FARMING LOGGED-OFF UPLANDS IN WESTERN WASHINGTON. 29 
out western Washington. No one should attempt to engage in the 
poultry business in this area without first visiting the station at Puy- 
allup and becoming acquainted with the methods there developed 
and getting the benefit of the experience of the people who more than 
all others are responsible for the development of the many successful 
poultry farms in that section of the country. 
The increase in income per hen as production increases is indicated 
in Table 23. The small flocks do not show generally higher produc- 
tion than the large flocks. The expense connected with higher pro- 
duction rates increases, but not as fast as the receipts per hen, much 
as in the case of feed for dairy cows. (See Table 23.) The average 
cost of feed for laying hens was about $2 per hen in 1921. 
Feed represents nearly three-fourths of all expense on these poultry 
farms. Wholesale purchases, home mixing, and scientific rations and 
feeding practices are the means of saving considerable sums in the feed 
expense. Green feed is important and should be more generally pro- 
vided than it is. One acre of kale will usually supply enough for 800 
to 1,000 laying hens. (See fig. 9.) Oat sprouts are also good and the 
means for sprouting them should be a part of the poultry equipment. 
Table 2:>. — Relation between number of eggs sold per hen and receipts per hen on 4$ 
poultry farms. 
Eggs sold per hen. 
Number HeQsin 
fl0 ?ks. flwk - 1 
Egg 
receipts 
per hen. 
115 and less 
7 
14 
15 
7 
599 
813 
667 
627 
$3.19 
116 to 135 
3.84 
136 to 155 
4.18 
Over 155 
4.82 
All flocks 
43 i 697 
4.00 
1 At beginning of year (Oct. 1, 1920). 
Yard sanitation is essential to continuous success, because of the 
intestinal parasites which infest the soil in old runs, especially in 
damp and shady places. If the yards can not be changed, it is bet- 
ter practice to keep the fowls confined to the houses where sanitary 
conditions may be controlled. 
Many poultrymen take advantage of the opportunity of securing 
stock from high-producing flocks by purchasing day-old chicks from 
breeders and avoid the necessity of maintaining breeding flocks and 
the work of keeping up the production of the breeding stock. Nearly 
half bought all their young stock. The average price of day-old 
chicks was 19 cents in 1921. The feed cost of raising pullets ranged 
from $0.80 to $1.20 each. Ten of the farms visited produced one 
salable chick for every two eggs used. Forty and six-tenths per cent 
of the day-old chicks bought by 18 poultrymen were brought 
through as mature pullets. Four to five eggs were therefore used for 
every pullet put into the laying houses in the fall. 
The average number of hens per flock was 697 at the beginning 
of the poultry year, October 1. Twenty farms, however, had fewer 
than 500, and of these only four paid interest on their investment. 
Half of the farms with more than 500 hens made interest on the 
investment. A flock of 500 hens is not. largo enough to occupy the full 
time of one man if they are properly handled, andsome other means 
