GROWING EARLY PLANTS IN BACKYARD HOTBED
Proper selection of seeds with which
to plant a garden Is stressed by the
United Htntes Department of Agricul
ture. It should be the aim of every
home gardener this year to grow a
better garden by making the most in
telligent use of the available spare,
not only by employing better methods,
but by planting seeds of the highest
quality. The first cost of seeds is
comparatively small, but it is very im
portant that the seeds planted should
be the very best obtainable.
Gardeners art- advised to secure the
catalogues of reliable seed firms and
spend a little time in going over and
checking up the seeds that will lie
needed for planting.
Do not be misled by ffie highly
colored and much-advertised novelties,
but stick to the standard, well-known
and proved varieties, advise the spe
cialists. Good seeds should never be
wasted, so figure carefully upon the
amount required and place your order
early before the best stocks nre ex
hausted. Perhaps the seeds can lie
bought from local dealers, 1? not, or
ders should go to a seed house In some
neighboring city, so the seeds may be
received in ample time. When they
are received, unpack and check them
to see that no part of the order has
been overlooked ; then store ti c seeds
In a mouseproof, ventilated container,
such a-> a perforated tin box. They
shouid be kept in a moderate tempera
ture, and where they will not freeze
or be exposed to moisture.
Have Early Vegetables.
Half the pleasure and profit of a
garden is derived from having some
thing to use just as early iu the spring
M« possible. In many cities and towns
the local greenhouse meu grow thou
sands of plants which are sold to
home gardeners at reasonable prices.
It often happens, however, that home
gardeners do not have the opportunity
to purchase well-grown plants, and
must start their own supply of early
plants In the house or in a hotbed if
they desire to have their crops mature
early. Among the garden crops that
may be started to advantage in this
manner are tomatoes, early cabbage,
peppers, eggplant and lettuce; even
euctimbers, melons, beets, snap beans,
lima beans and sweet corn may be
started Indoors by using rtower pots,
paper bands, or berry boxes to hold
the soil.
Where the required number of plants
is too great for growing in window
boxes, a hotbed or coldframe may be
provided. The usual method of con
structing a hotbed is first to dig a
:
4. -a-a.
shallow pit S to IS Inches deep, a<.
coniine to locality, and pack it full
of fermenting stable manure. The
manure, before being placed in the nit.
should be turned over once or pai *
in a pile In order to insure evert heat
ing. It may then he packed into ;he
hotbed pit and tramped uniformly.
Standard hotbed sashes are .‘5 feet
wide and d feet long, and the size of
the bed should lie mad ■ to suit the
number of sashes employed, A frame
work of boards IS to 21 Inches high
at the back and about 12 inches high
in front is placed over the manure
fined pit to support the sash.
U*s for Thermometer.
About .‘> or 1 Inches of fine garden
loam is spread evenly over the manure
and the bed allowed to stand four or
five days to warm up before any seed
is sown. At first the temperature of
the bed may run rather high, and it
is best to delay planting the see Is in
It until It begins to decline. This '-an
best be determined by planting a ther
mometer with the bulb about three
inches below the snrfare of the soil
The temperature should fall below 8ii
degrees before seeds are planted.
If glass-filled sashes are not avail
able for covering the hotbed, heavy
muslin may be used instead; the glass,
however, makes the most desirable
form of covering, faro must he taken
to give the bed sufficient ventilation to
prevent overheating, as it Is liable to
heat up ver; rapidly when the sun
shines full upon the glass. Watering
should he done during the early part
of the day and the bed given enough
air S" that the plants will dry off Is*
fore night. The bed should be closed
before evening, In order to conserve
enough heat to carry it through the
night in good condition. If the weath
er should turn severely cold, a cov
ering of straw, blankets or canvas
may be thrown over the bed to pro
tect It.
Coldframe Construction.
A coldframe is constructed in exact
ly the same manner as a hotbed, with
the exception that no manure is placed
beneath it to supply heat.
