2 ee eo ” 
' 
- as ——— 
“= CCU 
Sr a ee ee ee ee — aR eee Loy a 
NATIVE PRICKLY PEAR IN SOUTHERN TEXAS. 9 
YIELD WITH CULTIVATION. 
In April and early May, 1909, there were harvested 3 acres of prickly 
pear planted in March, 1907. The ground was put in a good state of 
cultivation when the cuttings were planted and was kept fairly well 
cultivated the first year. The second year it was given no cultivation. 
It was not possible at this time to get weights. The best that could 
be done was to determine the length of time the area would feed a 
definite number of dairy cows all the roughage they would consume. 
During the feeding there was an extraordinary amount of waste, 
for here, as in all other cases which have come under our observation, 
cattle, when their feed is abundant, reject the young growth until the 
joints are well filled out. The fact that the harvesting was done late 
in the third growing season does not, therefore, in all probability, in- 
troduce any appreciable error into the calculations if the current season 
is discarded in our reasoning. All the roughage consumed for 1,510 
cow-days was furnished by these 3 acres of a 2-year-old crop. This is 
equivalent to a production of roughage for five cows on 6 acres of 
ground. When the entire lack of cultivation and the second and only 
moderate cultivation the first year are taken into account, this yield is 
comparable with more accurate harvestings made by weighing on 
another occasion.* 
In March and April, 1910, another 3 acres of the same field were 
harvested by being cut and a representative area was weighed. This 
area was handled the same as the other 3 acres the first two years, and 
was left and cultivated again the third year. The yield was at the 
rate of 14.32 tons per acre per annum. | 
This field was fenced and cattle kept out until the plants were well 
started; then the gates were left open and cattle allowed to enter the 
field at will. They did much to keep down certain weeds and native 
grasses. . 
In March, 1913, 1 acre of a 3-year-old crop, set from single-joint cut- 
tings in the usual way in the spring of 1910, was cut and weighed. 
The crop was grown upon land which had been set to a varietal collec- 
tion for four or five years. It was in a good state of cultivation when 
planted, so far as weeds were concerned, but it was very dry and cloddy. | 
During the first year the cultivation was satisfactory; the second year 
it was all but abandoned, and during the third year an ineffectual at- 
tempt was made to keep the weeds down. In all, the tract was not 
— over half cultivated during the entire period. 
The harvesting was done from March 12 to March 25, 1913, and 
good stumps were left for future growth. The yield under the circum- 
stances was very satisfactory, a total of 124,114 pounds being secured. 
This is at the rate of 20.685 tons per acre per anntim. 
1See Bureau of Plant Industry Bulletin 124, 1908. 
