ioi8 Notes on Feeding Stuffs for February. [Jan., 



the financial result of such feeding was more satisfactory than 

 that of comparative trials in which a full cake ration was 

 used. This financial result has been further confirmed by 

 several of the more progressive farmers who saw the trials at 

 the Norfolk Agricultural Station and have for the last two 

 years successfully adopted a ration of roots and straw ad 

 libitum, and either i lb. per day of cake or no cake at all. There 

 is no room for doubt that when cake is dear, and fat bullocks 

 sell for little more per Hve weight than they cost as stores, the 

 use of an extremely low cake ration is the only chance of avoid- 

 ing a heavy loss in the production of winter beef. It may be 

 true that the manure made by cattle on such a ration is rela- 

 tively poorer in nitrogen than where a full cake ration is used, 

 but recent work at Rothamsted on the bacteriology of farm- 

 yard manure throws some doubt even on this contention. 

 Even if it is true, the deficiency of nitrogen can be corrected 

 by supplementing the manuring of the crop to which the dung 

 is applied by a top-dressing of i cwt. per acre of sulphate of 

 ammonia. This would cost about 20s. for each animal, which 

 is far less than the cost of 7 lb. of cake per day for 16 weeks, 

 which would be about £7. For the low cake ration fed with 

 a large ration of roots, common cotton cake is the most suitable^ 

 for not only does it supply the protein necessary to balance 

 the ration, but its astringent properties tend to prevent the 

 scouring which may result from the consumption of so much 

 succulent food. Its use is also indicated by the fact that the 

 prospect of increased supplies has caused the price to fall to some 

 extent below the maximum of £19 10 s. per ton. Some samples 

 have been sold as low as £17 los. per ton ex-mill, or 4s. ^d. per 

 digestible food unit. Undecorticated or semi- decorticated 

 ground nut cake is also suitable for cattle fattening on roots 

 and straw. It contains more protein than cotton cake but is^ 

 not so astringent. It is, however, cheaper. At £21 per ton 

 ex-mill it comes to almost exactly 4s. per digestible food unit. 



Milk Production. — ^Although it is both successfiil and economi- 

 cal to reduce the cake ration for beef production, this is by no 

 means the case in feeding for milk production, since milk 

 contains so much protein that a high ration of cake or some 

 other nitrogenous concentrated food is absolutely necessary 

 for cows on roots and straw or hay in the winter. A 9-cwt. 

 cow requires fib. of protein and from 6 lb. to 71b. of starch- 

 equivalent for maintenance. In addition to this she should 

 get J lb. of digestible protein and 2 J lb. of starch- equivalent 

 for each gallon of milk she gives. A maintenance ration can 

 be provided by f cwt. of roots and a stone of hay or straw. 



