Other Phases of Orchard Management 217 



milk cows that use part or most of their feed to put on 

 flesh. Under prevailing conditions in irrigated fruit sec- 

 tions, the yearly income from the dairy cow varies from 

 $25 to $120, depending largely on the type of cow selected. 

 The lower return does not pay expenses, but the higher 

 amount gives a large net profit. 



The breed is a matter of indifference, but the nearer 

 each individual approaches the extreme dairy type, the 

 greater will be the profits from judicious feeding and 

 management. In most fruit-growing sections selling milk 

 or cream is more profitable than marketing butter. 



Alfalfa should be the basis for milk production. In 

 the summer it may be cut daily and fed slightly wilted. 

 Alfalfa for hay for dairy cows should be cut when the 

 first few blooms appear, cured with as little exposure as 

 possible in order to save the leaves, and should have a 

 bright green color. A cow of the right type can be fed 

 profitably all of this hay she will eat. Early cut alfalfa 

 hay is usually too laxative, and this trouble may be over- 

 come by allowing the cow to eat all the good clean straw 

 she wants. A cow will usually eat 2 or 3 pounds of straw 

 daily. 



Fed all the alfalfa she will eat, a cow needs some grain 

 rich in starch. Corn, barley, or oats, or a mixture of these, 

 is the most profitable, depending on the price. The 

 amount of grain to feed varies with the cow. Some cows 

 will return a profit on 4 pounds daily; others can profit- 

 ably be fed 8 to 10 pounds daily. 



Sugar-beets, stock-beets, carrots, mangels, and cull 

 apples may be fed up to 25 pounds per cow daily. With 

 most cows, a larger quantity is detrimental. The trim- 



