LECTURE LXXIV. 



FORAGE CROPS FOR SWINE. 



Forage crops of some kind are very commonly used in. 

 connection with the production of pork. Various kinds have 

 been used in this country and some kinds are especially 

 suited to one locality, some to another. One of the main 

 things to be considered in planting forage crops is to get a 

 variety so that there will be plenty of feed throughout the 

 entire season. Many men make the mistake of confining 

 themselves to some one crop, thus have an abundance of the 

 same at certain seasons of the year while at other seasons of 

 the year they have little or no green feed for their hogs. 



The use of green feed of some kind either during the- 

 summer or winter months has proven to be very beneficial 

 to the health of the animals. This is especially true in the 

 case of breeding animals and young stock intended for breed- 

 ing purposes. It seems to be necessary to supply forage of 

 some kind to animals intended for breeding purposes. Forage 

 crops also serve another purpose. They are very valuable 

 in balancing the ration. This is especially true in sections 

 of the country where corn is the staple grain crop grown. 

 Corn, while rich in carbonaceous matter and very valuable 

 from a fattening standpoint, does not contain enough protein 

 and ash for the proper development of bone and muscle. 

 Most of our forage crops, especially those belonging to the 

 legume family, are very rich in protein and ash, thus make 

 an excellent adjunct to the corn ration. Alfalfa, clover, soy 

 beans, cow peas, and the Canadian field pea are all very 

 valuable in this respect. 



As previously mentioned, it is very important to supply a 

 variety of forage crops in order that there may be an abund- 

 ance of green feed at any and all seasons of the year. Some 

 men who are very successful in the swine breeding business 

 use rye, which has been sown the previous fall, to supply 

 the earliest green feed in the spring of the year. When rye 

 is sown in the month of September it furnishes an excellent 



