66 THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 



escape. Bloating will usually be prevented if we pasture one half hour 

 the first day, a little longer the second and so on for three or four days. 

 As a last resort, a small bladed knife may be used to make an incision 

 into the digestive cavity. This incision should be about six inches in 

 front and slightly below the left hip bone. Placing a quill or other tube 

 in this incision will aid the gas to escape. A trocar, which consists 

 of a large needle enclosed by a close-fitting tube, is best for this purpose. 

 After making the puncture the needle is withdrawn. 



Horses do well on such pasture ; hogs are best of all. An acre of good 

 alfalfa will support ten large hogs in prime condition. 



I doubt if it is wise to pasture alfalfa. I feel sure it is not the first 

 or second year. It may be wise to pasture in the late fall, especially 

 if the weather is uncertain. The alfalfa may be injured by being trod 

 upon, and this is certain to be true in wet seasons. If we must pasture 

 alfalfa, hogs with nose rings are preferable to turn upon the land. The 

 leaves of the alfalfa are the workers ; pasturing cuts these short, and 

 our gains are greatly reduced. 



SOILING. 



Alfalfa serves admirably as a soiling crop. It should be cut when it 

 commences to bloom. All kinds of stock thrive on this, and if fed to 

 sheep or cattle, no care is required, as it does not cause bloat, as does 

 alfalfa when pastured. I believe it is generally more economical to feed 

 the cured alfalfa. 



SEED CROP. 



Seed production is often very remunerative. From three hundred 

 to six hundred pounds per acre have been secured from a single cutting. 

 Fifteen dollars per hundred pounds is often paid for this seed. We see 

 that this gives us from $45.00 to $90.00 per acre. Yet we must remem- 

 ber that raising a crop of alfalfa seed reduces the number of cuttings 

 by one. If, as one large grower on the Sacramento River reports, the 

 average crop for four years has been eight tons, and the average price 

 $9.00, the total woukf be $72.00. If we can secure $90.00, or even 

 $45,00, for one cutting for seed, we can see it pays well. The straw has 

 a value equal to about one half that of the hay. 



The advantages of seed production mean more than money. This 

 also gives opportunity to breed a choice strain by careful seed selec- 

 tions from the most productive plants. By great pains and caution we 

 may secure weed-free seed, which is a substantial asset to the locality, 

 and would soon gain a reputation that would justly augment the price 

 to a top figure. 



California is a veritable mecca for this phase of alfalfa culture. A 

 rather thin stand, not too luxuriant, is best for seed. We can select 

 this by close observation. Enough water, early, and never too much, is 

 very important. We can absolutely control this in our fields with 

 irrigation. Warm, growing w^eather is very helpful. We always have 

 it. Rains and damps are great impediments to success. Our summers 

 are rainless. A good loamy soil is desirable ; we have this everywhere. 

 The soil should not be too rich. We can select that most suitable. 

 Bees to cross pollinate the bloom are imperative to success. Our genial 

 climate, with its wealth of sunshine, stimulates activity in bees as it 

 does growth and productivity in the plants. True there are wild bees 



