The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1905-02-09

4
build up a flock that will be nearly as
good. for general purposes, as the higher
bred fowls. The expense will be COM
paratively small, but IL one can afford a
little more money the Improvement VII pc
more rapid by buying a few eggs of nigh
bred fowls, Matching them this spring and
killing Off an equal number of the common
stock in the fall. DC not, however, turn
the mongrels and the better stock in to-
gether with any males mixed in.
WHERE VARIETY IN FOOD
COUNTS.
True, the subject has been written about
before, but there are still too many to be
converted to drop the subject out of this
list Of desirable topics. While it is ad-
mitted hat variety In food is essential to
the added production of eggs and milk
and that it also makes considerable differ
ence IN the money value of the swine, less
attention is paid to furnishing variety to
sheep and horses, particularly the latter.
Oats for horses must always be the fonn-
food, for from them horses obtain
greater vitality than from anything else,
yet an occasional feed of corn and a de-
cided change in the ~roughage material will
do the horse good. We see great advant-
ages IN an occasional feed OF root crops,
an occasionaldash of oil meal in the corn
meal and often a few ears of corn on
which the horse MAJ gnaw. All these
changes keep the digestive organs in good
shape and for that value alone are worth
all the expense and trouble they cost. Try
it this winter and see II the horses are not
in much better shape to take up the heavy
work in the spring. But don't forget that
the oats must be kept the main-stay all
through the winter II the horse IS to be
energetic and strong.
USE THE DEPARTMENT. OF AGRI-
CULTURE.
IF one proposes tegrowclover. alfalfa, COW
peas, or other OF the legumes and expects
success the soil must be inoculated. If it is
possible to obtain soil for that purpose
near home this will simplify the plan, but
If not call on Uncle Sam. The department
Of agriculture at Washington Will end
to any one who will write for it a package
of germs which may be dissolved in water,
according to directions, and the seed treat
ed with the solution. Ask for the alfalfa
package if you propose to grow alfalfa.
The plan is being scoffed at by some, but
it works well in practice, as the writer
proved by test last summer. The soil
inoculated in this way produced as good
results in crimson clover as soil inoculated
land did. There are a number of good
things which the department of agricul-
ture will supply to farmers without cost
4 IL IN ~ LION " SAtA II A8oiiS ~ a. eib
bulletins are issued which will be sent
for the asking. You help supply the
money which runs the department, so why
not make use of it's knowledge when you
can?
THE DUCK THAT SWlMS.
With full faith in what they read many
people have embarked in the raising OF
ducks and failed because they did not
supply the necessary surroundings. A
~neighbor who is a successful duck raiser
has hundreds of ducks, each year tina
never get a chance to swim. For a num-
Der of years he. had plenty of trouble, for
his original stock was from a strain which
for generations had had ponds in which
to swim, so that when brought down to
a drinking trough they did not amount to
much. 1t is not necessary to provide a
swimming pool for ducks unless they have
been brought up to one for a numbc9 of
generations back; so lock into the an
cestry OF the ducks you buy. Then pre-
pare to feed them literally for they will
eat more than twice the number of hen.
although they will eat much which hens
will not touch. In addition to this they
are great foragers in green fields and,
during the summer, will pick up consider
able of their living. However, do not
go into duck raising unless you know
something of the work and have a good
market within reasonable distance.
ADDING PROTEIN TO THE FEED
If we cannot or will not grow the crops
which will supply the costly protein to
the winter stock foods then they must be
bought. There is available honiny feed,
cotton seed meal and gluten meal among
the best, with prices varying from 81 to s.
a ton difference. While cotton seed meal
is considered the cheapest and is undoubt-
eddy to be preferred to anything else wher
it may be bought not too far away from
the source of supply, we get the best re-
suits from gluten meal using a little cot
ton seed meal as well, but in the ration
of three to one in favor of the gluten feed
Fol ~roughage we use clover and timothy
hay and corn slower. Not having g
shredder we run the corn stalks through
an old fashioned cutter, cutting and brnis.
ing them so that the COWS eat them pretty
clean. At times we increase the quantity
, of ~loughage and cut down somewhat or
the grain feed, but find this cannot be done
to advantage for a longer period than {
week. If corn meal and bran needs to b.
a part of the ration then / should in.
crease the portion of gluten meal or cot
ton seed meal, for the protein in the bral
, is not SO great as is generally supposed.
A PROFITABLE APPLE BOX.
Last week attention was called 10 TIL
advantages of using boxes in which t.
{ pack small lots of fine apples in ordei
; to sell to the fancy trade. This week W.
illustrate a box which has been usct
WITH success in all sections of the country
! but more particularly for the New Yorl
markets. 1t is made of half-inch stuff, ex
: cept the bottom, which is inch material
2 and is made much like a strawberry craft
( except that the boards are closer to
2 gether. The plan of ventilation is nev
] in an apple box but is considered desir
9 .HH.Er-