Which Came First
(continued from Page A 1)
producers do not use steroids or
hormones to promote growth.
Incubation Period
At the farm, the eggs are gath
ered throughout the day and
carefully placed in the flat so the
pointed side is down. The chick
will not develop correctly or
hatch if the larger end, the end
with an air pocket, is on the
bottom.
The eggs are stored in a 65-
degree egg room.
“It is important that the eggs
are cooled down right away so
that everything that arrives here
is at the same stage of develop
ment which is basically noth-
Daryl Hilsher, vice president, and John Marlin, presi
dent, Longenecker Hatchery, Inc., hold several represent
atives of the thousands of chicks hatched and processed
at the plant. Photo by Michelle Ranck-Kunjappu
14 (I v t “ ;
J*./ ' /
t * *
-V
» *
*
The chicks are sent to the farm in boxes of 100.
s:■
GREEN SPIRIT has higher quality than rye, triticale or wheat if cut before boot stage. Is actually a better
feed than alfalfa. Has more digestible fiber and sugars. Does not head out until approximately May 12.
Cut GREEN SPIRIT mid April and it will be ready again 3 weeks later. Yes, that's 2 cuttings of GREEN SPIRIT
and still time to plant corn. So if you have moisture in the ground, no-till GREEN SPIRIT into your worn out alfalfa
fields after 3rd or 4th cutting and still get a good cutting or two this fall, and lots of tonnage next spring.
10 inch tall
30 inch tall
12 inch tall
30 inch tall
Ryegrass
Ryegrass
Rye
54.0
Feed value of Rye versus Ryegrass, on-farm trial Lancaster County, PA
- Also available from -
Herb Weaver 717-529-2386 Perry Co Glenn Martin
Edwin Martin Port Trevorton Atglen Sylvan Smoker
Glenn Beldler 570-539-8993 Cochranvllle Ag Service
Leroy Brenneman 486 Davis R York Co Hakes Farm & Seed Service
Apt 1 Salisbury 15558 Manhelm. .. . . . Lynn Fahnestock
N. Sommerset Co Marvin Thomas 814-479-7570 Lebanon Co .. . . Abner Stoltzfus .
Eastern Shore Mickey Stant 410-673-2414 White Deer. ... . Isaac Beiler.
E. Drumore Seeds Henry King 717-548-3376 Bio Farm Service . .Brian Futhey
Ephrata Carl Martin.. . 717-733-7155 Tioga Co David Johnson...
Lancaster Ag Products .717-293-9701 Juniata Co Happy Hollow Seeds
Little Britain Landis Weaver 717-529-2609 Belleville Wayne Yoder
Centre Co JohnGlick ... . 814-383-4529 Virginia . . L&L Seeds
Bio Farm Service 717-295-9100, 800-216-1271
Dauphin Co Christ F. Fisher 717-362-9038
Churchtown Galen Martin .. . 717-445-5782
Berks Co Paul Keller 610-589-2614
Rye
AI«o Available;
B.G. 34 Ryegrass
BaraKa 54 & 32*10 Alfalfa
Red & Alice White Clover
Chicory
Bromes
Timothy Reeds Canary
Green Spirit Ryegrass
Horsemaster
Orchardgrass
Kemal Festululolium
Fescue
Forage Soybeans
Forage Oats
Triticale
Cereal Rye
ing,” said Daryl Hilsher, vice
president.
When they reach the proces
sors, the eggs are transferred to
incubator racks and placed in
one of the 34 multi-stage incuba
tors, which are never empty.
The newest eggs are at the front
of the incubators while the 18-
day-old eggs are in the back.
“It’s just a big cycle,” said
Hilsher. There can be five “sets”
of eggs in the incubator at one
time.
The eggs are set for orders
an average of 225,000 a day
for customers that communicate
to the hatchery the number of
chickens they are projected to
ELIZABETHTOWN, PA
5 l||W
4 .
¥
i W
■m w
* .♦ *
%
NEED HIGH QUALITY FORAGE?
Use GREE.V SPIRIT RYEGRASS
as a coverffbrage crop after com silage
CP
33.0
18.2
22.4
17.0
Kirkwood
Snyder Co
Snyder Co
S. Sommerset Co.
>,*'
v
*
RFV TON NEL
207 83.7 88
136 73.6 76
141 69.5 72
122 67.0 69
NDF
34.2
ADF
16.7
25.8
21.6
31,0
47.1
47.5
need, according to Martin.
“We need to know close to a
year ahead what breeds and
what numbers they want,” he
said.
Each incubator holds 65,000
eggs in their 99-degree home.
The temperature is slightly
lower, however, where the more
mature embryos are located
since the embryos shed heat and
carbon dioxide.
The heat and carbon dioxide
is exchanged toward the front of
the incubator to the eggs that are
less developed and need those
elements, said Hilsher. Conse
quently, little heat has to be
added to the incubator. In addi
tion, fresh air is brought in to
give the eggs necessary oxygen.
Perched on a plastic flat with
holes for airflow, necessary for
the health of the chick, the eggs
are turned every hour until they
are 14-16 days “to keep the
embryo freed up inside the shell,
so it doesn’t attach to the side of
the egg. Turning the eggs dupli
cates what the hen would do on
the nest,” said Martin.
The chicks can safely “pip
out,” or come out of the shell, in
hatching baskets where they
are transferred when they are
ready to hatch.
Additionally, they are moved
from the racks to the hatching
baskets so they do not contami
nate the other eggs by releasing
chick dander or bacteria inside
of their shell. One hatcher, with
its racks of hatching baskets,
holds about 11,000 chicks.
