256 



THE KOTHAMSTED EXPERIMENTS. 



Produce 

 retained 

 for stock- 

 feeding. 



Increased 

 production 

 and eco- 

 nomical 

 feeding. 



Improve- 

 ment in 

 live stock. 



founded on the average amounts of produce obtained, over 

 eight courses, in the fully manured rotation, the particulars 

 of which were given and discussed in the paper on Rotation 

 above referred to. 



It is true that the exact figures given in the table have 

 only reference to a particular case, and that in practice there 

 will sometimes be larger and sometimes smaller proportions 

 of these constituents of the crops at once sold, or retained on 

 the farm. Nevertheless, the illustrations may be taken as 

 essentially typical, and as so far conveying a very useful 

 impression on the subject. 



Eeferring to the figures, the question arises — To what bene- 

 ficial or profitable purposes are about two-thirds of the total 

 vegetable substance grown, more than half its nitrogen, 

 nearly half its phosphoric acid, and about four-fifths of its 

 potash, retained on the farm? Briefly stated, it is for the 

 feeding of animals for the production of meat, milk, and 

 manure, and for the exercise of force — that is, for their labour. 

 It is, then, the facts, and the principles, involved in the feed- 

 ing of the animals of the farm for these various purposes, 

 that we have now to consider. 



It is obvious that, so long as a country is only sparsely 

 populated, and the needs of the people are amply supplied 

 under a comparatively rude system of agriculture, in which 

 extended area precludes the necessity for improved methods, 

 there would be little either of scope or of inducement to 

 study economy in the feeding of animals, or to systematic 

 practice in regard to it. But as population increases in 

 proportion to area, there arises the necessity for increased 

 production over a given area. It was pointed out in our 

 paper on Eotation that, in our country, gradually a greater 

 variety of crops came to be grown ; that first leguminous 

 crops, and then root-crops, were introduced, and finally the 

 system of rotation became general. Thus, a much greater 

 variety, and a much greater quantity, of home-produced 

 stock-foods became available ; and in time foods of various 

 kinds were imported from other countries. 



Somewhat similar changes in their food resources occurred 

 in various parts of the Continent of Europe ; and with these 

 came the inducement, if not the necessity, to pay more atten- 

 tion to the subject of feeding. The end was, however, sought 

 to be attained by somewhat characteristically different methods 

 in our own country and on the Continent. With us, more 

 special attention was paid to the improvement of the breeds 

 of the farm animals themselves — not only to enhance the 

 development of the most valuable characters in the final 

 product, but to secure early maturity, and thus materially 



