Agricultural Engineering 



Crooked Toes in Poultry May Result from Cold Floors. 



Cold floors are a contributing factor to the crooked toes found on many 

 birds brooded under infrared lamps. Twenty birds brooded under an abun- 

 dance of infrared energy on a warm floor showed slight, if any, tendency 

 toward crooked toes while twenty other birds from the same hatch, under 

 the same amount of infrared energy, on a refrigerated floor, all showed 

 crooked toes of varying amounts. From this it seems safe to conclude that 

 infrared energy alone is not a cause of crooked toes. 



Work done on the reflection and absorption of infrared energy by the 

 various poultry litters commonly used in New Hampshire indicate no appreci- 

 able difference. Sawdust had a slight edge over shavings and sugar cane in 

 absorption while shavings showed slightly superior reflection characteristics. 



W. B. Schumacher, B. P. Rines 



OTHER ACTIVE PROJECTS 



Sawdust Drying. 



A. G. Fox 



Agronomy 



Hybrid Corn in New Hampshire. 



Since 1936, when the corn variety trials were started by the Agronomy 

 Department, there has been a decided increase in both silage and grain yields 

 per acre. This is due to the fact that the lower yielding varieties have been 

 discarded and new high-yielding hybrids have been included as soon as they 

 have been released. It is estimated that about 90% of the silage and grain 

 corn grown in New Hampshire is from hybrid seed. Over the years, increased 

 yields were first noted in the hybrids harvested for grain, but in recent years 

 silage yields have begun to climb. This is important since about three fourths 

 of the corn grown in New Hampshire is harvested for silage. 



1951 was a good corn year because, unlike 1949 and 1950, there was 

 ample rainfall. The Durham yields for both grain and silage averaged the 

 highest ever and the. Claremont and Lancaster yields were very good. 



Cornell 29-3 continues to be the leading early-silage and late-grain 

 hybrid in spite of the fact it suffers "stock breakage." The new Massachusetts 

 63 and the high yielding Wisconsin 335 are good grain corns for southern 

 New Hampshire and rank high as silage hybrids in the northern countries. 

 Ohio M-15 and K-24 and Wisconsin 29-3 give good returns for late matur- 

 ing silage. 



In northern New Hampshire, the dent-flint hybrids such as Maine B and 

 Wisconsin 240 can be grown for grain in place of the lower yielding open- 

 pollinated flints. 



Silage yields in the 1951 trials averaged 20 tons to the acre and grain 

 yields averaged 75 bushels to the acre. These yields cover about 40 corn hy- 

 brids grown in replications in the three State areas. 



L. J. HlGGINS 

 15 



