320 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



ewes from the 1011 lamb crop will make an excellent addition to the 

 breeding flock the coming year. With the addition of the breeding 

 pens constructed during the year, the present facilities for handling 

 the experiment are especially good. 



The Southdown flock at the Morgan Horse Farm has done well 

 during the year. A good lamb crop was secured, and the wool clip 

 was the best secured since the flock was founded. The entire flock, 

 including the ewes and rams, averaged 7 pounds a head, which is 

 especially good for this breed. The undesirable ram lambs were 

 castrated. 



The sheep work at the experiment farm at Beltsville, Md., during 

 the year consisted in the breeding of American Merinos and Barbados, 

 the cross-breeding of the Barbados-Merinos and Southdowns, and 

 the cross-breeding of the CAves of the American Merino, Barbados, 

 Cotswold, and Cheviot breeds with the Karakule. Fifty-seven skins 

 of the Karakule crosses were tanned and dyed. The inventory of 

 sheep on June 30, 1912, showed 6 rams, 5 wethers, 113 ewes, and 

 47 lambs. 



The goat-breeding work consisted in the breeding of the short- 

 haired common goats and the crossing of a Saanen buck on a number 

 of the common white does, with a view to obtaining a strain of milk- 

 ing goats. An exceptionally good kid crop was obtained. None of 

 the does were milked during the year, as there were no facilities for 

 carrying on this work. The inventory of goats on June 30, 1912, 

 showed 5 bucks, 45 does, and 35 kids. 



CATTLE BREEDING. 

 HOLSTEIN CATTLE. 



The work carried on during the past year in cooperation with the 

 North Dakota Experiment Station in the breeding circuit near New 

 Salem was along the same general lines as the work of last year. 

 Records have been kept of the production of all the cows in the 

 herds of the members. The records made by the cows for the cal- 

 endar year 1911 were not as large as the records made during the 

 previous year, because of the shortage of feed production, due to the 

 drought that prevailed over North Dakota during the season of 1910 

 and 1911. There was a shortage of both winter and summer feed 

 during the year. 



Six heifers were put into the Advanced Registry during the past 

 year. The best record was made by the heifer Dakota of Elmwood 

 (139155, H. F. H. B.), age 1 year 11 mcmths 27 days, producing in 

 the 7-day test 292.1 pounds of milk, 12.031 pounds of fat; average 

 test, 4.12 per cent. 



No outstanding sires have been discovered in the herds up to date, 

 but the work has no<^ 'Jt-en in progress long enough to expect this, 

 considering the T^umber of purebreds in the circuit. 



A large ""mber of grade heifers have been sold from the circuit, 

 and t1-^ surplus purebred bulls have been sold readily, most of them' 

 sjr^ing to the farmers in the immediate vicinity of the circuit. Forty- 

 three bulls have been sold since the work was begun. 



All the members who erected silos last summer were pleased with 

 the results obtained with them last v/inter. Most of them succeeded 

 in growing sufficient corn to fill them, regardless of the drought. 



