PRODUCTION OF EGGS
poultry Tend to. Make Farm Self-Sustaining.
very Southern Farmer Should Aim
to Keep at! Least Fifty Hens for
Laying Purposes and Home Con
sumptionFew Essentials.
r-r -n-ired by the United States Depart
- n part ment of Agriculture.)
The farmer who has a well planned
and well cared for garden has gone a
long way toward supplying his family
Zittt healthy and economical foods. If
he adds to the garden a fair size flock
of poultry, f he will do still more to
make his farm self-sustaining.
-Early springs and mild winters make
the production of eggs particularly
profitable for; the southern farmer. On
many farms ! throughout the country
White Leghorn
the money derived from the sale of
poultry eggs buys the groceries and
clothing for the entire family. Every
southern farmer can do as well, and
should aim to keep at least fifty hens
for laying purposes and home con
sumption. Select some of the Ameri
can breeds, such as the Plymouth
Rocks, Wyandottes, or -the Rhode
Island Reds. The Orpingtons are also
a good general-purpose breed.
On almost! any farm there can be
fitted up, with very little. If any, cost
for new material, a poultry house that
will answer all the purposes of more
expensiVe buildings for keeping poul
try. The essentials to success In hous-
ifltfare fresh airJ sunshine, a. drv
floor, and a building that Is free from
drafts. The house must be free from
drafts or the birds will catch cold.
Colds are forerunners of roup and
other diseases.
It takes a healthy, well-fed flock, to
produce eggs. Fowls must not be 'al
lowed to become too fat, as but few
eggs will be laid by hens in such con
dition. To prevent their getting over
fat, it isvbest to make them work for
iw " is ss i i-
1 1 v
'
A Mixed Flock on a Government Experiment Farm.
taost of their feed by scratching in a
litter composed of about four inches
of dry straw, leaves, or chaff. The fol
lowing rations will give good results
vfhen properi care is given to their
feeding: j
Grainst One pound oats, two pounds
com,, and Mash: Two pounds corn
raeal, one pound rice bran or wheat
bran, one pound cottonseed meal.
Grains: One pound oats, two pounds
corn, kaflr corn, or milo, maize, one
pound broken rice or peanuts,' and
Mash: Two pounds corn meal, two
pounds rice Wan, one pound cotton
seed meal. !
Grains: One pound oats, one pound
wheat or barley, one pound of kaflr
corn,,, and Msh: Two pounds wheat
bran,' two poiiuds wheat middlings,
two pounds corn meal or corn chop,
one and onerhalf pounds cottonseed
meal . .. j-' .. . .
Ten per cent or less of beef scrap
may be added to the mash in all the
rations with" good results. Skim milk
r. . i- , . . -
or buttermilk is excellent for poultrW
Si'1?? or clover, should be
aaaed to these ration? when grass Is
not available.
.Young chickens should be fed from
Uiree to five times, dally, depending
upon one's experience In feeding
ureat care must hA tvan
ftli ? v er 7 are twrty-six to for-
. trj first feed - mV contain-hard-le
eggs- ohnnycake (one dozen
infertile eggs to ten pounds of corn
meal; add enough milk to make a
pasty mass and one tablespoonful of
baking soda), stale bread; pinhead
oatmeal, or rolled oats. Dry bread
cmmbs or rolled oats may be mixed
With hard-boiled eggs, making about
one-fourth of the mixture egg. Feed
the bread crumbs, rolled oats; or
Johnnycake mixtures five times daily
for the first week, then gradually sub
fltitute for one or two feeds of the
mixture finely cracked grains of equal
parts by weight of tracked wheat.
jCockerel.
cracked corn, and pinhead oatmeal or
hulled oats, to which about five per
cent of cracked peas or broken rice
and two per cent of charcoal, millet.
or rape seed may be added. A com
mercial chick feed may be substituted
If desired. The above ration can be
fed until the chicks are two weeks
old, when they should be placed on
grain and a dry or wet mash mixture.
Mashes mixed with milk are of consid
erable value in giving the chickens a
good start in life, but the mixtures
should be fed in a crumbly mass and
not in a sloppy condition.
As soon as the chickens will eat
whole wheat, cracked corn, and other
grains, the small-sized chick feed can
be eliminated. In addition to the
above feeds the chickens' growth can
be hastened if they are- given sour milk,
skim milk or buttermil k to drink. Grow
ing chickens kept on range may be
given all their feed in a hopper, using
as a grain mixture two parts by
Weight of cracked corn and one part
of wheat, and for a mash mixture any
of those given for laying hens. It
beef scrap is to be fed, it is advisable
i ito wait until the chicks are ten days
old. Chickens confined to small yards
should be supplied with green feed,
such as lettuce, sprouted cats, alfalfa
or clover, but the best place to raise
Chickens successfully is on a good
range where no extra green feed is
required. '
; Wintering Brood, Sow.
