STATE DAIRY ASSOCIATION. 501 



ration, unless the growth is very poor or was sow^ed for that purpose 

 when the stalks are almost all eaten anyhow. 



Corn should be fed as cornmeal or corn and cobmeal and G cents per 

 bushel should be added to the cost to pay for grinding or crushing. 



When properly balanced with other feeds, corn and cobmeal makes an 

 excellent milk-producer. Care should be used to prevent cows laying on 

 too much fat when corn is fed. 



Hominy meal is the starchy, carbonaceous part of corn, is poor in pro- 

 tein and should not be fed to the dairy cow. 



Gluten feed is very rich in protein, not palatable, and should be fed 

 cautiously and mixed with wheat bran or some other palatable food. 

 When it is available it should be considered in forming a dairy I'ation. 

 Its value lies in its high protein content. 



Gluten meal is richer still than gluten feed, and should be fed with 

 even more caution and may replace it to advantage. 



Wheat bran is the classical cow feed, and is fed more, perhaps, than 

 any other concentrated feed and has a rather high protein content. 



Wheat middlings and shorts are sometimes used as a dairy feed to 

 advantage, but bran is more common. 



Oil meal is very rich in protein, has a laxative property, and on this 

 account should be fed when green feed or silage is not fed. It is also 

 valuable in warm climates, as it gives a firm, .solid character to butter. 

 One-half to two pounds per day should be the feed when the laxative 

 property is desired. When fed heavily it loses this power on the system 

 and becomes distinctly a feed. Oats either cut in sheaf or ground as grain 

 make a good dairy feed, and if oats do well on your land and the market 

 price is low, it will pay to feed them. 



Barley, rye and brewei-s' gi-ains are sometimes fed to dairy cows, 

 but their use should be discouraged. There are laws in some cities and 

 towns forbidding the sale of milk from cows fed on brewers' grains. Rye 

 often gives an undesirable flavor to butter, and where fastidious custom- 

 ers are supplied satisfaction could not be given. 



Silage is the cheapest and best feed the dairyman can have to take 

 the place of grass. Silage is past the experimental stage, is palatable, 

 nutritious, laxative, all consumed, and little is spoiled in a good, round 

 silo. Silage is preserved grass as corn is only a mammoth grass. It is, 

 however, not the equal of grass, but comes next to it in our list of feeds. 



Among feeds that are still in the experimental stage in our State for 

 one reason or another, we mention alfalfa, soy beans and cow peas. These 

 are rich in protein, and when once established on our farms will reduce 

 very materially the cost of our daiiy ration. 



How often shall we feed? Shall we mix the feeds or give each one 

 separately? 



On account of the large storage capacity of the rumen or first stomach 

 of the cow, it will generally be found sufficient to feed twice daily, giving 



