2c6 



Journal of Agriculture. 



[lo April. 1909. 



Naturally, it must follow that the animal which will eat the largest 

 amount of food, and which at the same time is of such a disix)sition as 

 to require a small amount for maintenance purposes, is the most pro- 

 fitable cow to keep, and this important point can only be ascertained by 

 weighing each cow's milk, testing it weekly, and judicious culling out 

 of the unprofitable cows. 



Green versus Dry Fodders. 



The advantages and disadvantages in feeding green as compared with 

 dry fodders has alwavs been a much discussed subject. After weighing 

 both sides, it seems feasible that the compounds- of a cured or dry 

 fodder, which has not deteriorated through fermentation, are practically 

 what they were when in the green, freshly-cut stage, excepting that the 

 water has evaporated out of the green tissues, and that in the curing 



5. (10) eci 



(1 i) sim.KV, 8 I'-T. 6 IN. 



there is a probable loss of an. imperceptible amount of ^'olatile com- 

 pounds, whose presence in the plant affects its flavour. It is obvious 

 that drying a plant diminishes its palatableness and increases its tough- 

 ness, thus increasing the work of mastication. It is not always possible 

 to dry fodders under perfect conditions, and when they are subjected to 

 long continued and slow drying in rainy weather, fermentation takes 

 place with the probable loss of considerable material. All these risks 

 can be done away with bv having a silo and conserving the fodder in its 

 natural condition, until required for feeding purposes. A very im- 

 portant point that is mostly lost sight of by the farmer is the absolute 

 necessitv of cutting his fodder crops at the right stage of maturity, and 

 it is here that a great amount of waste often occurs in the feeding value 

 of the crop bv cutting it in an immature condition. 



In general, it is recognised that as a plant matures the proportion of 

 water, protein, and ash matter decreases, while the proportion of carbo- 



