VOL. 1-i NO. 13
Herd Health And Management
Meeting Held By PSU Specialists
A pair of Penn State dairy
specialists were at the Farm
and Home Center Tuesday to
discuss herd health and manage
ment pioblems with Lancaster
County Farmers. Dr. Samuel
Guss, Extension Veterinarian,
and Donald Ace, Extension
Dairy Specialist, were the fea
tured leaders
Ace discussed the problem of
using a single forage feeding
program such as all silage
“Single forage problems are
high risk rations,” he said “On
the West Coast, where they irri
gate and have excellent alfalfa
hay, they are starting to feed
corn silage to balance their al
falfa ha''. We feel you must get
some other forage ingredient
into the cow besides corn silage
sometime during the lactation
We ha\e a lot to find out be
fore we can recommend corn
silage as a total ration ”
“Corn silage drops dry matter
Crops And Soils Day
Coming Tuesday
The Lancaster County Crops
and Soil? Day will be held Tues
day, Febraury 25 at the Farm
and Home Center according to
Arnold G. Lueck, Associate
County Agent Starting time for
exhibits to be open is 8 30 a m
The featured speakers on the
program will be two Extension
Agronomists and an Extension
Entomologist from Penn State
Also a special speaker from the
State Wildlife Service and one
of the local County Agents will
contribute to the progiam
Timely topics to be presented
(Continued on Page '10)
BASIC WOOD WORKING SKILLS are
part of the learning process of Freshman
Vocational Agr ; ulture students at Eph-
rata High Schoo.. "' r any of the boys com-
plete tooL or show c ests as prpof of the
intake and does not respond in
the stomach like hay,” Ace said
“When you are feeding more
than 500 pounds of silage we
call it a high silage feeding pro
gram. The problems with one
forage ingredient are real, not
just imaginary ”
(Continued on Page 8)
Report Shows
$35,554 In On
F & H Drive
Officials of the Farm & Home
Foundation’s Completion Fund
Campaign announced yesterday
that the first over-all “progress
report” compiled in the drive
shows a total of $35,554 00 sub
scribed todate The report was
issued by John H Herr and
Lawrence H. Skromme, general
co-chairmen of the $150,000
capital funds appeal.
In releasing a break-down of
the reports turned in thus far
by units of the drive, the re
sults have been produced by
these divisions of volunteer
canvassers Farm Gifts: $19,504,
Major Gifts $9,335; Special
Gifts $6,025, and Clubs & Or
ganizations $690
The campaign leaders indicat
ed that “moie than half the
soliciting assignments have
either not been completed or re
ported on, as of Friday ” Both
men stated that the volume of
reporting began picking up only
late last week and that efforts
are being made to encourage
the volunteer canvassers to
(Continued on Page 12)
experience. Above (left to right) Nelson
Weaver, Robert Harting and Clifford Mar
tion are youths who have just completed
wood projects as part of their class work,
L. F. Photo
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 22,1969
State-Wide Poultry Symposium
Brings Specialists To Local Area
A state-wide Poultry Sym
posium titled, Pennsylvania’s
Challenge- Competitive Egg
Production and Marketing, was
held at the local Farm and
Home Center Thursday with a
list of Pennsylvania State Uni
versity staff members on hand
to provide information on all
phases of the subject
Opening the discussion with
the topic. Valid Cost Compari
sons, Anthony Stemberger, Pro
fessor Ag Marketing, emphasiz
ed the need to have the same
figures included when compar
Crossbreeding And Sow
Confinement Discussed
Crossbreeding and Brood Sow
Confinement were the topics
discussed Monday night at Hie
Swine Educational meeting
held in the Farm and Home
Center Grant Sherritt, Animal
Science Dept, Penn State Uni
versity and Dwight Younkm,
Livestock Extension. Penn
State, were the speakeis
Sherntt discussed the two
methods of ciossbreeding
rotational crossbi ceding where
three breeds are mixed and
crisscrossing using two bieeds
He said the deciding factor in
choosing which method to use
is the availability of top pure
bied breeding stock “If you
can get the stock,” he said,
“three breeds aie best but it is
ing cost of pioduction And
when comparisons are made you
need to consider the size of
operation, what size eggs and
what egg quality is being com
pared “There is no single cost
of production for any person or
any area,” he said.
