38 BULLETIN 628, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGPJCULTUEE. 



IV. WINTER FATTENING OF STEERS. 



In the mountain districts of western North Carolina and adjacent 

 sections of other States it has been the custom for farmers and stock- 

 men to sell their steers in the fall of the year as feeders. When it is 

 taken into consideration that some of these farmers raise considerable 

 feed, such as corn, hay. and straw, which is often not used most ad- 

 vantageously, and that the cattle handled under the usual methods 

 furnish little manure for the cultivated fields, the feasibility of 

 profitably finishing out a large number of these steers for the block 

 is a question that at once presents itself. Many farmers of this sec- 

 tion have desired information concerning the values of home-grown 

 feeds, especially silage and other roughages, as well as the use of 

 cottonseed meal and cottonseed hulls for fattening steers. 



The following-described experiments were carried out to furnish 

 dependable information of this sort and to illustrate methods of 

 feeding and handling steers on feed in the dry lot. besides affording 

 a comparison between selling steers as finished beeves and as feeders. 



EXPERIMENTS OF 1913-14. 



These experiments were conducted for the purpose of determining 

 whether steers in this region could be fattened profitably during 

 winter months for the market, and of comparing this method of dis- 

 posing of the steers with the usual practice of selling them as feeders 

 in the fall. It was desired also to obtain information as to what 

 feeds usually would prove most efficient and profitable in finishing 

 mature steers under farm conditions in these mountain regions. 



These objects involve a consideration of the methods best adapted 

 for handling the steers, the use of native feeds ordinarily available. 

 as well as the use of cottonseed meal and cottonseed hulls, which must 

 be shipped in. and a study of the problems connected with marketing 

 the finished cattle. 



PLAN OF THE WORK. 



The work was carried out under average farm conditions for the 

 section, and the care and attention given it were such as any good 

 farmer should employ in doing similar work for himself. The cattle 

 were divided into two lots of 12 steers each and were given the same 

 care and management. The steers in Lot 1 were fed a ration of 

 cottonseed meal, cottonseed hulls, and a mixture of corn stover and 

 hay. while those of Lot 2 were fed cottonseed meal, ear corn, and 

 cottonseed hulls, with corn stover and hay. The steers were fed 

 from November 17, 1913, to March 9, 1911, a total of 113 days. 



