420 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



THE PRODUCTION OF ALFALFA AND ITS FEEDING VALUE. 



One very important factor in successful dairying is the question 

 of feed. Probably no one in this audience has failed to hear of 

 the merits of alfalfa for feeding purposes, and yet, I believe that 

 there are a large number who do not fully appreciate its value. 



This plant flourishes in the Western part of the I'nited States. 

 Although red clover is of vast importance to the country east of the 

 Mississippi, yet. alfalfa is of even more importance to the Western 

 section. In California, the plant reaches its highest perfection, 

 yielding five to seven cuttings per year. In Colorado and Utah 

 two to three cuttings are obtained. In the East it is gaining in 

 favor, as the farmers are being informed as to the proper method of 

 growing. 



WTieat bran has, for a long time, been recognized as a leading 

 feed for dairy animals, but let us compare this article with alfalfa, 

 looking at the matter from a chemical standpoint. Alfalfa contains 

 11 per cent, of digestible protein and v.heat bran, 12.3 per cent.; 

 or in other words, every 100 pounds of alfalfa will yield 11 pounds 

 of digestible protein and that of wheat bran will yield 12.3 pounds 

 of digestible protein. If an average sample of alfalfa contains 11 

 per cent., then a good quality of alfalfa hay will contain just about 

 as much digestible protein as wheat bran. At our own Experiment 

 Station, trial tests have been made, which show emphatically the 

 value of alfalfa and which prove that it is practically equal to 

 wheat bran, pound per pound. Assuming that four tons of alfalfa 

 per acre is an average yield, here is a chance to produce four tons 

 of the equivalent of wheat bran, and if farmers could produce four 

 tons of wheat bran to the acre, they would think they were doing 

 well. Other things being equal, the most desirable crop is the one 

 producing the largest amount of digestible dry matter. A satis- 

 factory crop of corn or alfalfa contains much more dry matter per 

 acre than one of oats or peas. 



During the past year, there has been imported into Pennsylvania 

 a larg^ quantity of alfalfa. This has come to us in a finely cut 

 condition and retailed at §23 to f3o per ton. There is no reason 

 for believing that alfalfa meal is any more digestible than the hay 

 from which it is made, and it may be less digestible owing to the 

 temptation to adulterate. I reason this question: Can you afford 

 to pay f30 per ton for alfalfa grown in Kansas or Oklahoma, when 

 by careful study of the required conditions, you can probably pro- 

 duce this crop on your own farms? According to the chemical 

 composition of red clover and the results obtained in its use, it has 

 tteen found that two tons of alfalfa hay is practically equal to 

 three tons of red clover. 



Alfalfa is a perennial plant, it produces a large yield, its roots 

 bring up plant food from the sub-soil, and they are covered with 

 tubercles containing micro-organisuis that have l])e pnw>r to con- 

 vert the nitrogen of the atmosphere into plant food, thus enriching 

 the soil upon which it is grown. In view of the above facts, it 

 behooves us to carefully stud}- the conditions under which it thrives 

 the best, so that the time may soon come when Pennsylvania will 



