412 ALFALFA FARMING IN AMERICA. 
tive value of the plant. For these reason some farmers save the 
last cutting of hay for the hogs because it is more relished. It 
is eaten up cleaner, as the stems are not so woody. Sometimes 
the hay is cut up fine, wet, and mixed with other feed, and 
sometimes it is fed ground, as there are now alfalfa mills 
scattered throughout the alfalfa regions. But it is very doubt- 
ful whether this extra expense will pay, unless it be for a ration 
for young pigs. 
Experiences of Farmers——To avoid the expense of cutting or 
grinding, some farmers in order to get the hay all eaten have 
soaked it in water and fed it. This has proved very satisfactory 
where tried. One Oklahoma farmer carried his hogs through a 
winter by feeding them alfalfa leaves soaked in hot water for 
one day and the next day shorts mixed with the pulp and water. 
He feeds much alfalfa hay to his hogs and is very successful with 
them. He puts the last cutting in shock as soon as wilted, and 
thus cures it without bleaching and feeds it to his hogs. An- 
other farmer carried his entire herd of hogs through the winter 
by feeding them the pulp of alfalfa hay after soaking it in water 
over night. He also gave them the water to drink. This was 
all the feed they had during the winter, and they were in 
good fiesh in the spring, with smooth, glossy coats of hair. A 
Kansas farmer was feeding a bunch of 50 fall pigs on corn. 
During the winter they got “off feed’ and were not thrifty. 
He reduced the corn and gave a ration of two-thirds chopped 
alfalfa hay and one-third corn meal, the two soaked to- 
gether. The hogs began to do better, and a little later he changed 
the ration to one-third alfalfa and two-thirds corn. The results 
were very satisfactory, and the cost of feed was reduced from 
$15 a month on corn to $9 a month on alfalfa and corn. So 
alfalfa hay, as well as pasture, has a very important use on a 
hog farm. 
Alfalfa Hay for Brood Sows.—To show the importance of al- 
falfa hay in a system of feeding, the practice of the farmers 
around North Platte, Neb., and elsewhere may be mentioned. 
The alfalfa hay is ground up fine or else fed whole with corn in 
the proportion of about 5 pounds of alfalfa to 1 pound of corn. 
This is fed to the brood sows during the winter, and they come 
through in excellent condition on very cheap feed. In many 
sections alfalfa hay is worth about $5 a ton on the farm. One 
ton of alfalfa and about eight bushels of corn will keep three 
brood sows 1380 days, or nearly the whole winter. The hogs so 
kept farrow pigs that are remarkable for their vigor and size. 
Views of the Nebraska Station—Prof. H. RB. 
