The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1904-08-19
Feedino Old Hens.

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be closely watched in late summer and
fall, especially after they go into winter
quarters. so that II they stop laying they
can be prepared for market as quickly as
possible. 1t has been found that old hens
Will lay into the winter for a considerable
period II some pains Is taken to feed them
during the summer while they are on the
range. One of the best foods for this
period is peas. using the field peas and
feeding them raw after being cracked or
cooking them and feeding as a mash with
bran. This feed incites egg production
ana Keeps the hens in good condition with
out making them over-fat: at the same
time they are in such good condition that
should they stop laying they can be fat
tened for market at small expense. The
plan is worth trying. for one of the losses
of the poultry business comes from spend
Ing too much in f%attening the hens for
market after they have stopped laying.
Feeding Hogs on Ranges.
Beyond question 1T pays to grain the
hogs thai are on pasture provided 1T IS
not oVerdone. While 1t is true that most
farmers who raise hogs on the range do
not grain them at all. this is as much a
mistake as feeding them too heavily. For
a range a mixed pasture gives best re-
suits and there should be no hes.tancy in
also throwing to the hogs all of the weeds
$500 LIZ u VII lile ldITl, LOT IHoy eat
many of them which other stock will not
touch. Regulate the supply Of grain given
the hogs according to the quality OF the
pasture and the age of the animals. but
90 not give them so much that they will
be tempted to stop grazing.
Brushing Cows in Summer.
The writer is a persistent advocate of
COW grooming and would as soon think of
letting the cows go without a daily clean
Ing. as the horses. During the summer
only brushing is done and this work is
performed directly after the milking; the
cows are all the better for 1t in every way.
During the winter the curry comb as well
as the brush is used on tho COWS. We
have found that the brushing removes soil
from the animal and renders her less liza
Die to the attacks Of flies. Then, we use
one OF the commercial compounds to keep
the flies off in addition to tho brushing.
The result Is that with plenty OF good
pasture. a stream of clear water, q grove
OF trees for shade and freedom from flies
the milk supply is all that could be de-
sired, tho cows are healthy and happy
and the dairy Is profitable. 1t certainly
pays to treat the cows well and make
hem as comfortable as possible. Another
point in the feeding of COWS during the
summer which we discovered paid well.
Every day a few apples. vegetable tops
AN> LA oNN SSdSoI d lew pOIlIOs IA1l
were partially rotted or in some other way
unsaabae arc taken into the pasture and
each COW has a portion; not much, but
Just enough to give her a spice OF vari-
ETY..
When Ducks Are Profitable,
A number OF inquiries have been received
by the editor OF this department. asking
for information regarding the profit In
duck raising, The writer has found that
"a Using NSSrE0 ratN 10 <kA~s ~>,,f1 t.....L-
considerable range, plenty OF green stun
and also grain In considerable quantity.
To feed at this rate could only DO done
when the bulk Of tho food was raised on
the farm, and even then the work was
not profitable unless q near by market
could be had and at fair prices. Fortu-
nately We are loonted near a summer re-
sort. where The prices paid for ducks are
5000 and we market the birds as soon as
they are well feathe,ed out. The grain is
OF course OF last years growing, but we
keep the ducks In good growing shape
by using plenty of green stun from the
Garden and skim milk from the dairy,
Unless conditions are unusually favorable
most farmers will find chicken raising
moro profitable than duck raising.
Deooying the Hessian Fly.
Wheat growers of long experience arc
familiar with the plan of sowing a decoy
et11p OF wheat early in the season to en-
tee the Hessian fly. 1t is a good plan to
do this even II there is no certainty that
the enemy may be waiting for you. A
narrow strip Is sown entirely around the
neio intended for wheat and his Is turned
under at the time tho main crop is to be
sown. This turning the decoy strip of
wheat under is a better plan than plowinR
Q number of dead burrows between this
strip and the main field. The main crop
4n0lld hA q0Un a 10 70 ao e. -, - IN
safety whether the decoy strip is used or
not, Tor the later the sowing the less dan
ger from the Hessian fly. Bear in mind
ais that aside from the battle with the
Hessian fly success in wheat growing
comes from the thorough preparation Of
the seed bed The man who works on the
plan that the seed bed for wheat cannot
DO made too good is the one h gets the
profitable crop. At least this is the result
on farms that have been titled for a num-
Der OF years 1t Is worth trying this fall.
Why Caro- Should Be Given Manure.
Once more the manure question. a cues
ton that we bring up frequently because
It Is a most important one and ono which
needs agitation until all farmers will SEQ
the necessity OF caring for their manure
and particularly for tho liquid portion of
II. II We look at the chemical value Of
the liquid manure we find that compared
W'SA Lnc bot4u DOTIlOn0 ther0 Is double
the amount OF nitrogen and five times tho
amount OF potash in the liquid than in the
solid and as these are thu expensive eie-
ments OF plant food. the value IS readily
seen. 1t Is estimated that In one ton OF
fresh horse urine there is about 90 pounds
each OF nitrogen and potash. certainly
well worth saving. SO the question ia. are
you keeping tho manure made this surn-
mer so that you arc saving this valuable
Liquid portion? There are two ways to do
1t. tho better way being to put the manure
on tho land. spreading 1t on, as fast as
made and the other way providing some
place with q cement bottom where the
ilquid'win be retained. These arc the cold.
hard facts in tho case; now what arc YOU
going to do about 1t7
MuIching the Strawberry Beds.
Answering a question put to twenty Diff
ferent growers Of Strawberries, men who
grow the fruit on a large scale. It seem.
pretty well understood that ii pays to
keep the strawberry plants mulched all
the time except during the period in tho
spring when a light cultivation is given
them. OF course this applies to plants
grown on rather light soil for the num-
mer mulching would be likely infurioua
II applied to plants grown on heavy sol.
Inc plan OF mulching mostly carried on IA
10 v the plants between the rows quite
heavily after the ground q. Pa... -