30 DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



AMOUNT OF GRAIN AND ROUGHAGE TO FEED. 



With her enormous pauiich. a cow can take care of a lot of roughage. An 

 animal with au immense middle has a much greater producing capacity than a 

 shallow cow, but needs grain or some more concentrated food to do her best. 

 The following rules for winter feeding are practical : 



(1.) Feed all the clover or alfalfa hay that the cow will clean up at feeding- 

 time. Feed for the succulent part of the ration at least 35 Ib. of roots or 

 silage per day : 



(2.) In addition, feed 1 Ib. of grain per day for each pound of butter-fat pro- 

 duced per week, or 1 Ib. of grain daily for each 4 Ib. of average milk. 

 The latter rule applies only when good roughage is fed, such as clover or alfalfa 

 hay combined with silage or roots. For a cow giving richer milk (over 4 per cent.) 

 more grain should be fed. If timothy hay is used, more grain will be necessary. 



HOME-GROWN BALANCED RATIONS. 



Timothy hay is not a good dairy feed, as it is poor in protein and requires 

 expensive concentrates to balance it. The cheapest source of protein is legume hay, 

 such as clover and alfalfa. These are much better than timothy, and less of the 

 expensive grain is necessary to feed with them. By replacing timothy with alfalfa 

 the grain part of the ration may be cut in two. 



Roots and silage provide succulence in the whiter ration, which helps production 

 and tends to kfcep the animals healthy. Most farmers fail to provide enough suc- 

 culence for their cows. 



A balanced ration is one in which the proportion of protein or nitrogenous 

 material to the other nutrients is about right. Protein goes to form the curd of 

 milk, and it is the nutrient usually lacking. 



The following are some good rations for cows giving about 25 Ib. daily : 



(1.) Corn silage or roots 35-4 ."> ll>. 



Clover hay 1 .'. 



Wheat bran 4 .. 



Ground oats 3 



(2.) Corn silage or roots 40-50 .. 



Alfalfa hay 15 .. 



Ground barley 4 



Bran 2 .. 



(3.) Clover hay 2" .. 



Mangels 4" 



Ground oats 3 



Ground barley '' 



(4.) Corn silage 40 .. 



Clover hay 10 .. 



Carrots 20 .. 



Wheat bran 3 



Ground oats - 



Cotton-seed meal or linseed-oil meal 1 



(5.) Clover and timothy hay 1 ' 



Green kale '-'' ' 



Bran, oats, and barley-chop 4 



(6.) Ration for cow giving 40 Ib. of 4-per-cent. milk daily : 



Corn silage 35 Ib. or mangels 55 Ib. 



Alfalfa or clover hay 12-15 .. 



Grain mixture 1" 



(Oats, bran, and barley, 3 Ib. of each ; linseed-meal 

 or soy-bean meal, 1 Ib.) 



