The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1910-04-17
CONSUL TELLS Of
EGG-LAY|NG BOUT
Interesting Fowl Trial Held in
Tasmania.
RESULTS DUE TO FEEDING
COMPETITIONS ARE ALSO HELD
IN AUSTRALIA.
RESULTS DUE TO FEEDING

| New York, April 9.-Consul Henry D.
Baker, having visited the Springvale Car
| dens. near Hobart, Tasmania, where an
egg-laying competition is being held, fur
nishes the following account OF what he
| learned:
The egg-laying competitions are quite
| popular in Australia. and at the present
slme each Australian state is running at
least one competition. the state poultry
experts having general supervision over
them In nearly all OF the Australian
states wheat forms leading part of the
diet of the poultry in these competitions.
In Tasmania, however. conditions are diff
ferent from the mainland of Australia in
that very little wheat is produced and
much has to be imported. so that wheat
diet for poultry IS not a good business
proposition for Tasmania farmers. This
has led to a trial of oats at the present
egg-iaying competition which l visited,
high-grade oats being very abundant in
Tasmania, with always a surplus for ex-
port The competition has now been going
on for seven months and the results,
so far, having exceeded the most sanguine
expectations of the poultry expert The
leading pen of six white Leghorns laid
SO eggs in seven months, including the
winter period.
The oats used are white, heavy food,
given all the year round at the evening
meal. In the morning mash there is
more or less balanced ration. For instance,
to bran and pollard, would have on con-
secutiVe mornings a certain proportion OF
ground corn, ground barley and ground
peas mixed with the mash. However, II
the weather is wet and cold, the birds
have ground corn added TO the mash
whether it is the right morning for them
to have 1t or not; on the other hand, dur
ing a spell of warm or hot weather, the
corn would be left OUT and but green
food added.
R ]. Terry, the Tasmanian poultry ex-
pert, in connection with this competition,
has put into successful practice an orig
lnal and novel idea of feeding green food
to the fowls so that the food may be
taken as 1t grows, without, however, the
fowls tearing it up at the roots. The
plan is as follows: a portion Of the
ground is dug four inches deep and soWn
with various seeds. The green stuff as 1t
grows is covered by a wooden frame, COM
posed of 3x4 inch timber on which wire
netting is very tightly stretched, so that it
is seven inches above the roots of the crop,
which the birds are thus prevented from
scratching or disturbing. The birds ap-
parently take pleasure in walking on top
Of the wire and eating the green leaves
that protrude through the netting. Their
manure feTtilizes the soil and increases
the luxuriance of the growth.
At the time of my visit thick crop
of Algerian oats had been sOWn together
with lucerne or alfalfa. the idea being
that the oats formed nurse crop for the
lucerne, came up very quickly, and after
they were finished the lucerne was per-
manent crop to take dheir place. The
frames which l saw at the competition
were about sx5 feet and were sufficient
for a dozen birds each. OF course any
sized frame might be used, and quite q
variety of crops sown to suit the various
climatic or soil conditions. The idea
seems to have remedied a long-felt
trouble, in fowls scratching up the food