^^^ Illinois State Dairymen's Association. 



While we have not been feeding any bran for nearly a ye^r until 

 the last two weeks, I have been feeding alfalfa all winter, and in 

 feeding a little bran with the alfalfa we are getting better results, 

 but as to the value of each I cannot tell you. 



Member: — What other grains were you feeding? 



Mr. Foster: — Dried brewers' grains, 1 lb. of oil meal, and 

 silage. Both bran and alfalfa are rich in protein. 



Member: — What I could not make out from the question 

 was whether it was intended to have one take the place of the 

 other, or feed them together. 



Mr. DeYarmond : — The question was mine. I felt that we 

 had not covered the entire subject, so I put in another question 

 there. 



Mr. Foster : — I think if I had to cut either out altogether, I 

 would cut out the bran at present prices. 



The Chairman : — That is practically what you are paying 

 at Springfield, $24 a ton, and your alfalfa is costing about $16, 

 you feel if you had to cut out one or the other you would cut 

 out the bran at $24 than the alfalfa at $16 and at the same price 

 you would feed them together. 



Mr. Campbell : — I was talking with Dr. Hopkins before I 

 sowed alfalfa and he told me that one ton of the leaves of alfalfa 

 were equivalent to the protein value to a dairy cow of 2,700 lbs. 

 of bran. 



The Chairman: — The point Mr. DeYarrriond wished to 

 bring out was the practical feeding value and results. You can 

 get at that by a table of digestive nutriments, but I understand 

 the question here is to get down to the practical side of it and 

 to get the experience of men who have been feeding both. I 

 know in our herd at Springfield we have tried to get along with- 

 out bran when we can buy alfalfa so much cheaper than bran, 

 but, as Mr. Foster says, we have obtained better results by feed- 

 ing both. Alfalfa is hardly a substitute fqr bran. 



Mr. Gilkerson : — In our feeding experiments last winter for 

 the University, we did not make any extensive experiments in 

 regard to the alfalfa and bran but we had two or three cows who 

 were not in the experiment to make any record on, so we did a 

 little experimenting with them. We tried dropping off bran. 



