Mountain Home bulletin. (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1888-1889, 1889-01-26
STRAW ON THE FARM.
tta Uscfuincas and Value In the shape Of
bedding and Manure.

bedding and Manure.
There is considerable diversity OF
opinion rs to the value OF straw on the
dairy farm. That it has a value not
to be despised is conceded by all, but
yet the practice differs very much in
the methods OF handling 1t. At the ex-
treme East we find tho farmer hus-
banding it with almost ~ much care
as he does the grain that comes from it,
He not only preserves it dry and in
good condition, but runs 1t through the
cutting box, mixes the ground feed
with it and feeds it to the cows in but
little excess in amount with the guam
tity of hay or other stover that is fed
in the same manner.
While it may not be necessary or
even economical in the Western far
mcr to pay quite SO much attention to
the straw OF the farm that his contem-
porary OF the East does, yet 1t is safe
to say he in most cases undertakes its
value when properly handled. We be-
lieve the old practice OF burning the
straw has been entirely done away
with on tho dairy farm even Mt the cx-
treme West, but allowing it to rot in
large stacks when threshed at some
distance fsom the stable is still too
often the practice.
| 1t is common thing for book writer's
to toll us the relative value OF straw as
compared with good hay, but these
tables are often misleading from the fact
that one straw is not like another straw,
especially in feeding value. The straw
that has become too ripe or the one that
is too immature are alike almost worth
less for feeding purposes, while the one
that was cut at the proper time has a
great deal Of good in it. Then the
straws OF different grains have not the
same feeding value. Oats and rye
, make an Indifferent feed compared with
| the straw of wheat and barley. Espec
tally do we recommend this latter arti
, Gle. The farm practice OF cutting bar
. ley in rather an immature state to pre-
J vent the grain from shelling out in the
: field conduces greatly to the feeding
| value OF the straw. The only seriou.
objection to the use OF barley straw lies
, in the villainous habit the little barb,
| have OF getting in the eyes Of the cows
| but they rarely do any serious harm i
, let alone. The men who handle thu
straw are more apt to suffer from thi
$ barb nuisance.
We must not overlook the usefulnes
g of straw on the farm in the shape o
o bedding and manure. There can b,
e nothing better to put under the cow
than dry straw, and when we conside
: its manurial value it will pay to haul i
. from considerable distance, even whel
V IA fair price has to be paid for it.
The great trouble with straw is it
It extreme bulk compared with its weight
g This objection can only be overcom
i by ingenuity on the part of the dairy
v man. There are many devices for load
a ing and unloading it that remove tn
:, bulk objection in a large measure
while the rack for hauling it may
made nearly double the size for othe
purposes. Baling it is yet too exper
: sive on the farm, and it is to be hope
that some method OF handling it muc
better than any now In practice wi
: soon be invented. One thingi is certai
u and that is that whatever trouble ther
;, may be in handling straw it is far to
y valuable to be allowed to rot in tn
" field. and no man should allow thes
n monuments to his lack Of enterprise t
u rear themselves in his fields and to
u his neighbors how shiftless he is
~ alnelIcan Hnirufnln