190 CHEMISTRY OF FARM PRACTICE 



roughages, and even where they are harvested and threshed, 

 the straw has some value as roughage. 



Oat straw is the most nutritious of the straws, and may be 

 used to advantage as a part of a maintenance ration. 



Oat hay is easily grown, and is much relished by stock. 

 The time of cutting should be decided to some extent by the 

 stock for which it is to be used. The protein content in- 

 creases until early in the milk stage of growth, when the hay 

 should be cut, if a maximum protein content is desired. Most 

 of the starch in oats is formed after the beginning of the milk 

 stage ; hence, if a feed high in nitrogen-free extract is desired, 

 the cutting should be delayed as long as possible, for there 

 is a rapid increase in the total dry matter of about 40 per 

 cent from the early milk stage to maturity, the combined 

 starch and sugars increasing at this time from about 13 to 

 30 per cent. For dairy cows and young and growing stock, 

 the early cutting would be advisable. For feeding along 

 with highly nitrogenous feeds, the later cutting will be best. 



143. Legumes. The legumes should be grown and used 

 for roughage as much as possible on account of their beneficial 

 influence on the soil, in addition to their high content of 

 digestible nutrients. 



Alfalfa hay is especially valuable for practically all 

 classes of stock. It is excellent for dairy cows and fattening 

 steers. For dairy cows it may be used as a substitute for a 

 small part of the concentrate, yielding cheaper milk; while 

 in fattening beef cattle it may be used to a larger extent 

 in replacing the concentrates. It has an especial value as 

 a maintenance ration for young hogs, and can be used to 

 some extent for fattening hogs. Sheep thrive on alfalfa 

 hay. Work horses can use it to good advantage, but it is 

 not advisable to feed it to driving horses. 



Red clover is much used in rotations in the Northern part 

 of the United States. When well cured red clover hay is 

 a desirable feed for horses. Experiments show that it gives 

 splendid results for fattening beef cattle, both by reducing the 



