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v IIOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION
The Agricultural College Is a Valuable Friend to the Farmer
Bulletins and News Notes From the Staff at Pullman.
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VIEW OP WASHINGTON AGHICLLTCRAL COLLEGE! AT rtLI.MW, WASH. ITS SOLE AIM IS TO AID ACRICULTl HISTS.
Cause and Remedy for Hens
Laying Soft-Shelled Eggs
THE frequent laying of soft-shelled eggs
occasions a considerable market loss
In the Spring of the year. Mrs. Whitaker,
of the poultry department of the State
College of Washington, offers the follow
ing explanation of the causes and the
remedies:
The yolk of the egg is fully formed
when it breaks from the hen's ovary and
drops into the funnel shaped mouth of
the oviduct. It is at this point that fer
tilization of the egg takes place, prob
ably within a few minutes of the break
ing loose of the yolk, and in about three
hours' time the formation of the thicker
albumen is completed.
The next section of the oviduct se-
rvet.es the fihpll mpmhrane whlrh ordina
rily requires about three hours. By the
expansion and contraction of the walls of
the oviduct, the egg is forced forward
into the shell gland, where the lime of
the egg is deposited, and within 12 to 24
hours the egg is laid. One can readily
see that anything that would have a tend
ency to make the egg pass too rapidly
through the lower two-third of the ovi
duct would cause the hen to lay soft
shelled eggs.
The first and usual cause of soft-shelled
eggs is that the bird is too fat. The mus
cular movement of the oviduct is hind
ered by layers of fat, and instead of the
egg being controlled by firm muscles it
merely slips through a flabby mass with
out getting its shell on.
The difficulty will vanish if the birds
are made to scratch hard in a clean, dry
straw litter for all their grain, and the
ration fed is not over-fattening. Sprouted
oats will be a valuable food, as they are
less fattening than either wheat or corn.
In some cases it might be advisable for
a few days to omit all mashes, especially
moist mashes, from the ration.
The second source of soft-shelled eggs
Is lack Of lime in the hen's ration. In this
case the shell-secreting part of the ovi
duct fails to'do its work because of lack
of material.
Clam sheli is not so readily soluble as
oyster shell. What is commercially known
as beach shell Is preferable to clam shell.
It is claimed by'some poultrymen that the
use of a limestone grit also helps to Bup
ply shell material to the hen. It is often
recommended that old plaster be broken
tip and thrown in a box in the, pen for
birds to pick at as a source of lime.
The third cause' of soft-shelled eggs is
the forcing of hens for too frequent egg
production. A second yolk breaks off
from the ovary and drops Into the funnel
of the oviduct, and the firBt one Is forced
too rapidly on its way for it to be com
pletely formed when laid.
, The fourth cause of soft-shelled eggs
comes from scouring, that is, from feed
ing a too loosening ration to your birds.
Beets or mangels will sometimes produce
this result. The droppings, normally,
should be a dark slate or dull black color,
firm enough to maintain a spiral shape
as seen on the dropping boards.
The Honest Merchant.
"No," said the old gentleman sternly,
'I will not do it. Never have I sold any
thing by "false representations and I will
not begin now."
For a moment he was silent and the
clerk who stood before him could see
that the better nature of his employer
was fighting strongly for the right.
"No," said the old man again, "I will
not do it. It is an inferior grade, of
ehoe and I will never pass it off as any
thing better. Mark it 'A Shoe Fit for a
Queen' and put in in the window. A
nueen does not have to do much walk
Jug." -
A pane of IntereaUog Items from the
Orejnn Agricultural College at Corvallle
will alternate 111 the farm weekly with a
page of notea from the Washington
State College at Pullman. Thle will afford
an Interchange of view from the two big
Agricultural colleges of the Northwest that
hould prove of benefit to the reader, for
the Institution! deal with eimilar problems.
Growing Field Peas on a Wheat Farm
BY GEORGE SEVERANCE.
FIELD peas have long been a standard
crop among the dairymen of Western
Washington, where the rainfall is abun
dant, but very few of the grain farmers
of Eastern Washington realize that they
may be grown successfully in the moister
parts of Eastern Washington and North
ern Idaho, or know their real value. The
numerous trials with field peas on the
Experiment Station Farm at Pullman
have seemed to justify their very general
introduction on the moister soils of the
wheat belt.
There are several reasons for intro
ducing this crop. Nearly all the older
wheat soils of Washington are becoming
more or less depleted in nitrogen. This
depletion is strikingly shown by the
ranker growth and darker color of grain
wherever manure has been dropped or
where an old fence has been broken up.
