98 POULTRY CULTURE 



Alternating yards. When poultry must be kept continuously on 

 the same land, many poultrymen make such a division of the land 

 available for yards that while the birds occupy a part (usually half) of 

 the allotment for each flock, grass or some other crop is grown on the 

 rest, taking up the impurities in the soil. When the yards are of good 

 size, the advantage of this may be noticeable, but when the yards are 

 small, the disadvantage of restricting the poultry to half the space is 

 probably greater than the value of the green food grown on the 

 land that they are not occupying. In this, as in many other shifts to 

 overcome the disadvantages of too intensive conditions, the benefit 

 is not always demonstrated in a short experience. In the long run 

 results count against highly intensive methods, even when tempered 

 by such practices as this. Another common practice in intensive 

 poultry keeping is to have the yards connecting directly with the 

 house compartments small, making no effort to keep vegetation in 

 them, then have a large grass yard adjoining to which any flock may 

 be admitted at will, and alternate the flocks on this for brief periods. 

 One of the most common ways of arranging alternating yards with 

 a continuous house is to have the yards both south and north of 

 the house, using the former in winter and the latter in summer. 



Fence material. Wire. The most common poultry fencing is 

 the hexagonal- or octagonal-mesh woven-wire netting known every- 

 where as poultry netting. A number of brands of rectangular-mesh 

 wire fencing for poultry have been put on the market. These have 

 the advantage of "following the ground " without bulging, and it 

 is easier to do a neat job of fencing with them, but the wires, being 

 galvanized before weaving, rust quickly, and few poultrymen buy 

 fencing of this kind a second time. The ordinary netting, galva- 

 nized after weaving, is cheaper and (so far) has proved more dur- 

 able and altogether more satisfactory wherever a light fence will 

 answer. For heavier fence for protection for poultry the other 

 styles of wire fencing may be used, and though it has not been the 

 practice to paint fences of this kind, it would undoubtedly pay to do 

 so. 1 Even a well-galvanized fencing rusts very quickly sometimes, 



1 What is said here of the durability of rectangular-mesh wire fencing applies 

 to brands that have been in use up to the time of writing (1911). The life of these 

 varies ; some begin to rust almost immediately ; some are good for several years. 

 Any fence of this style, with suitable-sized mesh, will be more generally satisfac- 

 tory than the other when this fault of rusting is fully remedied. 



