HAMPSHIRE COUNTY FARMERS' MONTHLY 



DAIRY RECORD SUMMARY FOR NOVEMBER 



Heavy Grain Feeding Continues. Cows only being fed enough 

 Home-grown Feeds to keep them alive 



Number of Cows Giving Lbs. of Milk Per Day 

 Lbs. Milk Per Lb. Grain 1 10^20 "20^30 | 30. 1-40 [Above 40 |% of Total 



The October Dairy records showed that 

 56.6% of the cows reported were giving 

 less than 3.1 lbs. of milk for a pound of 

 grain. This month's table shows that 

 54.2% are giving like returns from grain 

 fed. In checking over the feed records 

 for November, we found that the major- I 

 ity of the cows in this group had to be ■ 

 fed this way because they were getting 

 just hay and silage enough to barely keep 

 them alive. When this system of rough- 

 age feeding is employed, grain must be 

 fed at the rate of 1 pound to every 2.5-3 

 lbs. of milk produced. Out of every dol- 

 lar received for milk, 33 1/3 cents is 

 needed to meet the grain bill. If the cows \ 

 would return 4 lbs. of milk for 1 pound 

 of grain, only 20 cents out of every dollar 

 would have to be paid for grain. The 

 13 1/3 cents thus saved would stay right 

 on the farm where every farmer knows 

 it is sadly needed. 



i 

 Profitable Feeding 



The table above brings out the fact 

 that it is possible to get 4 pounds of milk 

 for 1 pound of grain. 16.2% of the cows 

 ■did it in November. The table shows that > 

 this return can be secured from cows giv- '■ 

 ing from 10 to 40 lbs. of milk per day, so 

 the ability is not confined to cows of any 

 particular production. The reason that 

 more cows are not in this class is that 

 too many of them are not being fed any 

 place near roughage enough. 



Two herds illustrate the "low roughage- 

 high grain" and the "high roughage-low 

 grain" systems of feeding. Both have 

 about the same quality and number of 

 cows. They both have the same quality 

 of hay and silage and feed the same 24% 

 dairy ration. Each cow in herd A was 

 fed 7 pounds of Mixed Clover and Timo- 

 thy hay, 28 pounds of silage and 3 pounds i 

 of corn stover per day. Each cow in 

 herd B received 15 pounds of Mixed Hay ' 

 and 35 pounds of silage per day. The 

 roughage ration fed the cows in Herd A i 

 furnished just enough digestible nutrients 

 to maintain the cows. Then every pound 

 of milk in this herd was produced from 

 nutrients supplied by purchased grain. It 

 took about 1 pound of grain to produce 

 2.5-3 pounds of milk. The roughage fed 

 Herd B furnished enough nutrients to 

 maintain the body weight of the cows and 



left quite a lot for milk production. As 

 a result, the cows in this hei'd average 

 over 4 pounds of milk for every pound of 

 grain fed. The following shows the 

 amount of grain fed to cows giving dif- 

 ferent amounts of milk in herd B. Cows 

 giving 15 pounds of milk get 3 pounds of 

 grain; 20 pounds of milk, 4 pounds of 

 grain; 30 pounds of milk, 7 pounds of 

 grain; 40 pounds of milk, 10 to 12 pounds 

 of grain. 



The system used in feeding Herd A. is 

 good business when milk is high and 

 grain is relatively low. At the present 

 time it is not good business. It is a sys- 

 tem used by too many farmers. It is 

 true that this system usually lets the 

 farmer handle the maximum number of 

 dollars. Unfortunately these dollars are 

 the "circulating" kind that are taken in 

 by one hand from the milk check and 

 immediately put into circulation to pay 

 gi-ain bills with the other. The system 

 used in Herd B may not take in quite as 

 many dollars during the year, but more 

 of these dollars are the "Adhesive" kind 

 that stick in the farmers pocket. It is 

 to get this kind of dollars that most farm- 

 ers keep cows. 



