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growth of the trees about this time, so that they may mature their wood 

 before winter sets in. The thorough tillage which should have been 

 practised up to this season, leaves the ground in the best possible condi- 

 tion to give the young plants a start. The crop should be plowed under 

 as early in the spring as possible, and cultivation should begin at once. 

 If the crop is large and the soil rather dry, this is imperative, as the 

 large amount of vegetable matter turned under seriously interferes with 

 capillary action and leaves the surface soil unduly dry. 



That a cover crop may be of the greatest value, it should be capable 

 of withstanding the winter and continuing its growth next spring. This, 

 however, is not a necessity, as many of the ordinary crops which will 

 not live through the winter are valuable for this purpose. 



Different soils require different kinds of crops. This has led to a 

 division of cover crops under several classes. The most important are 

 the nitrogen gatherers, which through the agency of the nodules on the 

 roots can make use of the nitrogen of the air. Such plants as clover, 

 vetches, alfalfa, peas, and beans, belong to this class, and should be used 

 where the soil is deficient in nitrogen. Another class is known as the 

 potash liberators, such as turnips and rape, which, although they do not 

 add anything to the soil, as do the leguminous plants, yet change the 

 form of the mineral potash so that it may be more readily acted upon 

 by the roots of succeeding crops. Then there is a third class, commonly 

 grown, such as rye, oats, and buckwheat, which, are valuable chiefly on 

 account of the humus formed by their development. 



During the past two seasons, a number of the most common cover 

 crops have been grown in the College orchard with a view to ascertain- 

 ing their relative values. Among the most promising are the following : 



Hairy Vetch, sown at the rate of thirty-five pounds per acre, forms a 

 very close mat over the ground. This is a valuable crop owing to the 

 fact that it collects nitrogen, lies close to the ground so that it does not 

 inconvenience the pickers when gathering the fruit, and also withstands 

 the cold winter and continues its growth early in the spring. 



Red Clover and Mammoth Clover, sown at the rate of twenty pounds 

 per acre, are about equal in value, make a fair growth, are low growing, 

 and winter well on drained soil. 



Crimson Clover has not made quite as good growth as the red or 

 the mammoth, nor will it stand the winter here, which is a serious dis- 

 advantage. 



Alfalfa, or lucerne, is one of the best leguminous crops for dry land. 

 It makes a good growth and winters well. There is a mistaken impres- 

 sion that alfalfa will not make suflRcient top the first season. Thirty 

 pounds of seed per acre, sown in July, will give a good stand the same 

 season. 



Rape has given good results here. It makes a heavy growth of 

 stiff stems, which, although nearly all killed in winter, stand up well 



