No. 4.] CATTLE FOODS. 19 



meals ; about twenty to twenty-one cows are milked, and 

 the owner and one hired man do the labor with two horses. 



On the other farm about thirty cows are in milk ; all the 

 hay is bought, at about fourteen dollars to fifteen dollars per 

 ton ; and a mixed grain is fed, composed of highly nitrog- 

 enous feeding stuffs. The milk pays for the feed and labor 

 and a small margin over. The farm is a small one, and is 

 given up to the cultivation of garden crops entirely. The 

 owner's estimate of income is about ten cents' worth of ma- 

 nure per animal daily, or three dollars a day. The manure 

 from these cows is therefore the primary consideration of this 

 dairy. 



I have endeavored to enforce the primary need of buying in 

 the cheapest possible form the necessary plant food to maintain 

 the fertility of the farm. With the same investment in land, 

 animals, labor and tools, land so managed will give an in- 

 creased yield of fodder with which to produce more milk, 

 without adding to the expense of attendance, hauling or 

 otherwise. 



How SHALL Grass be Maintained? 

 The question now presents itself. How shall grass be main- 

 tained without too often breaking the soil for seeding ? In 

 relaying the grass land, what crop shall we plant, and how 

 long shall we crop before reseeding? On general principles, 

 it is perhaps best to lay down the rule that all land should 

 be reseeded to grass after two years of hoed crops. My own 

 preference is corn on sod, followed by a root crop. This 

 permits of thorough cleaning on land that can be easily 

 worked, and yields two of the most useful crops to a dairy- 

 man. Variety of plants is nature's favorite combination for 

 sustaining animals, when grass is the exclusive food. In win- 

 ter we can hardly have too great a variety of fodder with 

 which to mix our grain substances. The more varied an 

 animal diet, the more agreeable ; and agreeableness is a great 

 factor in the digestion of food. How much corn, what kind, 

 how it shall be planted, and what disposition shall be made 

 of it when harvested, are questions which each must solve 

 for himself, atter fully considering his circumstances. 



