Connecticut western news., 1885-02-18
FARM AND GARDEN.

ESTIMATES OF OAT5. - Wucu lho Northern farmer has harvested good crop of oats and little corn or wheat, he is at loss to know the true value of his crop as food for stock. He reads of va- rious farmers and dairymen who con- sider corn meal, shorts and cottonseed meal the proper ration for beef or butter, but he has only oats to use with his hay and straw for all his cattle. One of my neighbors had 1,175 bushels oats and thirty-two of wheat, and his corn nearly ruined by frost. Another, 400 bushels oats and forty-fve of wheat Another 800 of oats and about fifty or sixty of wheat. A few years agoinquiry showed that on 700 farms reported in Orleans county the average area in corn was not over half an acre to farm. The small area is largely due to our short summers. It is not quite satisfactory to be told the relative quantities of fat and albuminoids in oats compared with other feed. There is still more knowledge desirable in order to overcome the uncertain feeling that perhaps we cannot gain the best results with oats. One dairyman has reported recently that butter from COWS fed oatmeal was softer than when the COWS were fed on other meal rations. Yet the butter-cow that beats the world, ''Mary Anne of St. Lambert" was fed mostly on oatmeal. Also two of the finest animals at the Chicago Fat Stock Show were fattened on oatmeal. This peculiarity, however, was noticed, that when the beef had hung a proper time to cool, the tallow did not harden as it did in corn-fed beef, but was soft, and when the meat was cut up the tallow followed the knife and spread upon the edges of the lean meat. It was too soft to cut smooth and stand firm. Some country farmers extend their supply of lard by mixing with it the kidney tallow of beef. In this there is hint to them to fatten with oatmeal. We are satisfied with oats for horses, sheep, and calves from four to twelve months old, but are in doubt as to their relative value for swine and dairy COWS. Some feeders say they would as soon have @ pound light oats as a pound of hesvy ones. If the value is as great it may be due to the fact that in the larger bulk of light oats there is more of that nutritive DOT ton that the mice select as their special dainty morsels, while they reject part of the kernel.-Z. E. JAME.oS, Or leans Co.,, Vt.
 How TO GAIN THE BEST RESULTS WITH POULTRY. obtain the best re- suits with chickens there are one or two points in regard to their food during the winter that may not have suggested themselves to some amateurs in the poul- try business. One is, that during cold weather, when chickens cannot obtain the usual supply of worms aud insects, a small quantity of meat added to their daily rations will be mueh relished and very wholesome. buy cheap bits from the butcher, boil them and feed them chopped fine and mixed with the usual soft feed. In winter it is best to make the morning meal at least of cooked soft feed, fed warm, and during that sea son I prefer to cook or scald all food ex- cept whole grain. I always feed whole grain, either wheat, oats or corn, in tho evening. The process of digesting this is more prolonged than that of cooked soft food, and thus furnishes the fowl with nutriment through longer portion of the cold nights. Soft food should no be fed too wet, as this tends to weaker the digestive powers. I mix it just SC that I can mould it into balls with tbt hands, and these balls, when thrown tC the chickens, will readily scatter il pieces. I consider it quite beneficial tc the health of the fowls to feed charcoa occasionally. They eat it readily wher powdered and stirred in with the soft food.
 NEW YORK FARMERS ON ENsIIAGE.- - At the annual meeting of the New York State Agricultural Society at Albany the retiring President, Mir. White, ex presses the opinion that what roots arr to England, in her mild climate and oper winters, the slo will eventually prove tc America, and more. Nothing has prom ised so satisfactory a solution of winter eding and possible profit as the fac that green food can be preserved fo winter use better and more economicall, than hay. Half an acre of land can pro duce the fodder for COW for the whole year, with the meal usually fed, and tht result surpasses the feeding of hay. Il soiling is superior to pasturing, then 1T like ratio is ensilage superior to soiling In soiling the first cutting is immature, then for season it is in perfect condi- tion, and afterward too woody to b' good. With the silo the crop is cut dur ing it's best condition and stored anc preserved in that state until used. Dr Sturtevant gave it as his expert ence that forage crops for ensilage, tc insure best results, must have succulen cy, nutritive properties and prolific yields. It is therefore important tha judicious selections be made. At tht State Experiment Station 133 varieties have been considered, during whicl tests it was noted that popcorn and ric' popcorn, when planted thickly, afforded good ensilage crops.
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