The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1883-10-20
FARMERS COLUMN.
Green Food for Swine.

Prof 5 II. THOMSON, of the Nebraska
Agricultural College, speaks fr, IN experience
on pork growing, in the american igricul-
turist for October.
Green food makes thrfter and larger
hogs. Farmers who raise many pigs, and
feed.than exclusively on corn, know that
some ofthe shotes will cease to grow at sn
early age begin to lay on fat, and never
reach the size of good, merchantaLle hogs
| This tendency TO fatten prematurely, at the
expense OF bone growth, IS not seen to any
great extent liz grass fed hogs pig ted
on bulky green food will develop larger
| stmach than one fed on concentrated food
like corn; and when you come to rattcn
it, this enlarged capacity will enable him to
eat and digest more corn, and thus fatten
faster than the other, and be a more profit
able hog to grow for market.
Grass-f fed hogs are healthier than those
granted. Every intelligent breeder knows
the advantages of feeding green food to sows
about TO larrow. They have less difficulty
with their pigs are less liable to destroy
them, will give more milk, aud nurse them
better. Grass fed hogs are less liable to dis
ease. The dreaded hog cholera is not much
to be feared where hogs have the run of q
good clover pasture. Undoubtedly, il ex
| posed TO contagion, they would take the
disease, but they are not likely TO develop
it. For example, farmer had his hogs in
small pen, destitute of grass, with no wat
er except muddy pool, which soor wos
made MS vile as possible hy the hogs. After
while the hogs began to die in consider
able numbers, with symptoms resembling
cholera. Tho owner was alarmed, took
them out of this pen, turned them on a
patch OF green rye and gave them water
from well. The disease was checked and
the deaths ceased.
How may green food be most chenply
provided? Rye is the crop best adopted to
this purpose, in the region west of the Mis-
souri,, This should be sown early in the
tai, on we'll prepared soil, aud if The grow
ing season continues late 10 the fall, so tn at
the rye is likely to jnnt, it must be fed
down closely. The best condition for it t.
go into winter, is when il covers the ground
with thick mat Of low leaves with bu,
little tendency to shoot. Rye in this con.
dition is fit to turn on as soon as growth be.
gins in spring The amount of feed which
two acres of such rye will furnish, is sur
prising. II not fed down too close, and tht
stock he turned off about the middle of Ma,
or the first Of June, the rye will still max
a fair crop. Hogs are sometimes left on the
rye until if fills, when they will pull il
down and eat the heads; but this practic,
is not commended. There is time aftel
the rye is a foot high until it is in milk
that hogs do not cot il well. A better ,rlar
is to have field Of clover or Of clover auc
timothy or orchard grass, ready Glr the pig.
| when the rye is too large to be longer avail!
able. When the rye is getting too large
the clover is in the best state to turn upon
Theeclover will do well until, about tie
middle of June, when, il the weather turns
4 d.
OIL hut and dry, it grows quite slowly. /
is well to have patch Of oats sown near
and ready to tide over this time. # no
needed. it can grow for the harvest. During
tie hot weather of july, August and Sep
tember, none of the crops named above
can be fully relied on, aud this is especially
rue where they have been fed too closely
Sorghum or Brown Dourra may be sowr
broadcast about the last Of May and again
the mi Idle Of June, to be used in july
and August. Experience shows that SIR.
ghum may be eaten Off close to the ground
when a foot 10 eighteen inches high without
serious injury. 1t will come up again and
grow right along. 1t is also an exec lent
plant to stand dry weather.