The Question Box. 37 



QUESTIONS REGARDING ANIMAL FOOD. 



Question. — What benefit is derived from feeding buckwheat 

 hulls % 



Mr. Van Alstyne. — I have never been able to get any benefit. 

 They are good as a fertilizer, because of the potash in them. Buck- 

 wheat middlings are a good milk-producing food. There is but 

 little protein in buckwheat hulls, and what little there is comes 

 from the middlings that stick to them in small quantities. 



Question. — Which should farmers depend on mostly, soiling or 

 pasture ? 



Mr. Litchard. — About three seasons out of foar are dry, and 

 we are going to keep our cows in the stable, feeding them some 

 soiling crops, such as ensilage or oats and peas. We keep the cows 

 in the stable during the day and turn them out at night. 



Mr. Cook. — The question of labor and the condition of the 

 land must be considered. Much of the land in northern New 

 York cannot be cultivated and must be pastured. If I were to 

 start in again I should not buy an inch of ground that I could 

 not cultivate. We are practicing soiling in connection with the 

 pasture, but I am quite satisfied that the tendency is drifting 

 from the pasture toward soiling. One thing is sure, if our land 

 is worth $100 per acre we cannot afford to allow our cows to 

 roam over it; and a man owning such land ought to keep at least 

 one cow per acre, and will, when he has the summer silo. 



Question. — I am feeding ensilage twice a day and timothy hay 

 once; what grain ration shall I feed? 



Mr. Bentley. — Wheat bran and gluten. 



Mr. Smith. — I believe that bran and gluten will make as good 

 a ration as any, and it is certainly as cheap in price as any. There 

 are elements in bran not found in gluten to any great extent, which 

 is its mineral matter, making it valuable. When we feed these 

 grains we do it for their protein element, to mix with our fat- 

 forming foods, and- so should first consider price. 



Question. — Would bran with 10 pounds of Rockford gluten be 

 a safe grain for a cow fed ensilage twice a day and straw once ? 



Mr. Smith. — Corn is deficient in mineral element; gluten is 

 made from corn, and is therefore deficient in mineral matter, so I 

 should mix it with bran. Of course there are conditions that 

 enter in, we cannot lay down any special rules. There is a dif- 



