VOL. XXIX.
INDIANAPOLIS. IND.  APRIL 14, 1894.
NO. 15.
WEATHER CROP BULLETIN.
United States Department of Agriculture,
Weather Bureau. Orop Bulletin of the Indiana Weather Service in Oo-operation
With the Agricultural Experiment Station
at Purdue University, Tuesday, April 10,
1894.
The vary mild temperature during the
greater part of the winter caused wheat
and pasturage to remain in most excellent
condition, and when, about the 25th of
January a few exceedingly cold days occurred, snow had fallen in sufficient quantities necessary for protection, but peaches
which had advanced much were killed.
The very favorable weather permitting
plowing and seeding, much clover and
oats had been sown and wheat was in
most vigorous, advanced and promising
condition at the end of the winter. Excessive temperature prevailing until March
23d, with saffiaient precipitation, crops
and vegetation advanced in a most remarkable manner, and when then from
March 24, cold freezing temperature oc -
eurred the young clover, sprouting oats,
garden truck and fruit buds, except late
apples and berries, were frozen; wheat
was less injured, most so in localities in
the southern portion where the plant had
begun to joint.
The weather conditions during the past
week were not favorable to the advancement or recovery of the crops or to farm
work. Cool temperature, near freezing
nearly every night, retarded vegetation,
also snow and rain in the northern portion; in the central portion the precipitation was very deficient.
SOUTHERN PORTION,
Posey, Gibson, Vanderbug, Dubois
Spencer and Warrick counties.—Some
wheat was injnred in March and the
weather the past week was too cool for the
recovery of vegetation in general; plowing for corn has commenced.
Orange, Crawford, Perry and Floyd
counties.—Oats in Orange county was not
injnred so much by frost; some fields are
to be re-sown; the weather last week was
not favorable to crops and farm work.
Scott, Clark and Washington counties.—
Oats and potatoes were injured by cold in
March; wheat in general comes on all
right; cold, cloudy weather during the
past week kept everything back,
Switzerland, Jefferson, Ohio and Dearborn counties.—Wheat looks fine and has
a good start; oata and potatoes were killed
by freeze and have to be replanted; fruit
in general and some wheat in Dearborn
couny were injured, but with the milder
weather last week, wheat, grass and clover
are recovering; in Switzerland county
wheat is recovering with warm weather;
oats and tobacco were killed and fields and
tobacco beds are being replanted.
Jennings, Bartholomew and Jackson
counties.—The weather was favorable for
plowing for corn and much ground has
been broken; wheat and grass wintered
well; oats and early potatoes were frozen;
live stock is in good condition.
Monroe, Lawrence, Greene and Knox
counties.—Wheat looks well except that in
Greene county which looks brown; oats
has been injured, some is recovering in
Knox county; the weather was favorable
to farm work and much plowing was
done.
CENTRAL PORTION.
Clay, Vigo, Morgan and Owen counties.
—Wheat is browned but not seriously injured; oats which was killed is being re-
sown, so also clover; potatoes planted with
sufficient covering are in good condition;
those which were frozen are being replanted; the crops are recovering in Clay
oouty and they looklgreen again; in Owen
county it was too cool, with but little sunshine to advance crops; plowing for corn
is being pushed.
Shelby, Johnson, Rush and Decatur
counties.—Wheat and grass look quite
brown but are not killed; early potatoes,
oats and clover were killed and in some of
the counties replanting is done; fruit is
killed; most of the plowing is done.
Fayette, Union, Randolph and Wayne
Counties.—The cold weather last week did
not improve the condition of the crops;
wheat has been slightly injured, some
yellow but oats, clover and potatoes were
killed and have to be replanted.
Delaware, Henry, Madison and Hancook
counties.—The cool dry weather iduring
the past week was hard on wheat some of
which is slightly damaged; oats, clover
and potatoes and most of the fruits are
killed; the weather was favorable to
farm work and plowing.
Marion, Hendricks and Boone counties
—The cool dry weather last week was not
favorable to crops but to farm work; plowing for corn has commenced; the rank
wheat was injured but probably showers
and warmer weather will cause its recovery; oats and clover sown this year are
killed but clover and grass sown last year
are all right; fruit is probably not so badly
injured as first it was thought to be.
