lo June, 19 12.] General Notes. 357 



GENERAL NOTES. 



PIG FEEDING— 



In the last Annual Report of the Secretary of Agriculture, U.S.A., 

 reference is made to feeding tests recently concluded at the North Dakota 

 Station. It was found that barley produced a better quality of pork than 

 maize corn, but it required 18 per cent, more of barley than of corn to 

 produce a given gain in weight. Another test showed that ground rejected 

 wheat produced good gains when fed to swine with shorts. In comparison 

 with maize corn it required 8.9 per cent, more rejected wheat than corn 

 to produce the same gains, but the quality of pork produced was better 

 than that produced on corn. 



IRISH BLIGHT— 



There is pretty general agreement among potato growers that the injury 

 to be expected from Irish blight, once it has established itself in a country, 

 will depend in large measure upon the wetness of the season. For the 

 last 20 years experiments on spraying for the control of potato diseases 

 have been carried out at the Vermont Experiment Station, U.S.A. ; and 

 in Bulletin ijg of that institution the relation of rainfall to blight is dis- 

 cussed. There is said to be a close connexion between the two, and in 

 general a rainy season is likely to be accompanied by an epidemic of 

 blight and rot. However in 1901 the raiixfall was small, and it was one 

 of the worst seasons on record both as to the damage done to the foliage 

 and to the tubers. Looking to this report one i ould wish that other 

 weather observations besides rainfall had been included in the discussion. 

 Absence of bright sunshine and a humid atmosphere would probably come 

 next to excessive rainfall in encouraging a spread of the disease, but the 

 data for these in 1901 are lacking. Altogether from the records, one seems 

 warranted in believing that conditions of moderate rainfall and plenty of 

 sun, are likely to act as powerful checks to the blight, while dull muggy, 

 and wet weather will encourag-e it. 



THE FERTILITY OF HEN EGGS— 



How long after the removal frcm the pen of the male bird will the 

 ^ggs laid by the hens prove fertile? The subject was essentially one for 

 experiment, and the results of some tests at the Roseworthy Poultry Station 

 are reported in the Journal of Agriculture of South Australia. The male 

 bird was removed on 12th December, and each day's eggs were dated as 

 gathered. It was intended to test 10 eggs each day, but the moulting 

 season caused irregular laying. The eggs laid on 24 successive days were 

 used in the tests. For the first week after the removal of the male bird 

 the results were good, nearly all the eggs proving fertile. Thereafter 

 there was a gradual falling off, the eggs of the tenth day hatching just 

 50 per cent. From the 14th day there were no fertile eggs, but the 15th 

 yfelded two and the i6th one. Thereafter none of the eggs proved fertile. 

 The general rule is to allow seven days as the extreme limit up to which 

 eggs may be set. In this test the fertility was high. 



CARE OF CALVES— 



Take a little better care of those humped-up discouraged-looking young 

 calves that stand shivering in the yard all day. The first winter is the 

 cheapest and easiest time to make substantial gains. Calf fat once lost 

 is rarely made up, even though extra care be given later in life. A stunted 

 calf means a dwarfed cow. A mossy-coated, thick-fleshed calf is a 

 pleasure and a money maker, while the hat-rack type is a reproach to the 

 farm and farmer. — The Practical Farmer, Philadelphia. 