Keep the brood sow in good, thrifty
and healthy condition. Allow her
plenty of exercise. Fsed her green
food in the winter. She, very fOna
of. alfalfa hay and mangel beets with
one feed per day of middlings and
milk. Give, her a dry; comfortable
straw bed, also plenty of fresh water,
and she will winter In prime condJ-
ion. '-' , -
j Good Car Bedding.' -Shredded
corn fodder or rye straw
nrovlde ood beddinar for the hos
car. : . . . ..
LIYE.STC5X-FnUIT-DAmYinQ.CiinSEUI!:a-FIELD CRCPS-SILOS-PIGS
FARM
A ND
FIELD
New Wrinkles
In
Progressive
Agriculture
TOLD IN 111 INTERESTING MAIMER
HINTS FOR THE HORSE LOVER
Narrow-Chested Animals Do Not Pos
sess Endurance of Broad-Chested
Ones Keep Things Orderly.
The horse that is "all lees" is not
the one you want. Try to set those
that are well set, neither too long
legs nor too long bodies.
when a good horse lags don't nut
the whip on; and; make It go anyway.
Stop and look into the matter. That
horse is not well. If it were it would
not lag. - You do not like to be forced
to work when you are sick. The
horse Is most like a man of any liv
ing animal.
It is foolish for the farmer to get
the notion that he can win money on
tne track with his horses. It Is all
right to give the horses a chance to
show what Is In them, but don't do
ii, for money ever.
.Have the sides of your stalls well
nailed to place.! Horses sometimes
find out that they can crowd the
partitions out of I place and once they
get that habit they will make life mis
erable for you.
' Some horses have a way of throw
ing their hay out on the floor the first
thing they do after feeding. If you
feed through a chute from overhead
you will be f ree from , this difficulty.
If not, the best way is to build in front
Do Not Buy Narrow-Chested Horses.
of the horses a rack of round, hard
wood polos an Inch or two in diam
eter, running from the manger over
head, firmly secured at both ends.
Narrow-chested horses have not the
endurance that those have with good
broad chests. Don't buy a thin-breast
ed horse. ! i
Study your blacksmith, as well as
your, horses' feet.
Some horses can't eat straw with
out having impaction of the bowels,
and that sometimes causes death.
A ration of good wheat bran once a
week is a fine change for a horse.
Wet it up good and he will relish it
and it will act nicely on his bowels.
Hang up your dung forks. Don't
stand them against the side of the
barn, where they may be run into by
a horse passing that way.
It is sometimes said that you can
make any horse a good walker when
you break him.! That Is not always
true. You never can make fast walk
ers of some horses. It Is not in them
and you cannot put it in unless you
do it before they are born.
It is easy to hang up your harness
If you onces gei into the habit of it.
How many friends do you know that
drop them on the floor?
The reason the varnish Is coming
off your wagon or carriage may be
that you keep It in the room where
horses are stabled. : The chemicals
from horse manure and urine will do
it every time.
MOLDY FEED IS DANGEROUS
Farmers Are Losing Cattle From Eat
ing AcornsTake Precautions I
to Keep Poisons Out.
It is dangerous to give molded oi
spoiled hay and other feeds to live
stock, especially horses. Such feed is
apt to cause sickness and even death.
We ' have , heard of Instances where
farmers have lost a number of valu
able animals from this cause. Care
should be exercised to see that all feed
is. in good condition. ; Hay put up when
too damp may mold, corn and oats
often harbor various' kinds of fungous
diseases that" may be poisonous to
stock, and corn silage when improper
ly stored may cause trouble. The food
an animal eats has a marked influence
upon its physical well-being. We are
informed that, in Wisconsin, farmers
are losing cattle from eating acorns
picked up in the pastures. Young cat
tle 'are particularly affected. Sheep
and hoss can eat the acorns . without
bad effects, and milch cows seldom die
from this cause, but i young calves are
poisoned and little can be done for
them. It is the part oi wisdom to take
precautions to keep feeds known to be
dangerous away from animals, and
give them only that! which is In good
and sound condition.' Farmer's Guide.
Making the
Farmers'
Business
Profitable
EXPRESSLY FOR OUR READERS
PRUNING GRAPE VINES EARLY
Comparatively: Easy Matter to Deter
mine About How Much of the Old
Wood to Leave on Vine.
