Oklahoma Farmer (Guthrie, Okla.), Vol. 13, No. 9, Ed. 1 Wednesday, June 29, 1904 Page: 4 of 16
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1
OKLAHOMA FARMER, WEDNESDAY JUNE 29, 1904.
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Dairy Breeds.
Mr. H. B. Gurler of DeKolb, 111.,
owns a herd of Jersey cows. During
the past year, as during previous lie
has kept a careful record of the cost
of producing butter; he found his herd
of 50 cows produced on an average of
297.70 pounds of butter. This at 20
cents per pound is equal to $59.54. The
average amount, of skim milk from
each cow was 5.453 pounds, which, val-
ued at 25 cents per cwt., is worth $13.03
making a total of $73.17. The grain
fed was princapally gluten meal and
some distillery by-products which was
charged to the cows at market prices.
The hay fed was charged at $8.00 per
ton and corn silage at $1.50 per ton.
The feed for each cow average tor the
50) amounted to $41.06. The labor of
caring for each animal he figures at
$12.50 per year, making a total cost of
$53.56 for keeping each cow. There-
fore each animal brought in a net pro-
fit of $19.61. The value of the man-
ure and the calf is not considered in
these figures. His four best cows in
this herd netted him a profit of $53.77,
while the four poorest ones were kept
at a loss of $5.98 each, the former
averaged 447 pounds of butter, while
the latter produced only 166 pounds
each. The latter incident shows the
value of knowing what cows are doing.
The dairy census has recently been
taken through Hoard's Dairyman in
Granger county, Ohio, by Mr. C. L.
Poole, from whose report we glean a
Readers of the
Oklahoma Farmer
are invited to
contribute items of
interest to this page.
The Connecticut college, a few years
ago, published some results concern-
ing cost of milk and butter production
was a herd of seven grade Guernsey
cows. These cows averaged 326 pounds
of butter each; at 20 cents per pound
this would amount to $65.20; the cost
of feed was rather high prices being
always higher In the east, than in the
central west), $10 per cow; deducting
the cost of feed from the gross income
we have a net profit of $25.20. The
best cow in this lot yielded 472 pounds
of butter while the poorest produced
only 165 pounds.
Our readers should gather from these
figures that there are good and poor
Individuals in nearly all herds, that
success in the dairy business does not
depend so much upon what dairy breed
one chooses as it does upon the in-
dividuality of the animals one selects
and upon the constant care in weeding
out the poo.r cows from the herd. Cows
of the dairy type, however, should al-
ways be chosen.
Ski in Milk Pigs.
(N. D. Gunter, Wisconsin.)
My sows are fed chiefly on skim milk
The pigs wnen weaned get vitually the
same diet until they are ready for being
marketed. I have sold many pigs for
breeding purposes grown thus which gave
good satisfaction to the purchasers. As
a rule it would be more profitable to feed
something along with the milk.
Tiie question will be raised as to why
there should be a greater profit from
feeding other food with the skim milk.
The answer is first, that skim milk is
manure with the least loss, it should
be made as compact as possible in
order to exclude the air. Manure and
ensilage should be kept in about the
same manner, that is, both materials
should be in the finest condition pos-
sible and heavily weighed down to
prevent the air from getting into the
material. Experiments along this
line have shown that when dry ma-
sure and absorbent materials were ex-
cluded from the air the loss of ammo-
nia was but a slight, but when the air
was admitted, the loss was from 5 to
17 per cent of nitrogen. When the
urine and absorbent materials are not
excluded from the air the nitrogen of
into ammonia and in that form readily
the urine is almost entirely converted
escapes into the atmosphere, the loss
being about 16 per cent. Gypsum will
assist to a great extent in arresting
this loss. Kanite is sometimes used
as a substitute to prevent the escape
of common salt. Gypsum of kanite
of potash and contains a large portion
of common salt. Gypsium or kanite
may advisably be sprinkled freely
over the manure daily as the manure of
the heap accumulates. Cold water
will serve well in reducing the heat in
the manure heap, and as we have inti-
mated above, less heat will occur if the
air is excluded.
The real value in amonia is the nit-
rogen and it is the nitrogen that the
farmer seeks, whether he buys nitrate
of soda, dried blood, sulphateof ammo-
nia or ground fish and it is the same
substance in the manure, Viz; nitrogen,
that gives it its highest value. Of the
three elements of plant food, nitrogen
is the most expnsive and he farmer
should endeavor to save all the mater-
ials on the farm that he posibly can
which produce nitrogen.
Many farmers succeed in saving the
potash and phosphoric acid but per-
mit a loss of valuable nitrogen because
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few facts concerning grade Holsteln
averaged 5,944 pounds of milk per cow
per year. The milk was sold to a
cheese factory at an average price of
about 90 cents per 100 pounds, which
brought a gross income per cow of
$53.50. The average cost of feed per
cow, according to this report, was
$27.96, making a net return, less cost of
labor of $25.84 per cow. Four other
herds of eight cows each, some of
which were grade Holsteins, but the
majority poor animals of no particular
breeding averaged .1,320 pounds of
milk per cow; this milk brought an
average of 86 cents per 100 pounds or a
total of $28.55. The feed cost $26.19
per animal; hence, each cow, exclusive
of the work of caring for her, averaged
a net profit of $2.36 per head. The best
herd of the six first mentioned, which
was composed of three pure-bred Hol-
stiens and four Holsteln grades of ex-
cellent dairy type, netted their owner
$36.15 per cow, while the porrest herd
in the last four named, only netted a
profit of 48 cents per head. Another
herd of seven Holsteins and grade Hol-
steins of which we know and which
is located in Indiana, averaged 316.7
pounds of butter fat during the [wist
year equivalent to 270 pounds of butter
at 20 cents per pound this brought $71
the cost of feed was $30, showing a
net profit of $44 per cow.