Before the plants arc set in the gar
den, either from the hotbed or the
coldframe, they should be gradually
hardened to outside conditions by giv
ing them more ventilation each day.
Finally, remove the sashes entirely on
bright days and replace them during
the nights. The aim should be to
produce strong healthy plants that
will make a quick start when placed
in the garden.
TO HAVE AN INDOOR GARDEN
Make Your Basement Work for You
by Producing Vegetables Before
Outdoor Planting Time.
Nearly every cottage. as well as the
larger l ouses and the city bungalows,
are equipped with large 1 asenienls.
Many of (here basements have space
ihat is not utilized and many of them
have excellent southern and eastern
exposure# whereby the sun tins a
• •hanco to piny through the windows a
largo portion of the day.
Make the basement work for you. It
is an may matter to have a miniature
greenhouse in most any basement
where there Is sufficient heat to keep
(he soil and plants from freezing. At
least, plants for setting out when the
danger of frost is past can be easily
raised in the basement, and small
vegetables such us radishes, onions
and lettuce can be raised and eaten
by the owner long before it is time to
plant such things outside.
if tiie window space in the base
ment is sufficient a long tray arrange
ment such ns used in greenhouses may
be used for the indoor garden. Such
a tray will be sufficient to prodime a
good quantity of stnrJl vegetal)' s un
til time to plant outside n’ d at the
same time the tomato, pepper, cab
bage and other plants may lie started,
ate:* to he transplanted to individual
boxes for more intensive cultivation,
and to be ready to transplant in the
Optra w'.th large, healthy plants
PRUNING WILL GET RESULTS
Fruit Trees, Vine* and Buihe*, as
Well rs Flowering Shrubbery,
Require Trimming.
Fruit trees, fruit vines anil bushes,
a-* well as flowering hushes, regain
••areful pruning to get the best result.*
fruit and flowers.
There is some difference of opinion
a* to whether the pruning should be
done in the fall or In the early spring.
Despite the argument as to the time,
ihe pruning is absolutely necessary if
crops are to be the bp*t possible un
der weather, soil nr other conditions
that may prevail In any particular lo
cality.
In iirnnlng fruit or flowering trees
and vine* it is well for the one who
wields the pruning knife to know just
how to do the work. One not ac
quainted with the operation would
h**st p*'*t up on the task before one
seriously wounds the trees or vines.
It Is rot a difficult task, but one that
Is as necessary each year as cultiva
tion— for crops cannot be expected un
less the proper attention is given.
‘‘HOC’* THE PLANTS IN FLATS
The small spikclike plants ih.it have
just come through the soil in the fa's
in the bast meat require a little ‘'iioe
ing" occasionally. Gentle loosening of
the ground—not close enough to In
jure the tender roots—-will do thr
plants good.
Where Your Taxes Go
How Uncle Sam Spends Your Money
in Conducting Your Business
By EDWARD G. LOWRY
Author''Washington doae-Ups." ‘Banks and Financial Systems.’* etc. Contributor.
Political and Economic Articles to Leading Period: as and a Writer of Recognised
Authority on the National Government's Business Methods.
Copyright, Western Newspaper Union
v
OUT-OF-DATE MACHINE
A committee made up of three mem
bers of ttie senate and three members
of the house is now considering the
whole problem of the organization of
the executive departments of the gov
ernment with a view to finding out
how to reorganize them so as to in
crease their efficiency and decrease
their cost of operation. It is about
I time. The great executive depart
ments of the government have not
been reorganized or greatly modern
ized since Alexander Hamilton's day.
Representative Reavis of Nebraska
is one nf the members of this joint
congressional c. mmir- e that is mak
ing tiie present investigation. He put
the resolution through the house that
brought about the appointment of the
committee. He is a part of the na
tional government machine and he
ought to know what he is talking about
when he says that “while the gov
ernment of tiie United States is the
world's biggest business, it is likewise
the world's worst managed business.”
