STOCKUAISING IMPORTANT 



33 





Large Areas Adapted to Beef Making 



I'eady in the co-operative associations now successfnlly liandling the stock of 

 shii)pers of less than carload lots. The number of such carloads steadily in- 

 creases, but instead of raising beef alone, the small farmer is also producing hogs. 



AVhile Montana, as well as the other northwestern states, does not now pro- 

 duce enough pork to meet consumption, the growing interest and success in 

 swine-raising indicates this condition will be changed in Mon- 

 Hog Raising tana. Students of animal husbandry are inclined to believe 

 there will be two distinct swine industries in the state — one, 

 located in those irrigated districts not adapted to corn Imt to alfalfa and small 

 grains where feeders can lie economically raised and disposed of in the corn 

 districts for finishing. 



Most of the agricultural districts west of the continental divide are naturally 



adapted to dairying and the industry is more developed in this region than east 



of the divide. The grasses are more lush than on the eastern 



Dairying side, the season of green pasturage is longer and the climatic 



environment is favorable to milk production. "Where these 



conditions obtain, and. in addition, the tillable lands are irrigated, dairying is 



becoming one of the chief industries. Cow-testing associations are being formed 



and many high-producing cows shipped in. 



East of the mountains, dairying is largely confined to the irrigated districts. 

 Its possibilities are just being realized. Irrigated pastures, easily carrying two 

 cows to the acre, more than double the period of flush production, and insure a 

 longer grass season than is found in all but a few extremely favored districts in 

 the northern half of the United States. The irrigated farmer raises his own 

 alfalfa for winter forage and the grains required in a balanced milk production 

 ration. What can be done in this line is shown in a report of the United States 

 Department of Agriculture on thirty-two cows owned by it that completed official 

 records with an average of 10,910.7 pounds of milk and 461.36 pounds of 

 butter fat. Four of the records were made by cows on roughage alone at the 

 government irrigated farm at Huntley. Montana. One cow. brought from the gov- 

 ernment farm in Maryland, made a higher record on rougha.sie alone at Huntley 

 than she did on roughage and grain in Maryland. 



