of a litter of pigs weaned about a month several of them have itchy
+scabs on their legs, ears and noses, and those having white feet show
+reddish spots through the hoofs. They did not get it until after they
+were weaned. They are fed on soaked whole barley and have alfalfa
+pasture.
+
+Put the pigs on a slop composed of wheat middlings and barley ground
+fine, with the hulls removed, and milk, or, in the absence of milk about
+8 or 10 per cent of meat meal to which add some good stock food. Dip
+them with some standard brand of dip or apply crude oil to be sure that
+they were free from lice, fleas, etc. Give them good, clean, comfortable
+sleeping quarters and trust to nature to do the rest.
+
+
+
+Paralysis of Sow.
+
+
+
+During the last few days one of my sows appears to be paralyzed in her
+hind quarters and now cannot use her hind legs at all. She is about a
+year old and is due to farrow her first litter in and about six weeks.
+
+It is paralysis due to advanced pregnancy. Give 4 ounces castor oil and
+4 ounces olive oil. She will recover after parturition.
+
+
+
+Rickets in Hogs.
+
+
+
+A fine boar, 16 months old, weight about 380 pounds, well built, with
+little surplus fat, until lately has been very thrifty, but appears to
+be losing control over his legs. Can't step over the smallest stick
+without falling forward and acts like a foundered animal. He carries his
+back rather arching since this trouble came on. During my absence from
+home a hired man gave this boar a good beating with a pick handle, and
+it appears to have been the beginning of his troubles.
+
+This disease is Osteo Rachitis (rickets). The abuse has probably
+aggravated the symptoms: This condition is due to a lack of hardening
+principles in the bones. Give 4 ounces of cod liver oil daily and plenty
+of lime water to drink. It will be all right to use him for breeding
+when he recovers. In addition to good food and pure water give daily a
+handful of a mixture of principally ashes and burned barley (charcoal)
+with the usual addition of salt, sulphur and soda. This mixture is good:
+Pulv. dried, iron sulphate, 4 ounces; soda bi-carbonate, 8 ounces; soda
+salicylate, 2 drachms; pulv. aniseed, 4 ounces. Mix and give one-half
+teaspoonful twice daily.
+
+
+
+Pigs Losing Tails.
+
+
+
+We have five pigs, 17 days old, and when they were farrowed they had
+rings around the roots of their tails, and now their tails are dropping
+off.
+
+This is caused by interference with circulation before birth. Apply
+tinct. iodine around the affected parts once daily and if it shows no
+signs of improvement after one week amputate.
+
+
+
+Over-Fat Sow.
+
+
+
+My brood sow is awfully fat; how should I feed her so that she don't get
+too fat? She is bred and it will be her third litter. She was running in
+the vineyard all winter, and I fed her a handful of barley every day or
+a few potatoes. Now she has free access to my growing barley field, and
+I give her half a dozen potatoes every day.
+
+You need not worry about getting her thin. She simply requires less
+food. An animal excessively fat brings forth an inferior offspring.
+
+
+
+Musty Corn for Pigs.
+
+
+
+Would Egyptian corn that has been musty and then dried in the sun be fit
+for pigs? It heated and musted quite a good deal, but is dried well. The
+idea is, to grind it and then feed it in milk if good.
+
+It is very dangerous to feed any stock moldy or musty food, especially
+pregnant animals. It is this kind of food which causes a majority of the
+abortions. Mold or smut in food is poisonous both to man and beast. It
+is usually almost impossible to get out of feed because it runs
+throughout the structure of the hay or grain.
+
+
+
+Wounds and Wound Swellings.
+
+
+
+What is the proper treatment for a fresh wire cut on a horse? How should
+saddle galls be treated? Is there any way to make the hair come in its
+natural color where saddle galls have been? How can an enlargement of a
+colt's leg, caused from a wire cut, be reduced?
+
+After all foreign matter has been removed from a lacerated wound, like
+that made in a wire cut, the wound should be carefully fomented with
+warm water, to which has been added carbolic acid in the proportion of 1
+part to 100 of water. It should then be bandaged to prevent infection.
+Zinc ointment would be a good thing to use under the bandage. For a
+simple saddle, or harness gall, some ointment like the following should
+be applied and the wound rested up: One pint alcohol in which are shaken
+the whites of 2 eggs; a solution of nitrate of silver, 10 grains to the
+ounce of water; sugar of lead or sulphate of zinc, 20 grains to an ounce
+of water; and so on. Or advertised gall cures may be applied. If a
+sitfest has developed, the dead hornlike slough must be cut out and the
+wound treated with antiseptics. There is no way we know of to make hair
+come in with natural color after a wound. The swelling on the colt's leg
+may he reduced by rubbing it well several times a day and at night rub
+in some 10 per cent iodine petrogen.
+
+
+
+Fly Repellants.
+
+
+
+Can you tell me what to use as a spray to kill the flies in my stable?
+In the early, morning the ceiling and sides are thickly covered with the
+pests partly dormant but not enough so that they can be swept down and
+killed. What spray can I use that will destroy them?
+
+It is difficult to kill flies by spraying them. You can, however, spray
+the sides and ceiling of the barn with a spray of epsom salts (sulphate
+of magnesia) using about a cupful to the gallon, which will prevent them
+from gathering there. And since prevention is better than cure, flies
+can be kept from gathering around by, destroying their breeding places,
+if those are under one's control, by having all manure and litter
+removed before the flies have a chance to develop. The following may be
+found useful to readers as a spray to keep away flies: Fish oil, 2
+quarts; kerosene, 1 quart; crude carbolic acid, 1 pint; oil of
+pennyroyal, 1 ounce; oil of tar; 10 ounces. Mix thoroughly and apply in
+a fine spray. The following has been successfully used to repel flies
+from cows: Nitro benzine, 5 ounces; carbolic acid, 3 ounces; kerosene
+oil, 3 ounces; sol. formaldehyde, 1 ounce; fish oil, 1 1/2 quarts. Mix
+and just touch the hair with the mixture.
+
+
+
+To Destroy Fleas.
+
+
+
+My barn, is full, of fleas I tried to destroy them by using creso-dip,
+but did not kill them, all.
+
+Fleas can only be permanently checked by destroying their breeding
+places which are in the dust! and dirt that accumulate in cracks and
+corners around barns, sheds and dwellings. Follow the cleaning up with a
+thorough distribution of flake naphthalene. This is most effective where
+the stable or room can be closed tight for half a day, or even 24 hours;
+An ingenious suggestion is made that if a sheep can be let run in and
+around the buildings where the fleas breed, they will soon be less
+numerous and as new batches hatch out the sheep will soon get them
+picked up, and after a while the place will be entirely free of them.
+But the sheep must be allowed to run all around the sheds and breeding
+places, as the flea jumps up, gets into the wool, and can never get out
+again. A hog can also be used as a flea trap. One reader says: Pour a
+little of the crude oil on the hogs' heads and along their backs, about
+a gill on each hog; This would run down the sides of the hogs and kill
+all the fleas on them. The oil also remains on the hogs for several
+days, and all the fleas that jump on the hogs from the ground stick fast
+and never jump off again. In about three weeks the fleas all disappear
+and the hogs look fine and sleek from the use of the oil.
+
+
+
+Part VIII. Poultry Keeping
+
+Largely compiled from the writings of Mrs. W. Russell James and Mrs.
+Susan Swapgood.
+
+
+
+Teaching Chicks to Perch.
+
+
+
+What is a good method of breaking in young brooder chicks to use the
+roosts?
+
+At from six to eight weeks old the chicks should be taken from the
+brooder quarters to the colony houses and range, or wherever they are to
+be located, and at this time they should be taught to perch. Have the
+new quarters arranged with low wide perches (1 by 3-inch scantlings);
+also make slatted frames by nailing lath or other such narrow strips two
+inches apart. Set these frames against the wall so that they will extend
+slant-wise under the perches, and have the corners on the other side of
+the room cut off by nailing boards across them. The chicks will run up
+on the frame to find a huddling corner and land on the perches, as they
+cannot rest on the open slanting frame. A little care for a few evenings
+in putting up those that remain on the floor and straightening them out
+on the perches will teach them the ropes. Where there are but a few to
+be taught, all that is necessary is to provide the low wide perches and
+shut out the corners, and a few of the smart ones will soon take to the
+perches, and gradually others will follow until all will be roosting.
+
+
+
+Liver Disease.
+
+
+
+I have hens which seem well in every respect up to the time of their
+combs changing color, when they die within three days. The combs turn a
+faint yellow, almost white; they are heavy, have their usual appetite up
+to the lost 24 hours. I have treated by giving small doses of castor oil
+and Douglas mixture in the drinking water, feeding on dry mash with
+plenty of green feed. There is no tendency to lameness nor limp neck.
+The droppings are loose and very white.
+
+The fowls were victims of jaundice, which is a form of liver disease and
+caused by over-feeding on rich starchy foods that also cause fowls to
+become overfat. However, at the end of the laying season and the
+beginning of the molt the poultry keeper will lose some hens, even when
+kept under the best conditions, and especially hens of that age. In
+doctoring such cases in the way described, if the fowl does not improve
+in a couple of days, the hatchet cure is the most profitable.
+
+
+
+Rupture of Oviduct.
+
+
+
+I have had two other hens die suddenly when on the nest. The second one
+- we opened and found one egg broken near the vent and another with
+shell formed ready to be laid.
