October, 1908.] 



EdibleZPfoducts. 



Though soy beans possess a very high 

 value as a green manure, they do not 

 seem to leave the soil in as good condi- 

 tion when the crop is taken off as does 

 clover and some other legumes, parti- 

 cularly perennials. After considerable 

 experimentation in Massachusetts the 

 conclusion was reached that soy beans 

 failed to enrich the soil sufficiently in 

 available nitrogen to produce as good 

 yields of small grains following them 

 as did the clovers. 



Value of the Bean for Feed. 



There is no other crop so easily grown 

 that is so rich and can be used to touch 

 good advantage in compounding feed- 

 ing rations as the soy bean. Excepting 

 the pea nut, there is no other raw 

 vegetable product known which con- 

 tains such high percentages of protein 

 and fat in such a highly digestible form. 



For feeding to animals the beans 

 should be ground and the meal used 

 with some less concentratred feeding 

 stuffs. Comparatively few experiments 

 have as yet been made in the United 

 States to test the feeding value of soy 

 bean meal. Professor Brooks, in Massa- 

 chusetts, found that it compared very 

 favourably with cotton-seed meal. Cows 

 fed on soy bean meal gave richer 

 milk and produced a better quality of 

 butter than when fed on cotton -seed 

 meal, but on the latter the cream was 

 richer. Professor Georgeson obtained 

 excellent results in feeding hogs on a 

 ration of which soy bean meal was a 

 prominent constituent. His experiments 

 are reported in detail in Bulletin No. 

 61 of the Kansas Station, but the fol- 

 lowing brief summary, taken from an 

 article in the Indxistrialist for January 

 11, 1897, gives the essential features of 

 his tests : — 



It was found .... that a lot of three 

 pigs which was fed for 126 days on a 

 ration consisting for the first eleven 

 weeks of Kaffir corn meal alone and the 

 last seven weeks of Kaffir corn meal 

 and shorts gained a total of 191 pounds, 

 while a similar lot fed two-thirds Kaffir 

 corn meal and one-third soy bean meal 

 gained 547 pounds in the same time. 

 Another lot of three pigs which was fed 

 on corn meal for the first eleven weeks 

 of the experiment and a mixture of two- 

 thirds corn meal and one-thirds shorts 

 for the last seven weeks of the experi- 

 ment made a total gain of 306 pounds 

 in 126 days, while a similar lot of three 

 pigs fed on two-thirds corn meal and 

 one-third soy bean meal throughout the 

 experiment gained 554 pounds in the 

 same time. The largely increased gains 

 in these pigs must be credited chiefly 

 to the soy bean meal. 



Summary. 



The soy bean thrives best in soils of 

 medium texture well supplied with lime, 

 potash, and phosphoric acid. It endures 

 drought well, is not easily injured by 

 excess of moisture, and may be grown 

 about as far north as corn. 



The early varieties are best for seed 

 crops, and the medium or late varie- 

 ties for hay, forage, and silage. Seeds 

 may be planted at any time during the 

 spring and early summer, but prefer- 

 ably as soon as the ground becomes well 

 warmed up. Drill one-half to three- 

 fourths of a bushel to the acre ; broad- 

 cast three-fourths to one bushel. 



Little cultivation is needed when grow- 

 ing for forage; when for seed keep weeds 

 down until plants shade the soil. The 

 soy bean may be used for soiling, pastur- 

 age, hay, and ensilage, or the beans may 

 be harvested and fed as grain. 



The forage is very rich in fat and 

 muscle-making materials, and should be 

 fed with fodder corn, sorghum, or some 

 other feeding stuffs rich in fat-forming 

 nutrients. The seed can be fed to the 

 best advantage when ground into meal, 

 and is almost without equal as a concen- 

 trated food. 



Cut for hay when the plants are in 

 late bloom or early fruit; for ensilage the 

 crop can be cut later, but it is better to 

 cut before the pods begin to ripen ; for 

 green forage cutting may begin earlier 

 and continue rather later than for either 

 hay or ensilage ; the crop may be cut for 

 seed after the pods become about half 

 ripe. 



The soy beau is excellent for green 

 manuring and for short rotation with 

 cereal crops. It should be well limed 

 when ploughed under as a green manure. 

 — U. S, Department of Agriculture, 

 Farmers' Bidletin, No. 58. 



SOY BEANS AS FOOD FOR MAN. 

 By C. F. Lang worthy, Ph.D., 

 Office of Experiment Station. 



The soy bean has been used as a food 

 for man in Japan, China, and neigh- 

 bouring countries from the earliest 

 times. In more recent years it has 

 been cultivated for this purpose in 

 Europe. As has been stated, there is a 

 considerable number of cultural varieties. 

 Analyses of the soy bean grown in 

 various countries have been reported 

 by a number of investigators. Some 

 of these are given in the following 

 table:— 



