52 Bulletin 78 



will be preserved and propagated for the sake of original values 

 displayed under Arizona conditions and not because they may have 

 a high color when grown in California or a fine flavor when grown 

 in Michigan. 



THE CROPS OF ARIZONA 



(Arranged Alphabetically) 

 ALFALFA 



As a commercial crop alfalfa has been grown in Arizona about 

 forty-five years. It succeeds admirably in all parts of the State 

 where suitable soil and sufficient water are available. It is little 

 affected by altitudes encountered within the farming sections of 

 the State. It succeeds in the Imperial Valley of California, below 

 the sea level and on the farming lands around Prescott and Flagstaff 

 at elevations of over 6,000 feet. When supplied with plenty of 

 water it will make some growth in every month of the year in the 

 lower valleys, but at the high elevations of northern and south- 

 eastern Arizona it is completely dormant in winter. Seven cuttings 

 are the rule in the vicinity of Yuma, six cuttings in the Salt Rivef 

 Valley, five in the upper Gila Valley, and from three to four at 

 high altitudes in the northern part of the State. Growth is most 

 rapid in spring and early summer, and the second cutting is usually 

 the heaviest. In midsummer, due to the intense heat and the 

 attacks of leaf hoppers and the larvae of the alfalfa butterfly, the 

 crop is usually light, but with the coming of the cooler weather of 

 September, the growth is more vigorous. Varieties differ in this 

 respect. The ordinary American and Turkestan types show most 

 the fcflect of summer retardation of growth, whereas the Peruvian 

 and Mediterranean alfalfas show least. 



Alfalfa can be sown with a good chance of success during any 

 month from September to May. If planted during the warmer 

 months, the ground loses moisture so fast that it will dry out 

 deeper than one dares to plant the seed before it ha? time to 

 germinate. When the seed is again irrigated before coming up, 

 the ground bakes around the seedlings so tightly that they are 

 unable to force their way to the surface. Stands may be secured 

 in the hottest weather, but in order to do so the seed must be 

 planted shallow and then watered every two or three days until the 

 plants are up. Such a proceeding would be impracticable in large 



