The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1882-01-14
Straw Feeding.

My estimate of straw is much greater
than that of most farmers Offcourse
its value varies with the locality. Where
there is q demand for its manufacture
into paper it usually ranges higher in
price than in localities where there is
DO such demand, and in the neighbour
hood of cities where j. is wanted for
bedding it brings more. have known
1t to sell for more to papcr-makers than
the price of hay. These circumstances
determine its commercial value; my es-
Innate of it is in connection with the
farm E.xperieuce mas taught me how
TO use 1t most economically, and at the
same time | think most proftably, bv
feeding it TO stock, j do not rely upon
1T solely as food, although have win
tered cattle aud horses upon cat and
barley straw exclusively, and had them
do well. Rye and wheat straw is too
coarse and unpalatable for stock to
thrive on alone, but when fed as adj
Juncts to grain 1t serves the purpose 10
I'LL the stomach and disteud the bowels,
which are necessary for the health of all
animals, and at the same time it affords
some nutriment, but not equI to that of
oat or barley straw.
1t is the aim of most farmers, psrticu-
iarly in the West. to get ria of their
straw in the easiest possible way, and
some of them make no effort TO utilize
1t III any way whatever, but rather con-
slider it burden. Such farmers make
mistake which the inevitable depletion
in their soils invariably proves. Others,
more wise, strive to convert it into ma
nure with little effort. and, we are
bound to say, with little Judgment. Ny
father who was large farmer, was a
representative man of this class. He
thought straw should be kept on the
farm and should be returned to the
fields. His plan was to throw it out.
into tho barnyard and spread it around
three or four feet thick and let the cattle
wall0w in it, lie on it. and tread il down.
The cattle mingled their drNppings with
it; but this did not cause it 80 rot, and
IN the spring he had mass of coarse
stuff saturated with water, which, when
csrted to The fields, was difficult to plow
under and afforded very little stimulus
to plant growth. twas easy to get rid
of the straw in this way, but it was not
easy to see any Immediate practical
benefit to the crops.
I always had weakness for keeping
a large number of stock hence | was
often put to wits end 10 get them
Through the winter. On this account L
ewaS led to utilize The straw TO the GREAT
Test possible eStent,t Father used 10 say
sthat | could winter more stockgo1 less
feed Rn ashave< tShein. tn better condition
StbanGinyAonehe,e sAw4 fed al my
straw Tie cattle1andl Sheep had he
First picking;what the sheep ie.ts was
kGiven to the horses, wss"5 ;Eey wouI.'
Neatas freely as if it cairG tfyesh froS -
Smow, becalsc they G,% nothing rS<eSsse
acept grain. What the CATH -(r,s i ;aI
Swas lsualp very litb~ go. ~ !,
bedeio@ the boz <asT6 hen this WA
tfr2nh mr.. .,sswSrd daily the cattI,
itsse ~as over and eat it. q pde
s*em there was comparatively nj
,--sSaSte, and all the straw was Tans
rNformed into manure and ready for i'm
mediate use on any crop The cattle q
well as the other stock were given
asmall quantity of meal or grain, as tn
cease might be. Last year took my en-
Ntire herd of Jerseys and AYRSHIRE
Through the winter without feeding an,
}haynn6u spring, and Never had stocl
do better or look better. Ma
III fathers Instead of throwing stray
into the harvard, had fed alitt1e grain
with it, he could have wintered1Aoubi
tthe mnlIbe'o of stock and proportiohall,
Increased tho revenue from his farm |
lis trne the labor would have been gscat
ell but it would have been work Nvhicl
world have paid. A dry cow, fed OF
STRAW with two quarts of cornmeal daily
will do as well as if fed on hay alone
in this locality the price of cornrnea
doesnot much exceed, per ton, the pric
of hay. The manure made from sucl
feeding is, think, fully equal III, yalU
to that made from hay. When bran
fed, double the quantity should be give
-four quarts instead of the tw o of corn
Theal-and the manure, in my Judgment
would he equally valuable. A stee
could be well winteued on two tosfou
quarts of meal per day, according to hi
size, using straw as supplementary food
and gain all the rime Two quarts 0
me9i would weigh about two pounds
which at twenty dollars ton for tn
meal would make cost of two cents
day or three dollars for five TMonths
These figures would bear doubling il
the price of cornmeai aAd Their Inabe
profitable rowinter stock with corTmea
and straw, and decidedly so against IN
practice of throwing the straw away -
Col Il. ID. Curtis. IN NJ Y Tribune.
A Remarkable Hen.