192 FEEDING ANIMALS. 



winter rye. The oat crop is best put in with a drill, three 

 bushels of seed to the acre for soiling, but to be matured 

 as grain, two to two and a half bushels of seed is better. 

 Two harrowings with the slanting-toothed harrow should 

 be given to stimulate the growth of the oats and cause them 

 to tiller freely. Oats will then grow very thick, and the 

 heading will be somewhat delayed so that, at a foot high, 

 they may be cut for soiling and another crop grown rapidly. 

 But it is best, generally, to cut only one crop and then the 

 grain should be in milk, as at that point it contains the 

 largest amount of digestible nutriment, but if there is a 

 considerable quantity to be used, cutting may be begun 

 when fairly headed out. 



PEAS and OATS may also be combined in the same soil- 

 ing crop, and they will be ready to cut at the same time. 

 This combination of green food is of the very best the 

 pea and the oat being both rich in albuminoids it furnishes 

 a most excellent fattening food, as well as one for the 

 production of milk. They both grow well together and 

 largely increase the amount of nutriment For seed, mix 

 two bushels of peas to forty quarts of oats, and then drill 

 in four bushels of the mixture to the acre. This will give a 

 good stand, and soon cover the ground and keep down the 

 weeds. This combined crop is ready to cut as soon as the 

 pea is in blossom, but is best when the seed is in milk. 

 We have had a yield of fourteen tons of this combined 

 green food to the acre, and no better food is grown. This 

 united crop may be put in early, as frost does not injure 

 either peas or oats. 



COMMON MILLET (Panicum Milliacium). On a dry, 

 rich, light, well-pulverized soil, millet will furnish an abun- 

 dant yield of green food of the best quality. But, being a 

 fine seed, it is not adapted to heavy soils, which do not 

 easily pulverize, especially not without thorough under- 

 drainage. Heavy clay loam, if rich and finely pulverized, 



