Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1884-11-03
agricultural Department.
SOME OF THE WANTS OF A
NEW ENGLAND FARMER.

In the first place the one great
want we all feel, who make farming
a business, is more manure. If then,
this is' the first great want on all
farms, the question comes home to
each one of us, now can | manufac-
ture more manure or secure more for
my farm? In answer to this / would
say, keep more stock, then feed more
grain, and the manure pile will in
crease in the proportion of the num-
Der of animals kept. We should
look upon the farm as a manufacto-
ry, and upon the animals kept as so
many machines, to be kept constant
ly in good working order. 1t is
well-known fact that the machines in
most of the successful mills of to-day
are of recent date, and mauufac-
turer who uses very old styled ma
chimes is left behind in point of prof
it and in the amount of business done.
The farmer of to-day should take a
lesson from the manufacturer and let
the old style of robbing the land,
as our fathers robbed it, have the 90
by, and adopt a better way. In the
first place see that the animals on the
farm are fed in such way that they
will give the greatest return possible.
We will take, for instance, the mich
COW, kept for the making of milk for
market. TIE old way was 10 feed
through the summer and fall little
corn fodder with what the cows could
get in the pastures, then to winter
them on poor, low meadow hay, with
no grain, and as q result the next
spring, we all had poor COWS and a
poorer lot of manure. If the same
COWS had one-half of the hay sold for
them and its value fed to them in
grain during the winter, instead of
making them live on bog hay, the
gain in the condition of the cow and
In the amount of milk that she should
have given the next season, would
more than have paid for the extra
grain purchased.
/ think most of us do not feed near
ly high enough to get the greatest
benefit from the food consumed. 1
was recently talking with farmer in
regard to the feed of his COWS last
winter. He said he gave his cows
one quart of meal and two quarts of
shorts twice day with meadow hay
to make milk. This ration is just
about enough to keep cow alive, to
say nothing of filling pail with milk
twice day. Had this farmer doub-
led his meal and twice doubled the
amount of shorts fed, and then add
ed two quarts of cotton seed meal,
the increased product of milk, added
to the value of the manure made
would have told largely in favor OF
the. latter way of feeding. Many
farmers will say, l cannot afford tc
feed my COWS in this way, it will cost
TOO much for grain. But next spring
they may think they can afford per.
haps to pay some dealer in paten
fertilizers from $40 to $50 per ton fo1
material that is not worth one-half al
much, according to its cost, as would
be the manure that they might hav
made if they had fed out more grain
According to the analysis of cottol
seed meal, this has manurial valu
af over $18 per ton, and shorts owe
$14. If this statement be true, W
can feed these grains and not reckon
them as costing over one-half wha
they sell for in market, and by feed
ing a heavy mixed grain ration,
very little hay or corn fodder wi
winter cow. If all farmers woul
start and see how much forage the
could raise, always keeping in vie
the first great object to make bi
crop of manure, they would find ths
they could greatly increase the nun
Der of animals kept and with an ii
crease of stock there would be a
added money income from the farm
thus proving the old adage tru
Feed the land and the land will fee
you" l would add, feed more grail
then you will have the wherewith
feed the land.-Cor. ". E. Fdrme