LAND USE
Plot burials: a grave situation
C
onsidering
smallholdings are
made when larger
established farms are divided
up into smaller pieces of land,
From page 31
it is possible that you might
have inherited a grave or
small cemetery on your plot.
Decades ago, it was custom
for farmers to bury members
there is a wide range of
breeds which will breed true - temperaments and character-
istics to deal with.
the young will always
For this reason it is important
resemble the parents. These
to research the traits of
breeds were developed
specific breeds thoroughly
through careful selection by
small farms and breeders, or
through natural intermingling
between wild breeds.
Purebred chickens generally
have a distinctive appearance,
and are most commonly
named after their particular
place of origin, eg , Leghorn,
Orpington, Plymouth Rock or
Rhode Island Red. Each
breed has its own breed club
which looks after its interests,
and draws up a set of
standards for the breed. The
best examples of the breed
will be those most closely
adhering to the standards.
Many purebred chicken
breeds were once kept for
their exceptional egg
production, but because of a
tendency to breed “for show”
(ie, for physical characteris-
tics), modern bloodlines of
these chickens aren't quite as
capable egg layers. For
example, the Australorp
chicken was once famed for
laying as many as 350 eggs
per year, while modern
Australorps lay a more
modest 250 eggs.
Some think that purebreds
have more personality than
commercial layers and that
they are more adaptable to
different conditions, including
changes in temperature and
diet. They are often more
alert and flighty, which makes
them more difficult to handle,
but better at evading preda-
tors. Purebreds generally live
longer.
Because there is a wide range
of pure breed to choose from,
of their families on their
farms. Times have changed,
however, and the practice of
burying people in family
graveyards on the farm has to
POULTRY
before you buy to ensure
you are pre-warned and
fore-armed against any
inherent behavioural
problems.
33
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a large extent disappeared.
It was also common to find
that farm workers and
members of their families
were also buried on the farm.
According to custom and
religious belief, rituals would
be carried out by someone
who is entitled to do so, to
declare the piece of land
allocated by the owner to
now be a home for the
Continued on page 35