The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1878-02-07
AGRICULTURAL.
PrefltabIe Winter rU.n.ge,re,,,

The other day saw neighbor of mine
driving away to the eastward with load OF
cabbages, to be peddled out, head or two in
place, and thought within nv.
self, what serious mistake this neighbor q
mine is making! Now if, instead of carting
off the produce from his land, he had consum
ed the whole on the premises and
saved team and the labor of transporting, liz
the long run he would have been a richer
wiser man, and the whole amount of pennies
contained in the dollar is what this neighbor
of mine is striving for, early and late. If in
stead this man had peddled out his cabbage
heads to his hens day by day, the profit in
eggs would in the end have amounted to
more than the bare percentage realized from
the sale of the vegetables, besides the rich
legacy of the droppings to return to the soil,
This neighbor is in the habit of hauling ma.
nure three and four miles, at the rate of a
dollar per load, to spread on his land, and
enrich the plats for the produce of vegetables
for market purposes alone.
The expense of making a dozen eggs in
winter is not SO great as some people might
think. The right management in winter, is
only necessary. Even in those low-priced
times, eggs range from 25 to 81 cts. per doz
en-. Perhaps am too strict an advocate fol
the consumption of every product raised on
the land upon the premises. The practice
makes richer farms and better contented in.
habitants. There is no running here and
there for the sale of little market produce
Poultry and eggs will always meet with ready
sale, and generally with remunerative prices
We cannot expect eggs from grain feeding
alone; vegetables, in some shape, are reauir.
ed. Nearly 100 head of cabbages were put
into the cellar last fall, and have been solo
daily on my premises, two or three heads
each day, 10 the hens in their houses
The consequence has been a good supply O.
eggs daily, averaging from Is to 20 from
about 80 laying hens. This is not an enor.
nous result, but the product is steady and
can be depended upon.
We must not expect great things from the
hens. Learn to curb the ambition, and be
satisfied with quiet even return. Give the
hens a good place on the farm. Do not shove
them off in one corner and neglect their wei.
fare, and then expect eggs, frequently berat
Ing and threatening their heads because th ey
do not come up to your requirements. Give
them good, warm quarters, and go quie tly
among them and form their acquaintance
First learn how to approach them before YOU
present the egg basket for them to fill. i
you have not the right kind of birds, sell
them off to the butcher, and bestir yoursel
to procure the right kind; then there is nc
mistake. Ascertain in the outset what breed
puIDOS6s
Locality and convenience at hand should be
brought into consideration. Then treat them
with the respect due to their lineage and you
will meet with steadysproft, both in money
value and qualification in viewing a fine flock
of birds, which is a pleasing sight to the eve
of one fond of handsome fowls. Poor, half
starved, neglected fowls are forlorn to behold,
especially in winter, and yield no profit in
eggs, either In summer or winter.
The droppings from the hen roost, inter-
mingled with wood ashes or air-slaked lime.
previously scattered underneath the perches
in winter, and frequently removed, form a
rich compost for the soil. There is no ferti-
lizer that enriches so much, or that spreads
further, making the earth rich and mellow,
and retaining moisture, even during severe
dreuth, If it is placed under the surface two
or three inches. If a handful or so be placed
at the bottom of each hill, where cucumbers
or melons are planted, there will be no danger
from the striped bugs that so much disturb
the early growth of these vegetables. Hen
roosts should be cleaned quite often, once or
twice in the winter at least, and oftener In
the summer season, and carefully strewed
over after each cleaning, with wood ashes,
moisture from the droppings. There will be
found small room for complaint from the &C.
emulation of vermin If this method is fol-
lowed. Coal ashes are not so good, as they
form hard cement that is difficult to re-
move. When dry, the hen works the ingred-
Tents together, and when taken out it is ready
for Immediate application. When vegetables
are fed, the droppings from laying hens are
soft and watery, therefore some absorbent is
necessary to gather this moisture. Countru
Gentleman