The Parma herald. (Parma, Idaho) 1903-1917, 1906-07-21
HOW TO CURE HAY
Is a Scientific Proposition to
Do 1t Fight.

There are two secrets about making
hay that every farmer shonld under
stand. Ignorance Of these has cost TN.
'armers thousands Of tons Of hay. Whit
T. nay? Cure-i grnss, after cutting. II
- not ripened grass. cured on the stem.
for instance, cat hay II made from oat-
that are cut and cured when the grai,,
in the milk or dough. II left to ripen /
'efore cutting it can never le male int.
hay, IT then become- grain and straw
This same principle applies To- Tim
pthy or clover. II cut when in bloom, |
pr dough- it may be cured into good hay.
lfleft 10 ripen, it becomes grain. seerl
and straw. Inasmuch NJ the see,l l.
not of feeding value in these grasses il
"ecomes evident that the stuff desire,i
has changed into straw, aud the hay oi
'yerripe timothy or clover really il not
hay at all. Good oat hay is a valuabl,
fodder, but cat straw is quite inferior.
Good timothy hay is a useful feed in it,
place, but timothy straw is very pooi
stuff.
1t is not unusual IN find farmers wIa.
let their timothy get quite ripe befor,
cutting it for hay. 1t has passed. tn,
hay stage. 1t eau I've nothing but see,:
and straw. Many neglect cntring at tia,
proper time because they find it e:isie.
] u put up when oyernpe. They gain il
giving a little more attention to the
cornfieIds. gain in having an easier time
in cutting the overripe stuff, but the,
lose the feeding value Of almost the en-
tire crop.
There is a right time as well as a right
way to make hay. Neglect either and
lose will follow. While the cutting time
Of different grasses varies slightly, there
is time that fits nearly all quite well.
|. The best time 10 cut II between hoon,
y and the dough state Of ripeness. Tin,
ripper the grass gets beyond the dougl
q. stage of the seed the more woody fibel
it contains. Being quite indigestibl,
and therefore worthless, il is an elemen
in hay that is not desired.
There is right way to cure hav. Ha,
~ that Is bleached and scorched by tn
I hot sun and washed by the rain is poo
( stuff. The aroma, a most valuable ele
I ment, has been dissipatssl- The favo
} has been washed out. In fact, the sol
[ uble elements in the hay that max
aroma and flavor have palied uP. cam
AMI left for parts unknown. To secur
these and keep them is the secret 9
< having that few farmers seem, 10 under
stand.
Hay never should be wet Withdrew o
( rain. Ii il the external water that doe
the mischief. Hay that has been W,
once though drv when put in the NOV
will not keep as we'll OF feed as well &
that which was never wet. The molt
= that grow ON hay do not come from ii
\ inside moisture. A great deal of 81
may be left in hay and no harm, con
of it. In fact, few realize how gree
and heavy the hay may 3e that wi
store safely.
During life, plants are continual
pumping water from the soil and passir
it of through the leaves. When Il
supply isdiminisheI, or on an excessi'
hot DAY eyaporates from the leav
< faster than the roots can supply waite
, the plant willis till evening. Cut Il
stem off and insert in vase and Il
< plant STAYS green for a hong time. b
cut the stem with the mower and in
- lew minutes you see sign of wilt. Wat
q is leaving the plant through the leav
q and the plant is not getting supp
a. from anywhere. The hay is curing,
~ is desirable that this curing should co
81 tinue uninterrupted to the very end.
"a What may clierk perfect curings Il
- sun. The leaves are thin. They m
be scorclled to crisp 10y the beat a
before they have finished eliminate
the water in the stem. This conditi
is met ON hot iay. The leaves
cured and crisp while the stem :
contains excessive moisture.
Vow late in the afternoon and ev'
a., ing dew will do no harm ON the
,ns uill,-i grass. Nov in 4 rain and
harm will result il il stays wet for :
eral DAYS. When the sum dries 1t
tie. the hay may lie r.lked and bunel
anil curing will continue. This sha
the leaves 80 they do not get scorcl
before they have pumped the ste
emp,v. Usually load can be hau
=, no,n. Bv cutting In the aftern