FEED FOR DAIRY COWS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 127, 26 June 1909, Page 6

FEED FOR DAIRY COWS.

ITS PRODUCTiOX AND NUTRITIVE^ VALUE. LESSOXS FROM MOUMAHAKI.

•Mr F. Gillanders, manager of the Moimiahaki experimental farm, delivered a lengthy and valuable paper on the production and nutritive value of feed for dairy cows before the Dairy Conference n't Palmers-ton North on Wednesday. He confined his remarks to results wliich lie had actually obtained at Moumahaki during various experiments, giving full details in connection with each crop. He pointed out that the general opinion that the preparation Of the sjoil for , raising fodder crops was a minor matter was entirely erroneous, declaring that careful preparation and cultivation was' one of the main elements in success. TARES OR VETCHES.

A fodder crop which had received hardly any attention in the Dominion so fur was tares or vetches. It could he easily grown, and could be used cither fo'r green forage or for making into ensilage. Heavy yields could only he c.'.:iccteil when it was sown in good soils, 'while it was a crop which would not make any growth in dry weather. Beside being' very valuable as forage, 'A was one of the best cleaning crops wliich could be grown. 1 MAIZE. Maize took an important place as food for dairy cows in many countries, Jt could be recommended more on account of its abundant growth than for its richness. Weight for weight, it .might not be so nutritious as several other green crops, but there was no other forage plant that would produce anything like the same amount of food .per acre in the same short space of time I that it did. It was adaptable to a fairly wide range of both soil and temperature, and had the double advantage of being suitable for green food or for ensilage purposes as might be required. SORGHUM.

Several plants of the sorghum family were used as fodder with satisfactory results. They were supposed to have rather higher nutritive value than maize, but their yielding capacity per acre/ was' considerably less. ' . LUCERNE.

Another crop very suitable for forage, ] especially in times of drought, was lu-j cerne. Up to the present it had received very little attention in New Zealand, but was one of the plants specially adapted for feeding as green fodder or for conversion into ensilage or hay. It was better suited for cutting than grazing, and would not stand close feeding .down. It would grow on almost auy I dry porous s'oil, MILLET.

In some soils millet would produce very fair yields of forage, but in a general way it was considerably behind either maize or sorghum. The soils 'best adapted for growing it were alluvial flats rich in vegetable matter. It wasted a good soil, or else very heavy manuring, and should not he sown in light hungry soils at all. CABBAGES. So far cabbages had not been very largely u&ed as a food for milking cows, a circumstance largely due doubtless to the labor required for growing them and the dagger of their being attacked by the turnip fly. But they could be grown successfully almost all over the Dominion, and nvould bo found to be a very useful crop for supplementing other .foods for tire production of milk. It succeeded best on a fairly heavy clay soil with a porous' subsoil, but was a severe crop which required very liberal manuring. KALE. Two varieties ot kale which might be recommended for feeding' to cows were Jersey and Thousatid-headed. The preparation of the soil for it, and the after-cultivation, were much the samo as iu the case of cabbages. Crops of it could be raised iu almost any soil, but that best adapted for it was a heavy rich loam. Liberal manuring was necessary. KOHL RABI.

A crop that in lually countries was very strongly recommended as food for milking cattle was Kohl Rahi. Several varieties were grown for the purpose, among them being Short top and Hardy Green. It could be raised in auy fairly strong alluvial soil or ill stiff clay. Liberal manuring, however, was necessary. Kolil llabi was specially recommended by inuny authorities' for feeding to cows, as it would not affect the taste of either milk or butter.

CARROTS. One of the best foods for cows that could be grown was tlltit supplied by carrots, it being claimed that their tops were unequalled for milk-production. Among the varieties Specially favored were White Belgian, Loiig 'lied, and Yellow 'lntermediate. Carrots did best in a deep sandy loam with a deep and open subsoil. MANGOLDS, There was no better food for cows than mangolds, either lor late winter or early spring use. they could uo grown at a time of year when no other root or green crop was available. Dairymen generally used the Yellow Globe, .Long Red, Golden TankaM, Red Globe, ,and Sugar varieties. the- cost of pro. duction, to which som'd .farmers had taken objection, had really been very greatly over-estimated, largely owing to jwnut of knowledge. CONCLUSION. After dealing with the value of ensilage, and giving some hints as to its preparation, Mr, Cillandefs presented a summary of the value of seven of the crops he had referred to. Tliuy were placed in order of merit—that was, according to the amount of food and nutritive matter that they supplied, as follows:---

Yield per Nut. Mat

acre, per acre. tons. Lbs. Afimgolds (rootsonly) 53 10,752 Kohl Ralii (roots and tops) .. ..32 9,031 Ensilage (from maize) 24'/. 0,585 Blaise 33 ' 0,720 Cabbages .. ..28 5,205 .Sorghum .. ~ 19'/. 4,041 Millet 1214 2,417 1 These figures wefe the result of the Mouinahaki experiments, and Elbowed that mangolds were easily first as a food for dairy cows in every respect. After Mr. 'cdllauders had answered a few questions,', he was accorded a very hearty vote of thanks for his instructive paper, 011 the motion if the president, Mr. J. Foreman.