;502 



J oiirnal of Agi'icuUure, Victoria. 



10 May, 1919. 



either iu its green state, froshlj cut from the ])addoeks, or as hay or 

 hay chaff, varied a little with green maize, or, in some cases, millet, 

 mangolds, &c. Lucerne paddocks which are almost " run out," and 

 require renewing, are the only ones on w^hich the cows are grazed. In 

 some instances these paddocks contain, besides lucerne, more or less 

 white and strawberry clovers, and prairie, and other grasses, which 

 together form an ideal grazing mixture. But even in grazing cows in 

 such pastures as these, care has to be exercised, owing to the danger of 

 the lucerne "bloating" the cows. The land, however, is too valuable 

 for any quantity of it to be used long as a grazing paddock, and usually 

 after one season's grazing it i^ then prepared for another planting of 

 lucerne. 



Bacchus Marsh Concentrated Milk Company's Factory. 



As in most other districts, the class of dairy cow most favoured here 

 varies according to individual opinion, but the general preference leans 

 generally towards big-framed cows, showing a fair amount of Shorthorn 

 blood. This tendency may largely be accounted for by the fact that 

 there are either within the district, or reasonably close to it, about a 

 dozen properties whose owners are engaged in breeding high class Short- 

 horn cattle, and included amongst them are studs containing some of 

 the best Shorthorn blood in the Commonwealth. Ayrshires are also 

 well represented, and some nice herds of these cattle are to be found; 

 but most other breeds seem to be almost overlooked, for only a few Jerseys 

 are to be seen, and on one property alone a few Holsteins have been 

 recently introduced. Amongst the general run of dairymen the breeding 

 or appearance of any cow is not considered of very great importance as 

 long as she is a good performer, niid capable of turning large quantities 

 of lucerne into a big flow of milk. 