+
+Rupture of the oviduct was probably the cause of the hens dying on the
+nest and is due to the same condition in the hens; that is, the
+straining to expel the egg necessary in the engorged condition of the
+internal organs from overfatness.
+
+
+
+Melons for Fowls.
+
+
+
+Have "stock melons" or "citrons" any merit as a green food for laying
+hens? Are the seeds of the above injurious to hens or cows?
+
+Stock melons are desirable for chicken feeding if other succulent
+materials are scarce, but they are inferior to alfalfa and other
+clovers. Seeds are not injurious to stock unless possibly one should
+feed to excess by separating them from the other tissues. If melons are
+fed as they grow, no apprehension need be had from injury by seed.
+
+
+
+Rape and Vetch for Chickens.
+
+
+
+What time do you sow rape and vetch and are they good for chickens?
+
+They surely are good for chickens or for any other stock that likes
+greens. They are winter growers in California valleys and should be sown
+in the fall as soon as the land is moist enough to keep them growing, or
+just as soon as you can get it moist either by rainfall or irrigation.
+Neither plant likes dry heat or dry soil.
+
+
+
+Preserving Eggs.
+
+
+
+What is a good way to preserve eggs for home use?
+
+In a cool cellar, eggs will keep very well in a mixture of common salt
+and bran. Use equal parts, mix well, and as you gather the eggs from day
+to day pack with big end down in the mixture and see that the eggs are
+covered. Waterglass eggs are good enough for cooking purposes, but when
+boiled anyone that knows the taste of a strictly fresh egg can tell the
+difference in an instant; when fried the taste is not so pronounced, but
+it is there just the same; besides, when broken, they are a little
+watery. This watery condition passes off if left to stand for a few
+minutes. The best way is to use the waterglass method, is one quart of
+waterglass to ten quarts of water. Boil the water and put away to cool,
+when cold add the waterglass, mixing well, and store in 3 or 5-gallon
+crocks in a cool place. They will keep six months if good when put in.
+In all cases the eggs must be gathered very fresh, for one stale egg
+will spoil the whole lot, so great care is needed.
+
+
+
+Dipping Fowls.
+
+
+
+How do you dip hens to kill lice?
+
+To dip fowls you must have a very warm day, or a warm room where you can
+turn them in to dry. I have know people to use tobacco stems, but it
+requires good judgment as to the right strength to use. The dips usually
+sold already prepared are safer, in my opinion, because they give
+directions as to quantity. Get a can of "zenoleum" or "creolium" -
+either is good - and have the water a little over blood-heat to
+commence; be very careful that the liquid does not get in the fowl's
+throat. If there are no directions with the cans, put enough in to make
+the water quite milky and strong smelling. It is best to make the hen
+sit down and with a sponge wet the back and head thoroughly, then under
+the wings and breast; if there are nits, don't be in a hurry to take
+the hen out, but let the dip get to the nits and skin on the abdomen. If
+the water is too warm it will be dangerous, as some fowls have weak
+hearts; that is the only danger, providing you dry them quickly.
+
+
+
+Cure for Feather-Eating.
+
+
+
+What is the cure for feather-eating?
+
+Feather eating is the result of idleness or a shortage of green feed.
+The best way to cure it is to furnish the fowls with exercise. Boil some
+oats until soft, and when cooked stir in salt enough to taste and about
+a quart of good beef scrap; feed this for breakfast several mornings
+together. Make them scratch for the rest of their food in deep litter
+and give them sour milk to drink if you have it. If sour milk is not
+available, put a tablespoonful of flowers of sulphur in the boiled oats.
+The object is to cool the blood and furnish exercise. See that the fowls
+are supplied with mineral matter, such ash shells, bone meal and some,
+sand if it can be had. It is surprising the amount of sand that chickens
+will eat when carried to them in yards, so there must be a necessity for
+it, and if they cannot get to it, it pays to carry a good box full once
+in a while.
+
+
+
+Cannibal Chicks.
+
+
+
+What can I do to cure my chicks of eating each other?
+
+Some kind of animal food is necessary when the chicks begin to pick
+toes, wings and vents. But the meat must always be cooked, the least bit
+of raw meat drives them wild as does the blood they can bring on each
+other. For that reason a strict watch must be kept to detect any case
+before blood is brought. Remove all weak chicks as they always go for
+the weakest, and as soon as one chick is picked on for a victim, remove
+it at once. Some people paint the toes with tar or liquid lice paint,
+but I have had the best success with bitter aloes mixed with water. A
+nickel's worth covers a lot of toes. It is best to buy a powder, then
+dissolve in a little water and paint wings, vent and toes. They won't
+take many pecks at them when they find they are so bitter.
+
+
+
+Sunflower Seeds for Poultry.
+
+
+
+What is the food value of sunflower seed as a ration for fowls, mostly
+laying hens? Should it be fed whole or crushed?
+
+Sunflower seed is rich in oil, having the same proportion as flaxseed;
+otherwise it rates in value the same as grain. A little, not too much,
+fed whole is well relished by fowls and is said to give luster to the
+plumage in fitting birds for shows. Sunflower is greatly overrated for
+poultry purposes. It is an ungainly plant of no use for forage and its
+seed is so well liked by the sparrows that the only way to keep them
+till ripe is to cover the heads with netting.
+
+
+
+Clipping Hens for Cleanliness.
+
+
+
+My hens foul all the feathers below the vent; they appear healthy, but
+do not look nice. What can I do?
+
+Take a pair of scissors and clip the fluff away from that part of the
+abdomen, give a teaspoonful of olive oil, and notice of they have any
+discharge that is of an offensive color or odor. Sometimes it is nothing
+but pure laziness with hens of the large breeds that causes this matting
+together of the fluff below the vent. We rarely see hens of the small
+breeds so affected. Whenever a hen soils her feathers clip her at once,
+and, in fact, it is a good custom to follow in any case. When hens are
+very heavily fluffed it interferes with the fertility of the eggs. In
+such cases there is not anything for it but the scissors.
+
+
+
+Bowel Trouble in Chicks.
+
+
+
+What is the cause of bowel trouble in young chicks, and what to do for
+it?
+
+Bowel trouble in very young chicks is usually caused by a chill. It is
+very hard for us here to believe chicks get chilled because, not feeling
+the cold ourselves, we forget that chicks have really undergone a
+violent change from incubator to the outside atmosphere. In the Eastern
+States, great care is exercised in moving chicks from incubator to
+brooder oven, and also in seeing that the brooder itself is warm and fit
+to receive the chicks. But we are, as a rule, very careless in these
+little matters and the chicks feel the change and suffer from bowel
+trouble. Sometimes, of course, the trouble may be traced to the food,
+but more often it comes from a chill. The best way to cure it is to
+remove the chicks to new ground at once, or if in a brooder, clean it
+out well and spray with some disinfectant. Boil all the water that is
+given to the chicks and feed boiled rice once or twice a day in which a
+little cinnamon is mixed. Do not put in too much or they will not eat
+it, keep all meat away and just feed dry chick feed and boiled rice. No
+oatmeal or any other cereal but the rice; if chicks won't eat it, feed
+dry chick feed and boiled water and a little lettuce.
+
+
+
+Quick Roosters and Laying Hens.
+
+
+
+How can I get the young roosters off quick and the hens to lay in
+winter?
+
+These two happy results come from correct methods of poultry keeping
+from the ground up. To get the cockerels off quick, they must be hatched
+from strong-germed eggs, incubated properly and kept growing from the
+first jump out of the shell. To get eggs in winter the pullets must come
+from the same conditions. Very few hens will lay in the early winter
+under any conditions. The pullets must be depended upon for that season
+and the hens kept properly will drop in some time in January.
+
+
+
+Poultry Tonic.
+
+
+
+What is a good poultry tonic?
+
+The following is a very good tonic for general purposes: Tincture of red
+cinchona, 1 fluid ounce; tincture of chloride of iron, 1 fluid drachm;
+tincture of flux vomica, 4 fluid drachms; glycerine 2 ounces; water, 2
+ounces. Mix and give one teaspoonful to a quart of water, allowing no
+other drink.
+
+
+
+Poultry in the Orchard.
+
+
+
+Kindly advise me about keeping hens in an orchard. I would like to know
+if they will injure the trees in any way if kept in large numbers. In
+what way would they benefit the trees?
+
+From the point of view of the trees there is no doubt that they would be
+advantaged by the presence of the poultry, providing the coops are not
+allowed to interfere with the proper irrigation and cultivation. If it
+is practicable to handle the fowls in coops without causing the soil
+around the coops to become compacted by continual tramping, and if they
+are not kept upon the ground long enough to cause an excessive
+application of hen manure, which is very concentrated and stimulating,
+the result would unquestionably be beneficial. From the point of view of
+the tree, this benefit of injury would depend upon how long the fowls
+were kept around the tree and the maintenance of them in such a way that
+the soil should not become out of condition physically or too rich
+chemically for the satisfactory performance of the tree. If they can be
+moved frequently, and if they are only put in place when the soil is in
+such condition that tramping around the coops will not seriously compact
+it, the presence of fowls would be an advantage. On the other hand, if
+the coops are to be kept in place for a long time and all the ground
+outside of them crusted and hardened by tramping and the soil under the
+coops overloaded with droppings, the thrift and value of the trees will
+be seriously interfered with.
+
+
+
+Caponizing.
