Vermont Agricultural Report. 71 



much to the nitrogen to be plowed under. In reaHty as high as 35 

 to 40 percent of the total nitrogen of the crop may be plowed 

 under in the stubble and roots for the use of later crops. This 

 means much as a means of improving soil fertility, and points 

 out the need of making the legumes important plants in our ro- 

 tation of crops, especially in dairy farming. 



VARIETIES OP CLOVER. 



The common red clover is the variety most commonly grown 

 for hay. Unless grown on moist soil this is a rather early 

 clover to grow with timothy and red-top and it does not always 

 withstand the effects of severe winters in cold climates. 



The alsike or Swedish clover is proving a valuable substi- 

 tute for red clover in northern New England. This clover has 

 finer stems and is rather more leafy than the common red. It 

 usually comes into blossom ten days later than the red, under 

 similar conditions, and besides is better adapted to moist clayey 

 soils. This clover is well worth trial by the dairy farmers of 

 Vermont. 



The mammoth red clover is essentially like the common 

 red, except it makes a coarser, more stemmy, vine-like growth. 

 This variety is commonly grown farther west, but does not seem 

 to be especially adapted to New England. 



PREPARING THE SEED BED. 



There has been a good deal of interest created during the 

 past few years by the so-called Clark method of preparing grass 

 lands for seeding. This method may be summed up under three 

 headings. 



1. A most thorough pulverization of the soil. 



2. Heavy fertilizing with commercial fertilizers. 



3. Heavy seeding. 



The method recommended for pulverizing the soil is to har- 

 row for a period of two months in the summer with a disk har- 

 row. The soil is most thoroughly broken up to a depth of 6 to 

 7 inches and the surface soil is made very fine, by stirring the 

 soil at least twenty-five to thirty times. 



That there are great advantages in thorough pulverizing of 

 the soil before seeding cannot be denied. Too little cultivation 

 rather than too much is the common error. The advantages in 

 thorough tillage may be briefly summed up as follows: (i) It 

 kills the weeds or other foul growths. (2) It breaks up all 

 lumps and provides more feeding surface for the small roots. 

 (3) It lets in the air and allows for freer action by the oxygen. 



