Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-10-04


mer and winter? This all understand,
and SO understanding, let the poultrymen
who cannot have trees bushes and other
natural shade, at once provide for 1t by
planting sunhowers, corn or some other
thing that will GROW rapidly, which will
furnish the required shade during the sum-
mer.
1t is plain to be seen that sheds or lean
tos do not furnish desirable shade in mid
day, as the circulation of pure air is not
complete within them, which may be
observed by the action of the fowls them
selves in a hot day, as invariably when
they can enjoy both they always resort to
bushes and trees or under buildings which
are open on all sides, where they can come
into direct communication with as much
pure and cooling air as possible.
Fowls are very susceptible to bllliousness
and excessive heat, and the consequent
drinking of excessive amounts of water
produces Inflammation of the digestive
organs, terminating in sour crops, diarrhea
and cholera.
Further: Fowls require drink often in
very warm weather, and if not furnished
where they can get it readily they will
suffer for want of it, rather than make
long trips through the rays OF a burning
sun to obtain it; hence it is both humane
and beneficial to place the vessel contain
ing their drinking water in convenient
place near their usual haunts in such
weather.
GRIT FOR POULTRY.
In London (England) publication is
related the following:
In a large institution in the north of
England, where we were the other day,
some hundreds of fowls were kept in con-
fued runs all the year round for the use of
the establishment, and on talking to the
manager as to whether he had much sick
ness among the birds, or what means he
adopted to keep them in such good health,
as they were well fed and attended to, said
he believed that great deal was due to
the grit he provided for them. They had
some difficulty in this matter, but some
time ago in casting about what to do with
all the china and crockeryware that was
broken in the house, it suddenly struck
him that it might be utilized as grit, and
with him to think is to act, for being a
shrewd business man, not one iota in the
large establishment is allowed to waste.
Having, therefore, machine for breaking
up and crushing various things, and it not
being fully engaged, he had lot of the
broken china, ETC., put into the runs. The
fowls no sooner saw it than they went for
it, devouring it eagerly, and since that
time they have had no other, and thrive
well. He gave US sample of it just as it
was picked up out of the runs, and we
found it broken into various sizes, very
hard and sharp. After this, our readers
ought never to be short of grit, one of the
most important items in the bill of fare of
poultry.
VEGETABLE GARDEN.
A late number of the Farm and Home
gives an account of one of the largest veg
etable gardens in the world, situated in
Rhode Island, and belonging to Mr.. Bud
long. 1t occupies 900 acres, employs lie
men constantly, with 200 additional ones
for gathering green corn, cucumbers, peas,
tomatoes, ETC., and seventy-two horses and
six yoke of oxen are required to work it.
Last winter he sold $4,000 worth of let
tuce to a New York dealer. He has now
$50 acres in cucumbers. In one room
were seen twenty-five tanks for cucum-
bers, holding 1000 bushels each. Four
horse teams draw them from field to fac
tory, a wagon-load driving up every few
minutes. He had this year As acres of
green peas, the crop now followed by tur-
nips; and over so acres of green corn.
Many acres were occupied with smaller
crops of other vegetables. A vast guam
tity of manure is required to keep SO
large a piece of land sufficiently rich;
much of it is being brought by railway
from Boston, where a supply is obtained
from 1900 horses. We are informed that
this business grew from small beginning
the only way in which large bust
ness was ever successful and even then
there are many which fail in the end.
EXPERIMENTS IN WHEAT SEEDING.
Some experiments have been made at
the Indiana station regarding the proper
amount of wheat needed for seeding. From
two to eight pecks of seed per acre have
been used, and a yield obtained of from
eighteen to thirty-one bushels of grain.
The yield increased steadily with the in
creased thickness of seeding, but beyond
six pecks per acre the increase was very
slight. We wish more of the stations
would devote themselves to wheat expert
ments to determine the exact effect of
thin seeding and cultivation of the grow
ing crop. In all reports upon such ex
periments, too, the quality of the land
should be carefully considered, as it is well
established that good land requires less
seed than poor. There is good reason to
believe, from the few experiments care
fully carried on by Bowen and others, that
we as yet only understand the A, B, c of
wheat culture. Work in this line would
be of vastly greater Importance to our
agriculture than much that some of the
stations are now neutrality-suspicious.
american.
FARM NOTES.
1t pays to have good roads, and the tax
for that purpose is small sum compared
with the saving of the team. On good
road one horse can do more work than can
two on rough road.
If corn is allowed to get too ripe before
cutting, or if not properly stored, much of
its nutritive value will be lost. 1t is not
only the quantity, but also the quality Of
the feed supplied, that determines the
value of corn fodder.
Some farmers consider cert@a marks in
a COW as indicating her qualits4as mixer,
but far better guide is to weigh her milk
regularly. That tells the story without
any guesswork, and tells exactly what
every owner ought to know.
1t does not pay to spoil valuable horse
for the sake of making him wear out an
old collar. Many horses are injured by
old, ill-fitting collars, which cause the
horse to become fretful and uneasy, and
often produce permanent injuries.
The plan of keeping brood-mares and
raising mules or colts, breaking at or 3
years of age, and selling at 4 or D, will be
found the most profitable. But to do this
to the best advantage it is necessary to
breed and raise what the market de-
mands.
In London the milk of the goat is sold