AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXVII, Issue 3436, 18 May 1898, Page 1 (Supplement)

AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

| I APPLE CHUTNEY. , Hearty meat eaters, says “ Hodden Gray ” ‘ in Melbourne Times, ought to consume a lot r of apple chutney. Apples in every form ’ aid digestion. The farmers consume more ■ meat per head than city people, therefore, every farmer ought to make his own apple chutney and plenty of it. Here is a way * of making a real good chutney that every farmer and his family will appreciate : Take 1-1 lbs moist sugar, 4oz of garlic, 4oz of onions, 12oz of salt, 12oz powdered ginger, 4oz dried chillies, 12oz mustard seed, 12oz stoned raisins, 2 bottles of best vinegar, and 30 large apples, not quite ripe. Begin by making a. syrup of the sugar with a little water and then pound the onions, garlic and ginger. Next wash the mustard seed - with cold vinegar and dry it in the sun. Then peel, core and slice the apples, and boil in one-half of the vinegar. When aii this has been done, and th<y apples are quite cold, put them in a larger pan. Add the rest of the ingredients, and stlt *ell until the different substances are thoroughly blended. Then f hoUld and store away in a cool place. Try this fifcce; and ? ear wfll fiud y° u making apple

■WATERING HC’BSF.t?, The quantity of water a horse will Cowaume daily depends very much on the haturO 0? his food, and the amount of work he has got to perform. When not at work a horse will drink six gallons daily. When at work will require more. A horse should always be watered before bis feed, not afterwards. More especially should this be so when his food consists of chaff and grain. To give a horse a largo drink of water just after a full feed is not only to run the risk of unduly distending his stomach, but also of washing out a quantity of the undigested grain from the stomach into the small intestines, Where its presence will give rise to irritation, that often leads to colic and purging. Those who water their horses after feeding should pause and think out carefully what X have explained on thlc question. FOWLS IN THE OKUHAED. When fowls are trained from the first to to live in the orchard they liko no place better, and will be perfectly contented to scratch in the dirt for worms, and catch beetles and insects of every kind which come near enough to’ the ground. In this jvay, small orchards especially can be greatly benefittod. Ducks, guinea-hens, turkeys, and chickens are all exceedingly fond of insects and worms of nearly all kinds,’ and if they are watched in the orchard for a’ wbrile# one will soon be convinced that they nrtf a most excellent destroyer of pests. By this' combination the fowls are at least partly fed and the insects are converted into useful animation. It can scarcely be said that fowls will injure fruit,'because they will only pock at that which falls to tho ground in a partly decayed or injured condition.

ANOTHER ORCHARD HINT. A correspondent of tho Epitomist gives the following method of protecting orchard trees against rabbits and field mice during the winter season; —” I have a wooden bucket that holds two and one-half gallons ; in this I put a lump of lime about tho size of a man’s double fist or a little larger, and pour in enough hot water to slack it. While it is slackening put iu one-half pint of gas tar and a pound of concentrated lye. Keep stirring tho mixture to get the gas tar well mixed with the rest, and add more hot water until tho bucket is nearly full, then put in earth and keep stirring until it is as thick as you would prepare whitewash. The bucket by this time should he full. Take a whitewash brush or a broom and rub the trees with this mixture late in tho fall. A rabbit will never touch a tree rubbed with it, and if there are any borers in the trees it will kill them. The trees should be again rubbed the last of May or first of June; it will keep tho borers out; when the spring rains come the trees will bo washed off and look green and glossy and will make a tine growth. ARGENTINA'S WOOL PRODUCTION. In tho opinion of the United States Minister at Buenos Ayres, the production of wool in Argentina has reached its maximum, because the exportation of cattle to Europe is stimulating the breeding of that class of animals in preference to that of sheep. The greatest quantity of wool exported in one year was 201,353 tons in 1895. Until a few years ago tho bulk of the wool exported was merino; but now, in consequence of the need of increasing the weight and improving the quality of carcases of mutton for export, Lincoln crosses have multiplied so greatly that over 65 per cent of the wool exported is of their production. The change has been tostered by the demand for long-staple wool in recent years in preference to fine wool; but the stability of this preference is now doubling and it is not unlikely that the interests of wool and mutton will be conflicting in the future, as they have been usually in the past. “ SLOBBERS.” On tho subject of " slobbers ” in horses the American Agriculturist says;—There are several causes which produce this: sharp points on the teeth, irritation of the salivary glands of the mouth, the bit of the bridle, and slight paralysis of the lips. Have tho mouth examined, and if ic is caused by sharp points on the teeth have them rasped off, If the mouth is hot and tender, bathe it several times daily with a lotion made by mixing alum loz in water 1 quart. If it is caused by the bit, try one covered with rubber. If it is only whan the horse is eating his oats, mix the oats with a little dry bran. If the lips are partially paralysed, give the horse 1 drachm of nux vomica in bran mash night and morning.

