CHAPTER XV 

 THE PRODUCTION OF CATTLE FOODS 



The farmer, in deciding what forage and grain crops 

 he shall grow, should take into consideration several 

 factors, of which the following are the main ones: (1) 

 The adaptability of the various crops to the soil and 

 climate; (2) the adaptability of the various crops to the 

 kind of business which is to be followed, whether dairy- 

 ing, stock-growing, or sheep husbandry; (3) the capacity of 

 the various crops for the production of digestible food; 

 (4) the protein supply; (5) the maintenance of fertility. 



365. Adaptability of crops to environment. — Con- 

 cerning the adaptability of crops to the great variation 

 of soil and climate in this country, it is not possible to 

 treat extensively in this connection without going too 

 fully into questions of agricultural botany. There are. 

 however, a few general facts worthy of mention. In the 

 first place, few farmers have accurate information con- 

 cerning the species of grasses which are growing on their 

 farms. Only occasionally is one foxmd who carefully 

 observes what species are most prosperous under his con- 

 ditions. This is equivalent to the statement that but 

 little attention is given to the matter of the adaptability 

 of forage plants to the environment under which they 

 must be grown. While it may be said that nature carries 

 on for the farmer more or less of a selective process, it 

 must be remembered that the rotation of crops, involv- 

 ing of necessity an artificial selection of species, inter- 



(272) 



