FOOD FOR MILCH COWS IN WINTER 265 



proved, to some extent, a hindrance, though not a greatly 

 serious one. Nor have the attempts that have been made 

 to grow the protein crop along with the corn, so that it 

 may be harvested together, proved entirely satisfactory. 

 Cowpeas and soy beans have been planted along with 

 corn in the line of the row, but it has been found, in 

 most instances, if not, indeed, in all, that the per cent 

 of the protein crop has been so small as to make it ques- 

 tionable if any profit will result from such a course. Prof. 

 A. M. Soule, who tested this method of growing protein 

 in Tennessee, now favors growing the protein crop sep- 

 arately. Other experimenters have also ceased in their 

 OAvn practice to grow the crops together. The shade 

 from the corn is more or less prejudicial to vigorous 

 growth in the other crops. It is to be understood, how- 

 ever, that adding protein to the ensilage when grown 

 separately from the corn should be discouraged. It may, 

 in many instances, be found more profitable to grow it 

 thus than to purchase it in other forms. 



All kinds of field roots may be fed to cows in milk 

 to provide succulence, if fed in limited quantities, and 

 just after each milking, but the indiscriminate feeding 

 of rutabagas and turnips will certainly result in produc- 

 ing an undesirable odor in the milk. This, however, is 

 not true of carrots, parsnips, mangels, and sugar beets, 

 which may be fed in large quantities. The beneficent 

 influence which all field roots exert upon the digestion 

 cannot be questioned, and their pronounced milk-pro- 

 ducing qualities are everywhere recognized. But when 

 mangels are first harvested they may induce too lax a 

 condition of the bowels, a result that is not present when 

 they have been stored two or three months. 



Where corn is not a sure dependence, field roots will 

 continue a favorite food for milk production, but when 

 the latter can be furnished in the form of ensilage it 

 can be furnished so much more cheaply than roots that 

 the latter will not be much grown to provide succulent 



