MOISTURE CONTENT AND SHEINKAGE OF FOEAGE. 31 



VARIATION IN THE MOISTURE CONTENT OF GROWING ALFALFA 

 DURING A SINGLE DAY. 



In order to determine whether a different percentage of moisture 

 is to be expected in forage plants cut at different times of the day, 

 five samples of alfalfa were out at 8 o'clock in the forenoon and six 

 samples at 3 o'clock in the afternoon. The alfalfa was in a fairly 

 vigorous condition and about one-tenth in bloom. The day was 

 warm and sunny. A detailed statement of the results with each 

 sample is given in Table XII. 



Table XII. — Moisture content of growing alfalfa at 8 a. m. and at 3 p. m., at Chico, 



Cal, in 1914. 





Weight. 



Moisture. 



Sample. 



Green, 

 June 13. 



June 30. 



Air dry, 

 July 27. 



Oven 

 dry. 



Original 

 material. 



Air-dry 

 material. 



Lost in air 

 drying. 



Cut at 8 a.m.: 



No. 549 



Ounces. 

 123.2 

 123.2 

 123.2 

 123.2 

 123.2 



Ounces. 

 33.70 

 35.95 

 35.70 

 34.95 

 34.95 



Ounces. 

 31.95 

 33.70 

 32.45 

 35.20 

 34.95 



Ounces. 

 28.5 

 29.0 

 29.5 

 31.5 

 31.5 



Per cent. 

 76.9 



76.5 

 76.1 

 74.5 



74.5 



Per cent. 

 10.7 

 13.8 



9.1 

 10.5 



9.7 



Per cent. 

 74.1 



No. 550 



72.7 



No. 651 



73.7 



No. 552 



71.4 



No. 553 



71.6 







Mean 



75.7 ±0.216 



10.8 ±0.346 



72.7 ±0.231 





91.2 

 91.2 

 91.2 

 91.2 

 91.2 

 91.2 



26.95 



26.45 

 24.70 

 26.20 

 27.45 

 26.70 



26.95 

 25.70 

 23.95 

 25.70 

 27.70 

 26.95 



24.0 

 22.5 

 21.0 

 22.5 

 24.5 

 24.0 





Cut at 3 p. m.: 



No. 554 



73.6 

 75.3 

 77.0 

 75.3 

 73.1 

 73.6 



10.8 

 12.2 

 12.2 

 12.3 

 11.5 

 10.8 



70.4 



No. 555 



71.8 



No, 556 



73.7 



No. 657 



71.8 



No. 559 



69.6 



No. 560 



70.4 







Mean 



74.7 ± .263 



11. 6± .127 



71.3± .261 















The mean for the two methods of treatment shows 1 per cent more 

 moisture in the alfalfa at 8 a. m. than at 3 p. m. While this differ- 

 ence is not large, there is a sufficient number of samples so that the 

 results are dependable. In actual practice this result has little sig- 

 nificance, but it is of interest to find that in the open field under 

 favorable moisture conditions transpiration may exceed the absorp- 

 tion of water by the roots sufficiently so that the moisture equfiibrium 

 in the plant tissues is not maintained. 



MOISTURE CONTENT OF BALED HAY. 



In order to give some idea of the amount of moisture in ordinary 

 baled hay, samples were taken from oat hay in the bale at Chico, Cal., 

 at two dates, the first about one month and the second about two 

 months after the hay was baled. Ordinary commercial hay was 

 used in this experiment, so the moisture percentage may be con- 

 sidered as fairly representative of that in the grain hays on the 

 market in California. The moisture content, as deter m i n ed by two 

 sets of samples, is given in Table XIII. 



