The Northern Pacific farmer. [volume] (Wadena, Minn.) 1878-1885, 1880-10-14
Dairy.
Winter Butter.

Winter Butter.
The farmer who has a number Of
COWS and intends to make butter
through the winter, should in justice
to himself, to say nothing OF justice
to the consumer, make preparations
to make good butter. lie already
has his cows, and no advice upon Sc
lection of the animal need be given.
1t is in order, however, to suggest
that it is poor policy to keep poor
COWS through the winter. If you
have one, two or dozen animals in
your herd, which have not shown
good milking qualities, get rid of
them, get rid of them! The shambles
are the place for such cows; and it is
high time that a decision as to what
COWS you are going to keep, and as to
those you are not going to keep, was
made. But the food question is per-
tinent and important. You have
plenty of good hay, of course. 1fnot,
one Of two things remins to be done,
and it is unnecessary to question the
policy of the suggestions; either buy
hay or give up the idea OF meeting
with the best success in winter dali
rying. Indeed, unless you have hay
of fine quality and in good quantity,
it would be wisdom to dispose of your
COWS. But it must not be forgotten
that hay alone, or hay and grain is
not all that cow needs. That used
to be the way cows were kept. In
fact, they had nothing but hay, and
it anybody or anything in this world
were ever glad, it must have been
such COWS, as they watched the grow
ing of grass in the springtime. Every
dairyman should have Il good supply
of roots, and it is not difficult to Sc
cure this, even if we have been negli-
gent in growing them. Mangels,
beets and carrots are not so dear, that
it will cripple any of us financially to
lay in a stock. We do not know
which is the best root for feeding dali
ry cattle. or rather we do not feel
like advising, for each has his firm
advocates. 1t is safe to say, however,
that any of them are good enough.
We should not advise feedil g turnips,
although we do believe that there is
4 good deal of nonsense about detect
ing the taste Of turnips at all times
in butter, when the cow has been fed
on them. That it is often, and per-
haps generally detected, there is no
doubt. But we know of men who
have fed turnips all their lives, and
there is no more of a turnipy taste to
their butter than there would be to
butter from COW that never was
within Il Thousand miles of turnip.
But there is a secret in growing OF
feeding in such cases, which we do
not all possess. and. therefore, it is
best to let them alone and feed some
thing else. Remembering, in addi-
tion to what has been suggested. the
matter of sailing the cow, and so far.
we are right.
Then comes the matter of facilities
for making the butter. Is the milk
room especially a milk room, or is it
a cellar, in which there is everything
else, from rotten potatoes to fragrant
fruit! If the latter, the butter will
be as fertile of flavor as Il magician's
apartment bottle is OF liquids. Good
butter cannot be made under such
conditions. and it is all nonsense to
suppose otherwise. If single reader
is situated in this unfortunate way.
make Il change ut once. Have milk
room that will be milk room, and
not 4 compost heap. Keep the milk
in one place and the rotten potatoes
in another, and do not let bad t1avorS
of any kind reach the milk. cream or
butter. If that advice is followed,
you will have good butter.
Having obtained this result, re-
member our oft repeated injunction
to please the eye. People like nice
yellow butter much better than they
like white butter, although it may he
just as fine in quality. Don't be
afraid, therefore, to use artificial col
oring. It is easily prepared, or can
be had already prepared, and when
properly added to the butter, it in
creases it's value, and makes it really
more pa|atable, although the latter
depends upon the imagination. Then
send your butter to market neatly
packed, and you will be satisfied
with yourself and the winter dairy.