Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1890-12-06
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Management of Run Down Farms,

There are several ways in which
rundown-iarm may be managed with
very small expense and certainty
of profit; and so as to improve the
farm rather than still further to re-
duce its fertility. The last object
must never be lost sight Of, but when
a poor man buys one Of these farms
to make a home for his family, the
first-that of running the farm with
little expense-is almostas important.
In some cases a capitalist may buy
such farms as an investment and find
it quite profitable to expend a COM
paratively large sum of money for
fertilizers, or 10 set it in fruit, or in
some other way. l wish, however,
to keep in mind in writing on this
subject the thought of poor men Sc
curing these farms and successfully
managing them, rather than rich
men.
Three different plans, all Of which
will require but little blowing, and
which will help to improve the con-
dition of the farm, occur to me. One
is stocking the farm with dairy cows,
another with sheep, and third with
poultry. On some farms all of. these
could be carried on, and on any farm
poultry raising can be combined with
either dairying or sheep-raising, and
it goes particularly well with dairy
ing, for milk and curds make valua-
BILE food for poultry.
Probably the average farmer looks
upon poultry raising as very small
business, and yet there is no doubt
that many poor farm which, under
system of skinning to grow wheat
and corn, is giving very meagre
support, could be made to give lib
eral one if stocked with poultry, and
as careful attention paid to the fowls
as good farmers give to their other
stock. l know one farm of fifty acres
that is run on businessprinciples, from
which for a series of years eggs and
poultry to the amount of more than
$4,000 a year was sold, and all the
food FIR the poultry was produced or
the farm. This was in New England
where prices will average, perhaps
double what they are in Ohio; bu
there are tens of thousands of mer
who would think themselves on thu
highway to fortune, if they could sci
81, 900 worth Of produce yearly from
a farm much larger than this, ant
would feel that they were doing vel
to sell $500 worth.
1t costs but little to stock a farm
with poultry, especially if one begin
on moderate scale and raises mos
of his breeding stock. Suppose on
started four colonies of fifty hen
each, located two hundred yard
apart. They need not be confined t
yards, but each must have a small
cheap house, which can be shut u
nights so as to secure them fror
thieves and vermin. BY locating tn
fowls in this way, each will rang
over a different part Of the farm
Next, a half dozen good turkeys,
dozen or twenty ducks, and an equt
number of geese. Give all this stoc
constant care and sell all the youn
as soon as they are marketable, so I
to save the expense Of keeping, an
when you come to sum up the IT
ceipts from eggs, broilerS, duckling
goslings and Thanksgiving turkey
you will find very respectable il
come. Your farm would also keep
many COWS or sheep, and produce 1
much corn or potatoes as though 1
fowls were kept; and if you hay
tight floors under your roosts, an
take up the manure every week, yC
can save enough in a year to m
nure severalaCres of wheat, so as
insure a fine growth.
Suppose the farm, in addition
the poultry, would furnish pastu
and hay for from six to ten COW
here would be not only anoth
source of income, but also of manur
and soon a few acres Of the land be
suited to blowing could be made
rich as to produce a heavy crop, al
corn or potatoes could be grown. TT
farmer who cultivates but a fe
acres can always have time to put
in the best order, and at the san
time to plant early, and can give co
slant and thorough cultivation, al
in not few instances which ha'
come under my notice there ha'
been more bushels produced fro