Timely Entrance
Careful control of heat and
humidity allow the hatchery to
time the hatchings precisely.
“It is timed exactly. We can
pretty well say that if all the eggs
in the incubator at 3 a.m. on
Friday they’re going to be ready
to pull at 3 a.m. in three weeks,”
said Hilsher.
A sensitive alarm and back
up alarm sounds and eventually
dials a pager if the temperature
or humidity changes. Chicks can
stand a fluctuation in humidity
but will not tolerate too much
heat, said Hilsher.
An employee, whether the
night-watch shift or a tenant of
the property, is on duty at all
times to ensure that the alarm
and incubators are checked.
The new-to-the-world chicks
■ BARENBRUG Forages For Profit
GREAT IN GRASS
King’s AgriSeeds
Formerly Aaron King Seeds
Specializing in high quality forages and grazing since 1993.
Falrview Fruit Farm, 96 Paradise Lane, Ronks, PA
717-687-6224
LEGGETT SEED & SUPPLY
Specializing in Grass-Based Forages and Dairy Nutrition !
Western Maryland » 301 -733-2818
will move out on the first shift.
The eggs are set through the
night hours, beginning at mid
night, because the chicks are
pulled from their hatching bas
kets throughout the day three
weeks later.
The day at the hatchery
begins at 7 a.m. when employees
pull carts full of chicks to the
processing room. The chicks are
separated from the eggs and
then vaccinated. Most of the
orders are sent out as a “straight
run,” or males and females to
gether, with 100 in each box,
then delivered to the farm. The
hatchery can process 25,000
chicks an hour from the hatch
ing basket to the truck.
Besides a vaccination under
the skin, the chicks are sprayed
with a vaccine as they are loaded
onto the truck.
On The Farm:
The Laying Flock
The parent stock is purchased
Jflt ')
Branch, Fremont, Ohio, (414)
332-5142.
Morrison Cove Dairy Show, Me
morial Park, Martinsburg, 9
a.m.
Sustainable Forestry Course,
Martin Millville, Elverson,
(814)867-9299.
4-H Benefit Auction, Lebanon
Area Fairgrounds, 6 p.m.
Lancaster County 4-H Fair, So
lanco Fairgrounds, thru Aug.
4
Pa. Dutch Festival, Reading
Terminal Market, Philadel
phia, thru Aug. 4.
Ohio Farm Tour: Stratford Eco-
logical Center, Delaware,
Ohio, 3:30 p.m.
Maryland Grain Checkoff Re
ferendum, Maryland Cooper
ative Service Cecil County,
(410)996-5280.
Ag Field Day, Western Mary
land Research and Education
Center, Keedysville, Md., 8
a.m.-2 p.m.
thru Aug.
ounty
ayne
11.
Pa. Vegetable Growers Field
Tour in Schuylkill and Co-
717-582-2730
610-593-2831
717-529-5653
717-244-2754
717-665-7655
717-949-2486
.570-547-7118
814-349-4333
570-324-2285
717-436-9787
717-935-5830
877-434-7333
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 28, 2001-A2l
nies, usually from the South.
Crossing the parent stock yields
a hybrid that the hatchery uses
to lay the eggs.
Many of the breeder houses
are on a family farm in conjunc
tion with another livestock oper
ation. “Many of them utilize
family members to help take
care of the breeders,” said
Martin.
According to Martin, more
producers are exploring niche
markets for value-added prod
ucts. “If you are producing the
same chicken as everyone else,
you have a lot more competi
tion,” said Martin.
Since a full cycle of putting
the chicks in, raising them to
maturity, sending them to the
processor, and readying the
house only takes eight to nine
weeks, demand for chicks is
brisk. Most of the customers are
located within a 50-mile radius
to the hatchery.
lumbia counties, (717) 964-
3596.
Manure Application Field Day,
Pleasant View Farms, Rodney
Metzler Farm, near Mar-
tinsburg.
Lebanon County Holstein Show,
Lebanon Fairgrounds, 9 a.m.
Washington County AG Expo,
Ag Education Center, thru
Aug. 10.
41st Annual Old Time Wheat
Thrashing, Steam, and Gas
Engine Show, Denton, Md.,
thru Aug. 5.
Annual Corn Roast: Peach Fest,
Rohrbach’s Farm Market and
Craft Shop, near Knoebels
Amusement Resort, 11 a.m.-8
p.m., also Saturday 10 a.m.-6
Pa. Performance-Tested Ram
and Ewe Sale and Sheep Field
Day, Penn State Ag Arena,
(814)267-3771.
Lancaster County 4-H Fair Beef
Show, 10 a.m.
Howard County Fair, West
Friendship, Md., thru Aug.
11,(410)442-1022.
2001 Annual Soil and Water
Conservation Society Confer
ence, Kingston Plantation,
Myrtle Beach, S.C., thru Aug.
8.
Clinton County Fair,
thru Aug. 11.
Greene County Fair,
thru Aug. 11.
Bucks County
Summer Picnic For
Pa. Holstein Associ
ation, Ray and Deb
Detweiler Farm,
IJerkasie^llajim^
Bedford County Fair,
thru Aug. 11.
Transfer Harvest
Home Fair, thru
Aug. 11.
Adams County Farm
Bureau Annual
Summer Picnic,
South Mountain
Fairgrounds, 12:30
p.m.
It Pays
T° Graze
Also Available:
Blends for
Intensive Grazing
Mega Green
Sudangrass
Brown Mid-Rib
Sorghum
Hi Protein Corn
Brassicas
GREEN
SPIRIT
Makes Milk
Broilers