THE FARM.

Pelorus Guardian and Miners' Advocate., Volume 24, Issue 18, 7 March 1913, Page 7

THE FARM.

Animal Nutrition. (By Vatencey B. Fuller, in "‘Practical Dairyman.”) (Mr. Fuller Is recognised a s one of th(tf leading authorities on feeding the He has had a vast experience. He fed Mary Anne of St. Lambert in her year’s test; selected and fed the winning Jerseys in the Chicago World’s Pair Dairy Test, where he covered the breed and hdmself with honour. Thousands have benefited by an increased flow of mjilk in their herds through following his advice.)

PARTIAL SOILING. While some few make a practice of soiling altogether, and never turn the cows out to pasture at all,, it Is not for them that this talk is given, but rather tor those who want to provide green, food ,to keep up the

flow of milk, after the pastures are cropped down or are parched. It is _ very encouraging to find that more dairy farmers realise the necessity of growing some green crops to supplement the pastures. Every dairy farmer knows, that when cows, who have calved ia the spring or early summer, are allowed to get in thin flesh and shrink in their milk before they go into the cow. stable for the winter, they invariably prove Inprofitable winter producers. If, on the other hand, they go into winter quarters in good bodily condition, giving a good flow of milk, it is comparatively easy to maintain the flow. I say every dairyman knows these facta ; yet, the' majority of them, realising its truth, make no provision* to avert such a disaster.

Why ? I da not know. It is not Ignorance, it is not indifference, for io one can! indifferent when a profit is turned into a loss. Then ivhat is it ? I will leave that for others to answer, but this I say : inch, men,, and they are in the majority, should have their cows calve in the fall or early winter. 1 Milk is ligh-priced then. Their owners can »ive their cows better attention. When the cows begin to fail in the spring, the early pastures will renew the milk flow, and they will go dry In August and September, when the pastures usually fail. Dairymen who do not provide some green food for summer feeding < have had a hard experience in the last three summers, and will probably have it again next summer. Are you one of them ?■ If you are, why, oh why,

do you not sow some green crops to help out 1 your pasture ! Maiize silage furnishes the cheapest of all green feed In thff summer, and I hope I that every dairyman, who has not sufficient silo capacity to furnish his cows and stock wEth silage in the winter, and carry over sufficient to( feed in summer as well, when the pastures fail, will enlarge his silo capacity and put up enough silage for summer and winter. If any is left over only the top, that exposed to the air, will spoil, if the silo 'is airtight and water-proof. Let me point out the economy of soiling as compared with pasturing. Henry relates his experience at : the Wisconsin Station, where he kept three cows on an excellent blue-grass pasture, and three other cows were kept in the barn and fed green feed, having a yard for exercising. Those it pasture consumed the grass from 3.7 acres and those "soiled” were

given the forage from 1.5 acres and green clover, three cuttings, green fodder corn, and green oats, producing a total of 44,835 lbs. of Feed, of which 1655 was wasted in Feeding. The cows on the 3.7 acre produced

5583 lbs. of milk and 303 lbs. of butter, and those soiled produced from the forage of 1.5 acres 7,173 lbs. milk and 294 lbs. of butter. This shows ''‘that in Wisconsin an acre of soiling crop equals about two and one half acres of good blue grass-pasture for feeding dairycows. Few are fortunate enough ■to have "good blue-grass .pastures." It is safe to say that with proper management one acre of soiling crops equal throe acres of ordinary pastures. The cost of labour, and in many cases the difficulty in securing sufficient help to do the ordinary work of the farm and the dairy deters many from practising ■ "soiling." The cow will require from sixty to eighty lbs. of green forage a day. When soiling is practised, a place for the cows to exercise in is necessary.

