DIGITAL ARCHIVE of SLAVERY to FREEDOM at MONTICELLO   (beta)

Oxen.

break all your steers at 3.y. old, so that when an ox is fatigued, you may have others to relieve him. this costs nothing as you feed oxen only when you work them.

with feeding & working they make better bullocks than without.

Oxen should be fatted & killed at 10. years old; not sooner. Logan

Toby with 4. oxen & a horse brings in a cart from Milton 28. bundles of nailrod = 1568℔

Cattle.

the offal of 300. Bar. corn will winter 40. head of cattle. so will the straw of 1000. bush. wheat

Veals are best from 6. to 8. weeks old, but may do from 5. to 9. weeks.

Dr Logan buys bullocks in July, & in 2. months they are fat & will double ye money

kill all calves which fall after the 1st of June.

keep from 5. to 6. head of cattle to every hand. old husbandry.

Dr Logan allows 2. ton of hay per head in wintering his cattle.

kill cows (as well as steers) at 10. years old.

a cow. (which will fatten to 700.℔) eats about 40.℔ of dry hay a day. 50℔ of turneps & as much straw as she will eat, keeps her as well. she will eat 83.℔ of carrots and straw, but 50.℔ of carrots and straw will keep her well & yield much & excellent butter & milk. 50.℔ of potatoes and straw are a good allowance, and give no taste to the milk or butter. 4. Young’s exp. agr. 368–371

Young in estimating the product from cattle rates milk ½d per pint or ℔. cream 6d butter 6d cheese 2d½ ib. 372.

two cows yield in a year 84℔ butter 186℔ cheese & 8/7 worth of milk & cream each. ib. 372–375. but in page 377. he reckons the average 102.℔ butter & 200.℔ cheese per cow.

in fattening cattle they will eat from ⅓ to ¼ of their weight of turneps per day besides hay. they will fatten in 4. month on turneps & hay alone, or in 3. months on a change of food. they prefer carrots to turneps, loss of them will suffice & fatten faster. ib. 380–386.

Proportion of cattle to a farm.

The number of cattle to be kept on a farm must be proportioned to the food funished by the farm. as this increases by the progress of improvement the number of cattle may be increased, & with that the quantity of manure. suppose all my fields once got into culture, to wit 7. fields of 40. as at each of the farms. the rotation of crops will produce the following food.

320. as of cloves @ 500.℔ of dried hay, or 1. ton of green hay to the acre					80. tons		}	272 tons of fodder
320. as of wheat @ 1000.℔ straw to the acre					160
160 as of corn	{	yielding fodder tops & shucks equivalent to 400.℔ of hay pr acre			32.
		at 2½ barrels to the acre	400.	Barr.	}
160. as of peas at 2. Barrels to the acre			320.			=	560. Barr. grass
180. as of potatoes among corn @ 6. Barr. to the acre.			480

so much of the 320. as as are not put into clover must be in peas as are equivalent.

see the application of this food on the [. . .] proceeding page.