FEEDING ON PASTURE 25 



46. Minerals on pasture. — Here again the question of 

 minerals comes up. It has been previously mentioned that proper 

 mineral nutrition is not simply a case of adequate amounts in 

 the feed, but that the maximum utilization of the minerals in the 

 feed only comes through the presence of a factor which aids in 

 their assimilation. Pasture grass contains this factor in large 

 amounts. Thus, when the animals are on pasture it is perhaps 

 the best time of all to add extra lime and phosphorus to the ration, 

 to take advantage of the conditions which make for maximum 

 assimilation. It is of equal importance whether the cow is dry or 

 in full flow of milk, for any assimilated minerals not needed for 

 milk secretion will be stored up in the bones for the next lactation. 

 We suggest one to two per cent of pure, finely ground limestone, 

 ground rock phosphate or steamed bone meal. (13, 32, 38) 



47. Silage and green crops for soilage.— It is not economical 

 to supplement the pasture with grain alone. The cow should get 

 some succulent feed and perhaps some hay also. Silage has a large 

 place in summer feeding. No other feed will so cheaply supply the 

 failing succulence of pasture. Many dairymen have a small silo 

 that they use for summer feeding. With a silo of smaller diameter, 

 a deeper layer can be fed off each day and thus offset the greater 

 tendency to spoil in hot weather. 



Where a farmer is practicing summer dairying and has only a 

 limited amount of silage, he had better save it to supplement 

 pasture rather than feed it all up during the winter. Even if the 

 silo has been opened for winter feeding it can be sealed up to save 

 some for summer feeding. 



A substitute for silage is a succession of green or soiling crops. 

 A properly planned succession will furnish an abundance of palat- 

 able feed from July 1 to November 1 — the time when the pastures 

 need supplementing. The feeding of green crops during the 

 summer adds variety to the ration by giving the cow a change 

 from the silage of winter feeding. However, a successful system 

 of soilage requires careful planning and means considerable work 

 at a time when the farmer is busiest with his other crops. Among 

 the crops usually grown for soilage are: peas and oats, soybeans, 



