98 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



March, 19 19 



-. 



"ONE SECTION OF 



THE FENCE 



THAT FLUCTUATES." 



You may be thinking about a "Poultry 

 Yard" this spring or fall. You may have one. 

 Or you may raise small animals such as dogs, 

 rabbits, etc. 



This fencing system will add to your pleasure and profit. 

 Comes in units of several sizes. Permits yard rotation. 

 Easy to erect and shift. Strong and neat. Expand simply 

 by adding sections. Safely encloses small chicks as well as 

 larger birds and animals. Makes best use of small space. 

 Appeals to the youngsters who delight to "build things." 

 Keeps boys busy. No extra posts, hammer, staples or 

 fence stretchers necessary. 



Descriptive booklet No. 67HH mailed upon request with 

 six cents in stamps to cover postage. 



BUFFALO WIRE WORKS CO. 



(formerly Scheeler's Sons) 



467 Terrace Buffalo. N. Y. 



":i"n;;j;[0!iiii!!i! :iii!i m iiiiiiii.ii' m .1 ..'■ ■ ■'.nniiniiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiii 



Verona 

 Bird Houses 



Give the birds a few log 

 houses just such as they 

 find in the natural forest, 

 #i.io each; three for #3.00 

 f. o. b. Verona. Mailing 

 weight three pounds each. 

 List on request. 



W. II. BAYLES 



Vefoiiii New Jersey 



No. 48 



Bluebirds, Woodpeckers and Robins 



ARE HERE' AND 



Jennie Wren is on the way 



RUSTIC CEDAR BIRD HOUSES 



$1.25 each, any 3 for $3.50. If wanted 

 by Parcel Post add Postage; weight of 3 is 

 1 1 pounds. 



A. P. Greim, "Birdville," Toms River, N. J. 





? 



HOME PLOT 



Green Food for Poultry 



Unless fowls can be allowed to range it is 

 necessary to supply green food, if possible every 

 day of the year. During the growing season 

 there need be no difficulty about this because even 

 where crops are not grown especially for the fowls 

 there are always vegetable tops, lawn clippings, 

 and even weeds which will furnish good food, thus 

 converting waste to some purpose. 



To make sure that the fowls will have plenty 

 of green food while confined in their yards it is 

 well to sow quick growing crops such as mustard 

 and rape in early spring to supply them during 

 May. Turnips sown at the same time will yield 

 plenty of tops during June and the roots may be 

 used for the table. A row of fifty feet of each of 

 these if allowed to grow to fair size will provide 

 enough food for an ordinary home flock of twelve 

 to twenty fowls during two to three weeks. If 

 the plants are cut several inches above the ground, 

 many of them will send up new tops so that a 

 second or even a third cutting may be made. 

 About the time these special sowings have failed 

 the garden will be supplying other greens in the 

 form of inferior heads of lettuce, cabbage, and 

 the waste leaves of these and other plants. Pea 

 vines will furnish some green food if gathered as 

 soon as the pods have been harvested for the 

 table. So on through the summer. 



During the fall it is a good plan to allow the 

 fowls liberty so they may roam over the property 

 at least the latter part of the day. They will 

 gather a large quantity of food and destroy in- 

 sects which are preparing to hibernate, thus act- 

 ing as scavengers and pest destroyers. It is not 

 safe, however, to let them out as long as tomatoes 

 are ripening because they peck and destroy the 

 fruits. 



To supply greens during a longer period than 

 mentioned above and also vegetable matter for 

 early winter it is a good plan to sow a row of Swiss 

 chard — twenty-five feet will be enough — at the 

 same time that the early beets are sown in the 

 spring. Fowls are as fond of the foliage of this 

 as of beets and thrive upon it. Fortunately, also, 

 the plant is hardy and will remain in good edible 

 condition until very late fall, even after Thanks- 

 giving Day on Long Island. It is a good plan to 

 plant late cabbage for the fowls even if the family 

 does not care for this vegetable. Where good 

 varieties are being grown for the family there 

 will usually be enough loose and surplus heads to 

 supply the fowls, perhaps until mid-winter; but 

 the coarser varieties will usually keep better than 

 Savoys so some of them may be planted for the 

 fowls alone. 



But cabbage will usually give out during 

 January so something else must take its place. 

 One of the best things is the mangel or cattle beet 

 which may be cultivated in precisely the same 

 way as garden beets except that the seeds should 

 be sown in the early spring and the plants allowed 

 to grow the entire season. As the mangel is very 

 hardy it need not be harvested until November, 

 or in open seasons not until early December. It 



will stand a good many frosts without injury. 

 When harvested the tops should be cut off and 

 fed to the fowls, and the roots stored either in a 

 root cellar or in an outdoor pit. The pit need be 

 only a shallow excavation in which the roots are 

 placed and then covered. One of the best ways 

 to cover them is with a large piece of burlap 

 stretched across the top of the pile, then covered 

 with straw or corn stalks and when the weather 

 becomes cold covered with earth to the depth of 

 three or four inches. One of the principal ad- 

 vantages of using the burlap is that when roots 

 are needed it may be lifted at one corner and 

 replaced with less difficulty than if the 'roots 

 are merely covered with cornstalks, or straw 

 and earth. A covering of boards or a temporary 

 roof is also a help in storing. The roof may be 

 covered with cornstalks or straw, then earth as- 

 the weather becomes cold. 



Give Hen House Good Ventilation . 



One of the dangers of having a hen house 

 tightly built comes from shutting it up tight and 

 keeping it warm. The department of poultry 

 husbandry at the New York State College cf 

 Agriculture says that if the house is warm it is 

 generally also damp, and if damp it is not a fit 

 or healthful place for a hen to live in. Hens 

 do not have sweat glands in the skin and so have 

 to get rid of excess moisture by means of the 

 droppings and through the lungs. If the air is 

 already moist, they are able to get rid of very 

 little moisture. Consequently their blood is 

 not kept in good condition and they become sub- 

 ject to colds, roup and kindred ailments. 



If moisture collects on the walls or windows or 

 the house smells damp, it is improperly venti- 

 lated. In that case a window or a door should be 

 left open. There is little danger of freezing the 

 hens by giving them a reasonable amount of air. 

 If the air is dry, their blood is kept in good condi- 

 tion and they are able to keep warm. The 

 amount of opening should be determined largely 

 by the rate the wind is blowing. If there is a 

 strong wind, only a little opening is necessary 

 while if there is no wind, a large one will be 

 needed. The aim should be to keep the house 

 dry. There may be cracks enough in the house 

 to do this; if not, the windows should be opened 

 enough to dry it out. 



Every Amateur Bee Keeper — as well as every 

 professional should have the following Farmers' 

 Bulletins which may be secured free from the 

 U. S. Department of Agriculture at Washington, 

 D. C. : No. 447, Bees; No. 442, Treatment of 

 Bee Diseases; 503, Comb Honey; 653, Honey 

 and Its Use in the Home; 975, Control of Euro- 

 pean Foul Brood. Department Bulletin No. 

 96 (also free) is entitled Temperature of Bee 

 Colony. On the last page of some of these bulle- 

 tins is a list of other bulletins and circulars which 

 may be had for 5 or 10 cents, not from the 

 Department, but from the Supt. of Documents. 



Advertisers will appreciate your mentioning The Garden Magazine in writing — and we will, too 



