MEADOWS AND HAY CROPS. 33 



GRAIN HAY. 



By far the greatest quantity of roughage in all the country traversed 



outside of the irrigated areas is produced by the cereals sown in the 

 ordinary way and cut when the grain is a little under the "dough" 

 stage. Wheat, barley, and rye are especially the grains handled in 

 this manner. In the Big Bend, in Washington, wheat furnishes 

 almost the only hay in many places, the common practice being for 

 the farmer to get his hay crop from the edges of his wheat fields. 

 The wheat fields are "trimmed up" ten days or two weeks before 

 harvesting begins. This trimming consists in cutting two or three 

 swaths around the held while the straw is still green. Many wheat 

 raisers secure their entire hay supply in this way. It is also a com- 

 mon practice when bearded barley is raised for the grain to sow a strip 

 of wheat on the outside of the held, this being cut for hay. 



This method of producing hay was more general on the north slope 

 of the Blue Mountains than in any other section visited. Two factors 

 contributed to the importance of the grain hay crop here, this year at 

 least. In the first place, the past season was very dry, and the wheat 

 crop consequently was very poor. On this account many fields were 

 cut for hay instead of grain when it became evident that the yield 

 would be small and poor at best. In tin 1 second place, being on the 

 border of the area where a demand exists for winter feed for stock, 

 Avheat hay is nearly as paying a crop as the wheat itself. 



Wheat straw is largely made use of here as a winter ration, espe- 

 cially for cattle. The stockman usually buys a field of straw and 

 stubble, and winters his cattle very often with no other feed. This is 

 better than the short range of the present daj T , but the stock usually 

 come out of the winter in very poor condition. This method is a 

 decided advantage to the wheat and hay grower, for, in addition to the 

 ready cash, the land is improved Irv having the cattle upon it during 

 the winter season. 



Rye is a very important hay crop all through the region, and it is 

 especially good on the sandy and poor soils along the Columbia and 

 Snake River bottoms and portions of the Eureka fiats, as well as on 

 better soil. It is by far the most productive sandy-land crop, but is a 

 rather exhausting one when the grain is allowed to mature. It appears 

 to be the leading hay crop in all new communities, and is very exten- 

 sively grown m the Blue Mountains, where especially good crops were 

 seen in the vicinity of Ulkiah and Izee. At the latter place it was 

 estimated that more hay was derived from this source than from all 

 others combined. 



Of the grain crops sown primarily for hay, the awnless form of 

 barley is probably the one that is considered best. This is grown 

 largely in the wheat regions of Washington and in the Blue and the 



25974— No. 38— 03 3 



