50 MISG-. PUBLICATION 7 02, U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 



Although year-round grazing is provided, milk cows are fed ground 

 corn and cottonseed meal throughout the year with alfalfa hay in 

 winter. Dry cows and other cattle get hay in the bad winter months. 

 Pasture is so abundant that there is no particular problem about enough 

 feed even in dry weather, although it may not be of the best quality. 

 Here extra land for a summer crop and surplus dry forage in the per- 

 manent pastures might be unnecessary if irrigation of a small acreage 

 could be provided economically. 



The cows average about iy 2 gallons of milk per day. Some experi- 

 ments and farmer experience indicate that this quantity of milk can be 

 obtained from good pasture and hay without the use of concentrates. 



FARM G 



In the Coastal Plain of x^labama. in Macon County, the operator of 

 farm G specializes in wintering beef cattle and producing blue lupine 

 seed. He buys stocker cattle weighing about 400 pounds in the fall, 

 feeds them until April when they weigh about 500 pounds and the 

 Black Belt farmers are ready to buy them. In addition to the stockers 

 he keeps about 15 cows throughout the year. The cattle are fed grain 

 sorghum and graze manganese bur cloA T er beginning about February 1, 

 which is part of one of the systems recommended by the experiment 

 station. 



FARM H 



Many farmers in the Black Belt follow the recommendations of the 

 Alabama station as to their beef -cattle enterprises. Typical of these 

 is the operator of farm H located in Macon County. He has a herd 

 of about 135 cows. His 664 acres are used as follows : Caley peas and 

 Johnson grass, 60 acres; oats, 20 acres; permanent pasture, 554 acres; 

 woodland, 30 acres. The 60 acres of Caley peas furnish winter pasture 

 for his herd. During this period of about 100 days, dry cows get V/ 2 

 to 2 pounds a day of a commercial concentrate. Cows nursing calves 

 get about 4 pounds a clay. All cows get an average of 10 to 12 pounds 

 of hay a day. Hay feeding is increased on very cold clays and de- 

 creased on warm sunny days. All feeding is on the ground in the 

 pasture fields. 



Johnson grass following the Caley peas is not grazed but it is cut 

 twice for hay — in July and September or October. Some farmers 

 recommend grazing the last cutting. Except for dry periods this farm 

 would support more livestock, but the operator prefers too much grass 

 to too many cattle. That is the philosophy expressed by many other 

 livestock farmers. Many say that winter pastures are not always 

 dependable and they keep a reserve of hay. Then they can sell the 

 hay if their pastures are good or they can buy more cattle and feed 

 the hay. 



Could the concentrates be eliminated from the feeding plan of farm 

 H? Or could they be grown on the farm, if needed? Could grain 

 sorghum be grown and harvested by the cattle ? This will be tried for 

 the first time in the fall of 1948. How far can the operator of farm H 

 and other Black Belt farmers profitably go in production and utiliza- 

 tion of hay, pasture, and other forage on their beef -cattle farms? 

 More data on inputs and outputs and a careful budgeting process will 

 give a clearer answer than can be given with information now available. 



