?
i The Mountaineer's r""^ir"
Here's How To Produce
Top-Grade Country Hams
(EDITORS NOTE: The liny f
wood County Agricultural Advis
ory Committee has selected the
project of producing lop-quaIItv
hams as one which shows excel
lent promise toward the Increase ;
ot the (purity's farm income. To '
assist in this project. The Mono- i
tainrcr is reprinting intnrmation '
from the pamphlet "Curing Hams '
Country Style." prepared by j 1
John A. Christian, meat special
ist from N. C. Slate College. Mr.
Christian was in Haywood Coun
ty rccentlv to conduct two meat
cutting demonstrations and to j
discuss the production of better ' I
country hams This is the first of 1
two articles on the subject.) 1
in JOHN A, CHRISTIAN
High qUality country style ham*
are always in good demand Al
though Tar Heel farmers produce i
a lot of high quality cured meats, j
we still loose a miliou dollars aj
year through hams that spoil, ure i
off-flavorel or arc damaged by In-j
sects The information in this cir
cular is planned to help farmers
reduce this lo? and do o better
joh of producing high quality hams j
There arc many ways to cure
liamy and marly ideas on liow to
handle cured meats on tfv* farm,
This circular give- oneway of cur
ing which has been highly success
ful for mapy seal- Farmers have
found that it rives i hieh quality
product.
Select a Meat Type Hoc
11 do''- not take .m\ more feed
in produce ti.ie right kind ot hog
Hy the i it:tit kind ul hoc is meant
thai It should iiavi tli<- proper
amounts of 1 1 and Iran: As a rule
of thumb. tl ( in hould not
have oyci I1 uicln i -ml ? fal on
th.- avenu.'!'. Tire IdotI weight, ham
iv about 20 pounds, Those will,
come I nun hoe - wee/Jung 225 to
250 pounds
Consumers want, a targe amount
of lean and a minimum amount of
fat Thps. hams from over-fat hogs '
or harm 'hat arc loo lieavv do not
sell vpr' ' caditr S'iaie fri is mice*,
vary. Iiow via for proper ageing
So avoid medium type hogs that 1
have too little, fat I1
Chill rvrtM Before Cutting
Where carea ses are handled
completely oil he farm, it is bet
ter to kill th. hog about 2 or 3
P rn and allow the carcass to hang
overnight liefote cutting It takes
about 16 hours to chill a 150-pound
carcass to 40 P, internal tempera
ture If the body heat isn't Riven
enough time to escape the hams
probably will sour Splitting the
carcass down the center of the
back helps get quicker chilling
Do not let it freeze though
Bacteria ar?- present in all fresh
pork and quick chilling of the car
cass |s of utmost importance The
best temperatures for chilling car
casses are from 30 to 35". 11 they
ire to "be chilled on the farm, check
:h-- weather forecast and kill when
he weatherman says light frost to
night.
Many farmers.kill hogs early in
the morning ami have the carcasses 1
?u! and in cure before noon. This
produces a ragged appearing prod
ret and may cause souring.
You mav want to u? ?? the service
dTcred by locker plants and food
processing centers to chill the car
?av.es If so, deliver the carcasses
is soon after slaughter as possible
io as to keep bacteria down. When
lie carcass Is left at a high tem
perature for a considerable period
if time before being refrigerated,
?pollage may already be started be
fore it is chilled. You mav need to
jse chilling and slaueterihg facil
tics during warm weather
Sanitary conditions can atTect the
lavor of fresh or cured meats
Thus, it's v.ery important to have
lour equipment and facilities clean
:il all times to get the mo t satisfac
tory cured product
I've The l.olig Cut
The long cut ham is more de
sirable for a good country cured
ham It will not dry out as fast as
I bo short cut or packer style ham.
Also long cut hams do not crack
as much during ageing, and arc
more resistant to insect damage,
(let a filiform Cure
There are then primary meth
ods used in ruiI g iec.it in North
Carolina They atv shell cure
ack cure and whir cure All will
Vivo satisfactory results, but shelf
c ure gives a mure even cure,
ll.iiii m.iv In-_ sugar < ill?*<! or
-tralght all cured, depending on
j which soil like betjer. The mix for
i sugar cure is !! lbs. of salt, it lbs
j of sugar and 8 ounces of salt peter.
Salt is the primary curing ingredi
ent Sugar gives a more desirable
rotor and helps keep the hum from
I bceoming quite so hard during the
I ageing period The type sugar used
J does hot make much difference,
hut granulated light brown of
: white is: usually used. Salt peter I
gives the height red color to the
lean and helps produce that good
red gravy that we like with good
Country rured ham.
