The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1884-06-21
Pasture and How to Make the
Most Out of 1t.
Maryland Farmer.

1udrytGn0 fufmer.
As this is near the season for turning
stock QUITO, literally in many cases, find
living for themselves and thus without
much trouble to their owners, l will now
give little bit of my experience under
the above heading, in hopes that it may
be of benefit to all those who may care
to read these lines.
1 had always followed the old-time
fashion of turning milking and dry stock
into the same field or fields, and allow
ing them liberty to help themselves,
and when the grasses were pretty well
eaten up or cut short by drought, the
feed was supplemented by given the
cattle corn fodder or millet, strewed
over the field once or twice day. This
is simple-but it is expensive-and that
in many ways.
Some three years ago made great
improvement in dividing the dry from
the milking stock, and having a sepa-
rate field for each. The dry stock con-
ssting of yearlings and two-year-olds,
were put into one of these fields, having
running water in it. On or about
May goth the gate was locked, and they
were kept there night and day until the
pasture failed, when they were transfer.
red to the COW pasture field No. 2, and the
cows put in one of the meadows. By
this plan they were contented, knowing
that they were to work for their living
getting nothing else with the excep-
ton of a good sailing once week
and late in the fall they were in fair
order-hearty-with good large devel
bulky, Coarse Ieed Can give. rms IS
my plan of raising COWS, and l raised
every heifer calf, sometime having as
many as 20.
For my milk COWS, as want plenty
of milk, (having good demand for all
l can produce), the system is entirely
different,-we want good rich pasture.
Where the feed is flush during May,
June, and part of July, the COWS have
pasture along with the addition of 2
quarts of bran per day for each COW.
Bran is a rich food, making good milk,
and the manure from which, being rich
in the most important elements of plant
food, increases the grasses wonderfully
paying for all the cost of feeding in
the increase of milk, and also increasing
the future productiveness of the pasture.
During July, August, and September,
l supplement this feed by the addition
of corn fodder, growing thinly in rows,
cut when in tassel, (never before as it
is then mostly water) cut up and mixed
with two quarts of bran, sometimes
little more, and quarts of corn-chop
per day for each COW. This is fed at
night, and the COWS are still kept at pas
ture and night and day.
By this plan the COWS get all the
extra feed they need without too much
labor in hauling immense loads of corn
fodder which they cannot assimilate
and which will only tend to make them
idle.
1 would say that my COW pastures are
nearly all cleared ground suitable for
cultivation, and when they are run out,
l plow up, cultivate year or so and
then re-seed going in this way over the
entire farm in series of years. These
pastures are narrowed early in the Spring
bOth zOayS, all manures broken up and
respread, and one bushel of plaster and
2 bushels of ashes (not leached,) sown
over each acre. This year am trying
on acres 100 pounds of nitrate of soda
per acre. The young cattle pasture is
not so good, some of it is swamp, bushes,
&c., but when ever find time, clear
this up little by little.
Now for the results years ago be-
lieved the right way was not to feed
bran, or chop in summer, but give the
cattle all the fodder and millet they
could eat; and many hot and wet day
have l been out loading on the long
fodder, to feed it to lot of hungry,
lazy cattle, and which l found after a
dear experience the more l fed, the
less milk got 1t was just lovely and
green-but it lacked substance. now
feed as above and find my stock is larger
in number and more profitable. My
pastures areable to feed more stock each
year. My plowed ground is less in acres,
but they produced much more per acre,
and find the old Bible proverb literally
true. "Where no oxen eat, the crib is
clean" Fertilizers are good, but like
wine they should be used with much
caution F SANDFPSON