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Show CARE FOR STACKED ALFALFA Best Way to Cure Hay Is to Rake If Into Small Winrows arid Let the Crop Dry Out Slowly. Sometimes weather conditions make it almost impossible to put alfalfa hay in the stack in good condition, and heating and burning results. A. H. Leidligh, assistant professor of crops at the Kansas Agricultural college, says a comparison will show why the water does not readily cure out of the stems. If a tree is cut down on a cool, cloudy day, eaid Professor Leidligh, Leid-ligh, the leaves remain green and fresh for some time. They take water from the trunk and pass it off into the atmosphere. If the weather ia reasonably cool for a few days, the water will all be taken, out of the tree. Now, if the tree is cut down on a hot, sultry day the leaves will dry up and fall off. The water is still in the trunk of the tree, and there is no way for it to get out quickly. It is tha same with alfalfa. When it is impossible to wring water out of the hay, eays Professor Leidligh, it is dry enough to stack. The best way to cure hay is to rake It into small winrows and let It. dry out slowly. If the ground is damp, or H the air is very moist, the winrows must be turned frequenty to expose all the hay to the sun. Hay often heats in the .stack because be-cause it is rained on, or because it absorbs ab-sorbs moisture from the ground. Not less than $5 to $10 worth of hay is spoiled on the top and bottom of a 25-foot stack of alfalfa, put up in tha usual way. This loss may be avoided by stacking on a foundation of poles, or under sheds. The money saved on a few stacks will pay for the shed. Opinions differ on just how much the feeding Value of alfalfa ia affected af-fected by heating. Some argue that while it lowers the feeding value, it improves the taste. Cattle usually eat brown and black alfalfa with more relish than they do the bright green hay. |