Montgor-ery, Putnam, "Vermillion and
Pike counties.—Wheat probably slightly
injured, in Montgomery county, it looked
brown but some of it is turning green
again, it is very rank; oats, clover and potatoes are killed and are to be replanted;
the weather was dry and cold this week
and favorable to farm work; plowing for
corn has commenced.
NORTHERN PORTION.
Lake, Porter, Laporte and Starke
counties —Cold, cloudy weather last week;
crops made no progress; some clover and
oats has been sown; oats seed may be rotting in the ground because of the late
freeze; wheat is not injured; in Laporte
county most of the peaches  are still alive.
St. Joseph, Marshall, Elkhart and Kos
ciusko counties.—Wheat is in good condition; some clover and  oats are  sown, the
latter may rot  in the  ground if cold continues; fruit is killed in some localities.
Lagrange, Noble and Whitley counties
—Rough, cold and rain and snow during
the week; wl it and grass are growing
nicely; early sown oats are sprouting and
rooting nicely but not much oats are sown
yet; some clover sown before the cold in
March is killed; fruit is only injured in localities.
Steuben, DeKalb and Allen oounties.—
Wheat looks brown in some fields but it
is not injured; but few oats sown but the
early sown is injured by cold; fruit is
only injured in localities; the cold weather
rain and snow have been unfavorable to
plowing.
Adams, Jay, Wells and Blackford
oounties.—Cold winds, rain and snow retarded the crops; wheat is slightly injured
in some localities; oats sown before the
cold in March is killed, also clover; rye is
in good condition; reports of injury to
fruit are conflicting.
Huntington, Grant, Miami and Cass
counties.—Wheat looks fairly well; some
is slightly injured, but it will recover with
showers and warmer weather; oats is
most sown; some that was sown early is
injured, also clover; small fruit, many
think, is killed; grapes are in good condition; the weather during the week has
been windy and ©old, with some rain and
snow, but the ground is in good condition
for plowing.
Carroll, Howard,  Tipton  and  Clinton
counties.—The rain and snow during the
week were good for the wheat, which is
uninjured except that in low black
grounds; oats is nearly all sown; that
sown too early is supposed to be injured;
most of the early fruit is injured, but in
Tipton county in some orchards fruit
trees are starting new buds; the wind and
cold this week was not favorable to growing crops; the ground is in good condition
and plowing progresses.
White, Tippecanoe, Benton and Warren
counties.—The exceedingly cold weather
did not much injury to fruit; it retarded
the growth of wheat and killed early
sown clover and oats; some of the crops
are recovering; oats sowing is progressing;
in Benton county the present condition of
the orops show that but little damage was
done by the late freeze.
H. A. Huston,
Director Indiana Weather Service.
Per C. F. R. Wappenhans,
Weather Bureau, Assistant Director.
C|tters atid JMisme*s.
Please  give  the  postoffice   address  of
Thomas T. Newby in your next issue.
Farmland. An Old Subscriber.
Mr. Newby lives at Carthage, Rush Co,
Where can I get sprouts for a hedge
fence, and at what price? W. S. P.
Owen Co.
We presume Osage orange sprouts are
wanted.   Who has them for sale?
The cocoons sent us from Jackson and
Harrison counties are those of the basket
worm, sometimes very destructive to
orchards in the Southern States. Hunt
them upon the limbs and burn them before
the leaves cover and hide them.
My cyclopedia says that Turin, where
Louis Kossuth died, is in Italy. You say
France.   Which is correct? B. H.
Marion Co.
We acknowledge our mistake. Turin is
in northwestern Italy, not far from the
French line.
Where can I get Stowell's Evergreen
sweet corn to plant for cows in summer
for soiling. W. W. <* S.
Sullivan Co.
You can order it from any of our seedsmen whose advertisement appears in our
columns. Perhaps some of our readers
have a surplus to sell. If so they should
say as much In our For Sale column.
Can the Farmer tell of a chemical advertised in some paper one year or more
since, to exterminate groundhogs? They
are very much of a pest in this part of the
country. R. E.