That is an indictment and a state
ment of fact that will stand the closest
scrutiny and the most unsparing
analysis. I?ut listen to Mr. lteavis:
“Why should the Interior department
run an insane asylum and a college for
negroes and a school for tiie deaf?
How did it get that way Why should
one personnel in the pension bureau
in the Interior department be caring
i for the disabled soldiers of the Civil
war and the Spanish American war,
i while another personnel in tiie bureau
; of war risk Insurance of the treas
ury is caring for the veterans of the
World war? Why this hodgepodge of
totally unrelated purposes which is re
sulting in endless duplication and ap
palling expense?"
I will let Mr. Reavis go on without
further interruption. As a member
of the house he has his share of the
responsibility for the conditions he de
scribes :
There are B separate governmental
agen its handling engineering, arc hi tec
j tural and public works functions, all of a
| related kind. There is no good reason wh>
aii these agencies sli-uld not be co-ordi
nated In one department and about 38 o!
i the useless organizations done away with
There are 36 government agencies engaged
In surveying and mapping, there are Z
separate and distinct agencies engaged ir
public building operations, there are li
agencies authorized to build roads; there
are 19 engaged in hydraulic construction:
there are 16 doing work on rivers, there
1 are 10 engaged in public land functions
there are 13 doing chem.cal investigation
connected with public work operations,
there are 22 doing engineering and re
search.
Many of these agencies have been in
active for a number of years, but they
are keeping up their personnel in antlci
; pation of work in the future. We could
save 130*1,000,1 «>i a year, in my judgment,
by doing away with useless bureaus and
: dupli alion of activities.
s me of the duplications are ridicu
lous an i absurd. For instince. the gov
ernment seeks to protect the wild animals
in the national parks. If a brown kadiak
bear has twin cubs, on© brown and one
| black, as often happens, and one should
j shoot the brown cub lie must make his
| settlement with one department. But if
he shoots its full brother, the black cub,
| tie must settle with another department.
I If you were to shoot a fox in Alaska your
settlement would b© with the Department
| of Agriculture, while If you trapped the
j same fox you must make your settlement
! with the Department of Commerce.
The government Issued last year
through its several bureaus and depart
ments IS cookbooks. The last one that
was Issued was published by the board
of vocational education This Is a board
organised by the congress for the purpose
of rehabilitating crippled soldiers of the
World war, to prevent, as far as possible,
their becoming derelicts in life. . . It
may be of Interest to state that while the
government has been issuing IS cookbooks
and consuming vast quantities of print
paper in these and similar useless publi
cations. l.3<Vi country town newspapers
have suspended in the last three months
because "hey could not secure print paper
Mr, Reavis and a great many other*
have sensed the feeling in the coun
try and in congress that the time has
come to put tin end to all this sort
of thing. He gives reasons for Ids
belief:
One of the reasons is that the people
demand that their taxation be reduced
For many years we have been collecting
the revenues of this government through
systems of indirect taxation. The reve
| nues have been collected through a pro
tective tariff an*l by excise taxation or
intoxicating liquors Indirect taxation ol
this kind prevents the people front realis
ing fully Just who is paying the expenses
i of the government- There was a tlm«
when the expenses of the government
l amounted to only 12 cents per capita pci
year. Today the annual per - aplta ex
pens* exceeds HA This tremendous ex
pense has made it ne-essary to resort tr
direct taxation and the people have sud
denly become painfully aware of wh<
pays the expenses of the government
I am very certain that the ellmlnatlor
of duplications and overlapping in the de
partmentg will result In the saving o
millions of dollars. There is no reasot
why it should not be done
There is every reason. In the present**
of the strife and turmoil that prevail li
this country and of the unrest occaalone*
by the high cost of the necessaries of life
that the government should be put upo:
a sane, efficient and economical basis.
Whoever by public clamor or othei
means can induce congress and th<
executive departments to organize th*
routine business of the national gov
ernmeut will have performed a greal
public service. Note that I say “or
ganlze” ami not “reorganize.” for In
j no proper ^ense has the federal bust
I ness ever been organized.
