554 ANNUAL RErOKT OF TIIP] Off. Doc. 



I)nri)oses, but all lliini>s considci'od T know of nojliini? so satisfactory 

 as coin. 



A great many are turning to alfalfa for jirotein, and justly. I 

 must advise you to try alfalfa, since in many sections of the State 

 alfalfa seems indigenous, and there is little or no trouble in raising 

 it. 



I suggest from my experience and observation that you can raise 

 it anywhere if you will carry out the following: I prefer fall sow- 

 ing, by this I mean August. Not that the alfalfa will germinate 

 better, but on account of weeds smothering it out in the spring. 



Have your ground deeply ploughed, with no vegetation 1o harrow 

 uj). Spread thirty-five to forty bushels of lime per acre or 1,000 

 pounds of ground limestone and 10 loads of well rotted manure per 

 acre <m this ploughed ground before cultivation for seeding. This 

 manure makes a mulch for seed germination which in no instance 

 should be neglected. I believe in inoculation, where it is needed, 

 and you can tell by the light sickly color of the plant if such is the 

 case, the proper way to secure inoculation is to plough u]) this same 

 piece of ground each fall after second cutting until you have it. 



Perhaps you have ground adapted and merely need a better stand. 

 This can possibly be as well obtained by harrowing the ground deep 

 after second cutting and reseeding. You need not be afraid of har-* 

 rowing up the alfalfa or of covering it with dirt. I have seen a 

 better stand apparently from the sprouting of the roots where the 

 ground was ploughed than before the ploughing was done. In my 

 section we have as yet used the hay cap but to a limited extent. 

 For the first cutting this is a necessity. The alfalfa where clear 

 of weeds may be put in small hand stacks with little or no wilting. 

 These stacks every other day should be moved by two persons upon 

 opposite sides, slipping them sidewise to fresh stubble. You need 

 not be afraid of even the thinnest muslin hay cops, as they will turn 

 the most severe weather and are no experiment. With an abundance 

 of good corn silage and alfalfa hay you are as well prepared as you 

 can possibly expect to be to keep the cost of milk production low 

 as far as maintenance is concerned. What I have said in regard to 

 alfalfa is equally applicable with our red clover, which makes a 

 very good feed, and it or alfalfa is almost indispensible. While I 

 have never done any soiling with alfalfa, some think it has no equal 

 for that puropse. Both with alfalfa and red clover the most common 

 practice is to let them get too old before cutting, a mistake which 

 should be avoided. 



Barns need not be expensive structures to insure health to the 

 cows but plenty of light with good ventilation is always essential. 

 Where you are remodeling any barn it is a mistake not to prepare 

 for ventilation. Do not place in the stable a lot of wooden stalls, 

 which will never score high. Sanitary inspection is sure to come, so 

 build with this object in view, and do not fret if you have been so 

 short sighted as not to meet its requirements. Stanchions I have 

 no use for farther than it is possibly the cleanest tie known, yet 

 nevertheless I would discard them on account of their being too 

 confining for the very best results. 



A gutter behind cows or a platform upon which the cow stands 

 is advisable. As I always think an ounce of prevention is better 



