222 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



FORAGE PLANTS. 



XLFAIjFA. 



The seed sown iu 1901 was mixed with weed seed. None of the weeds became 

 troublesome, except two heretofore unknown, and hence not enumerated in Bul- 

 letin 186; one is the common weed known as Ribwort or Narrow Leaved Plantain, 

 which was liberally sprinkled over every plot. The other was found only on the 

 plot of Turkestan Alfalfa and was the common pest known as Dodder, a parasitic 

 plant developing numerous oransje-colored threads which twine around the stem 

 of the alfalfa and kill it. The remedy for the Dodder is to mow the alfalfa before 

 the seeds of the Dodder mature or if not discovered in time to do that, to mow and 

 burn on the ground to prevent scattering the seeds over new territory. 



All the varieties sown answered to the description of alfalfa, the various seeds 

 being either of foreign or domestic origin. No distinction as to growth or hardi- 

 ness could be observed. All were approximately of the same height when har- 

 vested and the difference in yield could not serve as a safe basis of comparing 

 the varieties, the plots being too small. Turkestan Alfalfa differs but slightly from 

 the other varieties; the velvety feeling of the leaves caused by minute hairs is 

 perhaps more prominent in this variety and this ought to be a point in its favor 

 as far as hardiness is concerned. 



The distinction between Sand Lucern and the other varieties is too small to 

 be noticed by the average observer, - It is said to be superior to the others on 

 lieht sandy soil and to be killed by stagnant water; it is claimed for it that it 

 will stand cold weather better than common alfalfa. The growth in 1901 of this 

 sort was so satisfactory that two crops might have been safely removed had the 

 autumn been as favorable as that of the normal season. As it was, the weather 

 conditions were at their worst in October and the plots were left undisturbed, 

 although, at that time the crop had made a growth of 12 to 18 inches. The weather 

 at the tirae of harvesting the previous cuttings of the season was very favorable. 

 Usually th6 plots were mowed in the morning as soon as the dew was off, the 

 swath left until the leaves were wilted then raked in windrows. On a few plots 

 the hay was sufficiently cured to be hauled under cover the same day while that 

 on others was left in small cocks during most of the following day. The hay 

 was in prime condition, keeping its bright green color and holding its leaves well 

 when handled. Its fine aroma could be easily distinguished long after other crops 

 were stored in the same barn. The hay was harvested when the plots were slightly 

 more than one-third in blossom. 



Some plots of alfalfa, one-haif rod in width, were sown between the fruit trees 

 to plow undpr the followin?? spring; following the plan of "sowing a leguminous 

 plot to enrich the soil by the decay of the crop when plowed under." It must be 

 remembered, however, that alfalfa, while being very beneficial to a young orchard 

 if handled correctly, is worse than weeds if left longer than one year among trees 

 set close together. 



The alfalfa seed sown was of the Turkestan. French and German origin and 

 the Sand Lucern from the importation of the Wernich Seed Company. The Sand 

 Lucern gave a slightly larger yield. They were all sown May 25th, blossomed from 

 the first to the third of August and were cut August 15th to August 17th, the 

 French Alfalfa being at that time 31 inches high and the German and Sand Lucern 

 34 inches These plots of alfalfa were observed during the season of 1902. They 

 were not fully established even during the second year, but their behavior and 

 thriftiness at this early age makes it safe to recommend alfalfa as one of the 

 most suitable and valuable forage crops for the millions of acres of limestone 

 soil of the Upper Peninsula; being a soil replenisher, alfalfa should by all means 

 take the place of timothy which is relatively a soil robber. This advice is driven 

 home by the fact that the annual yield of hay from an alfalfa field is sometimes 

 three and five times as great as from a similar field of timothy. The yields of 

 well cured hay for this, the second season are shown in the following table which 

 also gives the estimated yield per acre, each plot containing six square rods: 



