No. 7. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. • 693 



ALFALFA IN PENNSYLVANIA. 



By DR. THOMAS F. HUNT, State College, Pa. 



In reply to questions by the speaker, it was determined that in the 

 audience of about two hundred and fifty, five were raising alfalfa 

 successfully, while seventeen had tried it without success. The 

 speaker called attention to the fact that raising alfalfa in Pennsyl- 

 vania was much like gold mining, that there were many attempts and 

 only a few successes, but that the successes were worth the whole 

 cost. ^ 



The speaker called attention to the fact that for many years he 

 had believed that alfalfa could not be raised successfully where red 

 clover grew well. He subsequently found, however, that his failures 

 to raise alfalfa had been due to the fact that the conditions neces- 

 sary to success were considerably different from those of red clover. 

 The speaker then said: 



There are at least seven factors influencing the successful culture 

 of alfalfa. They are: (1) climate, (2) soil, (3) the treatment of soil 

 including fertilizers and lime, (4) inoculation, (5) quantity and qual- 

 ity of seed, (6) time of seeding, (7) after treatment of the crop. The 

 above items are intended to include all the elements necessary for 

 the successful growth of alfalfa. There are some soils and some 

 climates where alfalfa grows so well that not all these factors are 

 essential. The conditions are so suited to alfalfa that all that is 

 necessary is to sow the seed. This, however, is not the situation on 

 most soils in Pennsylvania. If you want to raise alfalfa success- 

 fully in this State it is necessary to give careful attention to all the 

 factors as above outlined. 



Alfalfa is greatly influenced by temperature, much more so than 

 red clover. This can be illustrated by stating that in Arizona two- 

 thirds of all the hay raised is alfalfa, in Colorado one-half, in Wyom- 

 ing one-fifth, while in Montana only l-400th of all the hay raised is 

 alfalfa. The alfalfa plant is also affected by moisture. It is a dry 

 weather plant and well adapted to being grown by irrigation. It is 

 especially adapted to that section where the rainfall is less than 

 twenty inches. While this must be admitted, it is raised success- 

 fully where the rainfall is thirty-five inches as, for example, in the 

 neighborhood of Syracuse, N. Y. One reason for the plant being 

 easily affected by excessive moisture is, that it is a deep rooted plant 

 and if the water table is too close to the surface it is killed by get- 

 ting wet feet. A second disadvantage of a moist climate is that 

 the plant is subject to a fungous disease called the spot disease. 

 This is manifested by the appearance of little black spots on the 

 leaves. A third reason why alfalfa is not adapted to a moist climate 

 is the difficulty of curing it. This is especially true of the first and 

 last crops, assuming that four crops are obtained. Thus, for exam- 

 ple, in this climate the first crop is ready to cut about the first of 

 June while, as is well known, the weather at this time is not suited 

 for making hay. 



The growth of alfalfa, at least in humid sections, is very much 

 influenced by the soil. The following table shows five soil types on 

 which alfalfa has been grown and with four of which the speaker 

 has had intimate experience: 



38—7—1908. ~ ' 