By J. G. MOORE, Wisconsin Experiment
Grape vines that were not pruned
ast fall should receive attention if a
profitable cron is desired. The earlier
the vines are pruned in the spring the
better, as the grape vine "bleeds" bad
ly, when pruned too near the time of
production. ,
As the grape produces its, fruit at
the first four or five joints on new
growth arising from : wood 'produced
the year previous, it will be a com
paratively easy matter, with the fore
going fact in mind, to determine
about how much of the , old wood to
leave on the vine. Usually from thir
ty to forty buds will be enough to
provide for the season's growth. A
greater number of buds will likely
result in more fruit clusters of an
inferior quality. '
If the fruiting wood shows a ten
dency to grow farther away from the
main trunk, a good, vigorous shoot'
arising from near the base of the vine
or near the head should be left to re
new the fruiting area i the coming
year. !
Too little pruning rather than too
much is the common fault in grape
culture. While to the average person
not experienced in such j matters, the
removal of so large a portion of the
vine may seem wasteful and injurious,
nevertheless, it is a necessity in suc
cessful grape growing. '
BLUNDERS IN THE ORCHARDS
Important to Guard Against Mistakes
In Setting Out Trees-Mdeal Lo
cation for Apples.
An inexperienced man Is liable to
make one or more blunders in setting
out an orchard for the first time and
as the trees are to occupy the same
land for many years It is important to
guard against mistakes, for they may
be a serious handicap to success all
the way through.
The ideal location for most varie
ties of apples is an elevated or sloping
ground with at least a small mixture
of sand in the formation to insure
drainage and make cultivation easier.
Or, if the land does not have natural
drainage, it must be secured either by
tiling or open ditches. Good orchards
are possible on low flat ground, but
the frost damage is greater, while the
quality of the fruit Is impaired; be
sides, It Is noticeable that on low, flat
rich soli there Is an abnormal growth
of wood and the tree short lived?
Moderate fertility is best.1
For the standard sorti set the trees
not closer than 30 feet apart each
way. It is a common practice to set
them too close together, which great
ly impairs the color of the fruit,
makes more trimming necessary and
gives the tree a greater tendency to
run up tall, thus increasing the labor
of gathering fruit. Some planters
set the trees 40 feet apart each way
using fillers between, such as Wag
Strictly No. .1, or Fancy Grade.
ner, Wealthy, Grimes, Golden and
other rather small-growing trees.
To get good results plow the ground
well in the spring or fall the latter
has some advantage as it makes early
planting more likely. '
Deception Among Tree Dealers.
In purchasing trees to plant bear In
mind that there is' much deception
among tree dealers. Many agents
come along representing this or that
nursery; but It is better to buy of
some nursery direct that has ong had
a reputation for fair dealing. Decep
tion is so easy in trees, because it is
almost impossible to determine the
quality or variety until-long after the
planting has been done, which gives
the seller ample time to clear out of
the country, or quit business, hence
It is impossible to compel him tr
make amends. j ,
Profitable Orcharding.
To make orcharding profitable .the
grower must receive enough for his
fruit to pay the cost of growing and
delivering, it to the buyer, be he a
consumer or broker, with, a small
margin for profit.
Gooseberries Need Thinning. ,
Gooseberry bushes 'need thinning
out to let in sun and air; by doing
this the fruit will increase in size
and quality, besides being partially
protected from mildew.
PROPER CARE AND MANAGEMENT OF SWINE
A Device to Prevent Pigs From Crowding and to Allow a Fair Start for All.
(By E. M. RANCK.)
To be a successful hog raiser' one
must keep "his stock under the very
best, environment possible. Do not
think any old thing or place is good
enough for a hog.! He should have
access to good clean water to drink
at all times, and not stale pond water
or mud wallows. Clean, pure water
will do more toward keeping hogs
healthy than any other one thing.
The hog has a peculiar skin, and under
the skin is a thick pad of fat', so that
he must get rid of his heat mostly
from his lungs by breathing. In hot
weather he needs some cool place to
lie in, and if he can find mud he wal
lows In it. He prefers good, clean wa
ter, but If he cannot find that, mud is
the best substitute." Shade is very es
sential in warm weather.
Buildings for hogs need not be very
expensive. We advise colony houses
of the A shape,, -with both sides open
with hinges on the top. This type of
house furnishes shade, ventilation, and
sunlight in summer and wheir closed,
a very comfortable farrowing pen in
winter. These houses are erected on
skids and can be moved from place to
place with a pair of horses or mules.
They are so constructed that they are
ideal farrowing pens. A sow about to
farrow can be placed in a lot in which
is one of these colony houses, and she
will make her nest in the house if
some hay or straw Is placed there.
Fenders should be arranged around
the sides of the house so that the sow
will not be able to lie close to the
'sides and in that way crush the young
pigs in the nest.