CHANCE TO FIND OUT
Just now a belated effort Is under
way to find out some i f the facts
about government business and g"V
eroment employment. The Bureau of
the Budget has been organized and
is in operation under the direction of
Charles G. Dawes.
Both houses of congress are work
ing on the problem of reclassification
of government positions and salaries.
The Veterans' bureau has been or
ganized and hits taken over the bureau
of war risk insurance, that part of
tlie public health service which had
to do with veterans, and all of the
work of the federal board for voca
tional education except that part
which hud to do with the treatment of
persons Injured in the Industries.
' There is also the inquiry being made
| by the Joint committee on the re
organization of the administrative
branch of the government of the two
house of congress, of which I have
spoken. Walter F. Brown of Ohio is
ghnirman of tills committee, represent
ing President Harding. The members
of the committee are, on the part of
the senate, Senators Smoot of Utah,
Harrison of Mississippi and Wads
worth of New York. The members on
the part of the house are Repre
sentatives IJeavis of Nebraska. Temple
of Pennsylvania and Moore of Virginia.
The job of this joint committee is
to "make a survey of the administra
tive services of the government for the
purpose of securing all pertinent facts
regard r.g their powers and duties,
their distribution among the several
executive departments, and the over
lapping and duplication of authority.”
In reporting the resolution from the
Judiciary committee to the house the
members were told:
It is a matter of common knowledge
that million* of dollars are wasted by
the government by the almost endless
duplication of activities There has been
I r.o fundamental change In the adminls
! trative activities since the organization
wan devised by Alexander Hamilton, and
i the result is that activities entirely out
I of harmony with the functions of depart
! merits have grown with the passing years
i until the government of the United States
has become not nly the biggest business
I in the world, but the world's worst man*
I aged business
The pun "re of the resolution Is to
a see. tain so fur as possible the extent
of the overlapping and duplication of ac
tivltn'- wi:h the view; that numerous
commissions a- I bureaus may be elimi
nated and a great saving effected In the
governmental e\penditures. The cornmit
; tee feels th.it no more constructive Us s
i lation is pos-uhlc under existing corali
I -ill than the legislation proposed by
th ■ resol .cion. With the present condi
tion of th* nation's finances and the bur
iens the people suffer because of exces
Sive taxation, any legislative measure
looking tJ real economy should commend
itself to the sympathetic attention of the
house, and we feel that the passage of
this resolution and the work of the com
mittee which will be done under Its au
thority will result in the saving of mil
lions annually.
It can he predicted with considerable
assurance that nothing will come of
this proposed voyage of discovery tin
less we, the shareholders In the enter
prise. maintain an active, lively, sus
talned interest in It. One thing Is al
ways true of the house of repre
sentatives—it is representative. 5f
we breathe warmly upon it. it glows.
If we are indifferent It becomes cold.
This Isn't the first time that a plan
has been set in motion to And out
something about how the government's
business is conducted.
The earliest inquiry into the ad
ministrative methods of the executive
departments was made by the Cockrell
commission in 1887. Six years later,
in lSit.8, a joint commission, of which
Representative Dockery was chairman,
was appointed to examine the status
of the laws organizing the depart
ments. President Roosevelt in 190,"
named an interdepartmental committee,
of which C. H. Keep, assistant secre
tary of the treasury, was chairman, to
coils.der department methods. Presi
dent Taft in turn, in 1910, named a
commission on economy and efficiency
of which Frederick Cleveland was
chairman.
Broadly and generally speaking
nothing came of these enterprise*
You and I—commonly and vaguely
known as the public—were not in
terested. and neither was congress.
That ended It.
Hut just now, at this moment, we
have the best chance we ever had to
find out about our common business
and how to improve It and lessen its
cost to us. The burden of supporting
it Is heavier than ever before.
