112 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION 



Dairying Conserves Fertility. 



By marketing the products of the farm in the form of but- 

 ter or cream, only five per cent of the fertility contained in 

 farm crops is sold in the product. When marketing corn, 

 wheat, hay, etc., practically all the fertility required to grow the 

 crop is sold from the farm. By feeding raw materials of the 

 farm to the dairy cows, we are not only manufacturing high 

 priced products, but retaining upon the farm almost all the fer- 

 tilizing material taken from the soil by the growing crop. 



Weed Out the Poor Cows. 



It is safe to say that one-third of all our cows are milked 

 at a loss. If they could be eliminated from the herds, the other 

 two-thirds of the herd would produce a greater net profit than 

 is now produced on the entire number. 



The most reliable guide in selecting a dairy cow is to de- 

 termine her actual butter fat record. This can be done by 

 weighing the milk produced by each cow and by determining 

 the per cent of butter fat through frequent tests of the milk by 

 means of the Babcock milk tester. 



Weigh the Milk. Keep a record of the number of pounds 

 of milk given by each cow. Hang a spring scale in a convenient 

 place where the milk can easily be weighed and mark down the 

 weight of each milking on a chart prepared for the purpose. At 

 the end of each month add up the amount of milk produced to 

 determine the monthly record. This year's record will show the 

 amount of milk produced by each cow. 



Test the Milk. Take a sample of each cow's milk about 

 three times each month and test it for butter fat with a Babcock 

 milk tester. A simple and complete outfit can be purchased for 

 $5.00, and is so easily used that a farmer can learn to operate 

 it in a few hours. 