Apply 11 ..> curing mix to the meat i
as soo nas it's cut. Use lla ounces
of curing mix per pound of ham.
or about 8 lbs for each 100 lbs j
1 Weigh the hams and use the exact'i
amount for curing each lot
Hub the curing mix op the ham
at three different times. This will
prevent any red spots and give
more even salt penetration 1'iit the
first application on when the meat
is cut and ready to go on the shelf
The second application should be
applied on the third day and the
third application on the 10th day,
or seven days after the second ap
plication You need not rub the
,liam a lot?-Just enough to cover,
it good. Too much rough handling,
will break the surface membranes
land cause tlx- hams to get hard
' and dry during ageing. Be sure
to pack some curing mix in the
shank end at each application.
Ideal temperatures for shelf cur
j Ing hams are from .16 to 40' F.
When temperatures go above SO"
K for any length of time there is
| some chance of spoilage There's
little chance of spoilage due to tem
perature as long as the internal
temperature stays below 45* F
Follow the curing schedule
closely to set the correct amount
of salt in ttie hams. One of the
| main objections to farm cured
moats is that they are too salty
This can be prevented by follow
1 ing thus curing schedule:
I' 15 lb ham stay s in cure 2 days
( | per lb , or 30 days
20 lb, ham stays in cure 1t day
P<* r iii , or- '{5 c!a % s >
25 lb ham slays in cure l'y days
PP'' lb , or 38-40 days.
For each day the temperature
averages below freering during the
curing process add an extra day to
"'?? curing schedule. He sui '? to I j
mark >our calendar tit start of cure i
for date o! each application and
w hen meat is to come out of cure
It hams are not going to be smok
ed. Just brush off ,-xe-ss cure at the
end of ttye euring schedule Thev
may be washed, but this is not I
necessary Do not soak the hams, as'
! rnav ?'? Ptecss wale, on sur
fat ? of ham,
? I hams are to he smoked re- '
move them from cure and soak in
cold water for 1'L. to 2 hours to
remove surface alt. This prevents
salt streaking and gives the cured
Pioduct a better appearance Hang!
the hams to dry after soaking Heat i
during smoking will remove some
"I he moisture they picked up
wltile soaking.
t.et The Salt Fqualize
When hams are taken out of'
cure at the end of the curing schorl
?v r? ?r^H;,,t'
neu- , 7 V H,Up h;l*
ma, the bone or skin side of the
ham. rile salt goes through the
meat Very slowly taking about 20.
to JO days longer to equalize or
the hi? 'h,'?Ugh a" POn$ of
,?"^S lf,se ",0 hiosf weight dur
he flr'i * ,,<,rio(, 3,1,1 during
he first month out of cure. As the I
7 in,? 'he ham and equal-1
<\ moistur,. comes out. Alto
'dhcr. ,hev will ,osP 25 to 3o7
t indS^'WHght WW,C
Keep a" cured
?^:ii??ara'or
. , ,(> 30 days after thev come
smoked lT "am< should "?? ?>e
smoked or exposed to high tem
This i "7 """J l7 Sa" "Oualized.
spoilage f ?f ma,n pause* of
ne ,, .7 C0UntrSr Cl,rert hams, es
i P '1 "mse being smoked Farm
durtng n"1" Sh,?UW hP Wt ,n c?rp
during November, December and
t7Z ThK ?? equal |
!?! warrn weather arrives !
. - is .s one reason why November
fl Deeember hams are better
,,,,-7 better than hams
rttrtri ln February and March J
-Sal, mix m?s, be dissolved in'
the water from (he ham before it :
will pencrtate The salt draws the
wa,e, trom the ham as it pone-,
Wash from the ham is
greatest during the first few days
of the curing period. That's whv
Ids important to apply the cur-i
inc. mix at intervals instead of put-'
ting all of it on at one application
Since 1925. milk used for butter
has decreased 12 billion pounds
But there has been an 18 billion
pound increase in the use of fluid
smtlk j
~~ ~
!??????????
@au4tty
I CHECKERBOARD
NEWS
By Joe Cline .
and Dick Bradley J*L
CUNE-BRADLEY COMPANY |
Ciood ( hicks Started
Early I test Money Makers
It's not too early to start thinking
about baby chick* Soon it will ho .
time to put thorn down If you're' ,
planning to get them into heavy .
production for the months of Sept
through Dee. when egg prices are
usually highest. i '
Year after year this continues |
to be true in all parts of the ,
country. Almost always you can ]
figure on making $20 to $40 more ,
for every 100 pullet chicks, if start
ed early enough to be In heavy \
production in Sept . Oct., Nov.,!
and Dee
We want y ou to make all the !
money you can in 1 Dr>7 with poul
try, so plan now to get our qual
ity ehteks and to start, grow and
lay them on the famous Purina:
Program ? the nation's favorite 1
with small and large operators. I
Place your order now for delivery 1
of chicks when it's convenient.
