No, 7. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 579 



a hay crop. It certainly can be successfully grown when conditions 

 are right in all of Eastern Pennsylvania, and its introduction will 

 add not only to the home supplies of protein, but will assist in soil 

 improvement. 



The cowpea and soy bean are summer forage crops, and in addi- 

 tion to their soil improving characteristics, are excellent sources of 

 protein, used either as green forage or hay. These jjlants may be 

 successfully grown in many portions of this State and without in- 

 terfering with regular rotations, as the crop may successfully fol- 

 low a crop of oats and peas, cut for hay, and make a crop of hay in 

 time to seed down Avith wheat or rye. 



The Canada field pea and the spring vetch are preferably used with 

 oats, and while the mixture is not as rich in protein as if seeded 

 alone, or not as rich as the other crops mentioned, they are valuable 

 additions to our list of forage crops. 



Winter vetch is also serviceable, more particularly as a green 

 forage crop than as hay, and should be sown with winter wheat or 

 rye. 



The average content of protein in these various leguminous hay 

 crops, is for: 



Per cent. 

 Protein. 



Red clover, 1.5 . 3 



Alsike clover, 11 . 4 



White clover, 14 . 1 



Crimson clover, 1.5 . 5 



Alfalfa, 16.5 



Cow peas, 15 . 5 



Soy beans, 15 . 4 



Canada field peas 13 . 7 



Vetch, 17.0 



These averages compare favorably with those shown by the bran 

 and middlings from wheat, rye and buckwheat: 



Per cent. 

 Protein. 



Wheat bran, 16 . 1 



Wheat middlings 15 . 6 



Rye bran, 14 . 7 



Buckwheat bran 12.4 



"J 



Owing to the larger content of crude fiber in the protein forage 

 crops than in these various concentrated feeds, showing the same 

 content of protein, they are more bulky, and the rate of digestion 

 of the various groups of nutrients is usually lower than in the feeds, 

 thus making this basis of comparison hardly fair to the feeds, thougii 

 the average digestibility of the two classes of foods is not widely dif- 

 ferent. The average co-effici(Mits of digestibility are: 



FOR WHEAT. BRAN: 



Per cent. 



Dry matter, 61 



Protein, 79 



Crude fiber, 22 



Nitrogen-free extract, 68 



Ether extract, 68 



