44 ALFAIvFA 



For stock-cattle there is no better feed than alfalfa 

 hay. The minerals contained in it are what the young 

 animals need to build the bones of their bodies. The 

 protein builds up their muscles, nerves, and tendons, 

 giving vitality and strength. A steer grown on alfalfa 

 balanced with other fodders will be more valuable to 

 fatten than one fed entirely upon the highly carbona- 

 ceous grains. Calves will leave their grain to pick up 

 alfalfa stems and leaves left as refuse in mangers 

 of dairy cows. 



FEEDING VALUE OP AI,FAI,FA HAY 



" The philosophers have been inquiring into the se- 

 cret of the alfalfa plant, and they have found that the 

 hay is, in money value, forty-five per cent, better than 

 clover and sixty per cent, better than timothy," says 

 The Field and Farm. ' ' This carries out our long-ex- 

 pressed theory that alfalfa is the greatest all-around for- 

 age plant the world has ever known. To secure a good 

 milk ration by the use of timothy hay, protein must be 

 supplied from some other source, in order to secure a 

 ration that will give a sufiicient amount of that mate- 

 rial without entailing a loss of carbohydrates and fats ; 

 clover hay, however, is a fairly good ration in itself, 

 and it can be economically used without the addition 

 of any other compounds ; alfalfa hay, on the other 

 hand, requires the addition of large amounts of both 

 fat and carbohydrates in order to be profitably utilized 

 as a milk ration. 



"Thisfadt renders alfalfa even more serviceable 

 than its valuation would indicate, since, in the manage- 

 ment of farms, either for dairy purposes or for grain, 

 an excess of carbohydrates is secured, which in the 



