526 



NUTRITION OF FARM ANIMALS 



620. Cooperative experiments. The cooperative experi- 

 ments under the auspices of the German Agricultural Council 1 

 relate to the influence of palmnut cake or meal and were made 

 according to a common plan at seven different institutions with, 

 in all, 1 86 cows. The experimental periods covered about one 

 month each, of which the first 5 to 7 days were regarded as a 

 preliminary feeding. The comparison was between 4 pounds 

 of palmnut meal per 1000 pounds live weight and an amount 

 of a mixture of maize meal and peanut meal supplying equal 

 protein and energy values (computed). After correcting for 

 the advance of lactation, the substitution of palmnut meal re- 

 sulted not only in each of the 7 experiments as a whole, but with 

 nearly all the individual cows in a distinct increase of the fat 

 production. The total quantity of milk yielded was substan- 

 tially unaffected, so that the percentage of fat in the milk was 

 increased. The average effects of the palmnut meal were as 

 shown in the following table. 



TABLE 150. EFFECTS OF PALMNUT MEAL ON MILK PRODUCTION 



In general, cows that were good milkers seemed more sus- 

 ceptible to the effects of the palmnut meal than those yielding 

 smaller amounts. It was also observed that the effect did not 

 immediately follow the change of feed but developed gradually, 

 reaching its maximum in the course of one or two weeks, and 



Berichte iiber Landwirtschaft, Heft 21 and 23. 



