DAIRY FARMING DAIRYING. 177 



for their culturo are discussed. A system of Sdiliiij; crops for 10 cows is sntrjrested 

 with tiie times for seediuii and cuttinjr, and tiie area of each. Several }j;rain mixtures 

 for feediiifi to cows in connection with the soiMng crops are given; and the composi- 

 tion and digestibility of grasses, cereals, legumes, and various fodder mixtures, as 

 well as the number of pounds of digestible dry matter, protein, and carbohydrates 

 in different weights of the several fo<lder groujis are taV)ulated. 



Studies on the rational use of the prickly pear ( Opuntia ficus indica ) for 

 feeding milch cows, G.Stogia {Vtaz. Sper. Ar/r. lUiL, 1900,}). ll.i; abs. inCeiitbl. Agr. 

 CJie //., n>00, X<i. l.\ pp. SOS, 804). — An experiment was made with 5 cows in feeding 

 cut stems of prickly pear in combination with ))ran and hay. The prickly jjcar con- 

 tained: Protein 0.04 per cent, fat 0.128, carbohydrates 2.fi. It was found that 25 kg. 

 pritkly pear and 14 kg. good hay made a very desirable ration. The milk secretion 

 was increased by feeding prickly pear in the ration, the water content remaining con- 

 stant or becoming a little less. It is advisable to expose the prickly pear to the sun 

 for 5 days before feeding. If the plant is young, less than 3 years, it is apt to cause 

 a slight diarrhea; if too old the plant will be somewhat woody. 



Report of the Hvilan Control Association, 1899-1900, X. Haxsson [Landl- 

 mainien, 11 (1900), Xo. J9, pp. 4'>7-407). — This association was formed in 1898 for 

 the purpose of controlling and improving the production of the dairy herds of the 

 members who reside in the district of Hvilan, Sweden. The work described in the 

 present report covers the period from May 1, 1899, to May 1, 1900. Eighteen dairy 

 herds, containing in all about 300 cows, were regularly tested every 21 days during 

 the year by the assistant in charge of the work. The system of feeding practiced 

 on the different farms, as well as the production of the individual cows, was 

 determined, and the economy of the production in each case and for the different 

 herds. The latter is calculated on the basis of so-called " food units," 1 kg. of grain 

 feed being assumed equivalent to 2.5 kg. of hay, 4 kg. of straw, 10 kg. of roots, etc. 

 Some of the average results for the year for 235 cows that finished a whole year's 

 w^ork are as follows: Milk produced per head, 3,327.4 kg.; average fat content, 3.19 

 percent; butter fat produced, 106 kg., equivalent to 116.71 kg. butter; co.st of pro- 

 ducing 1 kg. milk, 1.7 cts., and 1 kg. butter, 44.6 cts. (about 20 cts. a {)ound). The 

 rations of the cows consisted (per 100 food units) of 38.4 per cent concentrated foods 

 (11.1 per cent oil cakes) and 61.6 per cent of coarse fodder. 



The educational value of the work of these control associations, which during the 

 last decade have been formed in large numbers in the Scandinavian countries, and 

 especially in Denmark-, can hardly be overestimated. A gradual improvemen't in 

 the production of the herds and in their ecVinomy of production has been wrought, 

 line first of all to the weeding out of the poorest cows in the different herds, and also 

 to the adoption of a better system of feeding and c-aring for the animals, and to the 

 use of superior pure-bred hulls. — f. w. woll. 



Report of the Control Association of Vejen and. Vicinity, 1899-1900, 

 C. NvEGA.VKU {Mdlkefitld., IS [1900), No. S7h, pj). 591-638). — The report^gives detailed 

 information concerning the individual production and food consumption of 598 cows 

 in 25 different herds, for the winter and the summer periods, as well as for the whole 

 year, and average annual data for 13 herds for a period of 5 years, 1895-1900. A 

 • letailed account is also given of the cost of rearing and keeping young cattle, bulls, 

 and swine on the farms belonging to this Danish control association. — f. w. woll. 



The dairy herd, II. J. Watkks (Mlxmuri State B<1. Ayr. Bui., I {1901), Xo. l,pp. 

 04-70). — A pojiular article on the selection, l)reeding, and feeding of dairy cattle. 



The influence of the amount of water consumed on the milk secretion, R. 

 Koc-ii {Jour. Ijtiidir., 49 {1901), Xo. 1, pp. 01-88). — The o))ject of the experiment 

 was to study the influence of the water consumed upon both the yield and the com- 

 position of the milk. Previous work along this line is reviewed at some length. In 

 the i»resent experiment 2 cows were fed similar ratitms during 4 periods. In the 



