New York Agricultural Experiment Station. 401 



In table II are given the results of a feeding trial with eight cows 

 from October 21st to November 30th. The average age of these 

 cows was 3.2 years and they had been in milk on the average 9.5 

 months at the beginning of this trial. 



From October 21st to 31st, mixed hay was fed three times a day and 

 a mixed grain consisting of seven parts wheat bran, five parts ground 

 oats, and three parts eacli of corn meal and linseed meal, O. P. The 

 grain represented 44.6 per cent, of the cost of the ration and sup- 

 plied 36.1 per cent, of the total digestible nutrients. 



From November 1st to 15th corn silage was fed at noon, mixed hay 

 morning and night and the same mixed grain. The grain repre- 

 sented 47.3 per cent, of the cost of the ration and supplied 35.7 per 

 cent, of the total digestible nutrients. The silage represented 13.4 

 per cent, of the cost and supplied 22.4 per cent, of the total digest- 

 ible nutrients. 



From November 16th to 30th mixed hay was fed at night and corn 

 silage morning and noon. The grain was the same as for the preced- 

 ing period. The grain represented 51.4 per cent, of the total cost 

 and supplied 36.4 per cent, of the total digestible nutrients. The 

 silage represented 27.3 per cent, of the cost of the ration and sup- 

 plied 42.2 per cent, of the total digestible nutrients. 



In changing from the first period to the second, when com silage 

 was substituted for part of the hay the amount of food digestible re- 

 mained the same although the nutritive ratio was made slightly 

 wider. The cost of the ration was somewhat lessened. A small in- 

 crease in the milk flow and in the per cent, of fat in the milk fol- 

 lowed the change and the cost of the milk and of the fat was some- 

 what reduced. 



The second change to more silage and less hay made the nutritive 

 ratio still wider, due to a lesser amount of protein digestible, there 

 being little change in the amount of the other constituents. A 

 somewhat increased flow of milk followed the second change but 

 there was a falling off in the per cent, of fat. The lower cost of the 

 ration lessened the cost of the milk and fat produced. 



There was considerable gain in live weight during the first period 

 and a small average loss during the two following periods. The 

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