Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1899-05-26

the college herd OF thirty milking COWS
was being we'll fed on twenty acres OF
tame grass pasture from which an early
crop of hay had been cut. June 10 this
pasture not furnishing sufficient feed
forty-two acres OF prairie grass pas
ture were added, and August 10 these
two pastures getting short, eleven
acres Of tame grass meadow were add
ed, making seventy-three acres of pas
ture. With this amount 1t became
necessary, the latter part Of August, to
begin feeding green kafflr corn to keep
up the flow of milk. Contrast the col
lege record, seventy-three acres OF pas
ture for thirty cows, supplemented
with green feed from the latter part
of August, with that Of patron OF the
Manhattan creamery, who, having no
pasture, turned his cows into dry lot
cut green alfalfa and fed 1t to them,
feeding ten head all they needed
through summer on four square rods
less than two acres.
1t pays to keep dairy cows supplied
From July to August 16 the college
herd on full feed dropped Az per cent
in the daily milk yield, while eight
herds in the vicinity Of the college
dropped 80 per cent in milk yield be-
cause short pastures were not helped
out with other feed. A drouth may be
expected some time in every summer.
When it comes the milk yield goes
down all over the country and the
price of dairy products goes up. NOT
many dairymen can add more pasture
when the drouth comes, and the Kan
sas dairyman who can not should,
without fail, provide for feed to supple
ment short pastures, so as to insure a
good milk flow when prices are the
highest If the pasture does not be-
come too scanty the milk flow may be
kept up by feeding grain, but for most
dairymen this is too expensive. Lib
eral feeding of either green alfalfa or
Of alfalfa hay helps out short pasture,
and both are cheap feeds where the
dairyman has them. The cheapest and
most convenient feed for summer
drouth where the dairyman has a silo
is silage. The silo may be uncovered
and the silage fed whenever other
feed is short. II rains come and the
grass again is sufficient feed, cover up
the silo and wait for the next drouth
or for winter.
Many dairymen have neither grain
alfalfa nor sllage, and should put IN
crops this spring that will supply
green feed when the drouth comes.
Plan today. Green wheat, green oats
and green millet are good, but last
only a short time. Begin cutting these
crops as soon as the first heads appear
and continue until the stalks begin 10
harden. Sweet corn comes early, ana
is a good reproducing feed, but the
weld is too small. Field corn, kaffir
corn and sorghum are the most profit
able green crops for the Kansas dairy
man who does not have alfalfa. BE-
low are given the average dates at
which the various crops are available
as green feed for dairy cows on the
college farm:
Alfalfa-May 20 to September 30.
Wheat-June to 10.
Oats-June is to 30.
Sweet corn-July Is to 81.
Field corn-August 1 to September
Is.
Sorghum-August 1 to September 81.
Kaffir corn-August l to September
80.
Wheat-Fall pasture until ground
freezes
Many write asking how many acres
of each crop is needed. The season.
soil and thoroughness of cultivation
affect the yield so much that we cannot
answer these questions. Green crops
are most needed in dry summers, anu
in estimating the acreage required for
herd, plans should be made to have
an ample supply for very dry year
In a good year the surplus can be cur
ed for winter. With these considera-
tions we have made the following es-
innate of the number of acres OF each
crop required to feed our thirty cows
for the period during which the crop
is available: Alfalfa 10, wheat 3, oats
sweet corn 8, field corn 4, sorghum
and kaffir corn 3.