Iron County record. [volume] (Cedar City, Utah) 1893-1982, 1915-03-26
SMALL GRAINS AND
ALFALFA FOR HOGS
Valuable information for Farmers
Engaged in the Raising of Hogs
for the Market.

agriculture furnishes the following
Information which is strongly rec.
omrnended by DR.. w. f. Carol, head
81 the Animal Husbandry department
Of the Utah Agricultural College. His
Recommendation are based on practi-
cal tests along these lines.
The growing of swine and the pro-
auction Of pork are industries that to
day are claiming increasing attention
s PWghout the Northwest. Expert
6ents with grains which may take
<the place of corn for feeding purposes
are of the greatest interest to the
farmers in this region, because the
small grains are often grown in a.
bundance and form the basis Of all
rations. A great amount Of wheat
barley, and rye Is fed in the form Of
mill products, and is, Of course,
kground. In common practice, also
these grains are ground more general
ly than corn, as they are usually much
harder. The greater liability Of these
small grains to pass thru the animal
undigested shows the correctness of
such practice.
z Chief among the small grains is
wheat, and it appears to be the food
best adapted for long continued hog
feeding. The advisability Of feeding
wheat or any other grain, however,
depends upon market prices and eco
nomic conditional II could hardly
be regarded as economical to use
wheat as stock feed at the high prices
now prevailing. A bushel Of wheat
properly fed to reasonably wellbred
hogs should produce approximately
ID pounds of grain in weight. The
results Of a number of feeding tests
show that there Is comparatively
little difference In feed value between
wheat and corn for swine.
In comparing various rations in
which corn, wheat, and rye were fed
alone or in combination with each
other, 1t was found that dry, ground
wheat gave the greatest returns and
required the least amount Of grain to
make 100 pounds Of gain. For the
best results, wheat should be ground
and mixed with some supplement,
such as tankage, peas, or soy-bean
meal. The results obtained from a
number of tests have proved this to
lie a g6od practice, tho probably not
advised N our state.
In Great Britain and northern
= Europe barley takes the place of corn
for pork production, leading all grains
in producing pork Of fine quality, both
as 10 hardness and flavor. Consider
able study in the United States has
been made Of the value Of barley as
pig feed, and the results have shown
that It COMPARES very favorably with
'~'>sURv-but has feeding value some.
Z what below that Of wheat. What
this grain may lack in feeding value,
however, 1t more than supplies in its
effect on the carcass. AS a high-grade
pig feed it far surpasses any other
grain, and this fact makes possible
the production Of pork Of the first
quality In regions where barley Is
produced abundantly. Ground or roll
led barley is best fed in combination
with wheat middlings, skim milk.
roots, alfalfa, etc.
Rye meal ranks a little below corn
and about equal to barley meal as a
feed for swine. Rye produces salts.
factory pork, especially when It is fed
with other grains. II is extremely
heavy, concentrated feed and will
usually give best results when fed not
to exceed one-third ration. In many
sections rye is much esteemed as pas
ture, especially where soils are rather
light, and in such instances "hogging
of" proves profitable.
Alfalfa Pasture and Hay
Since economical pork production
depends largely upon the consumption
of great deal Of cheaply grown feed.
the pasture should be managed so
that the forage produced will be clean,
tender, and palatable. Many success.
full hog raisers prefer to use such
crops as alfalfa and clover for both
pasture and hay at the same time.
The number of hogs generally turned
into a field is so limited that usual
crops Of hay are made.
The newer irrigated sections have
thousands of acres in alfalfa which
ihoS Dc utihLcu W great advantage Dy
pasturing hogs. Alfalfa, while adap-
ted to the same territory as clover,
has a much wider range of usefulness.
for il succeeds with less rainfall and
on lighter soils than clover. Where
the land is to be used continuously
for hog pasture for number OF
years, alfalfa easily stands first. An
acre Of alfalfa will keep from 10 to
20 pigs during the summer, and with
grain In addition will make very pro-
itable gains and q high quality of
pork.
Alfalfa hay is often used for feed
ing TO hogs in the dry lot. II may be
fed whole, chopped. or ground. The
results Of five years work at the
Nebraska Station indicate that for
fattening hogs the way TO feed al
falfa hay most satisfactorily is with
out grinding or chopping. Other
Stations have found the same thing.
While the cost of producing pork may
be reduced materially by use of al
"a Il