MILK-YIELD AS EFFECTED BY DIET.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume V, Issue 1571, 30 May 1887, Page 2

MILK-YIELD AS EFFECTED BY DIET.

For information on this important sub* ject, as on many; others, we are indebted to Sir John A, La wes. This eminent agriculturist has recently published an acoount of some experiments conducted at Bothamiited, showing the extent to which the milk of a cow can be in* creased In yield by a proper regulation of . diet, and also how far such costly foods as oilcake and corn meal can be recom* mended as economical.

The rule at Botbamitead his bean that every cow which during one week hat yielded from 28. bto 301 bof milk per day Bhould reoeive during the following weeks 41bs of deoortioated cotton oako per day; and that subsequently for each 21b day increase. ,or deoretse In the milk yield, the oake should be Increased or reduced a quarter of a pound. ' One cow called ' Sally ' yielded 1042 gallons between calving and dryness. In the third week after calving >.er yield wat 4i gallons per day. At thirteen weeka alter oalvlug aha had not declined 2ibt m the weekly yield, and even after giving milk twenty-six weeks the milk record showed 4 libs for a week.

Although as maoh as 451ba of cake waa given m one week, the total amount wa<i only l^lbs to each gallon of milk, 'la this instance,' remarks Sir John, ' thera appears to be 1 evidence that the ordinary falling-cff m yield was considerably re* tarded by the increased amount of cake consumed.'

The chief point insisted on, however, is tint a considerable economy m the vie of purohaned food may be effeoted by regulating It m accordance with the milk produced, and Sir J. Bi Lawes contludev his paper trith the renmk that Iq a dairy where at the same time some cow* may be yielding 501 ba or GOlbi of milk per day there must necessarily be ft great waste of food aa well as a lorn of tniik, the ordinary system of promlsouom feed* log being adhered to.