86 COMMON SENSE 
by itself, I am satisfied that the number of fowls now on my place 
would completely destroy all the grass and “ vegetables” thereon in a 
very short time if they were kept constantly on it. Not that they 
would eat it, or even scratch it up, but they would trample it down, 
and their droppings would so defile it as to breed disease and ruin, 
But my hens spend three-fourths of their time under the feeding 
sheds and in the dust baths, and in bright dry weather they impro- 
vise dust baths for themselves all along the northern and eastern 
line, where the Jand is light and the aspect sunny. And all along the 
line the bushes are so planted, or, when the bushes were there 
already, so thinned out as to form little sunny nooks and alcoves, as 
it were, where they are completely sheltered from wind and. always 
find a dry dusting spot. At first, I found the tendency very strong 
to scratch up the ground and make a great hole just at tne trunk 
of the young trees, thus injuring them very seriously, ‘Chis I soon 
stopped by laying a few good sized: flat stones on the ground 
around the trees. I also trimmed up the evergreens on the south 
and east sides, so that the sun could get under their branches and 
dry the ground and the fallen pine needles. This was no doubt a 
barbarous proceeding in the eyes of all“landscape gardeners, but 
the hens enjoyed it. 
The grass land is heavy, and they go there only to feed on the 
grass and insects, but their eagerness for green food led them on to 
thé grass land so often, that I found it necessary to provide other 
food, and to keep it in good condition. ‘This point gave me a 
great deal of trouble. The problem was to keep a plot of green 
food of some kind constantly.fresh and attractive to from 1,100 to 
3,000 fowls—allowing them to “pasture” it at will. After care- 
fully studying the different plants with ‘which I had had experience, 
T could think of but two that would answer my purpose—Rye and 
Clover. Clover was my favorite, but it was difficult to keep’a 
supply all the time; rye made a good preparation for the land for 
clover, and .at the same time furnished green food during early 
spring, and even during the winter when the weather was open. The 
trouble with rye was, however, that it did not seem to stand the 
tramping, etc., of the birds. It is true, that I could fence them 
