144 



DESCRIPTION OF FEEDING STUFFS 



with great relish. As much as 40 to 50 pounds of apples may be fed 

 daily per head to milch cows with good results. In experiments at 

 the Vermont station 18 apples were found to have about 40 per cent 

 of the feeding value of corn silage when fed to dairy cows. They 

 make an excellent swine feed, if fed either steamed or sliced with 

 the grain feed, but should always be fed while fresh, before fer- 

 mentations set in. According to the results of trials at the Utah 

 station, 19 apples have a similar feeding value for swine as grass 

 pasture when fed with skim milk and shorts. The preceding re- 

 marks as to the value of apples for stock feeding hold good also for 

 other fruits windfalls and culls of pears, prunes, figs, oranges, etc. 

 They are especially adapted for fattening swine, and are quite 

 generally so used in fruit-growing districts. 



The chemical composition of the more important fruits as given 

 by the California station 20 are shown below: 



Composition of Fruits, Edible Portion, in Per Cent 



* Chiefly sugar. 



The main portion of the nitrogen-free extract of the fruits con- 

 sists of different sugars (fructose, dextrose, and some sucrose). 

 Organic acids (chiefly malic acid), pectin and dextrin, starch and 

 pentosans, etc., are also present. The nutritive ratio of apples is 

 about 1:44.2; that of apple pomace (the residue obtained in the 

 manufacture of apple cider), 1:24.7; pears, 1:33.7; oranges, 

 1: 10.9; figs, 1: 16; watermelons, 1 : 9.7, etc. 



According to Jaffa and Anderson, 100 pounds of apples have a 

 feeding value equivalent to 20 pounds of alfalfa hay, 15 pounds of 

 corn or barley, or 18 pounds of wheat bran. 21 



18 Report 1901. "Bulletin 101. Bulletin 132. 



21 A table showing the comparative values of fresh and dried fruits and 

 hay, grains, etc., is published in California Bulletin 132, p. 52; see also 

 Woll, " Handbook for Farmers and Dairymen," p. 19. 



