The New Orleans daily Democrat., 1880-02-29
AGRICULTURE.
Bees and Poultry, and How to Take
Care or Them.

In0 FFop0r FOOD IOr COWG--6H00p anCA
Their Diseases Best Varie-
ties OF Poultry Minor
Farm Notes.
SETTING HENS.
IN selecting eggs for setting, always re-
member that the newest laid are the best and
that those from the second litter are better
that the first laying. Eggs from the first
litter are generally smaller contain less vi
tally, and are not 90 likely 10 be- fertllized as
the later litters.
Josh Billings says that the best time to set
hen is when the hen wants to set. To that
piece Of wisdom let us add: Set your hens at
nIght-always. II you have any doubts about
the reliability Of your hen, give her two Or
three china or wo den nest-egRs to practice
upon until she settles down to business. Ii
you want to set your hen In a strange place,
have your nest ready, get your hen after
fully on the nest, fasten q board over the front
of the nest, leaving only q crack for ventila-
tion, and do not remove the board until after
dark the next night. Ia nine cases out of ten
the hen will come OIL III the morning, eat her
breakfast and no back to her nest; but you
must be on the lookout for her soon after day
light, and II she does not 60 back to her nest,
PVT ner back gently, and fasten her u for On.
charcoal, and q dust box where your setting
hens can help themselves. After the eggs
have been set on q few days, the eggs that
have been impregnated can readily be de-
IL the eggs are White-shellsd they can be as
sorted on the fourth day, but with dark
Bhelled eggss " Ia better TO walt until the
eighth day, The non-fertile eggs will pre-
xaiG&k al .txtIH Ia
dark spot, with small red veins radiating
from II can be distinctly seen In the fertile
The advantage to be derived from asserting
eggs during incubation are obvious. Ii three
or four hens are set ut the same time, IL quite
frequently happens that after the non fertile
eggs have been taken from the nest, two Of
the hens can accommodate all the eggs that
other hens can be set again with u fresh lot OF
eggs. In the earlier part Ut the season, when
setting hens are scarce tlnd this great nd
vantage. The clear eggs. TX taken from the
nest before the ninth day, can be boiled and
used for chicken food.
Donot imagine that handling eggs during
incubation Will prevent Matching. With care
the eggs may be handled every day, and not
the slightest harm result thsrefrom. Should
any of the eggs get broken in tho nest, wash
the remaining eggs In warm water, and clean
out the nest, for an egg that is daubea with
the contents OF another egg will not hatch.
UuIlu& Ll6 la6b WEEK Ol luCuDhtluu Luo GXHb
should be sprinkled every other day with
warm water.
CARE or BEES FROM FEBRUARY TO MAY.
This Ii, perhaps, the time upon which our
success In bee keeping, the coming season,
largely depends. From the middle Of Feb
ruary TO the first OF May bee keepers want TO
notice several things carefully and prudently.
Should the latter part Of February BE- warm,
then bees want To be fed, not only those that
are IN danger Of starvation, but even those
that na aa have enough to get 81 through The winter
late breeding. Bees are now exposed to sew
eral kinds Oh Injury. They may be strong in
numbers and the family be too large for the
store Of provisions, but while It exposes them
10 the dangers Of starvation. II assists them
in guarding against the bee moth, as the bees
get over all the combs, hut whore stocks are
left to dwindle down very small, the moth
takes advantage Of the earliest warm days
to deposit their eggs, and crop Of parasites
Will soon be raised to eat up the combs and |
destroy the bees. Italian bees, however. pro-
toCt themselves much better than the blacks. |
gle stock OF Italians from the effects Of moth.
Chickens kept about the bees are also some
protection: they catch the moths II they |
move, but they usually sit around In the cor
weather-beaten silver that they arc rarely
seen or noticed unless they hy. Another ad-
vantage of stimulating the bees to early |
breeding is to have them strong when fruit |
trees bloom. The honey from this source is
When but few bees are In the hive, they are
All needed to keep the brood warm.
# SELL another advantage OF stimulating to |
early breeding is the inducement to early /
swarming. Bees that do not make an early |
start are often go belated that they fall to
swarm ut all, or II they do 1t is often 30 late
that the young swarms fall to gather honey
enough TO get over the following winter while
those that swarm early often gather consid-
NrNhl0 Hurnlu9 honey