CHAPTER VIII. 



Storing 



CARE IN CURING 



After all possible care has been taken in seeding, cul- 

 tivating and harvesting alfalfa, its feeding value may be 

 greatly impaired or quite lost by ignorance or careless- 

 ness in storing; that is, by stacking or putting it into 

 sheds or barns, or by baling it for market when in an 

 unsuitable condition. 



The only path to safety in stacking or storing in shed 

 or mow is having the hay in proper condition for com- 

 pleting its own curing. The true medium for its curing 

 is air, not sun; the sun has done possibly more than its 

 share already. But good hay is not completely and 

 properly cured in swath, windrow and cock. If cured in 

 the windrow, the exposed parts are liable to be much 

 injured by the sun. Therefore the principle stands, 

 ''Handle alfalfa green." It must be cut green, teddered, 

 raked and cocked or bunched while comparatively green, 

 and must not then be allowed to dry and parch to brittle- 

 ness. True, it must not be put into a stack so long as it is 

 possible to wring water out of the stalks. A constant 

 study should be to find the best method of getting the hay 

 into storage without loss of its natural color. The method 

 that will safely store it greenest will be the best to follow. 



