84 
Poultry in South Australia. 
Owing generally tothe mild nature of 
the winter months, and the plenti- 
ful supplies of grain, South Australia 
is eminently adapted to the breeding of 
poultry, more especially for egg produc- 
tion. True, the heat of the summer 
months renders it necessary to provide 
shelter for the stock from the sun’s rays» 
but these entail very little expense; 
indeed, on most farms the natural brush 
provides allthe shelter required. In the 
winter months the fowls runin the open 
without injury, and no elaborate houses 
are required to protect them against cold, 
as is the case in many countries. 
The poultry industry in this state is 
already of considerable importance. Be- 
sides supplying our own requirements we 
export to the neighboring States eggs and 
poultry tothe value in excess of £10,000 
annually, Practically, we have no over- 
sea export trade, but the experimental 
shipments of both eggs and poultry 
during the past two years suggest that 
there is a profitable trade to be developed 
with England, more especially with the 
- infertile The 
wholesale prices for fresh eggs in Ade- 
lade during the flush of the year—Sep- 
tember to December---is from 6d to 7d 
per dozen, and as it is during this period 
that eggs realise the best prices in 
London, it will be seen that there is 
every prospect of a large trade being 
built np, the tetal cost of shipping and 
selling the eggs, even on small shipments, 
being} only 33d per dozen. while the re- 
turns from infertile eggs have been 1s 
1s per dozen, leaving a net return of 85 
per dozen, at which price there is a good 
profit to the producer. 
Generally speaking, the breeds mostin 
eggs: usual range of 
fayor are the Leghorns, Wyandottes, . 
and Orpingtons; the firstnamed being as 
a general thing, it is claimed, the most 
profitably layers, while for egg production 
and table purposes combined, the GBI 
‘two breeds are favored. 
The annual value of our poultry in- 
dustry exeeeds half a million sterllng. 
Given the expected development of the 
export trake, this amount will be greatly 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
increased in the course of a few years, 
The breeding of poultry as a special in- 
dustry is not advocated, except under 
special conditions, poultry being most 
profitable in conjunction with cereal- 
growing, dairying, and fruit-growing, as 
in each case large quantities of otherwise 
waste material can be utilised, thus re- 
dncing the feed bill to small dimensions. 
Of late years considerable attention has 
been given throughout Australia to a 
series of egg-laying competitions, and 
these have demonstrated the possibilities 
of the business, where reasanable care 
and attention is given. In these com- 
petitions the South Australian breeders 
have more than held their own. 
Three egg-laying competitions have 
been heldin this State, and the returns 
show that even average layers will, with 
regular feeding, give a fair profit over 
cost of food; while where attention is 
paidto the improvement of the laying 
stram, the returns are largely. increased. 
From the experience of our poultry- 
farmers in various parts of the State, it 
is reasonable to assume that, with proper 
attention the farmer or dairyman should 
realise a profit of at least 5s per hen per 
annum. 
Poultry Brevities. 
Foods affect the quality of both the 
flesh and the eggs. 
Grease closes the pores of egg-shells 
and in this way often prevents their 
hatching. 
To be profitable fowls should be fed 
not merely for existence, but for growth 
and eggs. 
Make the roosts‘and all appurtenances 
of fowl-houses portable, so that you can 
easily clean the pens. 
So far as is possible, arrange the nests 
so that the laying hens will not be dis- 
turbed by the other fowls. 
A good way to feed corn meal is to. 
break it into cakes or bread and then 
moisten with milk before feeding. 
In raising chickens aim to use hens 
that have always been healthy, and select 
males that are strong and active. 
October 1, 1908. 
Dry mortar is one of the best egg shell 
materials that can be supplied. 
It is a good plan to mix all of the food 
for young chickens up with milk, taking 
care, however not to have it sloppy. 
Stale bread soaked in milk until goft 
and then squeezed sufficiently dry to be 
cruinbly makes a good feed for little 
chicks. 
The balancing up of the profit and loss 
sides in the poultry yards depends alto. 
gether upon the summing up of the little 
things. 
Scalded branis a good feed for hens; 
it contains mineral matter which they 
need and in which many grains are 
deficient. - 
Do over-feed the chickens. 
Gorging with food to make fat is no way 
to find a profit in the egg business. 
not 
One of the very best feeds for young 
chickens is cracked or coarsely ground 
wheat. They can be fed all they will eat 
of it. 
Ducks grow very rapidly, and one 
engaged in the duck business can turn 
his money over quickly if he will go into 
the business in a systematic way. 
A hen’s egg represents a considerable 
amount of highly organised nutritious 
matter, and contains more food for its 
bulk than any other natural product of 
the same size. 
A single mating with a male will 
fertilise all the eggs of a litter or ‘clutch’ 
laid by a female turkey. After being 
mated once the hen pays no more 
attention to the male until she has 
produced a litter of eggs. 
The constant production of eggs is 
naturally a great strain upon the system, 
and a diet should be selected which | 
whilst by no means over-fattening, yet 
contains a sufficiency of nitrogeneous and 
Boat Ig products. ' 
The colour oi au egg-shell has, nothing 
whatever to do with the quality of the 
contents. The material which makes the, 
egg proper, gives it its flavor and food 
yalue, is entirely different from that. 
which goes into the shell. 
