The Cowpea For Hay

Categories: THE COWPEA

The hay is one of our most palatable

feeding-stuffs. Livestock may reject it the first time it is put into

the manger, but a taste for it is quickly acquired, and soon it is

eaten greedily. The high content of protein makes it exceptionally

valuable for young animals and milk cows, and the manure contains a

high percentage of nitrogen. The difficulty in making the hay is a

drawback, but this is over-rated. While rain d scolors the vines and

makes them unattractive in appearance, the hay remains more palatable

and nutritious than good timothy, if the leaves are not lost in curing.

When the first pods turn yellow, the crop should be harvested. The

vines can be left in the swath until the top leaves begin to burn and

then be put into windrows with a sulky hay-rake. The windrows should be

small, the rake merely serving to invert half the vines upon the other

half, bringing new surface to the sun. After another day of curing, the

windrows should be broken up into bunches no larger than can be pitched

upon the wagon by a workman, thus saving the trouble of disentangling

the vines. If rain comes, the bunches should be inverted the following

day. In dry, hot weather the curing proceeds rapidly, while in cooler

latitudes or cloudy weather the curing may require a week. The chief

point is to prevent undue exposure of the leaves to the sun, and this

is accomplished by the turning. The hay will mold in the mow if not

thoroughly well cured, unless placed in a large body in a deep, close

mow that excludes the air. Some farmers use the latter method

successfully, but the experimenter with the cowpea usually will fail,

and should prefer thorough field curing, at the risk of some damage

from rain and sun. The leaves are the most nutritious part of the

plant, excepting the seed.