CHAPTER IX. 
YARDS AND YARDING. 
Ons of the vital questions for each poultryman to answer is: 
Will it be necessary to provide yards for the birds or will it be 
possible to give them free range? Plenty of range means better 
health in the flock and a lessened feed cost, with less cost in equip- 
ment; hence yards should be avoided whenever possible. 
On commercial plants the restriction or confinement of the 
stock to a small enclosure should be avoided if possible. If a 
number of breeds are kept for fancy purposes, it is necessary to 
insure a complete separation of the flocks and fencing is essential. 
Size.—When laying out the poultry plant give the, birds all 
the range possible. The idea should be to have the yards so large 
that it will be possible to keep them in permanent sod throughout 
the year. In restricted areas and on small farms it will usually 
be necessary to confine the birds in small yards. On poultry farms 
where one commercial breed is kept it is the best policy to 
give the birds the run of the farm and fence any small areas to 
which they might do damage, such as the house or garden 
grounds. 
Where single yards are used and the area must of necessity 
be restricted, the exact size of the yard should be determined by 
the minimum area which it will be possible to keep in sod during 
an entire summer. A yard which can be kept in sod need cause 
no uneasiness in regard to sanitary conditions except in the 
immediate vicinity of the house. This fact of permanence of sod 
will be determined by the type of birds which are to be confined, 
by the shape of the yard, and by the natural ability of the soil 
to produce grass as determined by its fertility and water-holding 
capacity. 
The egg breeds are especially active and will very quickly 
destroy sod on an extended area, while the reverse is true of the 
heavy meat breeds. Sod will usually be killed very quickly in 
long, narrow yards, as the birds will not scatter in feeding as they 
do in square yards. To maintain permanent sod, from one hun- 
dred to one hundred and fifty square feet of yard room must be 
allowed each bird. On more restricted areas double yarding must 
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