The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1886-04-10
SHEEP-HUSBANDRY.
4 System Which Would Work Revolution
on Poor Farms.

on ROOT fdTluss
Farmers have not sufficiently studied
The importance of maintaining the fer
ility OF their farms. Much land in the
New England States has been worked
o point where, under COMMON cult
Ire, the production is below cost OF
labor. Many such farms have been
abandoned. This has often occurred in
cotton districts of the South, and the
and has been suffered to return to
Itate of nature.
7 Stock-farming is the only system
properly adapted to the reclamation of
these lands, and the system adopted
must be the intelligent one that makes
provision for the complete saving and
distribution of the droppings of the ami
mails. AS stock husbandry is still gen.
orally carried on, only the smaller pro-
portion of the fertilizing matter is saved
and applied.
Sheep are peculiarly adapted to keep
ing up the fertility of the soil they are
fed on. The dairy COW carries off in
her milk a much larger proportion of
the fertilizing matter of her food than
the sheep in growing mutton and wool.
1t has been proved by careful expert
ment that the sheep may return to the
soil ninety-fve per cent of the fertiliz-
ing matter of its food. This renders
the sheep one of the best agencies for
improving the soil.
If we take an impoverished soil in
hand for improvement, we must eX-
pect to add something to it to improve
it. Something does not come from
nothing. five simply feed any animal
upon what grows on the land, we do
not add any thing to the SOIL but we
take something from it. How, then,
shall we improve the soil by feeding
sheep upon it without mourning large
expenseP This is the question to be
answered, aud it is easily answered.
If the sheep will return ninety-five per
cent. of the fertilzing matter gifts food
to the soil, carrying off only five per
cent, then if we feed sheep one ton of
linseed-meal, ninety-five per cent, of its
nitrogen, potash, and phosphoric acid
will be left in the soil. This would be
112 lbs. of nitrogen, 32 lbs. of potash,
and 4S lbs. of phosphoric acid which
estimated at the price of commercial
fertilizers, would be worth 1926; but we
will deduct little over 20 per cent,
and call the fertiliziting matter of the
ton of linseed meal worth 800 This
meal should be purchased at S25 per ton
and when properly fed to sheep it will pay
all it costs in growing mutton and
wool, and the manure will be all profit.
The manure from ton of decorticated
cotton-seed meal is worth S25; of wheat
bran, $14; of oats, 80; of corn, Sc; of
the best clover hay, 49,; of timothy,
$3.50; of peas, $l4. Wheat bran is
very rich in phosphoric acid, which
renders it one of the best foods to grow
the bones of the young animal. For
feeding sheep in summer, linseed meal
and bran, and, when not too dear, oats
are most excellent. They are what may
be called cooling foods, and will pro-
duce the best result, and the manure
from the first two is most valuable.
For winter feeding, corn is an economi-
cal food 1t will be seen that on worm
out lands liberal feeding of sheep would
soon render them fertile.
The system should be to let the sheep
pasture on the grasses and weeds pro-
duced upon the land and then concen-
trate the feeding of rich foods upon a
small space, using these MANFRED pieces
to raise fodder for the sheep in winter.
Each year would fertilize few acres fit
to bear almost any crop. The surface
of these pieces, fed most upon, should
be worked mellow, and the manure
mixed with the soil, to prevent waste Of
volatile elements. If this system Of
renovation were conducted in the best
manner, the sheep should be confined
by hurdles the 70 ling hurdles would bt
best, moving them along each day as
fast as the ground is MANFRED, giving
fresh earth to the sheep, and top-dress
ing definite amount of soil each day
This would be best accomplished if thu
piece of land to be fed over had a greeI
crop upon it, having feeding troughs a
the advancing hurdles in which should b.
placed the linseed-meal and bran, thu
sheep eating the green crop as fast a
they moved over it, and making up
full ration from the troughs. We hav,
used this plan, with great satisfaction
for fertilizing land which would alread,
bear good crop of clover, millet o
rye.
Mutton sheep are better adapted tt
this system, as it is one of the most eX
!, peditious ways to fatten sheep in sum
mer, and involves about as little labo
as any other plan we have ever tried
This plan works well in tattening eve
; after bearing early lambs. We believ
the poorest farms in New England coul
be very cheaply re-fertilized on thi
system, and made more valuable tina
, they have ever been in the past; and tn
mutton and wool produced, is wanted
the nearest town. Such a system, ca
, ried out, would soon work complet
! revolution in farming and its profits
National LiUe- Stock Journal.
The experience of fruit growers a
goes to show that it is unwise toTu
ones conduct by exceptional circun
q stances The Florida oranpa orrOwa-