32 THE BUSINESS OF DAIRYING 



about August ist at the rate of two bushels per acre. 

 It is a good practice to seed rye with barley. The 

 rye makes a good growth in the fall after the barley 

 is harvested, holds over the winter well and starts 

 early in the spring. 



Additional crops. Some other crops which have 

 been grown with more or less success are teosinte, 

 sorghum, velvet beans, winter oats, and lupines. 



A few standard crops best. Some dairymen make 

 the mistake of attempting to grow a great variety 

 of forage crops, many of which are uncertain and 

 not adapted to their particular farms. A few stand- 

 ard crops well cared for will usually prove the better 

 plan. For example, rye and wheat for early feeding, 

 followed by large areas of alfalfa (which can be cut 

 three or four times during the summer), and this 

 in turn followed by oats and peas and corn will give 

 a continuous supply if the areas devoted to each 

 were adjusted to the size of the herd. The soiling 

 system may be made still simpler by simply grow- 

 ing alfalfa and corn. With this plan the feeding 

 period could begin about the middle of May and 

 continue until frost. 



WHAT CONSTITUTES VALUE IN FORAGE 



(i) Yield and composition. In the case of 

 fine feeds, the amount and quality of the nutrients 

 they contain are taken as the basis in making a com- 

 parison of their feeding value. This method is also 

 applicable in comparing the value of forage crops 

 for milk production. The number of tons produced 



