122 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION 



easily grown ration is one of the chief factors in producing 

 such a large amount of milk per acre and doing it so econ- 

 omically in this demonstration. 



The full meaning and some particular and exceptional 

 features of this feeding will appear more plainly as a discus- 

 sion of the results in succeeding articles. 



Without Grain. 



The Milk Per Acre demonstration at the University of 

 Illinois was never intended to develop a method of feeding 

 without grain, but that feature came into it as an incidental 

 necessity; as a bit of practical experience it produced an 

 astonishing result, one of the most convincing and important 

 in the whole demonstration. The corn crop was so reduced 

 one year out of the six that it took all of it for silage, leaving 

 none to be husked and fed as grain. Since the purpose was 

 to raise all the feed on the land, no feed was purchased and 

 the cows were fed nothing but corn silage and alfalfa hay 

 without grain during this year. It is not necessary and is 

 not recommended that the dairyman limit the feed of his 

 herd in that way ; but it is fortunate that it was done in this 

 test because it brought out as nothing else could the re- 

 markable feed value of corn silage and alfalfa hay. 



Twelve Cows Averaged 284 Lbs. Fat. 



The cows produced on corn silage and alfalfa hay with- 

 out grain an average of 8,318 pounds of milk and 284 

 pounds of fat in one year from the time each cow was 

 fresh. This production of both milk and fat was higher 

 than the average production per cow per year for the whole 

 six years. These records for one year had an advantage, of 

 course, over the six years' records because in every case the 

 one-year record began at the first or highest point of the 

 cow's milk flow and continued for 365 days. Such a record 

 would not include the low production at the close of her 

 period or any time the cow might be dry if the lactation 

 period extended beyond the one year. Since these factors 

 did enter to reduce the six-year record, this one year's 



