824 



EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



Full data for the food aud nutrients consumed, the yield and com- 

 position of the milk, and the financial results are tabulated, and the 

 influence of the nutritive ratio upon the composition of the milk is 

 shown graphically. The financial results are based on ground wheat 

 at $20, Buffalo gluten meal at $18, cotton-seed meal at $20, linseed ineal 

 at $25, aud corn stover at $4 per ton; butter at 28 cts. per pound, and 

 solids-not-fat of the milk at 2 cts. per i^ound. A summary of the data 

 is given below. 



Effect of rations of different nutritive ratio on milch cotvs. 



' Calculated from total fat by adding one-fifth. 



"Seven of the 9 cows used in the trial required less digestible material for a 

 pound of butter iu periods 2 aud 3, when the nutritive ratios were 1:3.9 and 1:4.4, 

 respectively, than was required in periods 1 and 4, when the nutritive ratios were 

 1:6.6 aud 1:6.7. 



"The average of all cows in the trial shows a requirement of 15.29 lbs. of digesti- 

 ble matter per pound of butter produced, when the nutritive ratio averaged 1:6.65, 

 and 14.66 lbs. when the nutritive ratio was reduced to 1:4.15, an apparent increase 

 of 4 3 per ceut in the efficiency of the food in the periods of narrower nutritive 

 ratios. . . . 



"It appears that in those periods where the narrower nutritive ratios were fed a 

 slightly higher jnofit on the foods was shown. This was true notwith.stauding the 

 fact that somewhat more total food was consumed iu the periods with the narrower 

 ratio than in those with the wider ratio. The tendency oi this would probably be 

 as illustrated in the experiment of 1893-'94 upon the influence of the quantity of 

 food upou the economy of milk aud butter production, viz, to decrease the relative 

 profit on the food. The narrowing of the nutritive ratio, however, not only coun- 

 teracted this tendency, but resulted, as shown, in an increased profit." 



As to the effect on the composition of milk of feeding rations of dif- 

 ferent nutritive ratio, the following table summarizes the results: 



Average composition of milk on rations of different nutritive ratio. 



Period 1 



Period 2 



Period 3 



Period 4 



Average of 1 and 4 

 Average of 2 and 3 



Nutritive 



ratio of 



food. 



3.90 

 4.40 

 6.70 

 6.65 

 4.15 



Total 

 solids. 



Per cent. Per cent 



13.11 

 14.01 

 14. 49 

 14.02 

 13.56 

 14.25 



4.09 

 4.74 

 5.13 

 4.87 

 4.48 

 4.98 



Fat in 

 total 

 solids. 



Per cent. 

 31.01 

 33.63 

 35.26 

 34.56 

 32.79 

 34.45 



Nitrogen. 



Per cent. 

 0.560 

 .593 

 .617 

 .002 

 .580 

 .605 