“I suspect if we could com
pare our area with others, we
would be surprised at the ad
vantages we have We are clos
er to the market, receive high
er egg prices than most, are
better able to offer services and
we are concentrated enough so
doubtful if adding the fouith is
useful ”
The three traits you are look
ing for in swine production
were listed as Sow Produc
tivity, Feed Lot Performance
and Carcass Trait “Crossbieed
ing increases sow pioductivity
the most and caicass traits are
haidly effected,” he said “This
means it is just as impoitant to
have breeding lines that aie
good in all respects the same in
purebred breeding ”
On a question from one of the
50 swmemen present, Sherntt
said using crossbred boars are
not recommended because the
major value in crossbreeding is
the female hybnd vigor which
(Continued on Page 10)
A Visit To Ephrota
What Are Our Boys Doing
National Futuie Farmeis of
America Week is being cele
brated this week and for a look
at what Vocational Ag students
do at school, Lancaster Farming
visited the Ephrata Area High
School for a look at the teach
ing program of Lew Ayers and
Charles Ackley
The Ag student here spends
one-half of his school time in
the class room studying techni
cal agriculture The remaining
50 percent of his time is spent
in shop woik learning to put his
book knowledge into practice
Training is offered in techniques
and the science of pioduction
agriculture as well as market
ing, and farm management
Special emphasis is given to
complete and accurate record
keeping Considerable time is
spent on farm mechanics train
ing which includes maintenance
and repair of faim machmeiy,
welding, woodworking, spray
painting, electucity and tractor
maintenance One of the newest
developments m the mechanics
department is a small gasoline
engine couise taught to the
Jumoi students.
All students enrolled in vo
$2.00 Per Year
marketing costs are low For
those who are willing to ex
pand to a full-time operation, I
think poultrymen in this area
will make money,” Stembeiger
concluded.
Feeding For Low Cost Pro
duction was the subject assign
ed to Roland Leach, Associate
Professor Poultry science
Leach said feed cost is the ma
jor item in producing a dozen
of eggs He said cost per ton
is not the way it should be figur
ed but cost per dozen of eggs
produced.
“What we are really talking
about is ingredient cost,” he
said “The two most important
ingredients are energy and pro
tein Energy is used by the bird
for maintenance body size
and environment temperatures
A bird eats to satisfy her energy
needs and two-thirds og energy
needs and two-thirds of energy
Leach said. “The other one-third
goes for egg production In the
case of protein needs the ratio
is reversed, two-thirds of the
birds needs go for egg produc
tion and one-third goes for
maintenance ”
The specialist said poultry
men must be careful when the
hens are in late pioduction
When the flock average drops
birds who are still producing
at 80 or 85 percent but the low
flock production comes because
many birds have dropped out of
production altogether Leach
recommended limited phase
feeding which takes into account
(Continued on Page 12)
cational agriculture are required
to conduct a supervised farming
program or an occupational
agriculture woik expeuence pro
gram. Fanning piogiams at
Ephrata centei aiound dairy an
imals, swine, sheep, poultiy and
field ci ops The occupational
woik experience is designed for
students interested in Ag related
jobs
Senior Vocational Agnculture
students are given the oppoitun
ity to gam expeuence in some
type of agncultuial business be
foie graduation through the
(Continued on Page 8)
Farm Calendar
Monday, Februaiy 24
7 30 p m —Manheim Young
Farmer meet, School Vo-Ag
Room.
8 00 p m —DHIA Directors
meet, Faim and Home Cen
ter.
Tuesday, F-ebruai ’ 25
8 30 a m —Lancaster County
Crops and So ’"> Day, Farm
and Home Center.
(Continued on P-- 'e 3)