SOILING CROPS. 7 



not of course be stated otherwise than in the most 

 approximate manner. It will vary greatly with such 

 conditions as soil and season. But it will not be 

 extravagant to say that when animals are soiled all 

 the year in the one instance, and when they are pas- 

 tured during the season of pasturage, and are then 

 wintered on food grown on other land in the other 

 instance, a given area will sustain at least twice the 

 number of animals through the year by the former 

 system than it will by the latter. 



Less JVaste in Feeding. — When crops are fed 

 under the soiling system there is less waste than when 

 pastured or fed in the matured form. This saving 

 is effected, first, in the absence of injury through 

 treading as compared with pasture crops; second, in 

 the absence of loss in harvesting as compared with 

 matured crops ; and, third, in the more complete con- 

 sumption of the food. The injury to pasture crops 

 through treading has already been referred to. 



Soiling crops when judiciously managed are 

 seldom so injured by the weather as to be rendered 

 unfit for food. Fodder crops when matured are fre- 

 quently damaged by rain when being cured. When 

 thus damaged they lose in palatability, in nutrition, 

 and also through mold induced by storing when not 

 yet fully cured. 



The more complete consumption of food fed in 

 the green form as compared with food fed when ripe, 

 arises chiefly from the greater palatability of the 

 former. The fodder portion of plants, that is to 

 say, the stems and leaves, is always better relished by 

 animals when fed before they are fully matured. For 

 instance, feed rye to cattle when it has not yet reached 



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