86 FIELD AND GARDEN PRODUCTS 



with finer stems, and also yields satisfactory crops of grain. It is at 

 least a month earlier than the Mammoth. Soy beans are not as a 

 rule to be recommended as a hay crop north of the Ohio River, 

 except in southern Illinois. 



Curing the Hay. The planting should be timed, so that the 

 crop can be cut for hay in September, as this month is usually the 

 most satisfactory for hay-making. The cutting may begin as soon 

 as the dew is off the plants and continue for the rest of the day. The 

 plants should be allowed to lie in the swath until the leaves are well 

 wilted, but great care should be exercised to rake them before the 

 leaves become dry and brittle. After raking into windrows they 

 should be left for a day or two, depending on the weather, and then 

 put in small cocks or bunches. Three to five or six days of good 

 weather is ample time for making good soy-bean hay. Great care 

 should be used to prevent the loss of leaves, since these are the most 

 valuable part of the plant except the pods. When the hay is dry, it 

 should be put in good-sized stacks or under a shed. If it is stacked 

 in the open field it is very essential that some other material, either 

 grass or a canvas cover, be put over the stack, as soy-bean hay does 

 not shed rain well. Yields of from 1 to 3 and occasionally 4 tons 

 of cured hay to the acre are secured. The average yield is about 2 

 tons per acre. Curing frames can often be used to good advantage in 

 making soy-bean hay, especially in unfavorable weather. The ob- 

 ject of these frames is to keep the cocks open, so as to prevent mat- 

 ting and to allow the circulation of air. They are usually three or 

 four sided pyramids made of boards or poles 3 to 6 feet long, fas- 

 tened together at the top and held by crosspieces near the base. By 

 this device a hollow cock or shock is secured, and consequent better 

 curing. In stacking the hay, poles or logs placed in the center of 

 stack, so as to leave passages for air, will greatly lessen the danger 

 of spoiling. 



Soy Beans for Pasturage. The soy-bean crop can often be prof- 

 itably utilized by pasturing, particularly to hogs, especially when 

 fed corn in addition. This is advisable when harvesting is interfered 

 with by lack of labor, bad weather, or other causes and when the 

 crop is grown especially for soil improvement. 



Soy Beans in Mixtures. There has been but little experiment- 

 ing as yet in growing soy beans in mixtures with other plants. What 

 little has been done indicates that the bean may be satisfactorily 

 grown in combination with a number of other agricultural crops. 



Soy Beans and Cowpeas. These two make a very satisfactory 

 mixture for hay purposes. The tall, strong-growing varieties of soy 

 beans are to be preferred for this combination, as the cowpea is a vin- 

 ing plant and needs something to hold it up so that it can be readily 

 harvested. The hay of such a mixture is more desirable than the 

 hay of either crop alone, as it affords variety. The yield also is 

 nearly always greater. There is no doubt that most live stock prefer 

 the soy bean to the cowpea in this mixed hay, but both plants are 

 eagerly eaten by practically all kinds of farm stock. 



In sowing soy bean and cowpea seed in mixture about 1 bushel 