V/hen partial soiling is in vogue, the cows can be kept in a darkened stall through the day in fly season, fed green forage and turned out at night with great advantage. The Mass. Station gave a table of the crops and the time they should be sown for that section, and I quote some of these most generally grown. Rye, sown September 10-15, cut for green feed May 20-30 ; wheat sown September 10-15, cut June 1-15 g clover,- September, cut June 15-30 ; peas and oats, April 20, cut June 25-July 10 ; peas and oats (second sowing-), April 30, cut July 10 ; barnyard millet, May 10, cut July 25-August 10barnyard millet, sown May 25th (second sowing), cut August" 10 to 20 j maize planted May 20th, cut August 25-Soptcmber 10 ; maize (second planting). May 30, cut September 20-30 Hungarian grass, sown July 15, cut September 20-30 ; barley and peas, sown August 5, cut October L-20. When soiling crops are used it must be remembered the forn.ro consists largely of water, and often does not supply as much nourishment as the cattle need, so that when the crops, are. qa}te green it is necessary to feed

same dry forage in addition. Rye is probably more grown for forage crops than any other, except possibly maize. It supplies a largo amount of feed early in the season. It stands a great frost and grows rapidly. It is better if top dressed through the winter and the same land, when there has been a liberal top dressing, may be so.vn to spring or summer forage crop. It should he fed after milking for fear of giving a:bad flavour to the milk. Sow two bushels to the acre. If more i’s grown than can be used for the cows it can be made into hay or ploughed under green, and if maize is grown on the land it will help greatly. Cows usually prefer wheat as a forage to rye, and when cut 'in the milk is greatly relished by them. It can be cut and .used as hay if cut in the dough stage. The New Jersey Station reports a yield of two and one half tons per acre. Whom the stems begin to be tough, some green lucerne may be fed with it. As a forage crop, oats and Canadian peas must take precedent of alii forage crops except lucerne. These are great milk makers, and cows are greedy for them. They should be sown as early as possible and they may be sown as succession crops as late as May 10-15 in this State according. to the season. Some sow equal parts of oats and peas, others sow a little more of the peas than the oats. Sow about three bushels to the acre. For green feed they are rich in protein and fat, and that is probably the reason why this green crop makes so much milk. Some drill them in ; others sow the peas broadcast, cultivate both ways and then sow the oats broadcast and harrow them in. I have had no experience with barnyard millet, but those who have grown and fed it green, speak very highly of it. I quote from Peers hook on soiling. "This is doubtless one of the most nutritious green forage plants that is used in soiling cattle ” "It germinates and grows very irapidly and endures drought remarkably well. It is a very leafy plant, and furnishes the most succulent food which is highly relished by all kinds of stock.” '"lt attains its greatest luxuriance in soil of medium constancy and well manured. It is usually sown broadcast requiring, one bushel of seed per acre, and grows as hay which can he done after a soiling crop of rye, oats, or peas.” Mr. Peer recommends it very highly as a hay and says, '“The same land that will produce one ton of hay per acre, wflll produce at least three tons of millet (I presume millet hay V.B.F.') and ia a favourable season and on good rich soil a much larger yield.” I knew that I had read that millet hay should he fed onlyi in limited quantities and in combination with clover hay, and that as hay for horses, it had proved inferior; so I looked it up. "Henry on feeding” recommends that not more than 6 lbs. of millet hay be fed a day, and that clover hay be used with it. According to bulletin No. 7 of the N.D. Stat Son.” Our experiments have thoroughly demonstrated that millet, when used entirely as a coarse food is injurious to horses ; first, in producing an increased action of the kidneys; second, in causing lameness and swelling! of the joints; third, id producing infusion of blood into the joints i; fourth, in destroying the texture of the hone, rendering it softer and less tenacious, so that traction cause# the ligaments and muscles to he torn loose.”

As I have previously stated, I have never fed millet, and give this warning so that horse-owners may be on the alert. The millet in N.D. may differ from barnyard millet, but Henry says the millets, which are annual grasses, consist of many races and varieties mixed in hopeless confusion. Doubtless all our readers are familiar with the growing and feeding of maize as a green crop. In some sections sorghum Is grown and fed as a green crop, but the second cutting when used as hay, has proved very dangerous, killing v cattle to whom it was fed.