15 



It should be remembered, in considering the feeding value of any 

 plant or feeding stuff, that palatability and wholesomeness must be 

 considered as well as composition and digestibility. Some forage 

 plants are unacceptable to stock on account of their physical condition, 

 as is the case with the woody stalks of sorghum and Para grass, or on 

 account of the presence of bitter or acrid flavoring principles. Woody 

 materials, like those mentioned, may often be made more palatable 

 by tine chopping. Then, too, grinding is often necessary in order 

 that the feeding stuff may be assimilated, as was pointed out In the 

 discussion of aWroha beans. 



Of Hawaiian feeding stuffs which are not relished by stock on 

 account of acrid or other unpleasant or disagreeable constituents, 

 Chloris elegans, one of the grasses analyzed, may be cited. As shown 

 by analysis this compares favorably with other grasses, yet stock will 

 not eat it, although it is very common in our pastures. Two legumes 

 grown at the station for green manuring, namely Centrosema plurneri 

 and Canavalia ensiforrnis, may also be mentioned in this connection. 

 Centrosema plurneri has the following percentage composition: Water 

 77.33, protein 4.76, fat 0.30, nitrogen-free extract 9.43, crude fiber 

 5.77, and ash 2.41 per cent; and Canavalia ensiformis, water 77.29, 

 protein 3.66, fat 0.37, nitrogen-free extract 10.44, crude fiber 6.10, and 

 ash 2.14 per cent. Judged by composition alone, these materials 

 would have a higher feeding value than cowpeas or Spanish clover, 

 but they actually have little or no value as a fodder since they are so 

 unpalatable to live stock. 



NUTRIENTS IN DRY MATTER OF HAWAIIAN FEEDING STUFFS. 



In the preceding discussion the feeding stuffs have been considered 

 on the fresh basis. In comparing the composition of different feeding 

 stuffs calculated on this basis it is necessary, in order to avoid errone- 

 ous conclusions, to consider the water content in its relation to the 

 other constituents present. For instance, the' grasses manienie ( Ca- 

 priola dactylon) and kukaipua {Syntherisma sanguinalis) contain 3.71 

 and 4.50 per cent protein, respectively, while the legumes, cowpea 

 and Spanish clover, contain but 2.63 and 2.20 per cent. When we 

 remember, however, that these grasses contain but 45.49 and 58.96 

 per cent water, respectively, while the legumes contain 86.16 and 75.06 

 per cent, the apparent anomaly is explained, and it is seen that if the 

 grasses and legumes were equally dry the latter would show the higher 

 percentage of protein. It is, therefore, often desirable to compare 

 different materials on the dry- matter basis, and such a comparison of 

 the Hawaiian feeds analyzed is made in the table following. 



