380 



STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE 



acid, and .4 of a ]M(im(l of jiolnisli. It is a]t]»aieiit at once, therefore, 

 that if beet jmlp lias aiiv api)reciable value as a ferliliy.er that value 

 must lie in its ability to form humus, ami not in its content of these 

 three most needed elements of fertility. When it is remembered, how- 

 ever, that a ton of i)ulp. fresh from the factory, seldom contains over 

 two hundred i)ounds of diy matter, and usually less than one hundred 

 and fifty pounds, it is apparent that it cannot be an important source 

 of fertilizing material for the beet growers about the factory. 



The use of beet pulp as stock food is familiar to all European beet 

 growers. Little, if any, of the pulp from German and French factories 

 is allowed to go to waste. The prices of hay, I'ough forage generally 

 and grain feeds are so high in Europe that the farmers appropriate at 

 once any cheap food ofTered. In this country, on the other hand, the 

 prices of stock foods are relatively low. Before a new stock food is 

 accepted by the farmer it must demonstra,te its right to a place in the 

 ration. It may do this first by its chemical composition, and second by 

 its behavior in feeding experiments. 



The analysis of beet pulp and some well known stock foods is given 

 in the next table. 



Beet pulp : 



Fresh 



Ensiloed .. . 



Dried 



Corn silage — 

 Pasture grass.. 



Turnii) 



Timothy hay... 



Corn stover 



Red Clover hay 



Fat. 



.14 



.11 



.8 



.80 



.2 

 3.0 

 1.1 

 4.5 



The analysis of the pulp here given is taken from Stohman. Our own 

 analyses of Michigan pulp show that it contains much more water 

 than is here indicated. Upon theoretical grounds, therefore, the ob- 

 jection to pulp as a cattle food is tw^o-fold. A ton of the pulp can 

 scarcely be expected to contain more than two hundred pounds of 

 actual feeding matter, and the cost of carting so much water for so 

 little substance must prohibit the transportation of the material for 

 very long distances. Again, it has been shown by many experiments 

 that taking in an excess of water as must be done Avhere large amounts 

 of pulp are fed hinders fattening rather than advancing it. 



As long ago as 1801, Maercker called attention to these defects in 

 fresh and siloed pulp, and showed .the advantage of drying the residues 

 both for preservation and for immediate feeding. 



A comparison of the composition of the dry matter of beet pulp and 

 some of the other foods named is interesting. It indicates the relative 

 values of the different foods with the water removed. 



