CATTLE FOODS NATURAL PRODUCTS 



223 



tant factor in this relation and may affect the product in 

 three ways: (1) in the quantity of material harvested, 

 (2) in the composition of the crop, and (3) in the palata- 

 bleness of the resulting fodder. In discussing this ques- 

 tion we must recognize the fact, first of all, that in these 

 respects no general conclusion is applicable to all crops. 

 What would be wisest in the management of the meadow 

 grasses might be wasteful in handling the legumes, and 

 especially so in harvesting maize. 



308. Maximum yield of forage crops at maturity. 

 It is safe to assert that in general the maximum quan- 

 tity of dry matter is secured when forage crops are 

 allowed to mature fully and ripen. The only exception 

 to the rule is found in the legumes such as the clovers 

 and alfalfa, where at maturity the leaves unavoidably 

 rattle off and are lost, either before or during the process 

 of curing. The fact that growth of dry matter takes 

 place up to the time of full maturity is well illustrated by 

 the results of experiments conducted on the farms of the 

 Pennsylvania State College, the New York Experiment 

 Station, and the University of Maine, in cutting timothy 

 grass, clover, and maize at different stages of growth. 

 These results are summarized in the accompanying tables: 



TABLE XLIV. TIMOTHY GRASS (YIELD OF DRY HAY TO THE ACRE) 



