204 FIELD AND GARDEN PRODUCTS 



cents cheaper in daily cost. At the Arkansas Agricultural Experi- 

 ment Station two three-year-old steers were fattened on cowpea hay 

 and cotton seed in a feeding trial lasting ninety days. The daily 

 ration consisted of 13 3-5 pounds of cotton seed and 20 pounds of 

 pea hay. The average daily gain was 3 pounds for each steer, and 

 the cattle were in excellent condition during the entire trial. The 

 profit realized was $21.30. The Tennessee Agricultural Experiment 

 Station found that 6 to 10 pounds of cowpea hay could be substi- 

 tuted for 3 to 5 pounds of cotton-seed meal in beef production. This 

 indicates that this hay can be utilized to advantage in place of corn 

 and cotton-seed meal when these feeds are high priced. In the 

 production of milk and butter, the Tennessee Agricultural Experi- 

 ment Station reports that l 1 /^ pounds of chopped pea hay is equiva- 

 lent to a pound of wheat bran, and 3 pounds of chopped pea hay to 

 a pound of cotton-seed meal. With bran valued at $20 a ton a yield 

 of 2^ tons of cowpea hay would mean a return of $40 an acre for 

 the crop, based on its feeding value. Cowpea hay is equally as good 

 as bran for producing a flow of milk. (F. B. 318.) 



Soy Bean for Hay. When cut at the proper stage of growth 

 and carefully cured soy-bean hay is excellent, and for dairy cattle 

 at least yields results equal to alfalfa hay. For hay production soy 

 bean may be planted in cultivated rows, or when the ground is free 

 from weeds they may be drilled or broadcasted. The late or medium- 

 late varieties are as a general thing best adapted for hay production. 

 These varieties grow to a greater height and have finer stems and 

 branches and more leaves than do the earlier sorts. Of the varieties 

 now handled by seedsmen the best for hay production are the Mam- 

 moth and the Ito San. The Mammoth variety makes a very large 

 growth of plant, usually produces a large quantity of seed, and is 

 well adapted for growing in the entire South. The Ito San is 

 smaller, with finer stems, and also yields satisfactory crops of grain. 

 It is at least a month earlier than the Mammoth. Soy bean is not 

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

 except in southern Illinois. The reasons for this are the shorter 

 growing season, which tends to encourage the production of seed at 

 the expense of plant growth, and the general culture of red clover, 

 with which soy bean can scarcely compete m the production of hay. 

 To get the best hay from soy bean it should be cut when half or 

 more of the pods are fully grown, but before they begin to change 

 color in ripening. Another rule, which is probably the better one 

 to follow, is to cut when the top leaves begin to turn yellow. This 

 is the best guide in most cases, but does not always apply, as some 

 varieties, notably the Guelph, shed their leaves without change of 

 color. At this stage of growth the largest yield and at the same 

 time a good quality of hay will be secured. If the cutting is done 

 earlier than this, the percentage of protein will be higher and there 

 will be practically no waste in feeding; but the total yield will not 

 be so large and the difficulty of curing much greater. If the cut- 

 ting is much latex than this, the total food constituents will be greater, 



