12 



BULLETIN 628, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



these steers, while it cost $10.10 per steer to winter those in Lot 1, or 

 more than twice as much. Comparison of the spring prices shows 

 that the steers in Lot 4 cost $0.73 per hundredweight more in the 

 spring than they did in the fall, while those in Lot 1 cost $1.57 more, 

 in Lot 2 $1.67 more, and in Lot 3 $1.73 more. It cost more than 

 twice as much in every case to winter the cattle in the barns as it did 

 to winter those on pasture when the cost of feed and the gain or loss 

 in weight of the cattle are considered. 



In 1914-15 it cost $12.20 to winter each steer of Lot 1. The fall 

 cost per hundredweight was $6 and spring cost $7.96. The silage 

 cattle in Lot 2 cost $7.58 per head to winter; the fall cost per hundred 

 pounds was $6 and the spring cost $7.30. The silage-fed cattle in 

 Lot 3 gave practically the same results. The cost of wintering them 

 was $7.45 per hundredweight. It cost $6.29 per steer to winter the 

 cattle in Lot 4. The spring price per hundredweight was $6.70, or an 

 advance of $0.70 per hundredweight over the intial cost in the fall. 

 The advance in the spring price per hundredweight on Lot 1 was 

 $1.96 ; on Lot 2, $1.30, and on Lot 3, $1.43. The winter-grazed cattle 

 gained in weight while those in the barns lost weight. 



During the winter of 1915-16 the dry- fed cattle (Lot 1) cost $11.08 

 per steer to winter. The spring price of this lot was $7.69, an 

 advance of $1.69 over the fall cost. The cost of wintering the silage 

 cattle in Lots 2 and 3 was $6.78 per steer, and the increased cost in 

 spring was $1.22 and $1.25, respectively, per hundredweight. The 

 winter-grazed cattle (Lot 4) , as in previous years, cost less to winter 

 than the cattle in the barns, and at the end of the winter they were 

 heavier than they were the previous fall. It cost $5.23 per steer to 

 winter them, or an advance of only $0.60 per hundredweight over 

 the initial cost. 



SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS. 



Table 5 is a general summary of the three years' work. 



Table 5. — Summary of the three winters' tvork. 



Lot 

 No. 



Ration. 



Year. 



Gain (+) 

 orlcss (— ) 

 for winter 

 per steer. 



Initial 



cost per 



cwt. 



Cost to 



winter 



per 



steer. 



Cost in 



spring 



per 



cwt. 



Advance in 



spring cost 



over initial 



cost per 



cwt. 



1 



Ear corn, corn stover, hay, and 

 straw. 



1913-14 

 1914-15 

 1915-16 



Pounds. 

 -28 

 -32 

 -35 



85. 50 

 6.00 

 6.00 



$10. 10 

 12.20 

 11.08 



§7.07 

 7.96 

 7.69 



$1.57 

 1.96 

 1.69 





-32 



5.83 11.13 



7.57 



1.74 





Corn silage, corn stover, hay, and 

 straw. 



1913-14 

 1914-15 

 1915-16 





2 



-82 

 -28 

 -42 



5.50 1 6.97 



6. 00 1 7. 58 

 6. 00 6. 78 



7.17 

 7.30 

 7.22 



1.67 

 1.30 

 1.22 





-51 5. 83 | 7. 11' | 7. 23 



1.40 