+
+
+
+Can three to four month old cockerels be caponized successfully in
+summer, and if so, what care, feed, etc., do they require afterwards?
+
+The birds should be between two to three months, not over four, unless
+some very large variety that matures slowly. Size is equally important
+as age, and a bird to be caponized should not weigh more than one and a
+half pounds. The work can be successfully done in the summer season, but
+the fowl must be kept without food or drink for at least 24 hours,
+longer is better and keep in shady place. After caponizing, feed the
+bird what soft feed he will eat up and let him have plenty of water.
+Then leave him to himself as he will be his own doctor. In two or three
+days look them over and if there are any wind-balls, simply prick with a
+needle to let the air out; this may have to be done two or three times
+before the wound heals up, but after it has healed, treat just as you
+would other chickens and feed them about twice a day. There is nothing
+made by trying to rush nature; it takes fifteen months to grow a good
+capon of the large breeds.
+
+
+
+Roup Treatment.
+
+
+
+Up to a week ago the chickens had been exceptionally well in every way.
+Now they seem to have a cold and a running at the nose and with it a bad
+odor. It was suggested that this might be the beginning of roup, but I
+see no swell-head.
+
+The distinguishing characteristic of roup is not so-called "swell head"
+or other form of cold, but the offensive roupy odor. When the cold has
+reached this stage it is a pronounced case of roup, and highly
+contagious. Separate all the ailing fowls and segregate them in
+comfortable hospital quarters, warm but with one side partly open for
+fresh air. Disinfect the quarters of the well fowls by spraying with
+distillate or cheap-grade coal oil and sprinkling the floors and about
+the houses with air-slaked lime. Use some simple remedy like coal oil or
+permanganate of potash to cleanse the throat and nostrils. With coal
+oil, first wipe the eyes and bill with a clean cloth dipped in the coal
+oil, then inject with a sewing-machine oil can enough coal oil to
+open and thoroughly clean out the nostrils. If the throat is affected,
+give a tablespoonful of sweet oil and coal oil, half and half, two or
+three times a day until relieved. One of our correspondents has sent us
+the following treatment with permanganate of potash which he has found
+the best roup remedy he has ever tried: Dissolve 1 ounce of permanganate
+of potash in 3 pints of water, hold the fowl's head in this for a
+second, then open the beak and rinse out the mouth in the solution. Wipe
+with a clean, soft cloth and apply a very little witch hazel or
+carbolated salve to the eyes, nostrils and head. Repeat the operation as
+often as the throat and head become clogged with mucus. Until the
+disease is eliminated from the premises, keep permanganate of potash in
+the drinking water of all the fowls, both sick and well. About 1 ounce
+to each 2 gallons of water or enough to give the water a claret color.
+The sick fowls should be allowed no other feed but a little stimulating
+mash three times a day. Where the fowls do not show a decided
+improvement in the course of a few days, or where the disease has
+assumed a violent form, all such birds should be killed and the bodies
+burned at once.
+
+
+
+Bad Food for Chickens.
+
+
+
+My chicks are about three weeks old and have always been strong and
+sturdy, but when taken sick first appear a little dumpish, then the head
+seems a little heavy and the neck lengthens out. As the disease advances
+they become staggery.
+
+Your chicks have eaten soured food, decayed vegetables or tainted meat.
+Baby chicks are just like other babies and the same care should be used
+that their food be always sweet and fresh. Wet food should never be
+given chicks, nor raw meat nor anything the least bit tainted or stale.
+Put a teaspoon of coal oil in each pint of drinking water and see to it
+that the latter is kept pure and cool. Mix a teacup of sulphur with
+enough bran or shorts for each 100 chicks, moisten with sweet milk and
+feed it on clean boards, what the chicks will eat up clean in some,
+twenty minutes. Give them one feed of this each day for three days if
+the weather is dry. Clean the brooders and runs daily, then dust white
+with air-slacked lime and cover the lime with a sprinkling of clean
+sand. Rake and clean up the yards where they range and never let them
+eat any of their grain or food out of dirt and filth. You cannot doctor
+such small chicks and must depend upon the coal oil in the drinking
+water. Keep the water fresh, but add the coal oil until the chicks are
+relieved.
+
+
+
+Open-Front Chicken Houses.
+
+
+
+In what direction shall I face open-front poultry houses?
+
+North or northeast is the proper direction to face the open fronts of
+poultry houses and coops in the Pacific Coast climate. The prevailing
+winds are from the south and southeast in the winter, and from the west
+and southwest in the summer. The occasional north winds or "northers,"
+may be called dry winds, in fact, are an indication of dry weather, and
+so do not harm the fowls even when cold. We like the upper half of the
+north-end or slide of our poultry houses open with inch-mesh covering
+the open space and the eaves extending several inches as a protection.
+In case of an unusual storm from that direction, one thickness of burlap
+may be tacked to the edge of the extending eaves, and to the lower part
+of the opening. This will admit plenty of fresh air while breaking the
+force of the wind. We also have a large trap door for the use of the
+fowls, in the solid lower part of the open end, and the large door, for
+cleaning and sunning the house, in the west side.
+
+
+
+A Point on Mating.
+
+
+
+I have fine roosters a year old this April; would you advise keeping
+them for mating with the same hens next season, or do you advise selling
+each year and getting fresh stock?
+
+The young males will be all right to mate with the same hens next season
+- that is, if they come through the molt with vigor. They will be just
+two years old and at their best. The molt is the test for both, hens and
+cocks. If they show no signs of ailing or weakness during that period,
+it is proof of the proper stamina and vigor.
+
+
+
+Age for Mating.
+
+
+
+At what age may a cockerel be mated with hens?
+
+From nine months to a year is the proper age to mate a Leghorn cockerel.
+Cockerels of the larger breeds should not be mated before a year old.
+
+
+
+White-Yolk Eggs.
+
+
+
+Why are eggs watery and light-colored?
+
+The trouble is in the feed somewhere. Too much green feed, especially
+green feed that springs from wet, soggy ground, will sometimes make the
+eggs watery. Or if you are feeding more mash feed than dry grain, it
+will have that tendency. Some people claim that the feed a hen eats does
+not affect the egg at all; but if it does not, why do eggs differ in
+color and quality? Eggs that are laid by hens fed wholly on wheat, or
+the by-products of wheat, such as bran, shorts or middlings, all have a
+pale yolk. Now feed the hens some green feed - any kind will do - and
+the eggs from the same hens will have a yolk several degrees or shades
+darker.
+
+
+
+Poultry Diarrhea.
+
+
+
+Will you kindly tell me the cause and cure for bowel trouble among hens?
+
+The "quick cure" for chick diarrhea has not yet been found. Prevention
+is the only sure remedy. The first treatment in diarrhea (which must not
+be confused with simple looseness of the bowels) should be a mild physic
+to clean out the digestive tract. Epsom salts is probably best for this
+purpose where a number of fowls are to be treated. This is usually given
+in the drinking water, but Dr. Morse, who has charge of the
+investigation of poultry diseases in the Bureau of Animal Industry,
+gives the following directions for administering the salts: "Clean out
+by giving epsom salts in an evening mash, estimating one-third to
+one-half teaspoonful to each adult bird, or a teaspoonful to each six
+half-grown chicks, carefully proportioning the amount of mash to the
+appetite of the birds, so that the whole will be eaten up quickly." For
+a few days afterward, feed only lightly with dry grain and tender
+greens, such as fresh-cut mustard and lettuce leaves. Keep plenty of
+pure, cool water, with just a thin skim of coal oil - one drop to each
+pint - for drinking; also plenty of sharp grit and fresh charcoal broken
+to the size of grains of wheat.
+
+
+
+Limber-Neck.
+
+
+
+A very peculiar disease is taking off my fowls. The head of the fowl
+bends down to the breast and the fowl looks like dead, there is also a
+slight discharge from the mouth. The head and tail droop and if the fowl
+could stand up they would almost touch.
+
+When a fowl loses partial or entire control of the muscles of the neck
+the common name of the affection is limber-neck. In medical science
+limber-neck is regarded as a symptom rather than a disease, and may be
+due to a number of causes, such as derangement of the digestive organs,
+intestinal worms and ptomaine poisoning. The affected fowls should be
+given immediately a full tablespoon of fresh melted lard or sweet oil,
+to which has been added a scant teaspoonful, of coal oil. In an hour
+repeat the dose. For a few days the fowls should be fed on some light
+food, such as shorts scalded with sweet milk in which has been dissolved
+a level teaspoonful of baking soda to every pint of milk, and also
+allowed plenty of crisp, tender lettuce or similar greens. A little
+Epsom salts should be added to the drinking water for a few days. This
+treatment, if resorted to at the start, will be effectual, but if the
+poisoning has had its course long, nothing will save the bird.
+
+
+
+Chicken Pox.
+
+
+
+My one and two-year-old fowls are getting scabby combs. It starts with a
+round blackish spot and swells into many spots, finally nearly covering
+one side of the comb. Sometimes accompanying this is the closing of one
+eye, and later both eyes.
+
+The trouble is chicken pox, which is a very contagious disease. A
+treatment which has been successful consists in bathing the sores with
+strong salt and water and giving the fowls a mash containing one
+teaspoonful of calcium sulphide for each 25 hens. With a large flock of
+hens the method successfully employed by one of the large coast ranches
+in stamping out an epidemic of the disease was to place a sulphur
+smudge, to which had been added a little carbolic acid, in the poultry
+house after the fowls had gone to roost. This was allowed to remain till
+the fowls began to sneeze, when it was instantly removed. The affected
+fowls were also treated by dipping the heads in a solution of
+permanganate of potash.