These colony nouses can also be
used for the boars and growing pigs,
although some prefer permanent quar
ters for the hoar and those" pigs In
tended for the market. It is a great
advantage to feed hogs on concrete
or tight board floors, especially if one
is feeding ear corn, as there will be
no waste. Feeding in muddy or dusty
lots is a very dangerous practice.
It sometimes becomes necessary to
A Champion Poland
feed pigs separate from the sows,
even when nursing. This can be done
by building near the colony house a
temporary fence which will allow the
little pigs to get in, but will keep out
the old hogs. If this plan is adopted
the pigs will practically wean them
selves without inconvenience either to
themselves or to the sow. We prefer
feeding the small pigs and in fact all
our hogs in either iron or concrete
troughs, with round bottoms. V
shaped troughs can also be used.
Fences play a very important part
in hog raising. A poor fence : will- pro
duce a breachy hog as quickly as it
will a fence-breaking cow. We prefer
any strong closo woven-wire fence at
least 58 inches high for the outside
fence. In smaller lots either woven
wire "or wooden fences temporarily
placed will be cheaper and can be used
a number of times. Temporary fences
need not be over three feet high and
should be so constructed that they can
be carefully stored when notin use.
Woven wire used as temporary fence
is very difficult to stretch after it has
been used several times, although it
can be used to advantage when lumber
and help are not plentiful.
In planting forage crops it is an
advantage, to plant in long narrow
strips so that the temporary fences
can be placed across the narrow part
of the field. It is also an advantage
to arrange the crops so that one-section
is in such alignment with the
other sections that the cultivation
may be done without turning at the
end of each section, and when the
crops are laid by the temporary fence
can separate one crop from another.
When - plaia are made to establish
ho,t pastures one must not forget the
vn Impcitant factor of providing
good, pure water for them. In sec
tions where running water cannot be
secured through pipes, it can be
hauled in barrels. Many hog raisers
provide a sled or drag on skids . on
which a barrel is fastened on a water
tight floor with sides to it so that the
pigs can drink all around the barrel,
the water coming out of ; the barrel
about three inches from the bottom
through a small hole, which automat
ically flows according to the water
consumed. !,
Running streams of water are vc
sausiactory wnen tney originate on
the" farm, but if they travel long dis
tances and through several farms and
across public roads, they are very
likely to be contaminated and may
spread diseases such as anthrax, and
hog cholera. Keeping hogs healthy is
much more important than trying to
cure them when sick. . '
UNCLEAN HOUSE MEANS LOSS
Fowls Require Abundance of Free
Breathing Room Keep Sleeping
Quarters Free From Filth.
(By H. H. SHEPARD.)
As young chickens grow they soon
make crowded conditions in their
coops and colony houses. They will
not grow and keep healthy wjhen too
many are confined at night in a lim
ited space. Separate them and get
them into larger and better ventilated
quarters as they increase irl size. The
stuffy, unclean coop will result in
losses. '
Many fall with chickens and other
poultry because they do not stop to
consider that fowls, above all animals,
need abundance of free breathing
room and that their sleeping quarters;
must be free from filth.
Without cleanliness and the furnish
ing of abundance of fresh air to the
birds at all times, no person can .suc
ceed in the poultry business.
Provide clean and roomy quarters
for the young poultry, as they come
Sow From Missouri.
into maturity. This will mean health
ier and better developed pullets for
fall and early winter laying. Dispose
of the cockerels as soon ,as they will
do to market, to make more room for
the pullets.
Clean the droppings out of the win
ter house frequently, and use white
wash, kerosene and other insecticides
freelyto-keep down the lice. '. ( '
Lice breed in filth, hence the cleaner
the house is kept the better it will be
for the birds. Most poultry troubles
and losses can be traced directly to
unsanitary conditions and to insect
pests. r
Let the house for the coming laying
pullets be amply provided with open
ings for sunlight and ventilation. The
full open front house is proving boat
for all seasons, as it provides for un
limited quantities of fresh air for the
sleeping birds.
Silo Is Necessity.
Nearly all of the best dairymen like
to supply some feed to their cows even
when on the best of pastures, both for
its food value to the cows and for its
manurial valuej to the pastures and
nothing is more convenient for this
purpose than good silage. Every farm
er who feeds live stock cannot well
afford to be without a silo. Just a lit
tle experience in the use of silage will
5bBvince anman that the silo is an
absolute necessity.
Experiment With Electricity.
Experimenters in the stimulation of
plant growth by electricity haVe dis
covered a queer thing. The win? blows
their current away, but a wire screen
surrounding the plat of ground tends
to hold the electric charge in place re
gardless of the wind. :
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