Like alfalfa and clover, peas add nitro
gen to the soil through the action of cer
tain bacteria storing the free nitrogen ot
the air in nodules on the roots of the peas.
Upon the decay of the roots this stored
nitrogen comes into available form for
succeeding crops. Peas have the advan
tage over clover and alfalfa, as a soil
renovating crop in wheat farming in that
they may be grown during the year of rest
from wheat, while clover or alfalfa must
occupy the land two or three years it
grown profitably. They are inferior to
clover and alfalfa as a humus producing
crop, where the tops are removed, for the
root system of peas is not nearly so ex
tensive as of clover or alfalfa and will add
little if any more humus to the soil than
is broken down in the soil during their
growth,
Giving Stability.
That the more general introduction of
dairying into our system of agriculture
would give stability by distributing our
rsks, helping to maintain our soil in a
high state of fertility, and developing a
more intensive system of agriculture, is
generally recognized; but one of the great
est drawbacks on most wheat farms is the
shortage of feed during July, August and
September, even though alfalfa is grown
for pasture. Peas are unsurpassed as a
soiling food tor cows and will supply this
need from about July first to the middle
or latter part of August, after which corn
that may be grown on otherwise Idle sum
merfallow, will supply extra feed the bal
ance of the dry period.
Peas grown with oats will produce
heavy yields of hay, rich in protein and
much superior to wheat or oat hay for
cattle, sheep or colts. Peas resemble al
falfa and clover In feeding quality, but
offer the advantage of producing a full
crop of hay In about three months from
seeding, while the land must be set aside
two years for a full crop of clover or
alfalfa. ' '
. Swine production offers exceptional re-,
numeration to the extent that hogs may
be used to pick up the waste of our grain
fields, but with no other provision for
Summer feed, Spring litters will not at
tain satisfactory size during one season.
If alfalfa pasture Is used to start thera
on, Jt becomes pretty dry long before the
grain fields are ready to turn Into. A
' patch of peas will tide over this period
and keep the pigs growing rapidly. With
a field of corn to turn into for finishing
in the Fall they will go onto the market
in excellent condition,
With land values in many cases ranging
from $75 to $100 per acre, it becomes in
creasingly Important that we discover
some crops that will enable ug to keep .
the land producing all the time. Peas
may be grown on the better parts of the '
' summerfallow, thus aiding in the more
complete utilization ot capital invested. -Pointers
on Growing.
1. Field peas will produce profitable
crops of hay or seed on good average land,
in the moister part of our wheat belt.
2. Peas are annuals and may take the
place of the summerfallow. where there Is
a fair rainfall.
3. Peas are nitrogen gatherers, hence
will increase the nitrogen content of the
soil, but will not increase the humus ot
the soil like clover or alfalfa because the
root growth is too scant. '
4. Peas will aid in keeping more" live
stock by furnishing green feed for soiling
during July and August or grain to be
hogged off, or high-class hay for Winter
feed. ...
5. To prepare for peas plow deep in
the Fall, leave rough over Winter, pre--
pare deep, mellow seed bed as soon as
Spring opens.
6. For seed sow as early as ground can
be prepared, about two bushels per acre
with grain drill, seeding three to five
inches deep.
7. If seed is not desired sow one bushel
oats per acre among the peas one week
later, seeding shallow to avoid digging up
the peas.
8. Begin using peas for soiling (green
forage) when, first pods are full grown.
9. Begin pasturing off with hogs when
peas are nearly all well formed.
10. Cut for hay when the oats are in
the stiff dough and first pea pods are
turning yellow, cure and handle like
clover.
11. Cut for seed when the bulk of the
peas are hard.
12. A good crop of peas and oats on
good land, well prepared, will yield one
and one-half to two and one-half tons of
cured hay per acre. A good crop of seed
will yield 15 to 30 bushels per acre.
' 13. Peas leave the soil In nice condition
to prepare for wheat without plowing.
Distillation Experiment
in Douglas Fir Is Begun
THE Bistrfct Forester at Portland," Or.,
announces that the forest service has
just begun, at their semi-commercial dis
tillation plant at the University of Wash
ington, Seattle, an exhaustive series of
experiments in an endeavor to settle, for
all time, the feasibility of distilling, not
only Douglas fir sawmill waste, but also
Douglas fir stumps.
