238 FORAGE CROPS 
swath until dry. Light rains, or even heavy dews, 
will change the green leaves to dark brown, and 
make them crisp and readily removed by handling; 
they will also extract the aroma arising from the 
essential oils, which is so important in making 
the hay palatable and attractive. When properly 
cured, the hay will have about the composition 
noted above, and, as a roughage to use with silage 
in winter feeding, it cannot be surpassed except 
perhaps by alfalfa. 
The high content of protein makes clover one of 
the best plants for forage purposes. It is possible 
with clover alone to supply all the needed nutrients 
in good proportions for dairy animals. It is usually 
better, however, to feed from fifty to sixty pounds 
and to supply the remainder of the nutrients from 
other sources, to give variety to the ration. 
-Pasturing red clover 
When the purpose is to secure the best yield 
of forage, it is not desirable to pasture red clover, 
although it is an excellent pasture plant, and is 
well liked by all farm stock. The tramping of 
animals will soon kill many of the stools, injur- 
ing the stand, and causing a smaller yield in later 
cuttings. Red clover is an important constituent 
of permanent pastures, generally insuring a larger 
yield the first season than grass alone. 
