CHAPTER XL 



FEEDING SHEEP AND LAMBS IN THE FIELD 



THROUGH A PART OR ALL OF THE 



FEEDING PERIOD 



Only rugged sheep and lambs should be selected for feeding in 

 fields and they should be purchased before the feeds have deteriorated 

 greatly in feeding value through exposure to winds, rains, and frosts. 

 Hard frosts lessen the value of clover and similar growths and high 

 winds and heavy rains rapidly reduce the value of corn stalks. 



Usefulness of Various Field Feeds. — Grass. — Grass is a very 

 great help to the man who feeds sheep on his fields. A successful 

 feeder in central Illinois has said : " I have found that I must have 

 an area of good grass in order to fatten sheep or lambs in the fields. 

 I once tried plowing up all of my pastures in order to grow more 

 corn. I thought that sowing rye in the corn stalks would take the 

 place of my fields of grass, but I was mistaken. I was obliged to 

 reestablish my pastures." 



A bluegrass pasture that has been rested through the summer 

 furnishes palatable feed which has a great deal of fattening power. 

 A pasture of this sort is also an excellent place on which to scatter 

 such feeds as ear corn and shock corn, and no better place can be 

 found in the open for the sheep or lambs to rest and sleep. 



Bluegrass fits in very well with the other feeds available on the 

 farm. Being palatable and succulent, it is a splendid alternate 

 feed with corn or stalks, and if the sheep or lambs are given a chance 

 to run on both corn stalks and bluegrass they will divide the time 

 between these runs each day. Early in the autumn, before it is time 

 to turn in on the com stalks, bluegrass alternates well with clover. 

 As the sole feed, green clover is too sappy to make a good rate of 

 gain, but sheep and lambs make good use of it if it is fed with blue- 

 grass, field corn or corn stalks. 



Timothy is also a good grass for fattening purposes and no 

 better pasture can be found than one composed of several grasses 

 and legumes, such as bluegrass, timothy, rye grass, and the clovers. 



Rape makes a very heavy growth in fertile soil if there is plenty 

 of moisture and light, and when combined with grass it will fatten 

 sheep or lambs without the use of any ether feed. In Missouri a 



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