No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 303 



The arrangement of this discourse will be taken up in the same 

 logical order as we make a study of any particular farm with refer- 

 ence to establishing a better system of farming for more profitable re- 

 turns. This is given to you as a guide to enable each farmer to make 

 a study of his own farm in the same way and to think out solutions 

 for the many problems which every farmer has to meet. In order to 

 do this, therefore, the first question to decide is the best type of farm- 

 ing which can be followed with profit, whether a livestock, grass or 

 grain, fruit, market gardening type of farming, or any combination 

 of each. After deciding this question, it is necessary to satisfy condi- 

 tions. This question will cover the number of work stock, such as 

 horses and mules, and the number of cattle. 



THE FARM PLAN. 



If livestock or dairy faruiing is to be followed, then it is particu- 

 larly necessary to estimate the number of dairy cows which can be 

 kept with profit on the farm. In order to do this, each farmer must 

 figure out the amount of forage crops or grain necessary to feed each 

 animnl, and first of all one must decide on the raticm for each kind 

 of animal. For examjile, — su])pose we have a problem to work out 

 the best plan for a dairy farm. There are several feeding systems 

 which can be followed, such as pasture in summer with no silage, 

 pasture with silage, soiling crops without silage, soiling crops with 

 silage, or silage for twelve months. These feeding systems may be 

 more or less combined. It will first be necessary to find out the num- 

 ber of days or periods as for example, the number of days that silage 

 is fed or the period of i)asture, estimating the pounds of each material 

 given during this period, for adult animals, for ^^earlings, for calves 

 and for work stock. Then calculate the total amount of the different 

 feeds necessary for the entire year. It will also be necessary to esti- 

 mate the proportion of yearlings and calves to adult animals. As 

 a general thing, we find that the average farmer will keep about one- 

 half as many young stock, both yearlings and calves, as adult animals. 

 In other words, in order to maintain the herd, we assume that there 

 will be one-fourth as many yearlings as there are cows and one-fourth 

 as many calves as cows, and in estimating the feed for each cow and 

 corresponding young stock, calculate the amount of feed, both forage 

 and grain, for one cow for the entire year and add to that one-fourth 

 of the amount of feed necessary to support one yearling and one- 

 fourth of the amount of feed necessar}^ to supyjort one calf. 



After finding out the tons of feed of the ditTerent food materials 

 necessary for one cow and corresponding young, find the acreage or 

 the fraction of an aci'e necessary. Assume the average yield of farm 

 cro])s, then divide the amount of each feed found for one cow and 

 corresponding young stock by the yield per acre, which will give the 

 acreage necessary. After determining the acreage of available land 

 which can be used for farm crops or pasture, subtract from this acre- 

 age the iureage necessary for the work stock, and divide the remain- 

 der hj the acreage necessary for one cow and corresponding young, 

 which will give you the number of cows which can be kept upon the 

 farm if the whole area is devoted for growing forage for the stock, 

 if grain or other money croi)s not used for feed are grown, then the 

 acreage of these crops must be deducted with the acreage for the work 

 stock before we can determine the number of dairy cows which can be 

 profitably kept. 