+
+
+
+Roup in Turkeys.
+
+
+
+My turkeys have a disease that is spreading rapidly. They commence with
+a running at the nose, have swelling under the eyes which are filled
+with pus.
+
+This is clearly a case of cold developing into roup. Get one ounce of
+permanganate of potash and pour a quart of boiling water over; after it
+is cold, bottle for use. Now take an old tin can, three parts full of
+warm, not hot water, and drop in enough of the permanganate of potash to
+make it dark red. Hold the turk's head under in this can until it needs
+breath then give it time to breathe, and dip again. Press the fingers
+along the swollen parts towards the nostrils and get out all the pus you
+can, then take a sewing-machine oil can and fill it with a little of the
+mixture, and part olive oil, inject the liquid up the nostrils and in
+the cleft of the mouth. Put a little of the permanganate in the drinking
+water for all the flock. Make the water a light red, later it will turn
+to a dirty brown, but don't mind that.
+
+
+
+Disinfectants.
+
+
+
+What can I use to disinfect poultry belongings?
+
+Sulphuric acid spray is good, but you will need to be very careful that
+you do not get it on the hands or clothing. Get 16 ounces sulphuric acid
+(50 per cent solution), water 6 gallons. Have the water in a wooden tub
+or barrel and add the sulphuric acid to the water very slowly, in order
+not to splash it on the flesh or clothes. But mind: nothing but wooden
+vessels to mix it in. When made according to directions, and of this
+strength it is a very valuable disinfectant, but is dangerous to use of
+any stronger mixing. After mixing, it can be stored in glass bottles or
+earthenware jugs. Another very good disinfectant for poultry houses and
+runs is the formaldehyde disinfectant. Formaldehyde 1 pint (40 per
+cent), water 2 gallons. This is fine for houses that you can shut up.
+Turn the fowls out of the building, close all windows, and spray
+thoroughly, then close the door and leave it do the work. Air well by
+opening windows and door several hours before the fowls go to roost.
+
+
+
+Cloth for Brooding Houses.
+
+
+
+Would some good grade of white cloth on a frame do as well, or would it
+be better than glass, for a brooder house, or would it keep out too much
+sun-heat?
+
+Cheesecloth, not heavy cloth, would be better than glass, so far as the
+sun is concerned. There would be none of the overheating during the
+middle of the day followed by the chilling at night which are caused by
+a large expanse of glass. On the other hand, there should not be
+openings on opposite sides of the house to create a draft. Also, the rat
+and vermin question must be considered. It might be necessary to have
+wire screens made to fit firmly over the cloth at night.
+
+
+
+Grains for Chickens.
+
+
+
+What variety of grain adopted for poultry food will be the best to grow,
+with and also without irrigation?
+
+Wheat is a standard grain for poultry feeding, and Egyptian corn is also
+largely used. Indian corn is also satisfactory, under the general roles
+for compounding poultry rations which are laid down by all authorities
+on the subject. Egyptian corn is very successful in the interior parts
+of the State, and, on lands which are winter-plowed and harrow to retain
+moisture, very satisfactory results can be secured by summer growth
+without irrigation from planting as soon as frost danger is over.
+
+
+
+Plucking Ducks and Geese.
+
+
+
+I would like to know about how, when and how often to pick old ducks so
+as to get the feathers for pillows and not kill the ducks, either. Will
+they lay any eggs while growing new feathers?
+
+Neither ducks nor geese should be plucked until after the laying season
+is over, which will be in July. Just before the moult, when the feathers
+begin to loosen, they may be plucked again. Those most considerate of
+their birds make only this latter plucking, which does not greatly
+inconvenience the fowls. At no time must they be plucked unless the
+feathers are "ripe"; that is, dry at the root, so that no bleeding or
+injury to the skin is caused. An old stocking is drawn over the head of
+the victim, and the bird held in the plucker's lap on a burlap apron;
+then the soft feathers on the body are quickly and very gently removed;
+but those on the side of the body which support the wings should not be
+taken. Great care should be exercised not to injure the skin or
+pinfeathers or pull the down. To grow new feathers quickly and resume
+laying are matters which depend largely upon the condition of the bird
+and the feed. The latter should consist of some 15 per cent of animal
+food.
+
+
+
+Feeding Hens for Hatching Eggs.
+
+
+
+Should soft feed be given to the mothers of chicks intended for
+broilers? How about dry mash? How would you advise feeding animal
+protein?
+
+Cut out all ground feed, except perhaps a little wheat bran. While you
+may not get quite as many eggs, they will all have good strong germs and
+the chicks will stand forcing to the limit, while if you force the egg
+output you reduce the vitality of the germs and livability of chicks
+hatched. The only way to feed hens whose eggs are intended for hatching
+chicks for broilers is to feed whole grain and make them exercise for
+it, good green feed, or, better still, sprouted oats, and feed beef
+scrap in a hopper all the time. At first, while it is new, they may eat
+more than you would give them but don't mind that they will regulate the
+quantity in a few days better than you can. Get a good grade of beef
+scrap and keep it in a hopper that will not let rain in or keep it under
+cover and feed all the wheat and oats they require; if you are short on
+green feed give them a bale of alfalfa hay to work on.
+
+
+
+A Dry Mash.
+
+
+
+Will you give a formula for a dry mash?
+
+Wheat bran, 500 pounds; middlings, 200 pounds; cracked corn, 200 pounds;
+charcoal, 20 pounds; alfalfa meal 200 pounds; bone meal, 150 pounds;
+blood-meal 100 pounds; meat cracklings, if ground, 200 pounds; ground
+oats or barley, 300 pounds. Give oyster shell separately and supply
+fowls with good sharp grit.
+
+
+
+Depluming Mites.
+
+
+
+My chickens are losing the feathers from their necks, some three inches
+down the front and then extending around the neck.
+
+The loss of feathers is probably due to the depluming mite. Dust well
+with buhach through the feathered portion of the bird and apply
+carbolated vaseline to the bare skin and the edges of the feathers where
+the insects work. Do this daily as long as needed. When vaseline is not
+on hand, a mixture of coal oil and sweet oil applied with a soft sponge
+squeezed nearly dry does as well. We would advise that you make a
+general cleaning and spraying of your poultry quarters, nest boxes, etc.
+
+
+
+Part IX. Pests and Diseases of Plants
+
+
+
+Control of Grasshoppers.
+
+
+
+This county is having trouble with the grasshoppers as are other
+counties. Would you kindly inform me what I could do to exterminate them
+on my young orchard?
+
+The best thing for grasshoppers is to fix up a lot of poison. This is
+made in the proportion of 40 pounds of bran, 2 pounds of molasses and 5
+of arsenic, mixed together as a mash. They will take this wherever they
+find it, even when nice green leaves are close by, but it has to be kept
+moist. Grasshoppers can also be reduced by driving a "hopper doser" over
+ground where they are. This is made somewhat like a Fresno scraper, but
+is much longer and the bottom is covered with crude oil. When disturbed
+the hoppers jump up and fall into the oil. Besides the poison, you
+should also protect the trunk of the tree to prevent the hoppers from
+climbing up it. This can be done by applying tree tanglefoot, or putting
+on one of the tree guards that prevent climbing insects from passing up
+to the leaves. The combination of poison and tree guards will give you
+about all the protection you need.
+
+
+
+Sunburn and Borers.
+
+
+
+Please state the best remedy for keeping the borer out of young fruit
+trees.
+
+Sunburn can be prevented in many ways. The manufactured tree-protectors
+are good if they are light colored and are kept in place so that the sun
+does not scald above or below them. Wrapping spirally with narrow strips
+of burlap, torn from old grain sacks, from the base to the forking of
+the branches, is also good. A very effective and widely used method is
+to apply a good durable whitewash which may be made of 30 pounds of
+lime, 4 pounds of tallow and 5 pounds of salt, adding the salt to the
+water used in slaking the lime, stirring in the tallow while the slaking
+is in progress and hot, and then adding water to thin the wash so that
+it will work well with pump or brush.
+
+
+
+Gumming of Prune Trees.
+
+
+
+I write to ask for information concerning my prune trees. They are from
+two to six years old and the gum is exuding from them. As I notice the
+branches dying I cut them out, but this doesn't seem to save the tree. I
+would appreciate any information you can give me.
+
+This is a pretty hard matter to diagnose from a distance. There is a
+good probability that the trouble is caused by sunburn, a point you
+could determine on inspection. Whitewash would be a protection against
+this and more or less of a cure also. Furthermore, borers may be the
+cause, which can be determined by examining the points where the gum
+exudes, seeing if any wood grains are present. These borers should be
+dug out and whitewash applied, which latter also protects against this
+trouble. Lastly, your ground may be drying out, which also you can
+determine and remedy.
+
+
+
+Borers in Olive Twigs.
+
+
+
+There are quite a number of olive trees in this locality that have
+something wrong with them. They make a growth of five or six inches and
+the center twig dies back, then it sprouts out at the sides and makes
+another growth in the same way. This makes a thick bush instead of the
+tree coming up as it should.
