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The Cornell Reading-Courses 



(2) on heavy soils or those with hardpan subsoil the young plants are 

 not strong enough to withstand winterkilling. There is a large area of 

 such heavy soil in New York State, especially the type known as Volusia 

 silt loam and the hardpan hill lands in the south-central part of the State. 

 For the heavy types of soil mentioned above, prepare the land thor- 

 oughly and sow about May i ; or, if the land is weedy and not in first-class 



Fig. 239. — Showing advantage of midsummer sowing, as compared with early fall 

 sowing. Beginning at the left of the picture, the seed was sown August 19, 

 September 15, and October i, respectively. All were dug up April ij of the fol- 

 lowing spring. {At Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station) 



tilth, plow early and fallow for about two m.onths, killing the spring crop 

 of weeds and putting the soil in fine tilth. Sow about June i to 10. 



A nurse crop is seldom used except on land especially well adapted to 

 alfalfa. The young plants are delicate and must be favored in early 

 growth. However, in spring sowing it is often good practice to sow a half- 

 seeding (one bushel per acre) of oats or barley to be cut green at heading 

 time for hay. 