PURINA PROGRAM FITS
I TYPES OF DAIRYMEN
Naturally, one product or pro-1
gram is not best for all cows. We
spend several hours monthly at
tending our Purina Training Pro- i
grams which give us the latest
developments in dairying from
Purina Research Much of this in
formation comes directly from the
giant 738-aere research farm at
Gray Summit. Mo, where dairy
ing is a full-time business.
Purpose of the training Is to
equip us to intelligently advise
dairymen in all of these situations:
2. Dairymen in grain areas with
cows producing less than 350
lbs. of fat a year.
2. Dairymen ingrain areas with
cows producing 350 lbs. of fat
per year or more.
3 Dairymen jn complete feed
ai*cas with cows producing less |
than 350 lbs- ?if fat per year.
I. Dairymen in complete feed
areas with rows producing 350
lbs. of fat per year or more.
We'll help you get all of the
nllk that's bred Into your cows
it surprisingly low cost
ITRINA ( HKK-R MYCIN
WORKS KOl'R WAYS
Keep it handy on the farm because
you'll save time in treating poultry
md animals with Chek-R-Mvcin.
valuable Auroomvcin product of
Puriha Research
t sc it for low-cost treatment of
Kluc Comb and llcvamitiasis in
turkeys, for CRD in chickens, and
for scours in pigs and calves A
vailable in 4 <>/. 1 lb. and JO lb.
sizes.
HOW TO FEED
THOSE ORPHAN PIGS
Tt's best to start orphan pigs or
Purina Nursing Chow in the dry
form, even though they may squeal
or appear to be on a starvntior
strike before starting to cat.
Experience at the Purina Re
search Farm slows thai starting
pigs on a gruet merely create"
more problems. The liquid ratior
creates a chilling and sanitatioi
problem Also, pies resist a switci
from gruel to a dry ration later on
Always keep fresh, clean watei
available, too. Beginning the see
ond week, pigs should he offeret
Baby pig Chow in addition to dr
Nursing Choi and water. Durini
the second and third weeks the'
should have both these ration
available. At the end of the thin
week the replaeer should he takei
away, leaving only Baby Pig Cho*
through the sixth wreck
Because sows farrow more pig
than they have "plates" to feed
many of our better hogmen an
having more orphan pigs than eve
before.
CUNE-BRADIEY CO.
Joe Cline - Dick Bradle> ||a>elwood
1 . *
Points _-???? *??
tVVa?AV.V.V.% - - -
4-H Work Trains
Youth To Accept
Responsibilities
How old must a boy or girl b?
before they will accept responsibil
ities willingly? aslu folk Assist
ant County Agent Robert D. Flake
W'hfti influences their actions and
Interests?" be adds.
Flake savs these two question"
are constantly In the minds of both
parents and leaders ot youth or
ganizations. Rut most Important
Ihan any specific age, he feels that
the beginning Is what is so im
portant in later efforts. There
; leaders can guide them into con
structive activities. Flake believes
this can he done by taking a real
I interest in their problems.
To prove the point that boys and
giiTs do, accept responsibilities, de
?pite many criticisms to the con
trary Flake cites the case of '-eon
Stoit 14-year-old son of Mr and
Mrs. B (' Stott of I.andrum
Route 1
I-eon is ? member of the G reen
Creek Senior 4-H club. FUkc says
that through his 4-H projects,,
Leon has supported himself for two
years Mrs. Stott (old Flake that
Leon had paid for all of his school
lunches, bough! his clothing, paid
his life insurance premiums, and
had plenty of spending money Tin
cast] all came from his 4-H projects,
Tlii - e have mainly been layers and
dairy rows and calves. He's been
outstanding in this latter activity,,
-ays Flake, and Leon has just re
cently returned from a week's visit
to Chicago, a t'in which he won in
tin- 4-H Dairy Showmanship and
Kitting class at the Piedmont ln
-tei-.tate Kail
VVCULD-3E SUICIDE HAULED DACK TO SAFETY i
V/ITH ONI OF HI* SHOES flying, an 18-year-old girl Is hauled back from the edge of a high cliff in Lima,
1'oru, after slie had threatened to jump. The girl, whose name was withheld, had perched herself on
the cliff overlooking a beach for more than an hour. She resisted all appeals of police until she was
finally roped like a steer. She said she had been disappointed in love. (International Soundphoto)
Here's How To Preserve
Your Christmas Poinsettia
By M. E. GARDNER
Perhaps you have hea.d the ex
pression. "They go together like
bacon and eggs." This seems to be
true of the poinsettia and Christ
mas. Did you get one" Would you
like to keep it" Here's how
This plant is a Little difficult to
keep in the house unless conditions
are good. Some of the reasons are:
irregular watering: changes in tem
perature: low humidity; and gas
fumes. Water thoroughly and then
wait until the soil drys on top be
fore watering again. After the
leaves begin to dry. in January,
cut off about one-half of the
growth, place the plant in the cel
lar. or basement, and dry it out
Water just enough to prevent the
stems from shriveling About once
every three or four vVeeks should
he sufficient.
