WITH 4200 HENS 117 



A brother poultryman recently suggested planting milo 

 maize or egyptian corn in the large yard, putting it in 

 rows close together and sowed thickly. This when 

 grown forms a heavy thicket which would afford protec- 

 tion. We shall try it another season. We welcome and 

 appreciate any suggestion that might lead to easier con- 

 ditions among the breeding cockerels. It might fairly, 

 truthfully and slangfully be said "they are a tough lot, 

 and the better they are the tougher." 



Housing the Layers 



Our laying houses are intended to house 10 birds to 

 the running foot 500 to each 50-foot compartment. If 

 it happens that we have 550 pullets in one brooder house 

 lot we put them into the one compartment. After they 

 begin to lay, when they have become firmly established 

 in their roosting quarters, we open two or even three 

 compartments and yards into one and plant first one yard 

 then another to barley, shutting it off until the green stuff 

 is 6 to 8 inches high. The birds are then turned into it 

 and another section is planted. In this way growing 

 green stuff is had in the yards for the greater part of the 

 season. It is not practicable to grow anything in the 

 yards in our section in July and August ; where it can be 

 done it might very profitably be continued throughout 

 the year. 



We do not mix birds hatched in different months. The 

 January birds are kept together, likewise those hatched 

 in March. It was the following of such a system that en- 

 abled us to determine the relative earnings of birds 

 hatched in different months. 



