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 ove...
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, a...
A good workman, it is said, does not quarrel with his tools--which, if true, I judge is due to the fact that he generally manages to have good ones. To work hard throughout a long...
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?
While few can have failed to realize the important part played by Water in the economy of vegetation, I judge that the question--"How can I secure to my growing plants a sufficienc...
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 contempla...
Farmers, it is urged, sometimes fail; and this is unfortunately true of them, as of all others. Some fail in integrity; others in sobriety; many in capacity; most in diligence; but...
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...
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 manu...
In the last two sections you have learned something of the nature of those fungi and bacteria that cause disease in animals and plants. Now let us see how we can use this knowledge...
If you partly burn a match you will see that it becomes black. This black substance into which the match changes is called _carbon_. Examine a fresh stick of charcoal, which is, as...
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 t...
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...
Marls vary widely in composition. When quite pure, they contain 90 or more per cent of carbonate of lime, and have a value per ton about equal to finely pulverized limestone, and n...
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 o...
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 do...
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...
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 irrigation...
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...
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...
The theory of subsoiling always has been captivating. Most soils are too shallow, inviting injury from drouth. Enthusiasm regarding subsoiling comes to large numbers of farmers at...
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; other...
In my opinion, Apple-trees, in most orchards, are planted too far apart and allowed to grow taller and spread their limbs more widely than is profitable. I judge that a pruner or p...
The root-hairs take nourishment from the soil. The leaves manufacture starch and sugar. These manufactured foods must be carried to all parts of the plant. There are two currents t...
I hate to check improvement or chill the glow of Faith; yet I do so keenly apprehend that many of our people, especially among the Southern cotton-growers, are squandering money on...
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 w...
Hard-wood ashes have ceased to have much importance as a source of lime for land, but their use is held in high esteem even by those who regard fertilizers as mere stimulants and d...
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 t...
Attempts have been made to express the actual value of a good clover crop to the soil in terms of money. The number of pounds of matter in the roots and stubble has been determined...
There are so many varieties of the soybean and the cowpea, and adaptation to soil and climate varies so widely, that a fair comparison is difficult to make. In cool latitudes the s...