When the soil warms in the
spring, cut the plant back severely
and re-pot with good soil. Do not
use a pot smaller than six inches,
and provide good bottom drainage.
It should then be put out-of-doors
in partial shade. After growth
starts, fertilize about once a month
with a pinch of 8-8-8 fertilizer in a
measuring cup of water.
Bring the plant indoors before
frost in the fall. It is a "short day"
plant and the longer it can stay out
side the better. In some homes It
will be influenced by the electric
lights. This will have a tendency
to increase the day length which
may prevent flowering. Best condi
tions can bo provided by putting
the plant in a sunny windojv in the
day time and shading when the
lights are on at night The night
temperature should not go below
sixty degrees for best results.
The hybrid amaryllis is an inter
esting plant and one you might like
to try in the house. The large bulbs
should be planted in pots no small
er than seven inches in diameter.
Use good soil arid leave at least
\ one-third of the bulb exposed above
the soil line. Keep watered and
treat as any other pot plant
After the blooming period, keep
the plants growing until fall. Dur
I ing the summer fertilize as sug
: gested for the poinsettia Then dry
| the plant UP by withholding water
for a period of six or eight weeks.
After this, start watering again
which will force growth. It is not
necessary to re-pot each year.
State College
Answers Timely
Farm Questions
Ql'FSTION: llow much land can
a farmer put under a Conserva-!
lion Reserve tree planting con
tract? Can he put all his land in
trees?
ANSWER: First of all. he can-,
not sign up for less than two acres:
except in certain counties where.
the local ASC Committee has re
ceived approval to lower this to one i
acre. As far as a maximum is con- i
cert. d, r.o producer can earn more 1
than $5,000 per year in annual!
rental payments Therefore, at the
regular $10 annual payment rate. a|
farmer could not put more than
500 acres under a tree planting
contract
Within these limits the acreage
he cati enter depends on how much ?
eligible land he has and his soil
bank base cropping history over|
the two-year period before thet
signing of a contract. He can work
this out with A St' office of the
county in which his land is located.
Q1F.STION: What is the main
objection to farm cured meats?
ANSWER: Many meats are too
salty. This can be prevented by
following a curing schedule. The
Information on how to do this is
available through your county
agent's office.
Ql'FSTION: What should I do
to control scale inserts on orna
mental shr$ihs and trees?
ANSWER: Now that the plants
are dormant is the best time to
control these pests. Apply dorm
ant sprays containing either liquid
lime sulphur or oil, Remember,
however, lime sulphur stains build
ings or fences paintedWith any of
the lead containing paints.
Ql'FSTION; Does anyone know
how much land will be planted
to trees under the Conservation
Reserve phase of the Soil Rank
program?
ANSWER: Recently all the coun
ty ASC committees were asked to
submit estimates on this. They re
ported. first of all. that over one
half million acres of existing crop
land in the state should be planted
to trees. They estimated that near
ly 200 000 acres of this would be
planted over the next three years
if tree planting stock is available
to do so.
THIS WEEK'S
BEST SELLERS
FICTION
Pry ton Place. Grace Metalious.
nont Go Near The Water, Wil
liam Brinkley.
The Tribe That I.ost Its Head.
Nicholas Monsarrat.
The Last Hurrah, Edwin O'Con
nor.
NONFICTION
The Nun's Story. Kithryn
? Hulme.
This Hallowed Ground. Bruce
Catton.
Men To Match My Mountains.
Irvin* Stone
The New World. Winston S.
Churchill
Profiles In Courase, John F
i Kennedy.
THE
BOOK STORE
Dial GL 9-3691 Mala St
PATSY SAYS:
Time fo re-order coal?
