Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1885-04-30
FODDER CROPS

Now that the spr'Bg IL open and the
| farmers are getting ready for crops.
they should not overlook the matter
| of growing those well-known sub-ii-
tutes for hay that mature quickly and
Weld well. such a. oats. fodder corn.
miilet and even peas. In mentioning
oats il Is r1t intended 10 suggest the
sowing of the seed for the purp - OF
securing Weld of grain, but 10 cut
the crop when il j. only III the milky
state. or just previous tnripcnln@. or
course, some farmers wall object 10
what they regard Is "A method that ca
tails the loss of The grain: but on Ter
| tile farms there vii! generally be
fair crop of hay while on the light soils
the farmer res,or;s To such substitutes
| IA. will give the best results. Dat, If
cut lust before the time of rlpenin@
Weld crop of straw rich IN nutritious
matter, tender, Keeping green, and
which will br rcli-i-i by l;r cattle
and horses. The mode of feeding ii J.
TO take the bundles of Dat, and pas
them through a cutter, chopping straw
and heads together, the whole bcing a
mass of immature gram and -tTaw \
small quantity of ground grain J.
added to the cut oais and fed To tie
stock The advanta@" of thus harvest
Ing and prcparln: lat - that ia"
whole Of the straw can be utilized.
while the time required for growth j.
shortened Even on rich, heavy land
this mode Il harvesting j. 4 = '"d one
where din Gully througi the or T.
lodging j. annually encountered.
Corn j. another excellent fodder
crop, but 80 best fol Ter l. HAT L.
-isiing of mall. tender stalk. which
are usually Juicy and sucr';ieni. IN
order tu q, Il (" Ia the quality. the tod
der should nc >own thicklv in row
and cut W lie quite green. Some pre-
fer to cut corn fodder when the corn
is in tas-ci. and Others al the Time the
Young corn begins To fill out, when II
is cured, stored and fed. after bein"
cut iu small lengths Ii i suggested,
however, taat corn be cut when about
three feet high ani tied in bundles.
The advantage o! this method i that
two crops may be grown the same
season. and il properly cured and
stored IL does not crnmble - read lily.
Ii is an excellent clean food Tor nurses.
and NAV be fed in the bundle or ia the
manner mentioned for oats.
Pea, answer best early III The sea
son. aud are suitable for cattle and
sheep. They are usually sown with
oats. and fed directly from the field Ia
ihc stock in the warts. under the soil
in. method. Such crop mas be f,d
and got out of the way for a lave corn
fodder crop ar tpr turulp,. In at
tempting to grow two crops oG the
same location, however. the land must
be manfred heavily. or II viii be- la
iured. though the exhaustion viii not
be 30 great a. when such crops are al
lowed 10 manure and produce seeds.
Among other crops that may be
mentioned are nfil.ej and Hungarian
grass. which. though properly clasScd
a. hay crops. are also fodder crops.
They mature very quickly, and may
be snwn in summer. Sorghum, now
comm. into use, i ais" an excellent
fodder crop. the seeds being small and
plants easily crowded and grown in 4
short interval. There are several Ica-
sons for growing fodder crops. They
ill q want in some sections. can Toe
grown in a short time. and are de
tense against an insufficient hav crop.
Such crops, however. should be cut
al the proper time aud should
not he allow ed to remain on the
field day longer than lie necessary.
In the case of oats, the grain must not
b, come hard nor the straw turn yell
low. The green condition of the
straw is important. and in order to
secure il ia the best condition the field
sho uld be examined daily. Ii threat
cned with drouth. cut AT all events,
and take OF the crop before it i in
iured. MiIlet and Hungarian grass l.
often allowed TO form the sced-head>
This should be guarded against, a the
hay from these grasses Is very palata
bile if cui when the ir,t s;gu of head
ing appears. but i not - readily ae-
cepicd by stock ii cut later. The
time of harvesting and preparation of
the food for the stock are the most
important points to be observed.