56 CHAPTER 5. 



the rain washes out the sugar, gum, and other soluble properties. For 

 similar reasons hay ought not to be turned over on damp days, when the 

 air is saturated with moisture." 



" It is desirable that a crop be cut as soon as it reaches maturity, 

 before any of the nutritive qualities are gone. It is essential that it be 

 cut before the flowering heads have fully seeded. When the mowing is 

 delayed later, the hay will be deficient in nutriment and aroma, and its 

 constituent fibres will be as dry as straws. In grasses, as in other 

 annual vegetable productions, the process of seeding exhausts the plant, 

 and the stem no longer contains nutriment or moisture." 



Hay made from grass which has been purposely .left standing until 

 perfectly ripe, with the view of threshing out the seed for sale, is alto- 

 gether worthless. 



97. Mow -burnt hay. 



Mow-burnt is a name given to hay which has heated in the stack, 

 either 1st, from having been stacked too soon, i. e. before the juices of 

 the grass are sufficiently dried ; or 2nd, from the grass having been 

 stacked when wet from rain or dew. 



Mow-burnt hay is easily recognised by its dark colour and high smell. 

 Whether or not it is fit for use is entirely a question of degree. Slightly 

 mow-burnt hay may be used with impunity, especially if given in 

 moderate quantities mixed with sound hay. Horses are fond of it, but 

 it is apt to affect the kidneys. 



On the other hand, hay may be so mow-burnt as to be a mere cinder. 

 Such is obviously unfit for use. 



98. Dust in hay. 



Dust in hay commonly arises from the hay having got slightly damp, 

 and having afterwards become quickly dry without passing into the stage 

 of mouldiness. The apparent dust is the debris of the outer coats of the 

 stems and leaves, which decay and fall off in the process of heating, 

 which has taken place as the result of damp. 



In different atmospheric conditions, or perhaps in another place of 

 storage, hay not more damp might have become mow-burnt or mouldy. 



Dust may also arise from hay having been overdried before being car- 

 ried, or from having been much exposed to weather. In the first-named 

 case the dust arises from breaking up of the outer coats of the fibres 

 from over-dryness, and in the latter from decomposition owing to expo- 

 sure. 



Dust is occasionally due to a blight having fallen on the crop whilst 

 growing. 



Dust, from whatever cause arising, is always an unfavourable feature 

 in hay. 



98a. Second crop of hay, or aftermath. 



The second crop of hay, whether of upland or lowland growth, other- 

 wise called the aftermath, is very inferior to the first, and is unfit for 



