CROPS AND CROP TILLAGE. 29 



crop. (See PL III, fig. 1.) There are also cases where this first 

 vohmteer crop is aUowed to reseed itself, but the resulting crop 

 rarely amounts to nuich, owing to the irregularities of the stand and 

 to the growth of weeds that quickly establish themselves under such 

 conditions. In the long run, it is doubtful whether it ever pays to 

 grow three or even two crops of wheat in succession without plowing 

 the land between crops, for such practice not only wastes valuable 

 soil moisture, but allows llie hind^lo l)ecome very weedy. (See PI. 

 Ill, fig. 1.) 



TILLAOK FOU ALFALFA. 



The young alfalfa plant is as tender and delicate as the well-estab- 

 lished plant is strong and hardy, so that while it is necessary to have 

 the land in excellent tilth and all other conditions favorable for start- 

 ing this crop, a well-established field nuiy be harrowed and disked, 

 and sometimes even plowed, without destroying or even injuring 

 the plants. In fact, surface cultivation when the plants are nearly 

 or quite dormant, as in the early spring, seems to actually improve 

 the stand and invigorate the growth. 



The best results with alfalfa on the dry lands of the Great Basin 

 are secured by early spring sowing with a drill on land that has been 

 previously put in excellent condition of tilth. The seed is usually 

 sown without a nurse crop, and the land should be as free from 

 weeds as possible, for when the alfalfa plants are young they may 

 be easily injured by weeds. During the first summer the new alfalfa 

 field gets no attention except possibly a clipping with a mower set 

 liigli to cut any rank weeds that may have started and to cut back 

 the taller alfalfa plants. The plants cut down are usually left on 

 the 2:round to form a mulch. The second summer the alfalfa field is 

 in full bearing and may be cut once for a hay crop, and, if conditions 

 are favorable, enough second growth will be made to give a light 

 second crop. 



A\Tien seed production is the aim of alfalfa growing, a light hay 

 crop is usually cut very early, before the plants are in bloom, and the 

 second crop is then the larger and sets seed freely. With alfalfa 

 seed at its present price, seed production on the dry lands is much 

 more profitable than the hay crop unless hay is very scarce and high 

 priced. 



After the second year a field may be disked and harrowed with im- 

 punity without injuring the plants, so that it is quite possible to ma- 

 terially aid in the conservation of soil moisture in alfalfa fields even 

 if the ground is thickly covered with plants. On the dry lands of 

 North Africa it has been found profitable to sow alfalfa in rows and 

 cultivate it from time to time, and even to grow a wheat crop in alter- 

 nate years without injuring the alfalfa, which would yield fair crops 



103 



