Agricultural.

Clutha Leader, Volume I, Issue 16, 22 October 1874, Page 3

Agricultural.

I Value on SAWDUs-r.-^Sawdust is of little .value wppn; san^y so^l. . In :any cQse it possesses , li'fitlft' .fertilising . properties, bnt '-npon ptijj^clay it. tends to open the./spil and' jmake.it .ligbter. T^e >m\i(~\ frpnv the, t bQttom^of ponds or .swanips would bjß . much more valuable .as a material for compQsitirj'g.wit^ nia- : nure..,r '„_,, ' ; A ,--. * '. } A .". :'.' An Englisb poultry keeper writing of food for ypung fowls, says: — JTothing is : s,o good lor goslings as grass. „, Oatmeal put in _ a p&n ; of water is^^ excellent food for theift,^ and it is often wise to add spine bran to it. Chickens should have bread and. , in'ilk, ebbppe d dgg, cpokeii irieat cut up fine, crumbs, sods of growing grass, fresh earth, and in bad weather beer.

An -English poultry fancier at the late Crystal palace show exhibited specimens .which' were of remarkable feather * and "brilliance of color. The catfse'pf his conspicuous success was 'simply feeding cayenne pepper and' causing his birds to molt ih. warm J cages.. The plan is accepted as a liegal arid proper one, for the reason that if, by ingenuity or accident, any means of improving, the appearance and character of the birds. by the use of food which acts upon the natural growth or secretions "are "clis-. covered,, the use or such is already "'allowed by existing rules, and does 1 not cbhid under the category of tricks'., by whichis meant the employment of outward applications or devices to change , the natural appearance for a' disguised and fictitious dne : . ' ' '

Experiments' in Potato Culture — A correspondent to the Cross, who signs himself '^'An East' Taranaki Farmer," writes as follows :—" Last year I tried an experiment With seed potatoes, of which I how give your readers tbe result for what it is worth. I planted, a piece of land three chains by half a Qhain, trenched and well worked, with potatoes, u.sibg very large tubers. These I divided into sets pf^two 'or three eyes, throwing asidb the butt ends, which I planted by themselves at one end of the strip of la^d. They were purposely selected as very" bad' sets, such as I at any other time would not have used^ having only one or two weak eyes rin thenvbut when. l came to take up the crop th\prbduce from that end was as good as i'r\m the rest of the ground — indeed, the'i^e was no marked difference in any respect. I have also tried the experiment of planting shoots (with fibrous shoots), broken tubers, to supply missing sets in a crop, and found it to answer perfectly. Many farmers' are not aware that by the use of an extra tree they can avoid the treading of horses in drills after the seed is planted. The nlan is very simple — miss- the first drill and drop in the secpnd and third, miss the fourth and drop 1 in the fifth'and sixth, arid so on. Suppose the drills tp be thirty inches apart, then the tree must be seven feet six inches long*, and the horses walk in the undropped drills, and afterwards, when those are' planted in the lines which the plough has split, the. banking is then finished wifh usual trees. ltis necessary to have an elongation made to the usual plough bridle. Food for Milching Cows. — It is a well established fact, that both food and drink affect the milk and flesh of the" animals consuming them. Because the milk of such cows does not kill .somebody outright, or make every one sick the moment he swallows it, the inference must not.be made that ,." pondhole " milk is just as good as any. It would be as. reasonable to contend that pork made from, carrioil is just as good as that from farm grass, as to main.tain that the milk of cows drinking such stagnant water is just as good and as. healthy as that from cow^s that slake their thirst from clear cool springs, or the crystal "waters of the babbling "brooks. Very likely the milkmen are not aware of the extent to Which tbeir milk is injured by the' use of stlch water. There is almost a criminal ignorance prevailing, both among producers and consumers, in regard to theunhealthful treatment pf animals whose flesh and milk we use for food. . They seem to forget that, unheal thful food and treatment must tell upon. animals, as well. as upon men. Heceipt for Curing Hams and Bacon the Devonshire Way:'- ---Having ascertained the weight of your hams, cheeks,; and side's, of bacon, allow to every foui;-; teen pounds two ounces of pounded.salt-: petrej two ounces of prunella, and four; ounces; of common salt. Riib.this well*

ihto the meat: When this is done, lay, the pieces in asalting trough, andrubi .arid turn tlrem daily. At the. end of three days, make a pickle, as follows :—; Four gallons bf water, three pounds of j bay salt, five pounds of . common salt,; ; seven pounds of coarse sugar, three pounds and a-half of treacle ; stir fre-, quently while, on the fire, scum it ,as often as necessary, and when it bas boiled a quarter of an hour, pour it boiling hot over the meat. Bub and turti* eveiy day the hams, &c. The whole, if small, will be ready for : smoking in* a fortnight, but if large and thick will require from three weeks to a month in ; pickle. ,; Tongues are excellent! put. into j this: pickle cold after having' been sal tbd; | twenty -four hours with saltpetre iand -common-salt. This pickle .will- keep good for two years, if boiled*, and sc.uni' 1 mcd after; every time of its beingvused,' and a little additionrof salt and coarse! • sugar added to it on'its being used. .A . ' Always -.add: salt rfonfhe water while; potatoes" are boiling :- boil moderately,. -arid let them be well cpvered.with water/