+
+The dying back is caused by a beetle which bores into the twigs. The
+twigs above the point where the beetle enters dies and then, of course,
+buds come out from healthy wood below. No treatment has been devised
+against it, though its breeding ground is limited if all dead wood and
+brush and litter is cleaned up and twigs are cut off below the point of
+injury whenever the work of the insect is seen.
+
+
+
+Raspberry Cane Borer.
+
+
+
+Can you tell me what to do for my Loganberries and raspberries? A small
+worm got into them in the new growth of wood lost summer, right in the
+tips of the new growth of wood, and then worked down through the pith of
+the wood, and as fast as they worked down the can wilted.
+
+This is the raspberry horn-tail, or the cane-borer. The adults are
+wasp-like insects about a half-inch long and very active. They come out
+of the canes in spring and the females soon lay eggs in the tender tips
+of the young shoots. These eggs soon hatch and the larvae eat their way
+up toward the tip, which causes it to wither and die. It is this injury
+that causes much notice. As the tip dies, the larvae turn and go down
+into the canes, as in the sample sent, also injuring them greatly,
+though possibly not killing them for some time. The only way to attack
+them is to pinch the spots where the eggs were laid; then those that
+escape and cause the tips to wilt should be destroyed by cutting off the
+tips below the point of injury or cutting off the canes when they show
+damage. Likewise, the insects work on the wild rose, and cutting all
+those out around a place will prevent enough adults from developing to
+permit little damage to be done, always provided the berries are well
+looked after.
+
+
+
+Control of Red Spider.
+
+
+
+Can you give directions for the prevention of injury by the red spider
+to almond and other trees in the Sacramento volley?
+
+The red spider on almond and prune trees is usually controlled by the
+thorough application of dry sulphur to the foliage. On almonds the first
+sulphuring should be done as soon as the leaves appear in March. A
+second application is advised from the 1st to the 10th of May. A third
+application should be made from the 1st to the 10th of June. Prune trees
+should be treated as soon as the spider appears. In the Sacramento
+valley this usually occurs about the first week of July. Full-grown
+trees require about a pound of sulphur which should be thoroughly
+distributed throughout the foliage. The old method of throwing a handful
+of sulphur in the branches of the tree or on the ground under the tree
+is valueless. The use of a blower is economical in large orchards, but a
+can with perforated bottom is frequently used on young trees or small
+orchards with good results. In normal seasons the spider is easily,
+controlled by dry sulphuring. When the pest does not yield to this
+treatment, a spray is recommended.
+
+
+
+Liquid Spray for Red Spider.
+
+
+
+Is there any liquid spray I can use in my spraying that will kill the
+red spider without injuring the foliage of the almond?
+
+A liquid spray for red spider is made by taking sulphur 30 pounds; lime
+(reduced to milk form by water), 15 pounds; water, 200 gallons; or use
+commercial lime-sulphur, 4 or 5 gallons to 200 gallons of water. These
+sprays can be applied without injuring the foliage. They are more
+expensive in labor cost than dry sulphuring, but are more effective.
+
+
+
+Apple-Leaf Aphis.
+
+
+
+I am sending herewith a small piece from one of my young apple trees. If
+you can, will you kindly tell me what the insects are an it, and what I
+had better do for them?
+
+The apple twig which you send is infested with the eggs of the leaf
+aphis or leaf louse. These eggs are very difficult to kill. A good
+thorough spraying with lime-sulphur might, however, get rid of many of
+them and would be good for the trees otherwise - diluting according to
+condition of tree growth. The chief campaign against the leaf aphis,
+however, must be made early in the growing season, just as these pests
+are beginning to hatch out and to accumulate under the leaves of the new
+growth. They should then be attacked with properly made kerosene
+emulsion or tobacco extract with a nozzle suited to land the spray on
+the under side of the leaves. Unless these pests are attacked early in
+the season and repeated if necessary, your apples on bearing trees will
+be ruined so far as they attack them, being small, misshaped and
+worthless. On young trees the destruction of the foliage is fatal to
+good growth.
+
+
+
+Woolly Aphis.
+
+
+
+Will you kindly inform me what you consider the best treatment for apple
+trees affected by woolly aphis?
+
+The best way to kill the woolly aphis on the roots is to remove the
+earth from around the tree to a distance of one or two feet, according
+to the size of the tree, digging away a few inches of the surface soil,
+Then soak the soil around the tree with kerosene emulsion, properly
+made, of 15 per cent strength, and replace the earth. Be sure you get a
+good emulsion, for free oil is dangerous. For the insects above ground
+on the twigs, a good spraying while the tree is out of leaf will kill
+many, but some will survive for summer spraying, and for this a tobacco
+spray may be most convenient.
+
+
+
+Blister Mite on Walnuts.
+
+
+
+I am sending you some walnut leaves with some swellings an them. They
+are very plentiful on some trees here. Is the trouble serious and will
+it spread?
+
+This is merely Erinose, or Blister Mite, which is a very common trouble
+on walnuts, but does not do enough damage to call for methods of
+control. These swellings are caused by numerous, very small insects
+which live within the blisters on the under side of the leaf amongst a
+felt-like, heavy growth which develops there. While this effect is very
+common, it produces no appreciable injury and needs no treatment for its
+control.
+
+
+
+Scale on Apricots.
+
+
+
+I would like to know how to check the scale on apricot trees.
+
+The most common scale on apricots, the brown apricot scale, is usually
+held in check by the comys fusca, which is as widely distributed as the
+scale itself. If it gets beyond the parasite, you should spray in winter
+with crude oil emulsion. If some scales are punctured or have a black
+spot on top, the comys fusca is busy and you probably will be safe
+enough without doing anything.
+
+
+
+Fumigating for Black Scale.
+
+
+
+I would like to know the best method of eradicating the black scale from
+my orange trees, whether by spraying or fumigation?
+
+Spraying has been given up as a suitable method for controlling the
+black scale on citrus trees, and the only recognized method of merit
+where the scale is bad is by fumigation with hydrocyanic acid gas. You
+should communicate with your county horticultural commissioner, who,
+through inspectors, will see that you have a good job done, at the right
+time and at as moderate price as is compatible with good work. It is
+impossible to 'eradicate' the black scale, but there is a great
+difference in the amount that can be killed, and it pays to have a job
+done as near perfectly as possible. Similar methods of attacking other
+scale insects on citrus trees are used.
+
+
+
+Finding Thrips.
+
+
+
+How can the presence of pear thrips be detected in a prune orchard? Will
+the distillate emulsion-nicotine spray control brown scale as well as
+thrips?
+
+You can find thrips by shaking a cluster of blossoms, as soon as they
+open, over a sheet of paper or in the palm of your hand. The thrips are
+very minute, transparent, somewhat louse-like insects. The spray you
+mention would probably have little effect on the brown scale which would
+still be in the egg state and under cover, at the time the early spring
+spraying for the thrips.
+
+
+
+Control of Pear Slug.
+
+
+
+I am sending, under separate cover, some samples of cherry tree leaves
+that have been attacked by a small snail or slug. Kindly let me know
+what they are, and how to rid the trees of them.
+
+The creatures you speak of are the pear slugs, or the cherry slugs, as
+they are sometimes known. Although slimy, like the big yellow slug that
+is a pest in vegetable gardens, it is no relation thereto, but is the
+larva of an insect. Its olive green color, slimy appearance and the way
+it eats the surface of the leaves make it about the easiest of all
+insects to identify. Parasites and predacious insects usually keep it in
+fair control. Whenever artificial methods of control are needed the
+slugs can best be destroyed by sprinkling dust of any kind upon them. If
+you can get a machine for sulphuring a vineyard and use some air slaked
+lime or other fine dust, it will fix them quickly and inexpensively,
+though any way of applying dust may be used.
+
+
+
+Cutworms and Young Trees.
+
+
+
+What method should be used to protect young fruit trees from cutworms?
+
+Hoe around the trees or vines and kill the fat, greasy grubs which you
+will find near the foliage. Put out a poisoned bait which the worms like
+better than the foliage, viz. Bran, 10 pounds; white arsenic, 1/2 pound;
+molasses, 1/2 gallon; water, 2 gallons. Mix the arsenic with the bran
+dry. Add the molasses to the water and mix into the bran, making a moist
+paste. Put a tablespoonful near the base of the tree or vine and lock up
+the chickens.
+
+
+
+Control of Squash Bugs.
+
+
+
+We are troubled with pumpkin bugs. Please tell us what to do for them.
+
+When the bugs first make their appearance in the field they can be
+easily disposed of by hand picking and dropping into a bucket containing
+about two inches of water with about one-fourth inch of kerosene on top
+to kill the bugs. The picking should be done in the morning, as the bugs
+are apt to fly in the warm part of the day and scatter where already
+picked. Two persons can pick over an acre in one and a half hours, and
+two pickings are usually sufficient for a season, as after the vines
+begin to run over the ground pretty well the bugs will not be able to
+hurt them much. A pair of thin old gloves will help to keep off one's
+hands some of the perfume from the bugs. The sooner the work starts the
+fewer bugs to pick. Cleaning up of all old vines in the fall and
+removing litter in which the mature bugs hide for the winter will permit
+less eggs to be laid in the spring and there will be fewer bugs to pick
+as a result.
+
+
+
+The Corn Worm.
+
+
+
+Last year all my ears of corn were infested with maggot, growing fat
+thereon. Can you help me scare them away?