You will perhaps notice all through
these articles that the Information
supplied me about the general facta
of government employment and govern
ment business are in terms o!
estimates nnd approximation-. This
is o: e of the defects cf governmem
organization. It is so large ami sc
formless, and its parts so unrelated
that exact end precise information
nboul the whole is virtually unob
tamable.
It is of the greatest urgency am
need that the people shall know
about their government, but they will
find it difficult to learn until the gov
ernmeut knows about Use!.'.
FEEDING CATTLE IS GOOD PLAN
FOR MARKETING VARIOUS CROPS
r
14/#* J
•' A
Summer Fattening in Corn Belt on Grass, W.th Corn as a Supplement
(Prepared by th * I'nlt^d S*a?«a D*partm*iit
of Agriculture )
Although com belt cattle feeders
have lost money the last two years,
yet on the average for five years or
more the Industry has been profitable
on many farms and is a line of pro
duction which will continue to be an
important branch of American agri
culture.
The bureau of animal Industry.
United States Department of Agricul
ture, has recently issued Farmer's
Bulletin No. 121S, “Beef Production in
the Coni Belt," which contains valu
able suggestions to the corn helt feed
ers on the economical production of
beef.
The investigations on which the bul
letin is based were conducted by the
department on 906 farms of the corn
belt and every phase of the problem,
from raising calves or buying feeders
to the marketing of the finished steer,
is treated in considerable detail.
The general tendency in the corn
belt to plow up permanent pastures
and produce more cultivated crops
caused a decline in beef raising, but
the keeping of cows to raise calves
lias continued to he profitable on
land too rough, too wet. or too in
fertile for cultivation. The reduction
of pasture lias been compensated for
, tn some extent by the greater use of
i clover, alfalfa, and com silage. How
ever. since 1905 there lia« been some
increase in feeder production in the
I corn tieit due to the breaking up of
. western ranges for dry farming anil
1 irrigation.
The investigation, which was car
ried on for three years, showed that
the feed cost of keeping a cow was
69 per cent of the entire cost of main
tenance for a year, while 31 per cent
represented interest, labor, equipment
and incidentals. The total number of
cows on the 906 farms was 23.258, an
average of 25 to the farm. The per
cent of calves raised was practically
85. It was found that costs could he
reduced through three factors—In
creasing the credits from the cows,
Improving the herd, and economy in
feeding.
Early Fall Buying or Feeders Best.
When feeders are not raised on the
farm buying and selling ability plays
an Important part. In some seasons
certain weights and classes of cattle
may be purchased more economically
than others. Ordinarily early fall buy
ing Is preferable, ns competition be
tween packers and feeders usually In
creases as winter approaches.
The higher the quality of the feeder
steer the better use he will make of hts
feed, though he usually eats more of
it. Hut this consideration should not
cause the buyer to lose sight of the
price. Fleshy feeders can often be
used to advantage on short feeds, and
when there are very good prospects
for higher price*. The older the ani
mal the quicker it will fatten, as it
will use less feed for growth and
more for fat production.
Mature feeders fatten in three to
four months, two-year-olds in 5 to 7
months, yearlings in eight to ten
months, and calves in ten to twelve
months, older cattle use roughages
more advantageously, but in general
young animals make more economical
uve of all feeds. Mature cattle re
quire from nine to eleven pounds of
digestible nutrients to make a pound
of gain, whereas yearlings use six to
eight pounds, and calves only four
to six pounds.
Feeding cattle for the market is
i simply one method of marketing the
crops. On 2S7 farms in the corn belt
an average of 3T» per cent of the iOlfl
crops was fed to cattle. Fully 00 per
cent of the fattened cattle in this
area are dry-lot fed and are marketed
before July 1. The various methods
of feeding and the feeds used are fully
discussed in the bulletin.
Feed Alfalfa and Clever Hay.
Alfalfa and clover hay are by far the
most popular dry roughages, as they
take the place of commercial protein
concentrates to n large extent. Grass
hays, with the exception of timothy
i mixed with clover, are very little
used. Tin* use of stovers and straw*
has n direct bearing on the economy
of gains, and nil such feeds should be
I used on the farm.
