N. H. Agr. Experiment Station 



[Bulletin 306 



Further iiiforiiiation on tliis point is piTst'iited by Wooihvorth', wlio 

 gives the amount of digestible protein produeed annually from the va- 

 rious crops in a long rotation of nine years' duration. 



Tlie steady decline in yield which occurs from the third year of the 

 rotation, the year in which a good crop of clover is harvested, is re- 

 flected not only in tonnage produced, but more especially in the amount 

 of digestible protein that is secured. That this decline in yield can be 

 offset to some extent by top-dressing practices has been noted by many 

 research workers. It has also been abundantly recorded that a system 

 of top-dre.ssing not only produces more forage but may raise the pro- 

 tein level of the hay as well. 



Since grass hay plays such an important role in the agriculture of 

 New IlampsJiire. expei-iments have been designed to ascertain how the 

 crop can be made of more value to dairy cows to which it is largely fed. 

 Some of these trials have been concerned with fertilization or methods 

 that may be employed to maintain yields. Another long-time experi- 

 ment has been conducted to indicate how the time of cutting grass hay 

 influences the feeding value from the standpoint of digestibility and 

 protein content. 



It is our purpose to present here th(> results of these findings, not 

 neces.sariiy to iiifiut'iicc fanners to practice longer rotations, but to 

 indicate how iiotli yields and feeding value can be enhanced by fer- 

 tilization and by cutting at the proper time wlieji long rotations are 

 practiced. 



lOxperiments in i)roduciiig grass hay with varying lime and fer- 

 tilizer treatments have been reported previously" from this station. In 

 this test conducti'd at (Ireenlaml wiiicli covered a five-year period, ni- 

 trate of soda top-dressed annually at the rate of 10(1 po\iiids per acre 

 returned an increase of iSOT pounds of cured hay used with iiianure, 1)77 

 pounds used alone, and 787 pounds when used with phosphorus. 



IMios|)liorus. used at the rate of 250 jjonnds of IG'/r superphosphate 

 annually. T-eturned IS'J pounds of cured hay for each 100 pounds of 

 snperjdiospliate applied, when used alone, and S6 pounds when u.sed with 

 nitrate of soda. This substance failed, however, to increase the yield 



=■ The Farm I'ncketbook, U. of N. H. K.xtcnsion Service. May, 1931. 



• Exp. Sta. Bull. 271, April, 1933, Prince, Blood, Phillips, and Percival, 

 Fertilizer Experiments on Run-Out Hay Land. 



