6 IMPOKTED LOW-GRADE CLOVER AND ALFALFA SEED. 



three States have any eflfective leo;islation restricting the sale of seeds 

 witliin their borders. Several of the agricultural experiment stations 

 are preparing to undertake seed testing, but their equipment is limited 

 and the number of samples handled is small. At present there are no 

 Federal restrictions on the importation of low-grade and worthless 

 seed. As a natural result the United States has become the dumping 

 ground for the poor seed of Canada and Europe. 



ANALYSES OF IMPORTED LOW-GRADE SEEDS. 



RED CLOVER. 



Table I gives the analyses of sixty-one lots of low-grade red clover 

 seed imported during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1906, amounting 

 to 990,809 pounds. The total importations of red clover seed for the 

 same period amounted to 7,498,287 pounds, so that the low-grade 

 seed furnished about pne-eighth of the total. These low-grade 

 importations contained seed enough to sow approximately 125,000 

 acres at an average rate of seeding. This seed is for the most part 

 small-sized, light-weight screenings. A practical failure must be 

 expected whenever seed of this quality is used, either from not 

 securing a stand on account of poor germination or from smothering 

 with introduced weeds. 



Table I. — Analyses of 61 samples of low-grade red clover seed imported during the year 



ended June 30, 1906. 



o 75.41 per cent of samples contained dodder. 



b Total quantity of low-grade red clover seed imported, 990,809 pounds. 



Ill— HI 