+
+You have to do with the so-called corn worm which is very abundant in
+this State and one of the greatest pests to corn growing. It is the same
+insect which is known as the boll worm of the cotton in the Southern
+States. No satisfactory method of controlling this has been found,
+although a great deal of experimentation has been done. Nearly
+everything that could be thought of has been tried without very
+satisfactory results. A late planted corn has sometimes been free, for
+the insect is not in the laying stage then. If it were not for this
+insect the canning of corn would be an important industry in this State.
+
+
+
+Melon Lice.
+
+
+
+I have in about four acres of watermelons, and there seem to be lice and
+a small gnat or fly, and also some small green bugs and white worms on
+the under part of the leaves, which seem to be stopping the growth of
+the vines, making them wilt and die. They seem to be more in patches,
+although a few on all the vines. Can you please tell me what to do for
+them?
+
+Melon lice are very hard to catch up with after you have let them get a
+start. Spraying with oil emulsions, tobacco extracts, soap solutions,
+etc., will all kill the lice if you get it onto them with a good spray
+pump and suitable nozzles for reaching the under sides of the leaves.
+The gnats you speak of are the winged forms of the lice; the white worms
+may be eating the lice; the "small green bugs" may be diabroticas. If
+you had started in lively as soon as you saw the first lice you could
+have destroyed them in the places where they started. Now your chance
+lies largely in the natural multiplication of ladybirds and the
+occurrence of hot winds which will burn up the lice. It is too late
+probably, to undertake spraying the whole field.
+
+
+
+Wire Worms.
+
+
+
+Is there any way to destroy or overcome the destructive work of the
+wireworm, which I find in some spots takes the lion's share of crops,
+such as beans, potatoes, onions, etc.?
+
+We do not know any easy way with wire worms. Nitrate of soda is believed
+to kill or repel them, but you have to be careful with it, for too much
+will either over-stimulate or kill the kill; about 200 pounds per acre,
+well distributed, is the usual prescription for the good of the plants.
+Wire worms can probably be killed with carbon bisulphide, using a
+tablespoonful poured into holes about a foot deep, three or four feet
+apart. The vapor would permeate the soil and kill all ground insects,
+but the acre-cost of such treatment must be measured in its relation to
+the value of the crop. The most promising policy with wire worms is
+rotation of crops, starving them out with a grain or grass crop and not
+growing such crops as you mention continually on the same land.
+
+
+
+Bean Weevil.
+
+
+
+How can I keep certain insects from getting into my dry beans? I have
+finished picking the crop. Every year a little, short, stubby beetle
+gets in them before spring and makes them unfit for use.
+
+You have to do with the bean weevil. The eggs are inserted by the insect
+while the beans are still green in the pods; subsequently the eggs hatch
+and the worm excavates the interior of the ripened beans. The beans can
+be protected after ripening by heating carefully to 130° Fahrenheit,
+which will destroy the egg, or the larva if already hatched. Of course,
+this heating must be done cautiously and with the aid of a good
+thermometer for fear of destroying the germinating power. The work of
+the insect can also be stopped by putting the beans in a barrel or other
+close receptacle, with a saucer containing about an ounce of carbon
+bi-sulfid to vaporize. Be careful not to approach the vapor with a
+light. After treatment for one-half hour, the cover can be removed and
+the vapor will entirely dissipate. This is a safer treatment than the
+heating. Similar methods of control can be used on other pea and bean
+weevils.
+
+
+
+Slugs in Garden.
+
+
+
+Can you advise me how I can get rid of slugs in my garden?
+
+When barriers of lime, ashes, etc., are ineffective, traps consisting of
+pieces of board sacking and similar materials placed about the field
+prove inviting to the slugs. They collect under these and by going over
+the field in the early morning they may be put into a salt-water
+solution or otherwise destroyed. Arsenical sprays applied with an
+underspray nozzle to the lower surface of the leaves will help control
+the slugs. Poison bran mash consisting of 16 pounds of coarse bran, 2
+quarts of cheap syrup, and enough warm water to make a coarse mash, is
+very good for cutworms and should be equally effective for slugs. It
+should be placed in small heaps about the plants to be protected.
+Cabbage leaves dipped in grease drippings and placed about the fields
+also prove attractive bait for the slugs, which may then be collected
+there. If a person has a taste for poultry, the keeping of a few ducks
+may solve the slug problem without further bother. Cultivation or
+irrigation methods that give a dry surface most of the time also
+discourage these pests.
+
+
+
+Cause of Mottle Leaf.
+
+
+
+What is the cause and cure of mottle leaf of citrus trees?
+
+There are apparently a number of causes of this trouble, all more or
+less obscure and hard to overcome. It is generally thought that it is
+due to poor nutrition, whatever the reason for poor nutrition might be.
+The presence of a nematode or eel worm on the roots has found to be a
+cause of mottle leaf in many cases. Poor drainage, too sandy soil and a
+number of other things frequently cause it. Whatever the cause, no one
+good method of cure has been found.
+
+
+
+Potato Scab.
+
+
+
+I think most of my potatoes will have some scab. Will you please tell me
+if my next crop would be apt to have scab, provided I got good clean
+seed and planted in the same ground?
+
+It seems demonstrated that a treatment of the seed will practically
+insure against potato scab. One method is dipping the potatoes in a
+solution of corrosive sublimate. Dissolve one ounce in eight gallons of
+water and soak the seed potatoes in this solution for one and one-half
+hours before cutting.
+
+
+
+Gopher Poison.
+
+
+
+I have some alfalfa, some hogs and some gophers, also some strychnine
+and carrots. If I put the strychnine on the carrots, and endeavor to
+poison the gophers, and the hogs get hold of the poison will it kill
+them?
+
+You will find that hogs are liable to poison like any other animal, and
+the safest way to poison the gophers, while the hogs are running in the
+field is to bury the poisoned carrots very deeply in the gopher hole and
+then put a row of sticks or branches over the mouth of the hole so that
+the hogs cannot root around and get at the poisoned carrots.
+
+
+
+How to Make Bordeaux.
+
+
+
+Use copper sulphate (bluestone) 5 pounds; quick-lime (good stone lime),
+6 pounds; water, 50 gallons. Put the bluestone in a sack and hang it so
+it will be suspended just under the surface of a barrel of water over
+night, or dissolve in hot water. Use one gallon of water to one pound of
+bluestone. Slake the lime in a separate barrel, using just enough water
+to make a smooth, clean, thin whitewash. Stir this vigorously. Use
+wooden vessels only. Fill the spray tank half full of water, add one
+gallon of bluestone solution for each pound required, then strain in the
+lime and the remainder of the water and stir thoroughly. The formula may
+be varied according to conditions, using from 3 to 8 pounds of bluestone
+to 50 gallons of water and an equal or slight excess of lime. Use the
+stronger mixture in rainy weather. Keep the mixture constantly agitated
+while applying.
+
+
+
+Formula for Lime-Sulphur.
+
+
+
+To make lime-sulphur take quick-lime, 20 pounds; ground sulphur, 15
+pounds and water 30 gallons. Slake the lime with hot water in a large
+kettle, add the sulphur and stir well together. After the violent
+slaking subsides add more water and boil the mixture over a fire for at
+least one hour. After boiling sufficiently strain into the spray tank
+and dilute with water to the proper strength. If a steam boiler is
+available, this mixture may be prepared more easily on a large scale by
+cooking in barrels into which steam pipes are introduced. This mixture
+cannot be applied safely except during the winter when the trees are
+dormant. A large proportion of the lime-sulphur used in the State is
+purchased already prepared in more concentrated form.
+
+
+
+Index
+
+
+
+Fruit Growing.
