204 One Thousand Questions in Agriculture 



Alfalfa Grinding. 



IS the curing of alfalfa for grinding different from ordinary; has it 

 to be chopped before grinding, and what is the cost of grinding? 



Alfalfa hay should be cut when the very first blossoms commence 

 to appear. At this point the plant contains the greatest amount of 

 protein ; from that time on until seed time, the protein diminishes and fiber 

 increases. To make meal, hay should be well cured, have gone through 

 the sweat, and should be dry, or as near dry as possible. It mills 

 easier when dry and makes a finer product. It should be cured so as 

 to retain the green color. To grind it, it is not necessary to cut it 

 before grinding, it mills better if ground just as it comes from the 

 stack. The cost of milling hay varies with the size of the machine, 

 condition of hay, whether dry or damp, or whether tough or tender. 

 With larger plants of a capacity of four to five tons per hour, it costs 

 about 45 cents a ton to put it in the sack, exclusive of the cost of 

 sacks; and with smaller, it runs from that on up to $1 to $2 per ton. 



Feeding Calves. 



How soon can calves be weaned and not hinder their growth? After 

 weaning, what would you advise to feed them? 



After the calf has once nursed, it should be taken away from its 

 mother, but fed its mother's milk for a few days, depending on the 

 vigor of the calf. Commence to add skim-milk after a week or ten 

 days, adding a small amount at first and increasing it daily until the 

 calf is on an entirely skim-milk diet. The milk must be sweet, it 

 must be as warm as its mother's milk and the calf must not have too 

 much of it. Four quarts at a feed twice a day is sufficient for the 

 average sized calf for the first month, then increase it accordingly. 

 Add a spoonful of ground flaxseed to each feed and teach the calf to 

 eat a little grain as soon as possible. Ground barley is the most 

 economical feed to balance a ration containing so much skim-milk. 

 If calves show a tendency to looseness of the bowels, feed less milk, 

 and when this does not remedy the trouble, heat some skim-milk to 

 boiling and when it is cooled to a proper temperature feed this to the 

 calf. A good grain ration to feed calves along with skim-milk is 

 ground barley with green alfalfa hay. When the milk is cut off, feed 

 barley and bran soaked with molasses water. Put a pint of molasses 

 in a pail of water and dampen feed with it. This amount will dampen 

 three bushels of feed. — W. M. Carruthers. 



Winter Feed for Sheep. 



What zvould be the best to sozv for sheep pasture — barley, oats, rye, 

 vetch or rape? 



Of the grains, rye is usually found to be best for quick winter 

 growth, and rye and vetches sown together are very satisfactory, be- 

 cause the rye holds the vetches up so that the whole growth can be 

 more successfully handled with the mower, and if grown that way and 



