48 UNIV. OF N. H. AGR. EXPERIMENT STATION [Bulletin 217 



county are so small that they must be operated intensively. The labor 

 requirements of sheep production and of the present crop production 

 would be very irregular. Sheep have a place on the dairy farm in the uti- 

 lization of pastures that are too poor for cows. There are also many farms 

 where the operator depends on outside work as the main source of income 

 where sheep would be the best kind of livestock to keep. They would re- 

 quire less labor than dairy cows, and would make good use of the rough, 

 hilly pastures found on most of these farms. 



Fences, dogs, and diseases are, of course, the principal reasons for not 

 keeping a few sheep. The danger of loss from dogs, however, is very small 

 and is usually over emphasized. Fences are the biggest handicap, and a 

 considerable number of sheep would have to be kept to justify the cost of 

 fencing. With flocks of 100 or more, the cost of fencing would not be so 

 high per head. In such cases a small flock of sheep as a supplementary 

 enterprise to dairying, or as the main form of livestock on farms where 

 the operator spends most of his time in outside work, should prove 

 profitable. 



Some farmers who are willing to give special attention and care to the 

 production of early lambs should also find the supplying of hotel trade 

 during the early summer months very profitable. 



The outlook for lamb and sheep prices is still good. They have been 

 very high the last two years, and the trend will probably be to lower levels; 

 but on account of the reduced number in the West and the tariff protec- 

 tion on wool, the returns should be good for some time. 



The general practice in hog production in this county is to buy two or 

 three pigs, weighing from 40 to 50 pounds, from a neighbor, feed them 

 largely on waste foods from the house, and consume about half of the pork 

 at home. This utilizes otherwise waste food, and gives the farmer a cheap 

 sujjph' of pork. Such production should be encouraged; and since there 

 is now an average of less than two hogs per farm in the county, and nearly 

 one-half of the farmers do not keep any, it would not be advisable to de- 

 crease the present number of hogs. An increase, however, must be based 

 on the better use of pasture and purchased concentrates as supplementary 

 to waste feeds and increased production of pork for home use. 



FEED CROPS. 



The farmers of Cheshire Count}^ paid out $597,000 for feed during the 

 year ending September 30, 1924. They produced 1,030 tons of grain and 

 purchased 12,230 tons; and their total sales of field crops consisted of 

 2,740 tons of hay. 



In such a deficient feed-producing area prices are naturally higher than 

 in those sections shipping feed into the county. Farmers paid an average 

 of $1.45 a bushel for corn in 1924; and while most of the purchases were of 

 feed-stuffs and concentrates, this price of corn indicates the high feed cost. 



Hay is the basis of the cropping system, occupying 94 per cent of the 

 land in crops. A few acres of corn and oats are grown on some farms, but 

 the corn is usually cut for silage and the oats for hay. High feed prices 

 are not inducing farmers to raise more grain. 



Hay crops will probably remain the basis of crop production, but a con- 

 siderable change could be made in the kind of hay grown, which would 

 give a more even distribution of labor requirements throughout the crop 



