The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1884-01-11
Fertilizers and Cow Feed.

u tAAA1CAS anu NOH 1CcQe
In talk on dairy farming recently
given by Dr. Voelcker to the students
of the Royal Agricultural College, he
said of the management of pasture land,
that while in some places steamed bone
meal produces excellent results, in 9TH
ers it produces no effect at all, even
when applied in very large quantities.
This little item of experience, within the
comparatively narrow boundaries Of
England, besides suggesting caution in
the use of this fertilizer, also shows the
folly of some writers for our agricuitur-
al papers, who, because they see no
good effects of heterogeneous manures in
their own immediate neighborhood, pro-
coed to advise everybody else all over
this great expanse of country not only
today out no money for the costly nitro
gen of commercial fertilizers, but also
to pay no heed to waste of nitrogen in
their own stable manure, by overhead
ing in the pile, or by teaching out in the
yard-most pernicious advice.
But DR.. Voelcker also expresses his
very decided opinion that the use of ar
tifcial manures generally, and especially
of guano or nitrate of soda, does not
pay on permanent pasture. He afirms
that his own numerous experiments
have taught him this lesson, and also
that those which Lawes and Gilbert
have been trying for so many years
teach the same lesson. But something
must be done to replace what is carried
off from the pasture in the milk and
V1anof cold ~ will e,.,.o1x, ,.,,,4
sooner or later; hence his sound advice
to feed oil-cake to the pastured stock,
and for this he particularly recommends
the cake 50 easily had in this country
decorticated cotton-seed cake, given at
the rate of two and a-half pounds per
day an animal, If both PASTURE and cows
are to be kept in good condition. At
certain seasons of the year, as in the
spring, when the first grass is eaten, he
would give undecorticated cake, three
pounds a day; its husks are preventive
against scoUrs; he would also use this
cake il Indian meal is fed.
For feeding dairy stock in the barn
he quotes the use OF bean meal and oat
meal, one or both as the case may be,
by a very successful Scotch dairymen,
who supplies round of customers that
want very rich milk. Voelcker himself
finds five pounds day, head, of a
mixture in equal parts of decorticated
cotton-seed cake, bran, bean meal and
oat meal to be as good or better than
bean meal or oat meal alone. Another
dairyman, every one of whose Short
horn cows makes not less than one hum
dred dollars a year for him, gives one
bushel of brewers grains, two and one
half pounds of bean meal, two and one
half pounds of Indian meal and forty
pounds of hay to each animal; and in
the summer, when the animals are in
pasture, he gives two and one-half
pounds of decorticated cotton-seed cake.
Thus it is seen that cotton-seed cake
enters largely into the milk ration in
English dairy husbandry.
Occasionally complaint is made in the
papers that the cotton-seed gives taste
to the milk; but every such assertion
always calls out so many experiences to
the contrary, from those who have used
it freely, and whose milk and butter are
in many cases disposed of to fastidious
customers, that there can be no doubt
that if the cake meal is clean and good,
and is properly used, from two to four
pounds day may be given to each
animal, with good results. Doubtless the
larger the natural yield of the COW the
more literally she may be fed with con-
centrated fodder, as a general rule; but
the careful farmer will always keep q
watchful eye on both COW and milk-pail,
especially when giving this high feed;
even if the health OF the animal is kept
in prime condition, and allowing that
the richer the fodder the richer the
manure, it will depend upon the profit
with which the rich manure can be used.
on crops that bring good prices, whether
very rich feeding pays, unless it pays in
the milk
Of the use of oat meal for COWS men
ton is not often made in this country;
but when spoken of it is always with
praise. That it is better than corn
meal there can be no doubt; it is rich
er in both albuminoids and fat; and
the usefulness of these two nutrients,
and especially the former, for making
milk is shown not only by the results Of
numerous careful experiments, but by
the acknowledged usefulness of oil-cake
meal. Where this meal is used freely
there would be less use for oat meal;
but under some circumstances it might
be advantageously substituted for the
bran in the favorite mixture for cows
of Indian meal and bran.-N. Y. ITS6-
W1le.