For prairie hay stacked not less than thirty days a cube seven feet square (343 cubic feet) is not uncommonly bought or sold as a ton; yet seven-and-a-half feet square, or 422 cubic feet, are often made the basis of estimating. The author is advised that in the alfalfa growing districts of the Yellowstone valley it is the general custom to accept as a ton 422 cubic feet of alfalfa hay if it has settled thirty days or more. Also that hay-men find there is a noticeable variation between the different cuttings. The first cutting will fall short of actual weight more than the second, while the third cutting will hold up in weight, and sometimes overrun. Prof. E. A. Burnett, of the Nebraska experiment station, thinks an eight-foot cube, or 512 cubic feet, a fair figure.
Professor Ten Eyck says:
“The rules for measuring hay in the stack will vary according to the length of time the hay has been stacked and the kind and quality of the hay, and also according to the character of the stack. With alfalfa or prairie hay which has been stacked for thirty days it is usual to compute an eight-foot cube or 512 cubic feet as a ton. When the hay has been stacked five or six months, usually a seven-and-a-half-foot cube or 422 cubic feet is calculated for a ton. In old stacks which have been stacked a year or more a seven-foot cube or 343 cubic feet is allowed for a ton.
“There are different methods of measuring a stack, depending upon its shape and also its size. For a long stack or rick the usual method is to throw a line over the stack measuring the distance (in two or three places, and use the average) from the bottom on one side to the bottom on the other; add to this the average width of the stack, divide this sum by four (which equals one side of the square) and multiply the quotient by itself and this product by the length of the stack; this will give the number of cubic feet in the stack, which may be divided by 512, 422, or 343 in order to find the number of tons. For small, low ricks the rule is to subtract the width from the ‘over,’ divide by 2, multiply by the width and multiply the product by the length, dividing the result by the number of cubic feet in a ton.
“There is no established rule for measuring round stacks, but this one will approximate the contents of one of the ordinary conical form: Find the circumference at or above the base or ‘bulge’ at a height that will average the base from there to the ground, find the vertical height of the measured circumference from the ground and the slant height from the circumference to the top of the stack. Multiply the circumference by itself and divide by 100 and multiply by 8, then multiply the result by the height of the base plus one-third of the slant height of top. The hay in a round is necessarily less compact than in a rectangular stack, hence a greater number of feet should be allowed for a ton; with well settled hay, probably 512 feet.
“The rules given may also be used in measuring any kind of hay, sorghum or Kafir-fodder in the stack. However, for sorghum or Kafir-fodder only approximate results can be procured by stack measurements because the fodder is apt to vary greatly in weight, according to the moisture it contains.”
Pot Culture Experiments at University of Illinois
showing effect produced upon growth of alfalfa by nitrogen-gathering bacteria obtained from older alfalfa and Sweet clover. Reading from top to bottom the four photographs were made five, six, seven and eight weeks, respectively, from time of planting
Bottom row, signs from left to right:
ALFALFA. No Bacteria.
ALFALFA. Bacteria from Alfalfa soil.
ALFALFA. Bacteria from Alfalfa Tubercles.
ALFALFA. Bacteria from Sweet Clover Soil.
ALFALFA. Bacteria from Sweet Clover Tubercles.