572 FEEDS AND FEEDING 



fed sweet sorghum silage with alfalfa hay and either corn or kafir 

 grain gained 0.35 to 0.40 Ib. per head daily excellent gains. 



In certain districts of the west, where the climate is too cool or too 

 dry for corn, sunflower silage has recently come into prominence as a 

 feed for sheep. (384) Hackedorn of the Washington Station 75 found 

 that lambs fed sunflower silage with pea straw, barley, and beans made 

 considerably smaller gains than another lot fed corn silage in place of 

 the sunflower silage. No difficulty was experienced in getting the lambs 

 to eat the sunflower silage and they wasted little. Sunflower silage gave 

 good results when fed with pea straw to breeding ewes. Joseph also se- 

 cured satisfactory results with sunflower silage for breeding ewes in a 

 trial at the Montana Station. 76 One lot of 15 ewes was fed a ration of 

 2.2 Ibs. sunflower silage, from plants harvested when 30 per ct. were in 

 full bloom, and 3.0 Ibs. alfalfa hay, with oats in addition for 20 days be- 

 fore the lambing season. Another lot was fed alfalfa hay without silage. 

 Both lots were maintained in satisfactory condition. In this trial it took 

 2.5 Ibs. sunflower silage to replace 1 Ib. of alfalfa hay. On the other 

 hand, in other trials sunflower silage has been decidedly inferior to 

 sorghum silage or to pea and barley silage. 77 



Field pea silage is an excellent feed for sheep, where peas flourish. 

 (355) In the vicinity of pea canneries fattening sheep and lambs on 

 ensiled pea vines and pods is an important industry, especially in Wis- 

 consin. (356) Some dry roughage, such as corn stover or hay, is sup- 

 plied in addition to the silage, and grain or screenings fed, especially 

 during the latter part of the fattening period. For example, 78 one win- 

 ter one man fed about six thousand 59-lb. lambs for an average of 94 days 

 on a ration of 1.6 Ibs. of grain, chiefly corn and screenings, 3.5 Ibs. pea 

 vine silage, and a small allowance of hay. The lambs gained 0.30 Ib. per 

 head daily on the average, requiring 541 Ibs. grain and 1,147 Ibs. silage 

 for 100 Ibs. gain. 



Pea and oat silage proved practically equal to corn silage for fattening 

 lambs in a trial by Iddings and Hickman at the Idaho Station. 79 Pea and 

 bald barley silage was worth $5.05 a ton for fattening lambs in a trial by 

 Potter and Withycombe of the Oregon Station, 798 with alfalfa hay at 

 $8 and barley at $25 a ton. 



871. Wet beet pulp. This by-product is extensively fed to fattening 

 sheep in the vicinity of the beet-sugar factories in the western states. 

 (275) Because the pulp is a cheap feed, the sheep are commonly given 

 all they will eat, along with alfalfa hay. This admirably supplements 

 the pulp, which is low both in protein and lime. Feeding a limited 

 allowance of corn, barley, or other grain in addition is usually advis- 



^Information to the authors. "Information to the authors. 



^Information to the authors. 79 Ore. Bui. 184. 



"Barlow, Breeder's Gazette, 80, 1921, p. 183; Potter and Withycombe, Ore. 

 Bui. 184. 



'"Country Gentleman, 79, p. 808. 