IN PBAISE OF HAMPSHIRE.?. I was asked the other day (says “ Lana ” in the Sydney Mail ) if I knew of a breed of sheep that could live on almost anything without losing flesh quickly or having the constitution imparod. The questioner had tried Shropshires and Sonthdowns, but, good as they proved themselves in this respect, he was not quite satisfied. From what I have read and been told about the Hampshire Downs, I think my friend will find them the sheep he wants. They have been largely used in Canada and in South

America, and in both these places have answered expectations. In England they rank amongst the earliest maturers. They will stand any amount of exposure in rough weather, and will live on the “ skinniest)’* of food. They are eagerly sought after by market gardeners to eat up cabbage stalks and other unsaleable garden produce, and, what is more important, they fatten on this quickly. The fleece is of a clcse and fine texture, and will average from 4jlb to 5Ub, A very good point of these sheep is that they have splendidly developed legs of mutton, the flesh being of good quality. GET KID OF THE OLD UEXS. You should never have in your yards hens more than 2 years old (says an English poultry expert). At 2 years old you will get a good price for them as 4 * roasting fowls/' At three years and after they are ,v boilers,” and as such command but small price. So in their second year set as. many of their eggs as possible, in preference to the pullets* eggs, and as these* chicks come o-tt to be pullets mark them with a brass wire ring on each foot. This avoids all confusion in the orders you giveas to th«> disposal of your old hens. This.

year all tho hens go to tho higgler or poulterer that have no marks, next year all that have one leg ring,, tne following year all those that have two rings. 'lho daughters of the two*ringed ladies run no rings, their offspring with ono ring’, and so on, history reputing itself each year* SETTING AX APPLE ORCHARD. As soon as the trees arrive, writes Air J. A. Richardson, Kane Co., ITUmi?, I plough :u deep furrow aud heel thorn in, preparatory to planting, deepen tho furrow to LVhi with a spado, cut the twine which holds tho bundle together, spread out iu the trend; and cover with dirt. After all tho trees’ are in, wet the roots thoroughly. They can safely stay here until tho land is in proper order for planting. I plant my trees in rows 32ft apart and 10ft apart in the row, making SO trees per acre. The rows run north and south. Well-drained land is essential to a good orchard. 1 plough north and south where I wish the rows of trees to stand, ploughing as deeply as possible and having the dead furrow come up whore a row of trees is to stand. Plough i up the bottom of the dead furrow, stirring as deeply as possible, then by back furrowing make a ridge on which to set tho trees. When tho land is properly staked, scoop* out a large deep hole whore tho tree is to stand, and place some good soil in tho bottom, having it highest at tho centre, leaver bend the roots. Cut back’bruised or broken roots to sound wood. Plant 2in deeper than fch© trees were in tho nursery. Lean considerably toward the two o’clock sun, with the lowest and heaviest branches on the south-west side. Plant when tho goil will powder and pack it very carefully about the roots. Use the best surface soil for filling in/ Never let pure manure come in contact with tho roots, but place it on top of the ground, TV hen the hole isr three-fourths filled, wet with four or fivo gallons of water, aud after tho water has disappeared finish filling in. Staking ia never needed if trees are well planted. Mulch trees with coarse manure or straw Gin or more in depth. Do not let grass or weeds grow in, the orchard. Thorough cultivation eight or nine times in a season Js a great factor in growing a successful orchard. Cornstalks cut 2ffc long aud tied about the base of the tree are almost a complete protection against borers, mice, rabbits, and suascald. I plant the wide space between the trees to some kind of a crop, leaving plenty of room for cultivating the trees aud fertilising them. It is better to plant no trees at all than poor varieties, or to plant good varieties and neglect to care for them.

PRACTICAL POTATO-GROWING. In South Australia farmers render each other much assistance by publishing records of their experiences through the medium of the Agricultural Bureau. Here are a few remax-ka on potatoes which show how useful this system of disseminating information must be to tho agriculturists : - Planting may bo started in most districts in tho beginning of November, and be continued until tho end of January, but I think the best time is as near Christmas as possible. If the ground has been prepared for planting and no manure put in it the best way is to draw out drills 2ffc apart and from 4iu to Gin deep, place the sets in the trench from Sin to Pin apart, pressing them down firmly with the foot, which will make an inch difference in tho depth of the trench and make a bed for the set; then put in tho manure and pull the earth back with the rake, pressing firmly. My reason for putting the manure in the trench is that the plant gets the whole of it for use if required, but if sown on top and turned in with the spade a good proportion goes too deep and is lost. But the best way to plant is to turn the ground and plant at the same time, planting in the trench tho suno as when drills are drawn out. There is no need to walk over the ground. You are sure the sets are well covered, and it saves time I have found the best manure to use in new ground is bonedust the first or even tho second year, but after that the manure must be suited to the ground. I have obtained tho best results this year from u, mixture of 10 parts bonedust, 10 parts guano, 1 part potash. Using them separately the bonedust is best. I find the potatoes most suited to our swamp are the Elephant and Early Rose, which seem to give good results planted early or late. The plants should be hoed as soon as you can sea the rows, and when banked care should be I taken to pull the earth close around the plants to protect tho tubers from the sun and grubs. When digging your crop cover tho potatoes well and keep damp if possible, as the moth will not go where it is damp. I prefer putting the potatoes in heaps and covering with earth, where they will keep three months if wanted. Members generally agreed with the paper, but some considered that the sets should bo one foot apart between the rows.