34 FAEM PRACTICE WITH FORAGE CROPS IN OKEGOlSr, ETC. 



feed also for hogs and jDoiiltry. It does best on well-manured, deep, 

 rich loams and sandy soils. The only objection to the use of kale is 

 the difRciiltv of getting it out of the field when the gi'ound is wet and 

 muddy. For this reason well-drained land should be selected upon 

 which to plant this crop. 



METHODS OF SOWIXG. 



For fall and winter use, kale is usually sown in drills on well- 

 prepared and well-drained soil as soon after the loth of March as 

 the season will permit. This furnishes plants for transplanting in 

 June and July. The land used for transplanting is well manured 

 and plowed two or three times between the 1st of ]\Iarch and the 1st 

 of June. "With the land in j^erfect tilth it is plowed again with a 

 12-inch plow about the 1st of June and the young kale plants 

 clroj^iDed into eyery third furrow about 2^ to 3 feet apart. This 

 places about one plant on every square yard. The roots of the plants 

 are placed where the next furrow coyers them, leaving the tops 

 uncovered. The plants that are plowed in during the day in this 

 way are rolled in the evening of the same da}^ to pack the ground. 

 Two or three cultivations are all that can usually be given, for the 

 plants will soon touch in the roAy if they do well. Any plants that 

 fail to grow may be replaced by hand. Some growers prefer to 

 plant the seed in hills, and when the plants are large enough thin 

 them to one plant in a hill. Others put kale out just as cabbage is 

 usually transplanted, instead of plowing it in. The time of trans- 

 planting must be determined by the size of the plants and the condi- 

 tion of the land. If the land is wet and subject to overflow the 

 transplanting may be delayed until during July, If the land is well 

 drained and the plants are large enough it may l)e done l:»efore the 

 1st of June. In transi^lanting, enough plants may be left for a stand 

 on the land where th^ seedlings are grown. 



FEEDING, 



As previously stated, kale stands in the field during the winter 

 and is hauled in and fed green as needed from about the 1st of 

 October to the 1st of April. If the growth is forced in the early 

 spring it can be fed much earlier than the 1st of October. To avoid 

 tainting the milk, kale is fed just after milking, at the rate of 25 to 

 60 pounds per day, in two feeds. Some let it wilt before feeding. 

 Enough may be hauled in at a time to last four or five days. It 

 should not be thrown into heaps and allowed to heat, Xeither should 

 it be fed when frozen. On the approach of freezing weather a 

 supply sufficient to last several days may be placed in the barn. 



To haul kale from the field during wet weather it is best to wear 

 a gum coat and gum boots. The plants can then be cut off at the sur- 



94 



