292 PRINCIPLES OF FEEDING FARM ANIMALS 



milk is obtained from one pound of dry substance in the 

 form of silage than from the same amount of dry substance 

 in corn fodder. It should be fed \\ith clover or alfalfa hay 

 and a mixture of concentrates, which should contain hnseed 

 meal, cottonseed meal, gluten feed, or some other nitrogenous 

 concentrate. 



For Beef Cattle. — There is no roughage which is of more 

 importance to the producer of beef cattle than silage. Just 

 as pasture is almost essential in summer for breeding cattle, 

 so is silage necessary' in A\'inter. In fact, experiments 

 now in progress at the Illinois Station seem to indicate 

 that silage may be substituted in large part for pasture in 

 the summer. Corn silage with clover or alfalfa hay will 

 bring the breeding herd through the ^\'inter in good shape. 

 Oat straw or corn stover may be used as the dry roughage, 

 if a pound of hnseed meal or cottonseed meal is added to the 

 ration. 



For fattening cattle, corn silage is one of the most eco- 

 nomical feeds if properly used. It produces exceptionally 

 cheap gains in the early part of the feeding period. In 

 feeding silage to fattening cattle they should be fed as much 

 of it as they will consume at the beginning of the feeding 

 period. This should be 40 to 50 pounds per day per 1000 

 poimds live weight. Most failures in feeding silage to fatten- 

 ing cattle are due to the fact that the feeder started them 

 in on a small amount and gradually increased it. Corn 

 silage may furnish all or only part of the roughage in the 

 ration of fattening steers. In either case, nitrogenous con- 

 centrates, such as Unseed meal or preferably cottonseed meal, 

 should be fed ^vith corn in addition to the roughage. Fed 

 as the sole roughage, a ton of silage is equal to one-half ton 



