Feeding Stuffs. 143 



we may conclude that rye must have nutritive value with domestic 

 animals. Farm animals show no particular fondness for rye in 

 any form, tho they take it willingly when mingled with other feed- 

 ing stuffs, as it always should be. It has been charged that since 

 ergot, a fung-us having medicinal properties, grows on rye heads, 

 this grain may prove dangerous to farm animals and even cause 

 abortion — a charge that seems unwarranted in view of the exten- 

 sive use of rye for human food. 



177. Rye and its by-products. — In Germany^ work horses are fed 

 from 2 to 4 lbs. of rye daily with oats or other concentrates. (415) 

 According to Boggild,^ rye imparts a characteristic flavor to milk 

 and may cause bitter butter. The Scandinavian Preserving Com- 

 pany of Copenhagen, which preserves butter in sealed cans for 

 shipment to distant countries, prohibits the feeding of rye on the 

 farms of its patrons. The limited use of rye with dairy cows 

 should usually prove satisfactory. (625) Fjord's experiments with 

 pigs show that rye has a feeding value about equal to barley, and 

 that the quality of pork from rye-fed pigs is satisfactory, A com- 

 bination of barley and rye was found superior to rye shorts alone. 

 The pork from rye shorts was inferior, showing more shrinkage 

 and being softer than that from mixed rye and barley. In one 

 trial rye shorts caused sickness among the pigs. (853) 



VI. Emmer. 



178. Emmer as a feed. — Emmer, Triticum sat., var. dicoccum, often 

 improperly called "speltz, " was introduced into America from 

 Germany and Russia. It is a member of the wheat family, altho 

 in appearance the grain resembles barley. Being drought resist- 

 ing, emmer is especially valuable in the semi-arid regions of Amer- 

 ica, where it is now extensively and profitably grown. The ad- 

 herent hulls of emmer represent about 21 per ct. and the kernels 

 79 per ct. of the grain, which weighs about 40 lbs. to the bushel. 

 At the Kansas Station^ emmer gave a heavier yield of grain than 

 either oats or barley, and at the Western Nebraska Substation* it 

 yielded 23 bushels per acre. In general the returns are from 20 

 to 40 bushels per acre. The South Dakota Station'' found emmer 



^ Pott, Futterm., p. 395. * Bui. 95. 



^ Malkeribruget i Denmark, 1st ed., p. 70. " Bui. 100. 



' Bui. 123. 



