30 HATCH EXPERIMENT STATION. [Jan. 



It will be noticed that the bean produces about 300 pounds 

 more flesh formers than the corn, but that the latter gives 

 us over 3,000 pounds more fat and heat producers. These 

 consist chiefly of starch and sugar, both of which are easily 

 digested and valuable foods. The differences in crude fat 

 and in fibre are much smaller, but the balance is slightly 

 with the corn. There can be no doubt, then, that the latter 

 produces the more valuable crop of the two, and the cost of 

 production for equal areas does not differ very materially. 

 In three respects, however, the bean is superior to the corn ; 

 viz., (1) it can draw much of its nitrogen from the air; (2) 

 the bean stubble and roots probably have greater manurial 

 value than those of corn ; and (3) the bean, being so rich in 

 flesh formers, may take the place of such concentrated foods 

 as cotton-seed meal, linseed meal, gluten meal, etc. 



Silage made from either barn-yard millet or corn and 

 medium green soja bean, in the proportion by weight of 

 about two parts of either of the two former to one of the 

 latter, makes a perfectly balanced ration for milch cows, 

 without grain or other feed of any kind. It is not believed 

 that it would be advisable to feed altogether upon this 

 material, for cows like variety, and it is possible that con- 

 tinuous use of a fermented feed like silage would have a 

 prejudicial influence upon health. A combination of such 

 silage and clover hay or clover rowen — about two parts of 

 the silage to one of the hay by weight — would, I believe, 

 give good returns in milk. This particular system of feed- 

 ing has not yet been tried here. 



Miscellaneous Crops. 



We have had under trial a number of miscellaneous crops, 

 including Cystisus proliferous albus, a new fodder plant sent 

 on for trial by J. M. Thorburn & Co. ; yellow niillo maize, 

 from the United States Department of Agriculture ; two 

 varieties of dent corn, from South Dakota; black barley; 

 spring wheat, from South Dakota; horse bean; sacaline ; 

 flat pea and the mummy field pea. None require extended 

 notice at present. 



Cystisus (no common name is given) vegetated slowly 

 and made a slow growth. It appears to be hardy, remain- 



