Show ap PROVIDE I 1 PASTURE FOR HOG production R em an r ME 1 71 IJ an 4 6 a wt 0 1 44 I 1 0 a 1 4 15 J A 1 I I 1 X A 4 i PIGS ON OAT AND PEA FORAGE from the united states department of 0 agriculture to make hog production most profitable life fife farmer should provide pasture for his hogi hog whenever possible the earlier in the year green feed can be supplied the better swine of any age relish green feed and its use always reduces the cost of producing gains on hogs in addition it keeps the animals in good the information given in t this his article however applies only to the northern part of the united states particularly those states and sections of states lying north of parallel 39 the best crops to seed in early spring acre are wheat cheat oats rye barley rape canadian field peas and vetch any of the cereals do well planted singly or in combination with rape canadian peas and vetch in certain sections where these crops will survive the winter they can be sown the previous fall in sections where it Is impossible to maintain a stand over winter the crops mentioned can be sown in early spring as soon as the ground Is fit the pigs should be turned in to pasture the cereal crops when the plants attain a height of about six to eight inches and taken oft off when the plants reach such a height that the pigs be 1 zo za r i 9 V alkek t I 1 61 2 wi k kr e val 4 S y K 1 Ts T s pigs in rape field gin to spit the chewed material from their mouths this Is because the percentage of crude fiber the indigestible part of the plant increases rapidly as the plants grow larger green wheat oats rye and barley are generally classified as carbonaceous hages when young however these contain a high percentage of protein and should be classified as nitrogenous tro genous hages in the early stages of growth because the small grains p agns when young are so nutritious and are green when hen frost has killed clover they are ideal plants to grow for cor pigs during late fall and early canadian field peas canadian field peas when sown in conjunction with some other kind of grain oats rye etc make an excellent early crop for hogs the seed should hould be sown in april or early may ilay find if conditions are right the crop nall be ready to pasture in about thirty or forty days hogs clean up the peas and vines very well the vines that are left on the ground together with the manure zurich enrich the soil arid and add more humus to it the great value of peas as a pasture for swine Is far too little understood hairy vetch halry vetch Is a legume of increasing importance especially as a forage for or hogs it nourishes flourishes to tc a surprising degree in washington oregon and the southern states stales the seed should be sown in the fall alth rye or oats october Is the best month in which to plant this crop when the winters are too severe vetch Is not generally grown it succeeds wherever canadian field peas do well but the field plas peas are usually preferable rape rape as a forage crop is Is highly recommended om orn tor for hogs whenever it can be e grown successfully it should not be planted in the fall of the year alth the expectation of its surviving the winter in most localities it Is best to sow rape in april or may if there Is enough moisture in the soil to germinate the seed it Is generally ready to pasture in about six when pigs are put on rape it generally takes them some timo before they acquire a taste for it young pigs d do not make as good use of rape pasture is older ones the hogs not be turned on the rape antil the plants are at least ten incas high rape Is a very satisfactory forage borage plant for hogs because it grows rapidly and Is a cheap green teed feed grain for hogs on pasture while the cost of producing pork may be reduced by the use of green feed it Is desirable to feed grain in addition there is no time that grain can be so profitably fed to a hog as when he is loung and running on pasture under such conditions it Is possible to secure 15 pounds of gain tor for each bushel of grain fed during the spring summer and early fall months from one half to three fourths of a full feed of grain will be sufficient for hogs running on pasture |