596 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



the other, by the expense of a liberal system of grain feeding and a pos- 

 fible danger of impaired breeding power incurred by excessive fatness. 



If the herd of cows is considerable in number, a ration made up 

 largely of grain would necessitate the expenditure of an amount which 

 v/ould cut deeply into the revenue from sales. A mature cow in calf 

 but not giving milk does not require heavy grain feeding. If given rough- 

 age of the right cbaracfer she connot only be maiotained but will gain 

 in flesh. During the recent years, when grain has been high in price, 

 the importance of having good roughage is more and more apparent. 



In the West we are favored by having alfalfa, a most valuable forage 

 crop for cows. It can be made the entire ration for a dry cow, but more 

 economy is practiced if our cheap corn-stalks are fed with it. Stalks, 

 cut just as soon as the corn is ripe and then properly cured in the shock, 

 are relished by cows and should be fed, not only because the stalk is a 

 product which might easily be wasted, but because it makes alfalfa a 

 more nearly balanced ration for cows, lessens the tendency to scour, 

 and furnishes variety. The quantity of alfalfa fed should be double that 

 of corn-stalks. Without corn-stalks, prairie hay, sorghum, Kafir-corn or 

 oat straw could be used in the same way; without alfalfa, clover or 

 cow-peas could be substituted. Whereas the cow before calving needs but 

 little or no grain with rough feed of the right kind, the suckling cow 

 needs a ration of groat efficiency which means one made up of a liberal 

 allowance of grain. The tax on such a cow is so great and the full nour- 

 ishment of the growing calf is so important, it is poor economy to prac- 

 tice anything but a liberal system of grain feeding. 



The feed for the young mother should not only be liberal, but it should 

 be of a character that will stimulate a good flow of milk. For developing 

 a young calf nothing seems so good as fresh whole milk. Our well-bred 

 beef cows are not especially noted for milk records, and anything which 

 can be dono to make them yield their maximum will be duly appreciated 

 by the calf. Here again we find it advantageous to make liberal use of 

 alfalfa for the roughage part of the ration. Alfalfa is especially suited 

 for milk-production because of its high protein content and its richness 

 in mineral constituents. In both it compensates corn perfectly, gives us 

 a balance of nutrients which meets physiological requirements. What 

 is still more noteworthy is, that the best balance of nutrients is obtained 

 ■when just enough alfalfa is fed with corn to give the correct proportion 

 of grain to roughage. 



While I do not think that with us the time has come when the making 

 of ensilage will be found the most profitable way of handling the corn 

 crop for fattening stock, I do think a silo should be found on every farm 

 devoted to the breeding of pure-bred cattle. We all know that there 

 is nothing like good blue-grass to make a milch cow do her best. For 

 \\ inter feeding, the nearest approach to blue-grass is roots or ensilage. 

 Both are extremely succulent, which quality is certainly desirable for 

 milk-production. Here in the West we can put up ensilage at a cost per 

 ton not to exceed half of that for mangel-wurzels of other roots when 

 the latter are sliced ready for feeding. One could hardly conceive of a 



