FIELD CROPS 469 



valuable grain to combine with corn to balance the ration. They 

 are little used for fattening poultry. 



Use as By-Products. As the principal aticle manufactured 

 from oats is oatmeal, so the principal by-products of oatmeal man- 

 ufacture are oat feeds. If these feeds contain a considerable propor- 

 tion of small oats and broken kernels they may form a valuable ad- 

 dition to the ration. If, however, they are made up largely of oat 

 hulls, as is often the case, they have about the same value as other 

 coarse roughage and can not be considered as a concentrate. The 

 corn and oat feeds on the market are usually made up of cracked 

 corn and the refuse from oatmeal mills, which, as just stated, often, 

 consists largely of oat hulls. Their feeding value does not ordinarily 

 justify the high prices at which they are usually sold. 



Utilization of the Straw. Oat straw is quite largely used for 

 feeding to horses, cattle, and sheep. As a part of a maintenance 

 ration, it is of considerable value, being nearly equal to corn stover 

 (the stalks with the ears removed). If the straw is of good quality 

 there will be less waste in feeding than with stover. It is higher in 

 feeding value and more palatable than the straw from any other 

 small grain. A common practice in feeding oat straw is to allow 

 the animals to run to the stack at will. This is wasteful when rough- 

 age is high in price, as much of the straw will be trampled under 

 foot and worked into the manure. A better plan is to feed the straw 

 from mangers or open racks, as there is much less waste from feed- 

 ing in this way. If roughage is low in price and straw is plentiful, 

 however, the extra expense of hauling the straw to the racks will not 

 be justified. 



Where it is not utilized for feeding, oat straw is largely used 

 for bedding for animals and in the formation of manure. When 

 combined with the droppings from animals, it serves to hold the 

 liquid manure, gives bulk, and adds humus and considerable fer- 

 tilizing material to the soil. At the present prices of commercial 

 fertilizers, $3 a ton is a conservative estimate of the value of oat 

 straw as a fertilizer. It is altogether too valuable to burn, a com- 

 mon practice in some sections. Oat straw is not extensively used in 

 manufacturing, rye, wheat, and rice straw being the kinds that are 

 commonly utilized. 



Use as Hay and Pasture and for Soiling. A considerable 

 acreage of oats, either alone or in combination with peas or vetch, 

 is harvested annually for. hay. Oat hay is produced to some extent 

 in the South, particularly in those sections where the crop does not 

 produce grain satisfactorily, and in the Pacific Coast States. With 

 Canadian field peas, oats are grown for hay in the northern portion 

 of the United States and in Canada, while this crop is grown with 

 vetch in the Pacific Northwest and in a very limited way in the 

 South. If cut when the grain is in the milk, oats make a very palat- 

 able and nutritious hay, which is readily eaten by stock of all kinds. 

 The addition of peas or vetch increases the yield of hay as well as its 

 feeding value. Hay from oats alone or from oats and peas is cut 

 and cured like other hay, though if the crop is heavy it may be 