Where We Are Headed 



The main object of our Dairy Record 

 work is to get dairymen to feed economi- 

 cally. Briefly stated, this means feeding 

 maximum amounts of home-grown feeds 

 such as hay, silage, and corn stover. 

 Then supplementing these home-grown 

 feeds with the right kind and amount of 

 grain so as to produce milk at a minimum 

 feed cost. To do this, the farmer must 

 know how much milk each cow is pro- 

 ducing, — how much hay and silage .she 

 eats daily, and then give the right num- 

 ber of pounds of grain. To assist in this 

 work we are furnishing instruction and 

 milk record sheets. We are adding these 

 up so that one may know just what each 

 cow is doing. Then we are .showing 

 where a saving can be made in the feed- 

 ing operation. This service can mean 

 dollars in the pockets of dairymen of this 

 county. Record sheets and instruction 

 blanks are being sent to dairymen in the 

 county this month in the hope that many 

 will try out the system for a few months j 

 at least. Why not send yours in to-day? 



Annual Mcetin;^ 



Continued from page 1. column 2 

 business carried on in this country. He 

 displayed a large tube — the fourth that 

 he has collected, which contained samples 

 of patent medicines which have been sent 

 to him to be analyzed. He stated that the 

 tube contained capsules and tablets which 

 were said to cure 120 different disorders. 



He stated that Americans, as a whole, 

 eat too much meat, as the body only 

 needs 10 percent of protein in the daily 

 ration. Thirty percent of the daily ra- 

 tion should be fat and oils, 60 percent 

 starches and sugars. About 1 oz. of 

 crude fibre daily also is necessary. In 

 addition, mineral salts are needed for 

 health. Large amounts of the mineral 

 salts are found in vegetables. One ex- 

 ample of what the lack of mineral salts 

 will do is found in sections where goiter 

 is common. This is caused by the lack 

 of iodine in the ration. The sea is the 

 main source of this material. Vegetables 

 grown here are rich in iodine while those 

 grown in the middle west have none. 

 This fact was recently brought up while 

 analyzing celery from the Connecticut 

 Valley and some from Michigan. 



Many digestive disorders are brought 

 about by poor combinations of food. 

 Bread, meat and cereals all leave a very 

 ! acid salt in the stomach. For this i-eason, 

 a bread and meat sandwich is one of the 

 worst possible combinations that can be 

 eaten. This acid salt is neutralized by 

 eating vegetables. Fruits and cider vine- 

 gar produce the same effect. The old 

 fashioned boiled dinner is one of the be.st 

 balanced meals. Many cases of Rheuma- 

 tism are due to acid forming foods. This 

 can often be cured by eating lots of fruits 

 and vegetables and less meats and cereals. 



In addition to the carbohydrates, pro- 

 tein and mineral salts, it has recent- 

 ly been discovered that the body needs 

 vitamines. At the present time three are 

 known. Vitamin A increases the growth 

 of the individual. It is found in largest 

 amounts in Cod liver oil and in yellow 

 roots such as carrots. Vitamin B in- 

 fluences nerves and reproduction. It is 

 found in the outside of vegetables, in 

 milk and some in meats. Vitamin C is 

 found in fruit juices. It keeps away 

 scurvy which is often noted in persons. 

 It causes teeth to fall out and joints to 

 swell. 



Prof. Allyn stated that the cabbage was 

 the pei'fect vegetable, as regards vita- 

 mins. The outer leaves contain vitamin 

 A, while the inner parts have vitamins 

 B and C. To be of greatest value, how- 

 ever, cabbage should never be cooked over 

 15 minutes, as longer cooking destroys the 

 vitamins. Spinach too can be spoiled by 

 cooking over 10 minutes. 



To be healthy. Prof. Allyn stated that 

 we should eat plenty of vegetables, fruit 

 and dairy products. 



