326 ALFALFA FARMING IN AMERICA. 



too early may be plowed and resown in late July 

 after being cut two or three times. 



Repeating the Mowing. Once one gets started 

 over the field cutting for soiling he ought to manage 

 to come around with his second cutting in about 35 

 days. This is not very difficult to manage. Suppos- 

 ing the normal time for alfalfa harvest to be June 

 1, if he begins cutting for soiling on May 15, which 

 he very easily can do, and cuts a strip each day till 

 June 20, he will not find the crop very woody, and by 

 that time his first cutting will be ready to go over 

 again and so on in rotation all summer long. 



Soiling for Dairy Cows. Doubtless the dairy cow 

 relishes green food most of any farm animals, and 

 needs it most. There is something about green sap 

 that makes milk. Dry that sap and it never is so 

 good again. Then dairies are often situated in re- 

 gions where feeds are dear. A man keeping cows 

 near any of our eastern cities can find immense profit 

 in growing alfalfa for feeding green as well as dry. 

 There is not a dairyman with a little farm land who 

 can not grow alfalfa with splendid profit. He has 

 the manure for starting it, he has the market in his 

 own animals for the forage. If he can make a living 

 at all in the dairy business he can make money, and 

 plenty of it, with the aid of alfalfa and soiling. 



Soiling on Pasture. I have already mentioned a 

 system of feeding that combines practicability with 

 economy and gives good results, that is the feeding 

 of green alfalfa in racks on pasture. These racks 