An Oklahoma Growing Industry.
too valuable to feed entirely alone. It
is worth more than other foods which
may be fed along with skim milk which
furnish a ration in better balance than
skim milk alone will furnish the same.
Such being the case it is certainly bet-
ter to feed something alons with the
milk than to feed the same alone. For
this purpose corn answers remarkably
well. Tint carbo-hydrates In the corn
tend to balance nicely the protein in the
milk.
The value of skim milk for feeding
swine is generally unedrated. In the
discussion referred to some of these who
look part in it stated that they believ-
ed the separator milk which they fed
brought to them a return of 50c per hun-
dred. All or nearly all were agreed that
100 pounds of skim milk properly fed
was worth quite as much as a bushel of
corn. If these men are correct in their
estimate, the growers of swine will do
well to try to keep enough cows on the
farm to keep them well supplied with
Saving Plant Food.
Too many do not realize the liabil-
ity of loss of valuable plant food in
manure heaps during the warm days
of summer and to prevent such loss is
one of the difficulties that, confront
many farmers. If manure from the
stables could be hauled to the fields
and spread on the land and plowed
under as fast as it accumulates there
would be a greater saving of plant
food, but many of or readers neglect
their regular farm wark to manage the
barnyard manure in this way. To keep
appications of water, and the quantity
and quality of crops would be the same
every season.
But experience demonstrates thai
three crops out of every five are par-
tial if not total failures, and unifor-
mity of product is a matter of chance
or as some say, "good luck."
The period of growth is always the
period of drouth, and hence, the ques-
tion of artificial applications of water
or irrigation, is fast becoming as much
a necessity in the humid regions as
in the arid and semi-arid sections of
the cotintry. There is this difference
however: In Illinois and elsewhere,
irrigation is "supplemented," it sup-
plies the deficiency in rainfall, and
provides the growing crops with mois-
ture enough to grow without cessa-
tion.
All that is required is to give crops
in the humid regions, during the dry
summer months, as much artificial
water as they naturally receive dur-
ing the seasons when a god crop is
gorwn without irrigation. Thus, if
during an exceptionally good season
of rainfall the crop runs to 50 bush-
els of wheat, 250 bushels of potatoes,
etc., with 12 inches of natural rain-
fall. If the rain was distributed
the soil artificially, or the crop will
fall short.
The quantity of water to be put up-
on the land will depend in a great
measure upon the quantity in the
soil through fall, winter and early
spring rains. Where there is no drain-
age thorough cultivation will be suffi-
cient, for irrigation in that case is
apt to render the soil soggy. A good
drianage system is the natural brother
of irrigation, and when the land is
under such a system, there need be
no fear of applying water artificially,
for the excess drains off, and the mois-
ture remaining will hasten the crop
and increase the production.
There is no reason why irrigation
should not be as proper in the humid
rgeions as in the dry belt. The area of
irrigation is spreading as far as the
Atlantic states, the canning industries
particularly, adopting it to secure uni-
formity of production furrow irriga-
tion in the cornfields, for instance,
combined with drainage, the "wet"
climate farmer is indipendent of the
elements, and has crops of the same
quantity and quality to depend upon
every year. The same is the case with
tomatoes, orchard and small fruits.
The main point to be observed is to
supply the deficiency of rainfall, tak-
ing a good year as the standard, and
successful culture will be attained.
r
they fail to realize how rapidly the nit-
rogen in the form of ammonia escapes
from the manure heap. Avoid the ex-
posure of manure to the air and pro-
vide the manure with such absorbent
material as can be obtained.
The coarse materials of the manure
heap found in bedding differ greatly
from urine and solid excrement and
when mixed with manure, nitrogen is
slowly converted into ammonia. The
finer the bedding material the better.
Where open barnyards are employed,
aim to keep the manure in a heap
and place the litter that may accumu-
late in the barnyard on this heap. Li-
quid manure "should not flow into the
barnyard, as the first rain will wash it
away, or exposure to the aii or sun will
decompose it. Just as fast as possible
all materials should go to the heap and
the heat be tramped down into a com-
pact mass.
Irrigation in Humid Regions.
it does seem superfious to irrigate
land artificially in sections of the
country that receive an avarage an-
nual precipitation of from 35 to 40
inches of water through natural rain-
uniformly, so that the summer months
of June, July and August would re-
ceive their proper proportion, there
would not be any need of artificial
1 - Only Bow!
With
Proper Bearing
All "bucket bowl scp
arators have incorrect
bearings. The bowl 1m
sit upon the spindle
■mil lii lit upright by
rigid bearings. Such
bowls are top heavy, in
clined to wobble, euro
to biud.
Tubular bowls, only,
are properly sup-
ported, bring sun
priidnl from and
turning upon u single
bull bearing. A breath
almost turns them
rhey cannot wobble or
bind. Catalog L-148 tells
all about them.
The Sharpies Co
Chicago, III,
P. M. Sharpies
Wast Cheslar, Pa
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Greer, Frank H. Oklahoma Farmer (Guthrie, Okla.), Vol. 13, No. 9, Ed. 1 Wednesday, June 29, 1904, newspaper, June 29, 1904; Guthrie, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc88005/m1/4/: accessed April 25, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.