For many years it has been advocated,
in the Douglas fir region, that the cost of
land clearing could be reduced by utiliz
ing stumps through a process of distilla
tion, and that an additional revenue could
be obtained by disposing of mill waste
also by distillation. In spite of the fact
that the experimental work thus far done
has indicated but little or no margin for
profit, there is still a somewhat general
feeling that such distillation could be
made to pay under the right conditions. -The
forest service propbses to experi
ment not only with Douglas fir mill waste
and stumps, but also with Western yellow
pine. Preliminary experiments on thlhat-'
ter Indicate that the stumps and waste dt
this species contain a higher percentage
of valuable products than Douglas fir.
Tho Origin of Onyx.
When waters charged with carbonate
of calcium derived from limestone are
allowed to evaporate tbey deposit their
load in the form of sinter, or tufa. This
process can be observed at many thermal
and "petrifying" springs and also in the
formation of stalactites and stalagmites
in limestone caverns. In this way large
masses of compact carbonate are formed,
some of them of great beauty.
The so-called "onyx marbles," of which
the Mexican "onyx" is" a familiar examplo,
are formed in this way. Some rock of
this class is stalagmltic, in caverns, and
some of It iB formed by springs. Its
variations In color and texture, to which
its ornamental character is largely due,
are commonly produced by Impurities or
inclusions, such as oxide of iron, or even
mud and clay. Pittsburg Dispatch.
' Didn't IIke the Sign.
: A Western horseman tells of a jockey
at Windsor, across the line from Detroit,
who was recently indisposed.
"If 1- don't get rid of this cold soon,"
said the youngster,. "I'll be a dead one."
"Didn't you sea Dr. Spinks, as I told
you?" asked the friend.
"No. The sign on his door said '10 to
1,' and I wasn't going to .monkey with a
long shot like that."
Explaining the Two-Fold
Uses of Manure Spreaders
THE following is taken from the Farm
Management Monthly, of the United
States Department of Agriculture, and
will be of interest to any farmers of the
state who are coining to use this import
ant agricultural Implement.
Some of the Implements which are
found on almost every farm are used tor
very short periods of each year. The
length of service may not include more
than three or four weeks. For the re
maining part of the year such pieces
either remain in the open, or they may be
given the best ot care in a first-class im
plement shed.
Where they are exposed to the weather
a rapid decline in value Is the result. In
vestigations have proven that the depre
ciation for the manure spreader is ap
proximately 11.67 per cent annually. Ow
ing to the fact that this machine is re
quired to carry a by-product which con
tains more or less moisture, a part of the
depreciation Is undoubtedly due to the
decay of the wood In the framework.
If this and similar pieces could be
utilized to a greater extent they should
last almost as long, and in doing the ad
ditional work the yearly charge In con
nection with operation could be met more
fully or completely. Ordinarily the mau
ure spreader is in use at seasons of the
year when the field work Js not demand
ing attention. While the harvest is In
progress It will be found idle, hence it is
available for other work.
In districts where field roots such as
mangolds, sugar beets, or turnips are
grown, the manure spreader may serve
as a wagon In transferring the crop from
the field to the root cellar or pit. A sim
ple adjustment will enable the operator
to save considerable time, as well as the
task of unloading with the aid of a shovel.
The cylinder or spreader is first re
. moved from the end of the box and a
suitable end board is set In place, the lat
ter being held by an iron bar or rod.
When the load is taken to the cellar, the
end board can be lifted out readily and
the roots may be rolled Into the trap door
merely by putting on the crank which
connects with the apron shaft and turning
by hand until the entire lot has been dis
charged. It requires only a few moments to de
liver the load. If the farmer does not
have wagons enough to move the crop
readily, this difficulty may be overcome
by following the suggestion which has
been offered.
The needle of the thorny cactus Is .
now being used in phonographs as a sub
stitute for the metal point on the trans
mitter. It produces a softer and more
natural tone.
THIS COUPON
Filled in and mailed to us does not
oblltcate you in any way, and will
anmire you of wnoi,rcsI.E PRICKS
on your plumbing supplies, pipes and
fixtures.
SUrk-Davi5G.?.15rtlT.hd,:aor,,i
encloso rouijh keteh of bathr.iom, In
cluding floor plan ot house and a Hat
of what I need, Quote approximate
wholenalr price, and tell how to In
mil it myself and save the plumber'i
bill.
My Name
Addrew . ,
: SAVE YOUR TEETH
COMB IN and have your mouth ex
amined while In Portland. I lire the
very latest Scientific palaleaa Method.
DR. A. W. KEENE
Ueatlac.
Addrraai Mnjentlo Theater Mulldlnir,
aSl WnnliliiKtiD St., rortlnnd, Or.
8. (J, BLACK MINOKC AS AND
IIAKRKli 1HKK8.
Stock and cgva for sale. Good loylng strain.
N. L. WILEY, Du 2, Rex, Or.