Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-09-24
pyE FOR aHoGSING DOWN.

very common III some OF the iCi0lllo HOg-
producing regions further North. 1t means
a crop sown to be fed upon at maturity by
turning in the hogs and allowing them
20 eat it down. It is plan becoming much
in vogue of late, and Mr.. John NJ. Jamison
prominent hog-grower of an upper state,
says there is no crop better for this purpose
than rye. He has heard it asserted that
rye is not valuable crop to hog down, and
that il is I dangerous crop for the purpose
on account of the Boards that they stick
in hogs throat, often causing death. He
knows full well that there are no Just
gro FUNDS for any such notion. There ma; be
conditions in which rye might not be the
very best crop known TO hog down. If the
weather is very dry and no grass growing
in the field the hogs might not get full ben
eft from the rye crop. When The grains
are very dry and hard they will be swal-
lowed whole and he very imperfectly di-
gested. The absence of grass will cause
the hogs to eat more of it, increasing the
loss by indigestion. If there is reasona-
bic abundance of grass at the Sc ason # the
rye's maturity, however the hogs will take
part ration of This. consuming less rye, and
tina, vii, be much better digested. Moth
ing against rye w,Ierg there is a reasonable
amount of.grass.
Hogs will do much better on rye if turned
on it after it has become badly straw
broken. Lying on the ground softens the
grain ana aids mastication and digestion.
1t viii waste less from lying on the ground)
than any of the small grains. Some people
drag it down with a brush before turning
on the hogs.
Next to the money profit that the farmer
expects to derive from growing hogs, it
should be his aim to improve his lands by
their use. Mr. Jamison says he is sorry to
find that with the majority of hog raisers
this idea receives but little consideration
The wet, cold land that will not grow wheat
will often produce paying crop of rye. He
knows of no better or cheaper way to i'm
prove such land than by growing rye and
feeding down on the land. 1t is an accepted
fact that growing rye is the best of all
small grains in which to get a grass stand
in the event that one desires to seed his
land to some species of cultivated grass.
The rye straw left after the hogging down
acts as a most excellent mulch and pro-
lection against the dry summer or fall
weather, the parching rays of the sun and
the winter frosts. The second or volunteer
crop from rye hogged down is often nearly
or quite as good as the first.
The grain crop to be hogged down at ma
turity is not all the benefit that may be de-
rived from it as hog food when sown early
it makes most excellent winter pasture
for pigs, brood sows or fattening hogs. No
evil will result from turning heavy fat
hogs on rank growing rye. The hardy
nature of rye makes it the best grain we
can sow for winter pasture for the pigs.
For this purpose it should be sown at the
rate OF two bushels per acre. The richer
the land, the better ard more abundant the
pasture. A small acreage near the hog
sown each fall will give profitable return
to the farmer for this purpose, for, as
rule, hogs suffer more in winter for the
lack of succulent food than from any other
cause.
Harvested ana threshed rye should never
be fed to hogs, MIR Jamison thinks, unless
cracked or thoroughly soaked to softnesS
in water and even then ii is not very de-
sirable food, and certainly not a profitable
one. Ground into meal and fed as 4 slop it
answers very well. but. all things consid-
cred, there are other feeds entirely more
profitable.
While rye is one Of our best crops for
hogging down. beginning just as the crop is
turning into milk or dough state, spring
pigs will not thrive upon il alone. left in the
field to help themselves. If other food is
entirely taken away when they are placed, l
on the rye they viii fall away in flesh, that
Is. if they are in good condition and have
been well fed. But for store hogs there
can be no better starter for the roundup on
corn than the run of 4 rye field containing
Il growth of grass considering the ease
with which the hogs get their feed without
labor on the part of the farmer. If the
feeding hogs are to be started in this way,
care should be taken as 10 time they 90 onto
the rye. that il may hold out in good guam
tity till the new corn comes. commencing
the corn by feeding part ration on the rye
field. either husked or stalk and ALL gradu-
ally increasing the amount until full feed
ing is reached.
Care should he taller that the rye does
not rLn short between full ration and new
corn; better lose little rye after corn
comes than to have 4 check in growth of
hogs after they have commenced TO fatten
The summer aud fall pigs will CLEAN with
benefit 10 them, what is left by the fatten-
ing hogs.
Rye is a crop succeeding 10 perfection in
most parts of Texas, therefore this article, |
while written for otter regions, is equally |
applicable to our own state. In past INES.
when the hog crop was necessaril:s late
fah crop with us this might have been re-
corded as otherwise. but not so now. The |
great refrigerating pork packeries have
hanged all that Nowadays when the |
hog is ready for the packery the packery is
ready for the hog without regald TO the
season of the wear