WINTER FEED.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXIX, Issue 107, 28 June 1911, Page 7

WINTER FEED.

SOME PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS; Mr T.R. Plodder (of the firm of Hoddcr, Tolley; and Co.) read a very interesting paper before the National Dairy Conference, at Palmerston last. Thursday, afternoon, on tho subject of winter feed. Mr. Hodder, who uas engaged in farming pursuits for many years, was able to give his hearers some good practical advice. After alluding to the wonderful resources, the great fertility, and the exceptional advantages that this country possessed, especially as a diarying country, lie referred to the fact that, possibly owing to these causes, the diary farmer was, in many cases; very improvident in providing abundance of feed both for a dry summer and a severe winter, and one often saw feed going to waste ill summer, and stock half starving in the winter. This was had for tho stock, and a great loss to the farmer and the Dominion. Cows foil away in winter and on coming into milk in spring were in .poor condition and took from a month to six weeks of frond feeding before they came up to their proper yield of milk. This state of things should not be, and could lie easily remedied. Eveiy farmer should have a good paddock of hay, and ho recommended, for this purpose, Italian rye and cow grass, which gave heavy crops of first-class hay, and a good supply of green succulent feed from the cow grass in a dry summer. Tho gi cat value of mangolds,as ,a root crop was touched upon, the enormous yield peracre, and their keeping qualities. This root, in tiie speaker’s estimation, out-classed all others- Green crops, cats, and tares, ■ Capo and Russian barley were all dwelt upon i; as easily grown and a great stand for .the diary farmer. Mi*. Hodder advocated strongly hay being fed with all green crops. The great value of maize as a green feed in summeryi and. ensilage in winter was reviewed at considerable length. Lucerne would prove a great crop on sandy Jands and riven fiats, but so far it had not been .Very successfully grown by many of our farmers, due, tho speaker thought, to insufficent care in the preparation of tho ground and lack of knowledge generally. The address was full of useful information and sound advice to farmers.