DAIRY MEETING. 



93 



be the same crop for all localities. In our short summer season 

 we must have something that will grow rapidly and mature in a 

 few months. In a warmer and more favorable climate there is 

 probably nothing equal to alfalfa for this purpose, but unfci-tu- 

 nately it is not adaptable to Maine conditions. Maize or Indian 

 corn has always stood and still stands at or near the head of 

 the list in amount of total and digestible food it will produce 

 per acre and without doubt it is one of the most valuable crops 

 to the dairyman. It does not follow, however, that the largest 

 yielding crop is always the most economical to grow. The cost 

 of production must be taken into consideration and this is a 

 matter that each individual must settle for himself. The fol- 

 lowing table gives the relative yields of total and digestible dry 

 matter per acre of some of our more common field crops : — 



The figures here given show what can be produced and has 

 been produced on good land with good cultivation. 



4. The protein supply of the farm may be increased by 

 growing leguminous crops such as peas, beans and clover, in 

 so far as our climate will permit. These crops not only fur- 

 nish valuable food but are great soil renovators, and the growing 

 of a crop of clover leaves a soil richer in nitrogen than it was 

 before. The common red clover is a biennial and is best grown 

 in rotation with other crops. Alsike is something of a perennial 

 and maintains a hold in the grass land after the red clover is 

 gone. For this reason many farmers use mixtures of the two 

 varieties in seeding. The alsike is not so strong a grower or as 

 good a soil renovator as the red clover. The clovers are prob- 

 ably the cheapest source of home grown protein. They are not 

 a costly crop to grow, improve the mechanical condition of the 



