The Southern herald., 1916-03-10
(From Weekly Letter. United States De-
partment Of AgricultureO

(From Weekly Letter, United States De-
partment of Agriculture)
Though the feeding of poultry is
much debated subject in poultry hus.
bandry, there is no one best feed or
combination Of feeds. Results depend
almost as much upon the ability Of the
feeder and the methods OF feeding as
on the kinds of grains.
The simplest feed mixtures and
homegrown grains should usually be
selected, the rations varying with
changes in the market price of the
grains. 1t is advisable for most poul-
try raisers to mix their own feeds,
as in this way they can control the
proportion Of the various ingredients
and obtain the precise mixture that
they desire. II, however, one desires
to purchase prepared feeds, informa
tion concerning the different CONNER
cial articles may usually be secured
from the state experiment station.
Most experiment stations will analyze
poultry feeds and report on the differ
ent commercial preparations sold by
dealers in their states.
Poultry feeds may be divided for
convenience into five general classes:
First, grains, both whole and cracked;
second, ground grains, fed in the form
Of a mash; third, meat feeds; fourth,
mineral feeds; and fifth, green feeds.
Corn, cracked corn, wheat and wheat
screenings, oats, barley, rye, and buck.
wheat are the principal grains, while
Of the ground feeds we have corn
meal and corn chop, corn and cob
meal, wheat bran, mlddlings, shorts
and low-grade flour, oatmeal, oat flour
and ground or crushed oats, and mixed
feeds. In the meat feeds, or feeds
supplying animal protein, are beef
scrap, meat meal, ground green bone,
and various forms of milk; while bone
meal, dry bone, oyster shells, and grit
make up the mineral feeds and, with
charcoal and green feeds, complete
the common feeding materials.
Many ground feeds, which are by
products Of the common grains, are
used to good advantage in feeding, in
combination with grain and beef
scrap. Ground grains and meat feeds
are more forcing than the whole
grains commonly used, while the com
bination Of the whole grains with the
ground feeds makes a more economi-
cal feed and better balanced ration
than the whole grains alone. The
feed elements are usually cheaper in
the ground than In the whole grains,
as the former are by-products Of many
Of the grains used for human con.
sumption. Ground grains and beef
scrap, in combination, either wet or
dry, make what is called a mash.
These by-produets are higher in pro
tein than most of the common grains,
so that balanced ration is secured
by combining whole grains with the
mash. Some Of the ground grains,
such as bran and middlings, add a
large percentage of bulk to the ra.
tion, which is beneficial.
Animal protein is considered essen.
tial to the best results in feeding
Most poultrymen feed meat in some
form, while suburban poultry keepers
either feed this product or table
scraps; but few farmers buy any meat
feed. Some form of feed containing
animal protein must be supplied il
any eggs are to be obtained in the
fall and winter. Skim milk or butter
milk is available on many farms, and
where 1t is not it would probably pay
most farmers to buy beef scrap OF
some other meat feed. Fowls on free
range on the farms pick up bugs and
insects during part of the year, which
furnish this protein feed, so that the
use Of additional meat feeds is regu
lated by individual conditions. Fowls
closely confined need more animal
feed than those on a good range; and
In a cold climate, where no bugs OF
insects are available during several
winter months, more animal feed must
be supplied than in sections where the
winters are mild.
A well-balanced ration contains the
proper proportion OF protein and car
bohydrates for its purpose with the
mineral matter, bulk, and palatabllity
that are necessary to give good feed
ing results. There is no best ration
and the practical application of sci
ence in poultry feeding is to know
about what proportion of these sub.
stances gives good feeding results and
then to use roughly this relative pro,
portion in making rations or in sub
stituting different feeds, according to
their price and availability.
In securing fall and winter eggs the
first essential is to haVe pullets well