Lucerne 



Table XXVI. 



Experiment in Feeding Lucerne. 



13 two-year-old steers, weighed on April 17th, were 

 kept in the yard and fed as follows : — 



I cwt. lucerne P.C. = if^. On April 17 av. wt. 



soilinsr ditto \d. r\~ ^ J 



° On July 23 av. wt. 



3 lbs. crushed barley i^d. = 11307 lbs. 



,, , J . , , Increase in 07 days 



•? lbs. chopped straw 4a. ^ iu lu 



■^ ff 4 213-6 lbs. = 2 lbs. 



Cost per beast per day 5^. per beast per day. 



N.B. — The average gain for two-year-old shorthorns 

 as recorded at Smithfield Market = 1-93 lbs. per day, 

 but here they were fed on a full ration of concentrated 

 food of at least 7 lbs. per day. 



A few intelligent and progressive English farmers 

 have been feeding their pigs on lucerne this sum- 

 mer, and thus have saved using meal which is so 

 costly on account of the war. The most scientific 

 way of feeding lucerne to pigs is undoubtedly to 

 chaff it and perhaps sprinkle a little meal upon it, 

 but it can also be cut and thrown to them without 

 chaffing. 



Many practical farmers, when they hear the use 

 of lucerne advocated, will say that the labour of 

 green-soiling it, i.e. cutting it and taking it to the 

 beasts, will be prohibitive. Though they are ac- 

 customed to handling turnips in the winter in very 



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