SPROUTED OATS 231 



possible for the poultry keeper to bargain with farmers for this 

 condemned cabbage at a low price. The writer has bought large 

 quantities of cabbage for fifty cents a load, and, of course, I fur- 

 nished the labor of picking and hauling. In this way cabbage 

 is a very cheap food. 



Undersized potatoes and similar vegetables are often pro- 

 curable at low prices, and make good succulent food for winter 

 use. Hard vegetables, like potatoes and turnips, should be 

 boiled first, or they will not be eaten in large quantities. Cook 

 them in their skins, and when soft crush them slightly and mix 

 with a little dry mash. Fed warm, this is a splendid food for 

 cold mornings. 



Waste fruits, pumpkins, melons and other garden products 

 are available for poultry. Fowls eat them with the greatest 

 avidity. The main consideration is to try and feed them in 

 regular quantities, rather than in large doses some days and none 

 at other times. And always feed them in troughs or hoppers to 

 keep them as clean as possible. 



Sprouted oats make a convenient form of raising greenstuff 

 in limited quarters, or during the winter months when plants 

 cannot be grown outdoors. Chickens eat them greedily. They 

 are commonly used and possess unquestioned merits. Some 

 writers refer to them as a cheap food, and they have been widely 

 advertised as the secret of feed at fifteen cents per bushel. This 

 idea is a delusion. Oats are oats, whether you feed them as dry 

 hard grains or in the form of sprouts. Sprouting changes the 

 form of the feed and increases the bulk by means of water, but 

 it does not add nutriment. According to some authorities, 

 sprouted oats contain about 76 per cent water, 3.2 per cent pro- 

 tein, 0.8 per cent ash, 16.3 per cent carbohydrates, 1.3 per cent 

 fat and 2.5 per cent fiber. 



Warmth and moisture are the essential conditions for sprouting 

 oats. Use a good grade of heavy feed oats, natural oats, not 

 bleached or clipped oats. Soak them in a pail of warm water 

 for about forty-eight hours, and then spread them out on trays 

 to a thickness of about an inch. At this time the excess water is 



