ROOT CROPS AND OTHER COMPARABLE FORAGES 585 



cannot be grown, root crops furnish the most satisfactory 

 substitute. One pound of dry matter in root crops is 

 considered about equal in feeding value to one pound of 

 grain. 



Perhaps the principal reason why root crops are not 

 grown where corn or grain sorghums can be produced is 

 the large amount of hand labor required by the former. 



FIG. 62. Root crops 1909-1910. Figures = acres. 



If such be the explanation, root crops are likely to become 

 more important as population becomes denser. At the 

 Cornell Experiment Station the average cost for four 

 years of producing one acre of mangels was $77.28 as con- 

 trasted with $40.77 for corn. The cost per pound of dry 

 matter was low enough to be a profitable substitute for 

 part of the grain rations. 



699. Kinds of root crops. The most important root 

 crops grown for forage are mangels and sugar beets (Beta 



