1030 EXPEEIMENT STATION KECORD. 



days and usually requires severe frost to ripen it, the frost, however, doing 

 little liarm to the quality of the seed. 



The tests with cowpeas were made to determine the relative yields of total 

 dry matter of forage and hay. Nearly all varieties gave profitable yields of 

 forage, but in seed production they varied considerably. In the order of 

 maturity their range was as follows : Pearly Blackeye, Michigan Favorite, 

 Whippoorwill, New Era, Iron, and Clay. All of these may be cut for hay about 

 September 1. 



Forag'e crop experiments, G. A. Billings (New Jersey 8tas. Rpt. 1907, pp. 

 55-79, pis. 19). — A iiumber of crops were grown for soiling purposes, and the 

 acreage, date of planting and cutting, and yield are reported in tables, together 

 with brief notes on each crop. A total of 232.9 tons of green fodder, or an 

 average of 7.15 tons per acre, supplied forage for 38 adult and 12 young dairy 

 animals from May 11 to October 23, a period of 166 days. Figures are given 

 showing that the average cost of production per ton in the field was $1.46 and 

 the average cost for cutting and hauling about 50 cts., making each ton cost 

 at the feeding yard $1.96. It is stated that the total nutrients in 232.9 tons of 

 soiling crops will furnish about the same amount of food nutrients as those 

 contained in 49 tons of clover hay or 36 tons of bran. 



Rye was held back by the cold spring, later maturing very rapidly and mak- 

 ing the feeding period rather short. Wheat on land which had an application 

 of manure in the early summer followed by a crop of cowpeas yielded 11.1 tons 

 of fodder per acre, while a crop on an earlier planted field without manure pro- 

 duced about 6 tons per acre. Ninety-day Burt, Swedish, and White Spring oats 

 were sown with Canada peas. The Swedish oats was very leafy but appar- 

 ently later than the White Spring, and the Burt was very satisfactory for 

 early forage. Thoroughbred white flint corn planted May 15 produced 12.6 

 tons of green fodder per acre, with a large proportion of mature ears, while 

 later plantings in June after i-ye produced but little more than half a crop. 



Owing to a late spring it was impossible to harvest three crops from any field. 

 Cowpeas have generally been follow-ed by winter rye or wheat, which is used for 

 early soiling or green manure the next season. Several fields were not devoted 

 strictly to soiling rotations. On a 1-acre plat 11.1 tons of wheat and 9.7 tons 

 of cowpeas were produced and the field was seeded to rye early in September. 

 One plant yielded 6.7 tons of rye fodder and 8.3 tons of millet, or 15 tons of soil- 

 ing crops. The plats producing wheat followed by corn gave a total yield of 

 13.6 tons of forage per acre. 



An acre was devoted to small plat experiments with soiling crops in 1906. 

 All crops were planted in drills 2i ft. apart and cultivated. Cowpeas were 

 planted June 16, and the sorghum, millets and other cereal plats June 21. 

 Sorghum produced heads 70 days from planting and when cut 10 days later 

 yielded 17.2 tons per acre. The yield of sorghum and Red Ripper cowpeas 

 was at the rate of 14.4 tons, and Kafir corn and cowpeas 10.5 tons. A yield 

 of 14.3 tons green fodder ])er acre was secured from Barnyard millet. Hun- 

 garian millet produced only 3 tons of green forage and (ierman millet 5.5 tons 

 per acre. Pearl millet gave a yield of 12 tons, Teosinte 9 tons, Yellow Milo 

 maize 12.4 tons, and Brown Durra 10.2 tons per acre. 



Brief field notes are given on 11 varieties of cowpeas compared. In yield 

 of green forage Iron and Red Ripper ranked first, with S.6 tons and 8.5 tons 

 per acre, respectively. In yield of seed per acre, Michigan Favorite ranked 

 first with IS bu. 



Alfalfa on a 2-acre plat, which had been used for several years as a feeding 

 yard for cattle and which received as a pi'ei)aration for the crop 1^ tons per 

 acre of freshly slaked lime, 100 lbs. of ground bone, 250 lbs. of acid phosphate, 



