1919] 



ANIMAL PEODtrCTIOlT. 



69 



first few weeks. Lot 3 received half this amount, lot 2 no corn, and lot 1 

 corn only during the last third of the trial. In addition these animals received 

 cottonseed meal (2.5 lbs. per 1,000 lbs. live weight, daily), good corn silage, 

 and clover hay. The 3 other lots were kept on a medium corn ration. Two 

 were fed corn-and-soy bean silage, and the third corn silage. The latter lot 

 and one of the mixed-silage lots received no concentrates other than shelled 

 corn. As to the character of the mixed silage, the following remark is made: 

 " The corn and soy beans were grown separately and the two crops were mixed 

 at the cutter in the proportion of two parts by weight of green corn and one 

 part green soy beans. The corn used was similar in yield and stage of 

 maturity to that used for the straight corn silage. The soy beans were still 

 green, no pods having turned brown, but the beans were well formed in the 

 pods and the leaves were turning yellow." 



The results are summarized in the following table: 



Tests of corn ration, kind of silage, and use of protein supplements in steer 



feeding. 



1 Received no corn first 80 days. 



Corn was charged at $1.12 per bushel and cottonseed meal at $53.50, clover 

 hay $25, and both kinds of silage $7.50 a ton. At these prices lot 2 produced 

 a pound of gain most cheaply and lot 4 next, but owing to low total gains and 

 decreased finish, lot 2 was not as profitable as lot 4. A table gives the neces- 

 sary selling prices per hundred pounds of lots 1 to 4 under changing corn 

 prices. In this table the price of a ton of silage is put at $1 more than five 

 times the cost of a bushel of corn. 



No conclusive differences were found between the two kinds of silage. Com- 

 paring lots 4 and 5 with lots 7 and 6, respectively, it appears that the omission 

 of a protein supplement decreased the economy of gain, the finish of the animals, 

 and the profits per head. 



Hogs ran with each lot and the data on pork produced, grain consumed by the 

 hogs, and the profits from pork are included. Since varied amounts of corn 

 were given the hogs of different lots and in some cases shorts and tankage, 

 exact comparison of the lots with respect to amounts of pork can not be made. 



Cattle feeding investigations (Kansas Sta. Rpt. 1918, pp. 40-42). — Continu- 

 ing past practice (B. S. R., 40, p. 369) calves from the Fort Hays substation 

 were fattened for baby beef at Manhattan during the winter. Five lots, each 

 consisting of 6 steers and 4 spayed heifers, were fed for five months. The 

 check lot received the following approximate daily ration : Shelled corn 10 lbs., 

 linseed meal 1.7 lbs., immature corn and Kafir corn silage 10 lbs., and alfalfa 

 hay 4.5 lbs. ; the others, some variant of this. A ration in which the corn was 

 ground produced slightly greater gains and more finish than the check ration 

 and the added profit more than offset the cost of grinding. A lot receiving 

 cottonseed meal instead of linseed meal showed inferior finish, although the 



