The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-05-12
sorghum a Great Crop for Hogs

A practical hog raiser of the West says:
Our experience in rearing hogs on sor-
ghum has been very satisfactory, and
has proved for this district the best way
of handling them. We have hog lot of
about four acres including a good orch
ard, and keep about an average of 100
hogs on hand the year around, selling a
bunch, say, every two months, the little
ones that come replacing those sold. The
lot is situated on bluffs of the river. The
high part is perfectly drained and is never
muddy, while the bluffs and trees afford
excellent shelter in both summer and
winter. In addition to this natural pro-
lection, we also have warm dry houses
for the hogs in winter.
A general outline of our method is as
follows: About April Is we plowed the lot
and drilled il with Folger's Early Sor-
ghum, using a bushel or more of seed
per acre. This variety grows very rap
idly, and within three weeks the hogs
were eating the young plants. They root
ed some up, of course, but not much, and
the growth was such that it kept ahead
all summer and afforded excellent feed. If
convenient 1t would be well 10 keep the
hogs out until the cane is a few inches
high at least. In September we forced
off half the lot where the orchard is, plow-
ed il and drilled in rye When a few inches
high we let the hoge Craze on the green
rye, and It made good pasture until May
In the winter we fed fifty COWS in the lot
outside of the orchard, on sorghum, with
all it's seed on. This was Coleman's, and
had been listed in six pounds to the acre.
It was very sweet and tender, and yield
ed at least thirty bushels of seed per acre.
Hogs and cattle alike ate 1t with great
| relish Up 90 April we fed this, two
thirds sorgum forage to one-third good
corn-fodder with considerable of the corn
| left in it, Nothing was wasted, eXceps
| corn-stalks and the animals gained all the
| time Then as soon as the COWS were noy-
| ed from the two acres used as feed lot
it was plowed up, and after heavy rain
| was drilled very thickly with Folger's
| Early sorghum again. BY the middle OF
| May the hogs had deserted the rye patch
| almost entirely for the new cane. We
have grain constantly accessible to ALL in
a self-feeder, and ii is surprising how lit
| tie is used from 1t so long as the rye
| and sorgum afford good pastures Our
self-feeder is generally supplied with corn,
sorgum or Kair corn seed. or chopin
| fact the least expensive mixture avail
able Salt and ashes also are kept in
troughs near by.
In our herd of hogs we let our sows and
shotes run together, and probably the sows
| get rather latter than desirable. but they
do well and rear excellent pigs; and then,
again, leaving them ali accessible TO feed.
| saves so much labor that we do not think
il pays to bother with more painstaking
| methods. Nothing we have ever tried
! gives as large profits as hogs raised thus
| Our sOrsum crop is certain and heavy.
and we use IL every day In the year In
| cutting We always begin early, when the
cane is juicy and the seed in the dough.
and do not in any case let it out too ripe
| for fodder Sorgum is our main reliance
but this year We intend adding artichokes
| and pumpkins as an experiment