378 ANNUAL, REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



five mouths in an alfalfa section this last year, and I observed that 

 the alfalfa-fed beef was dry and insipid, whereas the corn-fed is 

 juicy, and otherwise much more palatable. The alfalfa-fed beef is 

 noticeably tougher than that which is corn-fed. It may be that I 

 was unfortunate in my location, but that was my experience. 



MR. NELSON: Mr. Chairman, some one claimed he could tell the 

 difference in honey of black and Italian bees by the taste; of course 

 it would not be worth while to argue with him on that point. 



The CHAIR: (Addressing Dr. Thayer) I noticed that you men- 

 tioned the growth of some plants or some crops where the use of 

 fertilizer might be harmful. Now we would like to know where and 

 how fertilizers might be used that would be harmful to crops. 



DR. THAYER: In soils chiefly devoid of humus, all those chemi- 

 cals, especially lime, act deleteriously, doing more harm than good 

 oftentimes, especially where you have got considerable humus they 

 are so much more active. 



The CHAIR: Another matter, Doctor. Would it be a good plan 

 to attempt. to grow alfalfa after cow-peas where you can grow a 

 good growth of cow-peas. 



DR. THAYER: It would be a good idea to precede alfalfa with 

 cow-peas. 



The CHAIR: Would you advocate the inoculation of the soil be- 

 fore you would grow cow-peas? 



DR. THAYER: yes; I am ready to attempt some experiments 

 another year in that line. 



MR. HUTCHISON: What amount of red clover do you sow to the 

 acre? 



DR. THAYER: About fifteen pounds when I have an open field. 



The CHAIR: Would you mix any timothy with it at all? 



DR. THAYER: No, not with mammoth; if you sow mammoth 

 clover, that ripens at the same time with timothy. The first year 

 or two timothy stands more or less in tussocks; mammoth clover 

 will fill those spaces and you will get about as much timothy as if 

 there were no clover there. Where you want clover for that pur- 

 pose, use the mammoth and sow it right with the timothy. We only 

 cut the mammoth clover twice. Alsike clover is said to be a diurnal 

 and is very uncertain; sometimes it is diurnal on moist clay soil. 

 It will last for a good many years. 



MR. HERR: I would like to ask why it is that very many of our 

 farmers recommend sowing at least fifteen pounds of clover seed 

 to the acre, and my experience has been that I can grow just as 

 much with eight pounds to the acre. I think my experience will 

 tell me that I can grow as many tons of clover hay of a good quality 



