The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1908-04-30
ALFALFA--ITS VALUE AS
FEED, AND HOW 10 GROWTH
Extracts From 4 Paper by VIM. D. Goodrich Before the Farmers insti-
- tuea "A MoNila. ii w. 4.M

tial to success thai the cut alfalfa must
lie in an even, thin layer on the ground, so
that 1t may dry sufficiently for raking as
evenly as possible. This is specially Inn
portant IL rain should fall soon after cut
ting, II IL lies az 1t falls, IL viii dry as
quickly as though cut after the rain, and
without damage, provided 1t had not al
ready dried too muc before the rain.
Whereas, IL the dividing board were used,
the thick ridges and punches made by It
will not be In condition to rake for from
n to three days. and in the meantime the
balance has been parched to a crisp, and
perhaps another rain falls and 1t is all
seriously damaged.
We never cut more at one time than we
IA put into cocks before 1t Is dry enough
for the leaves to break. The secret OF Sue
cess lies In never letting alfalfa get dry
until after II Is In the NOW or stack On
a good drying day. the mornings cutting
can be raked and cooked In the afternoon.
We have sometimes handled II three hours
after cutting, IL very heavy when raked,
small cocks should be made. and It Will
talk a little longer for II to get dry enough
for the stack or NOW. but the quality OF
hay will not suffer. In cutting. II is not
necessary to wait for dew or rain to dry
of, as with clover. as II does not mat to
the ground, but lies loose enough for the
III 10 pass InIOuBus WlluEOWb ohOht0 hoh
be made too large. In a good crop they
should only be about ten steps apart. We
put two, or two and one-half dumps OF
the rake in a cock and never bunch Il with
the rake, but make neat, round-topped
cocks by stacking n forkful on top or
another. Alfalfa handles 80 nicely that
this work can be done very rapidly. es-
peciaily by making rather small cocks.
which are the best In every way.
We never risk any hay in h windrow.
II It Is to be rained on before 1t 10 cooked
up We prefer II In the swath. Therefore,
IL the weather is threatening we only rake
a little at q time, and never leave wind
rows over night, When safely In the cock
we consider 1t practically secure. No orr
binary wind will disturb II nor rain dam
age Il to any extent IL IL Is left alone. 1t
shouId never be touched after a rain until
the weather has settled and II has dried
out 30 that by turning the cocks upside
down In the morning they win do to put in
the same day.
II the cocks are not too large, all the
surplus moisture will be found next to the
ground and will ~evaporate very rapidly
when exposed to the sun and wind. They
will be set and Arm, shaped like half an
orange, IND a lar can turn over a row
OF them as fast as he can walk across the
field. II more are turned over than can
be put in that day the rest can be turned
upright In a few, minutes, and will be In
nearly as good shape, as IL never dis
turbed.
Alfalfa hay made in this way retains
all its leaves (the most valuable part), its
bright green, and is as much better than
the bleached. ~leafless stem put up by
more careless methods--and often with as
much, or more. labor--as bright, well
cured corn fodder Is better than the
weather beaten stalks we saw In the fields
along the road today.
To the skeptical ones, who are looking
for the easy a and him this involves
too much labor, / will only say, try II,
especially IL you have already had some
sad experience following some other meth
ID.
Remember, never let one part or the
work get ahead OF another. Get the hay
into h cock as soon as possible after it
Is cut, and never tear those cocks to pieces
until 0 are ready to put the hay In inn
mediately.