ROASTERS 



387 



In roaster growing it is absolutely necessary that the producer 

 know the requirements, and the difference between a bird in prime 

 condition for roasting and one which is not, for they vary greatly 

 according to breed characteristics and management. 



Market Types of Roaster. Commercially, roasters are classi- 

 fied as small and large. The greatest demand is for small roasters 

 weighing from eight to ten pounds to the pair, or four to five 

 pounds each. Such birds suit the average family better than 

 larger ones. Large roasters, weighing twelve pounds to the pair 

 or more, are in considerable demand, especially during holiday 

 seasons (Fig. 178). They often weigh singly as much a.s the 



FIG. 17S. Market types of roasting chickens. A, Large roaster, six pounds; B, small 



roaster, four pounds. 



smaller ones will average per pair. The production of these large 

 roasters for seasonable markets is one of the most profitable 

 branches of poultry keeping, especially if there is abundant green 

 grass range. The demand for them is steadily on the increase. 



Roaster Seasons and Prices. There is a good market for a 

 prime roaster at any season of the year, but the problem of the 

 specialist is how to bring his birds to maturity at the time of 

 natural shortage and correspondingly higher prices. This period 

 is from the first of June to the middle of August; it constitutes 

 the shipping season of the south-shore section and of heavy in- 

 come. The fall of the year is the natural roaster period. The 

 prices then are slightly lower, due to the large supply of birds from 

 general and mixed farms shipped to market at about this time. 



Another profitable shipping period is late November and 