+
+
+
+Almond
+      Grafting on Peach
+      Pruning
+	 Budding and Grafting
+	 Planting
+	 Pollination
+      Roots for
+	 Longevity of
+	 Seedlings
+	 Do Not Plant in Place
+	 Stick-Tights
+	 And Peach
+Apples
+      Shy-Bearing
+      Not on Quince
+	 Stock For
+	 And Alfalfa
+      Top Grafting
+	 Mildew on Seedlings
+	 Pruning
+	 Will They Be Same Kind
+      Places for
+	 Grafting in Place
+	 Resistant Roots
+	 For Hot Place
+	 Die-Back of
+	 Storage of
+	 Root-Grafts
+Apricots
+      Pruning
+	 Shy-Bearing
+	 Propagation
+	 Renewing Old
+	 Summer Pruning
+Bananas
+      In California
+Berries
+      Pruning Himalayas
+	 Hardiness of Hybrids
+	 With Perfect Flowers
+	 Pruning Loganberries
+	 Strawberry Planting
+	 Blackberries for Drying
+	 Planting Bush Fruits
+	 Strawberry Plants
+	 Strawberries in Succession
+	 Gooseberries, Limitations of
+Carobs
+      In California
+Cherries
+      For Hot Place
+	 Wild
+      Pruning
+	 Training Grafts
+	 Restoring Tress
+      Pollination
+Citron
+      Curing
+Citrus Fruit
+      Temperatures
+	 Filbert Roots
+Filbert Growing
+Figs
+      Stickers
+	 No Gopher-Proof Roots
+	 Trays, Cleaning
+Fruit Trees
+      Depth of Soil
+	 What Slopes
+	 and Overflow
+	 Roots for
+	 and Sunburn
+	 Budding
+	 Starting from Seed
+	 Square or Triangular Planting
+	 Planting on Clearings
+	 Dipping Roots of
+	 Preparing for Planting
+	 Depth of Planting
+	 In Wet Place
+	 Cutting Back at Planting
+	 Branching Young
+	 Coal Tar and Asphaltum
+	 Regular Bearing of
+	 Avoiding Crotches
+	 Crotch-Splitting
+	 Strengthening
+	 Covering Wounds
+	 Covering Sunburned Bark
+	 Gravel Streak
+      Transplanting Old
+      Dwarfing
+	 Seedling
+	 Filling Holes in
+	 Deferring Bloom
+	 Repairing Rabbit Injuries
+	 Crops Between
+	 Scions for Mailing
+	 Scions from Young Trees
+	 Whitewashing
+	 Deciduous Planting
+	 On Coast Sands
+	 Over Underflow
+Grapefruit
+      and Nuts
+Grapes
+      Dry Farming
+      Cutting Frosted Canes
+	 Dipping Seedless
+	 Zante Currant
+	 Vines for Arbor
+	 Pruning Old Vines
+	 Bleeding Vines
+	 Scant Moisture
+	 Sulphuring for Mildew
+	 Sugar in Canned
+	 Planting
+Grafting
+      Wax
+June Drop
+Killing Moss on Tree
+Interplanting, Wrong idea
+Lemons
+      Citrus Budding
+	 No Citrus Fruits on Roots
+Mulberries
+      Pruning and Grafting
+Nursery Stock in Young Orchard
+Orchard
+      Replanting
+	 Plowing in Young
+	 Pigs in
+	 Forage Under Sprayed Trees
+Oranges
+      Water and Frost
+	 Thinning
+	 Wind-Blown Trees
+	 Handling Balled Trees
+	 Navel Not Thornless
+	 Over-Size
+      Budding or Grafting in Orchard
+      Under-Pruning Trees
+	 Keeping Trees too Low
+	 Dying Back of Trees
+	 Young Trees Dropping Fruit
+	 Training
+	 Crops Between Trees
+	 Navels and Valencias
+	 Seedlings
+	 Acres to One Man
+	 Roots for Trees
+	 Soil and Situation
+	 Transplanting
+	 Protecting Young Trees
+	 Not on Osage
+	 No Pollenizer for Navels
+	 Water and Frost
+	 Frosted, What to do
+	 Pruning Frosted Trees
+	 Pruning
+Olives
+      Cultivating
+	 Moving Old Trees
+	 Darkening Pickled
+      Seedlings Must Be Grafted
+	 Oranges and Peppers
+	 Budding Seedlings
+      Budding Old
+	 from Small Cuttings
+	 from Large Cuttings
+	 Trimming Up
+	 Canning
+	 Renewing Trees
+	 Growing from Seed
+	 Neglected Trees
+Peaches
+      Lye-peeling
+	 Aged Trees
+	 Renewing Orchard
+	 Will He Have
+	 Fillers in Apple Orchard
+	 Grafting on Almond
+	 on Apricot
+      Replanting after Root Knot
+	 Buds in Bearing Trees
+	 Pollen Must Be Same Kind
+	 Grafting on
+	 Young Trees Fail to Start
+	 Planting in Alfalfa Sod
+	 Pecan Growing
+Pears
+      Pollination of Bartletts
+	 Comics
+	 Not on Peach
+	 Dwarf Pears
+	 Yield in Drying
+	 Problems
+	 Blight and Bees
+	 on Quince
+Plowing, Young Orchard
+Plums - Pollenizing
+Prunes
+      On Almond
+	 Re-grafting Silver
+	 French or Italian
+	 Myrobalan Seedlings
+	 Drying
+	 Sugar
+	 Glossing Dried
+	 Price on Size Basis
+Pruning
+      Times
+       Shaping a Young Tree
+	  Late
+	  Too Much
+	  In Frosty Places
+	  Low Growth
+       Are Tap-Roots Essential
+	  For a Bark Wound
+	  Bridging Gopher Girdles
+Roots, Whole or Piece
+Soil, Binding Plant for Winter
+Spineless Cactus Fruit
+Stumps, Medication to Kill
+Sucker, What will it Be
+Walnuts
+      Early Bearing
+	 Handling Seedlings
+	 How to Start
+	 Planting
+	 Pruning
+	 Grafting
+	 on Oaks
+	 Eastern or California Blacks
+	 Ripening
+	 Cutting Below Dead Wood
+	 in Alfalfa
+	 in the Hills
+	 Increase Bearing
+	 Temperature and Moisture
+	 from Seed
+	 High-grafted
+
+
+
+Vegetable Growing.
+
+
+
+Artichokes
+      Jerusalem
+	 Globe
+	 Growing
+Asparagus Growing
+Beets
+      Leases for Sugar
+	 Topping Mangel Wurzels
+Brussels Sprouts - Blooming
+Bean
+      Growing
+      Hoeing
+	 as Nitrogen Gatherer
+	 Yard-Long
+	 Why Waiting
+	 Blackeye
+	 Are Cow-Peas
+	 Horse-Bean Growing
+	 Growing Castor
+	 Inoculation
+	 On Irrigated Mesas
+California Grown Seed
+Cloth for Hotbeds
+Celery, Blanching
+Chili Peppers
+Corn
+      in Sacramento Valley
+	 in Warm Ground
+	 Sweet, in California
+Cucumbers
+      Forcing
+	 Growing
+Continuous Cropping
+Ginger in California
+In Cold, Dark, Draft
+Licorice in California
+Lentils, Growing
+Lettuce, Transplanting
+Melons
+      Winter
+	 Ripe
+Onions
+      Seeds and Sets
+	 Ripening
+	 from Sets
+	 Crops from Seed
+Peas
+      Canada for Seed
+	 Growing Niles
+Peanuts
+      Harvesting
+	 and Adobe
+Potatoes
+      Cutting
+      Planting
+      Northern Seed
+	 Planted Early
+	 Balls
+	 Seed-ends
+	 and the Moon
+	 Planting Whole
+      How to Cut Seed
+      Scab
+	 Double-cropping
+	 Keeping
+	 Yield
+	 New for Seed
+	 Growing
+	 After Alfalfa
+	 Flat or Hill
+      Bad Conditions for
+	 On Heavy Land
+	 Storage for Seed
+	 and Frosts
+	 Sweet, Plant Growing
+	 Growing
+	 Between Trees
+Less Water, More Heat
+Radish, Giant Japanese
+Rhubarb, Rotting
+Soil for Vegetables
+Squashes Dislike Hardship
+Sunflowers, Harvesting
+Tomatoes
+      Irrigating
+	 Big Worms
+	 Loss of Bloom
+
+
+
+Grain and Forage Crops
+
+
+
+Alfalfa
+      Improving Land
+      Cultivating
+	 Suburban Patch
+	 and Bermuda
+	 and Salt Grass
+	 and Alkali
+	 on Adobe
+	 and Soil Depth
+	 Irrigating
+	 Curing
+      Preparation of Land
+	 Where Grown
+	 Sowing
+      and Foxtail
+      Which is Best
+      and Dry Land
+	 Inoculating
+	 Unirrigated
+	 Time to Cut
+	 and Overflow
+	 No Nurse Crop
+	 Re-seeding
+	 Taking Bloat from
+	 What Crop for Seed
+	 Siloing First Crop
+	 Soil For
+	 Handling Young
+	 With Gypsum
+Alfileria, Winter Pasture
+Barley
+      California Varieties
+	 Chevalier
+	 on Moist Land
+	 and Alfalfa
+Beet Sugar, Home-made
+Beets
+      and Potatoes
+	 for Stock
+	 Stock, Summer Start
+Berseem
+Bermuda Grass
+      Objectionable
+Black Medic
+Broom Corn
+Buckwheat Growing
+Clover
+      and Drought
+	 for Wet Lands
+	 Crimson
+	 for Shallow Land
+	 for High Ground-Water
+	 Not an Alfalfa
+	 Sweet, Cover Crop
+Corn
+      for Silage
+	 Irrigation for
+	 Eastern Seed
+	 Suckering
+	 and Cow Peas
+Cover Crop for Hop Yard
+Cow Peas in San Joaquin
+Cowpeas
+      Growing
+	 and Canadian Peas
+Crop Rotation
+Dry Plowing for Grain
+Fall Feed
+Forage Plants
+      in Foothills
+      Winter
+	 Poultry
+Flax, New Zealand
+Grasses, for Bank-holding
+Grass Seeds, Scattering
+Hay
+      Midsummer Sowing
+	 Loose by Measure
+	 Oat, When to Cut
+	 Rye for
+	 Frosted Grain
+	 Summer Crop
+Heating and Fermentation
+Insect Powder
+Johnson Grass
+Jersey Kale
+Kafir and Egyptian Corn
+Lawns, Mossy
+Moonshine Farming
+Oats and Rust
+Pasturing
+      Young Grain
+	 Hurry-up
+	 California Winter
+Rape and Milo
+Rye in California
+Rye
+      Grass, Italian
+	 better than
+Speltz
+Spurry, Giant
+Soil Light, Scant Moisture
+Sunflowers
+      and Soy Beans
+      Russian
+Spineless Cactus
+Sorghum
+      Smutty
+	 Late Sown
+Sorghums
+      for Seed
+	 for Planting
+Sacaline
+Special Crops
+Teosinte
+Vetches
+      for San Joaquin
+	 for Hay
+Wheat, Seven-headed
+
+
+
+Soils, Fertilizing and Irrigation.
