31 



^losT Profitable Method of Utilizing Cowpeas as 



Stock Food. 



It iiiav be of interest to record here the fraoinen- 

 tary data relative ^to this point that are afforded by our 

 experiments at Auburn. Only A\-lth the variety Wonder- 

 ful or Unknown have we made accurate determinations 

 of the amount of seed and the amount of hay produced 

 when the conditions of soil, fertilization, and culture 

 ^vere absolutely identical, this beins; done bv makinii,' hav 

 of the entire growth on certain plots and by harvesting 

 only the seed on adjacent j)lots. 



Relative yields of seeds and hay made by Wonderful 



cowpeas. 



\ Bus. Lbs. 

 ' seed. hay. 



In 1897, drilled cowpeas yielded per acre | llTO~ | 2420 



In 1898, broacast cowpeas yielded per acre | 6.7 | 6400 



In 1899 broadcast cowpeas yielded per acre | 7.9 2004 



Average three years 8.5 | 3608 



The 8.5 bushels of seed, with accompanying hulls, 

 would weigh only about one-fifth as much as the weight 

 of hay recorded above. Hence, it is evident that the 

 most profitable use of the crop as stock food would be 

 to utilize the hav rather than to wait for all the seed to 

 ripen. 



If, however, it should be impracticable to harvest and 

 utilize the cowpea as hay, our next recommendation 

 would he to pasture hogs or cattle on tlie pea fields, of 

 course reserving a sufficient area to produce seed for 

 the next year's planting. 



With nearly mature cowpeas utilized in this way we 

 obtained at Auburn the following returns for an acre of 

 cowpea pasturage, after first deducting the cost of the 

 additional food fed while the animals were grazing on 

 co\^^)eas : 