Marshall Co.
We do not remember seeing such an advertisement. If it was in our paper and
you can tell us the date we will publish it
again.
I have an orchard set last spring of
apples, peaches, pears, plums and cherries,
in rows. I want to put it in potatoes, and
was thinking of covering three rows of
potatoes between each two of trees with
straw gathered from and old straw rick,
some manuare mixed with it. Will this
injure any of the trees? If this will do
what variety would you recommend planting nnder straw. P. 8. H.
Johnson Co.
It ought to benefit the trees, by keeping
their roots moist.
W. W. Knox, Starke county, enquires
for seed of spurry. He wants to try it on
the sandy land that abounds in his county.
It has been tried with fair success in
Michigan, under direction of the agricultural experiment station. We do not
know of any dealer in this State who
keeps the seed, but presume that Director
L G. Gorton, Agricultural College, Mich.,
can inform you where the seed can be obtained.
Please tell me where I can buy crushed
bone and oyster shells for ch ickens? Also
kindly tell me whether it should be mixed
with their food, and if so how proportioned? Could you tell me which make
you regard as the best? Ignoramus.
Lebanon.
J. A. Everitt and the Huntingdon Seed
Co., of this city, will furnish oyster shell
and crushed bone, at about 1 cent per
pound. Keep them in separate dish from
the feed, where the fowls can get it as
they need it. They will not take too
much.
What is your plan of raising sugar beets
in Indiana this year? I noticed some short
articles in the Farmer by some who are
going to plant an acre.   I raised a small
Elot last year, and the sugar per cent was
igh. C. D. F.
Bloomington.
We hear nothing more from the New
York firm that promised to furnish seed,
and presume they do not intend to keep
their promise unless Congress changes it
purpose to remove the two cent per pound
bounty on sugar, which is not probable.
1. Please inform me through the columns of your paper what period is called
the "dark of the moon?" as I have had
some little dispute with some of my neighbors in regard to it.
2. Also tell me what to do to get rid of
"green lice" on house plants. S. M.
Bloomingdale.
The dark of the moon is that part of its
revolution around the earth when it does
not shine upon us. It is on the side toward the sun.
Spray or sprinkle the plants with kerosene emulsion, or dust them with pyre-
thrum.
Please state through your columns
whether blood, raw or as prepared in
blood sausage, is injurious to health? If
injurious, why? If not, why do so many
people refuse to eat blood sausage even
when they like it? A Reader.
It is not generally injurious to health,
but the idea of eating blood is revolting to
many people. The commands in the 17th
chapter of Leviticus against eating blood
and in the New Testament, Acts 15:20,
no doubt have had much influence in preventing the eating of blood by Jews and
Christians.
Please answer the following and obligo:
1. How many Canada field peas must I
sow per acre where sowed with oats, and
when is the best time to sow?
2. When is the proper time to cut the
crop?
3. Must they be cured and put up like
a whole oats crop, or be mowed and cured
like a hay crop? E. L.
Orange Co.
1. If sown broadcast use two bushels, but
if drilled five pecks will do. With oats
one bushel Is enough.
2. If for forage cut green. If for seed
cut when the pods begin to turn brown.
3. That is according to the use you
want to make of them. For feeding cows
cut early and cure like clover, or better
put them into a silo.
Suppose we hear from your subscribers
in the different parts of the State in regard to the condition of the fruit. The
peaches in this section were all killed by
the cold spell that came after a warm ne-
riod in winter. But I think most kinds
of other fruits were all right until this recent cold spell, which I fear has injured,
if not killed, most of the fruit, as it had
been very warm for several days, consequently the fruit buds were very much
swollen. E J. Chansler.
Knox Co.
We second this request, but it will be a
dismal report. We have little hope of
hearing anything encouraging. The freeze,
owing to the circumstances, was the most
destructive to the fruit that ever befell our
State, and not our State only; it extended
far to the south, and killed peaches and
watermelons as far south as Thomasville,
Ga., and Hot Springs, Ark. Corn and potatoes along that line of latitude were up
and in some cases had been once cultivated,
but they were all destroyed by the freeze.