2 BULLETIN 873, U. S. DEPARTMENT 
OF AGRICULTURE. 
Those who have been accustomed to regard all kinds of field-cured _ 
hay as marketable hay at the time it is stored and the loss of water 
as a real loss will be interested in the following report on some experi- — 
ments conducted at the Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station in 
1904: 
Occasional reports have appeared in the agricultural press of the Middle States 
advocating the baling of clover hay while in a wilted or partially cured condition, 
claiming that the method was an economical practice, and that it made a better grade 
of hay than could be made in the ordinary way. These reports have led to consider- 
able discussion among western farmers and in the farm papers as to whether alfalia 
could be profitably handled in the same way. In order to determine at what stage 
of curing alfalfa may safely be baled, and whether this method of handling the crop 
is a practical one, the Farm Department conducted the following experiment last 
season: 
The baling was done July 16 witha 14 by 18 * * * [two-horse] hay press * * * . 
This press has a capacity of 1 ton or more of prairie hay per hour. The alfalfa used was 
the second cutting of medium growth, from an old field, and was about one-fourth in 
bloom when cut. Fifteen bales were made from green alfalfa, which was raked and 
hauled to the baler immediately after being mowed. Six bales were made from alfalia 
that was wilted, having been mowed in the morning and baled in the afternoon of 
the same day. fourteen bales were made from alfalfa that was cut July 14 and put 
in cocks July 15. This alfalfa was in the ‘‘sweat” when baled, and did not differ 
much in moisture content from the wilted alfalfa. Nineteen bales were made from 
well-cured hay in proper condition to stack. ; 
TasLtE XVI.—Giving data on baled alfalfa. 
Average | Average 
weight dry 
Stage of curing when baled. . of bales | weight 
at 
baling. | Oct. 12. 
Loss of 
weight. 
Pounds. | Pounds. | Per cent. 
DICER GULRC ORE ers ioc Saker eee EI ao cent = SRS ee ate, ee oe i Se 
RE CEE Viper Seep ee ee rm es Ne Moet Pans aaa els Se eon ol Sees ener el pet 164 57 65.2 
VN TLERS 0 Tas Se es ae ea ee ee os RR 9 ia ge a ae Bee SPs Nn er es 167 92 44.9 
LEED: SSE Ta Pa oe ce ree eR Ue OU eR RM oe NE Oph eles Livia 96 43.9 
81 76 | 6.2 
Baling green alfalfa was hard work for the men and teams, and was also a strain 
on the press. The cured hay handled much easier and baled faster. It will be 
observed from Table XVI that the average weight per bale of the cured alfalfa, when 
baled, was 81 pounds, while that of green alfalia was 164 pounds, and the wilted 
167 pounds. The wilted alfalfa was pressed tighter than the green alfalfa. The 
men who did the baling were inexperienced in the work and were able to make 
about twenty 3-foot bales in an hour from the green alfalfa. About one and one- 
fourth hours were required for making the same number of bales of the wilted 
alfalfa. The capacity of the baler was not tested in the dry alfalfa, but 10 tons | 
per day of 10 hours would represent about the average capacity of the press. 
The bales of alialfa were stored in an open shed and placed on edge insingle vertical 
tiers, a space of 6 to 10 inches being left between the tiers to allow a free circulation — 
= 
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2 the 
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of air. The uncured alfalfa was examined at frequent intervals, and notes made ee a 
on its condition of curing. It had developed considerable heat within 24 hours after 
baling, and the fermentation lasted about 25 days. The outsides of the bales which 
were exposed to the air were not at any time very warm, but the interior was very 
much heated. On October 12 the alfalfa bales were weighed and examined. All of — eS. 
