BERMUDA GRASS. 15 



No detail in the marketing of hay has more to do with the final 

 profit than the matter of grading. If a customer wants a fancy 

 grade of hay, he must be willing to pay a fancy price, while if he is 

 willing to accept a grade which is less fancy but which is just as 

 good for feeding purposes, he usually will be able to purchase his 

 supply at a much lower price. 



The National Hay Association standard grades for different hays 

 are now generally used in all leading hay markets. These grades 

 for Bermuda hay are as follows : 



Xo. 1. Bermuda hay shall be Bermuda grass mixed with not more than 10 per 

 cent of native grasses, color of uniform greenish cast, sound, tender, and well baled. 



No. 2. Bermuda hay shall be Bermuda grass mixed with not more than one-fourth 

 native grasses, color of greenish cast, "with not more than 15 per cent brownish blades, 

 sound, tender, and well baled. 



Xo. 3. Bermuda hay shall be Bermuda grass mixed with not more than one-fourth 

 native grass, color of brownish cast, sound, and well baled. 



While there are no great differences hi the actual feeding values 

 of the three grades, there is a considerable difference in their market 

 selling prices, and the grower should govern his practice accordingly. 



Hay which has a bright-green color is always hi demand, as it 

 has been well cured. As a matter of fact, as has been shown by many 

 tests in this country and in Europe, hay which has become somewhat 

 browned in curing but which is not moldy or musty is just as valua- 

 ble for feeding as that which is green in color, but it does not sell 

 as well on the market. In the United States green hay commands a 

 much higher price. The grower should always try to make green 

 hay when he proposes to sell the product , while the browned hay can 

 be saved for use on the farm. Horses and mules will eat the latter 

 hay as readily as the former. The greatest value in the green color 

 is as a guaranty that the hay is*well cured and free from dust and 

 mold. 



The next most important specification is in regard to baling. 

 All grades must be well baled, as no customer wants bales with one 



or two loose wires. 



FEEDING VALUE. 



Little accurate work has been done at any of the agricultural 

 experiment stations in making either feeding or digestion tests with 

 Bermuda hay, though the general experience of feeders in all parts 

 of the South has shown that it is fully as valuable as any other grass 

 hay. 



Bulletin Xo. 15 of the Mississippi Agricultural Experiment Station 

 reports that six lots of cows, five cows in each lot, were fed for testing 

 different rations for the production of milk and butter. One of these 

 lots was fed with Bermuda grass and another with timothy hay, 

 both lots receiving the same grain ration. The financial results of 



