72 FARM MANAGEMENT 



the cotton cakes would do, the undecorticated 

 being best for washy pastures. Crushed oats 

 and hay are also good, oats, in particular, being 

 excellent for butter-making cows, as no food 

 produces such well-flavoured butter as oats. 

 The cows must, of course, have sufficient 

 water. 



When the pastures fail, that is, about the end 

 of September, the cows are brought indoors and 

 put on winter rations, whose composition will 

 depend on the food-stuffs available. The follow- 

 ing is an example of such a ration : — 20 lbs. 

 mangels, 30 lbs. hay and 2^- lbs. decorticated 

 cotton cake. 



Improving Cows. — Considerable improve- 

 ment is often possible in many dairy herds, 

 because although an average yield of 600 

 gallons per annum is regarded as satisfactory, 

 yet it is by no means uncommon for individual 

 cows to yield 1000 gallons and upwards. 

 Evidently then there is scope for improvement. 



The first step to take in improving a herd is 

 to institute milk records, if they are not already 

 in vogue. Records of every cow's daily yield 

 should be kept on every dairy farm, as they 

 enable the farmer to select with exactness the 



