The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1871-09-19
Dry Earth for Pig.Stys.


A friend Of mine, who has some valu-
able thoroughbred pigs, which he kept
as breeding stock in the country, having
to abandon his country property and re-.
move to the city, where from the require.
ments of sanitary regulations, it was
thought the pigs could not be kept, ex.
cept at considerable risk, has overcome
the difficulty by applying the principles
of the earth-closet (about which so much
has been said of late in the columns of
the Country Gentleman, to which he is a
subscriber) to the use OF his pigs.
Box-sties were put up in a covered
building in the rear Of the yard of his
city residence. A large quantity of we'll.
dried friable loan was obtained and
placed under cover, where it would keep
dry.
At the furthest corner of each sty suf.
6cient straw was placed TO make com.
Portable bed for piggy to lie on He new.
err defles his bed if he can help it. Over
the rest of the sty, and especially near
the feeding troughs, dry earth was spread
over the boarded floor. At first it was
thought best to clean out the sites every
day, and put in fresh supply of dry
earth, but it was soon found out that
shovelful of dry earth thrown every NOR.
ming and night over what was in the sty,
entirely disinfected it Of all odors, and
so obviated the necessity of cleaning out
oftener than once a week.
| have visited the place several times,
and perceived no bad smell whatever
arising from the sites, nor has any one
either in the residence or among the
neighbors adjoining, complained Of any
annoyance therefrom. The pigs seem to
thrive well, are healthy and quiet. One
sty, containing several young pigs, is kept
entirely covered with several inches Of
dry earth, no straw being allowed them,
and they appear to delight to roll and
root about in it.
1t might be worth while to try the ap.
plication of the same principle on more
extensive scale, in stables, cow.byres and
poultry houses in the cities and towns.
Even in the country, if the earth could
be properly dried and stored away for
winter use, it might be found of great
value as an absorbent of the ammonia in
the droppings of stock. This might be
done by sprinkling a little over the fresh
droppings morning and night, before
throwing out on the manure heap. By
a proper and systematic use of this val.
liable adjunct, the quality of the manure
made on the farm might be largely in.
creased without adding to its bulk by the
admixture of so much useless straw as is
customary.-Cor. Co. Gent.
How l GREW CoRN-WINrER MANuR.
INc.-The soil is sandy loan, and grew
potatoes the previous year. On a por.
ton Of the lot hauled, early in February,
at the rate of forty.seven loads of we'll
rotted manure to the acre, and spread it
evenly over the surface of the snow. To
the balance of the lot l applied the same
amount and quality of manure to the
acre, just before planting. l plowed the
ground about four inches deep,and plant.
ed the medium sized Yellow Dent Corn.
The difference in growth and yield be.
tween the early MANFRED and late was
very remarkable. The early MANFRED was
decidedly ahead of the late, from the time
it came up till harvest 1t ripened ear.
lier, and yielded 100 bushels Of sound
ears to the acre and the other 120 bushels.
During nearly thirty years experience,
| have never, but once before this, OBJ.
tanned 50 heavy yield and ] think il
is about as much as can be obtained. The
variety that plant yields three pecks Of
shelled corn to the bushel of ears. | 3D.
lect the earliest ripened, soundest and
best formed ears for seed, and from stalk
bearing two or moro ears, if sound ant
large but l never plant nubbius."-
Cor. Rural Ne,0 Yorker.