The most popular protein concen
trate* in the com belt are cottonseed
men! and cake mid lltoeed meal. Corn,
oars and barley are the er.rbohvilrat •
ci • . ptitrates most used. Molas-e*
feed and other miscellaneous co
' c?< .trites are in much den.and In i a*
sections. Supplying protein is of more
... i , io*n to the cattle feeder than *up
* i,h ; •* i other constituents of the
ration because it Is usually purchased.
Cottonseed meal, while It is used
more extensively throughout the corn
belt as a whole. Is no more popular
than linseed tneal. Most cattle feed
ers prefer linseed meal, but It Is not
used so largely owing to its some
what higher cost. Corn makes up 90
per cent of the carbohydrate concen
trates. Oats are frequently used in
the latter part of the feeding period
to put cattle in better shipping condi
tion. Burley is used only in a small
way, although in Illinois it made up
10 per, cent of the grain ration.
Purchase Price Is Half of Cost.
In fattening a steer the combined
operating expenses usually more than
equal the original purchase price of
the feeder. The factors considered In
operating expenses are feed, labor,
building and equipment, interest, mar
keting, Insurance and taxes. Fet'd
usually constitutes about 80 per cent
of this expense. All the other Items
are generally balanced by the manure
and pork credits.
The preceding paragraphs are a
very brief outline of the investigation
of beef production In the com belt.
Those interested in a thorough study
of the various operations and cost
llgures should secure n copy of the
bulletin, which can he obtained free
from the department of agriculture.
CREOSOTE TREATMENT
IS MOST ECONOMICAL
Treated Posts Are Sign of Sound
Judgment.
Large Saving Is Made in Replacement
Where Short-Lived Timber Is
Used—Decay Is Le6s Rapid
in Northern States.
(Prepared by the United State* Department
of Agriculture )
Although more expensive at the out
set, creosoted posts are generally more
economical to use than many kinds
of untreated, short-lived woods, be
cause of their much greater lasting
| qualities, the forest service of the
United States Department of Agricul
ture has determined. The exceptions
would be In remote localities with
cheap wood and labor, and where It
would be expensive to obtain creosote.
'Hie large saving in the replacement
charges, which ordinarily mount up so
high in maintaining a fence, and the
use of cheap and inferior kinds of
woods in the first place, much more
than offset the increased cost of
thorough treatment with creosote.
Treated posts are a good Investment,
and their use where lasting woods are
scarce or expensive is a sign of sound
judgment in farm management.
The best treatment is that which
results In the deepest penetration into
the wood with the least absorption of
creosote. The butts of the posts
should be placed for one to two hours
in creosote heated to a temperature of
iso degrees to 2’JO degrees F. It is
important to treat the wood to a height
of a f'Hit above the proposed ground
line. In the southern states the entire
post should then be submerged into
oil. at 80 degrees to 100 degrees F„
: for one or two hours, or for such a time
! as is necessary to get good penetra
ti"n. In the North, where decay is
i less rapid, the hot treatment is ap
| plied only to the butts, which are
: allowed t<* remain for two or three
hours in the cooling process, the tops
I being treated by painting or dipping
i In creosote.
Further information on creosotlng
fence posts will he found ill Farmers’
1 Kuiietin 744, Preservative Treatment
of Farm Timbers, available upon re
quest from the Department of Agri
culture.
STARTING TREE PLANTATIONS
j Cottonwood and Widow Do Best With
Cuttings of 12 to 14 Inches—
Avoid Bruising.
Cottonwood end willow plantations
are most easily started with euttings.
These are simply from 12 to 14-inch
sections taken from the one or two
i year-old twigs of living trees. The
cuts should he trade with a sharp
: tool, to avoid bruising the bark. Cut
j tings should he collected during early
winter and hurled in moist sand In a
cool place unfit the tune for plant*
lne.