The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1906-02-28
Cattle Feeding Experiment.

The following from some careful cat
tie feeding experiments of one of the
experiment stations will be found very
Interesting to cattle feeders:
"In the second trial lot of two.
year-old steers on alfalfa and alfalfa
hay made an average daily gain in
1888 days of 1.5S pounds per head. The
gain made by a similar lot fed wheat
hay and cured sorghum in addition to
green alfalfa and alfalfa hay was 1.5C
pounds per head per day and by a
lot fed some rolled barley in addition
to alfalfa fresh and cured. wheat hay.
and cured sorghum 1.S7 pounds.
'The third test was made with two
lots each containing eleven yearlings
and covered 4S5 days. The lot fed
principally alfalfa made an average
daily gain of 1.21 pounds per day, and
the lot fed n ration of sorghum hay
wheat hay, etc, in addition to alfalfa
1.2G pounds. In the fourth test, which
covered j22 days, four steers fed al.
falfa as a soiling crop, hay or both,
in the different periods, made an av.
erage daily gain in the whole test OF
one pound per head. as compared with
OBS pounds in the case of lot fed
alfalfa supplemented principally by
sorghum hay. In connection with this
test one lot Of four steers was kept on
alfalfa pasturage to compare this meth
cd of feeding with the data obtained
by the use Of alfalfa as a soiling cror
or hay. In 51S days there was an av
erage daily gain on alfalfa pasturage
of 1.O1 pounds per head. From. the
data included in the bulletin the CON
clusion was drawn that the combina,
ton rations containing alfalfa were
about equal in feeding value TO rations
Of fresh and cured alfalfa.
''In all cases the shrinkage wher
steers were dressed was taken inte
account and the conclusion was
reached that although the differences
were small. yet this factor was slightly
greater with the lots fed alfalfa com.
bined with other materials than or
alfalfa alone.
''Since alfalfa, where conditions are
favorable for its production. yields the
most abundant and cheapest forage
grown in the Southwest, the high per
centage OF protein may be disregarded
although theoretically carbohydrate
feed. such as sorghum or grain hay
should be fed with it to secure more
thorough utilization of the protein OF
the alfalfa by the animal In situa
tionS where alfalfa can not be produced
TO advantage, as with scant water sup.
ply and on excessively alkaline soils,
carbohydrates rations may often be
grown, especially of the sorghum class,
which in combination with alfalfa
gives results about equal to those from
the all-alfalfa ration. Sorghum ratiens
alone are undoubtedly inferior 10 all
falfa alone and in combina ton with
alfalfa yield greater gains than when
fed alone.
THE quality of the meat from alfalfa
fed steers appears to be about the
same as that from animals fed on the
combined rations used. Animals fin.
ished with barley yielded meat of dis.
tinctly better quality, but the slight
advance in price obtained did not make
return for the barley fed.
Assuming the approximate average
and representative character of the
forage used, the yields obtained. and
the animals employed, the results Of
these experiments indicate that under
Southwestern conditions, where alfalfa
may be fed or pastured all or nearly
all the year, this forage is the most
abundant and the cheapest feed avail
able. giving as good gains of as good
quality as can be economically pro
duced."-Indiana Farmer.