Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1869-05-11

HENs.---After all that has been done Tor
the improvement of fowls, not more than
one half of those who keep hens, succeed
in having them lay through the year. There
are some who always do succeed, and OF
course reap large profits. What is the Sc
cret of success? 1t is neither difficult, nor
beyond the reach of every family who oc-
cupy few rods of land The hen house
need not be expensive butshould be so con-
structed as to be neither too hot in summer,
nor too cold in winter. 1t should be wash
ed with mixture of lime and salt on the
inside. Select the best breeds and put sew
eral kinds together; feed regularly, and
let them always have sufficient clean water.
They should have both animal and vegeta-
BILE food, plenty of pounded mortar, brick,
burned bones, etc. Bones not burned but
pulverized, makes Almost excellent food for
laying hens. Give them pepper and pick
les They need acids to prevent their be-
coming too fat. Picked pepper are better
than cayenne. A slight seasoning of salt
in their food is good. Sand or ashes should
be provided for them to dust themselves in.
If they wish to set, let them stand in tub
or barrel, with two inches of water, for
day or two. Above all, they should have
regular attention every day. In this way,
some do succeed in having their hens lay
the year round. We should be glad to
find more accomplishing the same thing;
as it would contribute, not only to the
health of the family, but be of great advan-
tage to the pocket.
BONING PAsTUREs.-E' ~ boy that has
driven cows to old pastures has noticed in
them singular taste for chewing old bones
Let piece of the size of big potatoe lie
in the grass at the roadside, and cow will
see it and turn aside as quick as though it
were an ear of corn. Is this mere within
or fancy in the dumb brutes, like the fond
ness of boys for chewing cherry gum, or the
taste that school girls display for chalk?
Not at all. Nature tells them that they
| need it, and they cannot find it in the graz
ing which old pastures afford. Nobody
sees such taste in horses and sheep
Let us consider the subject in the light
of one or two well settled facts. The milk
of a COW for all the season contains on an
average II pounds of phosphate Of lime.
That milk is consumed in or near the
| house, or it is carried hundreds of miles
from the farm in the form Of cheese. No
| body thinks of carrying the rich cOncen-
trated manures of the hog pen to the COW
| pasture, hence, no part or constituent OF
| the milk ever gets back to the pastures
| where the grass grew, from which the milk
was made. The proper inference is easy
| All old pastures require amanure that con
tains phosphate of lime. Suppose milci
COWS have been on a range of pastures tOl
| sixty years at the rate of a COW to five acres
Each acre had been robbed of 124 pound.
of phosphate of lime, and no return made
The duty of the dairyman, admits then, O
no discussion. He is requiring of his cows
to produce milk from grass that is wanting
in one Of the most valuable constituents o
milk. He is as unjust as old Pharaoh wher
he made the Hebrews make brick, bu
gave them no straw. Ground bones con
tain more of the substance that his cow
and his pastures require than any availabl,
manure. 1t should be sown on pastures a
the rate indicated above. That is, if
pasture has received no bone for sixty
years, and bankrupt as a range for cows
it will require $50 pounds Of phosphate t.
the acre Two hundred pounds of raw
bone meal would be no more than prop
er dressing, and this dose should be repeat
ed every few years.
DEEP OR SHALLOW PLOWING.-Mr Da
vid Newport of Abingdon, Pennsylvania
writes the Hearth and Home:
''In the past year | have queried of GU
most successful farmers on the subject O
deep and shallow blowing, and find re
, markable unanimity OfOpiniOn among then
that the best crops of corn can be obtaine
!, by blowing at the depth of about four in
ches. Many are of the opinion that thi
is deep enough for any crop, and one O
them Mr.. Irvins) who raises the best crop
of corn, on the average, that I know of, in
sists that after the soil has been broken u
to the depth Of eight or ten inches, man
= years must elapse before a good crop 0
! corn can be grown, and then, only by tn
application of expensive manures. On on
occasion, to the great distress of my team
\ | broke up twenty acre field for corn
= the depth of seven inches; a season of e1
IRENE drought followed, and the result wf
a very small yield. My theory is, that tn
deep, flat furrow turns under, beyond tn
= reach of the surface roots, the food adapte
a by nature for their sustenance-tha til
d deep roots are merely supporting, viii
O those that run near the surface of tt
d ground feed and nourish the plant"
e CURRANT BUsHEs.-A Bloomfield, Can
e ada West correspondent of the New En-
Il land Farmer, says that thereof of the viii
L. hellebore, (veratrum viride, powdered an
J sprinkled on the leaves of currant bushe
I is a sure remedy for the currant worm pes
. He has tried it for two years with compile
Z success, while the bushes in his neighbo
II hood, not subject to this operation, we
entirely destroyed. The root was procure
at the druggists, and applied from cor
mon pepper box.
= FEEDING AND FEED FOR PIGs.-Mr.
Al 5. G. Stern, celebrated English breed
of pigs, describes his management of the
q as follows:
n "Pigs eat the food much better when
st is fresh. l give them a variety of mes
+ such as wheat, maize, barley, and what
re most convenient to mix together. [ ha
.sr it all wetted with cold water, and tn
j. scald it with boiling water, and sprink
l. it with salt. What is mixed one day
+ used the next thus giving sufficient time
m allow the food slightly to ferment, al
n cool sufficiently to feed with. This is L
~ winter plan, but in summer | mix all wi
a. cold water, and feed with cold food. I
o. tween meals | give them whole maize a
10 mangel wurzel or swedes cut small, a ]
Il all