82 FARM CROPS 



peas or to crimson clover, and cowpea land to rye. 

 This rotation gives soiling crops, silage crops and 

 hay crops; a leguminous crop each year to add 

 nitrogen to the soil; and a cultivated crop each 

 rotation to kill out the weeds and to change un- 

 available plant food into available plant food. All 

 manure made by the herd is added to the soil either 

 in fall or winter, or in both. A practice like this 

 brings up the soil in a very short time. 



ADVANTAGES OF SOILING 



Smaller Area Needed. Where pasturing is fol- 

 lowed, from two to five acres are required for fur- 

 nishing necessary feeding stuffs for each animal a 

 year. It is generally conceded by all who have 

 followed soiling that three-quarters to an acre and 

 a half will furnish the yearly food supply for a 

 mature animal. 



Fewer Fences Needed. The only fences needed 

 with soiling is for the feed lots. This is a saving 

 of land where fences would be put; a saving of 

 capital otherwise invested in fences; and a saving 

 in labor in keeping fences clean and repaired. 



No Food Destroyed by Tramping. The tramp- 

 ing of cattle over pasture lands not only destroys 

 considerable food, but it compacts the soil, es- 

 pecially during wet weather, and greatly damages 

 the physical condition of the soil. As much as a 

 third or half of the pastures are injured by tramp- 

 ing over them. 



Less Acreage Required. If one lives near a 

 city where lands are more valuable, the investment 

 in acres is a matter of considerable importance. 

 The practice of soiling enables the dairyman to do 