+
+
+
+Alkali Soil
+      and Trees
+      Treatment of
+	 and Gypsum
+      Distribution
+	 Plants Will Tell
+	 and Litmus
+Alfalfa over Hardpan
+Ashes
+      and Tomatoes
+      in Garden
+	 and Poultry Manure
+Blasting
+      or Tiling
+	 Effects of
+Barnyard Manure and Alkali
+Bones for Grape Vines
+Can a Man Farm
+Charcoal, Medicine, not Food
+Cover Crop, Best Legume
+Cowpeas, best cover crop
+Cementing Soils, Improvement
+Cultivation, Depth of
+Draining Wet Spot
+Dry Plowing
+      Treatment
+	 and Sowing
+Dynamite, More Needed
+Electro-Agriculture
+Fenugreek as Cover Crop
+Fertilizer
+      in Tree Holes
+	 Best for Sand
+	 Prunings as
+	 Suburban Wastes
+	 Composting Garden Wastes
+      for Sweet Potatoes
+	 Pear Orchard
+      Olives
+      Consult Trees
+	 Nursery
+	 Almond Hulls and Sawdust
+	 Fruit Trees
+	 Oranges
+	 Seed Farm Refuse
+	 Slow Stuff
+	 Alfalfa
+	 Corn
+	 Scrap Iron
+	 Kelp as
+	 Nitrate of Soda
+	 Strawberries
+Ground Water
+Gypsum
+      on Grain Land
+	 and Alfalfa
+	 What it Does
+	 How Much
+Garden Peas for Green Manure
+Grape Pomace
+      Handling
+	 Abuse of
+Hardpan and Low Water
+Humus
+      Burning Out
+	 Straw for
+Irrigating
+      Palms
+	 Condensation for
+	 Winter
+	 Young Trees
+Alfalfa
+      How Much for Crops
+	 Sewage
+	 Creamery Wastes
+	 House Waste
+Intensive Cultivation
+Irrigate or Cultivate
+Irrigation
+      Underground
+	 of Potatoes
+	 of Apples
+	 of Walnuts
+	 Summer and Fall
+	 and Fertilizers
+Liming Chicken Yard
+Legumes, Two in Year
+Lime
+      Caustic not Absorbent
+	 on Sandy Soil
+	 Alfalfa
+	 Sugar Factory Fertilizer
+Manure
+      Water, Cultivation
+	 Ashes
+	 Poultry
+	 too Much
+	 Stable and Bean Straw
+	 Pit Roofing
+	 Value of Animals
+	 Fresh and Dry
+	 and Shavings
+	 Sheep, and Goat
+	 Hog and Potatoes
+	 Vineyard
+	 and Nitrate
+	 with Clover
+Nitrate, Late Applications of
+Oranges Over Ground Water
+Organic Matter, Needs
+Oranges
+      How Much Water
+	 Damping Off
+Planting in Mud
+Potash or Water
+Reviving Blighted Trees
+Soils
+      and Oranges
+      Crop Changes
+	 Moisture Defects
+	 Refractory
+	 Suitable for Fruits
+	 Blowing
+	 Improving Heavy
+	 Reclaimed Swamp
+      Improving Uncovered
+	 Sand for Clay
+	 Sour
+	 and Old Plaster
+	 Handling Orchard
+	 Depth for Citrus
+Summer Fallow
+Sub-soil, Plow for
+Stable Drainage for Fruit
+Seeds, Soaking
+Trees
+      over High-water
+	 Plowing toward or from
+	 Irrigated or not
+	 Too Much Water
+	 Too Little Water
+Thomas Phosphate, Applying
+Water
+      Artesian
+	 from Wells or Streams
+
+
+
+Live Stock and Dairy.
+
+
+
+Buttermilk Paint
+Butter
+      Going White
+      Fat, What it is
+	 Why not Come
+	 Fat in Cream
+Breeding
+      Young Mare
+	 in Purple
+	 Line
+Cream That Won't Whip
+Cows in Hill Country
+Concrete Stable Floor
+Drying Persistent Milker
+Foot-hill Dairy
+Free Martin
+Grade, What it is
+Granary, Rat-proof
+Hogs, Best Breed
+Jersey
+      Short-horn Cross
+	 Bad Tempered
+Legal Milk House
+Milk
+      Strong
+	 Separator as Purifier
+	 Certified
+Self-Milker, Cure for
+Silos, Heating not Dangerous
+Shingles, Make Durable
+Trespassing Live Stock
+Whitewashes
+      for Buildings
+      Government
+      for Spray
+
+
+
+Feeding Farm Animals
+
+
+
+Alfalfa and Concentrates
+Barley, Rolled
+      for Cows
+	 for Hay Feeding
+Brewers' Grains for Cows
+Balanced Rations
+Corn Stalks
+      and Concentrates
+	 Cut for Silage
+Calves, Feeding
+Feed
+      for Cows
+      Family Cow
+	 Young Pigs
+Grape Pomace as Hog Feed
+Grain for Horses
+Horses, Vetch for
+Horse Beans and Melons
+Hay
+      Salting
+	 Chopping for Horses
+	 Cut Alfalfa
+	 Storing Cut Alfalfa
+	 Grinding
+Kale for Cow Feed
+Plow Horses, Feed for
+Pumpkins
+      Feeding
+	 Keeping
+Pasture and Cover Crop
+      Fall and Winter
+      Summer for Hogs
+Pigs
+      and Pie-Melons
+	 Grain or Pasture for
+	 Growing on Roots
+Sheep, Winter Feeding
+Sorghum, Feeding
+Silage  200 Dry Fodder
+Sugar Beets and Silage
+Stover
+Stock Beets
+      Storing
+	 Kind of
+Spelt, Value of
+Steers on Alfalfa
+Silo, Size of
+Soiling Crops
+Wheat or Barley
+      for Hogs
+	 for Feeding
+
+
+
+Diseases of Animals.
+
+
+
+Abscess of Gland
+Abnormal Thirst
+Bloat, Easement
+Bowel Trouble
+Bloody Milk
+Barren Heifers
+Blind Teat
+Bovine Rheumatism
+Bleeding for Blackleg
+Chronic Indigestion
+Castration of Colt
+Chronic Cough
+Cowpox
+Calf Dysentery
+Cleft Hoof
+Cocked Ankles
+Cleanse Cows
+Caked Bag
+Cow Chewing Bones
+Depraved Appetite
+Dentist Needed
+Dehorning
+Forage Poisoning
+Fungus Poisoning
+Fly Repellants
+Flea Destroyers
+Garget
+Gland Enlarged
+Heaves
+Horse with Itch
+Horses Feet, Treatment
+Hog Cholera
+Hog Sickness
+Infectious Mastitis
+Irritation of Udder
+Injury to Udder
+Kidney Trouble
+Lumpy jaw
+Lumps in Teat
+Loss of Cud
+Mange, Is it
+Mangy Cow
+Musty Corn for Pigs
+Nail Puncture
+Neck Swelling
+Pregnancy of Mare
+Paralysis
+Pneumonia in Pigs
+Paralysis of Sow
+Rickets in Hogs
+Scabby Swelling
+Skin Disease, Fatal
+Scours
+Side-bone
+Shoulder injury
+Stiff joints
+Swelling in Dewlap
+Sterile Cow
+Supernumerary Teat
+Sore
+      Eyes
+      in Pigs
+Sow, Over-fat
+Tuberculous Milk
+Uterus, Diseased
+Urination Defective
+Warts on Horse
+Worms in Horses
+Wound
+      Sore
+	 in Teat
+	 Swellings
+
+
+
+Poultry Keeping.
+
+
+
+Bowel Trouble in Chicks
+Cure for Feather-Eating
+Cannibal Chicks
+Caponizing
+Chicken Pox
+Clipping Hens
+Dipping Fowls
+Disinfectants
+Dry Mash
+Feeding for Eggs
+Grain for Chickens
+Liver Disease
+Limber Neck
+Melons for Fowls
+Open Front Houses
+Roup
+      Treatment
+      in Turkeys
+Quick Roosters and Laying Hens
+Preserving Eggs
+Poultry
+      Tonic
+      in Orchard
+Point on Mating
+Poultry Diarrhea
+Rupture of Oviduct
+Rape for Chickens
+Sunflower Seeds for Chicks
+Teaching Chicks to Perch
+
+
+
+Pests and Diseases of Plants.
+
+
+
+Apple-Leaf Aphis
+Bordeaux Mixture
+Bean Weevil
+Borers on Olive Twigs
+Blister Mite on Walnuts
+Black Scale, Fumigation
+Cutworms in Young Trees
+Control
+      of Pear Slug
+	 of Grasshoppers
+	 of Red Spider
+      of Squash Bugs
+Corn Worm
+Gumming Prune Trees
+Gopher Poison
+Lime-Sulphate Formula
+Melon Lice
+Mottle Leaf, Cause of
+Potato Scab
+Raspberry Cane Borer
+Sunburn and Borers
+Scale on Apricots
+Spray for Red Spider
+Slugs in Garden
+Thrips, Finding
+Wooly Aphis
+Wire Worms
+
+
+
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, ONE THOUSAND QUESTIONS IN CALIFORNIA AGRICULTURE ANSWERED ***
+
+This file should be named 5152.txt or 5152.zip
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