SUPPLEMENT. 41 



cents per 100 pounds. One acre would thus produce in food 

 derived from the leaves $6.35 ; fresh leaves have 11.99 per 

 cent of dry substance, preserved leaves contain 15.0 per 

 cent ; the leaves of one acre of sugar-beet root contain tliere- 

 fore 585 pounds of dry substance ; which multiplied by 1.75 

 gives about 1,000 pounds of manure from this source of food. 

 The leaves are never fed by themselves. Grouven recommends 

 the following composition of food for every 1,000 pounds of live 

 weight per day : 40 to 50 pounds of preserved leaf-mass, ,40 

 pounds press-cakes, 3 pounds of rape-cake with 6 pounds of hay. 

 In proposing this composition of food, he presumes that 25 

 pounds of perfectly dry hay represent the normal quantity of 

 food required to support 1,000 pounds of live weight per day. 

 A comparison of the mineral constituents contained in 25 

 pounds of dry hay and 25 pounds of dried sugar-beet leaves 

 explains the proposed practice. 



Hay. 

 Potassa, . . . . . .0.80 per cent. 



Phosphoric acid, .... 0.20 " 



Sulphuric acid, ..... 0.07 " 



Chloride of sodium, . . . . 0.12 " 



Dry Preserved Leaves. 



Potassa, 1.00 per cent. 



Phosphoric acid, .... 0.14 " 



Sulphuric acid, 0.28 " 



Chloride of sodium, .... 0.52 " 



The small quantity of phosphoric acid and the large percent- 

 age of sulphuric acid and chloride of sodium in the beet leaves 

 renders their exclusive use objectionable. They are, therefore, 

 fed in common with substances like oat-meal, oil-cake, bran, 

 clover, hay, &c., on account of their richness in phosphates, &c. 

 Preserved beet leaves, it appears from experiments of Tod, 

 increase the production of milk in quality and quantity, whilst 

 press-cakes, if exclusively used, reduce its quantity decidedly. 

 A mixed food of 100 pounds of press-cakes with 75 pounds of 

 preserved leaves produced for every 100 pounds of leaves fed, 

 an increase of 24.5 pounds of milk per day, as compared with 