Then Try Patsy ? over 97%
pure coal. Contains the durain
bend which holds the heat
and is long-burning. Be com
fortable this winter . . .
Order PATSY COAL Itiq
RICHLAND
SUPPLY CO.
Phone GL 8-3271
Commerce St., Waynesville
HAY FOR SALE
1500 BALES
B
? CLOVER ? VETCH-BARLEY
: ? GRASS ? OATS
Good Price - Large Lots
p i
$25.00 Ton At Farm
THOMAS ALEXANDER.
Dial Canton 7900 Evening
Chilly Weather Best Time
For Slaughter Of Hogs
Round Nest Will
Save Steps When
Gathering Eggs
R S. Ferguson of the Liledoun
community in Alexander County
ha* just installed a Kitson egg par
lor In his laying house, says County
Agent Grover C. Dobbins. Fergu
son says he thinks he will like i
the egg parlor better than the com
munity nest.
According to Dobbins, the egg
parlor Is shaped like a barrel with
nests all around the outside. A
door leading into the parlor en
ables the person gathering 'he eggs
to pick up all of them without walk
ing more than six or seven ?teps.
Ferguson believes this will be a
labor saver when it comes to gath
ering eggs. Dobbins reports that
this is the first such parlor to be
installed in Alexander County, and
it is causing quite a bit of interest
among the commercial egg pro
ducers there.
Irrigation Helps
Maintain Good
Silage Program
Jim Selley. manager of the Sun
beam Farms in the Cherryvillo sec
tion of Gaston County, is sold on;
the value of good alfalfa hay and .
silage in his dairy program.
Assistant County Agent Thomas |
A. Taylor says the need for alfalfa
on the farm is apparent when you
see the approximately 300 head of
registered Jersey cattle Selley has
to feed. "We couldn't do without it,"
says Selley, "especially for our
calves and heifer replacements."
Taylor says Sunbeam believes in
growing its own stock mostly from
their great bull. Jester's Sparkling
Basil. They feed the stock on the
silage and hay harvested from
their 150 acres of alfalfa. "It's still
not nearly enough." says Selley.
I Rut Taylor points out that due to
I irrigation, they get almost double
| the production the rest of the coun
- ty does.
' Recent weeks have brought cold
weather," says John Christian, ani
mal husbandry specialist at North
Carolina Stale College. "And," he
adds, "hog killing time is well un
derway here in the state."
However, Christian points out
that the recent warm weather pre
sents a problem to livestock slaugh
ter. He warns farmers that it is
very important to have those hog
carcasses properly chilled if they
are to assure themselves of high
quality meats. Without proper chill
ing, farmers run the risk of losing
hams due to souring.
Christian advises farmers to
slaughter hogs between 2:00 and :
3:00 p.m. and allow the carcass'to
hang overnight before cutting. He
points out that the time to kOMa
when the weatherman sa- "There
will be a light frost torn, ? /' This
means that the temperatuf? will be
in the upper 20's or the lower 30's.
This should be sufficient to chill
the carcass .rapidly, states Chris
tian.
In the event that the weather is
warm. Christian advises anyone
killing hogs to take them to a lock
er plant or processing plant where
they can be slaughtered and chilled
properly. These facilities are avail
able in almost every community,
says Christian, and folks may want
to take advantage of their serviees,
especially if they do not have the
facilities at home for handling very
large hogs.
Prices of poultry should improve
as supplies decline below last year's
says Clayton P. I.ibeau, poultry
and egg marketing specialist at
North Carolina State College. But
September 19156 poultry slaughter
totaled 497 million pounds, ready
to cook basis. This was 21 per
cent above September 1955 and 37
per cent above the ten-year aver
age for the month. Prices for poul
try during the same period of time
were approximately 21 per cent be
low a year earlier. Prices declined
for the month about as much as
supplies increased.
Fall is a good time to plant
spring flowering bulbs, say State
College horticulturalists.
DELLA DAVIS
PROPERTY
FOR SALE
WE ARE OFFERING FOR SALE
THE DELLA DAVIS PROPERTY
IN ORDER TO SETTLE THE ESTATE.
.re
i ive
THIS PROPERTY CONSISTS ?
. OF A
5 - ROOM HOUSE AND
14 ACRES LAND
(MORE OR LESS)
LOCATED NEAR
LAKE JUNALUSKA, ON ROUTE 2,
|
WAYNESVILLE
I
!
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN PURCHASING
THIS PROPERTY. CONTACT
DAVE FELMET
KILPATRICK - FELMET
WAYNESVILLE
OR
NANCY D. THOMAS
Admx.
P. O. Box 868.
CONCORD. N. C.
,