l6o MAINE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. I913. 



meat scrap and oil meal, which are now so widely used by poul- 

 trymen for egg production with successful results. On these 

 heavy rations there is always a tendency for the birds' livers to 

 become impaired in function, and ultimately to become enlarged 

 and diseasied. As the m-atter has been studied here it would 

 appear that one of the chief functions of green food in the 

 ration is to counteract this tendency of the digestive system, 

 and esipecially the liver, to break down under the strain of 

 handling heavy laying rations over a long period of time. It 

 would appear that the green food given to poultry acts pri- 

 marily rather as a mild toni'c than as a food in the proper sense. 

 There seems to be very little of this tonic effect produced from 

 succulent non-green foods like mangolds. 



' The practical prohlem then becomes to devise a system which 

 shall insure a supply of green food for the birds at all seasons 

 of the year. The following system of rotation in the green 

 food supply has been in use for several years on the poultry 

 plant here with satisfactory results. It should be said that, 

 owing to the small area of ground available for the poultry 

 work at the Station in relation to the number of birds it is 

 necessary to carry, green food must be add'ed to the ration prac- 

 tically throughout the year, not only for the adult fowls in the 

 laying houses, but also for the chicks growing on the range. 



Beginning in the early fall when the pullets are put in the 

 laying house they are given green corn fodder cut fine in a 

 fodder cutter. Stalks, leaves and ears are cut together in pieces 

 averaging about 1-2 inch in length. The birds eat this chopped 

 corn fodder greedily. It is one of the best green foods for 

 poultry that we have yet been able to find. Its usefulness is 

 limited only by the season within which it is possible to get it. 

 The feeding of corn fodder is continued until the frost kills the 

 plants. 



When the corn can no longer be used cabbage is fed. The 

 supply of this usually lasts through Decemher. In the event 

 of the supply of cabbage failing before it is desirable to start 

 the oat sprouter* the interval is filled out by the use of man- 

 golds. From about January 15 to May 15 green sprouted oats 



*For description of the method of sprouting oats used at the .Station 

 see /'Methods _ of Poultry Management at The Maine Agricultural Ex- 

 periment Station." Circular 471. pp. 50-54. 



