The Poultry Yard Month by Month. LSS 



THE POULTRY YARD MONTH BY MONTH. 



liy J. J. JcmnAAN, Lecturer and Instructor in Poultry, Glen, 

 Orange Free State. 



February. 



Moulting. — The moulting birds' treatmoiit of feeding, etc., should be 

 continued as advised last month. This is a most trying time for most birds, 

 as they are either heavy in moult or are too fat to get through it readily. 

 Mixing a tablespoonful of sulphur for each twelve birds in the mash twice 

 a week, allowing about one teaspoonful of linseed meal per bird daily in the 

 morning mash, and epsom salts given weelily at this time, will prove of great 

 assistance in getting them over this period. Green food should be fed in 

 abundance. 



Buns. — It will be found convenient, especially if the runs are old, to dig 

 the ground over in the breeding pens and to get in a crop that will provide 

 shade and green food for the breeding pens during April and May. 



Slioiuing. — In feeding birds intended for show the following hints will be 

 found useful : Linseed meal or crushed sunflowers add lustre to their plumage. 

 Warm soft food produces abundance of long fluff and featlier. Beans and 

 peas and iron in the drinking water help towards hard feathering as in game. 

 To improve condition and make birds muscular obtain from the butcher the 

 windpipe of an ox with a small quantity of meat on it, and tie this in the 

 run — the birds pull at it all day long ; also dig their grain-food into the 

 ground. White birds should not have iron in their drinking water and, like 

 buff birds, they require shade. 



Feeding. — Damaged fruit makes excellent food for poultry. 



Egg Production.- — Shift pullets as frequently as possible, but keep them 

 in good condition. It is not desirable that they should lay this month if they 

 can be kept back. 



Eggs. — Start selling all stored or preserved eggs, as prices generally rise 

 from now on. 



General. — Young turkeys grow wonderfully if allowed to run on ^le lucerne 

 plots and, incidentally, they destroy numbers of insects and grubs. If no 

 lucerne plot is available they should be sent out with a herd-boy, who, by 

 breaking open ant heiips, will provide an excellent food for the turkeys to the 

 benefit or the veld. Young goslings should not be sent out to graze. 



Pedigree Cows. 



