THE MANAGER'S REVIEW,

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 20 April 1907, Page 1

THE MANAGER'S REVIEW,

"The completion of the fifth annual egg-laying competition," reports Mr Thompson, "has confirmed the lessons taught by its predecessors as to the possibility of poultry culture. The promoters of the series never anticipated the success which has been achieved, and can certainly review the results of their efforts with the utmost satisfaction. Valuable data with regard to breeds, feeding, and general management have been secured, and the lessons they teach have been accepted by authorities the wide world over. "The gradual increase from 187 eggs per hen per annum to the winning pen of the first competition (which was considered a highly creditable effort), to over 246 eggs per hen per annum in the fifth has proved, that the lines laid down at the outset were correctly designed, and that a material and permanent improvement in the laying capacity has been brought about. "A further indication of this advance can be noted when comparing the average return of the hens in tho first test of 130 with the 171 eggs per heu in the one just closed. Thero is little doubt that the poultry yards of the State have shown a corresponding improvement in their returns. Sufficient progress has been made to give encouragement to lopk for mpfe. "The earlier competitions afforded an opportunity of comparing the productiveness of our Australian strains with those of the United States, with tho result that the former came out victorious — conclusively proving that we have little to iearn from American methods, and that there is little necessity to send abroad for egg-producers. "The series of tests have demonstrated that there are both winter-laying and summer-laying varieties, and that it pays best to breed the former. TH* best winter layers, a« Bv>»nt*d out by these campetHtons, are Silver Wyartdottes, Black Orpingtons', Buff Orpingtons, White- Wyandottes, and Langshans, all of whom lay a coloured, egg j

while the white egg breeds — Leghorns, Minrocas, Hamburgs, Andalusiaus, etc., have all been placed as summer layers, This does not mean that Leghorns or others of the white egg breeds will not lay in winter, but they must be bred at special times of the year to lay in the fall, and they will, as a general rule, moult before the proper winter season sets in. To start in April and lay for 12 or 13 months without moulting, and in a general way, and not in exceptional numbers, the breed requires to be one of the varieties laying a dark egg, with a choice of one which has shown itself to be hardy, prolific, and of good stamina. Popular fancy says that Silver Wyandott'es and Black Orpingtons fill that bill, and tliese egg-laying competitions show that for once the general public is correct. "It has demonstrated also that the newer breeds have not sufficient stamina to compete with the older ones. "The system of feeding carried out was somewhat on the same lines as previous tests, with minor improvements. In consequence of tho exceedingly dry weather, less green food was available than in former years, the firstclass lucerne chaff was therefore added to the morning mash, and it proved a good substitute for the green-cut lucerne and tho succulent couch grass from the pens. The morning mash was made up of bran, pollord, chaffed lucerne, crushed -maize meal, and liver soup in various proportions at different times of the i year, the mash for winter feeding being more heat-producing than in the summer, while in thc summer and fall more bulk was given, with an occasional dose of Epsom salts to sharpen the hens' appetites. This year the percentage of meat feeding has been greater than before, and the proportion could still be profitably increased if the meat were available. The grain used was crushed maize and wheat, the former preponderating in tho winter and the latter in the summer. The fowls were fed only twice a day as in previous tests, but they were fed without stint. "The' price of produce was rather above normal for the fifth test, the average price of wheat being 3s 3d, maize 2s 9d, while the college had a contract for tht supply of bran and pollard at lld and ls respectively. The total cost of feeding the COO hens was : — Wheat, £48 15s; maize, £32 10s; bran and. pollard, £53 ss; meat, £25; lucerne £6"; shell grit, £4; incidentals, £1. Total, £170 10s. "The total net market value of the eggs was £444 13s 2r, from which deduct the cost of feed, £170 10s, and a surplus of £274 3s 2d remains."