CHAPTEE II. 



FOOD OF THE COW. 



Pasturage Summer and Winter Feeding Relations of Food to Pasture 

 Malt and Barley Crops of the Dairy Farm, Ensilage Schemes of 

 Cultivation for Dairy Farms. 



IT is intended in this chapter to describe actual practice 

 in a number of instances of cow feeding ; to state such 

 facts as are known on the relations of various foods to the 

 yield and quality of milk; and to enumerate the crops 

 proper for cultivation on a dairy farm. 



The Pood of the Cow in the common practice of our 

 dairy districts is pasturage in summer, and hay and straw 

 with, in some cases, a few turnips or mangold wurzel 

 in winter. She will consume in depasturing from 1 to 

 1J cwt. of grass daily, varying of course according to age 

 and size ; or during seven months of grazing as much as 12 

 to 16 tons of green food. Pastures which would by July 

 have growth enough on them to make from 20 to 40 cwts. 

 of hay, and which will when that is cut grow probably 

 three-fifths as much grass after July 1 as they had grown 

 before, will, if their growth be eaten down from week to 

 week throughout the season have produced from 7 to 14 

 tons of green food per acre. From 1J acre of the best 

 grass lands to as much as 2J of the poorer class will thus 

 be wanted for the summer maintenance of the cow. One 



