RED CLOVER. 91 



binder the whole crop. As a rule it is better to feed clover off before plowing 

 under. 



Prof. Johnson : We sow timothy in the fall with wheat and in the spring 

 when the ground is well settled, sow clover. We have little trouble on our soils 

 (chiefly clay) in getting a good seeding. On light sandy lands it may be better 

 to sow in the fall, though in this case the wheat is apt to be checked by excess- 

 ive growth of the clover. 



President Willits : I have heard a prominent cultivator assign as a reason 

 for feeding down before plowing under, that to plow under the whole causes it 

 to sour and leaves the soil in bad condition. 



Prof. Beal : There is nothing in the souring idea. He probably plowed 

 under so near to the time for wheat seeding that it had not sufficiently decayed 

 to be of use to wheat. 



President Briggs : About Grand Rapids we had some experience with clover 

 sickness. Some assign this to excessive use of plaster. Rest from clover cures 

 the trouble. We like mammoth clover even for hay and much better for pas- 

 turage, chiefly because it holds on longer in the season than the smaller variety 

 and is good through July and sornetitnes into August, depending on seasons. 

 Our soil is neither particularly light nor heavy. The clover sickness was on 

 light soil. 



Prof. Beal : I think mammoth clover the best kind for planting with timo- 

 thy if tmiothy is to be used at all. I am surprised to hear of this clover sick- 

 ness. I have seen some of it. May this difficulty not be due to insects or fungi ? 



Mr. Hamilton : My early experience was on clay land, and there plowing 

 under clover produced much better results than pasturing. Here on gravel 

 soil I have not found plowing under so good. I cannot get a wheat bed suffi- 

 ciently compacted below after plowing under clover. On heavy clays this point 

 is rather an advantage. 



Mr. Briggs : The proper time and manner of seeding depends on the sea- 

 -fions and is uncertain. If you sow in the fall you run the risks of the winter. 

 I prefer to plant when the land is settled in the spring and then harrow ivell 

 with a light, fine-toothed harrow. Don't be afraid ! You will benefit the wheat 

 instead of hurting it. I use the shoe drill to sow clover and thus get it ^ to ^ 

 inch deep. Think it will not germinate if much deeper. 



Dr. Godfrey : I have practiced the method of curing clover mentioned by 

 Prof. Beal, viz: putting it in the day it is cut and it is thus green, loses very 

 little by scattering, and I can often get the price of timothy for it. 



Mr. Morton : Twenty years' experience on soil near Grand Rapids leads me 

 to expect the best results from sowing clover in the fall and timothy late in 

 the spring. Putting clover into the barn the same day that it is cut can only 

 be done if it grows very thin on the ground and wilts very quickly. I cut in 

 the morning when the dew is on. As soon as the dew is off I cock up and let 

 it sweat (if the weather permits) and put it in the barn damp and green and 

 have no dust. 



Dr. Godfrey: Jamestown has no such soil as Mr. Morton mentions. My clo- 

 ver crop is so heavy that the track clearer cannot make a way for a team the 

 next time around. 



Mr. Beaumont : At what stage do you cut ? 



Dr. Godfrey : The earlier the better, as soon as the heads are beginning to 

 turn. 



Secretary Clark : I see no difficulty in this question in view of the facts 

 iregarding ensilage, which is simply fodder stored when wholly green. I use a 



