56 A TEXT-BOOK OF GRASSES 



quantity of hay produced, and the climatic conditions 

 render this unnecessary. 



71. Hay in the West. — When hay is made on a large 

 scale such as prevails on many western ranches, the pro- 

 cess involves the use of several appliances not often seen 

 on the smaller farms of the East. The mower and horse- 

 rake are common everywhere. To transport the bunches 

 of grass hay to the stack a sweep or bull rake is often 

 used. This is an implement with large teeth, that slides 

 along the ground and under the bunches. For alfalfa it is 

 better to load on wagons as the sweep tends to shatter 

 the foliage. The sweep can not be used for long distances. 

 At the stack the hay is transferred from the wagons or 

 from the sweeps by large forks worked by horse-power. 

 These forks are operated in connection with some form of 

 pole derrick, or less frequently with a cable derrick. Nets 

 or slings are often used to unload wagons. These are 

 placed at intervals in the load, which can then be hoisted 

 off in three or four parts with a derrick. 



72. The standard hay on city markets in the East is 

 timothy and all other kinds are estimated in comparison 

 with timothy. The demand here is for hay suitable for 

 horses, and custom has come to consider timothy as best 

 satisfying this demand. Clover mixed with timothy may 

 increase the feeding value but may also reduce the mar- 

 ket value in these markets. The demand for timothy in 

 preference to other hay is largely due to the wishes of the 

 livery stables, timothy being considered by horsemen to 

 be the best hay for livery horses. 



In localities in which prairie hay enters the market, 

 it is demanded in preference to alfalfa for livery horses. 



73. Baled hay. — In recent years the baling of hay has 

 become an important industry and baled hay has almost 



