Manure for Horticultural

Clutha Leader, Volume II, Issue 94, 27 April 1876, Page 7

Manure for Horticultural

Purposes. — : Co\v manure is. one of the best for light, dry soils.;. for vine or peach borders {that have become par-, ti&lly exhausted, hardly anything better can be4'ecbnimen<ied as a dressing. We: could furnish instances of vines Rearing heavy "ahd excellent "crops' annually for; twenty: years- or more, the result of periodical" applications; of cow dung,; sometimes mixed with soil. The man- ; ure was applied fresh, bemg dug into' the border. Some of the largest peaches; we ever saw WereA from trees that had been treated in- a similar manner. -Of course, cow manure may be applied With; great advantage to mostly all^" gardens; if it T is procurable for such purposes;! hut in, tbegardensit is. usually reserved! for select subjects • and for pot plants.! It cannot be 'Used' fresh for; the latter,! | but should always be laid" up iff a.heapl until it becomes black and rotten, buti not too much so; it is generally. fit fori use when its greennesshas disappeared.'; That which is collected *froni the; fieldsj is the best for horticulture, being surei and freefroi» : lttter. Asa rule, itcanj be got \# tfi&form for the gathering,! *.4jA» should f bp. laid in once.aj aci ty,' anir jßrea^Lup as fine as.peat; in j ' which;Coiidiiidn^rilyj It sjhm|ld be used! lor pottife77 Tojsuch Ifel^ias, cameMw^'i^la^^&f^pi^i im a^.roised compoSt^qf^^m mi^^oi^afmoidd, it is acceptable in greater orlless^quaitthy t a*#P^t^tSJi^7(^lhe plantJ liquid- '^anure fiNdm 'cow "tiling, aione

jwevdo, not* esteem very/ highly'; and wesay so,, knowing that it is v of ten applied in tbis. way. But the manure alone is better used in a solid state, as its value depends almost as much upon its coldness and nioisture-retaining qualities as its feeding, properties,-—' The Field.'

Inducing a Cow to Give Down her Milk. — A correspondent of a Wanganui : paper says :-^-"I have a cow that does not give down her milk readily, so I treat her thus :— Milk a little^ then take a' handful of straw or hay and rub it over the cow's back a few times; then, the milk will flow readily. I believe one-third mpre milk can be got but of a hard milker by so treating than if milked right along. Things to be Done After Harvesting—House the tools, put the hoes, chains, rakes, ploughs, harrows, and mowing undercover ; and it will notjinjurethem if they have upon their, metal parts a good coat of \ oil. Take the grindstone from under the Jiipple tree. and put it in the shed. ■It is'also a good plan.' to issue a manifesto declaring Avar on the vermin about the barn and house as well. A reliable authority estimates that it costs 10 dollarstoAwinter a good able-bodied rat — about as much as' it does to fatten a hog. At this season of the year, they are^like men,: always- hungry, and will ; eat food; that in, the winter or summer :they. would not, touch, and they can thus, be- easier caught or poisoned now than at* any other season of the year. A good poison for rats or mice is to, take squills powder, mix it with lard and spread it on slices of bread and place it in, ,their : runways under th.3 barn flopr or in- tho granary. One rat killed now will reduce your stock next spring by twenty. In a. word, try to find something to do rather than sit by the fire and rejoice that there is now nothing to be done that the boys can do till spring. Sheep the Salvation of the Farm. — "Horses have ruined the farm, and sheep must save it," said a practical and thoughtful farmer to us (' Maine Farmer ') recently ; and the remark has in it a great- deal of truth and a great deal of wisdom. However much we may prize the horse for his valuable services to. man, all sensible persons must admit that the breeding of horses has in "the few past years assumed undue proportions which have not brought corresponding, profitable returns, to the average farmer at least. Now sheep husbandry is "profitable to direct." There are no losses and few risks to be met with in the business. Early lambs, fat wethers, wool, and pelts, always bring good prices and a ready market. Besides, sheep bring up the condition of the farm, and, as the old adage has it, turn the earth to gold wherever their footprints are found. Nothing is so good to counteract the effects of too much horse as a course of sheep husbandry, well selected and judiciously followed. We are not sure but our practical friend was more than -half right when he said sheep were to be the salvation of our farms . and bring the restoration; of our farming to a safe basis; and if move could realize and follow it, we verily believe a larger shaFe of prosperity in farming would be the result.

On Thursday last (says the ' Palmerston Times'), Messrs Clreagh and Co., of Waikouaiti, gave a practical illustration of the use andlabour-saving nature of Cohon's broad-cast seed-sowing machine. Much satisfaction was expressed by those who inspected the apparatus, arid its utility and economy were universally admitted.