142 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION 



vanced far enough — and only just far enough — to make us 

 all ponder the enormous loss and waste in not growing le- 

 gumes, as shown in the recent census and a survey of dairy 

 farms; and to lead us seriously to consider how easily this 

 missing link is supplied by growing enough of the wonder- 

 ful alfalfa to accompany the corn fed to cows, and to real- 

 ize the tremendous economy of it. Certainly we are ready 

 for it now, and such experience will be studied to an extent 

 that would have been impossible a decade ago. 



ALFALFA, COMPANION CROP WITH CORN, MAKES A PER- 

 FECTLY BALANCED RATION. 



For the maintenance of a cow weighing 1,000 lbs. and the pro- 

 duction of 25 pounds of 4 per cent milk, she requires daily: Corn 

 silage, 35 lbs.; corn meal, 5% lbs.; alfalfa hay, 12 lbs. 



The alfalfa in such a ration supplies % of the protein, Vs of the 

 carbohydrates and fat, and % of the minerals. The corn provides 

 % of th^ 

 minerals. 



Alfalfa Supplies the Minerals. 



A cow cannot change the composition of her milk and 

 f she produces a large amount, there must be used a con- 

 siderable quantity of the minerals, calr-ium and phosprorus. 

 If these are lacking in the ration, the cow mu3t extract 

 them trom her bones as long as they are av.tilable. If the 

 anini*;' must extract phosphorus from her bones, she must 

 also take from them the amount of calcium combined with 

 that phosphorus, even though there is an excess of calcium 

 in the ration at the time. Low producing cows get sufficient 

 minerals with their ordinary ration, but high producing 

 cows, the only kind profitable for the dairyman to keep, 

 require minerals in a greater quantity in the making of 

 milk, and cows soon run down in flesh and vitality if com- 

 pelled to take minerals from their skeletons. Alfalfa is 

 one of the best feeds grown on the farm to supply these min- 

 erals, and when fed in sufficient quantity will keep the cows 

 in excellent physical tone. 



The accompanying diagram shows how well alfalfa 

 hay combines with corn to make a balanced ration. To 



