Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1874-02-25
Winter MANAGEMENT of Poultry.

Winter Management of Poultry.
| Mr.. G.. W. Dickerman tells US in the
New England Fl meStead how he feeds
and cares for his hens SD us to - make
them lay" His winter arrangement is
us follows:
| fill several boxes or half barrels with
earth before the ground freeze and keep
it where they can have access to it at AL
times during the winter have also had
Il barrel of air-slaked lime standing for
years in the hen coop, and found it an ex
cellent preventative of lice. Further have
!. load of clear sand hauled on my premises
Just at the edge of winter, and occasionally
throw few shovelfuls into their winter
quarters. This gives them the grindstones
without which they cannot digest their
grain.
My winter quarters for them are not
us large us hey ought to be, being only
twelve feet square for from twenty to
thirty fowls but they have the yard when
ever the snow does not rbid., Instead
of cleaning out these quarters weekly /
oItener, us is so often recommended in the
books. | occasionally throw few shovels
OF earth tfro The boxes before mentionel)
over the droppings. Their quarters are
not SO warm us should provide were | to
TO build house expressly for them bun
have two large windows in The south
and east sides tdiscarded from an Il
house) which gives them all the benefit OF
The suns warmth and makes up for con
siderable lack of battening.
Cold weather is the try NJ time when
most people complain that their hens do
not lay 1t requires more atten ion to the
! r TN. tbI, h.,
summer. but they can be had Give them
sunlight and keep them warm in the first
place, and secondly give them varied
food
feed principally corn through the win
ter, but vary it with wheat, oats, buck
wheat, potatoes and meat scraps. Pa t
of the corn feed whole and part have
cracked or ground into meal | prefer
cracked. feed whole grain ut night. and
the ground in the morning, on the prn-
ciple that through the long night they need
something that will stand by them; and
having di !csted all their nights food BY
morning they need something that they
can act quickly upon. For the sam
reason, in the very coolest weather, when
[ 90 out to give them their morning s
meal, | carry II basin of warm water from
the teakettle and wet up their dough with
that. 1t will warm them quickly and
make them feel comfortable. an essential
as have before said t. II supply of eggs
The wheat feed is screenings which Can
be ha ut any feed store, prob bly,.
Mashed potatoes fed warm are just the
vegetable food they need, and We're on n
firm, should carefully husband few
bushels of the small potatoes for this pur-
pose
The meat scraps l buy of the butcher in
large cakes, and believe it is rs cheap IA
corn while it answers Il purpose like that
of the b tgs and worms of t summer.
very important part of the egg is the
shell, in fact IN egg without Il shell don't
amount to much. And unless the hen has
material for the she'll the other prepare
tons are void. In winter, the hen has little
chance to secnre shell material for herself
and hence it must be furnished her
have found this simpl st way to do it
Occasionally | throw Il handful of bones
upon the olls, clear them "a little, pound
them fine and mix them with the feed II
bones are not to be had, oyster shells may
he served the same way
The tendency to sit is Il troublesome one
out of its proper place, but this difficulty
VIII ch seriously annoys Some poultry keep
ers, is easily olivia e |. | have Il large
covrre coop in the yard, into which, Us
soon us find IL hen inclined to sit. | Pun
her with a rooster, feeding her liber;iIly
with Il variety of food shells, bones, etc
A week of this treatment will Gu e her
every time. and usually set her to immedi-
ately laying again.
find the white Brihmas the best in
many respects but they are TOO heavy
often hurting themselves in flying from e.
roost, breaking eggs internally, etc. Tc
remedy these defects. | cross my Brahms
hens with IIoudar cock, and get lighter
fowl than the Brahma. and good layers
not so often inclined to sit, and not SO goot
for the table us the pure Brahma For the
latter purpose the Brahma is unequaled
can put two pounds more flesh upon 4
Brahma at seven or eight months old, thar
upon any breed have ever fltted.
presume the above details will seem
too fuss, IN too much trouble to many
and any one who does not consider II full
: supply of fresh eggs all winter worth {.
little extr, trouble. had better let poultry
, alone. But there is much |. SIS trouble than
you i'm CINE, my friends. 1t is just rs
, easy to have three kinds of feed us one, il
YOU think so 1t is but little more trouble
to wet up dish of meal than to throw the
. hens whole corn. To boil potatoes and
pound bones, is Il little trouble. but dozen
times during The winter will be enough
: and will ply we'll TO throw in II few
shovels weekly, is certainly not I'm ex
I htusting task, and it is worth while. Ii
pays.
i SAVE THE LARGEST GOBBLER Now
that the Sc lson has arrived for sci cting