Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-10-19
Farm AND ORCHARD.
DESCRIPTION OF A wELL-MANAGED
POULTRY YARD.
Improve the Raisin Pack-Evils of Close
Planting OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
of Forests-Notes.

Inc following description vi new l. oIk
poultry farm of twenty years ago is taken
from an essay delivered by Warren Lee
land, the proprietor, before the Farmers
Club of that State. Mrs. q. P. Duden of
Lake House, Sacramento county, who
sends us this description, says that al
though written of a poultry farm of
twenty years ago, it contains many useful
hints which could be applied to poultry
raising at the present time. She has seen
places in the foothills and along the rail-
road which the description of Mr.. Leland's
Highland farm would fit admirably, with
small fertile spots where grain enough
could be raised to maintain a large flock of
poultry, with the advantage that they
could range at will through the greater
portion of the winter and pick up a great
deal of their food. She makes the follow
ing condensation of Mr.. Leland's essay:
He devotes eighteen acres in one yard
of his Highland farm at Rye, New York,
to his poultry, consisting of hens, ducks,
turkeys and geese The broods have an
other large lot, and the turkeys have half
mile range. The eighteen-acre lot is
rough land unsuitable for tillage, having
in it rocks, bushes grass, weeds and sandy
places and also pond. 1t is supplied
with heaps of ashes, bones, lime, and a
portion is occasionally plowed to furnish
worms. The fowls have woods and bushes
to range in, the turkeys trees to roost in,
and the ducks and geese enjoy the priyi-
lege of the pond. There are natural and
artificial shelters for all, consisting of
sheds, hillsides, bushes, hooks and hiding
places of all sorts for hens with broods,
and trees are cut and bent down into the
ground for shelter and roosts. The wings
of none are clipped, and the hens may
scratch and turkeys fly at pleasure within
the limits of the grounds. Aftera trial of
some years Mr.. Leland has discarded
coops, finding that the greater freedom he
allowed the more healthful and profitable
are his fowls. The principal features of
his system are freedom, cleanliness, proper
and sufficient food during the year, and
change of cocks every spring.
In summer, with the ranges they have,
his fowls secure good supply of animal
food from the fields, in worms, grubs, grass
hoppers, etc. They are also supplied at
all seasons with refuse scraps from the
Metropolitan Hotel Mr.. Leland says
egg-making is no easy work, and the hens
will not do much of 1t without high feed.
They need just what a man who works re-
quires-wheat, bread and meat He feeds
wheat, even when it costs 81 bushel. No
old nests are allowed. After each brood is
Matched the nests are whitewashed inside
and out. After lying in the sun and rain
for a few days they are half filled with
clean straw and returned for use. The old
straw is burned. Each Of the $50 or 800
hens on hand in the spring is permitted to
have one brood during the year. -Four or
five will have broods the same day, and to
the hen which appears to be the best mother
all the chicks will be given. The others
are given cold bath and placed in con-
fnement few days, after which they re-
turn to the flock and their nests Mr.
Leland asserts that he can produce
thousand pounds of poultry cheaper than
he can produce the same weight of mutton,
beef or pork. His young chickens num-
.ered in 1868 about 5000, and his stock of
all kinds of poultry about 1000. 1t was
estimated to be worth $4,000 in November
of that year, when poultry was higher than
1t has since been.
Mr. Leland prefers the Light Brahma
hens. His cocks are of all kinds, as he
finds excellent results from the crosses Sc
cured, and no old cocks are allowed on the
place. He prefers the Brahmas because
they mature early, for spring chickens are
handsome, hardy, good layers, look well
when dressed and are of large size. He
feeds corn, wheat, chopped turnips and the
waste bread and meat scraps from his
hotel and sour milk from his farm. He
says the great secret of his success is in
keeping near the conditions of nature. At
the outset he became convinced that above
all things fowls must have space and
cleanliness: that they cannot be expected
to do well if confined in cramped and Of
fensive quarters. For the winter quarters
of his flock, which at that season is reduced
to 800 early spring Pullets, 80 cocks, 30
turkeys and few geese and ducks, he has
a stone building rs feet long and % feet
wide, which faces the south. The open
ings on the north side are small and filled
with window glass, aud in some cases with
double sashes Those on the south are
much larger, consisting of double doors,
which are opened on sunny days. In the
middle of the north side is a wide, old
fashioned fireplace. Nearly every day in
winter a fire is kept up with knots, chunks
anu logs, That WOutQ OluSIMlSe De USELESS,
The walls being of stone, and the floor Of
earth or rock, the fire can be left without
danger The chimney can easily be closed
or the logs be rolled out into the middle Of
the building and feathers or sulphur used
for fumigation, which is done whenever
hen-lice appear On cold and wet days the
fowls gather before the fire, warm them
selves and trim their feathers, and when
{I,a Gro Jiog ont fbaxy x-oIlor ~, tho u-arYr,
ashes. Lime and plaster are freely used in
the building, to absorb odors and compost
droppings Roosts are made of oak Stats,
an inch thick and two and one halt inches
wide. The wide perches used enable the
their warm feathers, and prevent freezing
in the coolest nights.
IMPROVE THE RAIsIN PACK.
&c. E." writing to the California FIuil
Grocer, says: While California undoubt.
eddy has of late years produced proper.
tionately larger quantity of finer raisins
than formerly, still the packing and hand
ling of our raisins have not improved as
much as is desirable The cause of This
must be looked for in the methods of pack
ing indeed the system used by the ma
jority of the packers is radically wrong
As is we'll known there are two distinct
methods in packing our raisins, loose as
well as layers. One method is called the
atop up method, the other is designated
the top down" method. The former, or
"top up" method, consists in placing the
raisins in the bottom of the form first,
continuing to build up layer upon layer,
until finally the top layer is reached, when
it will be found that the top surface is
uneven, and to make it appear smooth ii
requires to be pressed down. This heavy
pressure Injuries the appearance of the
zairi-,r and h-naI-s thair sl-;r, 1rhich In