The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1904-06-28
DESTROYING vERMIN WITH FIRE.

\'NOA AOAOJ NSAS O -
poultry netting around the grape vines in this
yard. I have a coop 9x10 feet, six feet pitch,
four panels, very tight in the back, with plenty
of air and light coming from above. Generally
hatch about one hundred and fifty chicks or Is
per cent of eggs set. Put one hen in each house
Ga hen that has become slightly broody, say been
on nest say twenty-four to ~forty-ive hours) give
her thirty-seven or thirty-eight chicks, using
enough hens to take the hatch. The grape vines
give the needed shade. On the south side they
should be given enough sunshine for the needs of
the broods. The fronts of the coops are of open
work to allow the little chicks to play around and
eat in rainy or cold weather and is covered with
shingles and is rain-tight. If the hens are prop
erly fed they will lay when the little chicks are
three weeks old, at which age I give them all free
range, the hens will go with them usually two or
three weeks longer and leave them.
Each hatch must have a new yard and new
coop, as the larger chicks will run over and tear
down the younger ones. Wire netting protects
the chicks from hawks, cats, rats, ETC., beside
keeping the chicks where wanted. The scratch
ing of the chicks cultivate the grape vines and
keep down grass and insects.
THE BEST FooD FOR YOUNG CHICKENS.
[ release the coops and henhouses by burning.
Take two or three old newspapers, some straw or
excelsior, take a stick six feet long, fasten the
paper, straw or excelsior to the stick with a piece
of, small Irvine, wet with kerosene oil, light and
carry it all around under the roofs and plates.
The flames will search every cornice and crack,
and If lice are numerous, you can hear them fry.
After ~singeing the roof, let it burn down on the
ground, move it around the walls; let the flames
blaze up, after which, wet the roosts with kero-
cana oil on1 ro11ooo +LoI, This ,o"o+ h. dove ~
regular intervals once a week during March,
April and May, after which / have no further
trouble except to keep busting boxes for them.
Spraying with whitewash sweetens the quar-
tiers, but fire is the most effective means of COM
batting the lice that l have yet found. Have not
had a case of cholera or other disease since
adopting it two years ago. I can burn them all
out and replace the roost poles in thirty minutes.
Of course, if you send some awkward old Jack to
do this, he may burn the house up, but any care
full person can do itwith safety whenever needed,
which will be every Monday morning till June.
No matter what you may feed to your fowls, if
lice are present in any quantities your enterprise
will be an absolute failure and your chicks will
pine and die out with cholera.
Last season | got one thousand two hundred
eggs, Matched something over nine hundred
chicks, and raised about six hundred of them.
/ used several formulas for chick food. The
most success / had was with one bushel of corn
and one bushel of oats ground together. To this
add one bushel of wheat bean moistened with
milk. When chicks are two weeks old, add
thirty pounds of beef meal. [ lost lots of chicks
experimenting with chicks food and formulas.
My hens averaged about one hunded and sew
enty-one eggs each during last year, worth twenty
cents average. I paid for feed and outfit and
the pure blood fowls and had some money over
after raising what eggs and poultry the fam