390 ALFALFA FARMING IN AMERICA. 



The Utah station found that adding cornstalks to 

 a com and alfalfa ration gave larger returns per 

 unit of dry matter than alfalfa without stalks. 



Alfalfa Meal for Dairy Cows. — Alfalfa meal un- 

 doubtedly has advantage in some ways. It is a 

 saving of labor for the cow to have her alfalfa 

 ground for her. If it could be ground very cheaply 

 no doubt it would pay. However, the Pennsylvania 

 experiment station reports adversely on alfalfa 

 meal, or at least that it is no better than wheat bran, 

 if it is quite as good. It is interesting to note, how- 

 ever, that when wheat bran and alfalfa meal were 

 rated at the same price per ton the cost of milk pro- 

 duction was nearly identical. With alfalfa meal at 

 $23 per ton and wheat bran at $20, oom-and-cob- 

 meal at $20, and cottonseed-meal at $28 per ton, the 

 grain cost of 100 pounds of milk when the cows were 

 fed alfalfa was 47.1 cents ; when fed wheat bran it 

 was 45.3 cents. 



Assuming alfalfa meal to cost no more than bran 

 the former seemed to produce milk at the lower 

 grain cost per hundred pounds — 44 cents, as com- 

 pared with 45.3 cents on bran. On this basis of 

 comparison if wheat bran was worth $20 per ton, 

 alfalfa meal was worth $21.28 per ton. 



I am not sure that it would pay to make alfalfa 

 meal for home use and to feed to cows. I incline to 

 believe that to dampen the hay over night, restoring 

 it thus .somewhat to its natural green condition, 

 would be cheaper and nearly as effective. Certainly 



