SUGGESTIONS 289 



tors, like land rent and interest on cost of silo) should be 

 under $ 4. At a much higher figure it would still be the 

 cheapest winter forage for dairymen. With good corn 

 silage (made from ripe corn, ears and all), and with good 

 clover or alfalfa hay, milk cows can go through the winter 

 profitably with little more grain than when on pasture and 

 with about as high a flow of milk. No dairy farmer with 

 as many as ten cows can afford to be without a silo. 



PRACTICAL QUESTIONS 



1. Define forage. 2. In what way does forage differ from table 

 vegetables? 3. What are the characteristics of a good pasture? 

 4. What is hay? 5. Why is timothy a valuable hay plant? 

 6. State some of the reasons why some farmers fail to obtain a good 

 stand of alfalfa. 7. Why is alfalfa a valuable crop? 8. Describe 

 three clover plants. 9. For what purpose are soiling crops used? 

 10. What is silage? 11. What is the relation of silage to soiling? 



HOME EXERCISES 



1. How many tons of forage are raised on your home farm ? Is its 

 market value equal to that of the grains? 



2. Since roots are just as important to plants as stems, and since 

 roots grow in the ground out of sight and for this reason are less known 

 than stems, roots of the common forage plants should be carefully dug 

 up in order to study their main peculiarities. Do you notice any dif- 

 ference between the roots of the clovers and those of the timothy? On 

 which are swellings found? Make a sketch of these roots and bring 

 it to school. 



3. Test your father's seeds for germination according to the method 

 given for garden seeds. Report. 



4. Collect specimens of all the insect and fungus enemies to the 

 forage plants. Bring the specimens along to school and send samples 

 of them to your Experiment Station for identification and for best 

 methods of control. 



SUGGESTIONS 



1. Teachers should study local conditions carefully before home 

 exercises are assigned to the pupils. This of course applies to all home 

 exercises. In educational work the home has been too often neglected 



