Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1898-01-07
ARTICHOKES AS FEED.
AN EXPERIMENT OF GREAT INTEREST
TO STOCK-RAlSERS.

Report oil seasons Sc OF the Tubers on
Bridport Farm-Uniform Success At
tends the Triai-.Al Kinds of stock
Thrive on the Food.
Byron w. Crane of Bridport has
been raising for the past two years
white French artichokes. This is what
Mr.. Crane says in regard to them:
81 raised IS bushels last year. |
planted one peck of seed, but less than
one-half of them came up. We measured
the ground and we had at the rate of
800 bushels per acre. So | think it is
safe to say they will yield from 800
to 1000 bushels per acre.
"Stocl of all kinds eat the tubers with
great relish and also the stalks as readily
as green fodder corn. Now, last spring
we planted one and one-half acres rows
three and One-half feet by one foot in the
rows. We used nine bushels of seed on
one and one-halG acre on land that had
grown two crops of potatoes and one of
corn since any fertilizers of any kind
had been put on the land, and some of
the stalks stood - feet high by actual
measurement. The 1st of July the
weeds were from four to five inches high
and we intended to dress them out, but
it was so wet we could not get on the
ground, and by the last of August there
were no weeds there. So dense was the
foliage it had killed out all clean. The
yield this year was less that 500 bushels,
owing doubtless to Its being so very wet
the early part of the season and so dry
through September and October Our
potatoes on two acres did not yield 10
bushels.
Nov for the feeding. l think know
they are more nutritious and better for
all kinds of stock than any roots | ever
fed. In fact all kinds of stock will leave
grain and eat the tubers in preference,
and all kinds of stock will eat the stalks
with great relish. | have seen hogs
leave grain and eat the stalks. | will
make one exception. The stalks are too
coarse for sheep but they will leave
their grain for the tubers. Last Septem-
Der we invited the farmers of Addison
county to come and see this crop in the
field. They responded freely ana were
greatly surprised at the great mass of
forage growing on the ground. | would
say here the New York Tribune. issued
Fob. II, 1897, says you could raise as
much feed on one acre of artichokes as
on five acres of corn with less labor per
acre. can say with safety more than
twice as much. Now, this crop wa,
surprise to me when growing and more
Of a urprise at harvest time.
81 wouid say we tried some experiments
it Q
put three or four loads in the silo. and it
proved a failure. Then we commenced
feeding our dairy, the first of November
on dry artichoke stalks, without grain or
any other feed excepting three or four
hours in the middle of the day they were
turned out to water and they must have
eaten some frozen grass.
"We were making - pounds of butter
per week when We commenced feeding
the stalks and they gradually gained i'm
milk and butter. On the third week we
made los pounds and the fourth week of
the trial we made 40 pounds, which was
very satisfactory to Us.
Yours respectfully,
BYRON W. CRANE,
c. W. ODELL.
Dea. J. 7. Lamus of Bridport says in a
letter of Dec. 3, 1897:
II visited Byron W. Cranes farm in
Byidport and saw the artichokes fed to
his stock. In the first place saw the
stalks fed to horses, cows and hogs and
they all ate them up clean as rapidly as
they would green fodder corn. also
saw the tubers fed TO horses, cows.
| hogs and sheep and they seemed to
relish them as they would grain. / also
saw in the cellar about 600 bushels of
the tubers raised from one and one-half
acres, Mr.. Crane having sold POO bushels.
After seeing all this | am convinced the
artichokes are very profitable crop and
intend to plant some of them myself in
the spring. | had heard great deal
about Mr.. Cranes crop of artichokes,
but had no idea stock would devour
them so ravenously until | was there q
few days ago. The amount of fodder
and tubers they produce surpasses any
thing ever saw and only wish people
would do as have done-go and see for
/ themselves"
Frank Williams of Bridport says:
"By request visited the farm of b.
W. Crane of Bridport for the purpose of
informing myself Of the value of his
crop of artichokes for stocll-feeding
purposes. found Mr.. Crane at home.
He gave me very cordial invitation to
dinner which | accepted. After dinner
we went to the barn to investigate.
First we went to the horse barn. His
farmer said the horses had had their
noon feeding, but he fed them again with
the stalks of the artichokes, which they
ate very greedlly. Next we went to the
dairy barn where some 30 cows were
sanctioned. They fed them the stalks
with the same result, they seeming to be
very fond of them. He fed one COW
with the roots and meal, side by side,
She ate the roots up clean before touch
ing the meal. We next took some to the
hog barn, where he had II or Is brood